Article
Soil Science
Haoran Zhang, Tao Yang, Xuejing Wu, Jianwei Zhang, Xiuying Yu, Jinxing Zhou, Saman Herath, Xiawei Peng
Summary: Phosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient that greatly affects soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics. However, the response of amino sugars, an essential component of SOC, to P addition in China remains unclear. In a meta-analysis of 24 observations from nine research publications, we found that P addition significantly increased the necromass of total microbial, fungal, and bacterial communities. The effects of P addition on amino sugars varied depending on climate, ecosystem type, P addition rate, and duration. Our findings have important implications for soil fertility enhancement and SOC sequestration.
APPLIED SOIL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Yingde Xu, Xiaodan Gao, Yalong Liu, Shuangyi Li, Chao Liang, Rattan Lal, Jingkuan Wang
Summary: The addition of plant root residue can efficiently promote microbial residue accumulation and produce a higher proportion of microbial residue in SOC in low fertility soil, while crop residue addition is more conducive to bacterial residue accumulation in high fertility soil. Soil organic carbon sequestration is influenced by the type of crop residue added and the soil fertility conditions.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Xiaojuan Feng, Simin Wang
Summary: Microbe-mediated carbon transformation is crucial for soil carbon sequestration, serving as a key strategy for long-term carbon neutrality. Evaluating the efficiency of microbial necromass accumulation in relation to plant carbon input or microbial respiration can provide insights into promoting soil carbon sequestration from an ecosystem perspective.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Baorong Wang, Shaoshan An, Chao Liang, Yang Liu, Yakov Kuzyakov
Summary: Microbial necromass contributes significantly to SOC sequestration, with higher contributions in grassland and forest soils compared to cropland soils. Fungal necromass has a larger contribution to SOC than bacterial necromass, with the ratio of fungal:bacterial necromass increasing from croplands to forests. Additionally, factors such as temperature and soil pH affect the accumulation of fungal and bacterial necromass in different ecosystems.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Wenting Zhou, Tian Ma, Xiufeng Yin, Xiaodong Wu, Quanlian Li, Dipesh Rupakheti, Xin Xiong, Qianggong Zhang, Cuicui Mu, Benjamin de Foy, Maheswar Rupakheti, Shichang Kang, Dahe Qin
Summary: Thaw slumps in permafrost regions can lead to significant carbon loss, but the contribution of microbial and plant-derived carbon in this process is not well understood. In a permafrost thaw slump in the Tibetan Plateau, the study provides direct evidence that microbial necromass carbon is a major component of the lost carbon. Microbial necromass carbon accounted for approximately 54% of the soil organic carbon loss in the thaw slump.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Mengling Zhang, Rongxiao Che, Zhibao Cheng, Hongkai Zhao, Chengwei Wu, Jinming Hu, Song Zhang, Dong Liu, Xiaoyong Cui, Yibo Wu
Summary: Microbial necromass carbon (MNC) and glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) are stable microbe-derived sources of carbon (C) in soils. Reforestation from croplands significantly increased SOC content, MNC and GRSP contents in woodlands. The contributions of GRSP and MNC to SOC were positively related.
AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Review
Ecology
Kate M. Buckeridge, Courtney Creamer, Jeanette Whitaker
Summary: Looking at the necromass continuum, three conclusions are drawn for future research. Firstly, controls on necromass persistence become clearer when viewed through the continuum's lens; secondly, destabilization is the least understood stage with recycling also insufficiently evidenced in many ecosystems; and thirdly, the response of necromass process rates to climate change remains unresolved for most continuum stages and ecosystems.
FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jian-Ying Qi, Xiang-Bin Yao, Mei-Yang Duan, Xiang-Wen Huang, Mei-Yi Fan, Ya Yang, Hao-Wen Luo, Xiang-Ru Tang
Summary: The tillage and rice residue management practices have effects on the vertical distribution of microbial necromass and plant residues in rice paddy soils. The no-tillage (NT) practice resulted in higher microbial-derived carbon (C) in the soil, but did not significantly affect microbial-derived C contents and soil organic carbon (SOC) mineralization. However, it significantly decreased plant-derived C contents in the total SOC.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Ranran Zhou, Yuan Liu, Jennifer A. J. Dungait, Amit Kumar, Jinsong Wang, Lisa K. Tiemann, Fusuo Zhang, Yakov Kuzyakov, Jing Tian
Summary: A meta-analysis of 481 paired measurements from cropland soils showed that cropland management practices significantly influence microbial necromass accumulation and its contribution to soil organic carbon (SOC). Nitrogen fertilization, cover crops, no or reduced tillage, manure, and straw amendment all increased microbial necromass accumulation. The optimal conditions for microbial necromass accumulation and its contribution to SOC sequestration require site-specific management.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Zuoxin Tang, Junna Feng, Lulu Chen, Zebin Chen, Xiaodong Shao, Tiyuan Xia
Summary: Microbial necromass carbon (MNC) is an important component of soil organic carbon (SOC). This study examined the effect of fertilization treatment on MNC and its contribution to SOC, POC, and MAOC. Results showed that the type of fertilization treatments and sampling time influenced MNC accumulation, especially fungal necromass carbon (FNC), and its contribution to SOC. Combined application of microbial and compound fertilizers increased TAS and MNC contents, particularly during the harvest period. The accumulation of MNC and its contribution to SOC increased with the growth period, and the ratios of FNC to SOC, POC, and MAOC were higher than that of bacterial necromass carbon (BNC).
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOIL BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Suhui Ma, Guoping Chen, Enzai Du, Di Tian, Aijun Xing, Haihua Shen, Chengjun Ji, Chengyang Zheng, Jianxiao Zhu, Jiangling Zhu, Hanyue Huang, Hongbo He, Biao Zhu, Jingyun Fang
Summary: The study found that N deposition has a significant impact on the accumulation of soil microbial residues and their contribution to SOC in different forest ecosystems, specifically affecting the fungal residues and bacterial residues in various forest types. The responses of microbial residue-C in SOC to N addition are dependent on changes in soil total N concentration and the fungi to bacteria ratio under N addition and climate conditions.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yafei Shen, Lei Lei, Wenfa Xiao, Ruimei Cheng, Changfu Liu, Xiaoyu Liu, Hu Lin, Lixiong Zeng
Summary: Soil microbial residues in Pinus massoniana plantations of different ages and depths were characterized using amino sugar biomarkers, revealing variations in their contributions. The age of the plantation and soil depth were found to influence the microbial residue patterns differently.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Ruyi Luo, Yakov Kuzyakov, Biao Zhu, Wei Qiang, Yan Zhang, Xueyong Pang
Summary: Increasing phosphorus inputs have significant effects on soil carbon cycling and storage, but the mechanisms behind how phosphorus drives the regulation of soil organic carbon by plants and microbes are unclear. This study found that continuous phosphorus addition reduced fine root biomass and decreased plant lignin contribution to soil organic carbon. However, phosphorus addition increased microbial necromass contribution to soil organic carbon. Overall, phosphorus addition in the study area influenced the composition of soil organic carbon through changes in plant- and microbial-derived carbon contributions, but did not affect its physical and chemical stability.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Soil Science
Tiantian Zheng, Anja Miltner, Chao Liang, Karolina M. Nowak, Matthias Kastner
Summary: Microbial biomass residues play an important role in biogeochemical cycling, but the mechanism by which they are sequestered in soil organic matter remains elusive. This study revealed that bacterial biomass is predominantly utilized by fungi and stabilized as fungal necromass, contributing to soil organic carbon sequestration. The study also identified three phases in the metabolism of microbial biomass residues, with the final phase focused on C preservation rather than energy production.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Pengshuai Shao, Hongyan Han, Jingkuan Sun, Hongjun Yang, Hongtu Xie
Summary: This study found that high salinity in coastal wetlands restricts the accumulation of microbial residues and their contribution to the SOC pool, while low salinity wetlands have higher available soil resources, promoting microbial-derived C contribution to SOC.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Hana Husain, Feike A. Dijkstra
Summary: Plant residue amendments can improve soil aggregation and organic carbon content, but their effects depend on the type of plant residue and soil properties. Soils with low organic carbon content and neutral pH show greater improvement due to plant residue amendments. Both fresh and charred plant residues are effective in forming soil aggregates, but charred residues are more effective in increasing total soil organic carbon.
