不同林龄杉木根际与非根际土壤微生物群落特征

为探究中亚热带杉木土壤微生物群落随林龄变化特征,以中亚热带7,24,34 a生杉木人工林为研究对象,采用磷脂脂肪酸(PLFA)法分析其根际和非根际土壤微生物数量和群落结构及驱动土壤微生物变化的主要土壤环境因子。结果表明:随着杉木林龄的增长,非根际土壤各类微生物数量不断减少,根际土壤微生物数量不断增加,34 a生杉木人工林细菌含量、革兰氏阴性菌含量、Cy:MONO根际土壤显著高于非根际土壤,而其他各类微生物在根际和非根际土壤间均没有显著差异。相关分析和冗余分析结果表明:土壤环境因子对杉木土壤微生物群落有显著影响,其中有效磷和铵态氮含量对土壤微生物群落的影响较大,有效磷含量与土壤微生物群落呈正相关,土壤铵态氮含量与其呈负相关。因此,在杉木人工林管理过程中,可适当增加磷的输入,以增加土壤微生物数量,提高土壤质量,促进杉木的生长。     

十种湿生植物根际真菌群落参数和土壤肥力的比较

【目的】利用人工湿地是目前我国进行点源污水处理的一项重要技术,人工湿地的湿生植物及其根际微生物对污水处理有重要影响。目前人们普遍关注的是湿生植物根际细菌的群落结构和功能,而对根际真菌群落结构的信息较少。本文主要研究10种湿生植物根际的土壤肥力、真菌数量、生物量和真菌的碳代谢,目的在于筛选出根际土壤真菌生物量和活性均较大的植物种类,为今后人工湿地的建设提供参考依据。【方法】采用"向后抛石法"随机选取采样点,收集10种湿生植物根际土壤。采用常规方法测定土壤有机碳、全氮和全磷含量;真菌数量采用稀释平板法,真菌生物量(麦角固醇含量)采用高效液相色谱法(HPLC)测定;真菌碳代谢指纹采用FF板进行分析。【结果】银边石菖蒲、花叶香蒲和黄菖蒲根际土壤分别有较高的有机碳、全氮和全磷含量(P0.05)。黄菖蒲根际土壤真菌数量和生物量最大(P0.05)。相关分析表明,土壤全磷与真菌数量和生物量有极显著的正相关关系(P0.05),是制约土壤真菌分布的重要因素。碳代谢指纹分析表明,水生美人蕉土壤真菌对95种碳源的平均利用活性以及对6种碳源群的利用强度均大于其它植物,土壤全氮显著地影响了真菌群落对碳水化合物的利用(P0.05)。【结论】10种湿生植物根际土壤肥力和真菌群落有显著性差异,因而土壤肥力和真菌群落可以作为筛选人工湿地植物的重要依据,但这一结论还有待从分子生物学的角度进一步验证。     

运用多隔层根箱研究玉米幼苗根际微域中芘的降解

采用多隔层根箱,通过尼龙撩网插片的控制,实现根室土(S0)、离根室0～2mm(S1)、2～4mm(S2)、4～6mm(S3)及6mm(S4)各室层土壤的分离采集,分析离根系表面不同距离土壤芘的根际降解,并借助脂肪酸甲酯(fattyacidmethylester,FAME)分析土壤微生物群落结构的空间响应机制。结果表明:种植玉米处理的各室层内土壤可提取态芘含量存在显著的不同,其大小顺序为S4S3S0S2S1;各室层微生物群落结构存在显著的变化,其中微生物生物量和丛枝菌根真菌特征脂肪酸含量表现出与土壤可提取态芘含量变化相反的变化趋势。未种植玉米处理的各室层土壤可提取态芘含量和微生物群落结构没有差异。土壤可提取态芘含量与微生物生物量和丛枝菌根真菌的特征脂肪酸呈显著负相关(p0.01)。     

