Broad compatibility in fungal root symbioses

Plants associate with a wide range of beneficial fungi in their roots which facilitate plant mineral nutrient uptake in exchange for carbohydrates and other organic metabolites. These associations play a key role in shaping terrestrial ecosystems and are widely believed to have promoted the evolution of land plants. To establish compatibility with their host, root-associated fungi have evolved diverse colonization strategies with distinct morphological, functional and genomic specializations as well as different degrees of interdependence. They include obligate biotrophic arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM), and facultative biotrophic ectomycorrhizal (ECM) interactions but are not restricted to these well-characterized symbioses. There is growing evidence that root endophytic associations, which due to their inconspicuous nature have been often overlooked, can be of mutualistic nature and represent important players in natural and managed environments. Recent research into the biology and genomics of root associations revealed fascinating insight into the phenotypic and trophic plasticity of these fungi and underlined genomic traits associated with biotrophy and saprotrophy. In this review we will consider the commonalities and differences of AM and ECM associations and contrast them with root endophytes.