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Diversity
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Fungi, Ecology, and Global Change
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Fungi, Ecology, and Global Change

A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818). This special issue belongs to the section "Microbial Diversity and Culture Collections".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2025 | Viewed by 7811

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Daniel B. Raudabaugh

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Purdue University, 500 Oval Dr, West Lafayette, IN 47909, USA
Interests: ecology; fungal physiology; environmental sequencing; nanoparticle synthesis; ecotoxicology; chronic wasting disease
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fungi are ubiquitous in almost all natural habitats and perform valuable ecosystem functions, including the degradation of recalcitrant materials, involvement in mutualistic partnerships with plants, arthropods, and herbivores, and many species are important natural and agricultural pathogens of many types of living organisms. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of fungal species have currently been described based on all current species estimates. Moreover, due to rapid global climate change, changes in large scale land use, and anthropomorphic waste inputs into the environment, it will be difficult to determine the extent of fungal species loss. This Special Issue’s focus is on research related to how the climate, land-use, and anthropomorphic waste alter natural fungal-derived process, alter fungal diversity, investigate the extent to which these alterations will impact fungal driven ecological processes, or how these changes impact human society as it relates to fungal diseases.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Ecologies.

Dr. Daniel B. Raudabaugh
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Diversity is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fungi
  • diversity
  • climate change
  • fungal diseases
  • ecology

