Abstract
Fungal endophytes can improve plant tolerance to abiotic stress. However, the role of these plant–fungal interactions in invasive species ecology and their management implications remain unclear. This study characterized the fungal endophyte communities of native and invasive lineages of Phragmites australis and assessed the role of dark septate endophytes (DSE) in salt tolerance of this species. We used Illumina sequencing to characterize root fungal endophytes of contiguous stands of native and invasive P. australis along a salinity gradient. DSE colonization was assessed throughout the growing season in the field, and effects of fungal inoculation on salinity tolerance were investigated using laboratory and greenhouse studies. Native and invasive lineages had distinct fungal endophyte communities that shifted across the salinity gradient. DSE colonization was greater in the invasive lineage and increased with salinity. Laboratory studies showed that DSE inoculation increased P. australis seedling survival under salt stress; and a greenhouse assay revealed that the invasive lineage had higher aboveground biomass under mesohaline conditions when inoculated with a DSE. We observed that P. australis can establish mutualistic associations with DSE when subjected to salt stress. This type of plant–fungal association merits further investigation in integrated management strategies of invasive species and restoration of native Phragmites.
Highlights
Fungal endophytes establish mutualistic associations with most plant species, and can play a major role in plant ecology and community structure [1]
We identified salinitydriven dark septate endophytes (DSE) colonization patterns that led to a follow-up question: Can fungal endophytes improve salt tolerance of P. australis? We hypothesized that DSE mutualists played a role in stress tolerance of the invasive P. australis lineage, and used laboratory and greenhouse assays to test this prediction
Native and invasive lineages of the common reed P. australis are colonized by distinct fungal endophytes that can improve the salt tolerance of these grasses
Summary
Fungal endophytes establish mutualistic associations with most plant species, and can play a major role in plant ecology and community structure [1]. These endophytes can improve host nutrient uptake [2, 3], improve host defense against pathogens [4], modify trophic interactions [5,6,7], and improve host tolerance to abiotic stress [8, 9]. At the plant community level, they can affect plant diversity [10, 11] and can be important factors in plant invasion ecology [12, 13]. A better understanding of plant–microbe interactions can help improve various aspects of invasive species
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