Phyllosphere

In microbiology, the phyllosphere is the total above-ground surface of a plant when viewed as a habitat for microorganisms. The phyllosphere can be further subdivided into the caulosphere (stems), phylloplane (leaves), anthosphere (flowers), and carposphere (fruits). The below-ground microbial habitats (i.e. the thin-volume of soil surrounding root or subterranean stem surfaces) are referred to as the rhizosphere and laimosphere. Most plants host diverse communities of microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, archaea, and protists. Some are beneficial to the plant, while others function as plant pathogens and may damage the host plant or even kill it.

In microbiology, the phyllosphere is the total above-ground surface of a plant when viewed as a habitat for microorganisms. The phyllosphere can be further subdivided into the caulosphere (stems), phylloplane (leaves), anthosphere (flowers), and carposphere (fruits). The below-ground microbial habitats (i.e. the thin-volume of soil surrounding root or subterranean stem surfaces) are referred to as the rhizosphere and laimosphere. Most plants host diverse communities of microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, archaea, and protists. Some are beneficial to the plant, while others function as plant pathogens and may damage the host plant or even kill it. ==Example: The manuka phyllosphere== The flowering tea tree commonly known as manuka is indigenous to New Zealand. Manuka honey, produced from the nectar of manuka flowers, is known for its non-peroxide antibacterial properties. These non-peroxide antibacterial properties have been principally linked to the accumulation of the three-carbon sugar dihydroxyacetone (DHA) in the nectar of the manuka flower, which undergoes a chemical conversion to methylglyoxal (MGO) in mature honey. However, the concentration of DHA in the nectar of manuka flowers is notoriously variable, and the antimicrobial efficacy of manuka honey consequently varies from region to region and from year to year. Despite extensive research efforts, no reliable correlation has been identified between DHA production and climatic, edaphic, or host genetic factors. on the left illustrates how the composition of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in the manuka phyllosphere and associated soil communities differed significantly. No core soil microbiome was detected. (B) The chart on the right shows how OTUs in phyllosphere and associated soil communities differed in relative abundances. ]] Microorganisms have been studied in the manuka rhizosphere and endosphere. Earlier studies primarily focussed on fungi, and a 2016 study provided the first investigation of endophytic bacterial communities from three geographically and environmentally distinct manuka populations using fingerprinting techniques and revealed tissue-specific core endomicrobiomes. A 2020 study identified a habitat-specific and relatively abundant core microbiome in the manuka phyllosphere, which was persistent across all samples. In contrast, non-core phyllosphere microorganisms exhibited significant variation across individual host trees and populations that was strongly driven by environmental and spatial factors. The results demonstrated the existence of a dominant and ubiquitous core microbiome in the phyllosphere of manuka. ==See also== Epibiont Epiphytes Foliicolous Microbiota Epiphytic fungus Epiphytic bacteria ==References==

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