Diffuse symbioses: roles of plant–plant, plant–microbe and microbe–microbe interactions in structuring the soil microbiome

A conceptual model emphasizing direct host–microbe interactions has dominated work on host-associated microbiomes. To understand plant–microbiome associations, however, broader influences on microbiome composition and functioning must be incorporated, such as those arising from plant–plant and microbe–microbe interactions. We sampled soil microbiomes associated with target plant species (Andropogon gerardii, Schizachyrium scoparium, Lespedeza capitata, Lupinus perennis) grown in communities varying in plant richness (1-, 4-, 8- or 16-species). We assessed Streptomyces antagonistic activity and analysed bacterial and Streptomyces populations via 454 pyrosequencing. Host plant species and plant richness treatments altered networks of coassociation among bacterial taxa, suggesting the potential for host plant effects on the soil microbiome to include changes in microbial interaction dynamics and, consequently, co-evolution. Taxa that were coassociated in the rhizosphere of a given host pla...