Yulong Li , Qin Chen , Chao Chang , Mian Zhang , Ming Li , Langjun Cui
{"title":"Biogeographical patterns of antibiotic resistomes in soil biocrusts from urban green spaces at the continental scale","authors":"Yulong Li , Qin Chen , Chao Chang , Mian Zhang , Ming Li , Langjun Cui","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106150","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106150","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The distribution patterns of antibiotic resistomes in biological soil crusts (biocrusts) and the underlying factors influencing them remain poorly understood. Here, metagenomic sequencing was used to profile antibiotic resistomes in biocrusts of urban green space soils in 54 cities across China. The biocrust samples harbored ARGs associated with resistance against 21 classes of antibiotics such as betalactams, quinolones, aminoglycosides, and tetracyclines. Total ARG abundance was positively correlated with total phosphorus, available phosphorus, and lignin concentrations in biocrusts. The geographic factors, environmental factors, and DOM components only explained 18.1 % of the total variation of resistome in 54 samples, whereas the bacterial and mobile genetic element (MGE) communities explained 59.3 % of the total variation. In contrast with deterministic processes, stochastic processes played a more dominant role in shaping the resistomes across different samples (average stochasticity: 81.2 %) and were correlated with MGE communities. Findings of the present study demonstrate the ecological distribution of antibiotic resistomes in biocrusts of urban green spaces under different biotic and abiotic conditions over a continental scale.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106150"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143936494","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":"Resilient pioneers: The ecological role of cyanobacteria in desert ecosystems","authors":"Hassan Etesami","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106173","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106173","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cyanobacteria are crucial microorganisms in desert ecosystems, yet their roles and adaptive strategies remain underexplored. The problem lies in the declining health of arid environments due to climate change and human activities, which threaten the resilience of these vital organisms. This review examines the ecological significance of cyanobacteria in desert ecosystems, focusing on their contributions to soil health, nutrient cycling, and biodiversity. We explore various approaches, including a comprehensive literature review and case studies that highlight the adaptive mechanisms of cyanobacteria, such as nitrogen fixation and moisture retention, which enable their survival in extreme conditions. Additionally, we assess their role in forming biological soil crusts, which enhance soil structure and fertility, thereby supporting plant growth and ecosystem stability. Our findings reveal that cyanobacteria contribute significantly to primary production in arid regions, acting as ecosystem engineers that stabilize soils and improve nutrient availability. We conclude that understanding the adaptive strategies of cyanobacteria is essential for developing effective conservation and management practices in desert environments. This review emphasizes the urgent need for interdisciplinary research to harness the ecological potential of cyanobacteria for sustainable desert management and highlights their importance in maintaining the health and resilience of arid ecosystems amid ongoing environmental changes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106173"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143931954","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}
Zewen Hei , Jiayu Shao , Rutger A. Wilschut , Yuxuan Niu , Shenglei Hao , Hongyan Zhang , Jan Kammenga , Yongliang Chen , Stefan Geisen
{"title":"Soil N index enhancement by organic fertilizer application depends on aggregate size","authors":"Zewen Hei , Jiayu Shao , Rutger A. Wilschut , Yuxuan Niu , Shenglei Hao , Hongyan Zhang , Jan Kammenga , Yongliang Chen , Stefan Geisen","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106166","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106166","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Nitrogen (N) is the major limiting nutrient determining yield and quality of crops. Many factors related to the N cycle jointly determine its overall functioning and plant uptake. However, the effects of fertilizer types on the soil N cycle in different soil aggregate fractions remain elusive. We developed a soil N index consisting of N substrates, N drivers and N processes to more systematically understand the overall soil N cycle. We used the N index to evaluate the effects of fertilizer types (organic vs. mineral) and application rates in three fractions of soil aggregates. Compared to mineral fertilizer application, organic fertilizer application increased the soil N index by 0.41–0.17 in microaggregates, but not in large and small macroaggregates. Higher rates of organic or mineral fertilizer application also increased the soil N index by 0.50–0.74 in microaggregates but not in large and small macroaggregates. In the low mineral fertilizer treatment, the soil N index in large and small macroaggregates was respectively 0.52 and 0.74 higher than in microaggregates. We conclude that organic fertilizer application and high fertilizer application rates boost the soil N index, which depends on aggregate size. Our study indicates that examining soil within microaggregates may be crucial for understanding functional changes in the soil N cycle.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106166"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143931953","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}
Han Yan , Tingting Zhao , Baile Xu, Anika Lehmann, Matthias C. Rillig