甘薯连作对根际土壤微生物群落结构的影响

为探究甘薯连作后根际土壤微生物群落结构变化,以徐薯18(耐连作品种)和遗字138(不耐连作品种)为试验材料,连作2年,于栽植初期和收获前期分别采集根际土壤,利用磷脂脂肪酸法(PLFA)分析其根际土壤微生物群落结构变化。结果表明,连作后,2个品种根际土壤的总PLFA含量均有所提高,与2015年相比,2016年栽植初期遗字138根际土壤真菌和放线菌PLFA的增加量分别是徐薯18的3.5倍和1.24倍,且均达到显著水平;F/B和G⁺/G^-在不同采样时期有所不同;主成分分析提取的2个主成分解释了89.05%的变异,其中PC1解释了76.91%的变异,PC2解释了12.14%的变异。2个品种连作前后差异明显。休闲期甘薯根际土壤微生物含量增多,这可能有助于缓解连作障碍。综上,甘薯连作导致甘薯根际土壤微生物群落结构失衡,特别是不耐连作品种连作后导致真菌数量明显增加。本研究结果为应用生态防控技术缓解连作障碍提供了理论依据。     

潮土中残留小麦和玉米秸秆养分含量差异及与微生物群落组成的关系

黄淮海平原典型潮土上小麦和玉米收获后的秸秆往往直接还田,但驱动它们在不同质地潮土(砂质、壤质、黏质)中分解的微生物是否与残留秸秆养分含量有关尚不清楚。本研究基于尼龙网袋法,通过10个月的田间培育试验,监测秸秆分解率、残留秸秆养分含量及微生物群落组成,评估各指标在秸秆类型和土壤质地之间的差异,探究残留秸秆养分与微生物群落组成之间的关系。结果表明:小麦和玉米秸秆的分解率均随着土壤质地变黏重而增大,二者在砂质、壤质、黏质土壤中的平均分解率分别为73.66%和75.43%、74.19%和76.63%、77.68%和78.05%。小麦残留秸秆的平均氮、磷、钾含量分别比玉米残留秸秆的平均氮、磷、钾含量低12.0%、34.4%、16.7%(P0.05),但两者的碳含量无显著差异;在不同质地潮土间,除秸秆磷含量随土壤变黏重显著增加外,其余养分含量变化不显著。基于磷脂脂肪酸(PLFA)的微生物群落组成分析表明,小麦和玉米秸秆中的细菌、真菌、放线菌含量无显著差异,但小麦秸秆中革兰氏阳性菌(G~+)含量比玉米秸秆低20.26%,而革兰氏阴性菌(G~–)含量比玉米秸秆高16.35%,同时,G~+/G~–、真菌/细菌、单不饱和脂肪酸/饱和支链脂肪酸比在两种秸秆间存在显著差异;小麦和玉米秸秆在黏质潮土中的细菌、真菌、总PLFA的平均含量分别比砂质潮土中低25.1%、30.3%、22.9%(P0.05),而放线菌含量平均比砂质潮土高93.8%(P0.05)。冗余分析(RDA)分析表明,小麦与玉米残留秸秆中的微生物群落组成显著不同,主要与其G~+和G~–不同有关,其中小麦秸秆的微生物群落组成主要与秸秆的C/N、C/P、C/K比值有关,而玉米秸秆则主要与秸秆的氮、磷、钾含量和分解率有关,说明影响小麦和玉米秸秆微生物群落组成的养分参数不同。     

