Applied Soil Ecology最新文献

{"title":"Vertical stratification of mine tailings microbial communities along geochemical gradients one decade after organic cover application","authors":"Asma Asemaninejad ,&nbsp;Graeme Spiers ,&nbsp;Peter Beckett ,&nbsp;Nadia Mykytczuk ,&nbsp;Nathan Basiliko","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106815","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106815","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Organic amendments that consume oxygen can function as reactive barriers, limiting sulfide mineral oxidation in acid-generating tailings; however, they may also promote metal mobilization in surface-oxidized horizons. One decade after applying a 1-m thick organic cover, we observed notable yet stratified biogeochemical and microbial transformations down the reclaimed Anthroposol profile. The surface organic cover layer showed increased nutrient availability alongside declines in organic matter and C:N ratio, reflecting ongoing mineralization and decomposition, and became slightly acidic (pH decreasing from 7.1 to 6.7). Beneath this layer, the interface zone exhibited microbial and geochemical convergence toward more soil-like conditions, where bioavailable P, Zn, Fe, and Cu increased by up to two orders of magnitude. Deeper tailings were slightly acidified, enriched in sulfur- and iron-oxidizing microbial taxa, potentially indicating continued sulfide weathering. Despite the improvements in the interface layer, switchgrass roots largely remained confined to the organic cover, hinting at possible chemical or physical barriers limiting deeper rooting. These findings highlight the short-to-medium-term success of organic covers in enhancing nutrient cycling and fostering microbial succession near the surface. However, persistent weathering underscores the need for complementary strategies, such as deeper amendments or reactive barriers. Given projected climate warming could accelerate organic matter decomposition and sulfide oxidation, increasing the risk of acid generation over time, these findings underscore the importance of sustained organic inputs and adaptive management to ensure long-term reclamation success.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106815"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146023285","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":"Biodegradable microplastics as mediators of iron‑carbon decoupling: Enhanced soil carbon mineralization in wetland","authors":"Xinyi Huang ,&nbsp;Yuan Pan ,&nbsp;Xiansheng Zhang ,&nbsp;Teng Li ,&nbsp;Ting Wu ,&nbsp;Shanqing Tang ,&nbsp;Yunze Wang ,&nbsp;Junhao Chen ,&nbsp;Juanjuan Huang ,&nbsp;Zhifeng Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106806","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106806","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Wetlands, recognized as significant carbon reservoirs within ecosystems, have recently been identified as sinks for microplastics (MPs). While iron (Fe)-mediated organic carbon (OC) preservation is pivotal for soil carbon sequestration, the role of MPs in modulating Fe-OC interactions remains unclear. Here, we demonstrated that biodegradable MPs (polybutylene succinate, PBS) act as mediators to decouple Fe-OC interactions, thereby accelerating carbon mineralization in wetland soils. Through anaerobic incubation experiments with conventional (polyethylene terephthalate, PET) and biodegradable MPs (PBS), we reveal that PBS-MPs increased cumulative CO₂ emissions by 25.7–39.2% compared to the control, while suppressing cumulative CH₄ emissions by 62.3–75.4%. However, PET-MPs had no significant effect on the emissions of CO₂ and CH₄. As a material with a high carbon content, PBS-MPs directly increased soil organic carbon (SOC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) levels. Metagenomic and chemical analyses indicated that PBS-MPs enriched Fe-reducing bacteria and generated redox-active surface groups to facilitate electron transfer during dissimilatory Fe reduction. This process led to the uncoupling of amorphous Fe oxides and their bound organic carbon and resulted in a 54% reduction in amorphous Fe-OC. PBS-MPs enhanced humification of soil dissolved organic matter, thus providing the electron transfer capacity for the soil mineralization and dissimilatory Fe reduction. We further discovered that the competitive relationship between Fe-reducing bacteria and methanogens, as well as the promotion of anaerobic methane oxidation gene expression, led to a reduction in methane emissions. Our findings uncover a previously overlooked mechanism whereby biodegradable MPs exacerbate wetland carbon emissions via Fe-OC decoupling.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106806"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145974008","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":"Effects of vermicompost on maize growth, soil aggregate stability, and microbial community dynamics in saline-alkali soil","authors":"Xue Qin ,&nbsp;Tiegen Bai ,&nbsp;Kui Huang ,&nbsp;Yali Huang ,&nbsp;Zaixing Li ,&nbsp;Changxiong Zhu ,&nbsp;Jungang Ding ,&nbsp;Menglu Li","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106809","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106809","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The rapid expansion of soil salinization poses a major threat to maize sustainable cultivation. Although vermicompost (VC) has emerged as a promising organic amendment, the mechanisms by which it enhances productivity in saline-alkali soils are not well understood. In a field-pot experiment, five application rates of VC (0%, 1%, 3%, 5%, and 7% <em>w</em>/w) were investigated by assessing soil chemical properties, aggregate stability, microbial community composition and their relationships with maize growth. The results showed that compared with the 0% VC (CK), the 3% VC treatment performed the most significant increases in maize yield (33.8%), aboveground biomass (18.2%), plant height (9.6%), and chlorophyll content (9.7%) (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). In contrast to the CK, soil organic matter, alkaline-hydrolyzable nitrogen and available phosphorus in 3% VC treatment increased by 52.4%, 44.3% and 140.1%, respectively, while electrical conductivity declined by 6.1%. Enhanced aggregate stability was observed in the 3% VC treatment, displaying a 9.4% rise in large aggregates (&gt;2 mm) and an increase in mean weight diameter and geometric mean diameter. Moreover, compared to CK, VC application reshaped bacterial community structure, with the dominant phyla Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria exhibiting dose-responsive shifts. At the genus level, the relative abundance of <em>unclassified_Geminicoccaceae</em> increased by 42.1%, while that of <em>Nocardioides</em> decreased by 17.7% under 3% VC treatment. PLS-PM identified bacterial communities as the principal drivers of yield enhancement by promoting aggregate formation and plant growth. This study reveals that a 3% VC amendment optimizes maize productivity in saline-alkali soils by driving a synergy of improved soil structure, microbial shifts and nutrient cycling. These findings elucidate the underlying mechanisms and provide a scientific basis for managing saline-alkali soils to enhance maize productivity sustainably.