Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different ages

Ulmus pumila L: is the primary tree species in the Hunshandake Sandy Land and plays a crucial role in controlling wind and sand movement and stabilizing the soil. Currently, Ulmus pumila L. is aging severely, and the inter-root bacterial community structure directly affects its resistance and nutrie...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Bo Hu, Yunxia Ma, Gangtie Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-07-01
Series:Frontiers in Environmental Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2025.1557315/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849424990677499904
author Bo Hu
Bo Hu
Yunxia Ma
Yunxia Ma
Gangtie Li
Gangtie Li
author_facet Bo Hu
Bo Hu
Yunxia Ma
Yunxia Ma
Gangtie Li
Gangtie Li
author_sort Bo Hu
collection DOAJ
description Ulmus pumila L: is the primary tree species in the Hunshandake Sandy Land and plays a crucial role in controlling wind and sand movement and stabilizing the soil. Currently, Ulmus pumila L. is aging severely, and the inter-root bacterial community structure directly affects its resistance and nutrient uptake. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate the composition of the inter-root soil bacterial community and its driving factors during elm growth. In this study, high-throughput sequencing technology was utilized to determine the bacterial community composition and reveal the relationship between the inter-root bacterial community composition of U. pumila L. of different ages and microenvironmental factors based on basic soil properties and enzyme activities. The results showed that alkaline phosphatase and soil invertase levels increased with the increasing stand age. Compared with young forests (YF), soil total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and organic carbon in mature forests (MF) increased by 32.20%, 33.73%, and 17.65%, respectively. The contents of soil available nitrogen (AN) and available phosphorus showed the same trend in different forest ages. The variation trends of the total number of species and specific species of inter-root soil bacteria in U. pumila L. were consistent, and both showed a downward trend. Actinobacteria were significantly more abundant in young forests than in the others (P < 0.05). It showed a decreasing trend, and mature forests decreased by 29.23% compared to YF, while the abundance of Firmicutes increased. The results of the RDA analysis suggested that available nitrogen explained the most changes in soil bacterial community structure. AK and AN were strongly negatively correlated with Firmicutes but positively correlated with all other bacteria. This study provides useful information for the conservation and utilization of sparse elm forests and also helps provide a vital theoretical basis for understanding the ecological environment construction in the Hunshandake Sandy Land.
format Article
id doaj-art-925853253ca747a89ce5ced504c447fc
institution Kabale University
issn 2296-665X
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Environmental Science
spelling doaj-art-925853253ca747a89ce5ced504c447fc2025-08-20T03:29:57ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Environmental Science2296-665X2025-07-011310.3389/fenvs.2025.15573151557315Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different agesBo Hu0Bo Hu1Yunxia Ma2Yunxia Ma3Gangtie Li4Gangtie Li5College of Desert Control Science and Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, ChinaKey Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration for Desert Ecosystem Protection and Restoration, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, ChinaCollege of Desert Control Science and Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, ChinaKey Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration for Desert Ecosystem Protection and Restoration, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, ChinaCollege of Desert Control Science and Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, ChinaKey Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration for Desert Ecosystem Protection and Restoration, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, ChinaUlmus pumila L: is the primary tree species in the Hunshandake Sandy Land and plays a crucial role in controlling wind and sand movement and stabilizing the soil. Currently, Ulmus pumila L. is aging severely, and the inter-root bacterial community structure directly affects its resistance and nutrient uptake. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate the composition of the inter-root soil bacterial community and its driving factors during elm growth. In this study, high-throughput sequencing technology was utilized to determine the bacterial community composition and reveal the relationship between the inter-root bacterial community composition of U. pumila L. of different ages and microenvironmental factors based on basic soil properties and enzyme activities. The results showed that alkaline phosphatase and soil invertase levels increased with the increasing stand age. Compared with young forests (YF), soil total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and organic carbon in mature forests (MF) increased by 32.20%, 33.73%, and 17.65%, respectively. The contents of soil available nitrogen (AN) and available phosphorus showed the same trend in different forest ages. The variation trends of the total number of species and specific species of inter-root soil bacteria in U. pumila L. were consistent, and both showed a downward trend. Actinobacteria were significantly more abundant in young forests than in the others (P < 0.05). It showed a decreasing trend, and mature forests decreased by 29.23% compared to YF, while the abundance of Firmicutes increased. The results of the RDA analysis suggested that available nitrogen explained the most changes in soil bacterial community structure. AK and AN were strongly negatively correlated with Firmicutes but positively correlated with all other bacteria. This study provides useful information for the conservation and utilization of sparse elm forests and also helps provide a vital theoretical basis for understanding the ecological environment construction in the Hunshandake Sandy Land.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2025.1557315/fullinter-root soilbacterial community compositionUlmus pumila L.different agesbacterial diversity
spellingShingle Bo Hu
Bo Hu
Yunxia Ma
Yunxia Ma
Gangtie Li
Gangtie Li
Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different ages
Frontiers in Environmental Science
inter-root soil
bacterial community composition
Ulmus pumila L.
different ages
bacterial diversity
title Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different ages
title_full Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different ages
title_fullStr Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different ages
title_full_unstemmed Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different ages
title_short Inter-root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in Ulmus pumila L. of different ages
title_sort inter root soil bacterial community composition and its driving factors in ulmus pumila l of different ages
topic inter-root soil
bacterial community composition
Ulmus pumila L.
different ages
bacterial diversity
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2025.1557315/full
work_keys_str_mv AT bohu interrootsoilbacterialcommunitycompositionanditsdrivingfactorsinulmuspumilalofdifferentages
AT bohu interrootsoilbacterialcommunitycompositionanditsdrivingfactorsinulmuspumilalofdifferentages
AT yunxiama interrootsoilbacterialcommunitycompositionanditsdrivingfactorsinulmuspumilalofdifferentages
AT yunxiama interrootsoilbacterialcommunitycompositionanditsdrivingfactorsinulmuspumilalofdifferentages
AT gangtieli interrootsoilbacterialcommunitycompositionanditsdrivingfactorsinulmuspumilalofdifferentages
AT gangtieli interrootsoilbacterialcommunitycompositionanditsdrivingfactorsinulmuspumilalofdifferentages