长期连作及强还原土壤灭菌处理对烤烟根际土壤真菌群落的影响

烤烟是重要的经济作物,连作障碍已成为限制其产业发展的主要原因之一,研究长期连作及强还原土壤灭菌处理(RSD)对烤烟根际土壤真菌群落的影响,为缓解烤烟连作障碍提供理论基础。选取烤烟连作 3、5和 7年根际土壤分析理化性质和真菌群落演替规律。选取烤烟连作 3年样地实施强还原土壤灭菌处理(RSD),与未处理(3年)对比,以此评价 RSD修复效果。结果表明:(1)连作处理显著降低烤烟根际土壤 pH及总碳和总氮的含量,RSD处理较未处理(3年)显著提升土壤总碳和总氮的含量。(2)测序结果表明,连作处理显著促进真菌群落 Alpha多样性,主坐标轴分析和聚类分析表明连作处理显著改变真菌群落结构,真菌群落相对丰度的变化及 FUNGuild数据库比对结果表明,连作处理促使病原菌丰度增加。(3)与未处理(3年)相比,RSD处理显著降低真菌群落多样性和病原菌丰度。(4)相关性热图分析表明病原菌相对丰度与 pH、总碳和总氮含量呈显著负相关。因此,长期连作烤烟导致根际土壤质量退化,造成病原菌增多;RSD处理对连作土壤的质量和真菌群落具有良好的修复效果。     

乙草胺对玉米根际和非根际可培养微生物的影响

为探明土壤-植物系统中,田间施用量的乙草胺对玉米根际和非根际微生物数量的影响,采用田间试验及室内测试方法,在玉米苗期不同阶段测定了土壤中微生物量碳的变化,并进一步用平板稀释培养法研究了玉米根际和非根际土壤中细菌和真菌数量的变化。结果表明,乙草胺施用对玉米根际和非根际的土壤微生物群落均具有一定影响。可培养的根际细菌和真菌均呈现先抑制后刺激的变化,但与真菌不同,细菌受到的抑制作用时间较短,刺激作用时间较长;而本体土壤中可培养细菌和真菌则主要受到抑制作用,但是抑制作用的强度和持续时间差别很大。乙草胺对根际土壤微生物量碳可产生一定刺激作用,但影响并不显著;由于乙草胺施用对非根际土壤细菌和真菌的影响不同步并存在群落结构的补偿作用,从而维持了非根际土壤总体微生物生物量碳的基本稳定。     

不同作物根际土壤微生物的群落结构特征分析

为探究根际微生物群在支持植物生长、发育和健康方面的重要作用,本研究在2017年7月采集同一农田中大豆[Glycine max (L.) Merr.]、玉米[Zea mays)、花生(Arachis hypogaea L.]、四季豆[Phaseolus vulgaris L.]、豇豆[Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp]、番薯[Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.]和芋艿[Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schoot]7种不同作物,通过Illumina MiSeq测序技术和磷脂脂肪酸(PLFA)对这7种不同作物的根际微生物群落结构和组成进行了分析。结果显示,不同作物根际土壤微生物的PLFA种类和组成差异显著,但均以表征革兰氏阴性菌、革兰氏阳性菌和真菌的特征脂肪酸为主。花生根际土中微生物的PLFAs含量最高,花生根际土中的真菌细菌比(F/B)显著高于其他作物,且其革兰氏阳性菌与革兰氏阴性菌比(G⁺/G^-)最低。尽管在门水平,变形菌门、放线菌门、酸杆菌门和厚壁菌门是7种作物根际微生物的主要优势门,但是在纲水平和目水平不同作物根际微生物组成存在差异。Alpha多样性分析表明,大豆根际的OTU丰富度(Chao1,P<0.001)和细菌群落多样性(Shannon,P<0.001)在7种作物中最高。非度量多维尺度分析(NMDS)表明,根际微生物群落结构在OTU和PLFAs水平下均以不同作物形成聚类,不同聚类间的差异显著。根际敏感微生物的筛选和比较进一步说明不同作物对根际微生物的选择具有差异性,群落中某些特定菌群优势度存在区别,不同作物具有不同敏感微生物的选择倾向。本研究为构建健康的植物根际微生物群落以促进植物育种提供了基础。     