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1729 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Pesticides on Detritus-Inhabiting and Root-Associated Fungi in Aquatic Habitats and Potential Implications
by Daniel B. Raudabaugh, Andrew N. Miller and Claudia K. Gunsch
Diversity 2024, 16(5), 255; https://doi.org/10.3390/d16050255 - 24 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1098
Abstract
Pesticide contamination of aquatic ecosystems poses a significant threat to humans and can adversely affect fungal-driven processes in these understudied habitats. Here, we investigated the effects of four pesticides on detritus-inhabiting and plant root-associated fungi from streams, peatlands, and saltwater marshes. Additionally, we [...] Read more.
Pesticide contamination of aquatic ecosystems poses a significant threat to humans and can adversely affect fungal-driven processes in these understudied habitats. Here, we investigated the effects of four pesticides on detritus-inhabiting and plant root-associated fungi from streams, peatlands, and saltwater marshes. Additionally, we assessed the isolates’ capacities to degrade three carbon sources to understand the impact of pesticides on fungal-driven processes. Pesticide assays were conducted in 96-well glass-coated plates, with fungal growth measured using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer set to 595 nm. Assays included technical replication (n = 6), replication over time (n = 2), negative controls, and carry-over controls. In total, we assayed more than 153 isolates, representing up to 97 fungal genera. Results showed that 1.9%, 49.7%, 3.1%, and 5.6% of the isolates exhibited consistently lower growth when exposed to atrazine, mancozeb, cypermethrin, and malathion, respectively. Furthermore, 101 isolates, comprising 87 genera, were tested for cellulase, starch degradation, and tannase activity, with 41.6%, 28.7%, and 30.7% of the isolates testing positive, respectively. These findings suggest that while many species demonstrate functional redundancy, some fungal species are sensitive to current environmental pesticide levels, which affects their growth and may have broader implications on ecosystem health. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungi, Ecology, and Global Change)
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18 pages, 4253 KiB  
Article
Soil Fungi and Soil Organic Carbon Stocks in the Profile of a Forest Arenosol
by Jelena Ankuda, Diana Sivojienė, Kęstutis Armolaitis, Audrius Jakutis, Jūratė Aleinikovienė, Donata Drapanauskaitė, Vitas Marozas, Valeriia Mishcherikova, Vidas Stakėnas, Vladimir Mikryukov and Leho Tedersoo
Diversity 2024, 16(1), 66; https://doi.org/10.3390/d16010066 - 18 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1920
Abstract
To help solve the actual problem of global climate warming, it is important to comprehensively study soil organic carbon (SOC), soil fungi, and other parameters at different depths in the soil. This study was aimed at investigating the chemical and microbiological parameters and [...] Read more.
To help solve the actual problem of global climate warming, it is important to comprehensively study soil organic carbon (SOC), soil fungi, and other parameters at different depths in the soil. This study was aimed at investigating the chemical and microbiological parameters and their interactions at various soil depths (0–5 to 195–200 cm) in an Arenosol in a Scots pine stand in southwestern Lithuania, with a focus on the main groups of fungi and their influence on SOC. The highest diversity of soil fungi species was found at a depth of 50–55 cm. Saprotrophs were dominant at all investigated soil depths. Ectomycorrhizal fungi were mostly abundant at depths of up to 50–55 cm. The C:N ratio gradually decreased down to 50–55 cm, then increased in deeper soil layers (from 50–55 to 195–200 cm). This means that the most active mineralization processes occur at depths of between 0 and 55 cm. Carbon stabilization processes occur at depths of 100–105 to 195–200 cm, and most of this carbon does not enter the atmosphere nor contribute to the process of climate change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungi, Ecology, and Global Change)
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15 pages, 4560 KiB  
Article
The Diversity and Growth-Promoting Potential of the Endophytic Fungi of Neuwiedia singapureana (Orchidaceae) in China
by Tao Wang, Miao Chi, Jun Chen, Lixiong Liang, Yakun Wang and Yan Chen
Diversity 2024, 16(1), 34; https://doi.org/10.3390/d16010034 - 4 Jan 2024
Viewed by 1653
Abstract
Neuwiedia singapureana is a rare and endangered plant of the Apostasioideae subfamily. The Apostasioideae subfamily has a unique evolutionary status, as it is considered to be the most primitive group forming the base of the Orchidaceae evolutionary tree. Therefore, N. singapureana has high [...] Read more.
Neuwiedia singapureana is a rare and endangered plant of the Apostasioideae subfamily. The Apostasioideae subfamily has a unique evolutionary status, as it is considered to be the most primitive group forming the base of the Orchidaceae evolutionary tree. Therefore, N. singapureana has high scientific research and conservation value. The endophytic fungal communities associated with orchids are rich and diverse, but few studies have investigated the endophytic fungi of Neuwiedia orchid plants. In the present study, the aim was to examine the endophytic fungal community structures associated with wild N. singapureana rhizomes and normal roots in the ground and with bare prop roots in the air at two sampling sites in China. High-throughput sequencing of nuclear ribosomal DNA fragments of the internal transcribed spacer regions was conducted, and cultivable methods were adopted. A total of 2161 endophytic fungal operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were obtained at a 97% sequence similarity threshold. The endophytic fungal diversity differed among the samples but not significantly. There were many more non-mycorrhizal endophytic fungal than orchid mycorrhizal (OM) fungal species detected in the N. singapureana orchid, about 98.33% OTUs of non-mycorrhizal fungi contrasting with 1.67% OTUs of potential orchid mycorrhizal fungi, among which Ceratobasidiaceae, Russulaceae, and Thelephoraceae were the dominant orchid mycorrhizal fungi. One culturable OM fungal Epulorhiza sp. isolated from the rhizome was capable of significantly promoting the seed germination and seedling growth of Dendrobium officinale and Epidendrum secundum orchids, respectively, with different efficiencies. These endophytic fungal strains with growth-promoting functions will provide materials for orchid conservation and for the study of the mechanisms underlying orchid symbiotic associations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungi, Ecology, and Global Change)
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12 pages, 6209 KiB  
Article
Morphological and Phylogenetic Evidences Reveal Lasiodiplodia chonburiensis and L. theobromae Associated with Leaf Blight in Hevea brasiliensis in Southern Thailand
by Chaninun Pornsuriya, Narit Thaochan, Thanunchanok Chairin and Anurag Sunpapao
Diversity 2023, 15(9), 961; https://doi.org/10.3390/d15090961 - 25 Aug 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2367
Abstract
The rubber tree is an important economic tree in Thailand. Recently, the cultivation of rubber trees in Thailand has suffered from a novel leaf fall disease with diverse symptoms, including leaf spot and leaf blight, resulting in severe leaf defoliation. Fungi from the [...] Read more.
The rubber tree is an important economic tree in Thailand. Recently, the cultivation of rubber trees in Thailand has suffered from a novel leaf fall disease with diverse symptoms, including leaf spot and leaf blight, resulting in severe leaf defoliation. Fungi from the Lasiodiplodia genus, which causes leaf disease in rubber trees, have not been reported in Thailand. Our research aimed to identify Lasiodiplodia associated with leaf blight disease in Thailand by examining morphological characteristics and completing a multi-gene sequence analysis and pathogenicity test to fulfill Koch’s postulates. The internal transcribed spacer regions, translation elongation factor 1-α, and β tubulin 2 were sequenced for the multi-gene sequence analysis. In total, we recovered 14 isolates with 6 of those isolates. Of the six pathogenetic isolates, LST001, LST002, LYT003, LSrt001, and LSrt002 were determined to be Lasiodiplodia chonburiensis, and isolate LYL005 was determined to be L. theobromae. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of L. chonburiensis and L. theobromae being associated with leaf blight disease in rubber trees in Thailand or elsewhere. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungi, Ecology, and Global Change)
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