Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization

IntroductionLong-term fertilization strongly influences the formation, turnover and stabilization of soil organic carbon (SOC) in croplands. The underlying mechanism by which chemical fertilizer (CF) and cattle slurry (CS) application influence the dynamics of plant- and microbial-derived carbon (C)...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Xingping Chang, Zhanjiang Pei, Xiaofei Wang, Hao Wang, Jie Mu, Yingjun Ma, Mingye Zhang, Keqiang Zhang, Lianzhu Du
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-05-01
Series:Frontiers in Microbiology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1586791/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849744771513319424
author Xingping Chang
Zhanjiang Pei
Xiaofei Wang
Hao Wang
Jie Mu
Yingjun Ma
Mingye Zhang
Keqiang Zhang
Keqiang Zhang
Lianzhu Du
author_facet Xingping Chang
Zhanjiang Pei
Xiaofei Wang
Hao Wang
Jie Mu
Yingjun Ma
Mingye Zhang
Keqiang Zhang
Keqiang Zhang
Lianzhu Du
author_sort Xingping Chang
collection DOAJ
description IntroductionLong-term fertilization strongly influences the formation, turnover and stabilization of soil organic carbon (SOC) in croplands. The underlying mechanism by which chemical fertilizer (CF) and cattle slurry (CS) application influence the dynamics of plant- and microbial-derived carbon (C) remains elusive.MethodsLignin phenols and amino sugars as well as microbial carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) were analyzed in a 10-year field experiment.ResultsCF and CS increased the content of SOC by 26.9% and 88.0% compared with the SOC content of an abandoned land, respectively. CS application increased lignin phenols content by 4.28 times compared with CF application owing to slower oxidative degradation and higher plant inputs. Microbial necromass C (MNC) contents increased by 34.7% in line with an increase in biomass, but its proportion to SOC did not change. In terms of microbial community, the application of CF and CS altered the distribution and structure of microbial community. The dominant bacterial phyla shifted from oligotrophic Actinomycetota to eutrophic Pseudomonadota with change in the application from CF to CS. CS application increased CAZyme genes associated with plant- and bacterial-derived fractions decomposition, suggesting higher degradation potential of plant and bacterial biomass by microorganisms. Availability of substrates and microbial community are important factors affecting SOC accumulation in different fertilization treatments.DiscussionCS application considerably promoted the accumulation of SOC, mainly via the promotion of plant-derived C. Alterations in microbial communities and CAZyme genes could affect microbial metabolism via “microbial carbon pump”, thereby facilitating SOC formation and accumulation.
format Article
id doaj-art-3f40f9f722bf4e12a99ef50195f3cc1e
institution DOAJ
issn 1664-302X
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Microbiology
spelling doaj-art-3f40f9f722bf4e12a99ef50195f3cc1e2025-08-20T03:09:45ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Microbiology1664-302X2025-05-011610.3389/fmicb.2025.15867911586791Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilizationXingping Chang0Zhanjiang Pei1Xiaofei Wang2Hao Wang3Jie Mu4Yingjun Ma5Mingye Zhang6Keqiang Zhang7Keqiang Zhang8Lianzhu Du9Agro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tianjin, ChinaHeilongjiang Academy of Black Soil Conservation & Utilization, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin, ChinaInstitute of Plant Nutrition, Agricultural Resources and Environmental Sciences, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou, ChinaAgro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tianjin, ChinaAgro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tianjin, ChinaAgro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tianjin, ChinaAgro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tianjin, ChinaAgro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tianjin, ChinaKey Laboratory of Low-carbon Green Agriculture in North China, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Beijing, ChinaAgro-Environmental Protection Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tianjin, ChinaIntroductionLong-term fertilization strongly influences the formation, turnover and stabilization of soil organic carbon (SOC) in croplands. The underlying mechanism by which chemical fertilizer (CF) and cattle slurry (CS) application influence the dynamics of plant- and microbial-derived carbon (C) remains elusive.MethodsLignin phenols and amino sugars as well as microbial carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) were analyzed in a 10-year field experiment.ResultsCF and CS increased the content of SOC by 26.9% and 88.0% compared with the SOC content of an abandoned land, respectively. CS application increased lignin phenols content by 4.28 times compared with CF application owing to slower oxidative degradation and higher plant inputs. Microbial necromass C (MNC) contents increased by 34.7% in line with an increase in biomass, but its proportion to SOC did not change. In terms of microbial community, the application of CF and CS altered the distribution and structure of microbial community. The dominant bacterial phyla shifted from oligotrophic Actinomycetota to eutrophic Pseudomonadota with change in the application from CF to CS. CS application increased CAZyme genes associated with plant- and bacterial-derived fractions decomposition, suggesting higher degradation potential of plant and bacterial biomass by microorganisms. Availability of substrates and microbial community are important factors affecting SOC accumulation in different fertilization treatments.DiscussionCS application considerably promoted the accumulation of SOC, mainly via the promotion of plant-derived C. Alterations in microbial communities and CAZyme genes could affect microbial metabolism via “microbial carbon pump”, thereby facilitating SOC formation and accumulation.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1586791/fullsoil organic carbonplant-derived carbonmicrobial-derived carbonmicrobial CAZyme familiescattle slurry
spellingShingle Xingping Chang
Zhanjiang Pei
Xiaofei Wang
Hao Wang
Jie Mu
Yingjun Ma
Mingye Zhang
Keqiang Zhang
Keqiang Zhang
Lianzhu Du
Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization
Frontiers in Microbiology
soil organic carbon
plant-derived carbon
microbial-derived carbon
microbial CAZyme families
cattle slurry
title Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization
title_full Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization
title_fullStr Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization
title_full_unstemmed Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization
title_short Divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization
title_sort divergent responses of plant lignin and microbial necromass to the contribution of soil organic carbon under organic and chemical fertilization
topic soil organic carbon
plant-derived carbon
microbial-derived carbon
microbial CAZyme families
cattle slurry
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1586791/full
work_keys_str_mv AT xingpingchang divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT zhanjiangpei divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT xiaofeiwang divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT haowang divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT jiemu divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT yingjunma divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT mingyezhang divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT keqiangzhang divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT keqiangzhang divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization
AT lianzhudu divergentresponsesofplantligninandmicrobialnecromasstothecontributionofsoilorganiccarbonunderorganicandchemicalfertilization