1
|
Christian N, Perlin MH. Plant-endophyte communication: Scaling from molecular mechanisms to ecological outcomes. Mycologia 2024; 116:227-250. [PMID: 38380970 DOI: 10.1080/00275514.2023.2299658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
Diverse communities of fungal endophytes reside in plant tissues, where they affect and are affected by plant physiology and ecology. For these intimate interactions to form and persist, endophytes and their host plants engage in intricate systems of communication. The conversation between fungal endophytes and plant hosts ultimately dictates endophyte community composition and function and has cascading effects on plant health and plant interactions. In this review, we synthesize our current knowledge on the mechanisms and strategies of communication used by endophytic fungi and their plant hosts. We discuss the molecular mechanisms of communication that lead to organ specificity of endophytic communities and distinguish endophytes, pathogens, and saprotrophs. We conclude by offering emerging perspectives on the relevance of plant-endophyte communication to microbial community ecology and plant health and function.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Christian
- Department of Biology, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky 40292
| | - Michael H Perlin
- Department of Biology, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky 40292
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Bakker MG, Whitaker BK, McCormick SP, Ainsworth EA, Vaughan MM. Manipulating atmospheric CO 2 concentration induces shifts in wheat leaf and spike microbiomes and in Fusarium pathogen communities. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1271219. [PMID: 37881249 PMCID: PMC10595150 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1271219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Changing atmospheric composition represents a source of uncertainty in our assessment of future disease risks, particularly in the context of mycotoxin producing fungal pathogens which are predicted to be more problematic with climate change. To address this uncertainty, we profiled microbiomes associated with wheat plants grown under ambient vs. elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration [CO2] in a field setting over 2 years. We also compared the dynamics of naturally infecting versus artificially introduced Fusarium spp. We found that the well-known temporal dynamics of plant-associated microbiomes were affected by [CO2]. The abundances of many amplicon sequence variants significantly differed in response to [CO2], often in an interactive manner with date of sample collection or with tissue type. In addition, we found evidence that two strains within Fusarium - an important group of mycotoxin producing fungal pathogens of plants - responded to changes in [CO2]. The two sequence variants mapped to different phylogenetic subgroups within the genus Fusarium, and had differential [CO2] responses. This work informs our understanding of how plant-associated microbiomes and pathogens may respond to changing atmospheric compositions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew G. Bakker
- Department of Microbiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Briana K. Whitaker
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Peoria, IL, United States
| | - Susan P. McCormick
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Peoria, IL, United States
| | - Elizabeth A. Ainsworth
- Global Change and Photosynthesis Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Urbana, IL, United States
| | - Martha M. Vaughan
- Mycotoxin Prevention and Applied Microbiology Research Unit, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Peoria, IL, United States
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Whitaker BK, Giauque H, Timmerman C, Birk N, Hawkes CV. Local Plants, Not Soils, Are the Primary Source of Foliar Fungal Community Assembly in a C4 Grass. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2022; 84:122-130. [PMID: 34405252 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-021-01836-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 07/30/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Microbial communities, like their macro-organismal counterparts, assemble from multiple source populations and by processes acting at multiple spatial scales. However, the relative importance of different sources to the plant microbiome and the spatial scale at which assembly occurs remains debated. In this study, we analyzed how source contributions to the foliar fungal microbiome of a C4 grass differed between locally abundant plants and soils across an abiotic gradient at different spatial scales. Specifically, we used source-sink analysis to assess the likelihood that fungi in leaves from Panicum hallii came from three putative sources: two plant functional groups (C4 grasses and dicots) and soil. We expected that physiologically similar C4 grasses would be more important sources to P. hallii than dicots. We tested this at ten sites in central Texas spanning a steep precipitation gradient. We also examined source contributions at three spatial scales: individual sites (local), local plus adjacent sites (regional), or all sites (gradient-wide). We found that plants were substantially more important sources than soils, but contributions from the two plant functional groups were similar. Plant contributions overall declined and unexplained variation increased as mean annual precipitation increased. This source-sink analysis, combined with partitioning of beta-diversity into nestedness and turnover components, indicated high dispersal limitation and/or strong environmental filtering. Overall, our results suggest that the source-sink dynamics of foliar fungi are primarily local, that foliar fungi spread from plant-to-plant, and that the abiotic environment may affect fungal community sourcing both directly and via changes to host plant communities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Briana K Whitaker
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, 112 Derieux Place, Raleigh, NC, 27607, USA
- USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Mycotoxin Prevention & Applied Microbiology Unit, 1815 N University St, Peoria, IL, 61604, USA
| | - Hannah Giauque
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Corey Timmerman
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Nicolas Birk
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Christine V Hawkes
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, 112 Derieux Place, Raleigh, NC, 27607, USA.
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas Austin, Austin, TX, USA.
| |
Collapse
|