scholarly journals Dynamics of Leaf- and Root-Specific Biomarkers during 1-Year of Litter Decomposition

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 1732
Author(s):  
Jens G. Altmann ◽  
Boris Jansen ◽  
Hermann F. Jungkunst ◽  
Karsten Kalbitz

Root-specific and leaf-specific biomarkers have been used for decades to identify the origin of organic materials in soils and sediments. However, quantitative approaches require appropriate knowledge about the fate of these indicator molecules during degradation. To clarify this issue, we performed a 1-year incubation experiment with fine root and leaf material of six temperate tree species: European ash (Fraxinus excelsior), European beech (Fagus sylvatica), Oak spec. (Quercus spec.), Linden spec. (Tilia spec.), Norway spruce (Picea abies) and Scots pine (Pinus sylvatica). Only one molecule, x,16-dihydroxy hexadecanoic acid (x,16-C16), could be validated as a general leaf-specific biomarker for the set of all species. For roots, no general root biomarker was found. Ester-bound tricosanol (C23-OH) could be validated for five out of six species; 20-hydroxy eicosanoic acid (ωC20) could be validated for four out of six species, leaving Norway spruce without a suitable root biomarker. The results of this study suggest that the validity of leaf- and root-derived ester-bound lipids as biomarkers is highly species dependent and does not always coincide with previous findings. Concentrations of root- and leaf-derived ester-bound lipids did not stay constant within 1 year of degradation and changed without a linear trend. The change of concentrations seems to be highly species dependent. This might be due to a different structure and arrangement of the individual monomers in cutin and suberin per species, and, therefore, a different accessibility of bond cleaving enzymes. The usefulness of root and leaf biomarkers is context dependent. Our results suggest that general assumptions about litter input to forest soils solely based on biomarker analysis have to be considered carefully.

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 823
Author(s):  
Anna Zielonka ◽  
Marek Drewnik ◽  
Łukasz Musielok ◽  
Marcin K. Dyderski ◽  
Dariusz Struzik ◽  
...  

Forest ecosystems significantly contribute to the global organic carbon (OC) pool, exhibiting high spatial heterogeneity in this respect. Some of the components of the OC pool in a forest (woody aboveground biomass (wAGB), coarse root biomass (CRB)) can be relatively easily estimated using readily available data from land observation and forest inventories, while some of the components of the OC pool are very difficult to determine (fine root biomass (FRB) and soil organic matter (SOM) stock). The main objectives of our study were to: (1) estimate the SOM stock; (2) estimate FRB; and (3) assess the relationship between both biotic (wAGB, forest age, foliage, stand density) and abiotic factors (climatic conditions, relief, soil properties) and SOM stocks and FRB in temperate forests in the Western Carpathians consisting of European beech, Norway spruce, and silver fir (32 forest inventory plots in total). We uncovered the highest wAGB in beech forests and highest SOM stocks under beech forest. FRB was the highest under fir forest. We noted a considerable impact of stand density on SOM stocks, particularly in beech and spruce forests. FRB content was mostly impacted by stand density only in beech forests without any discernible effects on other forest characteristics. We discovered significant impacts of relief-dependent factors and SOM stocks at all the studied sites. Our biomass and carbon models informed by more detailed environmental data led to reduce the uncertainty in over- and underestimation in Cambisols under beech, spruce, and fir forests for mountain temperate forest carbon pools.


2009 ◽  
Vol 55 (No. 12) ◽  
pp. 556-566 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Konôpka

