Structure of soil microbial communities associated with willow (genus:Salix) species and genotypes across abiotic stress gradients

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Abstract/Contents

Abstract
Microbes that associate with plants form taxonomically and functionally diverse communities. These microbial communities are shaped by many different aspects of plant identity, such as phylogeny, taxonomy and functional group. However, plant-associated microbial communities are also shaped by abiotic environment and a plant's response to abiotic environment. This dissertation explores how plant habitat specialization, species, and genotype shape soil and root microbial communities across hydrologic and abiotic stress gradients in field settings. In chapter 2, ectomycorrhizal communities associated with seven willow species across a hydrologic gradient respond primarily to soil moisture, organic matter and pH; communities were not strongly differentiated across willow species. In chapter 3, I utilized a field experiment to test how water availability, willow habitat specialization and willow species influence soil microbial communities underneath a willow plant. Microbial communities were most dissimilar in contrasting water availability treatments. Both plant habitat specialization and species identity influenced microbial community composition, but the degree and direction depended on the abiotic environment and microbial group. In chapter 4, I tested the influence of willow genotype and wind exposure, which alters soil moisture and nutrients, on root associated fungal and bacterial community structure. Microbial community composition differed by wind exposure and seven of the ten willow genotypes hosted different microbial communities, but again direction depended on the wind exposure and genotype. In conclusion, these three studies show that the turnover in plant microbiome communities will be dependent on plant traits, species, and genotype as environmental conditions change.

Description

Type of resource text
Form electronic; electronic resource; remote
Extent 1 online resource.
Publication date 2017
Issuance monographic
Language English

Creators/Contributors

Associated with Erlandson, Sonya Ralee
Associated with Stanford University, Department of Biology.
Primary advisor Peay, Kabir
Thesis advisor Peay, Kabir
Thesis advisor Dirzo, Rodolfo
Thesis advisor Fukami, Tadashi, 1972-
Advisor Dirzo, Rodolfo
Advisor Fukami, Tadashi, 1972-

Subjects

Genre Theses

Bibliographic information

Statement of responsibility Sonya Ralee Erlandson.
Note Submitted to the Department of Biology.
Thesis Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2017.
Location electronic resource

Access conditions

Copyright
© 2017 by Sonya Erlandson
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).

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