Exploring the interplay between the core microbiota, physicochemical factors, agrobiochemical cycles in the soil of the historic tokaj mád wine region

Abstract

A Hungarian survey of Tokaj-Mád vineyards was conducted. Shotgun metabarcoding was applied to decipher the microbial-terroir. The results of 60 soil samples showed that there were three dominant fungal phyla, Ascomycota 66.36% ± 15.26%, Basidiomycota 18.78% ± 14.90%, Mucoromycota 11.89% ± 8.99%, representing 97% of operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Mutual interactions between microbiota diversity and soil physicochemical parameters were revealed. Principal component analysis showed descriptive clustering patterns of microbial taxonomy and resistance gene profiles in the case of the four historic vineyards (Szent Tamás, Király, Betsek, Nyúlászó). Linear discriminant analysis effect size was performed, revealing pronounced shifts in community taxonomy based on soil physicochemical properties. Twelve clades exhibited the most significant shifts (LDA > 4.0), including the phyla Verrucomicrobia, Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, and Rokubacteria, the classes Acidobacteria, Deltaproteobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, and Betaproteobacteria, the order Sphingomonadales, Hypomicrobiales, as well as the family Sphingomonadaceae and the genus Sphingomonas. Three out of the four historic vineyards exhibited the highest occurrences of the bacterial genus Bradyrhizobium, known for its positive influence on plant development and physiology through the secretion of steroid phytohormones. During ripening, the taxonomical composition of the soil fungal microbiota clustered into distinct groups depending on altitude, differences that were not reflected in bacteriomes. Network analyses were performed to unravel changes in fungal interactiomes when comparing postveraison and preharvest samples. In addition to the arbuscular mycorrhiza Glomeraceae, the families Mycosphaerellacae and Rhyzopodaceae and the class Agaricomycetes were found to have important roles in maintaining soil microbial community resilience. Functional metagenomics showed that the soil Na content stimulated several of the microbiota-related agrobiogeochemical cycles, such as nitrogen and sulphur metabolism; steroid, bisphenol, toluene, dioxin and atrazine degradation and the synthesis of folate.