Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi community analysis revealed the significant impact of arsenic in antimony- and arsenic-contaminated soil in three Guizhou regions

INTRODUCTION: The lack of systematic investigations of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) community composition is an obstacle to AMF biotechnological applications in antimony (Sb)- and arsenic (As)-polluted soil. METHODS: Morphological and molecular identification were applied to study the AMF community composition in Sb- and As-contaminated areas, and the main influencing factors of AMF community composition in Sb- and As-contaminated areas were explored. RESULTS: (1) A total of 513,546 sequences were obtained, and the majority belonged to Glomeraceae [88.27%, 193 operational taxonomic units (OTUs)], followed by Diversisporaceae, Paraglomeraceae, Acaulosporaceae, Gigasporaceae, and Archaeosporaceae; (2) the affinity between AMF and plants was mainly related to plant species (F = 3.488, p = 0.022 < 0.050), which was not significantly correlated with the total Sb (TSb) and total As (TAs) in soil; (3) the AMF spore density was mainly related to the available nitrogen, available potassium, and total organic carbon; (4) The effect of soil nutrients on AMF community composition (total explanation: 15.36%) was greater than that of soil Sb and As content (total explanation: 5.80%); (5) the effect of TAs on AMF community composition (λ = −0.96) was more drastic than that of TSb (λ = −0.21), and the effect of As on AMF community composition was exacerbated by the interaction between As and phosphorus in the soil; and (6) Diversisporaceae was positively correlated with the TSb and TAs. DISCUSSION: The potential impact of As on the effective application of mycorrhizal technology should be further considered when applied to the ecological restoration of Sb- and As-contaminated areas.