Increasing Phylogenetic Clustering of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Communities in Roots Explains Enhanced Plant Growth and Phosphorus Uptake.

Temporal variation during the assembly of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal communities within plant roots have been posited as critical drivers of the plant-fungal symbiotic outcomes. However, functional implications of these dynamics for the host plant remain poorly understood. We conducted a controlled pot experiment with Sorghum bicolor to investigate how temporal shifts in AM fungal community composition and phylogenetic diversity influence plant growth and phosphorus responses to the symbiosis.

Progressing beyond colonization strategies to understand arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal life history.

Knowledge of differential life-history strategies in arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi is relevant for understanding the ecology of this group and its potential role in sustainable agriculture and carbon sequestration. At present, AM fungal life-history theories often focus on differential investment into intra- vs extraradical structures among AM fungal taxa, and its implications for plant benefits. With this Viewpoint we aim to expand these theories by integrating a mycocentric economics- and resource-based life-history framework.

Aligning spatial ecological theory with the study of clonal organisms: the case of fungal coexistence.

Established ecological theory has focused on unitary organisms, and thus its concepts have matured into a form that often hinders rather than facilitates the ecological study of modular organisms. Here, we use the example of filamentous fungi to develop concepts that enable integration of non-unitary (modular) organisms into the established community ecology theory, with particular focus on its spatial aspects. In doing so, we provide a link between fungal community ecology and modern coexistence theory (MCT).

Airborne DNA reveals predictable spatial and seasonal dynamics of fungi.

Fungi are among the most diverse and ecologically important kingdoms in life. However, the distributional ranges of fungi remain largely unknown as do the ecological mechanisms that shape their distributions. To provide an integrated view of the spatial and seasonal dynamics of fungi, we implemented a globally distributed standardized aerial sampling of fungal spores.

Towards establishing a fungal economics spectrum in soil saprobic fungi.

Trait-based frameworks are promising tools to understand the functional consequences of community shifts in response to environmental change. The applicability of these tools to soil microbes is limited by a lack of functional trait data and a focus on categorical traits. To address this gap for an important group of soil microorganisms, we identify trade-offs underlying a fungal economics spectrum based on a large trait collection in 28 saprobic fungal isolates, derived from a common grassland soil and grown in culture plates.