Isolation and molecular identification of endophytic fungifrom Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.)

Background and Aim : It seems that plants in natural ecosystems coexist with fungal endophytes.Endophytes are ubiquitous and have high biodiversity and can affect plant communities byincreasing optimum growth by increasing tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses, increasingbiomass and reducing water consumption, or reducing optimum growth by changing resourceallocation. Despite more than ۱۰۰ years of research that has resulted in thousands of articles, theecological importance of these fungi has not been determined. This study aims to isolate andmolecular identification of endophytic fungi from Licorice.Methods : A sampling of healthy plants was carried out randomly in three different locations ofHamedan city (including M=Agriculture research center, D=Moradbeig Valley, andK=ImamzadehKooh Mai) in ۲۰۲۲. Sampling was taken from three different tissues (leaf, root, andstem). Then, isolates were identified by carrying out multiple cultures in the PDA medium basedon morphological characteristics and molecular sequencing of the ITS۱-۵.۸S-ITS۲ region basedon PCR products For sequencing that were carried out by Niagen Noor Medical GeneticsCompany.Results : Totally, ۲۱ endophytic fungi were isolated from this plant. There are no isolated fungalendophytes from the leaf but, It was found that the highest range of fungal endophytes is relatedto the root tissue (۸۴.۶۲%) and the area of the M (Agriculture research center) (۴۶.۱۵). Then, withmolecular methods, it was determined with more than ۹۵% similarity that the fungal species relatedto the area of the M is Aspergillus niger and Fusarium oxysporum, and the samples taken from thetwo mentioned areas are F. redolense species with a percentage of identification of ۹۶%.Conclusion : This is the first report that endophytic fungi were isolated from Licorice in Iran. F.redolence is new and the first endophytic fungus reported from Licorice in the world. It can beconcluded that molecular identification is a very exact method to detect endophytic fungi.

کلیدواژه ها:

Licorice ، endophytic fungi ، Molecular