Summary
This systematic review synthesises peer-reviewed evidence on the capacity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to ameliorate the combined abiotic stresses — principally drought, salinity, heat, and nutrient limitation — that characterise Mediterranean agricultural environments. By aggregating findings across multiple cropping systems and stress scenarios, the paper assesses the consistency and magnitude of AMF-mediated benefits to crop resilience and productivity. The work is likely to provide guidance on the practical deployment of AMF inoculants as low-input biological tools for sustainable farming under climate-driven stress conditions.
UK applicability
Although the review focuses on Mediterranean climates, its findings are increasingly relevant to the UK as climate change extends drought periods and heat stress events into summer cropping seasons; AMF-based soil biology strategies align with UK interest in reducing synthetic inputs under the Environmental Land Management scheme and broader agroecological transitions.
Key measures
Plant biomass and yield; drought and salinity tolerance indices; nutrient uptake (particularly phosphorus and nitrogen); root colonisation rates; oxidative stress markers (e.g. reactive oxygen species, antioxidant enzyme activity)
Outcomes reported
The review examines how inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) affects crop performance under multiple concurrent abiotic stresses typical of Mediterranean climates, including drought, salinity, heat, and nutrient deficiency. It likely reports on plant growth parameters, stress tolerance indicators, and nutrient uptake efficiency across the reviewed studies.
Topic tags
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