Biotechnology of VA Mycorrhizza: Indian Scenario

The understanding of the relationship between mycorrhiza and plants has developed at a relatively slow pace until the 1970s, when there was a significant increase in interest in a particular form of endomycorrhiza known as vesicular arbuscular mycorrhiza (VA Mycorrhiza). The extensive research conducted over the past three decades has confirmed its widespread presence in a wide range of plant species and under a variety of agro-climatic conditions, including deserts, forests, and mangroves. It has been established that this mutualistic association benefits plants by enhancing their nutrient uptake, controlling root pathogens, and interacting synergistically with nitrogen-fixing microorganisms, hormone production, and drought resistance. As a result of its utility to plants, this biological tool has attracted the attention of microbiologists, agronomists, horticulturists, and foresters on a global scale.