Lichen Symbiosis and Microbial Interactions
Summary
Lichens represent a dynamic, self-sustaining partnership between a dominant fungus (the mycobiont) and one or more photosynthetic partners (photobionts), which can be green algae, cyanobacteria or both. This dual association gives rise to a unique vegetative body, the thallus, in which finely tuned chemical signalling and nutrient exchange underpin the establishment and maintenance of the symbiosis. Beyond the classical binary relationship, lichens harbour diverse bacterial, fungal and yeast communities that form an integrated microbiome, contributing functions ranging from vitamin biosynthesis and stress protection to antagonism against pathogens. Multi-omics approaches have revealed that these associated microbes assist in mineral cycling, secondary metabolite production and environmental resilience, thereby extending the meta-organism’s adaptability across extreme habitats. Lichens play vital ecological roles as pioneers in soil formation, bioindicators of air quality and reservoirs of novel bioactive compounds, with promising applications in biotechnology and ecosystem restoration.
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Lichen Symbiosis and Microbial Interactions publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in lichen symbiosis and microbial interactions across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Mycobiont: The fungal partner in a lichen symbiosis, responsible for thallus structure and housing other symbionts.
Photobiont: A photosynthetic partner (alga or cyanobacterium) that supplies fixed carbon to the lichen.
Thallus: The vegetative body of a lichen, formed by integration of fungal and photosynthetic cells.
Metagenome-Assembled Genome (MAG): A draft genome reconstructed from environmental sequencing data, representing a microbial population.
Cyanolichen: A lichen species in which the primary photobiont is a cyanobacterium, often contributing nitrogen fixation.
References
- How to build a lichen: from metabolite release to symbiotic interplay. New Phytologist (2023).
- Microbial occurrence and symbiont detection in a global sample of lichen metagenomes. PLOS Biology (2024).
- The underestimated fraction: diversity, challenges and novel insights into unicellular cyanobionts of lichens. ISME Communications (2024).
- The Lichens’ Microbiota, Still a Mystery?. Frontiers in Microbiology (2021).
- Deciphering functional diversification within the lichen microbiota by meta-omics. Microbiome (2017).
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