Co-occurrence analysis reveal that biotic and abiotic factors influence soil fungistasis against Fusarium graminearum

The current study determined the levels of soil fungistasis against a soil-borne pathogen inoculum, Fusarium graminearum (Fg, a major causal agent of Fusarium Head Blight (FHB)), in 31 wheat fields by quantifying Fg growth after a 15-day incubation period using qPCR in autoclaved versus non-autoclaved soils. The results were used to define the six most Fg-resistant and the six most Fg-conducive soils. By using a metabarcoding approach, the diversity of the bacterial communities was significantly higher in Fg-resistant soils than in Fg-conducive soils. Microbial taxa potentially contributing to Fg-fungistasis of soil were selected if they were significantly more prevalent and/or abundant in Fg-resistant soils than in Fg-conducive soils. Some of these candidate indicators, e.g. Pseudomonas spp. and Bacillus spp., have been reported previously as effective biocontrol agents against plant pathogens. Correlation-based network analysis further showed that the members of the bacterial communities in Fg-resistant soils were more connected than in Fg-conducive soils. Moreover, network modules was found significantly correlated with certain edaphic abiotics factors (such as the soil manganese and nitrogen content) and Fg-fungistasis. Such observations may suggest and emphasize, although conceptual, the importance of synergistic rather than individual effects of network members, and the nutrient use efficiency in contributing to Fg-resistance of soils in wheat fields in France. Keywords: fusarium graminearum; Fusarium Head Blight (FHB); molecular ecological network analysis; soil fungistasis; soil microbiome; soil suppressiveness