Plant diversity and coverage on the basidiomycete fungus Floccularia luteovirens fairy rings are higher than those outside of the fairy rings, indicating a favorable role of F. luteovirens in the growth of alpine meadow plants on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. However, the underlying physiological and molecular mechanisms of F. luteovirens-mediated plant growth and environmental adaptation remain largely unclear.
To answer the question, the growth and metabolic profiles of two alpine meadow plants which are the dominant plant species growing on F. luteovirens fairy rings (Kobresia humilis and Oxytropis coerulea), were investigated via physiological and metabolomic analyses. F. luteovirens increases nutrient element accumulation in plants and improves the growth of the aboveground tissues but reduces the root growth of alpine meadow plants. Metabolomic analysis revealed that F. luteovirens reprograms carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism and affects the levels of organic acids and flavonoids, thereby modulating the growth and environmental adaptation of plants. The results suggest that F. luteovirens promotes aboveground growth by modulating nutrient uptake and regulating metabolism in plants. These findings help to further elucidate the role of this edible mushroom fungus in influencing alpine meadow vegetation.
The study was published in Plant and Soilin September. Researchers at Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanxi Agricultural University, TianShui Normal University, and Qinghai Normal University collaborated for the study.
