Soil bacteria and fungi communities are shaped by elevation influences in Colombian forest and páramo natural ecosystems

The influence of elevation on natural terrestrial ecosystems determines the arrangements of microbial communities in soils to be associated with biotic and abiotic factors. To evaluate changes of fungi and bacteria at the community level along an elevational gradient (between 1000 and 3800 m.a.s.l.), physicochemical measurements of soils, taxonomic identifications of plants, and metabarcoding sequences of the 16S rRNA gene for bacteria and the ITS1 region for fungi were obtained. The bacterial taxonomic composition showed that Acidobacteriota increased in abundance with elevation, while Actinobacteriota and Verrucomicrobiota decreased. Furthermore, Firmicutes and Proteobacteria maintained maximum levels of abundance at intermediate elevations (1200 and 2400 m.a.s.l.). In fungi, Ascomycota was more abundant at higher elevations, Basidiomycota tended to dominate at lower elevations, and Mortierellomycota had a greater presence at intermediate sites. These results correlated with the edaphic parameters of decreasing pH and increasing organic carbon and available nitrogen with elevation. In addition, the Shannon index found a greater diversity in bacteria than fungi, but both showed a unimodal pattern with maximum values in the Andean Forest at 2400 m.a.s.l. Through the microbial characterization of the ecosystems, the elevational gradient, soil properties, and vegetation were found to exert significant effects on microbial communities and alpha diversity indices. We conclude that the most abundant soil microorganisms at the sampling points differed in abundance and diversity according to the variations in factors influencing ecological communities. (AU)

Exploring Genomics and Microbial Ecology: Analysis of Bidens pilosa L. Genetic Structure and Soil Microbiome Diversity by RAD-Seq and Metabarcoding.

Bidens pilosa L., native to South America and commonly used for medicinal purposes, has been understudied at molecular and genomic levels and in its relationship with soil microorganisms. In this study, restriction site-associated DNA markers (RADseq) techniques were implemented to analyze genetic diversity and population structure, and metabarcoding to examine microbial composition in soils from Palmira, Sibundoy, and Bogotá, Colombia. A total of 2,984,123 loci and 3485 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified, revealing a genetic variation of 12% between populations and 88% within individuals, and distributing the population into three main genetic groups, FST = 0.115 (p < 0.001) and FIT = 0.013 (p > 0.05). In the soil analysis, significant correlations were found between effective cation exchange capacity (ECEC) and apparent density, soil texture, and levels of Mg and Fe, as well as negative correlations between ECEC and Mg, and Mg, Fe, and Ca. Proteobacteria and Ascomycota emerged as the predominant bacterial and fungal phyla, respectively. Analyses of alpha, beta, and multifactorial diversity highlight the influence of ecological and environmental factors on these microbial communities, revealing specific patterns of clustering and association between bacteria and fungi in the studied locations.

Soil bacteria and fungi communities are shaped by elevation influences in Colombian forest and páramo natural ecosystems.

The influence of elevation on natural terrestrial ecosystems determines the arrangements of microbial communities in soils to be associated with biotic and abiotic factors. To evaluate changes of fungi and bacteria at the community level along an elevational gradient (between 1000 and 3800 m.a.s.l.), physicochemical measurements of soils, taxonomic identifications of plants, and metabarcoding sequences of the 16S rRNA gene for bacteria and the ITS1 region for fungi were obtained. The bacterial taxonomic composition showed that Acidobacteriota increased in abundance with elevation, while Actinobacteriota and Verrucomicrobiota decreased. Furthermore, Firmicutes and Proteobacteria maintained maximum levels of abundance at intermediate elevations (1200 and 2400 m.a.s.l.). In fungi, Ascomycota was more abundant at higher elevations, Basidiomycota tended to dominate at lower elevations, and Mortierellomycota had a greater presence at intermediate sites. These results correlated with the edaphic parameters of decreasing pH and increasing organic carbon and available nitrogen with elevation. In addition, the Shannon index found a greater diversity in bacteria than fungi, but both showed a unimodal pattern with maximum values in the Andean Forest at 2400 m.a.s.l. Through the microbial characterization of the ecosystems, the elevational gradient, soil properties, and vegetation were found to exert significant effects on microbial communities and alpha diversity indices. We conclude that the most abundant soil microorganisms at the sampling points differed in abundance and diversity according to the variations in factors influencing ecological communities.

Phenotypic intrapopulation variation in quinoa from the department of Boyacá, Colombia / Variación fenotípica intrapoblacional en quinua en el departamento de Boyacá, Colombia

ABSTRACT Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Wild.) is an Andean crop that originated from the Andes of South America, with great agronomic, industrial, pharmaceutical potential and also a great capacity to tolerate adverse environmental factors. In Colombia, more accurately in the Department of Nariño, Cauca, Cundinamarca and Boyacá. Shows great genetic variation, both molecular and morphological, which organization remains poorly documented. In Boyacá, there are few studies on the morphological characterization of cultivated materials, and there is no certified planting material, with farmers planting a mixture of materials. Qualitative and quantitative descriptors and principal component and cluster analyses were used to characterize the structure of the intra-population phenotypic variation in Blanca de Jericó quinoa materials grown in the Department of Boyacá. The principal component analysis explained more than 70 % of the observed variation, with the AP, LP, DP, LHS, and AHS characteristics being more variable. The cluster analysis showed grouping by characteristics, such as AP, panicle color, and the presence of pigmented axillae. Results show that the variance in morpho-phenological traits was concentrated at the intra-population, due to high variation at the inter-individual level. A more efficient selection process should be carried out to find materials or "pure" varieties with higher yields, resistance to biotic and abiotic factors, and adaptation to local conditions, which make quinoa an economically profitable crop in the Boyacá department.

RESUMEN La quinua (Chenopodium quinoa Wild.) es un cultivo andino, originario de los Andes Suramericanos, con gran potencial agronómico, industrial y farmacéutico y también con una gran capacidad para tolerar factores ambientales adversos. En Colombia, actualmente, se cultiva en los departamentos de Nariño, Cauca, Cundinamarca y Boyacá. Presenta una gran variación genética, tanto a nivel molecular como morfológica, la cual, ha sido poco documentada. En Boyacá son pocos los estudios de caracterización morfológica de materiales cultivados y no hay material de siembra certificado, por lo que los agricultores siembran una mezcla de materiales. Descriptores cualitativos y cuantitativos y un análisis de componentes principales y de agrupamiento fueron usados para caracterizar la estructura de la variación fenotípica intrapoblacional de los materiales de quinua Blanca Jericó, que son cultivados en el departamento de Boyacá. El análisis de componentes principales explicó más del 70 % de la variación observada, siendo las características más variables AP, LP, DP, LHS y AHS. El análisis clúster mostró un agrupamiento por características, tales como AP, color de la panícula y presencia de axilas pigmentadas. Los resultados mostraron que la variación en las características morfológicas estaba concentrada dentro de la población, debido a la alta variación, a nivel inter-individual. Se deben llevar a cabo procesos de selección más eficientes para encontrar materiales "puros" o variedades con más altos rendimientos, con resistencia a factores bióticos y abióticos y adaptados a las condiciones locales, para así hacer de la quinua un cultivo económicamente rentable para el departamento de Boyacá.