Applied Soil Ecology最新文献

{"title":"Omics-driven soil bioremediation of emerging contaminants: Integrating sensors, digital twins, and microbial biotechnology","authors":"Asad Shah ,&nbsp;Mohammad Nauman Khan ,&nbsp;Waqar Ali ,&nbsp;Muhammad Numan Khan ,&nbsp;Hidayat Ullah ,&nbsp;Zahra Barati ,&nbsp;Adil Farooq Lodhi ,&nbsp;Lixiao Nie","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106854","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106854","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil contamination with organic and inorganic pollutants is a serious threat to ecosystem health, food safety, and human well-being. Bioremediation which utilizes microbial communities to detoxify or transform pollutants has emerged as a promising and eco-friendly solution. However, the complexity of soil microbial ecosystems and their dynamic responses to stressors demand advanced tools for a comprehensive understanding. Recent advances in omics technologies (genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics) offer critical insights into the composition, functional potential, and activity of soil microbiomes involved in biodegradation. This review builds upon current knowledge on how individual and integrated omics approaches have been applied to elucidate microbial pathways responsible for the degradation of hydrocarbons, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and other emerging contaminants under diverse environmental settings. Multi-omics integration enables the identification of active taxa, metabolic limitations, and functional gene networks, facilitating the design of optimized bioremediation strategies. Case studies from polar, arid, and rhizosphere environments demonstrate how omics-guided biostimulation and bioaugmentation enhance microbial performance under environmental stress. Additionally, emerging frameworks such as sensor-omics-digital twin platforms are highlighted as future tools for adaptive, and precision bioremediation, enabling real-time monitoring and targeted interventions. We also discuss the challenges of translating omics data into field-scale applications, including regulatory constraints, data standardization, and ecological risks. Finally, emerging tools such as genome-scale metabolic models, microbial consortia engineering, and real-time biosensors are explored as future directions. By utilizing the power of multi-omics, coupled with next-generation sensing and AI-driven decision systems, it is now possible to move from descriptive to predictive and prescriptive microbiome engineering for sustainable soil remediation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106854"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146186070","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Oomycete pathogens suppress litter decomposition in alpine meadow soils","authors":"Yu Nie ,&nbsp;Bo Zhang ,&nbsp;Yimin Zhao ,&nbsp;Zhenhua Zhang ,&nbsp;Shurong Zhou","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106868","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106868","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Litter decomposition is of critical importance for nutrient cycling and carbon fluxes and is strongly influenced by litter quality and soil microbial community composition. Fungal and oomycete pathogens are prevalent in global grasslands and, due to differences in their physiological characteristics, host ranges, functions, and life cycles, they may have distinct effects on litter decomposition. However, how fungal and oomycete pathogens regulate litter decomposition via alterations to litter quality and microbial community remains unclear. To address this question, we conducted a year-long field experiment to measure litter decomposition on the mineral topsoil of an alpine meadow, employing fungicide and oomyceticide treatments. We found that fungicide application did not significantly affect litter mass loss. In contrast, in situ application of oomyceticide significantly increased litter mass loss. Mechanistically, suppression of oomycete pathogens significantly increased the relative abundance of species within the phylum Mortierellomycota in the soil, thereby accelerating litter decomposition. Our results indicated the critical role of oomycete pathogens in mediating the effects of organisms belonging to higher trophic levels on litter decomposition, revealing complex interactions between higher trophic levels and their potential impacts on terrestrial ecosystem functioning under ongoing anthropogenic disturbance.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106868"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146185695","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Rhizosphere microbial diversity and community assembly in tree species–slope aspect coupled mountain forests of the Qilian Mountains, northeastern Qinghai–Tibet Plateau","authors":"Hangyu Bai ,&nbsp;Qian Chen ,&nbsp;Xiuling Yang ,&nbsp;Dengwu Li","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106884","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106884","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil microorganisms underpin nutrient cycling and organic matter decomposition, and elucidating community assembly is pivotal for ecosystem functioning. On the northeastern Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, <em>Juniperus przewalskii</em> typically dominates sunny slopes whereas <em>Picea crassifolia</em> occurs on shady slopes, forming a characteristic tree species–slope aspect coupling that provides a natural contrast for rhizosphere microbiomes in mountain forests. However, it remains unclear whether rhizosphere microbial diversity and inferred assembly processes differ between these coupled systems, and whether bacteria and fungi respond similarly. Here, we compared rhizosphere bacterial and fungal communities between <em>J. przewalskii</em>–sunny and <em>P. crassifolia</em>–shady slope forests to characterize diversity patterns, inferred assembly processes, and environmental associations. Across 19 plots (<em>n</em> = 100 rhizosphere samples), the <em>J. przewalskii</em> system exhibited a “high-diversity–low-nutrient” pattern, whereas the <em>P. crassifolia</em> system showed “low-diversity–high-nutrient.” Bacterial communities showed stronger stochastic signals (NST &gt; 0.5), with stronger neutrality in <em>J. przewalskii</em> (R² = 0.687) than <em>P. crassifolia</em> (R² = 0.623); fungal communities displayed deterministic signals (NST &lt; 0.5) and weak neutrality (R² = 0.113–0.125). Network topology indicated cross-kingdom complementarity, with more connected bacterial networks under <em>J. przewalskii</em> and larger, more modular fungal networks under <em>P. crassifolia</em>. Plant diversity and soil nutrients were the strongest correlates of microbial differentiation. This study suggests that slope-aspect differences are associated with distinct plant–soil–microbe coupling patterns, with bacteria and fungi showing differentiated assembly signals and network organization, providing an observational basis for discussing potential stability–efficiency trade-off hypotheses in mountain forest ecosystems under extreme environments and global environmental change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106884"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146185751","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Elucidating the vertical migration of antibiotic resistance genes in soils amended with swine manure and irrigated with wastewater","authors":"Yumin Gong ,&nbsp;Yunchao Liu ,&nbsp;Yida Cheng ,&nbsp;Bingxia Liu ,&nbsp;Min Qiao ,&nbsp;Ruibo Sun ,&nbsp;Bin Guo ,&nbsp;Jin Liu ,&nbsp;Fenghua Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106872","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106872","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The global spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) has been a hotspot of international concern. Livestock manure application and wastewater irrigation are crucial pathways through which ARGs are dispersed into the receiving environments. However, the current understanding of the vertical migration of ARGs in soils amended with manure and irrigated with wastewater remains inadequate. This study explored the vertical distribution of ARGs across 0–100 cm soil profile under swine manure amendment and swine wastewater irrigation, based on a five-year field experiment including swine manure application and swine wastewater irrigation treatment (SM + SW), swine wastewater irrigation (SW) treatment and deep groundwater irrigation treatment (Control). Compared with the Control treatment, the abundance of ARGs in the SM + SW treatment exhibited a 2.06 to 31.36-fold increase, while in the SW treatment, the increase was 0.99 to 5.86-fold. The abundance of ARGs displayed a decreasing trend with the increase in soil depth. ARGs were predominantly distributed in the 0–25 cm soil layers. Notably, the abundance of ARGs in the 75–100 cm still reached 10⁵ copies·g⁻¹ (dry soil), suggesting the potential risk of ARGs leaching into deeper soil strata. High-throughput sequencing results illustrated that soil bacterial diversity and community assembly mechanisms were mainly affected by soil depth. Furthermore, a partial least squares path model indicated that soil depth and soil properties predominantly influence the vertical distribution of ARGs through indirect effect, whereas bacterial abundance and <em>intI1</em> gene mainly act through direct effects. This study holds crucial importance for evaluating environmental health risks and optimizing agricultural management strategies regarding ARGs pollution.