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Ligninolytic Activity at 0 °C of Fungi on Oak Leaves Under Snow Cover in a Mixed Forest in Japan

  • Fungal Microbiology
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Abstract

Despite the importance of litter decomposition under snow cover in boreal forests and tundra, very little is known regarding the characteristics and functions of litter-decomposing fungi adapted to the cold climate. We investigated the decomposition of oak leaves in a heavy snowfall forest region of Japan. The rate of litter weight loss reached 26.5% during the snow cover period for 7 months and accounted for 64.6% of the annual loss (41.1%). Although no statistically significant lignin loss was detected, decolourization portions of oak leaf litter, which was attributable to the activities of ligninolytic fungi, were observed during snow cover period. This suggests that fungi involved in litter decomposition can produce extracellular enzymes to degrade lignin that remain active at 0 °C. Fungi were isolated from oak leaves collected from the forest floor under the snow layer. One hundred and sixty-six strains were isolated and classified into 33 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) based on culture characteristics and nuclear rDNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region sequences. To test the ability to degrade lignin, the production of extracellular phenoloxidases by isolates was quantified at 0 °C. Ten OTUs (9 Ascomycota and 1 Basidiomycota) of fungi exhibited mycelial growth and ligninolytic activity. These results suggested that some litter-decomposing fungi that had the potential to degrade lignin at 0 °C significantly contribute to litter decomposition under snow cover.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Dr. T. Hosoya for his comments on identification of fungi. We also thank Dr. M. Shibuya for his advice on statistical analyses. This work was partly supported by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Grant Numbers 21570013, 25440198, and 15K07468.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 060-8589, Japan

    Toshizumi Miyamoto, Keiichi Koda & Yasumitsu Uraki

  2. Graduate School of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 060-8589, Japan

    Arata Kawaguchi

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  1. Toshizumi Miyamoto
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  2. Keiichi Koda
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Correspondence to Toshizumi Miyamoto.

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Miyamoto, T., Koda, K., Kawaguchi, A. et al. Ligninolytic Activity at 0 °C of Fungi on Oak Leaves Under Snow Cover in a Mixed Forest in Japan. Microb Ecol 74, 322–331 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-017-0952-8

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