**5.1 Salinity stress**

High salt concentrations in the soil make it difficult for roots to draw water from the ground and can be damaging to crops, with adverse effects such as ethylene production, plasmolysis, an unbalanced diet, the inhibition of photosynthesis, and the creation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) [34]. However, one of the ways by which plants manage salinity stress is via osmotic adaptation. A physiological technique employed by crops to sustain a variety of water movements between cells without experiencing turgor or growth decreases is called osmotic adaptation [35]. The buildup of appropriate solutes in plant cells, including proline and glycine betaine, serves as an illustration of this [34]. Furthermore, the existence of salt-tolerant AMF species was demonstrated by several recent scientific studies to alleviate the plant's salinity stress. The following four AMF properties are specifically mentioned by the researchers as having the capacity to reduce salt stress:


The benefits of arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi (AMF) on cassava plant growth under salinity have rarely been studied in field settings but in controlled settings. An example is a study conducted by Carretero et al. [20]. This study examined the effects of *G. intraradices* colonization on three cassava cultivars' biomass and salt tolerance

(measured as growth) (SOM-1, 05, and 50). In both AMF-inoculated and noninoculated cassava cultivars, the survival rate of the root, stem, and leaf development, as well as nutrient accumulation, were assessed in the presence of different sodium chloride concentrations (0, 68.4, or 136.8 mM) in the medium. It was reported that at 136.8 mM of salt, the AMF colonization boosted plant survival and encouraged growth. The SOM-1 cultivars outperformed the other two in terms of salt tolerance. In addition to promoting growth, the *G. intraradices*-inoculation proved essential for protecting salt-sensitive cassava cultivars (especially in salt-sensitive cultivars). When compared to non-mycorrhizal cultivars growing in the absence of salt, the AMF cultivars grew in 136.8 mM of NaCl2 and produced more dry weight. The results show that AMF-colonization offers a biological process whereby cassava cultivars can increase their salt tolerance and biomass, which, in both low- and high-stress settings, is essential for optimal cassava development [20].
