Plant family identity distinguishes patterns of carbon and nitrogen stable isotope abundance and nitrogen concentration in mycoheterotrophic plants associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Mycoheterotrophy entails plants meeting all or a portion of their carbon (C) demands via symbiotic interactions with root-inhabiting mycorrhizal fungi. Ecophysiological traits of mycoheterotrophs, such as their C stable isotope abundances, strongly correlate with the degree of species' dependency on fungal C gains relative to C gains via photosynthesis. Less explored is the relationship between plant evolutionary history and mycoheterotrophic plant ecophysiology. We hypothesized that the C and nitrogen (N) stable isotope compositions, and N concentrations of fully and partially mycoheterotrophic species differentiate them from autotrophs, and that plant family identity would be an additional and significant explanatory factor for differences in these traits amon

SUBMITTER: Hynson NA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4998980 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature