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The Community of Fine Root Fungi of Silver Fir (Abies alba Mill.) Saplings
This study aimed to assess the biodiversity of fungi colonizing the fine roots (diameter up to 2 mm) of 3-year-old silver fir saplings from areas of Międzylesie Forest District in Poland. It was hypothesized that quantitatively and qualitatively, mycorrhizal fungi would be the dominant fungi in root communities of silver fir. DNA extraction was performed using Plant Genomic DNA purification. The internal transcribed spacer1 (ITS1) rDNA region was amplified using specific primers, and the amplicons were purified and sequenced using sequencing by synthesis (SBS) Illumina technology. The obtained sequences were compared with reference sequences in the UNITE database (https://unite.ut.ee/) using the basic local alignment search tool (BLAST) algorithm to facilitate species identification. A total of 307,511 OTUs was obtained from each sample. There were 246,477 OTUs (80.15%) of fungi known from cultures. The genera Tuber spp. (7.51%) and Acephala spp. (3.23%) accounted for the largest share of the fungal communities on the fine roots of fir trees. Hence our results indicate the dominance of mycorrhizal fungi in these communities and reflect the excellent quality of the saplings that were assessed. Pathogenic fungi constituted a much smaller share of the fungal communities.
Silver fir restitution: The role of seedling stock type in adapting to various environmental conditions
Effects of nursery production methods on fungal community diversity within soil and roots of Abies alba Mill.
AbstractThe aim of this study was to elucidate how different nursery production methods influence the composition of and relationship between soil and root community levels of Abies alba. In the Międzylesie Forest District, we quantified the responses of samples of both community-level fine roots and surrounding soil to environmental changes evoked by various seedling production methods. Fungi levels were identified based on their ITS 1 region and 5.8 S rDNA component. Analysis was conducted using Illumina SBS technology, and the obtained sequences were compared with reference samples deposited in the UNITE. Chemical analysis of the soil was also performed. Different nursery production methods resulted in a strong decoupling in the responses of fungal community levels between soil and roots. Changes in growth conditions imposed by production methods were significant in determining species composition. We found differences in fungal communities among functional groups of samples. In the soil, the dominant species of mycorrhizal fungi were Tylospora asterophora, Amanita rubescens, and Russula ionochlora. Mycorrhizal fungi in roots included Tuber anniae, Thelephoraceae sp., and Acephala applanata. Specific soil substrate conditions significantly influenced fungal community composition, leading to an increase in abundance of mycorrhizal fungi, specifically T. anniae.