Title |
Do commercial arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculants contain the species that they claim?
|
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Published in |
Mycorrhiza, February 2023
|
DOI | 10.1007/s00572-023-01105-9 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Tanel Vahter, Epp Maria Lillipuu, Jane Oja, Maarja Öpik, Martti Vasar, Inga Hiiesalu |
Abstract |
The use of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal inoculants as a means to promote plant growth is gaining momentum worldwide. Although there is an increasing number of commercial products available for various applications, the quality of these remains uncertain. We determined the AM fungal species composition in eleven inoculants from four producers by using DNA metabarcoding and compared them to the AM fungal species declared on the product labels. Our DNA metabarcoding of the inoculants revealed a concerning discrepancy between the declared and detected AM fungal species compositions of the products. While nine products contained at least one declared species, two did not contain any matching species and all inoculants but one contained additional species not declared on the product label. These findings highlight the need for better guidelines and industry standards to ensure consumer protection in the AM fungal inoculum market. Additionally, we call for caution when using commercial AM fungal inoculants in scientific experiments without confirmatory information about their species composition. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
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United States | 5 | 20% |
Spain | 2 | 8% |
Slovenia | 1 | 4% |
Japan | 1 | 4% |
France | 1 | 4% |
Unknown | 15 | 60% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
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Members of the public | 12 | 48% |
Scientists | 11 | 44% |
Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 2 | 8% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Unknown | 26 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Researcher | 7 | 27% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 3 | 12% |
Professor | 2 | 8% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 2 | 8% |
Student > Bachelor | 1 | 4% |
Other | 3 | 12% |
Unknown | 8 | 31% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 10 | 38% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 3 | 12% |
Nursing and Health Professions | 1 | 4% |
Environmental Science | 1 | 4% |
Immunology and Microbiology | 1 | 4% |
Other | 1 | 4% |
Unknown | 9 | 35% |