Degradation activity of fungal communities on avocado peel (Persea americana Mill.) in a solid-state process: mycobiota successions and trophic guild shifts

Abstract

To explore the capability of soil mycobiota to degrade avocado peel waste and identify relevant successions and trophic guild shifts, fungal communities from three environments with different land uses were evaluated in a solid-state process. Soil samples used as inoculum were collected from a pristine mature tropical forest, a traditionally managed Mayan land, and an intensively managed monospecific avocado plantation. Soil-substrate mixes were evaluated for 52 weeks to evaluate organic matter decay and the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio. Amplicon-based high-throughput sequencing from internally transcribed spacer (ITS) analysis revealed significant differences in fungal communities widely dominated by Fusarium sp. and Clonostachys sp.; however, less represented taxa showed relevant shifts concomitantly with organic matter content drops. Trophic guild assignment revealed different behaviors in fungal communities between treatments over the 52 weeks, suggesting distinct preconditioning of fungal communities in these environments. Overall, the results lead to the identification of promising degradation moments and inoculum sources for further consortia enrichment or bioprospecting efforts.

Elevated CO2 enhances decomposition and modifies litter‐associated fungal assemblages in a natural Eucalyptus woodland

“…Plectania has been observed associated with litter at high frequencies during later stages of decomposition (Bani et al, 2019). Papiliotrema was observed in association with avocado peels during a stage of rapid decay (Becerra-Lucio et al, 2021), although the best match here was to a yeast known as a facultative pathogen also associating with trees (Serna-Espinosa et al, 2023). Members of the Xylariales have demonstrated an association with decaying litter (Osono et al, 2012) and a capacity to break down lignocellulose (Nghi et al, 2012).…”