Response of Fungal Communities to Fire in a Subtropical Peatland

Abstract Purpose: Wildfire, an increasing disturbance in peatlands, could dramatically change carbon stocks and reshape plant/microbial communities, with long-lasting effects on peatland functions. Soil fungi are important in controlling the belowground carbon and nutrient cycling in peatlands; however, the impact of altered fire regimes on these fungi is still unclear. Methods: Here we assessed fungal abundance, composition, and diversity across four soil depths (0–5 cm, 6–10 cm, 11–15 cm, 16–20 cm) under low-intensity and high-intensity fire in a subtropical peatland in the southeastern USA. Results: Low-intensity fire significantly increased fungal Shannon diversity and the saprotrophic fungal composition in the 0–5 cm soil layer immediately and then retracted within 2 years. Such hump-shaped pattern, however, were not observed in deeper soils. The dominant fungal class Archaeorhizomycetes declined initially and then returned to pre-low-intensity fires levels at 0–5 cm depths. Time since low-intensity fire was a primary driver of fungal composition in the 0–10 cm soil depth, while geographical distance among sites affected the deeper soils (11–20 cm). The fungal Shannon diversity failed to recover to the unburned state even after 30 years after high-intensity fire, especially in 6–20 cm soil depths. Stratification patterns of the fungal community was diminished by high-intensity fire. Soil properties (either phenolics or carbon) were the primary drivers in shaping fungal community reassembly after high-intensity fire across all soil depths. Conclusion: Collectively, the fungal communities seem to be highly resilient to low-intensity fire, but not to high-intensity fire in our shrub bog peatlands.

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Responses of Soil Fungal Communities to Lime Application in Wheat Fields in the Pacific Northwest

Frontiers in Microbiology ◽

10.3389/fmicb.2021.576763 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Chuntao Yin ◽

Daniel C. Schlatter ◽

Duncan R. Kroese ◽

Timothy C. Paulitz ◽

Christina H. Hagerty

Keyword(s):

Pacific Northwest ◽

Fungal Community ◽

Fungal Diversity ◽

Soil Depth ◽

Fungal Communities ◽

Agricultural Practice ◽

The Pacific ◽

Soil Fungal Community ◽

Lime Application ◽

The Impact

Liming is an effective agricultural practice and is broadly used to ameliorate soil acidification in agricultural ecosystems. Our understanding of the impacts of lime application on the soil fungal community is scarce. In this study, we explored the responses of fungal communities to liming at two locations with decreasing soil pH in Oregon in the Pacific Northwest using high-throughput sequencing (Illumina MiSeq). Our results revealed that the location and liming did not significantly affect soil fungal diversity and richness, and the impact of soil depth on fungal diversity varied among locations. In contrast, location and soil depth had a strong effect on the structure and composition of soil fungal communities, whereas the impact of liming was much smaller, and location- and depth-dependent. Interestingly, families Lasiosphaeriaceae, Piskurozymaceae, and Sordariaceae predominated in the surface soil (0–7.5 cm) and were positively correlated with soil OM and aluminum, and negatively correlated with pH. The family Kickxellaceae which predominated in deeper soil (15–22.5 cm), had an opposite response to soil OM. Furthermore, some taxa in Ascomycota, such as Hypocreales, Peziza and Penicillium, were increased by liming at one of the locations (Moro). In conclusion, these findings suggest that fungal community structure and composition rather than fungal diversity responded to location, soil depth and liming. Compared to liming, location and depth had a stronger effect on the soil fungal community, but some specific fungal taxa shifted with lime application.

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Therapist Characteristics and their Effect on Training Outcomes: What Counts?

Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy ◽

10.1017/s1352465814000642 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 43 (3) ◽

pp. 374-380 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Amanda Branson ◽

Roz Shafran

Keyword(s):

High Intensity ◽

Clinical Performance ◽

Clinical Skill ◽

Individual Characteristics ◽

Therapist Characteristics ◽

Training Outcomes ◽

Low Intensity ◽

Cognitive Behavioural ◽

The Impact ◽

And Training

Background:Evidence exists for a relationship between individual characteristics and both job and training performance; however relationships may not be generalizable. Little is known about the impact of therapist characteristics on performance in postgraduate therapist training programmes.Aims:The aim of this study was to investigate associations between the grades of trainee Low-Intensity and High-Intensity cognitive behavioural therapists and individual characteristics.Method:Trainee Low-Intensity (n= 81) and High-Intensity (n= 59) therapists completed measures of personality and cognitive ability; demographic and course grade data for participants were collected.Results:Degree classification emerged as the only variable to be significantly associated with performance across assessments and courses. Higher undergraduate degree classifications were associated with superior academic and clinical performance. Agreeableness was the only dimension of personality to be associated (positively) with clinical skill. Age was weakly and negatively associated with performance.Conclusions:Relationships between individual characteristics and training outcomes are complex and may be context specific. These results could have important implications for the selection and development of therapists for Low or High-Intensity cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) training.

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Long-term effects of stump removal and tree species composition on the diversity and structure of soil fungal communities

FEMS Microbiology Ecology ◽

10.1093/femsec/fiaa061 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 96 (5) ◽

Author(s):

Dixi Modi ◽

Suzanne Simard ◽

Jean Bérubé ◽

Les Lavkulich ◽

Richard Hamelin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Species Composition ◽

Fungal Community ◽

Tree Species ◽

Management Practice ◽

Tree Regeneration ◽

Root Disease ◽

Fungal Communities ◽

Tree Species Composition ◽

The Impact

ABSTRACT Stump removal is a common forest management practice used to reduce the mortality of trees affected by the fungal pathogen-mediated root disease, Armillaria root rot, but the impact of stumping on soil fungal community structure is not well understood. This study analyzed the long-term impact of stumping and tree species composition on the abundance, diversity and taxonomic composition of soil fungal communities using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) marker-based DNA metabarcoding in a 48-year-old trial at Skimikin, British Columbia. A total of 108 samples were collected from FH (fermented and humus layers), and soil mineral horizons (A and B) from stumped and unstumped plots of six tree species treatments (pure stands and admixtures of Douglas-fir, western red-cedar and paper birch). Fungal α-diversity in the A horizon significantly increased with stumping regardless of tree species composition, while β-diversity was significantly affected by stumping in all the horizons. We also observed that the relative abundance of the saprotrophic fungal community declined while that of the ectomycorrhizal fungal community increased with stumping. In conclusion, increase in ectomycorrhizal fungal associations, which are positively associated with tree productivity, suggests that stumping can be considered a good management practice for mitigating root disease and promoting tree regeneration.

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Soil fungal community structure and seasonal diversity following application of organic amendments of different quality under maize cropping in Zimbabwe

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0258227 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (10) ◽

pp. e0258227

Author(s):

Tonny P. Tauro ◽

Florence Mtambanengwe ◽

Shensi Mpepereki ◽

Paul Mapfumo

Keyword(s):

Community Structure ◽

Fungal Community ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Fungal Communities ◽

Soil Productivity ◽

Smallholder Farming ◽

Soil Dna ◽

Maize Stover ◽

Fungal Community Structure ◽

The Impact

Recent advocacy for Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) in smallholder farming systems in east and southern Africa show substantial evidence of increased and sustained crop yields associated with enhanced soil productivity. However, the impact ISFM on soil fungi has received limited attention, yet fungi play key roles in crop growth. Following total soil DNA extraction with ZR soil microbe miniprep kit, illumina sequencing was used to, examine the fungal communities (ITS1F) under a maize crop following co-application of organic nutrient resources including Crotalaria juncea, cattle manure and maize stover with inorganic fertilizers at three-time periods (T1-December, T2-January, and T3-February) in Zimbabwe. Ninety-five fungal species were identified that were assigned to Ascomycota (>90%), Basidiomycota (7%) and Zygomycota (1%). At T1, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were identified across treatments, with Ascomycota attaining > 93% frequency. Fungal succession was noted and involved reduction of Ascomycota coupled by increase in Basidiomycota under the different treatments. For example at T3, Basidiomycota increased to 34% while Ascomycota declined to 66% under manure but remained unchanged in other two organics. Pre-season mineral nitrogen (N) associated with the ‘Birch effect’ apparently influenced the fungal community structure at T1 while readily available fertilizer N was critical at T2 and T3. The low-quality maize stover promoted the presence of Exophiala sp SST 2011 and this was linked to N immobilization. The impact of N addition was more pronounced under medium (manure) to low-quality (maize stover) resources. Fungi required phosphorus (P) and N for survival while their proliferation was dependent on substrate availability linked to resource quality. Interactive-forward test indicated that soil available P and N were most influential (P < 0.05) factors shaping fungal communities. Co-application of medium to high quality organic and inorganic resources show promise as a sustainable entry point towards enhancing belowground fungal diversity critical in driving nutrient supply.