JOURNAL OF PLANT NUTRITION AND SOIL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Junxi Hu, Meilin Du, Jun Chen, Liehua Tie, Shixing Zhou, Kate M. Buckeridge, J. Hans C. Cornelissen, Congde Huang, Yakov Kuzyakov
Summary: Microbial necromass is an important component of soil organic matter, and global change factors have significant impacts on its formation and decomposition, although these impacts are poorly understood.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Xinglei Cui, Dachuan Dai, Congde Huang, Bilei Wang, Shuting Li, Chengming You, Adrian M. Paterson, George L. W. Perry, Hannah L. Buckley, Josep Padulles Cubino, Sarah V. Wyse, Md Azharul Alam, Shixing Zhou, Lin Xiao, Dongyu Cao, Zhenfeng Xu, Timothy J. Curran
Summary: Plant flammability, determined by various functional traits, is influenced by climatic conditions, especially for species originating from nonfire-prone habitats. Shoot moisture content and leaf size are important factors affecting flammability in these species. However, climatic factors have no significant effect on shoot flammability in species from fire-prone habitats.
Article
Agronomy
Lingjun Qiu, Yunjie Li, Qi Zhong, Wei Ma, Yuxiao Kuang, Shixing Zhou, Gang Chen, Jiulong Xie, Hongling Hu, Yuqin Chen, Lihua Tu
Summary: The increased nitrogen inputs in terrestrial ecosystems due to human activities have led to changes in both carbon and phosphorus availability, impacting resource stoichiometry. This study examines the effects of nitrogen deposition on phosphorus limitation and microbial activity in a subtropical forest. The results show that nitrogen addition aggravates the existing phosphorus limitation and disrupts the soil microbial community structure and enzymatic activity.
Article
Agronomy
Bahareh Bicharanloo, Matthias Johannes Salomon, Timothy R. Cavagnaro, Claudia Keitel, Chris Brien, Nathaniel Jewell, Bettina Berger, Thomas Lines, Feike A. Dijkstra
Summary: The study found that non-mycorrhizal plants were as successful as mycorrhizal plants in terms of N and water uptake under reduced and variable water availability. However, mycorrhizal plants showed lower water use efficiency and shoot N recovery, potentially due to their higher requirements for water and N. Non-mycorrhizal plants had greater specific root exudation, resulting in relatively greater uptake of N than P across all watering conditions.
Article
Soil Science
Guantao Chen, Yu Sun, Yuqin Chen, Wei Ma, Qi Zhong, Yunjie Li, Lingjun Qiu, Shixing Zhou, Gang Chen, Jiulong Xie, Lihua Tu
Summary: Different spatial locations, species, and root order all have significant effects on root decomposition. This study investigates the effects of decomposition position, root order, and species differences on root decomposition, and highlights the role of manganese (Mn) in controlling root decomposition rates. The results suggest that root Mn concentration is a more consistent predictor of root decomposition rates compared to traditional predictors such as N, P, tannins, and phenolics.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Shaobin Yan, Liming Yin, Feike A. Dijkstra, Peng Wang, Weixin Cheng
Summary: Plant root exudates have a significant positive priming effect on soil organic carbon decomposition, with distinct differences in the magnitude and regulators of this effect. Amino acids induce the highest priming effect, followed by simple sugars, low-molecular-weight organic acids, and phenolics. The specificity of root exudate types and multiple mechanisms play a crucial role in causing this effect. Future studies should focus on long-term experiments with continuous addition of mixed compounds to further understand the modulation of soil C decomposition by changes in root exudates.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Shixing Zhou, Junxi Hu, Xiong Liu, Xingcheng Zou, Lin Xiao, Dongyu Cao, Lihua Tu, Xinglei Cui, Congde Huang
Summary: Soil mesofauna performs significant roles in decomposing organic matter, recycling nutrients, and increasing nutrient availability. The impacts of nitrogen deposition and reduced precipitation on litter-dwelling mesofauna and their influence on litter decomposition are poorly understood. A two-year experiment was conducted in a subtropical forest to explore the effects of nitrogen deposition and reduced precipitation on soil mesofauna during litter decomposition. The results indicate that nitrogen deposition negatively affected the density of Oribatida mites and Collembola as well as the total density of soil mesofauna, while reduced precipitation increased the density of Collembola and Oribatida mites and the total density of mesofauna but decreased mesofaunal diversity. The interaction of nitrogen deposition and reduced precipitation significantly affected the density of Prostigmata mites, Oribatida mites, Collembola, and mesofaunal diversity. Nitrogen deposition combined with reduced precipitation significantly inhibited litter decomposition. Overall, the study highlights the interactive effects of nitrogen deposition and reduced precipitation on mesofaunal diversity and their cascading impacts on leaf litter decomposition.
