Acidification suppresses the natural capacity of soil microbiome to fight pathogenic Fusarium infections

Xiaogang Li, Dele Chen, Víctor J. Carrión, Daniel Revillini, Shan Yin, Yuanhua Dong, Taolin Zhang, Xingxiang Wang () and Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo ()
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Xiaogang Li: Nanjing Forestry University
Dele Chen: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Víctor J. Carrión: Leiden University
Daniel Revillini: Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Sevilla (IRNAS), CSIC
Shan Yin: Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-Environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology
Yuanhua Dong: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Taolin Zhang: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xingxiang Wang: Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo: Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Sevilla (IRNAS), CSIC

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract Soil-borne pathogens pose a major threat to food production worldwide, particularly under global change and with growing populations. Yet, we still know very little about how the soil microbiome regulates the abundance of soil pathogens and their impact on plant health. Here we combined field surveys with experiments to investigate the relationships of soil properties and the structure and function of the soil microbiome with contrasting plant health outcomes. We find that soil acidification largely impacts bacterial communities and reduces the capacity of soils to combat fungal pathogens. In vitro assays with microbiomes from acidified soils further highlight a declined ability to suppress Fusarium, a globally important plant pathogen. Similarly, when we inoculate healthy plants with an acidified soil microbiome, we show a greatly reduced capacity to prevent pathogen invasion. Finally, metagenome sequencing of the soil microbiome and untargeted metabolomics reveals a down regulation of genes associated with the synthesis of sulfur compounds and reduction of key traits related to sulfur metabolism in acidic soils. Our findings suggest that changes in the soil microbiome and disruption of specific microbial processes induced by soil acidification can play a critical role for plant health.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40810-z

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