Article ; Online: Growth and asymmetry of soil microfungal colonies from "Evolution Canyon," Lower Nahal Oren, Mount Carmel, Israel.
PloS one
2012 Volume 7, Issue 4, Page(s) e34689
Abstract: Background: Fluctuating asymmetry is a contentious indicator of stress in populations of animals and plants. Nevertheless, it is a measure of developmental noise, typically obtained by measuring asymmetry across an individual organism's left-right axis ... ...
| Abstract | Background: Fluctuating asymmetry is a contentious indicator of stress in populations of animals and plants. Nevertheless, it is a measure of developmental noise, typically obtained by measuring asymmetry across an individual organism's left-right axis of symmetry. These individual, signed asymmetries are symmetrically distributed around a mean of zero. Fluctuating asymmetry, however, has rarely been studied in microorganisms, and never in fungi. Objective and methods: We examined colony growth and random phenotypic variation of five soil microfungal species isolated from the opposing slopes of "Evolution Canyon," Mount Carmel, Israel. This canyon provides an opportunity to study diverse taxa inhabiting a single microsite, under different kinds and intensities of abiotic and biotic stress. The south-facing "African" slope of "Evolution Canyon" is xeric, warm, and tropical. It is only 200 m, on average, from the north-facing "European" slope, which is mesic, cool, and temperate. Five fungal species inhabiting both the south-facing "African" slope, and the north-facing "European" slope of the canyon were grown under controlled laboratory conditions, where we measured the fluctuating radial asymmetry and sizes of their colonies. Results: Different species displayed different amounts of radial asymmetry (and colony size). Moreover, there were highly significant slope by species interactions for size, and marginally significant ones for fluctuating asymmetry. There were no universal differences (i.e., across all species) in radial asymmetry and colony size between strains from "African" and "European" slopes, but colonies of Clonostachys rosea from the "African" slope were more asymmetric than those from the "European" slope. Conclusions and significance: Our study suggests that fluctuating radial asymmetry has potential as an indicator of random phenotypic variation and stress in soil microfungi. Interaction of slope and species for both growth rate and asymmetry of microfungi in a common environment is evidence of genetic differences between the "African" and "European" slopes of "Evolution Canyon." |
|---|---|
| MeSH term(s) | Ascomycota/growth & development ; Aspergillus/growth & development ; Biological Evolution ; Ecosystem ; Environment ; Fungi/cytology ; Fungi/growth & development ; Israel ; Penicillium/growth & development ; Soil Microbiology |
| Language | English |
| Publishing date | 2012-04-16 |
| Publishing country | United States |
| Document type | Journal Article |
| ISSN | 1932-6203 |
| ISSN (online) | 1932-6203 |
| DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0034689 |
| Database | MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE |
More links
Kategorien
Order via subito
This service is chargeable due to the Delivery terms set by subito. Orders including an article and supplementary material will be classified as separate orders. In these cases, fees will be demanded for each order.
Inter-library loan at ZB MED
Your chosen title can be delivered directly to ZB MED Cologne location if you are registered as a user at ZB MED Cologne.