Isolation and identification of symbiotic fungi in roots of young Quercus wutaishansea on Liupan Mountain postprint

Abstract: The symbiotic fungi in roots of young Quercus wutaishansea at different ages were isolated directly from root tips to elucidate community structure and dynamic changes. The isolated fungi were identified based on the morphological characteristics of colony and molecular analysis. The results were as follows: （1）A total of 249 fungal strains were isolated from the roots of young Q. wutaishansea, 18 species belonging to 15 genera, 8 families, 7 orders, 8 classes and 2 phyla were recognized. Among them, 2 species are ascomycotes and 16 species are basidiomycets. Pezicula pruinosa was the species with the highest isolation frequency (81.93%), followed by Dactylonectria torresensis (4.02%), Ilyonectria robusta (2.01%) and Atrocalyx nordicus (2.01%). （2）Significant differences in species and quantities of symbiotic fungi demonstrate in different ages of young Quercus wutaishansea, with the highest frequency of isolation occurring in the 4-5 years old (44.98%) followed by the triennial (29.32%), biennial (19.68%) and annual (6.02%). To sum up, culturable symbiotic fungi in the roots of young Q. wutaishansea on Liupan Mountain were highly diverse. Species and quantities of isolates varied at different ages of trees, and the diversity increased with the growth of tree. Pezicula pruinosa is the most dominant culturable symbiotic fungi in roots of young Quercus wutaishansea. The results lay the foundation for further investigating symbiotic fungal resources and exploring the microbial symbiotic mechanism of Q. wutaishansea in adapting to local environment.