Fungal endophytes play important roles in plant fitness and plant–microbe interactions. Kudzu (Pueraria montana var. lobata) is a dominant, abundant, and highly aggressive invasive plant in the Southeast United States. Kudzu serves as a pathogen reservoir that impacts economically important leguminous crops. We conducted the first investigations on kudzu fungal endophytes (Illumina MiSeq—ITS2) to elucidate drivers of endophytic communities across the heart of the invasive range in the Southeast United States (TN, MS, AL, GA). We tested the impacts of multiple environmental parameters (Chlorophyll, NO₃⁻, K⁺, soil pH, leaf area, host genotype, traffic intensity, and geographic location) on foliar endophyte communities. Endophytic communities were diverse and structured by many factors in our PerMANOVA analyses, but location, genotype, and traffic (proxy for pollution) were the strongest drivers of community composition (R² = 0.152, p < 0.001, R² = 0.129, p < 0.001, and R² = 0.126, p < 0.001, respectively). Further, we examined the putative ecological interactions between endophytic fungi and plant pathogens. We identify numerous OTUs that are positively and strongly associated with pathogen occurrence, largely within the families Montagnulaceae and Tremellales incertae sedis. Taken together, these data suggest location, host genetics and local pollution play instrumental roles in structuring communities, and integrative plant management must consider these factors when developing management strategies.

中文翻译：

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美国东南部野葛（Pueraria montana var。lobata）的叶片真菌内生群落的驱动因子

真菌内生菌在植物适应性和植物-微生物相互作用中起着重要作用。葛根（葛藤变种葛根）是在美国东南部的一个优势，丰富的，具有很强的攻击性入侵植物。葛根是一种病原体库，会影响经济上重要的豆类作物。我们对野葛真菌内生菌（Illumina MiSeq-ITS2）进行了首次调查，以阐明横跨美国东南部（TN，MS，AL，GA）侵入范围心脏的内生菌群落驱动因子。我们测试的多个环境参数（叶绿素，NO的影响₃ ^-，K ⁺，叶片内生菌群落的土壤pH值，叶面积，宿主基因型，运输强度和地理位置）。在我们的PerMANOVA分析中，内生群落的多样性和结构受许多因素影响，但是位置，基因型和交通量（污染的代名词）是群落组成的最强驱动力（R ² = 0.152，p <0.001，R ² = 0.129，p < 0.001，R ² = 0.126，p分别<0.001）。此外，我们检查了内生真菌和植物病原体之间的推定生态相互作用。我们确定了许多与病原体的发生呈正相关且强烈相关的OTU，主要是在Montagnulaceae和incertae sedis家族中。总之，这些数据表明地理位置，宿主遗传学和局部污染在构建社区中发挥着重要作用，而综合植物管理在制定管理策略时必须考虑这些因素。