不同凋落物质量对杉木人工林土壤微生物群落结构的影响

凋落物是森林生态系统的重要组成部分。对福建南平峡阳林场7年生二代杉木人工林生态系统进行添加8种不同凋落物处理3年后,分析不同质量凋落物对土壤微生物群落组成的影响。结果表明:(1)添加高质量的桉树凋落物会使土壤磷脂脂肪酸总量、革兰氏阳性、阴性细菌生物量比添加杉木凋落物分别增加了27%、35%和19%,而添加低质量的樟树凋落物使得土壤磷脂脂肪酸总量和革兰氏阴性细菌较杉木显著降低29%和10%。(2)桉树凋落物添加下土壤真菌/细菌比(0.14)显著高于其他凋落物添加的比值,樟树凋落物添加下土壤的革兰氏阳性细菌/革兰氏阴性细菌比(1.64)显著高于其他凋落物添加处理的比值。(3)不同质量凋落物添加处理对土壤pH和碳氮比无显著影响。毛竹凋落物添加下土壤中硝态氮含量最高。(4)相关性分析表明,凋落物碳含量与土壤中脂肪酸总量、革兰氏阳性细菌、革兰氏阴性细菌、真菌和菌根真菌具有正相关关系。烷基碳(Alkyl C)与脂肪酸总量、革兰氏阳性、阴性细菌、细菌、真菌及真菌细菌比均有正相关性。甲氧基碳(N-alkyl C)、氧烷基碳(O-alkylC)和芳碳(ArylC)与革兰氏阳性阴性细菌比呈显著正相关。冗余分析表明,烷基碳(AlkylC)与16︰1ω7c、18︰1ω7c、18︰2ω6c、18︰1ω9显著正相关,对土壤微生物群落结构有显著影响。可见,不同树种之间凋落物烷基碳组分的差异是影响土壤微生物生物量和群落组成的重要指标。     

不同凋落物质量对杉木人工林土壤微生物群落结构的影响

凋落物是森林生态系统的重要组成部分。对福建南平峡阳林场7年生二代杉木人工林生态系统进行添加8种不同凋落物处理3年后，分析不同质量凋落物对土壤微生物群落组成的影响。结果表明：(1) 添加高质量的桉树凋落物会使土壤磷脂脂肪酸总量、革兰氏阳性、阴性细菌生物量比添加杉木凋落物分别增加了27%、35%和19%，而添加低质量的樟树凋落物使得土壤磷脂脂肪酸总量和革兰氏阴性细菌较杉木显著降低29%和10%。(2) 桉树凋落物添加下土壤真菌/细菌比(0.14)显著高于其他凋落物添加的比值，樟树凋落物添加下土壤的革兰氏阳性细菌/革兰氏阴性细菌比(1.64)显著高于其他凋落物添加处理的比值。(3) 不同质量凋落物添加处理对土壤pH和碳氮比无显著影响。毛竹凋落物添加下土壤中硝态氮含量最高。(4) 相关性分析表明，凋落物碳含量与土壤中脂肪酸总量、革兰氏阳性细菌、革兰氏阴性细菌、真菌和菌根真菌具有正相关关系。烷基碳(Alkyl C)与脂肪酸总量、革兰氏阳性、阴性细菌、细菌、真菌及真菌细菌比均有正相关性。甲氧基碳(N-alkyl C)、氧烷基碳(O-alkyl C)和芳碳(Aryl C)与革兰氏阳性阴性细菌比呈显著正相关。冗余分析表明，烷基碳(Alkyl C) 与16:1ω7c,18:1ω7c ,18:2ω6c,18:1ω9显著正相关，对土壤微生物群落结构有显著影响。可见，不同树种之间凋落物烷基碳组分的差异是影响土壤微生物生物量和群落组成的重要指标。     

Linking Microbial Community Dynamics Associated with Rhizosphere Carbon Flow in a Biofuel Crop (Jatropha curcas L.)

