Abstract
Societal Impact Statement Sorghum is an important cereal crop that provides calories and nutrients for much of the world's population, and it is often grown with low fertiliser input. Optimising the yield, nutritive content and bioavailability of sorghum grain with minimal input is of importance for human nutrition, and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi have previously shown potential to assist in this. Across sorghum genetic diversity, AM fungi improved the yield, nutrition and zinc and iron bioavailability of grain in a low phosphorus soil. Thus, food production systems that effectively manage AM fungi may improve consumer outcomes. Summary Sorghum is a C 4 cereal crop that is an important source of calories and nutrition across the world, predominantly cultivated and consumed in low‐ and middle‐income countries. Sorghum can be highly colonised by arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, and the plant‐fungal association can lead to improvements in biomass and nutrient uptake. High‐throughput phenotyping allows us to non‐destructively interrogate the ‘hidden’ effects of AM fungi on sorghum growth and phenology. Eight genetically diverse sorghum genotypes were grown in a soil amended with 2 or 20 mg P kg −1 and inoculated with an AM fungal culture of Rhizophagus irregularis . High‐throughput phenotyping uncovered the ‘hidden’ effects of AM fungi on growth and phenology, while grain biomass, nutrition, Zn and Fe bioavailability and root AM colonisation was determined after destructive harvest. Sorghum plants colonised by AM fungi generally performed better than non‐AM control plants, with greater yield, harvest indices, and grain P, Zn and Fe contents. During the early growth stages, AM colonisation led to temporary growth depressions. There were also AM fungal and P fertilisation effects on sorghum time‐of‐flowering. The sorghum genotype with the highest AM colonisation could barely produce grain when non‐inoculated. The two genotypes that failed to mature had very low AM colonisation. Generally, the genetically diverse sorghum genotypes were highly responsive to AM colonisation and produced more grain of greater nutritive quality when colonised, without adverse consequences for micronutrient bioavailability.
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Claims 8
Claim · model-written summary
AM colonisation increased sorghum yield, harvest indices, and grain P, Zn and Fe contents relative to non-AM plants.
- Treatment
- colonised by AM fungie0
- Interactor
- AM fungiGlomeromycotae0symbiont
- Outcome
- yield, harvest indices, and grain P, Zn and Fe contentse0
- Direction
- greatere0
- Comparator
- non‐AM control plantse0
SorghumOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Sorghum plants colonised by AM fungi generally performed better than non‐AM control plants, with greater yield, harvest indices, and grain P, Zn and Fe contents.”
Claim · model-written summary
AM colonisation temporarily depressed sorghum growth early.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“During the early growth stages, AM colonisation led to temporary growth depressions.”
t0“sorghum”
Claim · model-written summary
AM fungi affected sorghum flowering time.
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“There were also AM fungal and P fertilisation effects on sorghum time‐of‐flowering.”
Claim · model-written summary
P fertilisation affected sorghum flowering time.
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“There were also AM fungal and P fertilisation effects on sorghum time‐of‐flowering.”
Claim · model-written summary
The most highly colonised sorghum genotype barely produced grain without inoculation.
- Material
- genotype with the highest AM colonisatione0
- Outcome
- produce graine0
- Direction
- barelye0
- Qualifier
- when non‐inoculatede0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The sorghum genotype with the highest AM colonisation could barely produce grain when non‐inoculated.”
Claim · model-written summary
Two sorghum genotypes that failed to mature had very low AM colonisation.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The two genotypes that failed to mature had very low AM colonisation.”
t0“sorghum”
Claim · model-written summary
High-throughput phenotyping revealed effects of AM fungi on sorghum growth and phenology.
Not reportedComparatorValue
Verbatim
e0“High‐throughput phenotyping uncovered the ‘hidden’ effects of AM fungi on growth and phenology”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors propose managing AM fungi to improve food production outcomes.
- Interactor
- AM fungiGlomeromycotae0symbiont
- Outcome
- effectively manage AM fungie0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“food production systems that effectively manage AM fungi may improve consumer outcomes”
t0“Sorghum”
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