{"title":"Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi suffer from perfluorooctanoic acid in soil but ameliorate negative effects on plant performance","authors":"Han Yan , Tingting Zhao , Baile Xu, Anika Lehmann, Matthias C. Rillig","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106169","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106169","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Per</em>- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) can impact plant growth, while how the symbiosis of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) would affect the response of plant performance to PFAS contamination remains entirely unknown. To address this gap, we conducted an eight-week pot experiment to investigate the function of AMF in plant response to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) using spring onion (<em>Allium cepa</em>) as phytometer. At harvest, we measured whole-plant performance (including growth, root morphology and mycorrhizal association) and soil parameters (pH and litter decomposition rate) as affected by PFOA and AMF inoculation. Our results showed that PFOA reduced the AMF colonization rate, frequency of arbuscules and vesicles. It also negatively affected root traits including root biomass, total length, average diameter, and root tissue density, while positively affecting specific root length and surface area. Moreover, PFOA significantly decreased leaf biomass, maximum height, and total biomass, but did not affect root/shoot ratio, soil pH, and litter decomposition. The inoculation of AMF reduced the negative effect of PFOA on root diameter and the positive effects on specific root length and surface area. It also increased the total root length, but this effect was neutralized by PFOA. Our results suggest that AMF inoculation alters the resource allocation strategies of plants under PFOA stress, favoring shoot growth at the expense of roots. This study provides evidence that AMF inoculation enhances plant resistance to environmental stressors and highlights the need to explore its interactions with plants and pollutants like PFAS.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106169"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143929559","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":"Pragmatic categorization of moist woodland ecosystems of the world matching the pattern of earthworm biomass","authors":"Jiro Tsukamoto","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106172","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106172","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Predicting changes in global carbon dynamics is urgently required in a climatically changing world. Earthworms, the most powerful ecosystem engineers, play a dominant role in the regulation of soil processes, including carbon sequestration and decomposition. Delineating the regional and global patterns of earthworm biomass is vital to predicting changes in global carbon dynamics. Recent meta-analyses of soil macrofaunal metrics (biomass, abundance, and diversity) attempted to determine the global patterns of earthworm biomass by applying different models using different ecosystem categorizations. The observed or predicted patterns were inconsistent, and therefore inconvenient in regard to their practical use application, such as global carbon modelling and sustainable forest management planning. The standardization of ecosystem categorization is expected to lessen these inconsistencies. This study has aimed to provide an optimal categorization of moist woodland ecosystems that would better match the patterns of earthworm biomass than previous categorizations. To this end, published data on earthworm biomass in moist woodland ecosystems were resynthesized into a default category system, considering tree functional group classification and earthworm ecology as well as conventional climate and forest type classifications. The overall effectiveness of the default categorization was evaluated based on the significance of the variations in earthworm biomass among the categories and then improved in order to better reflect the significance/insignificance of the differences between paired categories. This resulted in the following three climate × two vegetation categories: boreal/cool temperate conifer/beech/oak and mull forming deciduous, warm temperate deciduous broadleaf and evergreen broadleaf, and tropical undisturbed and tree plantation/disturbed secondary. The former vegetation category within each climate category exhibited significantly lower earthworm biomass than the latter. This categorization revealed a reversal in the relationship between litter type (recalcitrant versus labile) and earthworm biomass along the global temperature gradient; that is, higher biomass was found to be associated with labile litter in boreal/cool temperate forests, versus higher biomass with recalcitrant litter in warm temperate forests. A possible explanation for this reversal is that labile litter promotes earthworms through synergistic interactions with microbes in the regions at lower temperatures, but impedes them through competitions with microbes in the regions at higher temperatures. A dual pattern of earthworm biomass in moist woodland ecosystems of the world consisting of recalcitrant litter producing forest series and labile litter-producing forest series was proposed as a novel basis for global carbon modelling and also sustainable forest management planning.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106172"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143931952","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}
Marcela Ravanelli Martins, Marta Siviero Guilherme Pires
