Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi reduce ammonia emissions under different land-use types in agro-pastoral areas

Abstract

Ammonia (NH₃) emissions, the most important nitrogen (N) loss form, always induce a series of environmental problems such as increased frequency of regional haze pollution, accelerated N deposition, and N eutrophication. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi play key roles in N cycling. However, it is still unclear whether AM fungi can alleviate N losses by reducing NH₃ emissions. The potential mechanisms by which AM fungi reduce NH₃ emissions in five land-use types (grazed grassland, mowed grassland, fenced grassland, artificial alfalfa grassland, and cropland) were explored in this study. Results showed that AM fungal inoculation significantly reduced NH₃ emissions, and the mycorrhizal responses of NH₃ emissions were determined by land-use type. Structural equation modeling (SEM) showed that AM fungi and land-use type directly affected NH₃ emissions. In addition, the reduction in NH₃ emissions was largely driven by the decline in soil ${\text{NH}}_4^{+}$-N and pH and the increases in abundances of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) amoA and bacteria (AOB) amoB genes, urease activity, and plant N uptake induced by AM fungal inoculation and land-use type. The present results highlight that reducing the negative influence of agricultural intensification caused by land-use type changes on AM fungi should be considered to reduce N losses in agriculture and grassland ecosystems.