Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/K011383/1
Unravelling mechanisms of wood decay fungal community change in the post-genomic era
Grant Award
- Principal Investigator:
- Professor L Boddy, Cardiff University, School of Biosciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor H Rogers, Cardiff University, School of Biosciences
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr CT Muller, Cardiff University, School of Biosciences
- Grant held at:
- Cardiff University, School of Biosciences
- Science Area:
- Terrestrial
- Overall Classification:
- Terrestrial
- ENRIs:
- Biodiversity
- Environmental Risks and Hazards
- Global Change
- Natural Resource Management
- Pollution and Waste
- Science Topics:
- Gene expression
- Communication & signalling
- Climate & Climate Change
- Community Ecology
- Microbial
- Environmental Microbiology
- Abstract:
- About a third of the carbon in the biosphere is in forest ecosystems, mostly in woody plant tissues. Photosynthesis continually adds to this, but in balanced systems a similar amount is broken down to CO2 and H2O, and nutrients are released. The organisms responsible for this decay and cycling are almost exclusively a narrow range of fungi - basidiomycetes and a few ascomycetes. Fungi do not grow in isolation in wood, but form a 3-D mosaic of individuals of the same and different species, which compete with neighbours. Competition leads to community change. Decay rate depends on fungal community composition, climate and the competitive interactions themselves. It is not known how predicted climatic change might influence these interactions and the balance of carbon and nutrient cycling in forests. Since wood is a solid organic substance, competition for resources is effectively competition for space/territory. Fungi defend and obtain new territory by combative, antagonistic interactions. The overall outcomes are deadlock, where neither species gains headway, or replacement where one species wrests territory from the other, but sometimes partial replacement or mutual replacement. With the complexity of multiple species and environmental conditions, many different antagonistic mechanisms operate. Responses to antagonists include rapid cell division and death, production of pigments, volatile (VOCs) and diffusible organic compounds, and other antimicrobial agents. These responses determine the outcome of interactions, but we do not understand the underlying mechanisms which is crucial for understanding wood decomposition. Ultimately we want to know how wood decay communities function in natural ecosystems. We will investigate the physiological changes during interactions between species of decay fungi in wood representing the succession from primary coloniser to secondary and tertiary decomposers, under differing environmental conditions. New post-genomic tools allow us to get a complete picture of the genes that are switched on and off during interactions. We will focus on a secondary coloniser Trametes versicolor, and its interaction with another secondary coloniser with which it deadlocks, a primary coloniser that it replaces, and a tertiary coloniser that it is replaced by. There are 5 main things we want to understand: Firstly, what are the responses of fungal cells during antagonistic confrontation with other mycelia in wood? We will analyse the full complement of transcribed genes, extracellular proteins, VOCs and selected enzymes in the laboratory. Secondly, how are competitive outcomes influenced by environment - temperature, water availability and amount of decay? We will vary conditions and focus on a subset of important genes. Thirdly, are these interaction responses common to wood decay fungi in general? We will interact Trametes versicolor with 15 wood decay species representative of different fungal families and different decay abilities, focusing on a subset of important genes. Fourthly, do responses in the lab reflect the real world? Some of the combinations of fungi paired in wood will be placed on the forest floor, and then changes in expression of important genes measured. Finally, what happens in more complex situations, commonly found in nature, where several wood decay fungi interact with each other simultaneously? We will measure expression of important genes in wood discs colonised with T. versicolor left on the forest floor for 6, 12, 18 and 24 months, allowing natural colonisation from many spores and mycelium in the soil. This ambitious project uses a logical progression from controlled lab-based experiments to the natural environment using state-of-the-art molecular technologies. It will provide solid foundations for the investigation of complex community-based decay processes, and knowledge to aid the control of timber decay and source novel antimicrobial compounds and other chemicals.
- Period of Award:
- 1 Mar 2014 - 28 Feb 2017
- Value:
- £358,956 Lead Split Award
Authorised funds only
- NERC Reference:
- NE/K011383/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- Standard Grant (FEC)
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- Standard Grant
This grant award has a total value of £358,956
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| DI - Other Costs | Indirect - Indirect Costs | DA - Investigators | DA - Estate Costs | DI - Staff | DA - Other Directly Allocated | DI - T&S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £26,472 | £107,132 | £39,628 | £40,852 | £134,731 | £1,482 | £8,659 |
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