Interspecific comparisons of the fine root “behaviour” under stressful situations may answer questions related to resistance to changing environmental conditions in the particular tree species. Our study was focused on Norway spruce (<I>Picea abies</I> [L.] Karst.) and European beech (<I>Fagus sylvatica</I> L.) grown in an acidic soil where acidity was caused by past air pollution in the Kysucké Beskydy Mts., North-Western Slovakia. Between April and October 2006, the following fine root traits were studied: biomass and necromass seasonal dynamics, vertical distribution, production, mortality, fine root turnover and production to mortality ratio. Sequential soil coring was repeatedly implemented in April, June, July, September, and October including the soil layers of 0–5, 5–15, 15–25, and 25–35 cm. Results indicated that spruce had a lower standing stock of fine roots than beech, and fine roots of spruce were more superficially distributed than those of beech. Furthermore, we estimated higher seasonal dynamics and also higher turnover of fine roots in spruce than in beech. The production to mortality ratio was higher in beech than in spruce, which was hypothetically explained as the effect of drought episodes that occurred in July and August. The results suggested that the beech root system could resist a physiological stress better than that of spruce. This conclusion was supported by different vertical distributions of fine roots in spruce and beech stands.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petia Simeonova Nikolova ◽  
Taryn L. Bauerle ◽  
Karl-Heinz Häberle ◽  
Helmut Blaschke ◽  
Ivano Brunner ◽  
...  

Forests ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filip Oulehle ◽  
Michal Růžek ◽  
Karolina Tahovská ◽  
Jiří Bárta ◽  
Oldřich Myška

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 180
Author(s):  
Bagdevi Mishra ◽  
Bartosz Ulaszewski ◽  
Sebastian Ploch ◽  
Jaroslaw Burczyk ◽  
Marco Thines

Chloroplasts are difficult to assemble because of the presence of large inverted repeats. At the same time, correct assemblies are important, as chloroplast loci are frequently used for biogeography and population genetics studies. In an attempt to elucidate the orientation of the single-copy regions and to find suitable loci for chloroplast single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-based studies, circular chloroplast sequences for the ultra-centenary reference individual of European Beech (Fagus sylvatica), Bhaga, and an additional Polish individual (named Jamy) was obtained based on hybrid assemblies. The chloroplast genome of Bhaga was 158,458 bp, and that of Jamy was 158,462 bp long. Using long-read mapping on the configuration inferred in this study and the one suggested in a previous study, we found an inverted orientation of the small single-copy region. The chloroplast genome of Bhaga and of the individual from Poland both have only two mismatches as well as three and two indels as compared to the previously published genome, respectively. The low divergence suggests low seed dispersal but high pollen dispersal. However, once chloroplast genomes become available from Pleistocene refugia, where a high degree of variation has been reported, they might prove useful for tracing the migration history of Fagus sylvatica in the Holocene.


2007 ◽  
Vol 298 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 69-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anika K. Richter ◽  
Lorenz Walthert ◽  
Emmanuel Frossard ◽  
Ivano Brunner

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. K. C. Venema ◽  
O. Mestre ◽  
E. Aguilar ◽  
I. Auer ◽  
J. A. Guijarro ◽  
...  

Abstract. The COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) Action ES0601: advances in homogenization methods of climate series: an integrated approach (HOME) has executed a blind intercomparison and validation study for monthly homogenization algorithms. Time series of monthly temperature and precipitation were evaluated because of their importance for climate studies and because they represent two important types of statistics (additive and multiplicative). The algorithms were validated against a realistic benchmark dataset. The benchmark contains real inhomogeneous data as well as simulated data with inserted inhomogeneities. Random independent break-type inhomogeneities with normally distributed breakpoint sizes were added to the simulated datasets. To approximate real world conditions, breaks were introduced that occur simultaneously in multiple station series within a simulated network of station data. The simulated time series also contained outliers, missing data periods and local station trends. Further, a stochastic nonlinear global (network-wide) trend was added. Participants provided 25 separate homogenized contributions as part of the blind study. After the deadline at which details of the imposed inhomogeneities were revealed, 22 additional solutions were submitted. These homogenized datasets were assessed by a number of performance metrics including (i) the centered root mean square error relative to the true homogeneous value at various averaging scales, (ii) the error in linear trend estimates and (iii) traditional contingency skill scores. The metrics were computed both using the individual station series as well as the network average regional series. The performance of the contributions depends significantly on the error metric considered. Contingency scores by themselves are not very informative. Although relative homogenization algorithms typically improve the homogeneity of temperature data, only the best ones improve precipitation data. Training the users on homogenization software was found to be very important. Moreover, state-of-the-art relative homogenization algorithms developed to work with an inhomogeneous reference are shown to perform best. The study showed that automatic algorithms can perform as well as manual ones.


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