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Growth explains microbial carbon use efficiency across soils differing in land use and geology.

ABSTRACT: The ratio of carbon (C) that is invested into microbial growth to organic C taken up is known as microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE), which is influenced by environmental factors such as soil temperature and soil moisture. How microbes will physiologically react to short-term environmental changes is not well understood, primarily due to methodological restrictions. Here we report on two independent laboratory experiments to explore short-term temperature and soil moisture effects on soil microbial physiology (i.e. respiration, growth, CUE, and microbial biomass turnover): (i) a temperature experiment with 1-day pre-incubation at 5, 15 and 25 °C at 60% water holding capacity (WHC), and (ii) a soil moisture/oxygen (O2) experiment with 7-day pre-incubation at 20 °C at 30%, 60% WHC (both at 21% O2) and 90% WHC at 1% O2. Experiments were conducted with soils from arable, pasture and forest sites derived from both silicate and limestone bedrocks. We found that microbial CUE responded heterogeneously though overall positively to short-term temperature changes, and decreased significantly under high moisture level (90% WHC)/suboxic conditions due to strong decreases in microbial growth. Microbial biomass turnover time decreased dramatically with increasing temperature, and increased significantly at high moisture level (90% WHC)/suboxic conditions. Our findings reveal that the responses of microbial CUE and microbial biomass turnover to short-term temperature and moisture/O2 changes depended mainly on microbial growth responses and less on respiration responses to the environmental cues, which were consistent across soils differing in land use and geology.

SUBMITTER: Zheng Q

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6774786 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Growth explains microbial carbon use efficiency across soils differing in land use and geology.

Zheng Qing Q Hu Yuntao Y Zhang Shasha S Noll Lisa L Böckle Theresa T Richter Andreas A Wanek Wolfgang W

Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 20181015

The ratio of carbon (C) that is invested into microbial growth to organic C taken up is known as microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE), which is influenced by environmental factors such as soil temperature and soil moisture. How microbes will physiologically react to short-term environmental changes is not well understood, primarily due to methodological restrictions. Here we report on two independent laboratory experiments to explore short-term temperature and soil moisture effects on soil micr ...[more]

PMID: 31579288

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Project description:BackgroundBlack carbon (BC) encompasses a range of carbonaceous materials--including soot, char, and charcoal--derived from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass. Urban soils can become enriched in BC due to proximity to these combustion sources. We conducted a literature review of BC in urban soils globally and found 26 studies reporting BC and total organic carbon (TOC) content collected to a maximum of 578 cm depth in urban soils across 35 cities and 10 countries. We recorded data on city, climate, and land use/land cover characteristics to examine drivers of BC content and contribution to TOC in soil.ResultsAll studies were conducted in the northern hemisphere, with 68% of the data points collected in China and the United States. Surface samples (0-20 cm) accounted for 62% of samples in the dataset. Therefore, we focused our analysis on 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm depths. Urban soil BC content ranged from 0-124 mg/g (median = 3 mg/g) at 0-10 cm and from 0-53 mg/g (median = 2.8 mg/g) at 10-20 cm depth. The median proportional contribution of BC to TOC was 23% and 15% at 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm, respectively. Surface soils sampled in industrial land use and near roads had the highest BC contents and proportions, whereas samples from residential sites had among the lowest. Soil BC content decreased with mean annual soil temperature.ConclusionsOur review indicates that BC comprises a major fraction (nearly one quarter) of the TOC in urban surface soils, yet sampling bias towards the surface could hide the potential for BC storage at depth. Land use emerged as an importer driver of soil BC contents and proportions, whereas land cover effects remain uncertain. Warmer and wetter soils were found to have lower soil BC than cooler and drier soils, differences that likely reflect soil BC loss mechanisms. Additional research on urban soil BC at depth and from diverse climates is critical to better understand the role of cities in the global carbon cycle.

Dataset Information

Growth explains microbial carbon use efficiency across soils differing in land use and geology.

Publications

Growth explains microbial carbon use efficiency across soils differing in land use and geology.

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