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Wang C, Kuzyakov Y. "Energy and enthalpy" for microbial energetics in soil. Glob Chang Biol 2024; 30:e17184. [PMID: 38375609 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.17184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2024] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 02/21/2024]
Abstract
Energy is the driver of all microbial processes in soil. The changes in Gibbs energy are equal to the enthalpy changes during all processes in soil because these processes are ongoing under constant pressure and volume-without work generation. The enthalpy change by transformation of individual organic compounds or of complex organic matter in soil can be exactly quantified by the nominal oxidation state of carbon changes. Consequently, microbial energy use efficiency can be assessed by the complete combustion enthalpy of organic compounds when microorganisms use O2 as the terminal electron acceptor for microbial processes under aerobic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chaoqun Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, China
- Biogeochemistry of Agroecosystems, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Faculty of Land and Food Systems, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Yakov Kuzyakov
- Department of Soil Science of Temperate Ecosystems, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
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Jia J, Li XQ, Feng XJ. [Effect of drainage on microbial transformation processes of soil organic carbon in two typical wetlands of China]. Ying Yong Sheng Tai Xue Bao 2024; 35:133-140. [PMID: 38511449 DOI: 10.13287/j.1001-9332.202401.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Wetlands store one third of global soil organic carbon (SOC) and are strongly affected by artificial drainage. The impact of drainage-induced water-table decline on carbon cycling in different wetlands, particularly microbial transformation processes, remains unclear. To address this knowledge gap, we collected soil samples from two typical wetlands of China (a nutrient-poor bog located in Dajiuhu and a nutrient-rich fen in Hongyuan) and conducted an incubation experiment with the addition of 13C-labeled glucose to analyze the effects of short- and long-term drainage on SOC decomposition, extracellular enzyme activity, microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE), and microbial carbon accumulation efficiency (CAE). The results showed that both short- and long-term drainage significantly increased SOC decomposition rates in both wetlands (from 1.47 μg C·g-1·h-1 in submerged soils to 2.47 μg C·g-1·h-1 in drained soils), microbial biomass carbon derived from glucose (from 0.21 mg C·g-1 to 1.00 mg C·g-1) and CAE (from 0.29 to 0.73), but did not alter CUE (ranging from 0.34 to 0.86). Long-term drainage increased α-glucosidase activity in the Dajiuhu wetland and decreased β-glucosidase and phenol oxidase activities in the Hongyuan wetland. In conclusion, drainage enhanced the 'microbial carbon pump' and its efficiency in wetlands mainly via increasing microbial intracellular metabolism (including respiration), but also acce-lerated SOC decomposition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan Jia
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
- China National Botanical Garden, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Xing-Qi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
- China National Botanical Garden, Beijing 100093, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiao-Juan Feng
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
- China National Botanical Garden, Beijing 100093, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
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Zhang Q, Qin W, Feng J, Li X, Zhang Z, He JS, Schimel JP, Zhu B. Whole-soil-profile warming does not change microbial carbon use efficiency in surface and deep soils. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2302190120. [PMID: 37523548 PMCID: PMC10410710 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2302190120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2023] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/02/2023] Open
Abstract
The paucity of investigations of carbon (C) dynamics through the soil profile with warming makes it challenging to evaluate the terrestrial C feedback to climate change. Soil microbes are important engines driving terrestrial biogeochemical cycles; their carbon use efficiency (CUE), defined as the proportion of metabolized organic C allocated to microbial biomass, is a key regulator controlling the fate of soil C. It has been theorized that microbial CUE should decline with warming; however, empirical evidence for this response is scarce, and data from deeper soils are particularly scarce. Here, based on soil samples from a whole-soil-profile warming experiment (0 to 1 m, +4 °C) and 18O tracing approach, we examined the vertical variation of microbial CUE and its response to ~3.3-y experimental warming in an alpine grassland on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Microbial CUE decreased with soil depth, a trend that was primarily controlled by soil C availability. However, warming had limited effects on microbial CUE regardless of soil depth. Similarly, warming had no significant effect on soil C availability, as characterized by extractable organic C, enzyme-based lignocellulose index, and lignin phenol-based ratios of vanillyls, syringyls, and cinnamyls. Collectively, our work suggests that short-term warming does not alter microbial CUE in either surface or deep soils, and emphasizes the regulatory role of soil C availability on microbial CUE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiufang Zhang