Photosynthetically derived rhizodeposits are an important source of carbon (C) for microbes in root vicinity and can influence the microbial community dynamics. Pulse labeling of carbon dioxide (¹³CO₂) coupled with stable isotope probing techniques have potential to track recently fixed photosynthate into rhizosphere microbial taxa. Therefore, the present investigation assessed the microbial community change associated with the rhizosphere and bulk soil in Jatropha curcas L. (a biofuel crop) by combining phospholipid fatty acid (¹³C-PLFA) profiling using a stable isotope ¹³CO₂ labeling approach. The labeling (¹³C) took place after 45 days of germination, PLFAs were extracted from both soils (rhizosphere and bulk) after 1 and 20 days pulse labeling and analyzed by gas chromatography-isotope ratio mass spectrometry. There was no significant temporal effect on the PLFA profiles in the bulk soil, but significantly increased abundance of Gram positive (i15:0) and Gram negative (16:1ω7c and 16:1ω5c) biomarkers was observed in the rhizosphere soil from day 1 to day 20 after labeling. The Gram negative (16:1ω7c) decreased and fungal (18:2ω6,9c) increased significantly in rhizospheric soil compared to bulk soil after day 1 of labeling. Whereas, after 20 days of labeling, the Gram negative biomarker (16:1ω7c and 18:1ω7c) decreased and Gram positive (a15:0) increased significantly in rhizospheric soil compared to bulk soil. One day following labeling, i15:0, a15:0, i16:0, 16:1ω5c, 16:0, i17:0, a17:0, 18:2ω6,9c, 18:1ω9c, and 18:0 PLFAs were significantly more enriched in δ¹³C in the rhizosphere than in the bulk soil. Twenty days after labeling, 16:1ω5c (Gram negative) and 18:2ω6,9c (fungal) were significantly more enriched in δ¹³C in the rhizosphere than in the bulk soil. These results shows the effectives of PLFA coupled using the pulse chase labeling technique to examine the microbial community changes in response to recently fixed photosynthetic C flow in rhizodeposits.     

Carbon flow from C-labeled straw and root residues into the phospholipid fatty acids of a soil microbial community under field conditions

To better understand how residue quality and seasonal conditions influence the flow of C from both root and straw residues into the soil microbial community, we followed the incorporation of ¹³C-labeled crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum) and ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) root and straw residues into the phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) of soil microbial biomass. After residue incorporation under field conditions in late summer (September), the ¹³C content of soil PLFA was measured in September, October, and November, 2002, and April and June, 2003. Multivariate non-metric multidimensional scaling techniques showed that the distribution of ¹³C among microbial PLFA differed among the four primary treatments (ryegrass straw and roots, clover straw and roots). Regardless of treatment, some PLFA remained poorly labeled with ¹³C throughout much of the study (16:1ω5, 10Me17:0; 0-5%), whereas other PLFA consistently contained a larger percentage of residue-derived C (16:0; 18:1ω9, 18:2ω6,9; 10-25%). The distribution of residue ¹³C among individual PLFA differed from the relative contributions of individual PLFA (mol%) to total PLFA-C, suggesting that a subset of the soil biomass was primarily responsible for assimilating residue-derived C. The distribution of ¹³C among soil PLFA differed between the sampling times, indicating that residue properties and soil conditions influenced which members of the community were assimilating residue-derived C. Our findings will provide the foundation for further studies to identify the nature of the community members responsible for residue decomposition at different times of the year, and what factors account for the dynamics of the community involved.     

Identification of Metabolically Active Rhizosphere Microorganisms by Stable Isotopic Probing of PLFA in Switchgrass

