Decrease in fungal biodiversity along an available phosphorous gradient in arable Andosol soils in Japan

• Published in: Canadian journal of microbiology Vol. 59; no. 6; pp. 368 - 373
• Main Authors: Bao, Zhihua, Matsushita, Yuko, Morimoto, Sho, Hoshino, Yuko Takada, Suzuki, Chika, Nagaoka, Kazunari, Takenaka, Makoto, Murakami, Hiroharu, Kuroyanagi, Yukiko, Urashima, Yasufumi, Sekiguchi, Hiroyuki, Kushida, Atsuhiko, Toyota, Koki, Saito, Masanori, Tsushima, Seiya
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Canada NRC Research Press 01.06.2013; Canadian Science Publishing NRC Research Press
• Subjects: agriculture; Andisols; andosol; Andosols; available phosphorus; Biodiversity; Biological diversity; Chemical properties; correlation; Crops, Agricultural; Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis; diversité fongique; DNA, Fungal - analysis; Environmental aspects; fertilisation; fertilization; Fertilizers; fungal communities; fungal diversity; Fungi; Fungi - classification; Fungi - genetics; Fungi - isolation & purification; Genes; Genetic aspects; highlands; Japan; Mortierella; PCR–DGGE; phosphore disponible; Phosphorus; Phosphorus - analysis; Phosphorus content; phosphorus pentoxide; Polymerase Chain Reaction; ribosomal RNA; Ribotyping; Soil - chemistry; Soil Microbiology; soil sampling; Soils; Statistical analysis; Japan
• ISSN: 1480-3275; 0008-4166; 1480-3275
• DOI: 10.1139/cjm-2012-0612

Andosols comprise one of the most important soil groups for agricultural activities in Japan because they cover about 46.5% of arable upland fields. In this soil group, available phosphorus (P) is accumulated by application of excessive fertilizer, but little is known about the influence of increasing P availability on microbial community diversity at large scales. We collected soil samples from 9 agro-geographical sites with Andosol soils across an available P gradient (2048.1–59.1 mg P₂O₅·kg⁻¹) to examine the influence of P availability on the fungal community diversity. We used polymerase chain reaction – denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis to analyze the fungal communities based on 18S rRNA genes. Statistical analyses revealed a high negative correlation between available P and fungal diversity (H′). Fungal diversity across all sites exhibited a significant hump-shaped relationship with available P (R² = 0.38, P < 0.001). In addition, the composition of the fungal community was strongly correlated with the available P gradient. The ribotype F6, which was positively correlated with available P, was closely related to Mortierella. The results show that both the diversity and the composition of the fungal community were influenced by available P concentrations in Andosols, at a large scale. This represents an important step toward understanding the processes responsible for the maintenance of fungal diversity in Andosolic soils.