Article
Forestry
Lingjun Qiu, Min Fan, Yunjie Li, Qin Yang, Xin Gou, Yuemei Kong, Shixing Zhou, Gang Chen, Jiulong Xie, Yuqin Chen, Li Liu, Yi Tang, Lihua Tu
Summary: By targeting the nifH gene, this study investigated the effects of long-term nitrogen addition on the abundance and composition of diazotrophic communities in subtropical N-rich forests. The results showed that increasing nitrogen addition decreased nitrogenase activity and nifH abundance, but increased the diversity of diazotrophic communities. Additionally, the composition of diazotrophic communities shifted from free-living nitrogen fixers to symbiotic nitrogen fixers.
FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Liehua Tie, Shengzhao Wei, Josep Penuelas, Jordi Sardans, Xing Liu, Shixing Zhou, Xiong Liu, Arun K. Bose, Congde Huang
Summary: Imbalanced nitrogen and phosphorus depositions significantly alter terrestrial ecosystem biogeochemical processes. The addition of nitrogen and phosphorus together can enhance the release of carbon, nitrogen, and metal nutrients in litter, while the effect of nitrogen addition on litter depends on the availability of phosphorus.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Wei Cheng, Liehua Tie, Shixing Zhou, Junxi Hu, Shengnan Ouyang, Congde Huang
Summary: This study conducted a global meta-analysis to determine the contribution and patterns of soil arthropods to the decomposition of non-leaf litter in different ecosystems. The results showed that soil arthropods significantly promoted global non-leaf litter decomposition, and their contribution varied with climate zone, ecosystem type, decomposition time, and litterbag mesh size. This study enhances our understanding of the role of soil arthropods in global non-leaf litter decomposition.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Lingjun Qiu, Xin Gou, Yuemei Kong, Fangyang Tu, Xia Peng, Lin Xu, Shixing Zhou, Congde Huang, Yuqin Chen, Li Liu, Lihua Tu
Summary: Microbially driven nitrification and denitrification are important processes in regulating soil nitrogen availability and N2O emissions. This study investigated the response of nitrifying and denitrifying prokaryotic communities to long-term nitrogen additions in a subtropical forest. The results showed that nitrogen addition significantly increased denitrification potentials and enzymes, inhibited nitrification, and led to increased N2O emissions. The composition and diversity of denitrifying communities had direct effects on N2O emissions.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
C. Beraud, F. Piola, J. Gervaix, G. Meiffren, C. Creuze des Chatelliers, A. Delort, C. Boisselet, S. Poussineau, E. Lacroix, A. A. M. Cantarel
Summary: This study investigated the soil factors influencing the development of biological denitrification inhibition (BDI) and found that initial soil moisture, ammonium concentration, and the initial abundance of certain microbial genes play significant roles in BDI development. Additionally, the research highlighted the relevance of biotic factors in explaining BDI and proposed the use of procyanidin concentration from plant belowground system as a new proxy for measuring BDI intensity.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Soil Science
Yizhu Qiao, Tingting Wang, Qiwei Huang, Hanyue Guo, He Zhang, Qicheng Xu, Qirong Shen, Ning Ling