Root-derived rhizodeposits of recent photosynthetic carbon (C) are the foremost source of energy for microbial growth and development in rhizosphere soil. A substantial amount of photosynthesized C by the plants is translocated to belowground and is released as root exudates that influence the structure and function of soil microbial communities with potential inference in nutrient and C cycling in the ecosystem. We applied the ¹³C pulse chase labeling technique to evaluate the incorporation of rhizodeposit-C into the phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) in the bulk and rhizosphere soils of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.). Soil samples of bulk and rhizosphere were taken at 1, 5, 10 and 20 days after labeling and analyzed for ¹³C enrichment in the microbial PLFAs. Temporal differences of ¹³C enrichment in PLFAs were more prominent than spatial differences. Among the microbial PLFA biomarkers, fungi and Gram-negative (GM-ve) bacterial PLFAs showed rapid enrichment with ¹³C compared to Gram-positive (GM+ve) and actinomycetes in rhizosphere soil. The ¹³C enrichment of actinomycetes biomarker PLFA significantly increased along with sampling time in both soils. PLFAs indicative to fungi, GM-ve and GM+ve showed a significant decrease in ¹³C enrichment over sampling time in the rhizosphere, but a decrease was also observed in GM-ve (16:1ω5c) and fungal biomarker PLFAs in the bulk soil. The relative ¹³C concentration in fungal PLFA decreased on day 10, whereas those of GM-ve increased on day 5 and GM+ve remained constant in the rhizosphere soil. However, the relative ¹³C concentrations of GM-ve and GM+ve increased on days 5 and 10, respectively, and those of fungal remain constant in the bulk soil. The present study demonstrates the usefulness of ¹³C pulse chase labeling together with PLFA analysis to evaluate the active involvement of microbial community groups for utilizing rhizodeposit-C.     

Carbon flow from C-labeled clover and ryegrass residues into a residue-associated microbial community under field conditions

Microbial colonization of soil-incorporated, ¹³C-labeled, crimson clover and ryegrass straw residues was followed under western Oregon field conditions from late summer (September) to the following early summer (mid-June) by measuring the ¹³C content of phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) extracted from residues recovered from soil. Residue type influenced the rate of appearance of specific PLFA during early decomposition, with branch chain bacterial PLFA (i15:0, a15:0, i16:0) appearing on clover and ryegrass residues in October and November, respectively. By April, additional PLFA (16:1ω5, 16:1ω7, cy17:0, 18:0, 18:1ω9) had appeared on both residues. Between April and June, microbial community structure shifted again with significant increases (cy17:0, 18:0, 18:1ω9), and decreases (18:1ω7+10Me18:0) detected in the quantities of specific PLFA on both residue types. In the case of clover, the PLFA-C was derived primarily from residue C (85-100%), whereas in the case of ryegrass, both residue C (57-66%), and soil C contributed substantially to the PLFA-C.     

Variable use of plant- and soil-derived carbon by microorganisms in agricultural soils

In this study we used compound specific ¹³C and ¹⁴C isotopic signatures to determine the degree to which recent plant material and older soil organic matter (SOM) served as carbon substrates for microorganisms in soils. We determined the degree to which plant-derived carbon was used as a substrate by comparison of the ¹³C content of microbial phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) from soils of two sites that had undergone a vegetation change from C3 to C4 plants in the past 20-30 years. The importance of much older SOM as a substrate was determined by comparison of the radiocarbon content of PLFA from soils of two sites that had different ¹⁴C concentrations of SOM.The ¹³C shift in PLFA from the two sites that had experienced different vegetation history indicated that 40-90% of the PLFA carbon had been fixed since the vegetation change took place. Thus PLFA were more enriched in ¹³C from the new C4 vegetation than it was observed for bulk SOM indicating recent plant material as preferentially used substrate for soil microorganisms. The largest ¹³C shift of PLFA was observed in the soil that had high ¹⁴C concentrations of bulk SOM. These results reinforce that organic carbon in this soil for the most part cycles rapidly. The degree to which SOM is incorporated into microbial PLFA was determined by the difference in ¹⁴C concentration of PLFA derived from two soils one with high ¹⁴C concentrations of bulk SOM and one with low. These results showed that 0-40% of SOM carbon is used as substrate for soil microorganisms. Furthermore a different substrate usage was identified for different microorganisms. Gram-negative bacteria were found to prefer recent plant material as microbial carbon source while Gram-positive bacteria use substantial amounts of SOM carbon. This was indicated by ¹³C as well as ¹⁴C signatures of their PLFA. Our results find evidence to support ‘priming’ in that PLFA indicative of Gram-negative bacteria associated with roots contain both plant- and SOM-derived C. Most interestingly, we find PLFA indicative of archeobacteria (methanothrophs) that may indicate the use of other carbon sources than plant material and SOM to a substantial amount suggesting that inert or slow carbon pools are not essential to explain carbon dynamics in soil.     

