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Title: Unearthing the Ecology of Soil Microorganisms Using a High Resolution DNA-SIP Approach to Explore Cellulose and Xylose Metabolism in Soil

Journal Article · · Frontiers in Microbiology
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [1]
  1. Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States)
  2. Butler Univ., Indianapolis, IN (United States)

Here, we explored microbial contributions to decomposition using a sophisticated approach to DNA Stable Isotope Probing (SIP). Our experiment evaluated the dynamics and ecological characteristics of functionally defined microbial groups that metabolize labile and structural C in soils. We added to soil a complex amendment representing plant derived organic matter substituted with either 13C-xylose or 13C-cellulose to represent labile and structural C pools derived from abundant components of plant biomass. We also found evidence for 13C-incorporation into DNA from 13C-xylose and 13C-cellulose in 49 and 63 operational taxonomic units (OTUs), respectively. The types of microorganisms that assimilated 13C in the 13C-xylose treatment changed over time being predominantly Firmicutes at day 1 followed by Bacteroidetes at day 3 and then Actinobacteria at day 7. Furthermore, these 13C-labeling dynamics suggest labile C traveled through different trophic levels. In contrast, microorganisms generally metabolized cellulose-C after 14 days and did not change to the same extent in phylogenetic composition over time. Microorganisms that metabolized cellulose-C belonged to poorly characterized but cosmopolitan soil lineages including Verrucomicrobia, Chloroflexi, and Planctomycetes.

Research Organization:
Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0016364; SC0004486; SC0010558; AC52-07NA27344
OSTI ID:
1864330
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1282112; OSTI ID: 1343031
Report Number(s):
LLNL-JRNL-675821
Journal Information:
Frontiers in Microbiology, Vol. 7; ISSN 1664-302X
Publisher:
Frontiers Research FoundationCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 111 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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