Molecular Ecology最新文献

{"title":"Resolving the Population Structure and Demographic History of the European Anchovy in the Northeast Atlantic: Tracking Historical and Contemporary Environmental Changes.","authors":"José Martin Pujolar, Courtney E C Gardiner, Sophie von der Heyden, Joana I Robalo, Rita Castilho, Regina Cunha, Romina Henriques, Einar E Nielsen","doi":"10.1111/mec.17829","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17829","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The spatial distribution of the European anchovy has expanded in the northern part of its range in the Northeast Atlantic in recent decades. However, whether this results from a northward range shift of southern conspecifics or the expansion of a local northern population is unknown. Using for the first time whole-genome sequencing, we explore current patterns of genetic diversity and population sub-structuring of European anchovy in the Northeast Atlantic, with special focus on recently expanded North Sea areas. Genomic data suggested three distinct groups: Northern (North Sea and Kattegat), Southern (Ireland and Central Portugal) and Cadis (South Portugal). Despite most of the genome being homogenised by high levels of gene flow characteristic of small pelagic fish, several large regions of high genetic differentiation were observed. This suggests that genomic population boundaries might be maintained by local adaptation within chromosome structural variants (inversions). Admixture analysis indicates that the ongoing northern range shift involves both migrants of southern origin and expansion of the local North Sea population. Historical demographic inference suggests that anchovies survived the last glacial period with small population sizes, followed by a split into the current Northern and Southern groups at the end of the last glacial maximum. The Southern group then expanded into the North Sea as the ice sheets retreated, in an expansion involving a large number of individuals, which is consistent with the retention of most of the genetic diversity. In comparison with other small pelagic fish, the genetic patterns found in anchovies (deeply divergent groups, no loss of genetic diversity during expansion, mixing between groups) align well with those found in European sprat, while sardines fit the pattern of expansion of a leading-edge population, with reduced genetic diversity and much shallower divergence between populations. This study contributes to a better understanding of population structure, range shifts and local adaptation in small pelagic fish under climate change, informing conservation and management efforts.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17829"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144214414","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"In Vouchers We (Hope to) Trust: Unveiling Hidden Errors in GenBank's Tetrapod Taxonomic Foundations.","authors":"Albert Carné, David R Vieites, Matthijs P van den Burg","doi":"10.1111/mec.17812","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17812","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Genetic repositories are invaluable resources foundational to various biological disciplines. While their data and metadata reliability are essential for robust research outcomes, numerous studies have highlighted data quality and consistency issues. Here, we detect and quantify errors at the most fundamental level by analysing the congruence of sequences derived from the same genetic marker and specimen voucher across tetrapods. Our analysis reveals that 32% of re-sequenced vouchers (with identical field or museum numbers) yield unequal sequences, ranging from a few mutations to significant divergences (0.06%-33.95%). These divergences may result from sample misidentification, labelling errors, fidelity disparities between sequencing methods, or contamination at various stages of the research process. Our findings demonstrate errors within GenBank at its most basal level and suggest that, although undetectable, a similar error rate likely exists in non-re-sequenced data. These previously overlooked errors are concerning because they arise from replicated experiments, which are uncommon, and raise serious questions about the reliability of non-re-sequenced specimens. Such errors can compromise the accuracy of biodiversity assessments (e.g., taxonomic assessment, eDNA and barcoding), phylogenetic analyses and conservation planning by artificially inflating the intraspecific divergence or misidentifying (to-be-described) species. Additionally, the accuracy of large-scale biological studies that rely on such data can be compromised. Our concerning results call for protocols ensuring sample traceability to the specimens or tissues during the whole process of data generation, analysis and deposition in a database. We propose a third-party annotation system for individual GenBank records that would allow flagging common errors and alert both the original submitter and all users to potential problems without modifying the original records.