Microbial community composition and carbon cycling within soil microenvironments of conventional, low-input, and organic cropping systems

This study coupled stable isotope probing with phospholipid fatty acid analysis (¹³C-PLFA) to describe the role of microbial community composition in the short-term processing (i.e., C incorporation into microbial biomass and/or deposition or respiration of C) of root- versus residue-C and, ultimately, in long-term C sequestration in conventional (annual synthetic fertilizer applications), low-input (synthetic fertilizer and cover crop applied in alternating years), and organic (annual composted manure and cover crop additions) maize-tomato (Zea mays - Lycopersicum esculentum) cropping systems. During the maize growing season, we traced ¹³C-labeled hairy vetch (Vicia dasycarpa) roots and residues into PLFAs extracted from soil microaggregates (53-250 μm) and silt-and-clay (<53 μm) particles. Total PLFA biomass was greatest in the organic (41.4 nmol g⁻¹ soil) and similar between the conventional and low-input systems (31.0 and 30.1 nmol g⁻¹ soil, respectively), with Gram-positive bacterial PLFA dominating the microbial communities in all systems. Although total PLFA-C derived from roots was over four times greater than from residues, relative distributions (mol%) of root- and residue-derived C into the microbial communities were not different among the three cropping systems. Additionally, neither the PLFA profiles nor the amount of root- and residue-C incorporation into the PLFAs of the microaggregates were consistently different when compared with the silt-and-clay particles. More fungal PLFA-C was measured, however, in microaggregates compared with silt-and-clay. The lack of differences between the mol% within the microbial communities of the cropping systems and between the PLFA-C in the microaggregates and the silt-and-clay may have been due to (i) insufficient differences in quality between roots and residues and/or (ii) the high N availability in these N-fertilized cropping systems that augmented the abilities of the microbial communities to process a wide range of substrate qualities. The main implications of this study are that (i) the greater short-term microbial processing of root- than residue-C can be a mechanistic explanation for the higher relative retention of root- over residue-C, but microbial community composition did not influence long-term C sequestration trends in the three cropping systems and (ii) in spite of the similarity between the microbial community profiles of the microaggregates and the silt-and-clay, more C was processed in the microaggregates by fungi, suggesting that the microaggregate is a relatively unique microenvironment for fungal activity.     

Carbon flow in the plant-soil-microbe continuum at different growth stages of maize grown in a Mollisol

Understanding the photosynthetic carbon (C) dynamics in the plant–soil–microbe continuum is critical to the C sequestration in soils. However, such information is limited in maize (Zea mays L.) in Mollisols. Pot-grown maize was labelled with ¹³CO₂ at the 10-leaf, 15-leaf, heading, milk and dent stages to investigate the photosynthetic C flow in a maize–soil system and its contribution to soil organic carbon (SOC) in Mollisols. The majority of fixed ¹³C was recovered in shoots, ranging from 44.7% to 78.6%. The allocation of ¹³C fixed at different growth stages to belowground (roots and soil) gradually decreased over the growing period, indicating that the strength of root C sink is stronger at the early stages. However, the proportion of ¹³C in dissolved organic C and microbial biomass C to that in SOC significantly increased as the growth stages advanced. Over the entire growth period, the contribution of root-derived C to SOC was estimated to be 5461 mg C plant^?1 growth period^?1, of which approximately 79% was synthesized during the vegetative stages. Therefore, the input of photosynthetic C by maize plants into SOC mainly occurred during the younger stages of the plant, favouring the storage of SOC in Mollisols.     

