The contribution of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to the control of soil-borne plant pathogens

Abstract

Biological control can be defined as the directed and precise management of biological resources, to protect plants against pathogens. The control of plant diseases by applying biocontrol techniques is a multifaced scientific area of great interest because of the need to reduce chemical inputs to agriculture and significantly enhance global sustainability. Some specific groups of microorganisms are able to protect the plant against pathogens by acting through several mechanisms. Among these organisms, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are promising because of their ubiquity in natural and agricultural terrestrial ecosystems (Jeffries and Barea 2001).