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106872"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146186049","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Niche-based filtering governs arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal community variation in temperate grasslands of Northern China","authors":"Xinyan Liu ,&nbsp;Pengfei Wang ,&nbsp;Hanting Qu ,&nbsp;Zhiying Ding ,&nbsp;Jingpeng Li ,&nbsp;Da Xu ,&nbsp;Fucheng Ding ,&nbsp;Yuying Bao","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106834","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106834","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) play crucial roles in enhancing plant nutrient uptake, improving stress resistance, and maintaining ecosystem functioning. However, the driving mechanisms of AMF community assembly across regional-scale environmental gradients and their relationship with ecosystem multifunctionality (EMF) remain unclear. This study investigated AMF symbionts of two species of Asteraceae (<em>Artemisia frigida</em>, <em>Aster altaicus</em>) distributed across the Xilingol grassland. Through high-throughput amplicon sequencing, we analyzed the AMF community diversity and structural changes in different microbial niches (rhizosphere, endosphere) and host species under environmental gradients (meadow steppe, typical steppe, desert steppe), revealed the process of community assembly and explored the associations between AMF diversity, network complexity, and EMF. We found that microbial niche was the strongest driver of AMF community variation, followed by host species, with geographical distribution contributing the least. Mean annual temperature (MAT), mean annual precipitation (MAP), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), and total phosphorus (TP) were the most important environmental factors constraining the AMF communities of both plants. AMF diversity significantly decreased from the rhizosphere soil to the endosphere. The assembly of AMF species in the two plants exhibited about 70% similarity and 30% dissimilarity. <em>A. frigida</em> demonstrated a stronger host filtering effect. MAT, ammonium nitrogen (NH₄⁺-N), and nitrate nitrogen (NO₃⁻-N) potentially drove host plant selection of AMF, while pH, NO₃⁻-N, available potassium (AK), catalase (CAT), dehydrogenase (DHA), and sucrase (SC) likely influenced host filtering of AMF. Furthermore, stochastic processes dominated AMF assembly in both the rhizosphere and endosphere. However, from meadow steppe to desert steppe, the contribution of deterministic processes increased with increasing environmental stress. Heterogeneous selection and dispersal limitation dominated in the rhizosphere, while homogeneous selection and drift dominated in the endosphere. Additionally, AMF network complexity decreased from rhizosphere to the endosphere, and the AMF network complexity of <em>A. altaicus</em> was higher than that of <em>A. frigida</em>. With increasing environmental stress from meadow steppe to desert steppe, AMF community diversity decreased, networks gradually simplified, and ecosystem multifunctionality weakened. Besides, we confirmed the correlation of AMF diversity with ecosystem multifunctionality, yet insufficient evidence proves causality between the two. Moreover, climatic factors (MAP, MAT) had direct effects on EMF. The findings provide further insights into the driving patterns and mechanisms underlying the assembly of AMF communities in temperate grasslands.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106834"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146186086","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Amputation in Enchytraeus crypticus - a New Approach Methodology (NAM) - assessing the longer-term effects of Cadmium under regeneration stress events","authors":"Micael F.M. Gonçalves ,&nbsp;Susana I.L. Gomes ,&nbsp;Janeck J. Scott-Fordsmand ,&nbsp;Mónica J.B. Amorim","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106833","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106833","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In natural environments, organisms frequently experience injuries caused by physical disturbance, contamination, or extreme climatic conditions, which may alter their sensitivity to toxic stress. Understanding how such conditions, like injuries, affect organism performance is particularly relevant in ecotoxicology, where exposure to pollutants can interfere with tissue repair and long-term fitness. <em>Enchytraeus crypticus</em>, a standard test soil species, can regenerate posterior segments and therefore offers the opportunity to integrate regeneration capacity as an additional endpoint in toxicity assays.</div><div>In the present study, we established a methodology to integrate regeneration as an ecotoxicological testing endpoint, directly in accordance with already established OECD/ISO guidelines for this organism. Furthermore, the impacts of cadmium (Cd) exposure on survival and reproduction were assessed following induced artificial amputation stress, hence under regeneration response processes. Mature adult organisms were amputated and exposed to 0–320 mg Cd kg⁻¹ DW soil in LUFA 2.2 soil. Regeneration success was evaluated at day 7, and survival and reproduction at days 22 and 43. <em>E. crypticus</em> regenerated the complete body in all treatments, except at 320 mg Cd kg⁻¹ DW soil. Survival was similar between amputated and non-amputated organisms at day 22, but at day 43, mortality reached 100% in amputated versus 70% in non-amputated organisms at 320 mg Cd/kg DW soil, indicating increased vulnerability if under prolonged exposure when regeneration is required. Reproduction showed a clear dose-response pattern at both 22 and 43 