Fungal endophyte β-diversity associated with Myrtaceae species in an Andean Patagonian forest (Argentina) and an Atlantic forest (Brazil)

The biogeography of microorganisms is poorly understood and how microbial diversity is structured is still an open debate. We investigated the processes underlying the fungal endophyte assemblages of phylogenetically related Myrtae host tree species at different spatial scales: regional, 101-5 000 km; local, 0-100 km; and microscale, 0-1 km. A total of 939 isolates was obtained and assigned to 51 distinct MOTUs based on the sequencing of the nrITS region. At regional scales, geographic distance was responsible for explaining the fungal community similarity, while, at a local scale, it was the environmental distance. Moreover, fungal endophytes exhibit preference in the colonization of Luma apiculata but not for Myrceugenia ovata var. nanophylla. Our results suggest that fungal endophytes are not randomly distributed and are influenced by both geographic and environment distances depending on the spatial scale analysed.