Nano-scale secondary ion mass spectrometry — A new analytical tool in biogeochemistry and soil ecology: A review article

Soils are structurally heterogeneous across a wide range of spatio-temporal scales. Consequently, external environmental conditions do not have a uniform effect throughout the soil, resulting in a large diversity of micro-habitats. It has been suggested that soil function can be studied without explicit consideration of such fine detail, but recent research has indicated that the micro-scale distribution of organisms may be of importance for a mechanistic understanding of many soil functions. Current techniques still lack the adequate sensitivity and resolution for data collection at the micro-scale, and the question ‘How important are various soil processes acting at different scales for ecological function?’ is therefore challenging to answer. The nano-scale secondary ion mass spectrometer (NanoSIMS) represents the latest generation of ion microprobes, which link high-resolution microscopy with isotopic analysis. The main advantage of NanoSIMS over other secondary ion mass spectrometers is its ability to operate at high mass resolution, whilst maintaining both excellent signal transmission and spatial resolution (down to 50 nm). NanoSIMS has been used previously in studies focussing on presolar materials from meteorites, in material science, biology, geology and mineralogy. Recently, the potential of NanoSIMS as a new tool in the study of biophysical interfaces in soils has been demonstrated. This paper describes the principles of NanoSIMS and discusses the potential of this tool to contribute to the field of biogeochemistry and soil ecology. Practical considerations (sample size and preparation, simultaneous collection of isotopes, mass resolution, isobaric interference and quantification of the isotopes of interest) are discussed. Adequate sample preparation, avoiding bias due to artefacts, and identification of regions-of-interest will be critical concerns if NanoSIMS is used as a new tool in biogeochemistry and soil ecology. Finally, we review the areas of research most likely to benefit from the high spatial and high mass resolution attainable with this new approach.     

Spatial variation of soil organic carbon concentrations and stable isotopic composition in 1-ha plots of forest and pasture in Costa Rica: implications for the natural abundance technique

The goal of this study was to examine spatial variation of soil organic C and its stable isotopic composition (δ¹³C) in 1-ha plots of mature rain forest and a cattle pasture dominated by C4 grasses in Costa Rica. Soil samples were taken from 80 mapped locations per plot and analyzed for organic C and δ¹³C. The range of values for soil C concentrations was similar between forest and pasture, although the mean values were higher in the forest. δ¹³C was narrowly constrained in the forest (from −27.96 to −26.09‰) but varied from −15.09 to −28.59‰ in the pasture. Variograms revealed spatial autocorrelation of soil C and δ¹³C in the pasture and organic C concentration in the forest soil. The large range and spatial variability of δ¹³C in the pasture site may be due to varying contributions of C3 and C4 vegetation to the soil C pool, which may limit the usefulness of the natural abundance technique as a precise tracer of soil C dynamics in this pasture.     

Effects of past, present and future atmospheric CO2 concentrations on soil organic matter dynamics in a chaparral ecosystem

Owing to the continuously increasing concentration of atmospheric CO₂, it has become a priority to understand if soil organic matter (SOM) will behave as a sink or a source of CO₂ under future environmental changes. Although many studies have addressed this question, a clear understanding is still missing, particularly with respect to long-term responses. In this study, we quantified soil C stores and dynamics in relationship to soil aggregation and pool composition in a Californian chaparral ecosystem exposed for 6 years to a gradient of atmospheric CO₂ concentrations, ranging from pre-industrial levels 250 to 750 μl l⁻¹ CO₂. Fossil fuel-derived CO₂ depleted in ¹³C was used for the fumigation, thus providing a tracer of C input from the vegetation to the soil.Long-term CO₂ exposure invariably affected soil aggregation, with a significant decrease in the macroaggregate fraction at highest CO₂ levels relative to the other two size fractions (i.e. microaggregates and silt and clay). This soil structural change most likely reduced the stability and protection of SOM, and C content generally decreased in most fractions over the CO₂ treatments, and induced faster turnover of recently fixed C at high CO₂ levels. The strongest response was found in the C content of the microaggregates, which decreased significantly (P<0.05) with rising levels of CO₂. We conclude that increasing atmospheric CO₂ concentrations will decrease soil C in chaparral ecosystems, and that the microaggregate fraction is the most responsive to increasing concentrations of atmospheric CO₂.     

