Lost in diversity the interactions between soil-borne fungi, biodiversity and plant productivity

• Published in: The New phytologist Vol. 218; no. 2; pp. 542 - 553
• Main Authors: Mommer, Liesje, Cotton, T. E. Anne, Raaijmakers, Jos M., Termorshuizen, Aad J., Ruijven, Jasper, Hendriks, Marloes, Rijssel, Sophia Q., Mortel, Judith E., Paauw, Jan Willem, Schijlen, Elio G. W. M., Smit‐Tiekstra, Annemiek E., Berendse, Frank, Kroon, Hans, Dumbrell, Alex J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England New Phytologist Trust 01.04.2018; John Wiley and Sons Inc
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Biomass; BIOS Applied Bioinformatics; community structure; density dependence; fungal communities; fungal community composition; Fungi - pathogenicity; Fungi - physiology; grasslands; high-throughput nucleotide sequencing; host specificity; Host-Pathogen Interactions; Models, Biological; Nature Conservation and Plant Ecology; Natuurbeheer en Plantenecologie; neighbour identity; pathogenicity; pathogens; PE&RC; Plant Development; Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation; plant growth; Plant Roots - genetics; Plant Roots - microbiology; Plantenecologie en Natuurbeheer; Plants - microbiology; PRI BIOS Applied Bioinformatics; root distribution; root‐associated fungi; soil fungi; Soil Microbiology; species diversity; Species Specificity; WIMEK; root-associated fungi; neighbour identity; fungal community composition; host specificity; root distribution; density dependence
• ISSN: 0028-646X; 1469-8137; 1469-8137
• DOI: 10.1111/nph.15036

There is consensus that plant species richness enhances plant productivity within natural grasslands, but the underlying drivers remain debated. Recently, differential accumulation of soil-borne fungal pathogens across the plant diversity gradient has been proposed as a cause of this pattern. However, the below-ground environment has generally been treated as a ‘black box’ in biodiversity experiments, leaving these fungi unidentified. Using next generation sequencing and pathogenicity assays, we analysed the community composition of root-associated fungi from a biodiversity experiment to examine if evidence exists for host specificity and negative density dependence in the interplay between soil-borne fungi, plant diversity and productivity. Plant species were colonised by distinct (pathogenic) fungal communities and isolated fungal species showed negative, species-specific effects on plant growth. Moreover, 57% of the pathogenic fungal operational taxonomic units (OTUs) recorded in plant monocultures were not detected in eight plant species plots, suggesting a loss of pathogenic OTUs with plant diversity. Our work provides strong evidence for host specificity and negative density-dependent effects of root-associated fungi on plant species in grasslands. Our work substantiates the hypothesis that fungal root pathogens are an important driver of biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationships.