Long-term warming of a forest soil reduces microbial biomass and its carbon and nitrogen use efficiencies

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Authors

  • Ye Tian
  • Andreas Schindlbacher
  • Carolina Urbina Malo
  • Chupei Shi
  • Jakob Heinzle
  • Steve Kwatcho Kengdo
  • Erich Inselsbacher
  • Werner Borken
  • Wolfgang Wanek

Research Organisations

External Research Organisations

  • University of Vienna
  • Natural Hazards and Landscape (BFW)
  • University of Bayreuth
  • University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences (BOKU)
  • University of Amsterdam
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Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number109109
JournalSoil Biology and Biochemistry
Volume184
Early online date23 Jun 2023
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2023

Abstract

Global warming impacts biogeochemical cycles in terrestrial ecosystems, but it is still unclear how the simultaneous cycling of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in soils could be affected in the longer-term. Here, we evaluated how 14 years of soil warming (+4 °C) affected the soil C and N cycle across different soil depths and seasons in a temperate mountain forest. We used H218O incorporation into DNA and 15N isotope pool dilution techniques to determine gross rates of C and N transformation processes. Our data showed different warming effects on soil C and N cycling, and these were consistent across soil depths and seasons. Warming decreased microbial biomass C (−22%), but at the same time increased microbial biomass-specific growth (+25%) and respiration (+39%), the potential activity of β-glucosidase (+31%), and microbial turnover (+14%). Warming reduced gross rates of protein depolymerization (−19%), but stimulated gross N mineralization (+63%) and the potential activities of N-acetylglucosaminidase (+106%) and leucine-aminopeptidase (+46%), and had no impact on gross nitrification (+1%). Microbial C and N use efficiencies were both lower in the warming treatment (−15% and −17%, respectively). Overall, our results suggest that long-term warming drives soil microbes to incorporate less C and N into their biomass (and necromass), and to release more inorganic C and N to the environment, causing lower soil C and N storage in this forest, as indicated by lower soil C and total N contents. The decreases in microbial CUE and NUE were likely triggered by increasing microbial P constraints in warmed soils, limiting anabolic processes and microbial growth and promoting pervasive losses of C and N from the soil.

Keywords

    isotope pool dilution, microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE), microbial nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), soil carbon (C) cycling, soil nitrogen (N) cycling, Soil warming

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Sustainable Development Goals

Cite this

Long-term warming of a forest soil reduces microbial biomass and its carbon and nitrogen use efficiencies. / Tian, Ye; Schindlbacher, Andreas; Malo, Carolina Urbina et al.
In: Soil Biology and Biochemistry, Vol. 184, 109109, 09.2023.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Tian, Y, Schindlbacher, A, Malo, CU, Shi, C, Heinzle, J, Kwatcho Kengdo, S, Inselsbacher, E, Borken, W & Wanek, W 2023, 'Long-term warming of a forest soil reduces microbial biomass and its carbon and nitrogen use efficiencies', Soil Biology and Biochemistry, vol. 184, 109109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2023.109109
Tian, Y., Schindlbacher, A., Malo, C. U., Shi, C., Heinzle, J., Kwatcho Kengdo, S., Inselsbacher, E., Borken, W., & Wanek, W. (2023). Long-term warming of a forest soil reduces microbial biomass and its carbon and nitrogen use efficiencies. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 184, Article 109109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2023.109109
Tian Y, Schindlbacher A, Malo CU, Shi C, Heinzle J, Kwatcho Kengdo S et al. Long-term warming of a forest soil reduces microbial biomass and its carbon and nitrogen use efficiencies. Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 2023 Sept;184:109109. Epub 2023 Jun 23. doi: 10.1016/j.soilbio.2023.109109
Tian, Ye ; Schindlbacher, Andreas ; Malo, Carolina Urbina et al. / Long-term warming of a forest soil reduces microbial biomass and its carbon and nitrogen use efficiencies. In: Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 2023 ; Vol. 184.
Download
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title = "Long-term warming of a forest soil reduces microbial biomass and its carbon and nitrogen use efficiencies",
abstract = "Global warming impacts biogeochemical cycles in terrestrial ecosystems, but it is still unclear how the simultaneous cycling of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in soils could be affected in the longer-term. Here, we evaluated how 14 years of soil warming (+4 °C) affected the soil C and N cycle across different soil depths and seasons in a temperate mountain forest. We used H218O incorporation into DNA and 15N isotope pool dilution techniques to determine gross rates of C and N transformation processes. Our data showed different warming effects on soil C and N cycling, and these were consistent across soil depths and seasons. Warming decreased microbial biomass C (−22%), but at the same time increased microbial biomass-specific growth (+25%) and respiration (+39%), the potential activity of β-glucosidase (+31%), and microbial turnover (+14%). Warming reduced gross rates of protein depolymerization (−19%), but stimulated gross N mineralization (+63%) and the potential activities of N-acetylglucosaminidase (+106%) and leucine-aminopeptidase (+46%), and had no impact on gross nitrification (+1%). Microbial C and N use efficiencies were both lower in the warming treatment (−15% and −17%, respectively). Overall, our results suggest that long-term warming drives soil microbes to incorporate less C and N into their biomass (and necromass), and to release more inorganic C and N to the environment, causing lower soil C and N storage in this forest, as indicated by lower soil C and total N contents. The decreases in microbial CUE and NUE were likely triggered by increasing microbial P constraints in warmed soils, limiting anabolic processes and microbial growth and promoting pervasive losses of C and N from the soil.",
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note = "Funding Information: This study was funded by the Austrian Science Fund - FWF (project I 3745). We sincerely thank Christian Holtermann for field site maintenance, Margarete Watzka, Sabine Maringer, Sabrina Pober, and Ludwig Seidl for technical and material support, Shasha Zhang for experimental guidance, Tania L. Maxwell for her guidance in the data analysis, and Marilena Heitger for laboratory assistance. Moreover, we acknowledge the inspirational communications and warm support from people in the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research laboratories, University of Vienna. ",
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AU - Tian, Ye

AU - Schindlbacher, Andreas

AU - Malo, Carolina Urbina

AU - Shi, Chupei

AU - Heinzle, Jakob

AU - Kwatcho Kengdo, Steve

AU - Inselsbacher, Erich

AU - Borken, Werner

AU - Wanek, Wolfgang

N1 - Funding Information: This study was funded by the Austrian Science Fund - FWF (project I 3745). We sincerely thank Christian Holtermann for field site maintenance, Margarete Watzka, Sabine Maringer, Sabrina Pober, and Ludwig Seidl for technical and material support, Shasha Zhang for experimental guidance, Tania L. Maxwell for her guidance in the data analysis, and Marilena Heitger for laboratory assistance. Moreover, we acknowledge the inspirational communications and warm support from people in the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research laboratories, University of Vienna.

PY - 2023/9

Y1 - 2023/9

N2 - Global warming impacts biogeochemical cycles in terrestrial ecosystems, but it is still unclear how the simultaneous cycling of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in soils could be affected in the longer-term. Here, we evaluated how 14 years of soil warming (+4 °C) affected the soil C and N cycle across different soil depths and seasons in a temperate mountain forest. We used H218O incorporation into DNA and 15N isotope pool dilution techniques to determine gross rates of C and N transformation processes. Our data showed different warming effects on soil C and N cycling, and these were consistent across soil depths and seasons. Warming decreased microbial biomass C (−22%), but at the same time increased microbial biomass-specific growth (+25%) and respiration (+39%), the potential activity of β-glucosidase (+31%), and microbial turnover (+14%). Warming reduced gross rates of protein depolymerization (−19%), but stimulated gross N mineralization (+63%) and the potential activities of N-acetylglucosaminidase (+106%) and leucine-aminopeptidase (+46%), and had no impact on gross nitrification (+1%). Microbial C and N use efficiencies were both lower in the warming treatment (−15% and −17%, respectively). Overall, our results suggest that long-term warming drives soil microbes to incorporate less C and N into their biomass (and necromass), and to release more inorganic C and N to the environment, causing lower soil C and N storage in this forest, as indicated by lower soil C and total N contents. The decreases in microbial CUE and NUE were likely triggered by increasing microbial P constraints in warmed soils, limiting anabolic processes and microbial growth and promoting pervasive losses of C and N from the soil.

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