{"title":"Multigenerational and transgenerational effects of ciprofloxacin on the reproduction of Enchytraeus crypticus","authors":"Marcela Ravanelli Martins, Marta Siviero Guilherme Pires","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106171","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106171","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Ciprofloxacin (CIP) is an antibiotic used in both human and veterinary medicine. Because it is only partially metabolized, it has been found in sewage sludge, manure, and agricultural soils. Therefore, due to the high persistence and low mobility of CIP in soil, we aimed to evaluate its long-term effect on <em>Enchytraeus crypticus</em>. Three multigenerational and one transgenerational test were performed according to OECD 220 guidelines (2016) on sandy clay soil. The concentrations tested were 0.1, 1.0, 10.0, 100.0, 1000.0 and 5000.0 mg kg<sup>−1</sup> dry soil. For F1, statistical analysis showed differences between the control and all concentrations tested, but no differences among the concentrations. For F2, there was a difference between control and 10 mg Kg <sup>−1</sup> and for 10.0 mg Kg <sup>−1</sup> compared to 0.1, 1.0 and 5000.0 mg Kg <sup>−1</sup>. For F3, no statistical difference was observed between any of the concentrations. When comparing the generations among themselves, there were significant differences between F1 and F2 and F1 and F3 for all concentrations. For the transgenerational test, there was no statistical difference between the control and the concentrations tested, nor among the concentrations. We verified a negative effect of CIP on the reproduction of <em>E. crypticus</em> for the first generation, which could be related to oxidative stress, DNA damage and clay content. We also verified that the organisms could develop a tolerance to CIP and that the effects of high clay content could outweigh the effects of CIP in long-term exposure. Due to the high persistence and low mobility of CIP on soil, it may affect other organisms and promote antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) regardless of <em>E. crypticus</em> tolerance. Therefore, we strongly recommend further studies focusing on long-term effects on different organisms, with a molecular approach, and in different soil types.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106171"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143929558","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}
Sami Ullah , Babar Hussain , Nadeem Iqbal , Muhammad Salam , Muhammad Mohsin Raza , Shengyan Pu
{"title":"Navigating soil microbiota shifts to organic pollutants: Insights into the roles of nZVI-biochar in soil ecosystem restoration","authors":"Sami Ullah , Babar Hussain , Nadeem Iqbal , Muhammad Salam , Muhammad Mohsin Raza , Shengyan Pu","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106144","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106144","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil microbial communities are essential for nutrient cycling, contaminant degradation, and ecosystem sustainability. However, increasing contamination from organic pollutants, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), <em>per</em>- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), pesticides, and antibiotics, has led to significant disruptions in soil microbiota, reducing microbial diversity, altering community structures, and impairing enzymatic functions. Despite various remediation strategies, challenges persist in restoring soil health while minimizing the adverse ecological impacts. This review highlights the emerging potential of nano-zero-valent iron-supported biochar (nZVI-BC) as a novel remediation approach that offers synergistic adsorption, catalytic degradation, and microbial community restoration capabilities. While previous reviews have predominantly focused on inorganic contaminants, this review uniquely emphasizes the effects and remediation of organic pollutants, filling a critical knowledge gap. Unlike conventional methods, nZVI-BC enhances microbial diversity, enzyme activity, and the abundance of functional genes while mitigating pollutant toxicity. This review systematically explored the mechanisms by which nZVI-BC influences microbial responses and adaptations, emphasizing shifts in community composition, enzymatic activities, and functional gene expression under organic pollutant stress. Furthermore, it evaluated the application of nZVI-BC in remediating pesticides, antibiotics, PFAS, and PAHs, positioning it as a sustainable and efficient strategy for soil ecosystem restoration. Ultimately, this review provides critical insights into the role of nZVI-BC in mitigating the ecological risks of organic contaminants, thereby offering a path toward improved soil health and long-term environmental sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106144"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143922627","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}
Yinjie Zhang , Wei Gao , Shaowen Huang , Chenyang Li , Jiwei Tang , Qian Zhang , Mingyue Li , Yilun Wang , Chao Ai
{"title":"Long-term manure and straw addition enhance protistan diversity and stimulate soil microbial interactions and nutrient mineralization in vegetable field","authors":"Yinjie Zhang , Wei Gao , Shaowen Huang , Chenyang Li , Jiwei Tang , Qian Zhang , Mingyue Li , Yilun Wang , Chao Ai","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106170","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106170","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Fertilization is crucial for agriculture as it influences yield and soil quality by regulating soil structure, nutrient transformation, and microbial interactions. This study aimed to examine how long-term organic fertilization affects protists and microbial interactions in regulating nutrient turnover in soil aggregates. Compared to chemical fertilizers application, manure and straw addition increased the contents of soil organic carbon (C), total phosphorus (P), dissolved C, mineral nitrogen (N), and available P due to a higher proportion of large macroaggregates. Manure and