days. EC₅₀ values for amputated vs. non-amputated organisms were 42 vs. 82 mg Cd kg⁻¹ DW soil (day 22) and 37 vs. 29 mg Cd kg⁻¹ DW soil (day 43), indicating a shift toward improved reproductive performance after regeneration was completed This suggests a compensatory mechanism, one that reallocates energy toward reproduction once regeneration is complete. These findings emphasize the importance of considering both shorter and longer-term biological responses when evaluating the impact of contaminants on soil organisms. Further research into the molecular mechanisms underlying this plasticity could provide deeper insights into the adaptive strategies of <em>E. crypticus</em> in polluted environments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106833"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146057307","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Long-term P management has limited impacts on soil microbial communities, with unique patterns driven by location, land use, and soil depth","authors":"Kirill Bogdanov ,&nbsp;Parag Bhople ,&nbsp;Giulia Bondi ,&nbsp;Naoise Nunan ,&nbsp;Lars Elsgaard ,&nbsp;Anke M. Herrmann ,&nbsp;Karl G. Richards ,&nbsp;Mart Ros ,&nbsp;David Wall ,&nbsp;Fiona Brennan ,&nbsp;Sergio E. Morales ,&nbsp;Timothy J. Clough","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106877","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106877","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mineral fertilizers containing phosphorus (P) are widely used in agriculture to enhance soil fertility, yet their impact on soil microbial communities remains unclear. Most studies rely on a single-site approach and observe short-term effects, limiting our ability to extricate long-term P impacts from other drivers of microbial communities. This study aimed to explore the influence of long-term P fertilization on soil microbial communities along the depth gradient across four countries, including grasslands and arable sites. Microbiomes were strongly affected by location, land management, and soil depth. No changes in the composition of prokaryotic communities were detected in response to P fertilization, while fungal communities demonstrated a modest response, but only at 0–10 cm depth in grassland soil. The almost complete absence of P fertilization impacts on communities could be due to a lack of changes in soil properties and nutrient availability after P fertilization. This is likely because of the applied P rate being below the threshold needed to alter soil properties or as a consequence of a legacy from previous P fertilization events. The strongest effect of P fertilization was observed at 0–10 cm depth, where carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) availability was higher. Together, these findings suggest that soil microbial communities are largely resistant to long-term P fertilization, with responses strongly mediated by site-specific conditions. Our study highlights the importance of considering multiple long-term sites, land use types, and soil depths in research focused on P fertilization effects on soil microbial communities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106877"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146185691","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Microbial drivers of dynamic soil carbon use efficiency following long-term vegetation succession on the Loess Plateau, China","authors":"Yajing Dong ,&nbsp;Zhenhao Wei ,&nbsp;Juxiao Lu ,&nbsp;Su Wang ,&nbsp;Jingwei Shi ,&nbsp;Xining Zhao ,&nbsp;Zhouping Shangguan ,&nbsp;Lei Deng","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106883","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106883","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE), a key link between microbial metabolism and ecosystem carbon cycling, is influenced by litter input, nutrient availability, and microbial diversity during vegetation succession. Although microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE) has been widely studied, most existing work has focused on short-term disturbances, laboratory incubations, or surface soils, leaving the depth-specific mechanisms of CUE regulation during long-term vegetation succession insufficiently understood. Here, this study investigated an ~170-year vegetation succession chronosequence from grassland to climax forest, analyzing microbial community structure, function, and CUE in topsoil (0–20 cm) and subsoil (20–40 cm) using amplicon sequencing, high-throughput qPCR microarrays, and biogeochemical stoichiometric modeling. The results revealed topsoil CUE remained lower than subsoil CUE consistently during vegetation succession. Topsoil CUE showed an initial increase, followed by a decline and rebound, while subsoil CUE increased initially, then steadily declined. In topsoil, CUE was mainly driven by nutrient availability, indirectly influenced by litter quality, microbial diversity, and microbial products (e.g., biomass, extracellular enzymes). In subsoil, CUE was more directly regulated by nutrients and functional gene abundance (e.g., rbcL, nosZ2, nirS3, nirK2). CUE was shaped by resource inputs (e.g., dissolved organic C and N, litter C:N) and environmental conditions (pH, moisture). Despite pronounced shifts in microbial composition, CUE remained relatively stable in early and late succession. These findings highlight depth-specific microbial processes controlling CUE and provide mechanistic insights into soil carbon stabilization during long-term vegetation succession.