| Full text | |
| Author(s): |
Total Authors: 4
|
| Affiliation: | [1] Kyoto Univ, Grad Sch Human & Environm Studies, Sakyo Ku, Kyoto 6068501 - Japan
[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Biociencias, Dept Ecol, BR-05508900 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[3] Aarhus Univ, Dept Biosci, DK-8000 Aarhus C - Denmark
[4] Univ Calif Santa Cruz, Dept Ecol & Evolutionary Biol, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 - USA
Total Affiliations: 4
|
| Document type: | Journal article |
| Source: | NATURE COMMUNICATIONS; v. 5, OCT 2014. |
| Web of Science Citations: | 57 |
| Abstract | |
Species in ecological communities build complex webs of interaction. Although revealing the architecture of these networks is fundamental to understanding ecological and evolutionary dynamics in nature, it has been difficult to characterize the structure of most species-rich ecological systems. By overcoming this limitation through next-generation sequencing technology, we herein uncover the network architecture of below-ground plant-fungus symbioses, which are ubiquitous to terrestrial ecosystems. The examined symbiotic network of a temperate forest in Japan includes 33 plant species and 387 functionally and phylogenetically diverse fungal taxa, and the overall network architecture differs fundamentally from that of other ecological networks. In contrast to results for other ecological networks and theoretical predictions for symbiotic networks, the plant-fungus network shows moderate or relatively low levels of interaction specialization and modularity and an unusual pattern of `nested' network architecture. These results suggest that species-rich ecological networks are more architecturally diverse than previously recognized. (AU) | |
| FAPESP's process: | 09/54422-8 - Structure and coevolutionary dynamics in mutualistic networks |
| Grantee: | Paulo Roberto Guimarães Junior |
| Support Opportunities: | Research Grants - Young Investigators Grants |