Azorella Cushion Plants and Aridity are Important Drivers of Soil Microbial Communities in Andean Ecosystems

ABSTRACT Soil pH is a major factor shaping bulk soil microbial communities. However, it is unclear whether the belowground microbial habitats shaped by plants (e.g. rhizosphere and root endosphere) are also affected by soil pH. We investigated this question by comparing the microbial communities associated with plants growing in neutral and strongly alkaline soils in the Sandhills, which is the largest sand dune complex in the northern hemisphere. Bulk soil, rhizosphere and root endosphere DNA were extracted from multiple plant species and analyzed using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. Results showed that rhizosphere, root endosphere and bulk soil microbiomes were different in the contrasting soil pH ranges. The strongest impact of plant species on the belowground microbiomes was in alkaline soils, suggesting a greater selective effect under alkali stress. Evaluation of soil chemical components showed that in addition to soil pH, cation exchange capacity also had a strong impact on shaping bulk soil microbial communities. This study extends our knowledge regarding the importance of pH to microbial ecology showing that root endosphere and rhizosphere microbial communities were also influenced by this soil component, and highlights the important role that plants play particularly in shaping the belowground microbiomes in alkaline soils.

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LDPE microplastics affect soil microbial communities and nitrogen cycling

The Science of The Total Environment ◽

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145640 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 773 ◽

pp. 145640

Author(s):

Lili Rong ◽

Longfei Zhao ◽

Leicheng Zhao ◽

Zhipeng Cheng ◽

Yiming Yao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Microbial Communities ◽

Nitrogen Cycling ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Soil Microbial

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Changes in rhizosphere soil microbial communities across plant developmental stages of high and low methane emitting rice genotypes

Soil Biology and Biochemistry ◽

10.1016/j.soilbio.2021.108233 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 108233

Author(s):

Cristina P. Fernández-Baca ◽

Adam R. Rivers ◽

Woojae Kim ◽

Ryo Iwata ◽

Anna M. McClung ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Microbial Communities ◽

Developmental Stages ◽

Rhizosphere Soil ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Rice Genotypes

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Comparison of Drivers of Soil Microbial Communities Developed in Karst Ecosystems with Shallow and Deep Soil Depths

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy11010173 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 173

Author(s):

Huiling Guan ◽

Jiangwen Fan ◽

Haiyan Zhang ◽

Warwick Harris

Keyword(s):

Microbial Community ◽

Microbial Communities ◽

Soil Depth ◽

Phospholipid Fatty Acid ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Deep Soil ◽

Soil System ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Total Soil ◽

Karst Ecosystems

Soil erosion is prevalent in karst areas, but few studies have compared the differences in the drivers for soil microbial communities among karst ecosystems with different soil depths, and most studies have focused on the local scale. To fill this research gap, we investigated the upper 20 cm soil layers of 10 shallow–soil depth (shallow–SDC, total soil depth less than 100 cm) and 11 deep–soil depth communities (deep–SDC, total soil depth more than 100 cm), covering a broad range of vegetation types, soils, and climates. The microbial community characteristics of both the shallow–SDC and deep–SDC soils were tested by phospholipid fatty acid (PLFAs) analysis, and the key drivers of the microbial communities were illustrated by forward selection and variance partitioning analysis. Our findings demonstrated that more abundant soil nutrients supported higher fungal PLFA in shallow–SDC than in deep–SDC (p < 0.05). Furthermore, stronger correlation between the microbial community and the plant–soil system was found in shallow–SDC: the pure plant effect explained the 43.2% of variance in microbial biomass and 57.8% of the variance in the ratio of Gram–positive bacteria to Gram–negative bacteria (G+/G−), and the ratio of fungi to total bacteria (F/B); the pure soil effect accounted for 68.6% variance in the microbial diversity. The ratio of microbial PLFA cyclopropyl to precursors (Cy/Pr) and the ratio of saturated PLFA to monounsaturated PLFA (S/M) as indicators of microbial stress were controlled by pH, but high pH was not conducive to microorganisms in this area. Meanwhile, Cy/Pr in all communities was >0.1, indicating that microorganisms were under environmental stress. Therefore, the further ecological restoration of degraded karst communities is needed to improve their microbial communities.

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