Project R-17032

The role of mycorrhiza in shaping belowground microbiomes (Research)

Mycorrhiza are mutualistic associations between plants and fungi, possessed by the vast majority of land plants. The three main types of mycorrhiza are ericoid-, ecto- and arbuscular mycorrhiza. These types differ in nutrient acquisition and competition with other micro-organisms. This potentially creates distinct soil environments, including distinct soil microbial communities that in turn influence nutrient cycles. Next, these altered soil microbial communities, together with the position of mycorrhizal fungi at the soil root interface, make mycorrhizal fungi to be important candidates for shaping endophytic - within plant - microbial communities. This project will investigate how distinct guilds of mycorrhizal fungi differ in their influence on root and soil microbial communities. I will utilize the long-term Mycotron field experiment established at UHasselt, where, ericoid-, ecto- and arbuscular mycorrhizal plants and their associated fungi have been established in 2023 on 60 field plots. I will collect soil and root samples from the Mycotron, and perform on them biogeochemical analysis and microbial community profiling. Subsequently, in collaboration with UNamur I will investigate, by comparing theoretical, hierarchical Lotka–Volterra models to experimental data, how the number, identity, and relative abundance of mycorrhizal fungi of distinct guilds shape the joint dynamics of soil microbial communities, root endophyte communities, and mycorrhizal fungi themselves.

01 November 2026 - 31 October 2030