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Fungal functional ecology: bringing a trait-based approach to plant-associated fungi.

Authors :
Zanne AE
Abarenkov K
Afkhami ME
Aguilar-Trigueros CA
Bates S
Bhatnagar JM
Busby PE
Christian N
Cornwell WK
Crowther TW
Flores-Moreno H
Floudas D
Gazis R
Hibbett D
Kennedy P
Lindner DL
Maynard DS
Milo AM
Nilsson RH
Powell J
Schildhauer M
Schilling J
Treseder KK
Source :
Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society [Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc] 2020 Apr; Vol. 95 (2), pp. 409-433. Date of Electronic Publication: 2019 Nov 25.
Publication Year :
2020

Abstract

Fungi play many essential roles in ecosystems. They facilitate plant access to nutrients and water, serve as decay agents that cycle carbon and nutrients through the soil, water and atmosphere, and are major regulators of macro-organismal populations. Although technological advances are improving the detection and identification of fungi, there still exist key gaps in our ecological knowledge of this kingdom, especially related to function. Trait-based approaches have been instrumental in strengthening our understanding of plant functional ecology and, as such, provide excellent models for deepening our understanding of fungal functional ecology in ways that complement insights gained from traditional and -omics-based techniques. In this review, we synthesize current knowledge of fungal functional ecology, taxonomy and systematics and introduce a novel database of fungal functional traits (Fun <superscript>Fun</superscript> ). Fun <superscript>Fun</superscript> is built to interface with other databases to explore and predict how fungal functional diversity varies by taxonomy, guild, and other evolutionary or ecological grouping variables. To highlight how a quantitative trait-based approach can provide new insights, we describe multiple targeted examples and end by suggesting next steps in the rapidly growing field of fungal functional ecology.<br /> (© 2019 Cambridge Philosophical Society.)

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1469-185X
Volume :
95
Issue :
2
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
31763752
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12570