Comparative Analysis of the Phyllosphere Microbial Diversity among Three Different Grassland Plants

doi:10.7525/j.issn.1673-5102.2026.03.013

Abstract

Abstract:

Phyllosphere microorganisms play crucial roles in host plant growth and development， disease resistance， stress tolerance， and ecosystem functions. However， the differences in phyllosphere microbial communities among different hosts and their underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study focused on three plant species within the Inner Mongolia grassland ecosystem： Leymus chinensis（Poaceae）， Vicia sativa（Fabaceae）， and Aster altaicus（Asteraceae）. The diversity and community structure of bacteria and fungi in the phyllosphere were analyzed by using high-throughput sequencing technology. Additionally， the influence of key leaf traits-total carbon， total nitrogen， total phosphorus， chlorophyll content， and specific leaf area on these microbial communities was investigated. Results indicated significant host species specificity in phyllosphere microbial community structure. The α-diversity of both bacterial and fungal communities was highest on L. chinensis. The phyllosphere of L. chinensis was dominated by potentially beneficial bacteria such as Bacillus species， with relatively low abundance of pathogenic bacteria， although it also harbored potential pathogenic fungi. In contrast， the phyllosphere of V. sativa was enriched with nitrogen-fixing bacteria such as Sphingomonas and Methylobacterium-Methylorubrum. The fungal community in the phyllosphere of A. altaicus simultaneously contained pathogenic fungi such as Alternaria， and biocontrol fungi such as Epicoccum. Redundancy analysis revealed that leaf total phosphorus content significantly influenced both bacterial and fungal communities， whereas total nitrogen content and specific leaf area primarily affected fungal community variation. In conclusion， host leaf structural and nutrient traits are key determinants shaping phyllosphere bacterial and fungal communities. This study provides theoretical support for understanding the relationship between grassland plants and their phyllosphere microbiome， as well as their ecological adaptation strategies.

Key words: phyllosphere microorganisms, community structure, diversity, leaf traits

CLC Number:

Q938.1

Wanting PENG, Jinyu CHEN, Fan YANG, Xinyu LI, Xinyi GUO, Yi WEI, Hongyi WANG, Zhihui WANG. Comparative Analysis of the Phyllosphere Microbial Diversity among Three Different Grassland Plants[J]. Bulletin of Botanical Research, 2026, 46(3): 531-541.

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环境因子 Environmental factors	细菌 Bacteria			真菌 Fungi
环境因子 Environmental factors	解释度 Explains/%	伪F Pseudo-F	P	解释度 Explains/%	伪F Pseudo-F	P
全磷 TP	21.2	4.3	0.014	15.7	3.0	0.040
全氮 TN	12.7	2.3	0.082	30.4	7.0	0.002
比叶面积 Specific leaf area	11.9	2.2	0.094	22.1	4.5	0.008
叶绿素 Chlorophyll	6.7	1.1	0.302	12.3	2.2	0.076
全碳 TC	2.1	0.3	0.862	2.6	0.4	0.816