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Impact of Single Bout of Physical Exercise on Adolescents’ Strength and Balance Abilities

Baltic Journal of Sport and Health Sciences ◽

10.33607/bjshs.v1i96.75 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 1 (96) ◽

Author(s):

Lina Kreivėnaitė ◽

Vytautas Streckis ◽

Sandra Raizgytė ◽

Asta Lileikienė

Keyword(s):

Physical Exercise ◽

High Intensity ◽

Postural Sway ◽

High Intensity Exercise ◽

Body Balance ◽

Low Intensity ◽

Eyes Closed ◽

Single Bout ◽

Eyes Open ◽

The Impact

Background. There is evidence of physical exercise effect on the adolescents’ balance and strength; however it is not known how aforementioned variables respond to physical exercise with different loads and intensities. Therefore, the aim of the study was to assess the impact of single bout of physical exercise of different intensity on adolescents’ body balance and muscular strength.Methods. Thirty healthy, physically active 11–13-year-old adolescents were randomly allocated to one of the two groups. Both groups performed single bout of physical exercise of high- or low-intensity climbing up and down-stairs. Postural sway and maximum voluntary contractions (MVC) were assessed before and after physical exercise. Results. No statistically significant impact of low or high intensity exercise was found at adolescents’ MVC. High intensity exercise influenced bigger postural sway with eyes closed compared to eyes open ( p < .05). After high-intensity exercise there was a significantly greater postural sway with eyes closed than with eyes open (p < .05). Conclusions. High and low intensity physical exercise had no impact on the adolescents’ maximum voluntary contraction, whereas high intensity exercise deteriorated body balance with eyes closed.Keywords: adolescence, physical exercise, MVC, balance

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Non-symbiotic soil microbes are more strongly influenced by altered tree biodiversity than arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi during initial forest establishment

FEMS Microbiology Ecology ◽

10.1093/femsec/fiz134 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 95 (10) ◽

Author(s):

Jake J Grossman ◽

Allen J Butterfield ◽

Jeannine Cavender-Bares ◽

Sarah E Hobbie ◽

Peter B Reich ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fungal Community ◽

Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽

High Throughput Sequencing ◽

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal ◽

Tree Diversity ◽

Fungal Communities ◽

Juniperus Virginiana ◽

Lipid Fatty Acid ◽

Neutral Lipid Fatty Acid ◽

Fungal Abundance

ABSTRACT While the relationship between plant and microbial diversity has been well studied in grasslands, less is known about similar relationships in forests, especially for obligately symbiotic arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. To assess the effect of varying tree diversity on microbial alpha- and beta-diversity, we sampled soil from plots in a high-density tree diversity experiment in Minnesota, USA, 3 years after establishment. About 3 of 12 tree species are AM hosts; the other 9 primarily associate with ectomycorrhizal fungi. We used phospho- and neutral lipid fatty acid analysis to characterize the biomass and functional identity of the whole soil bacterial and fungal community and high throughput sequencing to identify the species-level richness and composition of the AM fungal community. We found that plots of differing tree composition had different bacterial and fungal communities; plots with conifers, and especially Juniperus virginiana, had lower densities of several bacterial groups. In contrast, plots with a higher density or diversity of AM hosts showed no sign of greater AM fungal abundance or diversity. Our results indicate that early responses to plant diversity vary considerably across microbial groups, with AM fungal communities potentially requiring longer timescales to respond to changes in host tree diversity.

