Diversity of ligninolytic ascomycete fungi associated with the bleached leaf litter in subtropical and temperate forests

Momoka Yoneda; Hiroki Ameno; Ayaka Nishimura; Kohei Tabuchi; Yuki Hatano; Takashi Osono; Momoka Yoneda; Hiroki Ameno; Ayaka Nishimura; Kohei Tabuchi; Yuki Hatano; Takashi Osono

doi:10.3934/microbiol.2024042

AIMS Microbiology

2024, Volume 10, Issue 4: 973-985. doi: 10.3934/microbiol.2024042

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Research article

Diversity of ligninolytic ascomycete fungi associated with the bleached leaf litter in subtropical and temperate forests

1.
Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Doshisha University, Kyotanabe, Kyoto 610-0394, Japan
2.
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Doshisha University, Kyotanabe, Kyoto 610-0394, Japan

Received: 14 June 2024 Revised: 01 November 2024 Accepted: 12 November 2024 Published: 15 November 2024

Little is known regarding the diversity patterns of Xylariaceae and Hypoxylaceae (Ascomycota) fungi taking part in the lignin decomposition of leaf litter from different tree species and under different climatic regions. The alpha and beta diversity of Xylariaceae and Hypoxylaceae fungi was investigated on bleached leaf litter from nine subtropical and cool temperate tree species in Japan. A total of 248 fungal isolates, obtained from 480 leaves from the nine tree species, were classified into 43 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) with a 97% similarity threshold and were assigned to nine genera of Xylariaceae and Hypoxylaceae. There was no overlap of fungal OTUs between subtropical and cool temperate trees. The mean number of fungal OTUs was generally higher in subtropical than cool temperate trees, whereas rarefaction curves depicting the numbers of OTU with respect to the number of leaves from which fungi were isolated were less steep in subtropical trees than in cool temperate trees, reflecting the dominance of major OTUs in the subtropical trees and indicating a higher species richness in cool temperate regions. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling showed general overlaps of fungal OTU compositions among tree species in the respective climatic regions, and one-way permutational multivariate analysis of variance indicated that the OTU composition was not significantly different between the tree species. These results suggest a wide host range and some geographic and climatic structures of distribution of these ligninolytic fungi.
- Ascomycota,
- dead leaves,
- fungal richness,
- Hypoxylaceae,
- lignin decomposition,
- Xylariaceae
Citation: Momoka Yoneda, Hiroki Ameno, Ayaka Nishimura, Kohei Tabuchi, Yuki Hatano, Takashi Osono. Diversity of ligninolytic ascomycete fungi associated with the bleached leaf litter in subtropical and temperate forests[J]. AIMS Microbiology, 2024, 10(4): 973-985. doi: 10.3934/microbiol.2024042

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Abstract

Little is known regarding the diversity patterns of Xylariaceae and Hypoxylaceae (Ascomycota) fungi taking part in the lignin decomposition of leaf litter from different tree species and under different climatic regions. The alpha and beta diversity of Xylariaceae and Hypoxylaceae fungi was investigated on bleached leaf litter from nine subtropical and cool temperate tree species in Japan. A total of 248 fungal isolates, obtained from 480 leaves from the nine tree species, were classified into 43 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) with a 97% similarity threshold and were assigned to nine genera of Xylariaceae and Hypoxylaceae. There was no overlap of fungal OTUs between subtropical and cool temperate trees. The mean number of fungal OTUs was generally higher in subtropical than cool temperate trees, whereas rarefaction curves depicting the numbers of OTU with respect to the number of leaves from which fungi were isolated were less steep in subtropical trees than in cool temperate trees, reflecting the dominance of major OTUs in the subtropical trees and indicating a higher species richness in cool temperate regions. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling showed general overlaps of fungal OTU compositions among tree species in the respective climatic regions, and one-way permutational multivariate analysis of variance indicated that the OTU composition was not significantly different between the tree species. These results suggest a wide host range and some geographic and climatic structures of distribution of these ligninolytic fungi.

Acknowledgments

We thank the staff at the Yona Experimental Forest of the University of the Ryukyus and the Sugadaira Montane Research Center of the University of Tsukuba for providing permission for field sampling; Dr. S. Matsuoka and Mr. Y. Nagata for help with fieldwork and laboratory work; Professor Dr. M. Hasegawa and Professor Dr. H. Tsutsumi for useful discussions; and Dr. E. Nakajima for critical reading of the manuscript. This work was supported by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology of Japan [No. 18K05731].

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Author contributions

Conceptualization: TO; Sample collection: KT, YH, TO; Fungal isolation: MY, HA, AN; Molecular analysis: MY, HA, AN, YH; Data analysis: MY, YH, TO; Original draft preparation: MY, TO; Writing – review and editing: MY, YH, TO; Funding acquisition: TO.

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