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17812"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144207287","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Genomic Analysis of Hair Sheep From West/Central Africa Reveals Unique Genetic Diversity and Ancestral Links to Breed Formation in the Caribbean.","authors":"Pamela Wiener, Juliane Friedrich, Melissa M Marr, Gustave Simo, Vincent N Tanya, Keith T Ballingall, Pavel Flegontov, Benjamin D Rosen, Guillaume Sallé, Gordon Spangler, Curtis P Van Tassell, Mazdak Salavati, Félix Meutchieye, Emily L Clark","doi":"10.1111/mec.17796","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17796","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cameroon Blackbelly sheep are a domestic breed of hair sheep from West/Central Africa. They are popular with small-holder farmers in Cameroon as they are highly resilient to local environmental challenges and are prolific a-seasonal breeders. The aim of this study was to characterise the genetics of Cameroon Blackbelly sheep in relation to global sheep populations and to investigate their relationship to Caribbean hair sheep. We first examined the genetic diversity of the Cameroon Blackbelly breed relative to global sheep populations using 50K SNP data. We also used whole genome sequence data to further investigate relationships between Cameroon Blackbelly and breeds from Africa and Europe, as well as the Barbados Blackbelly breed from the Caribbean, which is phenotypically similar to Cameroon Blackbelly. ADMIXTURE results based on 50K and WGS data demonstrated both West/Central African and European ancestries for the Barbados Blackbelly sheep. Results from f₄-statistics-based qpAdm analyses supported these findings. Local ancestry inference identified several genomic regions in Barbados Blackbelly with high proportions of West/Central African ancestry. One of these, on OAR3, includes various keratin genes, suggesting that these genes may play a role in the shared coat phenotypes of the Barbados Blackbelly and Cameroon Blackbelly. This result is consistent with previous reports of adaptive introgression of coat characteristics in both wild and domesticated species. The findings of our study support the view that sheep were transported from West/Central Africa to the Caribbean as part of the transatlantic slave trade and European colonisation, similar to introductions proposed for cattle and goats.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17796"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144197799","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Convergent Evolutionary Dead-End and Breakdown of Hard Chorion in Parental-Egg-Care Fish Reproductive Strategies.","authors":"Tatsuki Nagasawa, Nagatoshi Machii, Mitsuto Aibara, Mari Kawaguchi, Shigeki Yasumasu, Masato Nikaido","doi":"10.1111/mec.17816","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17816","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Fish exhibit a diverse array of reproductive strategies adapted to various ecological niches. Parental egg-care, including live-bearing, mouth-brooding, and male egg protection by brood pouches, represents an effective strategy for ensuring larval survival and has emerged independently in multiple lineages. Despite the recognised evolutionary bias that favours a strategy transition from non-carer to egg-carer, the genetic mechanisms underlying this bias and the commonalities among parental egg-care species remain elusive. This study explores the relationship between egg-care and the chorion hardening system crucial for protecting eggs in non-care species. By analysing whole genome sequences of 240 species of Acanthopterygii across 25 orders, we discovered that multiple genes associated with chorion hardening have become pseudogenes in various egg-care species, indicating a collapse of the chorion hardening system in these fish. These findings suggest that the evolutionary bias in fish reproductive strategies not only aims to enhance survival efficiency but also imposes a constraint on egg-care species, preventing them from reverting to a reproductive strategy relying on a hardened chorion. In particular, alveolin, previously characterised as a single mutant resulting in significantly fragile chorion in medaka, suggests a strong correlation between egg-care strategy and gene loss. Our results suggest an evolutionary dead-end because gene loss may impose an evolutionary constraint at the behavioural level. The observed association between gene loss and reproductive strategies provides insights into suitable reproductive environments for each species and may facilitate non-invasive estimation of reproductive strategies in species with unknown breeding strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17816"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144197798","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ecology Not Genetic Covariance Explains Correlated Trait Divergence During Speciation.","authors":"Clarissa F de Carvalho, Nicholas P Planidin, Romain