title: Flooding greatly affects the diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi communities in the roots of wetland plants.
abstract: The communities of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) colonizing the roots of three mangrove species were characterized along a tidal gradient in a mangrove swamp. A fragment, designated SSU-ITS-LSU, including part of the small subunit (SSU), the entire internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and part of the large subunit (LSU) of rDNA from samples of AMF-colonized roots was amplified, cloned and sequenced using AMF-specific primers. Similar levels of AMF diversity to those observed in terrestrial ecosystems were detected in the roots, indicating that the communities of AMF in wetland ecosystems are not necessarily low in diversity. In total, 761 Glomeromycota sequences were obtained, which grouped, according to phylogenetic analysis using the SSU-ITS-LSU fragment, into 23 phylotypes, 22 of which belonged to Glomeraceae and one to Acaulosporaceae. The results indicate that flooding plays an important role in AMF diversity, and its effects appear to depend on the degree (duration) of flooding. Both host species and tide level affected community structure of AMF, indicating the presence of habitat and host species preferences.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
authors.forename: Yutao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Yelin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Qiu
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Guorong
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Xin
authors.forename: Zhongyi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Suhua
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shi
mesh_terms: D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000378:metabolism; D021901:DNA, Intergenic; D017753:Ecosystem; D055868:Floods; D005658:Fungi / Q000235:genetics; D014644:Genetic Variation; D055137:Glomeromycota / Q000235:genetics*; D038821:Mycorrhizae / Q000235:genetics*; D010802:Phylogeny; D018521:Plant Physiological Phenomena; D018517:Plant Roots; D010944:Plants / Q000382:microbiology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D012987:Soil; D053833:Wetlands
chemical_list: D004271:DNA, Fungal; D021901:DNA, Intergenic; D012987:Soil