基于同位素示踪技术的糙米加湿后精米吸水率的试验研究

该研究以糙米为原料，应用同位素示踪技术研究糙米加湿调质各工艺参数对精米吸水率的影响规律。在糙米加湿调质中用氚水(H₂³O)为同位素示踪剂对所加水分标记，通过放射性测量(cpm值)确定样品吸水率；采用二次旋转正交组合试验方法设计试验，用Reda软件包处理试验数据，得出了各试验参数对精米吸水率影响关系的回归方程，分析了各试验因素对精米吸水率的影响规律，试验结论可以为掌控糙米加湿调质后精米含水率提供理论依据。     

Carbon stocks, soil respiration and microbial biomass in fire-prone tropical grassland, woodland and forest ecosystems

A thorough understanding of the role of microbes in C cycling in relation to fire is important for estimation of C emissions and for development of guidelines for sustainable management of dry ecosystems. We investigated the seasonal changes and spatial distribution of soil total, dissolved organic C (DOC) and microbial biomass C during 18 months, quantified the soil CO₂ emission in the beginning of the rainy season, and related these variables to the fire frequency in important dry vegetation types grassland, woodland and dry forest in Ethiopia. The soil C isotope ratios (δ¹³C) reflected the 15-fold decrease in the grass biomass along the vegetation gradient and the 12-fold increase in woody biomass in the opposite direction. Changes in δ¹³C down the soil profiles also suggested that in two of the grass-dominated sites woody plants were more frequent in the past. The soil C stock ranged from being 2.5 (dry forest) to 48 times (grassland) higher than the C stock in the aboveground plant biomass. The influence of fire in frequently burnt wooded grassland was evident as an unchanged or increasing total C content down the soil profile. DOC and microbial biomass measured with the fumigation-extraction method (C_mic) reflected the vertical distribution of soil organic matter (SOM). However, although SOM was stable throughout the year, seasonal fluctuations in C_mic and substrate-induced respiration (SIR) were large. In woodland and woodland-wooded grassland C_mic and SIR increased in the dry season, and gradually decreased during the following rainy season, confirming previous suggestions that microbes may play an important role in nutrient retention in the dry season. However, in dry forest and two wooded grasslands C_mic and SIR was stable throughout the rainy season, or even increased in this period, which could lead to enhanced competition with plants for nutrients. Both the range and the seasonal changes in soil microbial biomass C in dry tropical ecosystems may be wider than previously assumed. Neither SIR nor C_mic were good predictors of in situ soil respiration. The soil respiration was relatively high in infrequently burnt forest and woodland, while frequently burnt grasslands had lower rates, presumably because most C is released through dry season burning and not through decomposition in fire-prone systems. Shifts in the relative importance of the two pathways for C release from organic matter may have strong implications for C and nutrient cycling in seasonally dry tropical ecosystems.     

Effect of dietary stable isotopic ratios of carbon and nitrogen on the extent of their incorporation into tissues of rats

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of different dietary ratios of 13C to 12C or 15N to 14N on their relative incorporation into tissues. Eighty male rats were used in two 21-day feeding trials in which they were fed diets with either high δ13C levels (δ13C = 13.89% and δ15N = 2.37% in experiment 1 and δ13C = 19.34% and δ15N = 4.73% in experiment 2) or low δ13C levels (δ13C = 17.90% and δ15N = 3.08% in experiment 1 and δ13C = 21.76% and δ15N = 0.53% in experiment 2), meanwhile, the dietary δ15N levels were designed to two ranks. Blood, liver, adipose and muscle tissues were collected on day 0, 3, 7, 14, and 21 for determination of 13C, 12C, 15N and 14N isotopes. Rat growth rate, antioxidant capacity and metabolic parameters were also assessed. The results indicate that adipose tissue tend to deplete 13C before the stable isotopic ratios achieved final equilibrium. Therefore, feeds with different isotopic signatures had different incorporation rates into tissues. Low dietary 13C levels decreased tissue δ13C values whereas high dietary 13C levels did not alter tissue δ13C values during the 21-d experiment. Blood δ15 N values were a reliable parameter in assessing the relative contribution of dietary nitrogen to tissues. This study revealed a relationship between dietary isotopic signatures and their incorporation rates into rat tissues. However, more studies are needed to illustrate the mechanism through which dietary isotopic ratios influence the extent of isotopic incorporation into the tissues.     