Villoutreix, Víctor Soria-Carrasco, Rüdiger Riesch, Jeffrey L Feder, Thomas L Parchman, Jon Slate, Zachariah Gompert, Patrik Nosil","doi":"10.1111/mec.17818","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17818","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The formation of new species often involves the correlated divergence of multiple traits and genetic regions. However, the mechanisms by which such trait covariation builds up remain poorly understood. In this context, we consider two non-exclusive hypotheses. First, genetic covariance between traits can cause divergent selection on one trait to promote population divergence in correlated traits (a genetic covariation hypothesis). Second, correlated environmental pressures can generate selection on multiple traits, facilitating the evolution of trait complexes (an environmental covariation hypothesis). Here, we test these hypotheses using cryptic colouration (controlled by a likely incipient supergene) and chemical traits (i.e., cuticular hydrocarbons, CHCs) involved in desiccation resistance and mate choice in Timema cristinae stick insects. We first demonstrate that population divergence in colour-pattern is correlated with divergence in some (but not all) CHC traits. We show that correlated population divergence is unlikely to be explained by genetic covariation, as our analyses using genotyping-by-sequencing data reveal weak within-population genetic covariance between colour-pattern and CHC traits. In contrast, we find that correlated geographic variation in climate and host plant likely generates selection jointly on colour-pattern and some CHC traits. This supports the environmental covariation hypothesis, likely via the effects of two correlated environmental axes selecting on different traits. Finally, we provide evidence that misalignment between natural and sexual selection also contributes to patterns of correlated trait divergence. Our results shed light on transitions between phases of speciation by showing that environmental factors can promote population divergence in trait complexes, even without strong genetic covariance.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17818"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144191313","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"3D Genome Constrains Breakpoints of Inversions That Can Act as Barriers to Gene Flow in the Stickleback.","authors":"Yo Y Yamasaki, Atsushi Toyoda, Mitsutaka Kadota, Shigehiro Kuraku, Jun Kitano","doi":"10.1111/mec.17814","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17814","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>DNA within the nucleus is organised into a well-regulated three-dimensional (3D) structure. However, how such 3D genome structures influence speciation processes remains largely elusive. Recent studies have shown that 3D genome structures influence mutation rates, including the occurrence of chromosomal rearrangement. For example, breakpoints of chromosomal rearrangements tend to be located at topologically associating domain (TAD) boundaries. Here, we hypothesised that TAD structures may constrain the location of chromosomal inversions and thereby shape the genomic landscape of divergence between species with ongoing gene flow, given that inversions can act as barriers to gene flow. To test this hypothesis, we used a pair of Japanese stickleback species, Gasterosteus nipponicus (Japan Sea stickleback) and G. aculeatus (three-spined stickleback). We first constructed chromosome-scale genome assemblies of both species using high fidelity long reads and high-resolution proximity ligation data and identified several chromosomal inversions. Second, via population genomic analyses, we revealed higher genetic differentiation in inverted regions than in colinear regions and no gene flow within inversions, which contrasts with the significant gene flow in colinear regions. Third, using Hi-C data, we revealed 3D genome structures of sticklebacks, delineated by A/B compartments and TADs. Finally, we found that inversion breakpoints tend to be located at TAD boundaries. Thus, our study demonstrates that the 3D genome constrains breakpoints of inversions that can act as barriers to gene flow in the stickleback. Further integration of 3D genome analyses with population genomics could provide novel insights into how the 3D genome influences speciation.