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Response of soil fungal communities to continuous cropping of flue-cured tobacco

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-020-77044-8 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Shengnan Wang ◽

Jiangke Cheng ◽

Tong Li ◽

Yuncheng Liao

Keyword(s):

Community Structure ◽

Fungal Community ◽

High Throughput Sequencing ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽

Fungal Communities ◽

Continuous Cropping ◽

Fungal Community Structure ◽

Soil Variables ◽

Fungal Abundance

AbstractFungal communities are considered to be critically important for crop health and soil fertility. However, our knowledge of the response of fungal community structure to the continuous cropping of flue-cured tobacco is limited, and the interaction of soil fungal communities under different cropping systems remains unclear. In this study, we comparatively investigated the fungal abundance, diversity, and community composition in the soils in which continuous cropping of flue-cured tobacco for 3 years (3ys), 5 years (5ys), and cropping for 1 year (CK) using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and high-throughput sequencing technology. The results revealed that continuous cropping of flue-cured tobacco changed the abundance of soil fungi, and caused a significant variation in fungal diversity. In particular, continuous cropping increased the relative abundance of Mortierellales, which can dissolve mineral phosphorus in soil. Unfortunately, continuous cropping also increased the risk of potential pathogens. Moreover, long-term continuous cropping had more complex and stabilize network. This study also indicated that available potassium and available phosphorous were the primary soil factors shifting the fungal community structure. These results suggested that several soil variables may affect fungal community structure. The continuous cropping of flue-cured tobacco significantly increased the abundance and diversity of soil fungal communities.

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Does Polarized Training Improve Performance in Recreational Runners?

International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance ◽

10.1123/ijspp.2012-0350 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. 265-272 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

Iker Muñoz ◽

Stephen Seiler ◽

Javier Bautista ◽

Javier España ◽

Eneko Larumbe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Training Program ◽

Endurance Training ◽

High Intensity ◽

Ventilatory Threshold ◽

Training Session ◽

Moderate Intensity ◽

Intervention Period ◽

Low Intensity ◽

Recreational Runners ◽

The Impact

Purpose:To quantify the impact of training-intensity distribution on 10K performance in recreational athletes.Methods:30 endurance runners were randomly assigned to a training program emphasizing low-intensity, sub-ventilatory-threshold (VT), polarized endurance-training distribution (PET) or a moderately high-intensity (between-thresholds) endurance-training program (BThET). Before the study, the subjects performed a maximal exercise test to determine VT and respiratory-compensation threshold (RCT), which allowed training to be controlled based on heart rate during each training session over the 10-wk intervention period. Subjects performed a 10-km race on the same course before and after the intervention period. Training was quantified based on the cumulative time spent in 3 intensity zones: zone 1 (low intensity, <VT), zone 2 (moderate intensity, between VT and RCT), and zone 3 (high intensity, >RCT). The contribution of total training time in each zone was controlled to have more low-intensity training in PET (±77/3/20), whereas for BThET the distribution was higher in zone 2 and lower in zone 1 (±46/35/19).Results:Both groups significantly improved their 10K time (39min18s ± 4min54s vs 37min19s ± 4min42s, P < .0001 for PET; 39min24s ± 3min54s vs 38min0s ± 4min24s, P < .001 for BThET). Improvements were 5.0% vs 3.6%, ~41 s difference at post-training-intervention. This difference was not significant. However, a subset analysis comparing the 12 runners who actually performed the most PET (n = 6) and BThET (n = 16) distributions showed greater improvement in PET by 1.29 standardized Cohen effect-size units (90% CI 0.31–2.27, P = .038).Conclusions:Polarized training can stimulate greater training effects than between-thresholds training in recreational runners.

