Abstract
Key message
A total of 43 phyla (395 genera) of bacteria and 11 phyla (309 genera) of fungi were identified from normal sapwood (SW), wetwood (WW) and their transition zone wood (TW) in living poplar trees, with bacteria showing significantly higher diversity than fungi. Highly variable community diversities and compositions were found for bacteria but not for fungi among WW, TW and SW. Overall, 22 phyla (95 genera) bacteria and three phyla (11 genera) fungi were significantly different in relative abundance between WW and SW. Nine wood chemical properties were significantly correlated with the relative abundance of top 15 bacterial and fungal genera in all samples.
Abstract
Wetwood represents an abnormal condition of heartwood in living poplar trees. The cause of wetwood formation is still poorly understood, but it is generally considered to involve microbial activities. To facilitate a better understanding of wetwood formation, we sequenced the 16S rRNA and ITS (Internal Transcribed Spacer) genes of distinct regions (16S V4, ITS1) to precisely identify the microbial communities in normal sapwood (SW), wetwood (WW) and their transition zone wood (TW). Nine chemical properties of the wood samples were further determined to elucidate the correlations between the microbial communities and wood characteristics. The total sequences of 16S V4 and ITS1 from WW, TW and SW were assigned to 43 bacterial phyla (395 genera) and 11 fungal phyla (309 genera), indicating a significantly higher diversity of bacteria than fungi. Among SW, TW and WW, significant variations in community diversity and composition were found for bacteria but not for fungi. WW had the highest bacterial and lowest fungal diversities, while SW exhibited the highest fungal diversity. TW generally exhibited intermediate levels between WW and SW. Between WW and SW, 22 bacterial phyla (95 genera) were significantly different in relative abundance. Nine wood chemical properties were significantly correlated with the relative abundance of top 15 bacterial and fungal genera in all wood samples.
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This study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31570665), Hubei Provincial Major Technological Innovation Foundation of China (2016ABA111), Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (2014CFB933 and 2009CDA096), and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of China (201610504037).
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Yu, X., Hu, X., Peng, Y. et al. Amplicon sequencing reveals different microbial communities in living poplar wetwood and sapwood. Trees 33, 851–865 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-019-01822-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-019-01822-9