Plant Community and Nitrogen Deposition as Drivers of Alpha and Beta Diversities of Prokaryotes in Reconstructed Oil Sand Soils and Natural Boreal Forest Soils

ABSTRACT The Athabasca oil sand deposit is one of the largest single oil deposits in the world. Following surface mining, companies are required to restore soil-like profiles that can support the previous land capabilities. The objective of this study was to assess whether the soil prokaryotic alpha diversity (α-diversity) and β-diversity in oil sand soils reconstructed 20 to 30 years previously and planted to one of three vegetation types (coniferous or deciduous trees and grassland) were similar to those found in natural boreal forest soils subject to wildfire disturbance. Prokaryotic α-diversity and β-diversity were assessed using massively parallel sequencing of 16S rRNA genes. The β-diversity, but not the α-diversity, differed between reconstructed and natural soils. Bacteria associated with an oligotrophic lifestyle were more abundant in natural forest soils, whereas bacteria associated with a copiotrophic lifestyle were more abundant in reconstructed soils. Ammonia-oxidizing archaea were most abundant in reconstructed soils planted with grasses. Plant species were the main factor influencing α-diversity in natural and in reconstructed soils. Nitrogen deposition, pH, and plant species were the main factors influencing the β-diversity of the prokaryotic communities in natural and reconstructed soils. The results highlight the importance of nitrogen deposition and aboveground-belowground relationships in shaping soil microbial communities in natural and reconstructed soils. IMPORTANCE Covering over 800 km2, land disturbed by the exploitation of the oil sands in Canada has to be restored. Here, we take advantage of the proximity between these reconstructed ecosystems and the boreal forest surrounding the oil sand mining area to study soil microbial community structure and processes in both natural and nonnatural environments. By identifying key characteristics shaping the structure of soil microbial communities, this study improved our understanding of how vegetation, soil characteristics and microbial communities interact and drive soil functions.

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Growth of ectomycorrhizal mycelia and composition of soil microbial communities in oak forest soils along a nitrogen deposition gradient

Oecologia ◽

10.1007/s00442-007-0735-x ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 153 (2) ◽

pp. 375-384 ◽

Cited By ~ 120

Author(s):

Lars Ola Nilsson ◽

Erland Bååth ◽

Ursula Falkengren-Grerup ◽

Håkan Wallander

Keyword(s):

Microbial Communities ◽

Nitrogen Deposition ◽

Forest Soils ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Oak Forest ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Nitrogen Deposition Gradient ◽

Deposition Gradient

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Alkaline soil pH affects bulk soil, rhizosphere and root endosphere microbiomes of plants growing in a Sandhills ecosystem

FEMS Microbiology Ecology ◽

10.1093/femsec/fiab028 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 97 (4) ◽

Author(s):

Lucas Dantas Lopes ◽

Jingjie Hao ◽

Daniel P Schachtman

Keyword(s):

Microbial Communities ◽

Plant Species ◽

Soil Ph ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Bulk Soil ◽

Strong Impact ◽

Alkaline Soil ◽

Alkaline Soils ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Soil Rhizosphere

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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Soil microbial communities alter leaf chemistry and influence allelopathic potential among coexisting plant species

Oecologia ◽

10.1007/s00442-017-3833-4 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 183 (4) ◽

pp. 1155-1165 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Scott J. Meiners ◽

Kelsey K. Phipps ◽

Thomas H. Pendergast ◽

Thomas Canam ◽

Walter P. Carson

Keyword(s):

Microbial Communities ◽

Plant Species ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Leaf Chemistry ◽

Allelopathic Potential ◽

Soil Microbial

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Subordinate plant species impact on soil microbial communities and ecosystem functioning in grasslands: Findings from a removal experiment

Perspectives in Plant Ecology Evolution and Systematics ◽

10.1016/j.ppees.2012.12.003 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 77-85 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Pierre Mariotte ◽

Charlotte Vandenberghe ◽

Claire Meugnier ◽

Pierre Rossi ◽

Richard D. Bardgett ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Microbial Communities ◽