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Spatial Variation in Soil Fungal Communities across Paddy Fields in Subtropical China

mSystems ◽

10.1128/msystems.00704-19 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Pengfa Li ◽

Weitao Li ◽

Alex J. Dumbrell ◽

Ming Liu ◽

Guilong Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Spatial Variation ◽

Fungal Community ◽

Community Assembly ◽

Soil Depth ◽

Environmental Filtering ◽

Its Region ◽

Dispersal Limitation ◽

Fungal Communities ◽

Subtropical China ◽

Soil Layers

ABSTRACT Fungi underpin almost all terrestrial ecosystem functions, yet our understanding of their community ecology lags far behind that of other organisms. Here, red paddy soils in subtropical China were collected across a soil depth profile, comprising 0-to-10-cm- (0-10cm-), 10-20cm-, and 20-40cm-deep layers. Using Illumina MiSeq amplicon sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, distance-decay relationships (DDRs), and ecological models, fungal assemblages and their spatial patterns were investigated from each soil depth. We observed significant spatial variation in fungal communities and found that environmental heterogeneity decreased with soil depth, while spatial variation in fungal communities showed the opposite trend. DDRs occurred only in 0-10cm- and 10-20cm-deep soil layers, not in the 20-40cm layer. Our analyses revealed that the fungal community assembly in the 0-10cm layer was primarily governed by environmental filtering and a high dispersal rate, while in the deeper layer (20-40cm), it was primarily governed by dispersal limitation with minimal environmental filtering. Both environmental filtering and dispersal limitation controlled fungal community assembly in the 10-20cm layer, with dispersal limitation playing the major role. Results demonstrate the decreasing importance of environmental filtering and an increase in the importance of dispersal limitation in structuring fungal communities from shallower to deeper soils. Effectively, “everything is everywhere, but the environment selects,” although only in shallower soils that are easily accessible to dispersive fungal propagules. This work highlights that perceived drivers of fungal community assembly are dependent on sampling depth, suggesting that caution is required when interpreting diversity patterns from samples that integrate across depths. IMPORTANCE In this work, Illumina MiSeq amplicon sequencing of the ITS region was used to investigate the spatial variation and assembly mechanisms of fungal communities from different soil layers across paddy fields in subtropical China, and the results demonstrate the decreasing importance of environmental filtering and an increase in the importance of dispersal limitation in structuring fungal communities from shallower to deeper soils. Therefore, the results of this study highlight that perceived drivers of fungal community assembly are dependent on sampling depth and suggest that caution is required when interpreting diversity patterns from samples that integrate across depths. This is the first study focusing on assemblages of fungal communities in different soil layers on a relatively large scale, and we thus believe that this study is of great importance to researchers and readers in microbial ecology, especially in microbial biogeography, because the results can provide sampling guidance in future studies of microbial biogeography.

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Contrasting patterns and co-occurrence network of soil bacterial and fungal community along depth profiles in cold temperate montane forests of China

10.1101/2021.04.11.439312 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Li Ji ◽

Fangyuan Shen ◽

Yue Liu ◽

Yuchun Yang ◽

Jun Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fungal Community ◽

Soil Depth ◽

Illumina Miseq ◽

Fungal Communities ◽

Fungal Community Composition ◽

Altitudinal Distribution ◽

Core Composition ◽

Key Species ◽

Subsurface Soil ◽

Soil Bacterial

AbstractSoil bacterial and fungal communities with different key ecological functions play an important role in the boreal forest ecosystem. Despite several studies have reported the microbial altitudinal distribution patterns, our understanding about the characteristics of the microbial community and the core composition of the microbiome in cold-temperate mountain forests is still limited. In this study, Illumina MiSeq sequencing was used to investigate the changes in soil bacterial and fungal communities in surface and subsurface soils along at an altitudinal gradient (from 830 m to 1300 m) on Oakley Mountain in the northern Greater Khingan Mountains. Altitude and soil depth had significant impacts on the relative abundance of Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria and Actinobacteria (dominant phylum for bacteria), and altitude had significant impacts on the Ascomycota, Basidiomycota and Mucoromycota (dominant phylum for fungi). The diversity of bacterial and fungal communities showed a monotonous decrease and increase with altitude. The influence of altitude on bacterial and fungal community composition was greater than that of soil depth. The variation of pH and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) content in different altitudes were the main factors driving the bacterial and fungal community structure, respectively. There is no obvious difference between the network structure of surface and subsurface soil fungal communities, while the network of subsurface soil bacterial communities was more complex and compact than the surface layer. The network nodes mainly belonging to Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria are the key species in the two soil layers. Our results demonstrated that the altitude had a stronger influence on soil bacterial and fungal communities than soil depth, and bacterial and fungal communities showed divergent patterns along the altitudes and soil profiles.

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