When a soil dries out, this has a negative impact on the activity of soil bacteria. Using an innovative combination of state-of-the-art analysis and imaging techniques, researchers at UFZ have now discovered that fungi increase the activity of bacteria in dry and nutrient-poor habitats by supplying them with water and nutrients. The ability of fungi to regulate drought stress in soil and thus sustain ecosystem functions is an important insight in the context of climate change.
When a soil dries out, this has a negative impact on the activity of soil bacteria. Using an innovative combination of state-of-the-art analysis and imaging techniques, researchers at UFZ have now discovered that fungi increase the activity of bacteria in dry and nutrient-poor habitats by supplying them with water and nutrients. The ability of fungi to regulate drought stress in soil and thus sustain ecosystem functions is an important insight in the context of climate change.
Many fungi spread through the soil with a fine network of thin filaments known as hyphae. In their search for water and nutrients the hyphae grow in different directions, constantly enlarging the network. Once found, water and nutrients are absorbed and transported through the hyphae, allowing them to be supplied to parts of the fungal network in dry or nutrient-poor areas of the soil. But it isn’t only the fungus itself which benefits from the transport of material through the hyphal pipelines: bacteria, too, are kept supplied with the water and nutrients they need to thrive. This has now been demonstrated by a team of UFZ researchers in a study recently published in the journal Nature Communications. "We’ve suspected for a long time that fungi play an important role in the soil moisture budget," says UFZ environmental biotechnologist Prof. Matthias Kästner. "Now, using secondary ion mass spectrometry techniques (NanoSIMS and ToF-SIMS) from the ProVIS research platform at UFZ, we’ve finally obtained experimental evidence."
Read more at Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ
Image: The NanoSIMS is a secondary ion mass spectrometry system with a spatial resolution of down to 50 nanometres. This high resolution combined with its mass sensitivity make it possible to detect elements and isotopes on cell surfaces and chemical changes inside cells. This instrument is part of the newly established research platform, ProVIS. Dr. Niculina Musat and Dr. Hryhoriy Stryhanyuk (co-authors of the paper) during sample analysis. (Credit: UFZ)
