Abstract
Alkaloids produced by endophytic fungi can have an important influence on agricultural ecology, and can often be affected by climatic factors. At present, there are no studies that have assessed the relationship between alkaloid production and elevation or climatic factors in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. To address this knowledge gap, we explored ergot alkaloid and peramine production in Epichloë-infected (E+) Elymus tangutorum collected from the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau and assessed the relationship between the concentration of these alkaloids and elevation. The effects of temperature and precipitation on these relationships were also investigated. The concentrations of ergonovine, ergine, and peramine ranged from 0.47–0.84, 0.35–1.72 and 9.18–13.00 µg·g−1, respectively. Fitted cubic regression curves describing an arc-pattern across the elevational series were statistically significant for ergine and peramine concentrations. The elevational trend in peramine concentration was linked to mean daily temperature, while the ergine elevational trend was linked to mean precipitation. Our results provide a new understanding of the climatic factors that influence the alkaloid production of endophytic fungi at different elevations in the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau.
Highlights
Interactions between plants and endophytes are a widespread phenomenon in nature and are crucial to the establishment and maintenance of populations, influencing community dynamics and even ecosystem function, under environmental stress [1,2,3,4]
The majority of studies on the influence of climate factors on the alkaloid production of Epichloë endophytes have been conducted under controlled conditions, and relevant studies conducted in natural conditions are lacking. To address this knowledge gap, we explored ergot alkaloid and peramine production in Epichloë-infected (E+) E. tangutorum collected from 25 sites across the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau (QTP) and assessed the relationship between the concentration of these alkaloids and elevation
Within the elevation range of the study (2100–3920 m), the mean daily temperature and mean precipitation ranged from 9.1–15.6 ◦ C
Summary
Interactions between plants and endophytes are a widespread phenomenon in nature and are crucial to the establishment and maintenance of populations, influencing community dynamics and even ecosystem function, under environmental stress [1,2,3,4]. Between 20–30% of cool-season grass species can form symbiotic associations with Epichloë endophytes [5]. Asexual endophyte species of the genus Epichloë, formerly known as Neotyphodium, usually form symbioses with cool-season grasses [6]. Asexual Epichloë are vertically transmitted through host plant seeds, and do not normally cause symptoms in the host grass [7,8,9]. There are four major classes of alkaloids produced by this symbiosis; indole-diterpenoids (e.g., lolitrem B), pyrrolizidine (e.g., lolines), pyrrolopyrazine (e.g., peramine) and ergot alkaloids [23]. The ergot alkaloid, ergovaline is responsible for “fescue toxicosis” in livestock [24,25].
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