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Title: Bacterial endophyte communities in the foliage of coast redwood and giant sequoia

Journal Article · · Frontiers in Microbiology
 [1];  [2]
  1. University of California, Merced, CA (United States). Life and Environmental Sciences, School of Natural Sciences; Duke Univ., Durham, NC (United States). Department of Biology; Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Environmental Sciences Division
  2. University of California, Merced, CA (United States). Life and Environmental Sciences, School of Natural Sciences and Sierra Nevada Research Institute

The endophytic bacterial microbiome, with an emerging role in plant nutrient acquisition and stress tolerance, is much less studied in natural plant populations than in agricultural crops. In a previous study, we found consistent associations between trees in the pine family and acetic acid bacteria (AAB) occurring at high relative abundance inside their needles. Our objective here was to determine if that pattern may be general to conifers, or alternatively, is more likely restricted to pines or conifers growing in nutrient limited and exposed environments. We used 16S rRNA pyrosequencing to characterize the foliar endophyte communities of two conifers in the Cupressaceae family: Two coast redwood (CR; Sequoia sempervirens) populations and one giant sequoia (GS; Sequoiadendron giganteum) population were sampled. Similar to the pines, the endophyte communities of the giant trees were dominated by Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Acidobacteria, and Actinobacteria. However, although some major operational taxonomic units (OTUs) occurred at a high relative abundance of 10–40% in multiple samples, no specific group of bacteria dominated the endophyte community to the extent previously observed in high-elevation pines. Several of the dominating bacterial groups in the CR and GS foliage (e.g., Bacillus, Burkholderia, Actinomycetes) are known for disease- and pest suppression, raising the possibility that the endophytic microbiome protects the giant trees against biotic stress. Many of the most common and abundant OTUs in our dataset were most similar to 16S rRNA sequences from bacteria found in lichens or arctic plants. For example, an OTU belonging to the uncultured Rhizobiales LAR1 lineage, which is commonly associated with lichens, was observed at high relative abundance in many of the CR samples. Lastly, the taxa shared between the giant trees, arctic plants, and lichens may be part of a broadly defined endophyte microbiome common to temperate, boreal, and tundra ecosystems.

Research Organization:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-00OR22725
OSTI ID:
1341541
Journal Information:
Frontiers in Microbiology, Vol. 6; ISSN 1664-302X
Publisher:
Frontiers Research FoundationCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 36 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (11)

Nitrogen Fixing Endophytes in Forest Trees book January 2018
Bacterial endophyte communities in Pinus flexilis are structured by host age, tissue type, and environmental factors journal May 2018
Forest microbiome: diversity, complexity and dynamics journal November 2016
Plant host identity and soil macronutrients explain little variation in sapling endophyte community composition: Is disturbance an alternative explanation? journal February 2019
Evidence for foliar endophytic nitrogen fixation in a widely distributed subalpine conifer journal February 2016
Members of the genus Burkholderia: good and bad guys journal January 2016
Bacteriome from Pinus arizonica and P. durangensis: Diversity, Comparison of Assemblages, and Overlapping Degree with the Gut Bacterial Community of a Bark Beetle That Kills Pines journal January 2018
Diversity analysis of the rhizospheric and endophytic bacterial communities of Senecio vulgaris L. (Asteraceae) in an invasive range journal January 2019
Members of the genus Burkholderia: good and bad guys interactiveresource January 2016
Associations between Ectomycorrhizal Fungi and Bacterial Needle Endophytes in Pinus radiata: Implications for Biotic Selection of Microbial Communities journal March 2016
Plants Assemble Species Specific Bacterial Communities from Common Core Taxa in Three Arcto-Alpine Climate Zones journal January 2017