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106883"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146185697","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The influence of rewetting intensity on soil priming after drought","authors":"Yijin Lv ,&nbsp;Rui Zhang ,&nbsp;Rong Li ,&nbsp;Zhenqing Shi","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106840","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106840","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil moisture is a key driver of soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition and the global carbon (C) cycle, and climate warming-induced extremes of rainfall and drought are intensifying the dynamics of soil C stocks. Although addition of labile C pools can trigger strong priming effects (PE) by stimulating decomposition of recalcitrant SOM, how varying rewetting intensity interacts with these exogenous inputs of C pools to affect PE remains unclear. In this study, we used an isotopic approach to examine the effects of rewetting intensity (40%, 60%, and 80% water holding capacity (WHC)) on PE during a 21-day incubation following intensive drought (20% WHC). Our results show that glucose addition induced a strong positive PE, with higher moisture (60% and 80% WHC) resulting in greater PEs. High moisture regulated microbial community composition and boosted microbial activity and turnover. These changes heightened microbial nitrogen demand, accelerated nitrogen mining, and intensified decomposition of stable C, leading to net soil-C loss. The correlation analysis shows that enhanced biosynthetic and degradative activity under higher moisture conditions facilitates the turnover of labile C, whereas reduced microbial diversity and metabolic intensity promote the stabilization of more persistent C forms. This study underscores the significant role of moisture in shaping PEs and soil C dynamics in the subtropical forest soils, offering insights into soil C sequestration in response to climate change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106840"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146185698","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Lithology-driven microbial succession and functional divergence during subtropical forest restoration","authors":"Xinyu Ye ,&nbsp;Yuming Lu ,&nbsp;Maokui Lyu ,&nbsp;Yongmeng Jiang ,&nbsp;Cui Deng ,&nbsp;Jinsheng Xie","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106856","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106856","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Forest restoration is a key strategy for mitigating climate change, yet the underlying mechanisms of belowground microbial community succession, particularly across soils derived from contrasting parent materials (lithologies), remain poorly understood. This study examined soil microbial community dynamics and functional profiles along a restoration chronosequence (comprising <em>Pinus massoniana</em> plantations, conifer-broadleaf mixed forests, secondary and old-growth forests) developed on two contrasting parent material lithologies (granite vs. sandstone) in a typical subtropical eroded region of China. Using high-throughput sequencing of 16S and ITS rRNA genes coupled with functional prediction (FAPROTAX and FUNGuild). Mantel tests revealed a significantly stronger correlation between soil properties and fungal diversity and composition, whereas bacterial diversity and composition remained nearly unchanged across the different successional stages and lithologies. Lithology significantly mediated microbial life-history strategies and functional gene abundances. In sandstone soils, bacterial <em>K</em>:<em>r</em> ratios were closely linked to the abundance of carbon (C) cycling genes. In contrast, granite soils promoted a shift in fungal strategies from r- to K-selected, supporting higher microbial resource-use efficiency and more stable community structure, thereby accelerating soil organic C stabilization. Furthermore, nitrogen (N) cycling genes (e.g., N fixation, denitrification) showed divergent successional trajectories: sandstone soils were characterized by mineral N transformations, while granite soils exhibited an organic N-dominated pathway. Our findings demonstrate that parent material filters microbial communities and their life-history strategies, driving functional divergence in nutrient cycling during forest ecosystem recovery. This provides critical mechanistic insights into the role of lithology in shaping belowground ecological processes during forest restoration.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"220 ","pages":"Article 106856"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146186020","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}