Abstract
Fungi present on grape surface considerably impact grape growth and quality. However, information of the fungal community structures and dynamics on the worldwide cash crop, the Cabernet Sauvignon grape, from the budding to ripening stages remains limited. Here, we investigated the succession of fungal communities on Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from an organic vineyard in Xinjiang, China at different developmental stages via high-throughput sequencing combined with multivariate data analysis. In total, 439 fungal amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) from six phyla were identified. The fungal communities differed over the budding to the berry stages. Moreover, Aspergillus, Malassezia, Metschnikowia, and Udeniomyces were predominant during the unripe stage, whereas Erysiphe, Cryptococcus, Vishniacozyma, and Cladosporium were dominant in the ripe stages. Notably, Vishniacozyma was the most abundant genus, conserved in all development stages. Moreover, network analysis resulted in 171 edges—96 negative and 75 positive. Moreover, fungal genera such as Vishniacozyma, Sporobolomyces, Aspergillus, Alternaria, Erysiphe, Toxicodendron, and Metschnikowia were present in the hubs serving as the main connecting nodes. Extensive mutualistic interactions potentially occur among the fungi on the grape surface. In conclusion, the current study expounded the characteristics of the Cabernet Sauvignon grape fungal community during the plant growth process, and the results provided essential insights into the potential impacts of fungal communities on grape growth and health.
Highlights
Wine is a traditional alcoholic beverage fermented from various fruits and vegetables, grapes
Fungal community richness and diversity exhibited a correlation with the growth process, and differences were observed according to the alpha diversity indexes
The changes in the microorganisms inhabiting the grape surface are dynamic over space and time
Summary
Wine is a traditional alcoholic beverage fermented from various fruits and vegetables, grapes. According to the time of fermentation, grape varieties, and grape color, wine can be classified into red, rose, and white (Swami et al, 2014). The classic dry red wine is the most popular wine worldwide, with the largest production and sales volumes. The grapes used to make dry red wine mainly include Cabernet Sauvignon (Vitis vinifera L.), Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah (Rajha et al, 2017). Cabernet Sauvignon, originating from the Bordeaux region of France (Bowers and Meredith, 1997), is currently the most famous and important red grape variety; it is widely cultivated in China because of its strong adaptability and the premium-quality wines that it produces (Jiang and Zhang, 2012).
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