Plant Species ◽

Ecosystem Functioning ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Removal Experiment ◽

Soil Microbial

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Long-term effects of organic amendments on the recovery of plant and soil microbial communities following disturbance in the Canadian boreal forest

Plant and Soil ◽

10.1007/s11104-012-1306-4 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 363 (1-2) ◽

pp. 331-344 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

Aria S. Hahn ◽

Sylvie A. Quideau

Keyword(s):

Boreal Forest ◽

Microbial Communities ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Organic Amendments ◽

Long Term Effects ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Canadian Boreal Forest

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Ester Linked Fatty Acid (ELFA) method should be used with caution for interpretating soil microbial communities and their relationships with environmental variables in forest soils

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0251501 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (5) ◽

pp. e0251501

Author(s):

Wenjuan Yu ◽

Huanhuan Gao ◽

Hongzhang Kang

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acid ◽

Microbial Biomass ◽

Microbial Communities ◽

Forest Soils ◽

Environmental Variables ◽

Phospholipid Fatty Acid ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Environmental Drivers ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Forest Sites

As an alternative for phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis, a simpler ester linked fatty acid (ELFA) analysis has been developed to characterize soil microbial communities. However, few studies have compared the two methods in forest soils where the contribution of nonmicrobial sources may be larger than that of microbial sources. Moreover, it remains unclear whether the two methods yield similar relationships of microbial biomass and composition with environmental variables. Here, we compared PLFA and ELFA methods with respect to microbial biomass and composition and their relationships with environmental variables in six oriental oak (Quercus variabilis) forest sites along a 1500-km latitudinal gradient in East China. We found that both methods had a low sample-to-sample variability and successfully separated overall community composition of sites. However, total, bacterial, and fungal biomass, the fungal-to-bacterial ratio, and the gram-positive to gram-negative bacteria ratio were not significantly or strongly correlated between the two methods. The relationships of these microbial properties with environmental variables (pH, precipitation, and clay) greatly differed between the two methods. Our study indicates that despite its simplicity, the ELFA method may not be as feasible as the PLFA method for investigating microbial biomass and composition and for identifying their dominant environmental drivers, at least in forest soils.

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Soil Bacterial and Fungal Composition and Diversity Responses to Seasonal Deer Grazing in a Subalpine Meadow

Diversity ◽

10.3390/d13020084 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 84

Author(s):

Andéole Niyongabo Turatsinze ◽

Baotian Kang ◽

Tianqi Zhu ◽

Fujiang Hou ◽

Saman Bowatte

Keyword(s):

Relative Abundance ◽

Soil Microbial Communities ◽

Gansu Province ◽

Total Carbon ◽

Mountain Range ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Β Diversity ◽

Α Diversity ◽

Soil Bacterial

Soil microbial composition and diversity are widely recognized for their role in ecological functioning. This study examined the differences of soil microbial communities between two seasonally grazed grasslands. The study area was in the Gansu red deer farm located on the Qilian Mountain range in the Gansu province of northwestern China. This farm adopted a seasonal rotation grazing system whereby grasslands at higher altitudes are grazed in summer (SG), whilst grasslands at lower altitudes are grazed in winter (WG). The soil bacterial and fungal communities were examined by Illumina MiSeq sequencing. We found that soil water content (SWC), organic carbon (OC), total carbon (TC), and total nitrogen (TN) were significantly higher, whereas the C/N ratio was significantly lower in SG than WG pastures. The α-diversity of bacteria was greater than that of fungi in both pastures, while both bacterial and fungal α-diversity were not significantly different between the pastures. The bacterial β-diversity was significantly different between the pastures, but fungal β-diversity was not. The bacterial phylum Actinobacteria and fungal phylum Ascomycota were dominant in both pastures. The relative abundance of Actinobacteria in soil was significantly higher in WG pastures, whereas the relative abundance of Proteobacteria in soil was significantly higher in SG pastures. Significant correlations between bacterial and fungal phyla and soil properties were observed, but this varied between the two grasslands. This study showed that distinct microbial community structures developed in two pastures within the same geographic location that were grazed in different seasons.

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