Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36335298›Full record

ArticleBMC ecology and evolution2022

Assessing soil microbes that drive fairy ring patterns in temperate semiarid grasslands.

Jiahuan Li, Lizhu Guo, Gail W T Wilson, Adam B Cobb, Kun Wang, Li Liu, Huan Zhao, Ding Huang

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC ecology and evolution, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
0.3field-weighted citation impact, top 42% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.

Jiahuan Li *College of Grassland Science and Technology, West Campus of China Agricultural University, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China.
Lizhu Guo *Institute of Grassland, Flowers and Ecology, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, 100097, China.
Gail W T WilsonOklahoma State University, 008C AGH, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA.
Adam B CobbOklahoma State University, 008C AGH, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA.
Kun WangCollege of Grassland Science and Technology, West Campus of China Agricultural University, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China.
Li LiuCollege of Grassland Science and Technology, West Campus of China Agricultural University, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China.
Huan ZhaoAcademy of Inventory and Planning, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Beijing, 100714, China.
Ding HuangCollege of Grassland Science and Technology, West Campus of China Agricultural University, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China. huangding@263.net.ORCID 0000-0002-5575-186X
China Agricultural University · CNOklahoma State University · USInstitute of Grassland Research · CNShenyang Agricultural University · CNState Forestry and Grassland Administration · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundFairy rings occur in diverse global biomes; however, there is a critical knowledge gap regarding drivers of fairy rings in grassland ecosystems. Grassland fairy rings are characterized belowground by an expanding mycelial front and aboveground by vigorous vegetation rings that develop concentrically with each growing season. We evaluated fairy ring dynamics in a field study conducted in semiarid grasslands to elucidate above- and belowground interactions driving distinct vegetation patterns. We followed this initial field investigation with a complementary greenhouse experiment, using soils collected from specific fairy ring zones (inside, ring-edge, outside) to examine plant-soil-microbial interactions under controlled conditions. We selected Leymus chinensis (a dominant grass) as our model plant species to assess the role of diverse fairy ring microbial communities on plant growth and nutrition.

resultsIn our field study, plants on the ring-edge produced greater shoot biomass with higher concentrations of N and P, compared to plants inside the ring or adjacent (outside) controls. Soil microbial community biomarkers indicate shifts in relative microbial biomass as fairy rings expand. Inside the ring, plant roots showed greater damage from pathogenic fungi, compared to outside or ring-edge. Our greenhouse experiment confirmed that inoculation with live ring-edge soil generally promoted plant growth but decreased shoot P concentration. Inoculation with soil collected from inside the ring increased root pathogen infection and reduced shoot biomass.

conclusionWe propose that soil microbial activity within ring-edges promotes plant growth via mobilization of plant-available P or directed stimulation. However, as the ring expands, L. chinensis at the leading edge may increase pathogen accumulation, resulting in reduced growth at the center of the ring in subsequent growing seasons. Our results provide new insights into the plant-soil-microbial dynamics of fairy rings in grasslands, helping to elucidate these mysterious vegetation patterns.

Indexed as

MicrobiotaSoilGrasslandPlantsPoaceaeSoil MicrobiologySoilBiotic and abiotic factorsMicrobial direct stimulationPathogen accumulationPlant–soil–microbial interactionsP-releaseSteppe grasslands

Identifiers

PMID36335298
PMCPMC9636817
OpenAlexW4308303477

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.