Identification of general features in soil fungal communities modulated by phenolic acids

Phenolic acids are mainly released from plant residue decomposition and play important roles in the assembly of the soil microbiome. Understanding the general features of soil microbial communities modulated by phenolic acids could provide fundamental insights into the assembly of the soil microbiome. We analyzed the effects of four phenolic acids (ferulic acid, phthalic acid, salicylic acid and tannic acid) on the soil fungal communities at two concentrations. Despite the application of different phenolic acids to the soil, we were able to identify certain general changes in the fungal communities. We found that the tested phenolic acids significantly increased the deterministic assembly process of the fungal community but decreased the fungal diversity. Moreover, the fungal community structure under each tested phenolic acid treatment was distinct at low concentrations but similar at high concentrations. Salicylic acid had the greatest impacts on the fungal community. In addition, Fusarium and Aspergillus were significantly enriched in the soil amended with all the tested phenolic acids at high concentrations. Our study revealed certain general changes in the soil fungal communities modulated by phenolic acids, which deepened our understanding of the fungal assembly mechanism and provided robust insights for identifying candidate phenolic acid-degrading microbes.