Disentangling Large- and Small-Scale Abiotic and Biotic Factors Shaping Soil Microbial Communities in an Alpine Cushion Plant System.

ABSTRACT: Microorganisms play a crucial role in biogeochemical cycles and ecosystem processes, but the key factors driving microbial community structure are poorly understood, particularly in alpine environments. In this study, we aim to disentangle the relative contribution of abiotic and biotic factors shaping bacterial and fungal community structure at large and small spatial and integration scales in an alpine system dominated by a stress-tolerant cushion species Thylacospermum ceaspitosum. These effects were assessed in two mountain ranges of northwest China and for two contrasting phenotypes of the cushion species inhabiting two different microtopographic positions. The large- and small-scale abiotic effects include the site and microhabitat effects, respectively, while the large- and s

SUBMITTER: Wang C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7262953 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature