Community composition of root-associated fungi in a Quercus-dominated temperate forest: "codominance" of mycorrhizal and root-endophytic fungi.

ABSTRACT: In terrestrial ecosystems, plant roots are colonized by various clades of mycorrhizal and endophytic fungi. Focused on the root systems of an oak-dominated temperate forest in Japan, we used 454 pyrosequencing to explore how phylogenetically diverse fungi constitute an ecological community of multiple ecotypes. In total, 345 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) of fungi were found from 159 terminal-root samples from 12 plant species occurring in the forest. Due to the dominance of an oak species (Quercus serrata), diverse ectomycorrhizal clades such as Russula, Lactarius, Cortinarius, Tomentella, Amanita, Boletus, and Cenococcum were observed. Unexpectedly, the root-associated fungal community was dominated by root-endophytic ascomycetes in Helotiales, Chaetothyriales, and Rhytismatales. Ove

SUBMITTER: Toju H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3678483 | biostudies-literature | 2013 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature