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Cooperation And Punishment In The Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Symbiosis: Implications For Resource Exchange & Biological Market Dynamics, Jerry A. Mensah

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis is arguably the world’s most abundant and important mutualism, and brings together the roots of the majority of land plants and AM fungi to great mutual advantage. The AM symbiosis can increase the uptake of nutrients, such as phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N), and improves the abiotic and biotic stress resistance of the host plant. AM fungi have the potential to act as biofertilizers and bioprotectors in sustainable agriculture. However, despite its significance, the mechanisms that control the resource exchange between both partners in the arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis are largely unknown. The main aim of …