Abstract Detail

Poster Session

Balkan, Mehmet A. [1], Eppley, Sarah M. [1], Kennedy, Peter G. [2], Rosenstiel, Todd N. [3].

Sex-specific fungal communities associated with the cosmopolitan dioecious moss, Ceratodon purpureus.

Highly diverse fungal communities are associated with the moss phyllosphere, but little is known about the role of host traits in structuring affiliated mycobiota. We investigated the effect of host sex on phyllosphere fungal abundance (biomass) and community composition using male and female individuals of C. purpureus from three populations grown in common garden. Molecular fingerprints of fungal communities affiliated with single shoots of C. purpureus were generated using Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (TRFLP). Relative ergosterol concentrations in moss tissues were measured by HPLC and used as a proxy for fungal biomass estimation. Fungal community composition showed sex-specific structuring across populations, and female associated communities appeared to be highly similar, whereas communities from males were highly variable. Ergosterol concentrations were significantly higher in male tissues, and greatest in individuals from the most rural moss population. Our results suggest that host sex-specific selective enrichment of fungi may be occurring in C. purpureus, and may potentially have important consequences for the ecology of the host as well as the distribution of fungi in wild populations.

1 - Portland State University, Biology, 1719 SW 10th Avenue, SRTC rm 246, Portland, OR, 97201, USA
2 - University of Minnesota , Plant Biology, 1445 Gortner Ave., 250 Biological Science Center, St. Paul, MN, 55108, United States
3 - Portland State University, Biology, 1719 SW 10th Ave., SB2 Room 246, Portland, OR, 97207, USA

Keywords:
phyllosphere fungi
bryophyte
sexual dimorphism.

Presentation Type: Offered Paper - Poster
Session: P2
Location: Lincoln Room/Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center
Date: Tuesday, June 10th, 2014
Time: 8:00 PM
Number: P2001
Abstract ID:106
Candidate for Awards:Graduate Student Poster Presentation Award