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Forest gene diversity is correlated with the composition and function of soil microbial communities

  • Special Feature: Original Article
  • Linking Genome to Ecosystem
  • Published:
Population Ecology

Abstract

The growing field of community and ecosystem genetics indicates that plant genotype and genotypic variation are important for structuring communities and ecosystem processes. Little is known, however, regarding the effects of stand gene diversity on soil communities and processes under field conditions. Utilizing natural genetic variation occurring in Populus spp. hybrid zones, we tested the hypothesis that stand gene diversity structures soil microbial communities and influences soil nutrient pools. We found significant unimodal patterns relating gene diversity to soil microbial community composition, microbial exoenzyme activity of a carbon-acquiring enzyme, and availability of soil nitrogen. Multivariate analyses indicate that this pattern is due to the correlation between gene diversity, plant secondary chemistry, and the composition of the microbial community that impacts the availability of soil nitrogen. Together, these data from a natural system indicate that stand gene diversity may affect soil microbial communities and soil processes in ways similar to species diversity (i.e., unimodal patterns). Our results further demonstrate that the effects of plant genetic diversity on other organisms may be mediated by plant functional trait variation.

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Acknowledgments

Many thanks to Takayuki Ohgushi for the invitation to participate in this Special Feature and for the gracious hospitality at the Center for Ecological Research and Kyoto University. Thanks to Northern Arizona University and the Utah Department of Transportation for support. Special thanks to Joe Bailey, Kevin Grady, Dan Guido, Greg Newman, Clara Pregitzer, and Michelle Stritar for help in the field or laboratory, and Steve Overby and Dana Erickson for laboratory space and support for the PLFA analyses. Comments from Randy Bangert, Joe Bailey, and two anonymous reviewers made significant improvements to the manuscript. This research was supported by National Science Foundation grants DEB-0078280 and DEB-0425908.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Jennifer A. Schweitzer

  2. Environmental Studies Program, The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA, 98505, USA

    Dylan G. Fischer

  3. Department of Chemistry, US Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD, 21402, USA

    Brian J. Rehill

  4. Department of Biological Sciences, California State University-Stanislaus, Turlock, CA, 95382, USA

    Stuart C. Wooley

  5. Department of Biological Sciences, Merriam-Powell Center for Environmental Research, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 86011, USA

    Scott A. Woolbright & Thomas G. Whitham

  6. Department of Entomology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, 53706, USA

    Richard L. Lindroth

  7. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA

    Donald R. Zak

  8. School of Natural Sciences, Sierra Nevada Research Institute, University of California, Merced, CA, 95343, USA

    Stephen C. Hart

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  1. Jennifer A. Schweitzer
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Correspondence to Jennifer A. Schweitzer.

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This manuscript was submitted for the special feature based on the symposium in Kyoto, held on 18th October 2009.

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Schweitzer, J.A., Fischer, D.G., Rehill, B.J. et al. Forest gene diversity is correlated with the composition and function of soil microbial communities. Popul Ecol 53, 35–46 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10144-010-0252-3

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