A wide variety of plants form symbiotic relationships in their roots with
arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. The fungi channel inorganic and
micronutrients from soil to the plant, and the plant supplies the fungi
with organic nutrients. Jiang *et al.* and Luginbuehl *et al.* found that
as part of this exchange, the plant supplies lipids to its symbiotic fungi,
thus providing the fungi with a robust source of carbon for their metabolic
needs.
Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi facilitate plant uptake of mineral
nutrients and draw organic nutrients from the plant. Organic nutrients are
thought to be supplied primarily in the form of sugars. Here we show that
the AM fungus *Rhizophagus irregularis* is a fatty acid auxotroph and that
fatty acids synthesized in the host plants are transferred to the fungus to
sustain mycorrhizal colonization. The transfer is dependent on RAM2
(REQUIRED FOR ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZATION 2) and the ATP binding cassette
transporter–mediated plant lipid export pathway. We further show that plant
fatty acids can be transferred to the pathogenic fungus *Golovinomyces
cichoracerum* and are required for colonization by pathogens. We suggest
that the mutualistic mycorrhizal and pathogenic fungi similarly recruit the
fatty acid biosynthesis program to facilitate host invasion. http://www.sciencemag.org/about/science-licenses-journal-article-reuse
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[permaculture] Plants transfer lipids to sustain colonization by mutualistic mycorrhizal and parasitic fungi | Science,
Lawrence London, 06/20/2017