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
- School of Geographical Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou350117, China
| | - Wenkuan Qin
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
| | - Jiguang Feng
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
| | - Xiaojie Li
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
| | - Zhenhua Zhang
- Qinghai Haibei National Field Research Station of Alpine Grassland Ecosystem, and Key Laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining, 810008China
| | - Jin-Sheng He
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
- State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, and College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou730000, China
| | - Joshua P. Schimel
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA93106
| | - Biao Zhu
- Institute of Ecology, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, and Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing100871, China
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Ning Q, Chen L, Li F, Zhou G, Zhang C, Ma D, Zhang J. Tradeoffs of microbial life history strategies drive the turnover of microbial-derived organic carbon in coastal saline soils. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1141436. [PMID: 37032859 PMCID: PMC10076556 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1141436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 04/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Stable soil organic carbon (SOC) formation in coastal saline soils is important to improve arable land quality and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. However, how microbial life-history strategies and metabolic traits regulate SOC turnover in coastal saline soils remains unknown. Here, we investigated the effects of microbial life history strategy tradeoffs on microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE) and microbial-derived SOC formation using metagenomic sequencing technology in different salinity soils. The results showed that high-salinity is detrimental to microbial CUE and microbial-derived SOC formation. Moreover, the regulation of nutrients stoichiometry could not mitigate adverse effects of salt stress on microbial CUE, which indicated that microbial-derived SOC formation is independent of stoichiometry in high-salinity soil. Low-salinity soil is dominated by a high growth yield (Y) strategy, such as higher microbial biomass carbon and metabolic traits which are related to amino acid metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, and cell processes. However, high-salinity soil is dominated by stress tolerance (S) (e.g., higher metabolic functions of homologous recombination, base excision repair, biofilm formation, extracellular polysaccharide biosynthesis, and osmolytes production) and resource acquisition (A) strategies (e.g., higher alkaline phosphatase activity, transporters, and flagellar assembly). These trade-offs of strategies implied that resource reallocation took place. The high-salinity soil microbes diverted investments away from growth yield to microbial survival and resource capture, thereby decreasing biomass turnover efficiency and impeding microbial-derived SOC formation. Moreover, altering the stoichiometry in low-salinity soil caused more investment in the A-strategy, such as the production of more β-glucosidase and β-N-acetyl-glucosaminidase, and increasing bacterial chemotaxis, which thereby reduced microbial-derived SOC formation. Our research reveals that shift the microbial community from S- and A- strategies to the Y-strategy is important to increase the microbial CUE, and thus enhance SOC turnover in coastal saline soils.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Ning
- Fengqiu Experimental Station of National Ecosystem Research Network of China, State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Lin Chen
- Fengqiu Experimental Station of National Ecosystem Research Network of China, State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Fang Li
- College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Guixiang Zhou
- Fengqiu Experimental Station of National Ecosystem Research Network of China, State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Congzhi Zhang
- Fengqiu Experimental Station of National Ecosystem Research Network of China, State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Donghao Ma
- Fengqiu Experimental Station of National Ecosystem Research Network of China, State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Jiabao Zhang
- Fengqiu Experimental Station of National Ecosystem Research Network of China, State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Jiabao Zhang,
