How do ecological trade-offs drive ectomycorrhizal fungal community assembly? Fine-scale processes with large-scale implications

生态权衡如何驱动外生菌根真菌群落组装？

• 批准号: MR/S017240/1
• 负责人: Filipa Cox
• 金额: $ 83.97万
• 依托单位: University of Manchester
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Fellowship
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2019 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=MR%2FS017240%2F1
• 关键词: How; do; ecological; trade; offs

Nearly all plants are associated with mutualistic fungi which inhabit their roots. These mycorrhizal fungi provide the plants with a source of nutrients and in exchange, the plant provides the fungal partner with a source of carbon. Trees typically associate with ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi, which are critical to many processes within ecosystems including decomposition and nitrogen and carbon cycling. Different species of ECM fungi can differ in their ability to acquire nutrients or in the suite of functions that they carry out. Understanding what affects the species composition of ECM fungi is therefore important for a better overall understanding of nutrient cycling in soils, forest health, productivity and biodiversity. Individual species of ECM fungi compete for space on the roots of trees. Some fungi are likely to be better competitors for root space than others, but the best competitors are likely to perform less well in other important strategies, such as nutrient acquisition. These 'trade-offs', which mean the ability to perform optimally in one respect is associated with a decline in performance in another, are known to be a fundamental reason why so many species of macro-organisms can co-occur in a single habitat. However, the role that these trade-offs play in affecting mycorrhizal communities is poorly understood despite its probable importance in determining the species composition of these ecologically vital fungi.In this fellowship, I test the hypothesis that trade-offs between nutrient acquisition (the breadth of nitrogen that can be taken up) and competitiveness (the ability to win space on plant roots and obtain plant carbon) is a critical process driving the species of mycorrhizal fungi that can co-occur on individual plant roots, and that this ultimately affects the community composition of fungi observed across landscape-scales. I test this hypothesis using a series of experiments in the laboratory which allow me to trace the quantities of carbon being supplied from the plant to individual species of fungi, and in exchange how much nitrogen is being passed from the fungus to the plant. Field experiments in a forest which has received more than 30 years of experimental nitrogen fertilisation will allow me to test how these trade-offs operate in a more complex natural setting, where the availability of nitrogen may alter the dynamics of the trade-off and the exchange rate of carbon and nitrogen between plant and fungal partner. Finally, I will test how the results observed in the lab and field scale-up to patterns of ECM species occurrence across Europe, using a series of long-term monitoring forest plots.The UK's forests provide significant amenity, carbon-capture and timber value, whilst globally trees form hyper-diverse tropical rainforests, and hold significant stores of carbon in boreal ecosystems. As ECM fungi are a critical component of all tree-dominated ecosystems, the outputs from this project will provide high-quality insights into this key aspect of our natural environment, and help to develop future research, policy and forestry practice in the UK and beyond.

几乎所有植物都与居住在根源的互生真菌有关。这些菌根真菌为植物提供营养来源，作为植物，该植物为真菌伴侣提供了碳的来源。树木通常与外生菌（ECM）真菌相关，这对于生态系统中的许多过程至关重要，包括分解，氮和碳循环。不同种类的ECM真菌在获取营养或其执行的功能套件上可能会有所不同。因此，了解影响ECM真菌物种组成的原因对于更好地总体了解土壤，森林健康，生产力和生物多样性的养分循环非常重要。 ECM真菌的个别物种在树木的根部竞争太空。某些真菌可能比其他真菌更好地成为根空间的竞争对手，但是最好的竞争对手可能在其他重要策略（例如营养获取）中表现不佳。这些“权衡”意味着在一个方面的最佳表现能力与众所周知的表现下降有关，这是一个基本原因，为什么如此多种宏观有机体可以在单个栖息地共同发生。但是，尽管在确定这些生态上至关重要的真菌的物种组成中，但这些折衷在影响菌根群落中所起的作用。可以占用的氮）和竞争力（在植物根部赢得空间并获得植物碳的能力）是一个关键过程，驱动菌根真菌的物种，可以在单个植物根部共同发生，这最终会影响该物种在整个景观范围内观察到的真菌的社区组成。我使用实验室中的一系列实验来检验这一假设，使我能够追踪从植物提供的碳数量到真菌的个别物种，并交换了多少氮从真菌传递给植物。在接受超过30年的实验氮肥的森林中进行的现场实验将使我能够测试这些权衡如何在更复杂的自然环境中运作，氮气的可用性可能会改变权衡的动态和植物和真菌伴侣之间的碳和氮的汇率。最后，我将使用一系列的长期监测森林图，测试如何在实验室和现场量表中观察到的ECM物种发生模式。 ，虽然全球树木形成多样性的热带雨林，并在北方生态系统中存放着大量的碳。由于ECM真菌是所有以树为主的生态系统的关键组成部分，因此该项目的产出将为我们自然环境的这一关键方面提供高质量的见解，并有助于发展英国及其他地区的未来研究，政策和林业实践。

项目成果

Forest tree growth is linked to mycorrhizal fungal composition and function across Europe.

• DOI: 10.1038/s41396-021-01159-7
• 发表时间: 2022-05
• 期刊: The ISME journal
• 作者: Anthony MA;Crowther TW;van der Linde S;Suz LM;Bidartondo MI;Cox F;Schaub M;Rautio P;Ferretti M;Vesterdal L;De Vos B;Dettwiler M;Eickenscheidt N;Schmitz A;Meesenburg H;Andreae H;Jacob F;Dietrich HP;Waldner P;Gessler A;Frey B;Schramm O;van den Bulk P;Hensen A;Averill C
• 通讯作者: Averill C