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17814"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144191312","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Spatial Replication Is Important for Developing Landscape Genetic Inferences for a Wetland Salamander.","authors":"Bryce S Wade, Todd W Pierson, Benjamin M Fitzpatrick, Evin T Carter","doi":"10.1111/mec.17808","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17808","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Habitat fragmentation is a pressing threat to wildlife populations, and maintenance of gene flow between populations is an essential goal of conservation. Resistance surfaces have emerged as an important tool for modelling connectivity and developing management strategies to mitigate effects of habitat fragmentation. However, recent studies have noted inconsistencies in the factors most strongly associated with connectivity across different landscapes. Thus, replication of genetic-based resistance surface optimisation across landscapes may be necessary for making robust conclusions about the influence of environmental variables. Accordingly, replication represents a substantive challenge and opportunity in the field of landscape genetics. In this study, we conducted replicated landscape genetic analyses across five landscapes in Tennessee and Kentucky for a threatened wetland amphibian, the four-toed salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum). We tested multiple hypotheses of how different landscape features that could directly affect small, desiccation-intolerant amphibians (e.g., canopy cover) influenced gene flow and assessed the appropriate scale at which to model different features. We found some concordance in the landscape features that influenced gene flow (e.g., a common importance of forest cover and topography), but also some differences-potentially owing to the difference in variability of predictors across landscapes. We also found discordance in the scale of effect of different features across landscapes. Our work emphasises that flat areas of moist forest not bisected by roads may be important for H. scutatum conservation, and our replicated design allows us to identify relationships that would have been missed if only using one study site.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17808"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144155436","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Introgression—Friend or Foe?","authors":"M. Hindrikson,&nbsp;E. Tammeleht","doi":"10.1111/mec.17810","DOIUrl":"10.1111/mec.17810","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;In this issue of Molecular Ecology, Sarabia et al. (&lt;span&gt;2025&lt;/span&gt;), findings on potential adaptive introgression from dogs (Canis familiaris) into Iberian grey wolves (Canis lupus) present several fascinating and intriguing aspects. The study highlights a rare case of adaptive introgression, where genes from domestic dogs that were incorporated into the genome of Iberian grey wolves may have provided beneficial effects rather than deleterious ones. This challenges the common assumption that hybridization between wild species and domestic relatives primarily leads to negative outcomes. Six genes linked to immune response mechanisms and brain functions were found to carry alleles introgressed from dogs under positive selection in wild Iberian wolves, suggesting that the introgressed genes may help explain unique behavioural phenotypes observed in Iberian wolves (Figure 1), particularly their reduced dispersal compared to other wolf populations in Europe. Despite evidence for ancient gene flow between dogs and wolves over thousands of years, current study reports minimal recent hybridization events among contemporary Iberian wolf population (averaging around 0.6% recent dog ancestry). Understanding how adaptive traits could be introduced through introgression is vital for conservation efforts aimed at preserving genetic diversity within endangered species populations like the Iberian wolf.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Natural hybridization in the form of the interbreeding of two distinct taxa is a positive evolutionary force for introducing beneficial adaptive genetic variation into the genomic structure of species or populations Figure 1. The remarkable influence of hybridization and gene flow among canids in shaping phylogenetic relationships and population structures (Figure 2) underscores the potential significance of wolf-dog hybridization on existing grey wolf populations, particularly as wolves, being one of the most studied carnivore species with an abundance of ancient and modern genomes available, provide an excellent model for examining the effects of hybridization and introgression. Indeed, in Sarabia et al. (&lt;span&gt;2025&lt;/span&gt;) recent availability of entire genomes of both wolves and domestic dogs has been put to use for the benefit of the current Iberian wolf population: 150 whole genomes of Iberian and other Eurasian grey wolves as well as dogs originating from across Europe were analysed to assess the extent and impact of dog introgression.