Summary: Soil microbial community coalescence, the mixing and interaction of microbial communities, has been found to enhance the stability and complexity of rhizobacterial networks, leading to improved plant health and biomass. This study investigated the effects of different degrees of bacterial community coalescence on plant disease resistance by mixing soils from healthy and diseased habitats for watermelon planting. The results showed that mixing in more healthy soil reduced the plant disease index and increased biomass by improving the stability and complexity of the rhizobacterial network. Core taxa Nitrospirillum and Singulisphaera were enriched in the rhizosphere from healthy soils and played important roles in disease suppression and regulating the positive cohesion and modularity of the networks. Overall, these findings provide insights into the potential mechanism of microbial community coalescence for improving plant microbial community function and suggest new tools for enhancing plant fitness via soil microbiota mixing.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Soil Science
Mengqiu He, Shending Chen, Lei Meng, Xiaoqian Dan, Wenjie Wang, Qinying Zhu, Zucong Cai, Jinbo Zhang, Pierfrancesco Nardi, Christoph Mueller
Summary: Maize genotypes directly affect gene expression and nitrogen uptake capacity. The feedback between maize genotypes and soil nitrogen transformations, as well as their regulations on nitrogen uptake capacity, have been studied. The findings suggest that maize genotypes play a central role in regulating these feedbacks, which are important for maize breeding and enhancing maize production.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Soil Science
Ke Shi, Jiahui Liao, Xiaoming Zou, Han Y. H. Chen, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Zhengming Yan, Tingting Ren, Honghua Ruan
Summary: Through rewilding, microbial extracellular and cellular residues can continuously accumulate in soils and significantly contribute to soil organic carbon sequestration. Extracellular residues are mainly driven by fine root biomass, while cellular residues are mainly driven by soil nitrogen and organic carbon content.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Soil Science
Sensen Chen, Ying Teng, Yongming Luo, Eiko Kuramae, Wenjie Ren
Summary: This study comprehensively assesses the effects of NMs on the soil microbiome through a global meta-analysis. The results reveal significant negative impacts of NMs on soil microbial diversity, biomass, activity, and function. Metal NMs, especially Ag NMs, have the most pronounced negative effects on various soil microbial community metrics.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Soil Science
Shareen K. D. Sanders, Gerard Martinez-De Leon, Ludovico Formenti, Madhav P. Thakur
Summary: Collembolans, the diverse group of soil invertebrates, are affected by anthropogenic climate warming, which alters their diversity and density. In addition to abiotic stressors, changes in food availability, specifically the abundance of saprotrophic and mycorrhizal fungi, influence Collembola responses to climate warming. Collembolans prefer saprotrophic fungi but rely on mycorrhizal fungi when food sources are scarce. Understanding the mechanisms behind these dietary shifts in warm-dry and warm-wet soil conditions is crucial for predicting the impact of climate change on Collembola-fungal interactions.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Soil Science
Wimonsiri Pingthaisong, Sergey Blagodatsky, Patma Vityakon, Georg Cadisch
Summary: A study found that mixing high-C/N ratio rice straw with low-C/N ratio groundnut stover can improve the chemical composition of the input, stimulate microbial growth, decrease the loss of residue-derived carbon in the soil, and reduce native soil carbon and nitrogen consumption.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
Article
Soil Science
Jiachen Wang, Jie Zhao, Rong Yang, Xin Liu, Xuyuan Zhang, Wei Zhang, Xiaoyong Chen, Wende Yan, Kelin Wang
Summary: Nitrogen is vital for ecosystem productivity, restoration, and succession processes. This study found that legume intercropping was more effective than chemical nitrogen fertilizers in promoting the complexity and stability of the soil micro-food web, as it increased microbial and nematode communities and enhanced energy flow patterns.
SOIL BIOLOGY & BIOCHEMISTRY
(2024)
