Ancient Amber Preserves 52-Million-Year-Old Biological
Partnership Fossil provides evidence of early symbosis between
fungi and tropical trees Preserved for 52 million years in a
piece of Indian amber the size of a walnut, a rare fossil
discovered by an international team of scientists from the
United States, Germany, and India documents a biological
partnership that makes the survival of most terrestrial plants
possible. This long-standing symbiotic relationship between soil
fungi and plant roots is called mycorrhizae. With fine thread-
like cells, the fungus increases the root surface for the plant,
enabling the host plant to access more nutrients. In return, the
fungus receives energy from the plant in the form of sugars.
This symbiosis also has been shown to enhance a plant's
resistance to pathogens and the effects of drought. "Mycorrhizal
relationships are believed to have arisen more than 400 million
years ago, as plants began to colonize terrestrial habitats,"
said Paul Nascimbene of the American Museum