Direct evidence for the role of microbial community composition in the formation of soil organic matter composition and persistence

Domeignoz-Horta, Luiz A.; Shinfuku, Melissa; Junier, Pilar; Poirier, Simon; Verrecchia, Eric; Sebag, David; DeAngelis, Kristen M.

doi:10.1038/s43705-021-00071-7

Direct evidence for the role of microbial community composition in the formation of soil organic matter composition and persistence

Journal Article · Sat Nov 06 00:00:00 EDT 2021 · ISME Communications

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/s43705-021-00071-7· OSTI ID:1829379

; Shinfuku, Melissa; ; Poirier, Simon; ; Sebag, David;

The largest terrestrial carbon sink on earth is soil carbon stocks. As the climate changes, the rate at which the Earth’s climate warms depends in part on the persistence of soil organic carbon. Microbial turnover forms the backbone of soil organic matter (SOM) formation and it has been recently proposed that SOM molecular complexity is a key driver of stability. Despite this, the links between microbial diversity, chemical complexity and biogeochemical nature of SOM remain missing. Here we tested the hypotheses that distinct microbial communities shape the composition of SOM, and microbial-derived SOM has distinct decomposition potential depending on its community of origin. We inoculated microbial communities of varying diversities into a model soil matrix amended with simple carbon (cellobiose) and measured the thermal stability of the resultant SOM. Using a Rock-Eval^® ramped thermal analysis, we found that microbial community composition drives the chemical fingerprint of soil carbon. While diversity was not a driver of SOM composition, bacteria-only communities lead to more thermally labile soil C pools than communities with bacteria and fungi. Our results provide direct evidence for a link between microbial community structure, SOM composition, and thermal stability. This evidence demonstrates the relevance of soil microorganisms in building persistent SOM stocks.

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Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: SC0016590

OSTI ID:: 1829379

Journal Information:: ISME Communications, Journal Name: ISME Communications Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 1; ISSN 2730-6151

Publisher:: Springer NatureCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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