Characterization of root-associated fungi and reduced plant growth in soils from a New Mexico uranium mine.

Characterizing the diverse, root-associated fungi in mine wastes can accelerate the development of bioremediation strategies to stabilize heavy metals. Ascomycota fungi are well known for their mutualistic associations with plant roots and, separately, for roles in the accumulation of toxic compounds from the environment, such as heavy metals. We sampled soils and cultured root-associated fungi from blue grama grass () collected from lands with a history of uranium (U) mining and contrasted against communities in nearby, off-mine sites.