straw addition enhanced enzymes activities for acquiring C, N, and P, and alleviated microbial N limitation. The enzyme activities of C and P-acquiring was higher in microaggregates, whereas N-acquiring enzyme was higher in large macroaggregates. Manure and straw addition significantly boosted protistan diversity and exhibited the highest connectivity and stability of the protistan-bacterial-fungal network. Mainly bacterivores, omnivores, and phototrophs significantly correlated to organic C, and mineral N. Further, organic fertilization positively correlated with microbial network stability and enzyme activity, whereas aggregate size has negative effect. Stable microbial networks positively influenced enzyme activity and the availability of dissolved C and nutrients. Overall, integrating chemical fertilizer, manure, and straw application can boost protistan diversity and stabilize microbial networks, enhancing nutrient availability, which offers insights for improving soil fertility and crop productivity.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106170"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143929560","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":"Compaction shapes CO2 emission contrasts in sloping farmland: Erosion-deposition zones respond via soil structure and microbiome","authors":"Huizhou Gao, Mengni Zhang, Xiaojun Song, Zixuan Han, Angyuan Jia, Qiqi Gao, Shanshan Nan, Shengping Li, Xueping Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106162","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106162","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mechanical compaction and water-induced soil erosion are critical factors influencing soil carbon cycling, particularly on sloped agricultural land. However, their combined effects on soil physicochemical properties, microbial community composition, and CO<sub>2</sub> emissions remain insufficiently understood. This study examined the interactive effects of three levels of mechanical compaction—no pressure (NP), low pressure (LP), and high pressure (HP)—at both depositional and erosional sites. The results revealed that compaction and erosion significantly altered soil structure, microbial communities (assessed using the PLFA method), and CO<sub>2</sub> influxes. HP reduced soil porosity and aggregate stability, intensifying soil degradation at erosional sites while leading to organic carbon accumulation at depositional sites. Changes in microbial communities were evident, with shift in bacterial-to-fungal ratios depending on site conditions. Increased CO<sub>2</sub> emissions at erosional sites were associated with soil structure collapse, whereas enhanced specific surface area at depositional sites contributed to lower emissions. Given that erosional areas generally exceed depositional ones on slopes, compaction-induced erosion led to an overall increase in CO<sub>2</sub> emissions, as emissions increased in eroded areas but decreased in depositional zones. This study elucidates the mechanisms by which compaction erosion zones and depositional zones induce different CO<sub>2</sub> emissions. In conclusion, the findings highlight the critical role of compaction and erosion in driving carbon cycling on sloped agricultural land. To mitigate CO<sub>2</sub> emissions and enhance soil carbon storage, targeted management strategies should focus on reducing soil compaction and preventing erosion, especially in areas prone to degradation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106162"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143922557","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}
José Carlos Marcos-Romero, Jorge Poveda, Julio Javier Diez
{"title":"Relation of the soil microbiota of cork oak groves and surrounding grasslands to tree decline","authors":"José Carlos Marcos-Romero, Jorge Poveda, Julio Javier Diez","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106165","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106165","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cork oak (<em>Quercus suber</em> L.) form low-density silvopastoral systems of great ecosystemic and socioeconomic importance in the Mediterranean Basin, as they provide bark of great industrial value. Since the 1950s, these trees have been increasingly suffering from a deadly disorder known as decline, due to different biotic and abiotic factors. Associated with these forests, grasslands of great pastoral value and as carbon sequestrators develop. The aim of this work was to study the bacterial and fungal diversity present in the soils of healthy and diseased cork oaks (due to decline) and their associated grasslands, an ecosystem whose microbiome has not been studied so far by metagenomics. Soil samples were collected from cork oak forests in southern Spain and their microbial diversity was analyzed by metabarcoding with Illumina MiSeq. With respect to bacterial families, no differences were reported between cork oak forest soils and their associated grasslands, possibly due to the presence of endemic bacteria and similar environmental conditions. However, there were differences in fungal diversity between healthy cork oak forests and their associated grasslands. In the healthy cork oak soils, the families Gemmatimonadaceae and Nocardioidaceae were massively present, while in the diseased soils the fungal genus <em>Geminibasidium</em> was found. Regarding the functional niche, healthy cork oaks presented mainly ectomycorrhizae in their soils, while their associated grasslands presented fungal endophytes, less present in areas with diseased trees. Therefore, fungi, but not bacteria, present in the soils of cork oaks and associated grasslands could play a key role in the presence/absence of decline in cork oaks.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"212 ","pages":"Article 106165"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143922558","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}