Different Degrees of Niche Differentiation for Bacteria, Fungi, and Myxomycetes Within an Elevational Transect in the German Alps

• Published in: Microbial ecology Vol. 78; no. 3; pp. 764 - 780
• Main Authors: Dahl, Mathilde Borg, Brejnrod, Asker Daniel, Russel, Jakob, Sørensen, Søren Johannes, Schnittler, Martin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer Science + Business Media 01-10-2019; Springer US; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Bacteria; Bar codes; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Communities; Community composition; Deoxyribonucleic acid; DNA; Ecology; Fruit bodies; Fungi; Geoecology/Natural Processes; Life Sciences; Microbial activity; Microbial Ecology; Microbiology; Microorganisms; Nature Conservation; Niches; rRNA 16S; rRNA 18S; Soil; Soil analysis; SOIL MICROBIOLOGY; Species; Substrates; Taxa; Vegetation type; Water Quality/Water Pollution; Alps; 16S rRNA; Environmental PCR (ePCR); 18S rRNA; DNA barcoding; ITS; Myxomycetes; Natural gradient
• ISSN: 0095-3628; 1432-184X
• DOI: 10.1007/s00248-019-01347-1

We used direct DNA amplification from soil extracts to analyze microbial communities from an elevational transect in the German Alps by parallel metabarcoding of bacteria (16S rRNA), fungi (ITS2), and myxomycetes (18S rRNA). For the three microbial groups, 5710, 6133, and 261 operational taxonomic units (OTU) were found. For the latter group, we can relate OTUs to barcodes from fruit bodies sampled over a 4-year period. The alpha diversity of myxomycetes was positively correlated with that of bacteria. Vegetation type was found to be the main explanatory parameter for the community composition of all three groups and a substantial species turnover with elevation was observed. Bacteria and fungi display similar community responses, driven by symbiont species and plant substrate quality. Myxamoebae show a more patchy distribution, though still clearly stratified between taxa, which seems to be a response to both structural properties of the habitat and interaction with specific bacterial and fungal taxa. Finally, we report a high number of myxomycete OTUs not represented in a reference database from fructifications, which might represent novel species.