Structure of Fungal Communities in Sub-Irrigated Agricultural Soil from Cerrado Floodplains

Eláiny Cristina Alves Martins Oliveira ,Siu Mui Tsai ,Joênes Mucci Pelúzio ,Waldesse Piragé De Oliveira ,Acácio Aparecido Navarrete ,Alana De Almeida Valadares ,Paula B Morais

doi:10.3390/d8020013

Eláiny Cristina Alves Martins Oliveira , Siu Mui Tsai + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/d8020013

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Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the influence of soybean cultivation on the fungal community structure in a tropical floodplain area. Soil samples were collected from two different soybean cropland sites and a control area under native vegetation. The soil samples were collected at a depth of 0–10 cm soil during the off-season in July 2013. The genetic structure of the soil fungal microbial community was analyzed using the automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis (ARISA) technique. Among the 26 phylotypes with abundance levels higher than 1% detected in the control area, five were also detected in the area cultivated for five years, and none of them was shared between the control area and the area cultivated for eight years. Analysis of similarity (ANOSIM) revealed differences in fungal community structure between the control area and the soybean cropland sites, and also between the soybean cropland sites. ANOSIM results were confirmed by multivariate statistics, which additionally revealed a nutrient-dependent relation for the fungal community structure in agricultural soil managed for eight consecutive years. The results indicated that land use affects soil chemical properties and richness and structure of the soil fungal microbial community in a tropical floodplain agricultural area, and the effects became more evident to the extent that soil was cultivated for soybean for more time.

Highlights

Tropical biomes are home to the largest biodiversity in the world and fungal species are important components of the biodiversity in these environments [1]
Higher Al content was found in control soils in comparison to soils from soybean cultivated areas
In acidic tropical soils, changing in soil chemical properties due lime requirement for agricultural practices includes a increase in H+ activity, a decrease in Al toxicity, an increase in Ca and Mg availability, and benefits associated with Ca as a complementary ion on the cation exchange complex [7,27,28,29]

Summary

Introduction

Tropical biomes are home to the largest biodiversity in the world and fungal species are important components of the biodiversity in these environments [1]. Among the soil-colonizing microorganisms, fungi are usually one of the most abundant groups in terms of biomass and physiological activity [2], and they are essential for the survival of other organisms. Fungi are essential for nutrient cycling via the metabolism of complex organic materials [3,4], and they are vitally important for the good growth of most plants, including crops, through the development of mycorrhizal associations [5]. Despite previous findings in areas of the Cerrado biome [9,10,11], there is a lack of information about the impact of soil agricultural management on the fungal microbial community in Cerrado areas

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