Conservation tillage decreases selection pressure on community assembly in the rhizosphere of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi

• Published in: The Science of the total environment Vol. 710; p. 136326
• Main Authors: Wang, Ziting, Li, Yüze, Li, Tong, Zhao, Deqiang, Liao, Yuncheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 25.03.2020
• Subjects: agroecosystems; Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi; cohesion; Community assembly; community structure; conservation tillage; disturbed soils; environmental factors; Environmental filtering; Fungi; Mycorrhizae; mycorrhizal fungi; Phylogenetic structure; Phylogeny; Rhizosphere; Selection pressure; Soil; Soil Microbiology; stochastic processes; total nitrogen; wheat; Selection pressure; Community assembly; Phylogenetic structure; Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi; Environmental filtering
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.136326

Different tillage practices elicit various degrees of soil disturbance and significantly affect the community structure of soil microbes, especially rhizosphere microbes. However, little is known about the effects of tillage on community assembly and composition in the rhizosphere of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (RAMF). In this study, we investigated wheat RAMF communities under long-term different tillage patterns in an agroecosystem. The results showed that soil disturbance caused by tillage resulted in significant changes in RAMF communities, and this change varied with the degree of disturbance. Soil total nitrogen was the most relevant abiotic factor to RAMF communities. Notably, as a biotic selection factor, we found that cohesion of communities could also explain the changes in RAMF taxonomic and phylogenetic composition, which have not been revealed by other studies. Meanwhile, by analyzing the RAMF community assembly process under tillage practices, we found that stochastic processes dominated the assembly of RAMF communities under different tillage practices, and with the reduction of disturbance degree, the process occupied an increasingly important position. Overall, the structure and assembly process of the RAMF community in the rhizosphere varied with the degree of soil disturbance caused by tillage. These findings may provide more insights on underground processes and aid in the development of conservation tillage as a sustainable agricultural practice. [Display omitted] •Understanding the response of RAMF to tillage practices is critical.•Soil nitrogen content is the main environmental factor affecting the RAMF.•Decrease tillage intensity can alleviate the selection pressure imposed to RAMF.•In general, the stochastic process dominant assembly of RAMF