Nitrogen deposition weakens plant-microbe interactions in grassland ecosystems (original) (raw)
Related papers
Pedosphere, 2020
Alpine grasslands with a high soil organic carbon (SOC) storage on the Tibetan Plateau are experiencing rapid climate warming and anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition; this is expected to substantially increase the soil N availability, which may impact carbon (C) cycling. However, little is known regarding how N enrichment influences soil microbial communities and functions relative to C cycling in this region. We conducted a 4-year field experiment on an alpine grassland to evaluate the effects of four different rates of N addition (0, 25, 50, and 100 kg N ha −1 year −1) on the abundance and community structure (phospholipid fatty acids, PLFAs) of microbes, enzyme activities, and community level physiological profiles (CLPP) in soil. We found that N addition increased the microbial biomass C (MBC) and N (MBN), along with an increased abundance of bacterial PLFAs, especially Gram-negative bacterial PLFAs, with a decreasing ratio of Gram-positive to Gram-negative bacteria. The N addition also stimulated the growth of fungi, especially arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, reducing the ratio of fungi to bacteria. Microbial functional diversity and activity of enzymes involved in C cycling (β-1,4-glucosidase and phenol oxidase) and N cycling (β-1,4-N-acetyl-glucosaminidase and leucine aminopeptidase) increased after N addition, resulting in a loss of SOC. A meta-analysis showed that the soil C/N ratio was a key factor in the response of oxidase activity to N amendment, suggesting that the responses of soil microbial functions, which are linked to C turnover relative to N input, primarily depended upon the soil C/N ratio. Overall, our findings highlight that N addition has a positive influence on microbial communities and their associated functions, which may reduce soil C storage in alpine grasslands under global change scenarios.
2021
Aims Nitrogen (N) deposition is a global environmental problem that can alter community compositions and functions, and consequently, the ecosystem services. In this study, we assessed the responses of aboveground vegetation, surface soil properties and microbial communities to N addition, and explored the drivers of microbial community in a semiarid steppe ecosystem in northwest of China. Methods Thirty-six 6×10-m2 plots composed of six N addition levels and six replicates were distributed in six columns and six rows. Nine vegetation characteristics and seven soil properties were measured and calculated. Soil microbial characteristics were analyzed by 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing. Results N addition positively affected aboveground vegetation traits such as the community weighted-mean of leaf nitrogen content (LNCWM). High N inputs significantly altered the microbial community assembly process from random to deterministic. The microbial community diversity and composition, ho...
Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 2020
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) availability strongly affects carbon (C) cycling and storage in terrestrial ecosystems. Nutrient addition can increase C inputs into soil via increased above-and belowground plant productivity, but at the same time can accelerate organic matter decomposition in the soil. The mechanisms underlying these effects on soil organic C (SOC) dynamics remain unclear, especially in nutrient-limited alpine ecosystems that have been subjected to increasing N and P availability in recent decades. The aim of this study was to clarify the mechanisms underlying SOC decomposition and stabilization in an alpine grassland soil after four years of N and P additions. The soil aggregate size distribution, microbial community structure (lipid biomarkers), microbial C use efficiency (CUE) and microbial necromass composition (amino sugar biomarkers) were analyzed. Nutrient addition increased dominance of fast-growing bacteria (copiotrophs), while P addition alone intensified the competitive interactions between arbuscular mycorrhizal and saprotrophic fungi. These changes led to decreases in the microbial CUE of glucose by 1.6-3.5% and of vanillin by 8.5%, and therefore, reduced SOC content in the topsoil. The total microbial necromass remained unaffected by nutrient addition, but the contribution of fungal necromass to SOC increased. The increased abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and fungal necromass under elevated N availability raised the mass proportion of soil macroaggregates (>250 μm) by 16.5-20.3%. Therefore, fungi were highly involved in macroaggregation following N addition, and so, moderated the SOC losses through enhanced physical protection. Overall, the complex interactions between microbial physiology (CUE), necromass composition (amino sugars) and physical protection (macroaggregation) in mediating SOC dynamics in response to nutrient enrichment were disentangled to better predict the capability of alpine grassland soils to act as a C sink or source under global change.