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Dai H, Zeng QX, Zhou JC, Peng YZ, Sun XQ, Chen JQ, Chen WW, Chen YM. [Responses of soil microbial carbon use efficiency to short-term nitrogen addition in Castanopsis fabri forest]. Ying Yong Sheng Tai Xue Bao 2022; 33:2611-2618. [PMID: 36384594 DOI: 10.13287/j.1001-9332.202210.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
As an important parameter regulating soil carbon mineralization, microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE) is essential for the understanding of carbon (C) cycle in terrestrial ecosystems. Three nitrogen supplemental levels, including control (0 kg N·hm-2·a-1), low nitrogen (40 kg N·hm-2·a-1), and high nitrogen (80 kg N·hm-2·a-1), were set up in a Castanopsis fabri forest in the Daiyun Mountain. The basic physical and chemical properties, organic carbon fractions, microbial biomass, and enzyme activities of the soil surface layer (0-10 cm) were measured. To examine the effects of increasing N deposition on microbial CUE and its influencing factors, soil microbial CUE was measured by the 18O-labelled-water approach. The results showed that short-term N addition significantly reduced microbial respiration rate and the activities of C and N acquisition enzymes, but significantly increased soil microbial CUE. β-N-acetyl amino acid glucosidase (NAG)/microbial biomass carbon (MBC), microbial respiration rate, β-glucosidase (BG)/MBC, cellulose hydrolase (CBH)/MBC, and soil organic carbon content were the main factors affecting CUE. Moreover, CUE significantly and negatively correlated with NAG/MBC, microbial respiration rate, BG/MBC, and CBH/MBC, but significantly and positively correlated with soil organic carbon. In summary, short-term N addition reduced the cost of soil microbial acquisition of C and N and microbial respiration, and thus increased soil microbial CUE, which would increase soil carbon sequestration potential of the C. fabri forest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Dai
- School of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
- Key Laboratory of Humid Sub-tropical Eco-geographical Process of Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
| | - Quan-Xin Zeng
- School of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
- Key Laboratory of Humid Sub-tropical Eco-geographical Process of Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
| | - Jia-Cong Zhou
- School of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
- Key Laboratory of Humid Sub-tropical Eco-geographical Process of Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
| | - Yuan-Zhen Peng
- School of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
- Key Laboratory of Humid Sub-tropical Eco-geographical Process of Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
| | - Xue-Qi Sun
- School of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
- Key Laboratory of Humid Sub-tropical Eco-geographical Process of Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
| | - Jing-Qi Chen
- School of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
- Key Laboratory of Humid Sub-tropical Eco-geographical Process of Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
| | - Wen-Wei Chen
- Daiyun Mountain National Nature Reserve Administration Bureau, Quanzhou 362500, Fujian, China
| | - Yueh-Min Chen
- School of Geographical Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
- Key Laboratory of Humid Sub-tropical Eco-geographical Process of Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou 350007, China
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Hicks LC, Leizeaga A, Rousk K, Michelsen A, Rousk J. Simulated rhizosphere deposits induce microbial N-mining that may accelerate shrubification in the subarctic. Ecology 2020; 101:e03094. [PMID: 32379897 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2020] [Revised: 03/06/2020] [Accepted: 04/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Climate change is exposing high-latitude systems to warming and a shift towards more shrub-dominated plant communities, resulting in increased leaf-litter inputs at the soil surface, and more labile root-derived organic matter (OM) input in the soil profile. Labile OM can stimulate the mineralization of soil organic matter (SOM); a phenomenon termed "priming." In N-poor subarctic soils, it is hypothesized that microorganisms may "prime" SOM in order to acquire N (microbial N-mining). Increased leaf-litter inputs with a high C/N ratio might further exacerbate microbial N demand, and increase the susceptibility of N-poor soils to N-mining. We investigated the N-control of SOM mineralization by amending soils from climate change-simulation treatments in the subarctic (+1.1°C warming, birch litter addition, willow litter addition, and fungal sporocarp addition) with labile OM either in the form of glucose (labile C; equivalent to 400 µg C/g fresh [fwt] soil) or alanine (labile C + N; equivalent to 400 µg C and 157 µg N/g fwt soil), to simulate rhizosphere inputs. Surprisingly, we found that despite 5 yr of simulated climate change treatments, there were no significant effects of the field-treatments on microbial process rates, community structure or responses to labile OM. Glucose primed the mineralization of both C and N from SOM, but gross mineralization of N was stimulated more than that of C, suggesting that microbial SOM use increased in magnitude and shifted to components richer in N (i.e., selective microbial N-mining). The addition of alanine also resulted in priming of both C and N mineralization, but the N mineralization stimulated by alanine was greater than that stimulated by glucose, indicating strong N-mining even when a source of labile OM including N was supplied. Microbial carbon use efficiency was reduced in response to both labile OM inputs. Overall, these findings suggest that shrub expansion could fundamentally alter biogeochemical cycling in the subarctic, yielding more N available for plant uptake in these N-limited soils, thus driving positive plant-soil feedbacks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lettice C Hicks
