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Background and aims <p>Maize/soybean intercropping is widely recognized for its efficacy in enhancing agroecosystem functions. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) may contribute to these benefits by improving host plant growth and nutrient uptake. However, their potential role in belowground interspecific interactions within maize/soybean systems remains poorly understood.</p> Methods <p>The diversity and community composition of AMF were compared across two planting patterns (monocropping and intercropping), three root compartments (rhizosphere, rhizoplane, and endosphere), and two crop species (maize and soybean) using Illumina amplicon sequencing. A transcriptomic analysis was performed to investigate gene expression related to AMF symbiosis, while the relationships among AMF diversity shifts, gene expression regulation, AMF colonization, root productivity, and soil environmental factors were analyzed.</p> Results <p>Maize and soybean exhibited divergent responses to intercropping. Soybean showed downregulation of 35 AMF symbiosis-related genes, alongside reduced AMF colonization and endospheric Chao1 diversity (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.01), while maize maintained higher colonization with increased root biomass and total carbon (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.05). AMF community composition shifted significantly in all soybean compartments (PERMANOVA: R<sup>2</sup> ≥ 0.796, <i>P</i> ≤ 0.01) but was less affected in maize. In soybean, AMF colonization and diversity correlated with gene expression profiles (Mantel test and Procrustes analysis), and <i>Glomus</i> and <i>Paraglomus</i> abundance positively associated with total N (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.05). Soil available phosphorus was a key driver of belowground AMF community restructuring.</p> Conclusion <p>Intercropping enhanced maize root productivity and AMF colonization while reducing soybean AMF diversity and the expression of symbiosis-related genes, highlighting species-specific responses to belowground interactions. These findings underscore the importance of AMF in optimizing intercropping systems for sustainable agriculture.</p>

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Divergent responses of maize and soybean to intercropping: Insights from arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi diversity, colonization, and related-genes expression

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年2月2日

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  • Shihui Yu,
  • Xinru Liu,
  • Ling Liu,
  • Yanping Ma,
  • Baohong Liu,
  • Wuyan Xiang,
  • Ying Zhang,
  • Peiyong Liu,
  • Chen Feng,
  • Caixia Sun

摘要

Background and aims

Maize/soybean intercropping is widely recognized for its efficacy in enhancing agroecosystem functions. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) may contribute to these benefits by improving host plant growth and nutrient uptake. However, their potential role in belowground interspecific interactions within maize/soybean systems remains poorly understood.

Methods

The diversity and community composition of AMF were compared across two planting patterns (monocropping and intercropping), three root compartments (rhizosphere, rhizoplane, and endosphere), and two crop species (maize and soybean) using Illumina amplicon sequencing. A transcriptomic analysis was performed to investigate gene expression related to AMF symbiosis, while the relationships among AMF diversity shifts, gene expression regulation, AMF colonization, root productivity, and soil environmental factors were analyzed.

Results

Maize and soybean exhibited divergent responses to intercropping. Soybean showed downregulation of 35 AMF symbiosis-related genes, alongside reduced AMF colonization and endospheric Chao1 diversity (P < 0.01), while maize maintained higher colonization with increased root biomass and total carbon (P < 0.05). AMF community composition shifted significantly in all soybean compartments (PERMANOVA: R2 ≥ 0.796, P ≤ 0.01) but was less affected in maize. In soybean, AMF colonization and diversity correlated with gene expression profiles (Mantel test and Procrustes analysis), and Glomus and Paraglomus abundance positively associated with total N (P < 0.05). Soil available phosphorus was a key driver of belowground AMF community restructuring.

Conclusion

Intercropping enhanced maize root productivity and AMF colonization while reducing soybean AMF diversity and the expression of symbiosis-related genes, highlighting species-specific responses to belowground interactions. These findings underscore the importance of AMF in optimizing intercropping systems for sustainable agriculture.