Coupled changes in soil organic carbon fractions and microbial community composition in urban and suburban forests

Unveiling the crucial role of soil microorganisms in carbon cycling: A review

Soil microorganisms, by actively participating in the decomposition and transformation of organic matter through diverse metabolic pathways, play a pivotal role in carbon cycling within soil systems and contribute to the stabilization of organic carbon, thereby influencing soil carbon storage and turnover. Investigating the processes, mechanisms, and driving factors of soil microbial carbon cycling is crucial for understanding the functionality of terrestrial carbon sinks and effectively addressing climate change. This review comprehensively discusses the role of soil microorganisms in soil carbon cycling from three perspectives: metabolic pathways, microbial communities, and environmental influences. It elucidates the roles of different microbial species in carbon cycling and highlights the impact of microbial interactions and environmental factors on carbon cycling. Through the synthesis of 2171 relevant papers in the Web of Science Core database, we elucidated the ecological community structure, activity, and assembly mechanisms of soil microorganisms crucial to the soil carbon cycle that have been widely analyzed. The integration of soil microbial carbon cycle and its driving factors are vital for accurately predicting and modeling biogeochemical cycles and effectively addressing the challenges posed by global climate change. Such integration is vital for accurately predicting and modeling biogeochemical cycles and effectively addressing the challenges posed by global climate change.

Three-year-period nitrogen additions did not alter soil organic carbon content and lability in soil aggregates in a tropical forest

Soil immobilizes a considerable proportion of carbon (C) as organic matter in terrestrial ecosystems and is thus critical to stabilize the global climate system. Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition could influence soil C storage and stabilization, but how N deposition changes soil organic C (SOC) fractions and lability remains elusive. We investigated the effects of 3-year-period N inputs on SOC fractions and lability along three soil depths (0-10, 10-20, and 20-40 cm) in a tropical forest of southern China. Results showed that N additions did not significantly change contents of SOC fractions and the C lability, either in bulk or aggregate-based soils at any of the three depths, and it showed no significant interaction with soil aggregate or soil depth. The SOC content was 43.7 ± 1.5, 18.2 ± 1.0, and 10.7 ± 0.4 mg g^-1 at the three soil layers downwards, with the non-readily oxidizable SOC (NROC) contributing over 70% while the remaining SOC consisting of readily oxidizable SOC at each soil layer. Moreover, contents of SOC and NROC were consistently higher in small soil aggregates, but the C decrement with increasing size of soil aggregates declined along soil profile downwards. This scenario suggests that physical protection of the small soil aggregate is limited, but its greater specific surface area could obviously contribute to the SOC pattern among soil aggregates. These results indicate that the highly developed forests could be resistant to short-term N deposition, even with a high load, to maintain its SOC stabilization.