{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/132713"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/132713","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"Indirect genetic effects of rhizobium symbiosis plasmid on legume-grass dynamics","abstract":"Legume-grass dynamics are keystone interactions in terrestrial ecosystems, but outcomes vary from facilitative to competitive depending on nitrogen (N) availability in the environment. Rhizobial bacteria provide fixed N to their legume hosts, and thus the presence or identity of rhizobia can influence host interactions with other species. In Rhizobium symbionts of clover, the genes that determine symbiosis compatibility and efficiency are located on a plasmid (pSym, or symbiosis plasmid), which can be shared within and across taxa through horizontal gene transfer (HGT). Previous work has identified four distinct clades of pSyms that control partner quality variation in a natural population of Rhizobium. If legumes facilitate grass productivity, then these facilitative effects of clovers on grasses might be heighted when clovers are associated with higher quality rhizobium. To investigate how this plasmid variation might affect legume-grass dynamics, we inoculated experimental mesocosms of mixed clover and grass with one of four treatments: rhizobia with high-quality pSym clade A, rhizobia with low-quality pSym clade C, rhizobia lacking the pSym, or no rhizobia (mock inoculation). We demonstrate that variation in the Rhizobium pSym impacts grass productivity and legume-grass dynamics. Specifically, in mesocosms with high quality rhizobium (pSym-type A) increase grass aboveground biomass. This study indicates potential for rapid evolution via HGT in bacterial communities to have indirect effects on other species via their symbiosis with legumes.","abstract_html":"Legume-grass dynamics are keystone interactions in terrestrial ecosystems, but outcomes vary from facilitative to competitive depending on nitrogen (N) availability in the environment. Rhizobial bacteria provide fixed N to their legume hosts, and thus the presence or identity of rhizobia can influence host interactions with other species. In Rhizobium symbionts of clover, the genes that determine symbiosis compatibility and efficiency are located on a plasmid (pSym, or symbiosis plasmid), which can be shared within and across taxa through horizontal gene transfer (HGT). Previous work has identified four distinct clades of pSyms that control partner quality variation in a natural population of Rhizobium. If legumes facilitate grass productivity, then these facilitative effects of clovers on grasses might be heighted when clovers are associated with higher quality rhizobium. To investigate how this plasmid variation might affect legume-grass dynamics, we inoculated experimental mesocosms of mixed clover and grass with one of four treatments: rhizobia with high-quality pSym clade A, rhizobia with low-quality pSym clade C, rhizobia lacking the pSym, or no rhizobia (mock inoculation). We demonstrate that variation in the Rhizobium pSym impacts grass productivity and legume-grass dynamics. Specifically, in mesocosms with high quality rhizobium (pSym-type A) increase grass aboveground biomass. This study indicates potential for rapid evolution via HGT in bacterial communities to have indirect effects on other species via their symbiosis with legumes.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Belloso, Erica Natalie"],"institution":"University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"M.S.","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Plant Biology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Heath, Katy D","Lau, Jennifer","Yannarell, Anthony"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-12","date_published":"2025-12","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:07Z","subjects":["Ecology, Evolution"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Copyright 2025 Erica Belloso"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/2142/132713","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Heath, Katy D","Lau, Jennifer","Yannarell, Anthony"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Belloso, Erica Natalie"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2025-12","2025-12-12"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text","Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Plant Biology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.S."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Ecology, Evolution"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2025 Erica Belloso"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/132713"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Legume-grass dynamics are keystone interactions in terrestrial ecosystems, but outcomes vary from facilitative to competitive depending on nitrogen (N) availability in the environment. Rhizobial bacteria provide fixed N to their legume hosts, and thus the presence or identity of rhizobia can influence host interactions with other species. In Rhizobium symbionts of clover, the genes that determine symbiosis compatibility and efficiency are located on a plasmid (pSym, or symbiosis plasmid), which can be shared within and across taxa through horizontal gene transfer (HGT). Previous work has identified four distinct clades of pSyms that control partner quality variation in a natural population of Rhizobium. If legumes facilitate grass productivity, then these facilitative effects of clovers on grasses might be heighted when clovers are associated with higher quality rhizobium. To investigate how this plasmid variation might affect legume-grass dynamics, we inoculated experimental mesocosms of mixed clover and grass with one of four treatments: rhizobia with high-quality pSym clade A, rhizobia with low-quality pSym clade C, rhizobia lacking the pSym, or no rhizobia (mock inoculation). We demonstrate that variation in the Rhizobium pSym impacts grass productivity and legume-grass dynamics. Specifically, in mesocosms with high quality rhizobium (pSym-type A) increase grass aboveground biomass. This study indicates potential for rapid evolution via HGT in bacterial communities to have indirect effects on other species via their symbiosis with legumes.","Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2027-12-01","The student, Erica Belloso, accepted the attached license on 2025-12-12 at 09:50.","The student, Erica Belloso, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2025-12-12 at 09:55.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2025-12-12 at 13:56.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #23147 on 2026-02-19 at 18:46:59"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Indirect genetic effects of rhizobium symbiosis plasmid on legume-grass dynamics"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Heath, Katy D","Lau, Jennifer","Yannarell, Anthony"],"dc:creator":["Belloso, Erica Natalie"],"dc:date":["2025-12","2025-12-12"],"dc:description":["Legume-grass dynamics are keystone interactions in terrestrial ecosystems, but outcomes vary from facilitative to competitive depending on nitrogen (N) availability in the environment. Rhizobial bacteria provide fixed N to their legume hosts, and thus the presence or identity of rhizobia can influence host interactions with other species. In Rhizobium symbionts of clover, the genes that determine symbiosis compatibility and efficiency are located on a plasmid (pSym, or symbiosis plasmid), which can be shared within and across taxa through horizontal gene transfer (HGT). Previous work has identified four distinct clades of pSyms that control partner quality variation in a natural population of Rhizobium. If legumes facilitate grass productivity, then these facilitative effects of clovers on grasses might be heighted when clovers are associated with higher quality rhizobium. To investigate how this plasmid variation might affect legume-grass dynamics, we inoculated experimental mesocosms of mixed clover and grass with one of four treatments: rhizobia with high-quality pSym clade A, rhizobia with low-quality pSym clade C, rhizobia lacking the pSym, or no rhizobia (mock inoculation). We demonstrate that variation in the Rhizobium pSym impacts grass productivity and legume-grass dynamics. Specifically, in mesocosms with high quality rhizobium (pSym-type A) increase grass aboveground biomass. This study indicates potential for rapid evolution via HGT in bacterial communities to have indirect effects on other species via their symbiosis with legumes.","Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2027-12-01","The student, Erica Belloso, accepted the attached license on 2025-12-12 at 09:50.","The student, Erica Belloso, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2025-12-12 at 09:55.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2025-12-12 at 13:56.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #23147 on 2026-02-19 at 18:46:59"],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/132713"],"dc:language":["en"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2025 Erica Belloso"],"dc:subject":["Ecology, Evolution"],"dc:title":["Indirect genetic effects of rhizobium symbiosis plasmid on legume-grass dynamics"],"dc:type":["text","Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Plant Biology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.S."],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:07Z"}