Author(s)

Anicet Manga^1,3*, Aliou Diop², Tahir A. Diop³

¹Section Productions Végétales et Agronomie, UFR des Sciences Agronomiques, de l’Aquaculture et des Technologies Alimentaires, Université Gaston Berger, Saint Louis, Sénégal.
²LERSTAD, Section Mathématiques, UFR de Sciences Appliquées et de Technologie, Université Gaston Berger, Saint Louis, Sénégal.
³Laboratoire de Biotechnologies des Champignons, Département de Biologie Végétale, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Sénégal.

Acacia seyal is a leguminous plant that plays an important role in the ecosystem of Sahelian zone by producing gum, wood and fodder. The growth of A. seyal is subject to many constraints as salinity which can affect the development of this tree. Therefore, soil microorganisms can help A. seyal to better tolerate the effects of negative environmental stresses. The contribution of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) to the salt tolerance of A. seyal, was evaluated by testing the effects of eight different arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) isolates in the performance of A. seyal seedlings subjected to different levels of salinity (0, 340 and 680 mM). The results based on growth parameters of shoot and root parts, shoot mineral N, P, K and Na content as well as survival rates and mycorrhization showed that AMF improved mineral nutrition of A. seyal seedlings during salt stress. The combination between AMF and salinity provided evidence that the efficiency of AMF isolates were variable in improving mineral nutrition and mortality rate for A. seyal seedlings related to the level of salt stress. However, the effects of inoculation were variable depending to the AMF isolate associated with seedlings and the level of salinity, suggesting that interactions between plants and AMF can be modulated by both AMF diversity and the type and level of abiotic factors. Rhizophagus intraradices was more efficient at 680 mM NaCl in plant growth and mineral uptake while Glomus deserticola did not promote a better plant development than most of the other species inoculated to seedlings.

Arbuscular Fungi, Salt Stress, Symbiotic Efficiency, Acacia seyal, Leguminous Tree, Functional Diversity

Manga, A. , Diop, A. and Diop, T. (2017) Functional Diversity of Mycorrhizal Fungi Has Differential Effects on Salinity Tolerance of Acacia seyal (Del.) Seedlings. Open Journal of Soil Science, 7, 315-332. doi: 10.4236/ojss.2017.711023.