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Manipulating Agaricus bisporus developmental patterns by passaging microbial communities in complex substrates

Summary

This research demonstrates that farmers can manipulate when button mushrooms fruit by selectively enriching certain bacteria in growing materials through a passaging technique. By mixing colonized substrate with fresh material multiple times, researchers found they could either speed up or slow down mushroom fruiting body formation. Although the total mushroom harvest remained the same, this approach offers potential for better timing of crop cycles and more sustainable cultivation practices.

Background

Agaricus bisporus cultivation relies on non-sterile substrates containing diverse microbial communities that influence fungal growth and fruiting body development. These assembled microbial networks, termed devomes (developmental microbiomes), are critical factors in mushroom cultivation. Understanding how to manipulate these microbial communities could optimize cultivation practices.

Objective

This study aimed to determine whether substrate passaging could select for microbial communities that modify Agaricus bisporus developmental patterns, specifically affecting fruiting body formation timing and yield. The researchers hypothesized that enriching certain bacterial populations through successive passages would alter mushroom development compared to standard cultivation.

Results

Passaged casing promoted earlier fruiting body formation (3 days earlier) with significantly higher yield in the first flush, while passaged compost delayed pinning by 1.5 days. Despite changes in fruiting timing, total yield across all three flushes remained similar between treatments. Passaging altered bacterial community composition, particularly enriching or depleting specific taxa like Pseudomonas spp., and increased alpha diversity in casing materials.

Conclusion

Substrate passaging effectively manipulates fruiting body developmental timing in A. bisporus cultivation through selection of specific microbial communities, though total yield remains unchanged. This microbiome-based approach offers potential for optimizing mushroom cultivation timing while supporting more sustainable agricultural practices through enhanced understanding of fungal-microbial interactions.
  • Published in:Microbiology Spectrum,
  • Study Type:Experimental Study,
  • Source: 10.1128/spectrum.01978-23; PMID: 37831469
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