Distribution and turnover of recently fixed photosynthate in ryegrass rhizospheres

The cycling of root-deposited photosynthate (rhizodeposition) through the soil microbial biomass can have profound influences on plant nutrient availability. Currently, our understanding of microbial dynamics associated with rhizosphere carbon (C) flow is limited. We used a ¹³C pulse-chase labeling procedure to examine the flow of photosynthetically fixed ¹³C into the microbial biomass of the bulk and rhizosphere soils of greenhouse-grown annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.). To assess the temporal dynamics of rhizosphere C flow through the microbial biomass, plants were labeled either during the transition between active root growth and rapid shoot growth (Labeling Period 1), or nine days later during the rapid shoot growth stage (Labeling Period 2). Although the distribution of ¹³C in the plant/soil system was similar between the two labeling periods, microbial cycling of rhizodeposition differed between labeling periods. Within 24 h of labeling, more than 10% of the ¹³C retained in the plant/soil system resided in the soil, most of which had already been incorporated into the microbial biomass. From day 1 to day 8, the proportion of ¹³C in soil as microbial biomass declined from about 90 to 35% in rhizosphere soil and from about 80 to 30% in bulk soil. Turnover of ¹³C through the microbial biomass was faster in rhizosphere soil than in bulk soil, and faster in Labeling Period 1 than Labeling Period 2. Our results demonstrate the effectiveness of using ¹³C labeling to examine microbial dynamics and fate of C associated with cycling of rhizodeposition from plants at different phenological stages of growth.     

Microbial response to exudates in the rhizosphere of young beech trees (Fagus sylvatica L.) after dormancy

Plants act as an important link between atmosphere and soil: CO2 is transformed into carbohydrates by photosynthesis. These assimilates are distributed within the plant and translocated via roots into the rhizosphere and soil microorganisms. In this study, 3 year old European beech trees (Fagus sylvatica L.) were exposed after the chilling period to an enriched ¹³C–CO₂ atmosphere (δ¹³C = 60‰ – 80‰) at the time point when leaves development started. Temporal dynamics of assimilated carbon distribution in different plant parts, as well as into dissolved organic carbon and microbial communities in the rhizosphere and bulk soil have been investigated for a 20 days period. Photosynthetically fixed carbon could be traced into plant tissue, dissolved organic carbon and total microbial biomass, where it was utilized by different microbial communities. Due to carbon allocation into the rhizosphere, nutrient stress decreased; exudates were preferentially used by Gram-negative bacteria and (mycorrhizal) fungi, resulting in an enhanced growth. Other microorganisms, like Gram-positive bacteria and mainly micro eucaryotes benefited from the exudates via food web development. Overall our results indicate a fast turnover of exudates and the development of initial food web structures. Additionally a transport of assimilated carbon into bulk soil by (mycrorhizal) fungi was observed.     

13C标记磷脂脂肪酸分析在土壤微生物生态 研究中的应用

磷脂脂肪酸(PLFA)是微生物细胞膜的重要组成成分,不同微生物群落可通过不同生化途径合成不同的PLFA,因此可选择某些PLFA作为微生物群落结构变化的生物标志物。PLFA与稳定性同位素~(13)C标记(~(13)C-PLFA)技术结合,不仅能够确定原位土壤环境中微生物群落组成,而且能够定向发掘土壤生态系统中参与碳源代谢过程的微生物群落,提供复杂群落中土壤微生物相互作用的信息,具有广阔的应用前景。其基本原理为:将富集~(13)C稳定同位素的基质加入土壤中,土壤中的某些微生物群落利用基质~(13)C合成PLFA,提取并纯化土壤微生物的PLFA,利用气相色谱-燃烧-同位素比例质谱(GC-C-IRMS)测定其~(13)C丰度,通过对比分析,从而获取微生物群落组成与其功能的直接信息。本文在介绍了~(13)C-PLFA原理的基础上,综述了该技术在光合同化碳的根际微生物利用、土壤有机质分解的激发效应、甲烷氧化、有机污染物降解、外源简单碳源和外源复杂碳源的微生物利用等方面的应用,对此项技术的优缺点进行了分析并展望了其未来应用。