Abstract
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMFs) play a vital role in ecosystems, especially in ecosystem variability, diversity, and function. Understanding the AMF diversity, distribution, and their driver at different altitudinal gradients is a benefit for understanding the ecological function of AMF in mountain ecosystems. In this study, we explored the AMF molecular diversity and their distribution from 660 to 3,500 m a.s.l. in Mount Taibai of Qinling Mountains based on high-throughput sequencing technology. A total of 702 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in 103 species of AMF are isolated from soil samples, which belong to 18 identified and 1 unidentified genus in 10 families. The fungi in the genus of Glomus is the most dominant, with the occurrence frequency of 100% and the relative abundance of 42.268% and 33.048% on the species and OTU level, respectively. The AMF colonization in root could be simulated by a cubic function with the change of altitudes with the peak and trough at a.s.l. 1,170 and 2,850 m, respectively. Further, AMF diversity indices including Sob, Shannon diversity, and Pielou evenness also showed the same cubic function change trends with increasing altitude at OTU and species levels. However, the average values of diversity indices at OTU level are always higher than these at the species level. Based on the OTU level, the highest and lowest values of Shannon and Pielou indices are observed at the altitudes of 1,400 and 2,800 m, respectively. The pattern of AMF community distribution in Mt. Taibai is driven by altitude with the characteristics of more abundance in the medium- to low-altitude than high-altitude areas. In general, abundant AMF molecular diversity and species exit in different elevations of Mt. Taibai, which indicate gradient changes with elevations.
Highlights
Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) is an obligate symbiotic formed between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMFs) and plant roots
AMF diversity measured by molecular method is much more than the previous findings by morphological methods
Of AMFs, 702 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) belonging to 103 species are isolated and identified representing 18 identified and 1 unidentified genus
Summary
Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) is an obligate symbiotic formed between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMFs) and plant roots. Studies have shown that AMF plays an important role in regulating plant species diversity and the ecosystem succession (van der Heijden and Scheublin, 2007; Jing et al, 2015; Bauer et al, 2017). Because of the strong environmental gradient, mountain ecosystem provides a unique opportunity for the study of AMF diversity and becomes a key area for global biodiversity research (Zanzottera et al, 2020). Studies have shown that it is usually observed that as the altitude increases, the diversity of AMF presents a decreasing trend in temperate climate (Liu et al, 2015; Vieira et al, 2019). This pattern is not constant, and Coutinho et al (2015) found an increased trend of AMF diversity at high altitudes in the tropical ecosystem of Brazil
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