Journal Article

Arbuscular mycorrhizal dynamics in a chronosequence of Caragana korshinskii plantations

Helgason, Thorunn, He, Lei, Feng, Huyuan, An, Lizhe, Liu, Yongjun

2009

Overview

Abstract Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in a chronosequence of 5–42-year-old Caragana korshinskii plantations in the semi-arid Loess Plateau region of northwestern China were investigated. AM fungi colonization, spore diversity and PCR-denatured gradient gel electrophoresis-based AM fungal SSU rRNA gene sequences were analyzed. AM fungi colonization [measured as the percent of root length (%RLC), vesicular (%VC) and arbuscular (%AC) colonization] and spore density were significantly correlated with sampling month, but not with plant age, except for %RLC. The percent of vesicular colonization was negatively correlated with soil total nitrogen and organic carbon, and spore density was negatively correlated with soil moisture and available phosphorus. Ten distinguishable AM fungal spore morphotypes, nine Glomus and one Scutellospora species, were found. Nine AM fungal Glomus phylotypes were identified by sequencing, but at each sampling time only four to six AM fungal phylotypes were detected. The AM fungal community was significantly seasonal, whereas the AM fungal species richness did not increase with plantation age. A significant change in AM fungal colonization and community composition over an annual cycle was observed in this study, and our results suggest that the changes of AM are the product of the interaction between host phenology, soil characteristics and habitat. Understanding these interactions is essential if habitat restoration is to be effective.

• Publisher: Blackwell Publishing Ltd,Blackwell,Oxford University Press
• Subject: analysis / Animal, plant and microbial ecology / arbuscular mycorrhiza / Arbuscular mycorrhizas / Arid regions / Biodiversity / Biological and medical sciences / Caragana / Caragana korshinskii / carbon / China / Chronobiology Phenomena / chronosequences / classification / Colonization / Communities / community / Community composition / community structure / Correlation / denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) / Density / Desert Climate / Ecology / Ecosystem / Electrophoresis / Electrophoresis - methods / Environmental restoration / Fabaceae / Fabaceae - growth & development / Fabaceae - microbiology / Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology / fungal communities / fungal spores / Fungi / Gel electrophoresis / Gene sequencing / genetics / Glomeromycota / Glomeromycota - classification / Glomeromycota - isolation & purification / Glomeromycota - metabolism / Glomeromycota - physiology / Glomus / growth & development / habitat conservation / habitats / isolation & purification / metabolism / methods / Microbial ecology / Microbiology / Molecular Sequence Data / Mycorrhizae / Mycorrhizae - growth & development / Mycorrhizae - metabolism / mycorrhizal fungi / nitrogen content / nucleotide sequences / Organic carbon / phenology / Phosphorus / Phylogeny / phylotype / physiology / plant age / Plant Roots / Plant Roots - microbiology / Plantations / Restoration / ribosomal RNA / rRNA / Sampling / Scutellospora / seasonal dynamics / Seasons / Sequence Analysis, DNA / Soil / Soil - analysis / Soil characteristics / Soil moisture / soil water / Soils / species diversity / Species richness / Species Specificity / Spores, Fungal / Spores, Fungal - classification / Spores, Fungal - genetics / Spores, Fungal - isolation & purification / succession / vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizae