Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes

The responsive alterations of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping (CC) and their assembly mechanisms constitute a fundamental scientific question for the sustainability of agricultural ecosystems. However, the assembly processes of microbial communities and their microecol...

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Main Authors: Yan-Liang Han, Fang-Kun Yang, Shu-Ping He, Jia-Cheng Guo, Yue Zou, Yun-Xu Shang, Peng Liu, Peng-Yang Wang, Xing Wang, Ze-Ying Zhao, Juan Wang, Chun-Qing Miao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-06-01
Series:Frontiers in Microbiology
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1618629/full
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author Yan-Liang Han
Fang-Kun Yang
Fang-Kun Yang
Shu-Ping He
Jia-Cheng Guo
Yue Zou
Yun-Xu Shang
Peng Liu
Peng-Yang Wang
Xing Wang
Ze-Ying Zhao
Juan Wang
Chun-Qing Miao
author_facet Yan-Liang Han
Fang-Kun Yang
Fang-Kun Yang
Shu-Ping He
Jia-Cheng Guo
Yue Zou
Yun-Xu Shang
Peng Liu
Peng-Yang Wang
Xing Wang
Ze-Ying Zhao
Juan Wang
Chun-Qing Miao
author_sort Yan-Liang Han
collection DOAJ
description The responsive alterations of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping (CC) and their assembly mechanisms constitute a fundamental scientific question for the sustainability of agricultural ecosystems. However, the assembly processes of microbial communities and their microecological effects under long-term CC remain poorly understood. We hypothesized that maize CC drives predictable shifts in microbial community assembly via increased deterministic selection. To address this, we established a short- to long-term CC gradient (1–25 years). We found that CC significantly altered microbial community structure, the relative abundance of dominant bacterial genera increased with CC years (CCY), whereas dominant fungal genera exhibited a declining trend. Co-occurrence network analysis revealed that long-term CC led to enhanced modularity in bacterial networks and a sharp decline in the proportion of negative correlations. Additionally, our findings reveal a transition from stochastic to heterogeneous selection-dominated processes over time, with microbial diversity metrics showing strong linear relationships with CC duration. This study elucidates how CC shapes convergent-divergent trajectories of microbial communities through heterogeneous selection pressures, providing theoretical support for guiding targeted soil microecological management.
format Article
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institution OA Journals
issn 1664-302X
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Microbiology
spelling doaj-art-2c3c7fa649bf44c4aa804e95a8c8563c2025-08-20T02:10:23ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Microbiology1664-302X2025-06-011610.3389/fmicb.2025.16186291618629Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processesYan-Liang Han0Fang-Kun Yang1Fang-Kun Yang2Shu-Ping He3Jia-Cheng Guo4Yue Zou5Yun-Xu Shang6Peng Liu7Peng-Yang Wang8Xing Wang9Ze-Ying Zhao10Juan Wang11Chun-Qing Miao12Zhangye Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhangye, ChinaKey Laboratory of Biodiversity Formation Mechanism and Comprehensive Utilization of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in Qinghai Province, College of Life Sciences, Qinghai Normal University, Xining, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, ChinaZhangye Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhangye, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, ChinaZhangye Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhangye, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, ChinaGansu Farms and Land Reclamation Yasheng Group, Gansu Zhongkenyu Seed Industry Co., Ltd., Zhangye, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, ChinaZhangye Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhangye, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, ChinaZhangye Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhangye, ChinaZhangye Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhangye, ChinaThe responsive alterations of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping (CC) and their assembly mechanisms constitute a fundamental scientific question for the sustainability of agricultural ecosystems. However, the assembly processes of microbial communities and their microecological effects under long-term CC remain poorly understood. We hypothesized that maize CC drives predictable shifts in microbial community assembly via increased deterministic selection. To address this, we established a short- to long-term CC gradient (1–25 years). We found that CC significantly altered microbial community structure, the relative abundance of dominant bacterial genera increased with CC years (CCY), whereas dominant fungal genera exhibited a declining trend. Co-occurrence network analysis revealed that long-term CC led to enhanced modularity in bacterial networks and a sharp decline in the proportion of negative correlations. Additionally, our findings reveal a transition from stochastic to heterogeneous selection-dominated processes over time, with microbial diversity metrics showing strong linear relationships with CC duration. This study elucidates how CC shapes convergent-divergent trajectories of microbial communities through heterogeneous selection pressures, providing theoretical support for guiding targeted soil microecological management.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1618629/fullcontinuous maize croppingmicrobial community assemblyconvergent-divergent successionco-occurrence networksmicroecological management
spellingShingle Yan-Liang Han
Fang-Kun Yang
Fang-Kun Yang
Shu-Ping He
Jia-Cheng Guo
Yue Zou
Yun-Xu Shang
Peng Liu
Peng-Yang Wang
Xing Wang
Ze-Ying Zhao
Juan Wang
Chun-Qing Miao
Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes
Frontiers in Microbiology
continuous maize cropping
microbial community assembly
convergent-divergent succession
co-occurrence networks
microecological management
title Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes
title_full Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes
title_fullStr Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes
title_full_unstemmed Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes
title_short Convergent-divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes
title_sort convergent divergent succession of soil microbial communities driven by continuous maize cropping duration via heterogeneous selection processes
topic continuous maize cropping
microbial community assembly
convergent-divergent succession
co-occurrence networks
microecological management
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1618629/full
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