Short-read metagenomic sequencing of the symbiotic microorganisms in Cladonia uncialis

As symbiotic complexes formed through the association of bacteria or algae with fungi, lichens exhibit exceptional adaptability to extreme environments and function as pioneer species in rocky habitat ecological succession. Prevailing binary symbiosis models, centered on mycobiont-photobiont interactions, neglect the functional significance of bacterial consortia in holobiont environmental resilience. We characterized the symbiotic microbial community of Cladonia uncialis using short-read sequencing. At the phylum level, Ascomycota (41.16%), Pseudomonadota (formerly Proteobacteria; 17.61%), and Bacteroidota (14.20%) constituted the dominant taxa (Fig. 3A), while at the genus level, the fungal symbiont Cladonia (31.98%) and bacterial symbiont Flavobacterium (12.18%) exhibited the highest relative abundances