title: Root-associated fungi of Vaccinium carlesii in subtropical forests of China: intra- and inter-annual variability and impacts of human disturbances.
abstract: Ericoid mycorrhiza (ERM) are expected to facilitate establishment of ericaceous plants in harsh habitats. However, diversity and driving factors of the root-associated fungi of ericaceous plants are poorly understood. In this study, hair-root samples of Vaccinium carlesii were taken from four forest types: old growth forests (OGF), secondary forests with once or twice cutting (SEC I and SEC II), and Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation (PLF). Fungal communities were determined using high-throughput sequencing, and impacts of human disturbances and the intra- and inter-annual variability of root-associated fungal community were evaluated. Diverse fungal taxa were observed and our results showed that (1) Intra- and inter-annual changes in root-associated fungal community were found, and the Basidiomycota to Ascomycota ratio was related to mean temperature of the sampling month; (2) Human disturbances significantly affected structure of root-associated fungal community of V. carlesii, and two secondary forest types were similar in root-associated fungal community and were closer to that of the old growth forest; (3) Plant community composition, edaphic parameters, and geographic factors significantly affected root-associated fungal communities of V. carlesii. These results may be helpful in better understanding the maintenance mechanisms of fungal diversity associated with hair roots of ERM plants under human disturbances.
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China.
authors.forename: Yanhua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ni
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China.
authors.forename: Fangping
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Kequan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pei
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA.
authors.forename: Yiqi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA.
authors.forename: Lifen
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Shaoxing University, Shaoxing, China.|Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA.
authors.forename: Lifu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liang
mesh_terms: D001203:Ascomycota / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D001487:Basidiomycota / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D044822:Biodiversity; D002681:China; D032486:Cunninghamia / Q000382:microbiology*; D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000235:genetics; D065928:Forests; D059014:High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; D064307:Microbiota / Q000235:genetics*; D038821:Mycorrhizae / Q000235:genetics*; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000382:microbiology*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D029796:Vaccinium / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D004271:DNA, Fungal