Mycorrhiza— diversity and impacts

In the middle of 2001, David (Dave) Janos resigned as aManaging Editor of Mycorrhiza. We thank Dave on be-half of everyone associated with Mycorrhiza for thework that he has done for the journal. Dave's contribu-tions to understanding the impact of mycorrhizal associ-ations in tropical plant ecosystems are of fundamentalimportance. His major reviews (e.g. Janos 1996) are essential reading for mycorrhizal ecologists who areseeking to broaden their conceptual frameworks beyondtemperate or arid ecosystems. These have implemented agrowing recognition of the great diversity in the impactof individual mycorrhizal associations, and the complexoutcomes in terms of effects on plant community struc-ture – hot topics beyond the tropics.

It has not been a simple task to define in standardgeographical terms the parts of the world for which thetwo Managing Editors are now responsible. AndrewSmith deals with manuscripts from the Americas, Eastand Southeast Asia, Australasia and the Pacific region.Vivienne Gianinazzi-Pearson deals with “the rest of theworld” – i.e. Europe, Africa, the Near East and “WesternAsia”, including the Indian sub-continent. Perhaps weneed a map of the world with suitable shading for thetwo Managing Editors and grey areas in-between wherecontributors can take their pick!

As in previous years, submission of papers on all as-pects of mycorrhizal research will be welcome. In thewords of the revised “Aims and Scope” paragraph: “Thescope of Mycorrhiza covers all aspects of research intomycorrhizas, including molecular biology of the plantsand fungi, fungal systematics, development and structureof mycorrhizas, and effects on plant physiology, produc-

tivity, reproduction and disease resistance”. The scopealso includes interactions between mycorrhizal fungi andother soil organisms and effects of mycorrhizas on plantbiodiversity and ecosystem structure. We are very con-scious that many mycorrhizal researchers have their owninterfaces with research beyond mycorrhizas, in disci-plines such as plant anatomy, fungal and plant physiol-ogy, ecology, taxonomy and evolution, and, of course,applied areas including agriculture and forestry – withthe increasing influence of molecular biology through-out. Accordingly, the “Newscorner” section will includemore reports from conferences that do not primarily dealwith mycorrhizas but include contributions about mycor-rhizas, or material relevant to mycorrhizas. Likewise, inthe “Comments” section, scientifically sound andthought-provoking commentaries will be welcomed onnew and exciting discoveries – whether published in Mycorrhiza or in other journals. We also very much hopethat Mycorrhiza will be closely associated with the Inter-national Mycorrhiza Society, now definitely being estab-lished (http://www.mycorrhizas.org/), and we will workwith our publishers and officers of the new society to tryto bring this about.

In conclusion, it is our aim that Mycorrhiza – like theorgans with which it deals – will both show diversitywith respect to the material that it contains and have astrong impact. And yes, our Impact Factor is rising. Itcurrently stands at 1.3. We'll leave it to our readers tocompare with “the competition”.

References

Janos DP (1996) Mycorrhizas, succession and the rehabilitation ofdeforested lands in the humid tropics. In: Frankland JC, Magan N, Gadd, GM (eds) Fungi and environmental change.Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 129–162

F. Andrew Smith · V. Gianinazzi-PearsonManaging Editors

Mycorrhiza (2002) 12:53DOI 10.1007/s00572-002-0167-8

E D I T O R I A L

Mycorrhiza – diversity and impacts

Published online: 15 March 2002© Springer-Verlag 2002