Abstract Detail

Symbioses: Plant, Animal, and Microbe Interactions

Younginger, Brett [1], Ballhorn, Daniel [1].

Temporal turnover of endophytic fungi in the cosmopolitan host, western sword fern (Polystichum munitum).

Endophytic microfungi inhabit all land plants and likely alter their host’s phenotype, analogous to the microbiomes of other higher organisms. A significant number of studies have endeavored to uncover the functional effects of endophytes, but many additional questions remain unanswered. Surprisingly, we lack a clear understanding of how these fungi initially colonize their hosts and how their community composition shifts in time over the growing season. Studies that characterize endophyte community composition from single sampling events do not accurately capture the dynamic nature of these microbes. Furthermore, the likelihood of using endophytic fungi as biological agents conferring herbivore or pathogen resistance decreases if they only colonize plants transiently. We sought to address this deficiency by analyzing the temporal turnover in an understudied plant lineage and unstudied plant host: western sword fern (Polystichum munitum). We sampled fern leaflets in 20 plant individuals upon the initial emergence of croziers in the spring and also one month later and sequenced fungal DNA on the Illumina MiSeq platform in a culture-independent manner. Fungal colonization in leaflets was low or non-existent immediately following their emergence from croziers, but one month later a substantial increase in fungal diversity occurred. Additionally, fungi found early in the growing season waned while other, more abundant fungi came to dominate the community in the following month. This work is the first to document the temporal turnover and initial colonization pattern of fungal endophytes in an unstudied fern host utilizing culture-independent methods.

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1 - Portland State University, Biology, 1719 SW 10th Ave, SRTC Room 246, Portland, OR, 97201, USA

Keywords:
fungal endophyte
phyllosphere
Polystichum
temporal turnover.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 35, Symbioses: Plant, Animal, and Microbe Interactions
Location: 202/Savannah International Trade and Convention Center
Date: Wednesday, August 3rd, 2016
Time: 9:30 AM
Number: 35007
Abstract ID:356
Candidate for Awards:None