青藏高原东缘某隧道建设区典型植物水分利用策略

[目的] 揭示青藏高原东缘隧道建设区植物的水分利用特征及其对环境变化的响应,为自然和人为影响下的生态脆弱区水土保持工作提供科学参考。[方法] 通过测定海拔3 230 m的某隧道建设区2020—2021年不同月份典型植物木质部水和各潜在水源的δ²H和δ¹⁸O值,利用MixSIAR模型计算植物吸收各潜在水源的比例,并计算每两种植物间的相似性比例指数(PS指数)以比较不同物种的水分竞争关系。[结果] 紫羊茅(Festuca rubra)、川西云杉(Picea likiangensis var. balfouriana)和刺叶高山栎(Quercus spinosa)以浅层土壤水(0—40 cm)作为主要水源;川杨(Populus szechuanica)主要吸收中深层(40—200 cm)土壤水;2021年8月和10月植物对浅层土壤水的利用比例较2020年同时期明显降低;川西云杉对0—40 cm和40—80 cm层土壤水的利用比例与相应层土壤含水量分别存在显著正相关和显著负相关关系(p＜0.05);在时间尺度上,川杨在2020年10月与其他3种植物的水分竞争关系较弱,PS指数范围为0.19～0.54。[结论] 土壤含水量及外界温度的改变是青藏高原东缘植被水分利用策略变化的主要因素,且这两个因子的重要性因物种而异;隧道建设会引起土壤和土壤水的流失,从而导致隧道建设后土壤含水量的降低;隧道建设后植物对浅层土壤水的依赖比隧道建设前低,因此需关注生态脆弱区隧道建设对土壤水分及植被适应机制的影响。     

基于空间分布的草原化荒漠地区红砂种群水分利用策略研究

[目的]研究区域尺度上荒漠灌木水分适应与分布格局相呼应关系,揭示干旱半干旱地区植物种群对环境响应的过程与机理,为深入理解植物与环境协同进化规律提供依据。[方法]采用点格局分析方法和氢氧稳定同位素示踪技术,分析了红砂(Reaumuria songarica)种群的空间分布格局、水分利用策略。[结果](1)在完全空间随机零模型下,红砂种群在<3 m尺度内均匀分布,在>32 m尺度内聚集分布,种群内部生态关系由竞争向促进转变;消除生境异质性后,种群在>30 m尺度下呈现随机分布,种内生态关系呈现减弱的趋势。红砂种群空间分布格局的形成过程中生境异质性在大尺度上起到了重要作用。(2)随着多年平均降水量的减少,红砂种群的水分利用深度由0—20 cm加深到60—100 cm;红砂种群的密度与多年降水呈现极显著负相关(p<0.01),样地的植被盖度变化主要受草本盖度影响,红砂植被盖度变化不显著。[结论]随着多年平均降水量的减少,红砂种群的分布格局受环境异质性影响。通过增加植株密度,红砂可以利用更深层的土壤水分适应环境胁迫。     

稀土元素示踪法在土壤侵蚀与泥沙来源研究中的应用

[目的]掌握稀土元素(REE)示踪土壤侵蚀和泥沙来源的方法,明确其不确定性来源,对正确运用该方法获得可靠的侵蚀速率和泥沙源地贡献结果具有重要意义。[方法]基于前人运用REE示踪土壤侵蚀速率和泥沙来源的研究成果,总结了REE示踪土壤侵蚀的基本技术路线及其在水蚀、风蚀和泥沙来源研究中的应用,探讨了REE示踪土壤侵蚀和泥沙来源研究中的不足。[结果]分析认为REE虽是理想的示踪剂,但REE示踪法仍存在影响示踪土壤侵蚀和泥沙来源准确性的关键方面需要改进,包括REE与土壤结合方式与机理、长期监测或复杂环境下随淋溶、径流的迁移以及植被吸收利用等。在未来研究中应重点关注大量释放REE对土壤、植物、环境健康的影响以及REE示踪法与复合指纹识别法的结合运用等。[结论]研究结果为提高REE示踪土壤侵蚀结果的准确性,运用该方法开展其他侵蚀类型研究,与复合指纹识别法结合辨别大区域的泥沙来源奠定基础。