Rice endophytic fungal community in different cadmium contamination

Cadmium (Cd) contamination may reduce rice production and cause food security. Endophytes played a crucial role in improving host plants' growth under Cd stress and modulating its accumulation. However, the endophytic fungal community of rice and its role on rice grains Cd accumulation is still unclear. In this study, the endophytic fungal community of rice tissues (R: roots, S: stems and L: leaves) at different growth stages (A: tillering, B: filling and C: maturity stages) from lower (LC) and higher (HC) Cd-contaminated sites were investigated by high-throughput sequencing method. The present study not only throws light on the endophytic fungal microbiome of rice tissues of Cd-contaminated paddy at different growth stages, but also provides potential fungi for rice safe and efficient production.