Biogeographical patterns of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi diversity in China's grasslands

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are universally mutualistic symbionts that colonize the fine roots of most vascular plants. However, the biogeographical patterns and driving factors of AMF diversity of plant roots in grasslands are not well investigated. In this study, we used high-throughput sequencing techniques and bioinformatics to evaluate the AMF richness of 333 individual plant roots in 21 natural grassland ecosystems in northern China, including the Loess Plateau (LP), the Mongolian Plateau (MP), and the Tibetan Plateau (TP). The AMF richness showed a significant parabolic trend with increasing longitude. In regional situations, the AMF richness in the grasslands of the MP (60.4 +/- 1.47) was significantly higher than those of the LP (46.4 +/- 1.43) and TP (44.3 +/- 1.64). Plant traits (including plant families, genera, and functional groups) explained the most variation in the AMF richness across China's grasslands, followed by energy and water; soil properties had the least effects. The results showed the biogeographical patterns of the AMF richness and the underlying dominant factors, providing synthetic data compilation and analyses in the AMF diversity in China's grasslands.

Automated summary

This study used high-throughput sequencing techniques to evaluate AMF richness in different grassland ecosystems in northern China, revealing significant differences in AMF richness among regions and identifying plant traits as the primary factor affecting AMF diversity.