Soil fungi underlie a phylogenetic pattern in plant growth responses to nitrogen enrichment

1. Under increasing anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition, some plant species will thrive while others will not. Previous work has shown that plant phylogeny can predict these responses, and that interactions with mycorrhizal fungi are a mechanism that drives variation in plant responses to N enrichment. Yet, much of this work has ignored the roles of other root-associated fungi and whole soil fungal communities in driving these responses. 2. We tested whether soil fungi mediate responses of plant growth and plant-soil feedbacks (between close and distant plant relatives) to N enrichment by implementing a greenhouse experiment in which we applied factorial treatments of N fertilization, host-specific soil inocula, and fungicide to 15 eucalypt tree species that co-occur on the island state of Tasmania, Australia and form two phylogenetic lineages within the subgenus Symphyomyrtus. 3. Conspecific-conditioned soil fungi enhanced growth responses to N enrichment for plants within one lineag...

1. 在日益加剧的人为氮（N）沉降背景下，部分植物物种会繁茂生长，而另一些则生长受限。既往研究表明，植物系统发育可预测此类响应差异，且与菌根真菌（mycorrhizal fungi）的互作是驱动植物对氮富集响应变异的关键机制之一。然而，此类研究大多忽略了其他根际真菌以及完整土壤真菌群落对植物氮富集响应的调控作用。
2. 本研究通过开展温室实验（greenhouse experiment），以澳大利亚塔斯马尼亚岛共存的15种桉树物种为实验材料，这些物种隶属于双雄蕊亚属（Symphyomyrtus）下的两个系统发育谱系。实验设置了氮添加（N fertilization）、宿主特异性土壤接种物（host-specific soil inocula）与杀菌剂（fungicide）的因子处理组合，以此检验土壤真菌是否介导植物生长以及近缘与远缘植物类群间的植物-土壤反馈（plant-soil feedbacks）对氮富集的响应。
3. 经同种个体驯化的土壤真菌增强了某一谱系内植物对氮富集的生长响应……