The distribution and identity of edaphic fungi in the McMurd

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TitleThe distribution and identity of edaphic fungi in the McMurdo dry valleysAbstractContrary to earlier assumptions, molecular evidence has demonstrated the presence of diverse and localized soil bacterial communities in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica. Meanwhile, it remains unclear whether fungal signals so far detected in Dry Valley soils using both culture-based and molecular techniques represent adapted and ecologically active biomass or spores transported by wind. Through a systematic and quantitative molecular survey, we identified significant heterogeneities in soil fungal communities across the Dry Valleys that robustly correlate with heterogeneities in soil physicochemical properties. Community fingerprinting analysis and 454 pyrosequencing of the fungal ribosomal intergenic spacer region revealed different levels of heterogeneity in fungal diversity within individual Dry Valleys and a surprising abundance of Chytridiomycota species, whereas previous studies suggested that Dry Valley soils were dominated by Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. Critically, we identified significant differences in fungal community composition and structure of adjacent sites with no obvious barrier to aeolian transport between them. These findings suggest that edaphic fungi of the Antarctic Dry Valleys are adapted to local environments and represent an ecologically relevant (and possibly important) heterotrophic component of the ecosystem. Copyright 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.AcknowledgementsThis research was supported by grants from the New Zealand Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (FRST) (UOWX0710) and the United States National Science Foundation (ANT-0944556, ANT-0944560) to S. Craig Cary. Charles K. Lee and S. Craig Cary were also supported by the New Zealand Marsden Fund (UOW0802 and UOW1003) and the New Zealand Antarctic Research Institute (NZARI2013-7). We would like to thank John Longmore of Waikato DNA Sequencing Facility, Anjana Rejendram of Waikato Stable Isotope Unit, Steve Cameron of Waikato Mass Spectrometry Facility, and Roanna Richards-Babbage and Eric Bottos of Thermopile Research Unit at University of Waikato for their support and assistance.

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1st AuthorDreesens, L.AuthorDreesens, L.Lee, C.Cary, S.Year2014JournalBiologyVolume3Number3Pages466-483DOI10.3390/biology3030466URLhttps://www.scopus.com/inward/recor.....8ec9d1051b82b59befc6829eeKeywordsrank5

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TypeArticleCitationDreesens, L., Lee, C. and Cary, S. (2014). The distribution and identity of edaphic fungi in the {McMurdo} dry valleys. Biology, 3(3): 466-483 IdentifierDreesens2014Relevancerank5

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Cary, S.