Assessing the structure and diversity of fungal community in plant soil under different climatic and vegetation conditions

Sen Liu; Chengjie Xiong; Longbing Lin; Nemat O Keyhani; Mengjia Zhu; Zhiying Zhao; Weibin Zhang; Chenjie Yang; Hailan Su; Pu Liu; Xiayu Guan; Junzhi Qiu

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2023.1288066

Assessing the structure and diversity of fungal community in plant soil under different climatic and vegetation conditions

Front Microbiol. 2023 Nov 29:14:1288066. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1288066. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Sen Liu¹, Chengjie Xiong¹, Longbing Lin¹, Nemat O Keyhani², Mengjia Zhu¹, Zhiying Zhao¹, Weibin Zhang¹, Chenjie Yang¹, Hailan Su³, Pu Liu⁴, Xiayu Guan⁵, Junzhi Qiu¹

Affiliations

¹ Key Lab of Biopesticide and Chemical Biology, Ministry of Education, State Key Laboratory of Ecological Pest Control for Fujian and Taiwan Crops, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China.
² Department of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, United States.
³ Crop Institute of Fujian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Fuzhou, China.
⁴ Engineering Research Center of Edible and Medicinal Fungi, Ministry of Education, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, China.
⁵ College of Horticulture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China.

Abstract

Introduction: Understanding microbial communities in diverse ecosystems is crucial for unraveling the intricate relationships among microorganisms, their environment, and ecosystem processes. In this study, we investigated differences in the fungal community structure and diversity in soils from two contrasting climatic and vegetation conditions: the Xinjiang western China plateau and the Fujian southeastern coastal province.

Methods: A total of 36 soil samples collected from two climatic regions were subjected to high-throughput ITS gene sequencing for fungal community analysis. In conjunction soil physicochemical properties were assessed and compared. Analyses included an examination of the relationship of fungal community structure to environmental factors and functional profiling of the community structure was using the FUNGuild pipeline.

Results: Our data revealed rich fungal diversity, with a total of 11 fungal phyla, 31 classes, 86 orders, 200 families, 388 genera, and 515 species identified in the soil samples. Distinct variations in the physicochemical properties of the soil and fungal community structure were seen in relation to climate and surface vegetation. Notably, despite a colder climate, the rhizosphere soil of Xinjiang exhibited higher fungal (α-)diversity compared to the rhizosphere soil of Fujian. β-diversity analyses indicated that soil heterogeneity and differences in fungal community structure were primarily influenced by spatial distance limitations and vegetation type. Furthermore, we identified dominant fungal phyla with significant roles in energy cycling and organic matter degradation, including members of the Sordariomycetes, Leotiomycetes, Archaeosporomycetes, and Agaricomycetes. Functional analyses of soil fungal communities highlighted distinct microbial ecological functions in Xinjiang and Fujian soils. Xinjiang soil was characterized by a focus on wood and plant saprotrophy, and endophytes, whereas in Fujian soil the fungal community was mainly associated with ectomycorrhizal interactions, fungal parasitism, and wood saprotrophy.

Discussion: Our findings suggest fungal communities in different climatic conditions adapt along distinct patterns with, plants to cope with environmental stress and contribute significantly to energy metabolism and material cycling within soil-plant systems. This study provides valuable insights into the ecological diversity of fungal communities driven by geological and environmental factors.

Keywords: ecological diversity; functional and structural traits; fungal communities; fungal diversity; geological and environmental factors.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This research was financed by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (nos. 32270029, U1803232, and 31670026), the National Key R&D Program of China (nos. 2017YFE0122000 and 2022YFD1600300), A Key Project from the Fujian Provincial Department of Science and Technology (no. 2020N5005), the Fujian Provincial Major Science and Technology Project (no. 2022NZ029017), and the Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University Social Service Team Support Program Project (no.11899170165).