- Section of Microbial Ecology, Department of Biology, Lund University, Ecology Building, Lund, 223 62, Sweden
| | - Ainara Leizeaga
- Section of Microbial Ecology, Department of Biology, Lund University, Ecology Building, Lund, 223 62, Sweden
| | - Kathrin Rousk
- Terrestrial Ecology Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen, DK-2100, Denmark.,Centre for Permafrost (CENPERM), University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 10, Copenhagen, DK-1350, Denmark
| | - Anders Michelsen
- Terrestrial Ecology Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Copenhagen, DK-2100, Denmark.,Centre for Permafrost (CENPERM), University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 10, Copenhagen, DK-1350, Denmark
| | - Johannes Rousk
- Section of Microbial Ecology, Department of Biology, Lund University, Ecology Building, Lund, 223 62, Sweden
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Prommer J, Walker TWN, Wanek W, Braun J, Zezula D, Hu Y, Hofhansl F, Richter A. Increased microbial growth, biomass, and turnover drive soil organic carbon accumulation at higher plant diversity. Glob Chang Biol 2020; 26:669-681. [PMID: 31344298 PMCID: PMC7027739 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2019] [Accepted: 07/10/2019] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Species-rich plant communities have been shown to be more productive and to exhibit increased long-term soil organic carbon (SOC) storage. Soil microorganisms are central to the conversion of plant organic matter into SOC, yet the relationship between plant diversity, soil microbial growth, turnover as well as carbon use efficiency (CUE) and SOC accumulation is unknown. As heterotrophic soil microbes are primarily carbon limited, it is important to understand how they respond to increased plant-derived carbon inputs at higher plant species richness (PSR). We used the long-term grassland biodiversity experiment in Jena, Germany, to examine how microbial physiology responds to changes in plant diversity and how this affects SOC content. The Jena Experiment considers different numbers of species (1-60), functional groups (1-4) as well as functional identity (small herbs, tall herbs, grasses, and legumes). We found that PSR accelerated microbial growth and turnover and increased microbial biomass and necromass. PSR also accelerated microbial respiration, but this effect was less strong than for microbial growth. In contrast, PSR did not affect microbial CUE or biomass-specific respiration. Structural equation models revealed that PSR had direct positive effects on root biomass, and thereby on microbial growth and microbial biomass carbon. Finally, PSR increased SOC content via its positive influence on microbial biomass carbon. We suggest that PSR favors faster rates of microbial growth and turnover, likely due to greater plant productivity, resulting in higher amounts of microbial biomass and necromass that translate into the observed increase in SOC. We thus identify the microbial mechanism linking species-rich plant communities to a carbon cycle process of importance to Earth's climate system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith Prommer
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem ScienceUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Tom W. N. Walker
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem ScienceUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
- Department of Ecology and EvolutionUniversité de LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
| | - Wolfgang Wanek
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem ScienceUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Judith Braun
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem ScienceUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
- The Scottish Association for Marine ScienceObanUK
| | - David Zezula
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem ScienceUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Yuntao Hu
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem ScienceUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
- Lawrence Berkeley National LaboratoryBerkeleyCAUSA
| | - Florian Hofhansl
- International Institute for Applied Systems AnalysisLaxenburgAustria
| | - Andreas Richter
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem ScienceUniversity of ViennaViennaAustria
- International Institute for Applied Systems AnalysisLaxenburgAustria
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