Interactions of fungi with other organisms

Abstract

Living organisms establish complex networks of mutualistic and antagonistic interactions in nature, which impact strongly on their own survival and on the stability of the whole population. Fungi, in particular, can shape natural as well as manmanaged ecosystems due to their ubiquitous occurrence and the range of interactions they establish with plants, animals and other microbes. This review describes some examples of mutualistic and antagonistic fungal interactions that are of particular interest for their ecological role, or because they can be exploited by man to improve plant health and/or productivity in sustainable agriculture and forestry