Calcium oxalate erystals in eucalypt ectomycorrhizae: Morphochemical characterization

Ectomycorrhizal fungi are ubiquitous in forest ecosystems, benefitting plants principally by increasing the uptake of water and nutrients such as calcium from the soil. Previous work has demonstrated accumulation of crystallites in eucalypt ectomycorrhizas, but detailed morphological and chemical ch...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Pylro, Victor Satler, Freitas, André Luiz Moreira de, Otoni, Wagner Campos, Silva, Ivo Ribeiro da, Borges, Arnaldo Chaer, Costa, Maurı́cio Dutra
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2013
País:Brasil
Institución:Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV)
Repositorio:LOCUS Repositório Institucional da UFV
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:locus.ufv.br:123456789/12524
Acceso en línea:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0067685
http://www.locus.ufv.br/handle/123456789/12524
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Calcium oxalate
Eucalypt ectomycorrhizae
Descripción
Sumario:Ectomycorrhizal fungi are ubiquitous in forest ecosystems, benefitting plants principally by increasing the uptake of water and nutrients such as calcium from the soil. Previous work has demonstrated accumulation of crystallites in eucalypt ectomycorrhizas, but detailed morphological and chemical characterization of these crystals has not been performed. In this work, cross sections of acetic acid-treated and cleared ectomycorrhizal fragments were visualized by polarized light microscopy to evaluate the location of crystals within cortical root cells. Ectomycorrhizal sections were also observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive x-ray (EDS) microprobe analysis. The predominant forms of crystals were crystal sand (granules) and concretions. Calcium, carbon and oxygen were detected by EDS as constituent elements and similar elemental profiles were observed between both crystal morphologies. All analyzed crystalline structures were characterized as calcium oxalate crystals. This is the first report of the stoichiometry and morphology of crystals occurring in eucalypt ectomycorrhizas in tropical soils. The data corroborates the role of ectomycorrhizae in the uptake and accumulation of calcium in the form of calcium oxalate crystals in hybrid eucalypt plants.