Microbial spatial footprint as a driver of soil carbon stabilization
Abstract
Increasing the potential of soil to store carbon (C) is an acknowledged and emphasized strategy for capturing atmospheric CO2. Well-recognized approaches for soil C accretion include reducing soil disturbance, increasing plant biomass inputs, and enhancing plant diversity. Yet experimental evidence often fails to support anticipated C gains, suggesting that our integrated understanding of soil C accretion remains insufficient. Here we use a unique combination of X-ray micro-tomography and micro-scale enzyme mapping to demonstrate for the first time that plant-stimulated soil pore formation appears to be a major, hitherto unrecognized, determinant of whether new C inputs are stored or lost to the atmosphere. Unlike monocultures, diverse plant communities favor the development of 30–150 µm pores. Such pores are the micro-environments associated with higher enzyme activities, and greater abundance of such pores translates into a greater spatial footprint that microorganisms make on the soil and consequently soil C storage capacity.
- Authors:
-
[5];
[6];
- Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). Dept. of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences; Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center; Univ. of Göttingen, Göttingen (Germany)
- Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). Dept. of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences; Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Cente
- Christian-Albrecht-Univ. of Kiel, Kiel (Germany). Dept. of Soil Science
- Swedish Univ. of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala (Sweden)
- Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). Dept. of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences
- Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). Dept. of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences; Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Cente; RUDN Univ., Moscow (Russia)
- Department of Agricultural Soil Science, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany; Institute of Physicochemical and Biological Problems in Soil Science, 142290, Pushchino, Russia; RUDN University, Moscow, Russia
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States). Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1547011
- Grant/Contract Number:
- SC0018409
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Nature Communications
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 10; Journal Issue: 1; Journal ID: ISSN 2041-1723
- Publisher:
- Nature Publishing Group
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES; 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
Citation Formats
Kravchenko, A. N., Guber, A. K., Razavi, B. S., Koestel, J., Quigley, M. Y., Robertson, G. P., and Kuzyakov, Y. Microbial spatial footprint as a driver of soil carbon stabilization. United States: N. p., 2019.
Web. doi:10.1038/s41467-019-11057-4.
Kravchenko, A. N., Guber, A. K., Razavi, B. S., Koestel, J., Quigley, M. Y., Robertson, G. P., & Kuzyakov, Y. Microbial spatial footprint as a driver of soil carbon stabilization. United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11057-4
Kravchenko, A. N., Guber, A. K., Razavi, B. S., Koestel, J., Quigley, M. Y., Robertson, G. P., and Kuzyakov, Y. Tue .
"Microbial spatial footprint as a driver of soil carbon stabilization". United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11057-4. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1547011.
@article{osti_1547011,
title = {Microbial spatial footprint as a driver of soil carbon stabilization},
author = {Kravchenko, A. N. and Guber, A. K. and Razavi, B. S. and Koestel, J. and Quigley, M. Y. and Robertson, G. P. and Kuzyakov, Y.},
abstractNote = {Increasing the potential of soil to store carbon (C) is an acknowledged and emphasized strategy for capturing atmospheric CO2. Well-recognized approaches for soil C accretion include reducing soil disturbance, increasing plant biomass inputs, and enhancing plant diversity. Yet experimental evidence often fails to support anticipated C gains, suggesting that our integrated understanding of soil C accretion remains insufficient. Here we use a unique combination of X-ray micro-tomography and micro-scale enzyme mapping to demonstrate for the first time that plant-stimulated soil pore formation appears to be a major, hitherto unrecognized, determinant of whether new C inputs are stored or lost to the atmosphere. Unlike monocultures, diverse plant communities favor the development of 30–150 µm pores. Such pores are the micro-environments associated with higher enzyme activities, and greater abundance of such pores translates into a greater spatial footprint that microorganisms make on the soil and consequently soil C storage capacity.},
doi = {10.1038/s41467-019-11057-4},
journal = {Nature Communications},
number = 1,
volume = 10,
place = {United States},
year = {2019},
month = {7}
}
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