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Hybridization between domesticated forms and their wild ancestors—anthropogenic hybridization—is mostly considered a threat to biodiversity, for example due to waste of reproductive effort of wild parental taxa. Wolf and dog, like all the other species in genus &lt;i&gt;Canis&lt;/i&gt;, can interbreed and their fertile hybrids can backcross with both parental populations, leading to the introgression of domesticated genes into the wolf gene pool (Vilà and Wayne &lt;span&gt;1999&lt;/span&gt;). Hybridization between wolves and dogs h","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"34 12","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.17810","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144155435","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Genomic Analysis Suggests That Mitonuclear Coevolution Proceeds Over Rapid Timescales in the Amazonian Pipra Manakin Complex","authors":"Ellen Nikelski,&nbsp;Jason T. Weir","doi":"10.1111/mec.17802","DOIUrl":"10.1111/mec.17802","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Mitonuclear coevolution is defined as reciprocal selection between the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes and is necessary to maintain compatibility between nuclear- and mitochondrially-encoded products that interact during mitochondrial processes including mitochondrial genome replication, transcription and translation and oxidative phosphorylation. Theory predicts that mitonuclear coevolution may play a crucial role in the early phases of speciation by generating strong genetic incompatibilities between recently diverged taxa that have evolved unique mitochondrial-mitonuclear haplotypes. However, the timescale over which mitonuclear coevolution proceeds remains unclear, making it difficult to definitively link this process with early speciation. Here, we test for expected genomic signals of mitonuclear coevolution across the Amazonian <i>Pipra</i> manakin complex, which includes recently and more deeply diverged avian lineages. Using dN/dS ratio analyses, we compared signals of positive selection in mitonuclear gene categories and functionally equivalent nuclear gene categories that do not participate in mitonuclear coevolution for each pair of <i>Pipra</i> lineages separately and for all the lineages simultaneously. For the ribosomal protein and aminoacyl tRNA synthetase (AARS) gene categories, we identified genomic patterns consistent with stronger positive selection in mitonuclear versus nuclear genes, which is suggestive of mitonuclear coevolution having occurred across the <i>Pipra</i> complex. Significantly, we determined that expected genomic signals of mitonuclear coevolution could be identified between lineages that diverged as recently as 0.35–0.4 MYA. This time span is in keeping with the initial stages of avian speciation and suggests that mitonuclear coevolution may operate on a timescale that would allow it to play an important role during early speciation.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":"34 12","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/mec.17802","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144140951","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Land Use Interacts With Climate to Influence Microbial Diversity-To-Biomass Ratios Across Europe via Soil Organic Carbon and Nitrogen.","authors":"José A Siles, Alfonso Vera, Maëva Labouyrie, Johan van den Hoogen, Thomas W Crowther, Ferran Romero, Leho Tedersoo, Carlos García, Arwyn Jones, Panos Panagos, Marcel G A van der Heijden, Alberto Orgiazzi, Felipe Bastida","doi":"10.1111/mec.17806","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.17806","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Ecosystem functioning is potentially dependent on the relationships between soil microbial diversity and biomass. Yet, it remains unclear how land use and climate influence these relationships. Here, we (i) analysed relationships and ratios between richness and biomass of bacteria and fungi in ~500 soils across Europe, including three land-use types (woodlands, grasslands and croplands) and climates (cold, temperate and arid) and (ii) identified the driving factors of changes in richness:biomass (R:B) ratios. Richness and biomass of soil bacteria and fungi followed a unimodal pattern, with a peak in mid-levels of biomass. This pattern was more evident in bacteria and more clearly exerted by land use than by climate. Bacterial R:B ratios decreased with land use in the following order: croplands > woodlands > grasslands. Fungal R:B ratios decreased as follows: grasslands > croplands > woodlands. Climate was found to interact with land use. In this way, arid climate tended to increase bacterial R:B ratios in the different land uses; however, the agricultural practices associated with croplands seem to buffer this effect. In fungi, the interactive effect of land use and climate was less straightforward than for bacteria. According to our models, soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (N) in bacteria and SOC in fungi were identified as the primary predictors of R:B ratios. Therefore, factors related to climate and land-use change with impact on SOC and N contents are potential disruptors of soil microbial R:B ratios. This study clarifies the diversity:biomass relationships across different land uses and climates.</p>","PeriodicalId":210,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Ecology","volume":" ","pages":"e17806"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144126159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}