Correlation between the Concentration of Secondary Metabolites and Soil Microorganisms in Sophora Koreensis Nakai from Different Habitat

Abstract

Sophora koreensis is an endemic species of Gangwon-do, Korea, that has a variety of applications for foods and for folk remedies. Here this research analyzed and compared compounds present in leaves, stems, and roots of S. koreensis collected from three different habitats in Chuncheon, Inje and Yanggu in South Korea. This research also analyzed soil microorganisms present in the three habitats to determine the correlation between the compound and microorganisms. N-methylcytisine was the most common compound in all three habitats, but the amounts varied with Chuncheon having the highest amount (509 mg/L), followed by Yanggu and Inje(102 mg/L and 39 mg/L, respectively). The composition of microorganisms also varied by habitat. Yanggu, Inje, and Chuncheon had 1013, 973, and 814 taxa, respectively. According to the phylogenetic relations, the composition of the soil microorganisms in Chuncheon was significantly different from the other two. It contained more PAC000121_g (Solibacteres), major taxa in all three habitats (14% in Chuncheon). In contrast less Opitutus minor taxa was found than Yannggu and Inje. The correlation between the soil microorganism N-methylcytisine was analyzed. Among these microorganisms, Paraburkholderia had a positive correlation with N-methylcytisine. Meanwhile, Rhizomicrobium, CP011215_f (Paceibacter), KB906767_g (Solibacteres) and Opitutus negatively correlated with N-methylcytisine. The results suggested that soil microorganisms in the habitats influenced the variations of the N-methylcytisine.