PLoS ONE, 2013
Understanding factors driving the ecology of N cycling microbial communities is of central importance for sustainable land use. In this study we report changes of abundance of denitrifiers, nitrifiers and nitrogen-fixing microorganisms (based on qPCR data for selected functional genes) in response to different land use intensity levels and the consequences for potential turnover rates. We investigated selected grassland sites being comparable with respect to soil type and climatic conditions, which have been continuously treated for many years as intensely used meadows (IM), intensely used mown pastures (IP) and extensively used pastures (EP), respectively. The obtained data were linked to above ground biodiversity pattern as well as water extractable fractions of nitrogen and carbon in soil. Shifts in land use intensity changed plant community composition from systems dominated by s-strategists in extensive managed grasslands to c-strategist dominated communities in intensive managed grasslands. Along the different types of land use intensity, the availability of inorganic nitrogen regulated the abundance of bacterial and archaeal ammonia oxidizers. In contrast, the amount of dissolved organic nitrogen determined the abundance of denitrifiers (nirS and nirK). The high abundance of nifH carrying bacteria at intensive managed sites gave evidence that the amounts of substrates as energy source outcompete the high availability of inorganic nitrogen in these sites. Overall, we revealed that abundance and function of microorganisms involved in key processes of inorganic N cycling (nitrification, denitrification and N fixation) might be independently regulated by different abiotic and biotic factors in response to land use intensity.
Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 2014
Plant growth and soil microbial activity are intrinsically correlated. Numerous evidence shows that nitrogen (N) deposition can greatly alter both processes. However, it is unknown whether such changes caused by N deposition can create new dynamics between plants and soil microbes. This study was conducted with an attempt to examine the plantemicrobe relationship along an N addition gradient. Eight levels of N addition (0, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 g N m À2) were applied annually in a temperate steppe in northern China since 2003. Plant and soil samples were collected from 2005 to 2007. We found that N addition acidified soil significantly. Both plant aboveground biomass and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) increased with increasing N input. However, soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC), microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) and (soil) microbial respiration showed nonlinear responses to N input. Low levels of N inputs stimulated MBC, MBN and microbial respiration, whereas high levels of N input suppressed them. Although MBC and MBN were both positively correlated with aboveground biomass at each level of N treatments, the dependence of such biomass on MBC and MBN declined with the increase in N addition, as indicated by the exponential decreases in the regression coefficients. The weakened linkage between aboveground biomass and MBC was mostly attributed to soil acidification. The decrease in soil pH caused by elevated N inputs reduced soil microbial activities, but not plant growth. Overall, our results revealed a trend of shifting plant emicrobe relationship from coupling to decoupling with the increase of N input. The divergent responses of plants and soil microbial activities under intensified N addition could have consequent impacts on ecosystem function and services.
Functional Ecology, 2015
1. Terrestrial ecosystems worldwide are receiving increasing amounts of biologically reactive nitrogen (N) as a consequence of anthropogenic activities. This intended or unintended fertilization can have a wide-range of impacts on biotic communities and hence on soil respiration. 2. Reduction in below-ground carbon (C) allocation induced by high N availability has been assumed to be a major mechanism determining the effects of N enrichment on soil respiration. In addition to increasing available N, however, N enrichment causes soil acidification, which may also affect root and microbial activities. The relative importance of increased N availability vs. soil acidification on soil respiration in natural ecosystems experiencing N enrichment is unclear. 3. We conducted a 12-year N enrichment experiment and a 4-year complementary acid addition experiment in a semi-arid Inner Mongolian grassland. We found that N enrichment had contrasting effects on root and microbial respiration. N enrichment significantly increased root biomass, root N content and specific root respiration, thereby promoting root respiration. In contrast, N enrichment significantly suppressed microbial respiration likely by reducing total microbial biomass and changing the microbial community composition. 4. The effect on root activities was due to both soil acidity and increased available N, while the effect on microbes primarily stemmed from soil acidity, which was further confirmed by results from the acid addition experiment. Our results indicate that soil acidification exerts a greater control than soil N availability on soil respiration in grasslands experiencing long-term N enrichment. 5. These findings suggest that N-induced soil acidification should be included in predicting terrestrial ecosystem C balance under future N deposition scenarios.
Microbiome, 2022
Background: Anthropogenic activities have increased the inputs of atmospheric reactive nitrogen (N) into terrestrial ecosystems, affecting soil carbon stability and microbial communities. Previous studies have primarily examined the effects of nitrogen deposition on microbial taxonomy, enzymatic activities, and functional processes. Here, we examined various functional traits of soil microbial communities and how these traits are interrelated in a Mediterraneantype grassland administrated with 14 years of 7 g m −2 year −1 of N amendment, based on estimated atmospheric N deposition in areas within California, USA, by the end of the twenty-first century. Results: Soil microbial communities were significantly altered by N deposition. Consistent with higher aboveground plant biomass and litter, fast-growing bacteria, assessed by abundance-weighted average rRNA operon copy number, were favored in N deposited soils. The relative abundances of genes associated with labile carbon (C) degradation (e.g., amyA and cda) were also increased. In contrast, the relative abundances of functional genes associated with the degradation of more recalcitrant C (e.g., mannanase and chitinase) were either unchanged or decreased. Compared with the ambient control, N deposition significantly reduced network complexity, such as average degree and connectedness. The network for N deposited samples contained only genes associated with C degradation, suggesting that C degradation genes became more intensely connected under N deposition. Conclusions: We propose a conceptual model to summarize the mechanisms of how changes in above-and belowground ecosystems by long-term N deposition collectively lead to more soil C accumulation.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2015
Soil microorganisms are critical to ecosystem functioning and the maintenance of soil fertility. However, despite global increases in the inputs of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) to ecosystems due to human activities, we lack a predictive understanding of how microbial communities respond to elevated nutrient inputs across environmental gradients. Here we used high-throughput sequencing of marker genes to elucidate the responses of soil fungal, archaeal, and bacterial communities using an N and P addition experiment replicated at 25 globally distributed grassland sites. We also sequenced metagenomes from a subset of the sites to determine how the functional attributes of bacterial communities change in response to elevated nutrients. Despite strong compositional differences across sites, microbial communities shifted in a consistent manner with N or P additions, and the magnitude of these shifts was related to the magnitude of plant community responses to nutrient inputs. Mycorrhiz...
Microbial responses to nitrogen addition in three contrasting grassland ecosystems
Oecologia, 2007
The eVects of global N enrichment on soil processes in grassland ecosystems have received relatively little study. We assessed microbial community response to experimental increases in N availability by measuring extracellular enzyme activity (EEA) in soils from three grasslands with contrasting edaphic and climatic characteristics: a semiarid grassland at the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico, USA (SEV), and mesic grasslands at Konza Prairie, Kansas, USA (KNZ) and Ukulinga Research Farm, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (SAF). We hypothesized that, with N enrichment, soil microbial communities would increase C and P acquisition activity, decrease N acquisition activity, and reduce oxidative enzyme production (leading to recalcitrant soil organic matter [SOM] accumulation), and that the magnitude of response would decrease with soil age (due to higher stabilization of enzyme pools and P limitation of response). Cellulolytic activities followed the pattern predicted, increasing 35-52% in the youngest soil (SEV), 10-14% in the intermediate soil (KNZ) and remaining constant in the oldest soil (SAF). The magnitude of phosphatase response did not vary among sites. N acquisition activity response was driven by the enzyme closest to its pH optimum in each soil: i.e., leucine aminopeptidase in alkaline soil,-N-acetylglucosaminidase in acidic soil. Oxidative enzyme activity varied widely across ecosystems, but did not decrease with N amendment at any site. Likewise, SOM and %C pools did not respond to N enrichment. Between-site variation in both soil properties and EEA exceeded any treatment response, and a large portion of EEA variability (leucine aminopeptidase and oxidative enzymes), 68% as shown by principal components analysis, was strongly related to soil pH (r = 0.91, P < 0.001). In these grassland ecosystems, soil microbial responses appear constrained by a molecularscale (pH) edaphic factor, making potential breakdown rates of SOM resistant to N enrichment.