Carbon availability triggers the decomposition of plant litter and assimilation of nitrogen by an ectomycorrhizal fungus.

ABSTRACT: The majority of nitrogen in forest soils is found in organic matter-protein complexes. Ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF) are thought to have a key role in decomposing and mobilizing nitrogen from such complexes. However, little is known about the mechanisms governing these processes, how they are regulated by the carbon in the host plant and the availability of more easily available forms of nitrogen sources. Here we used spectroscopic analyses and transcriptome profiling to examine how the presence or absence of glucose and/or ammonium regulates decomposition of litter material and nitrogen mobilization by the ectomycorrhizal fungus Paxillus involutus. We found that the assimilation of nitrogen and the decomposition of the litter material are triggered by the addition of glucose. Glucose additi

SUBMITTER: Rineau F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3965319 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature