Microbial mats are compacted, surface-associated microbial ecosystems reminiscent of the first living communities on early Earth. While often considered predominantly prokaryotic, recent findings show that both fungi and viruses are ubiquitous in microbial mats, albeit their functional roles remaining unknown. Fungal research has mostly focused on terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems where fungi are known as important recyclers of organic matter, whereas viruses are exceptionally abundant and important in aquatic ecosystems. Here viruses have shown to affect organic matter cycling and the diversity of microbial communities by facilitating horizontal gene transfer and cell lysis. We hypothesise fungi and viruses to have similar roles in microbial mats. Based on the author's perspectives, and from the analysis of previous research in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, we outline novel hypotheses proposing strong impacts of fungi and viruses on element cycling, food web structure and function in microbial mats, and outline experimental approaches for studies needed to understand these interactions.

中文翻译：

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真菌和病毒是微生物垫中的重要角色。

微生物垫是紧密的，与表面相关的微生物生态系统，让人联想到地球早期的第一个生物群落。尽管通常被认为主要是原核生物，但最近的发现表明真菌和病毒在微生物垫中都是普遍存在的，尽管其功能作用仍然未知。真菌研究主要集中在陆地和淡水生态系统，其中真菌被认为是重要的有机物质循环利用者，而病毒在水生生态系统中异常丰富且非常重要。在这里，病毒已显示出通过促进水平基因转移和细胞裂解而影响有机物循环和微生物群落的多样性。我们假设真菌和病毒在微生物垫中具有相似的作用。根据作者的观点，