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106809"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145974057","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-mediated shifts regulate the trade-off between soil organic carbon content and stability after cropland afforestation in Eastern China","authors":"Jie Liu ,&nbsp;Lin Yang ,&nbsp;Jie Wang ,&nbsp;Lei Zhang ,&nbsp;Yongqi Qian ,&nbsp;Ren Wei ,&nbsp;Wenkai Cui ,&nbsp;Chenghu Zhou","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106808","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106808","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cropland soil organic carbon (SOC) is a vital component of the global carbon cycle. At the same time, the expansion of adjacent planted forests, driven by their ecological benefits, further shapes regional carbon dynamics. This offers a pivotal research opportunity to investigate divergences in SOC and its fractions, as well as carbon formation and stabilization mechanisms in croplands and planted forests converted from croplands. Elucidating divergent influencing mechanisms of SOC and its fractions between croplands and planted forests is critical to deciphering different land-use impacts on carbon storage and optimizing land-use-specific carbon sequestration management under global warming. We collected 39 paired cropland-planted forest soil samples in a major grain-producing region of Eastern China, and used piecewise structural equation modeling and random forest modeling to quantify and compare the effects of physical carbon parameters, microbial-derived carbon (MDC), and biotic-abiotic drivers on SOC and its fractions between croplands and adjacent planted forests. Croplands exhibited significantly higher SOC, particulate organic carbon (POC), and mineral-associated organic carbon (MAOC) contents than planted forests, exceeding forest levels by 34%, 68%, and 25%, respectively. Compared to planted forests, croplands had a higher POC proportion but a lower MAOC proportion. Furthermore, the dominant drivers of SOC, POC, and MAOC shifted from biotic factors in croplands to abiotic factors in planted forests. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) exhibited a stronger positive contribution to SOC accumulation in croplands than in planted forests. Fungal necromass carbon (FNC) contributed more to SOC, POC, and MAOC than bacterial necromass carbon (BNC) in croplands, but the opposite was true in planted forests. Collectively, planted forests exhibited lower but more stable SOC compared to croplands, demonstrating greater sensitivity to abiotic drivers and stronger MAOC dominance (constituting 78.85% of total SOC). Conversely, cropland SOC was primarily regulated by biotic drivers and MDC inputs. Therefore, land-use-specific management is essential to maximize the complementary carbon sequestration potentials of croplands and planted forests, thereby enhancing global SOC accumulation and stabilization.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106808"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145974060","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":"Soil amendment with biomass-derived carbon dots enhances rhizosphere organic matter, nutrient turnover, and microbial metabolism for maize growth","authors":"Yadong Li ,&nbsp;Qianying Han ,&nbsp;Lihaonan Chen ,&nbsp;Shang Lei ,&nbsp;Congli Ma ,&nbsp;Hongjie Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106804","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106804","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil degradation necessitates reducing the application of agrochemicals, while advancements in nanotechnology present growing opportunities in agriculture. Herein, this study synthesized a calcium- and nitrogen-co-doped carbon dots (Ca,N-CDs) with a high yield of 79.97% using the biomass of a submerged plant <em>Potamogeton crispus</em>. The soil application of Ca,N-CDs (100 mg/kg) significantly enhanced the growth (7.27–71.69%), photosynthesis, and antioxidant activity (29.49–173.20%) of maize (<em>Zea mays</em> L.). In the rhizosphere microenvironment, the application of Ca,N-CDs enhanced soil pH and the turnover of organic matter and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) by regulating related soil enzyme activities. Metagenome analysis revealed that Ca,N-CDs enhanced the diversity and evenness of the rhizosphere microbial community, particularly increasing the abundance of archaea, eukaryotes, and some beneficial bacterial groups (<em>Actinomycetes</em>, <em>Longimicrobia</em>, and <em>Micrococcales</em>). KEGG functional analysis, combined with metabolomics analysis, demonstrated that the microbial metabolic processes related to growth and reproduction were significantly enhanced by Ca,N-CDs. Changes in microbial communities and metabolism showed positive correlations with soil properties. Co-occurrence network analysis indicated that Ca,N-CDs changed the dominant microorganisms in the maize rhizosphere and strengthened their associations among themselves and with soil properties. The rhizosphere responses synergistically promoted the maize growth and development. These findings present a promising alternative for improving soil health and fertility as well as promoting sustainable agricultural production.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106804"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145974062","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":"Temperature promotes soil microbial competitive dominance by modulating metabolic interactions","authors":"Na Zhang ,&nbsp;Yimei Xie ,&nbsp;Yujuan Wang ,&nbsp;Naoise Nunan ,&nbsp;Yun Wang ,&nbsp;Zhiyuan Ma ,&nbsp;Jizhong Zhou ,&nbsp;Jiabao Zhang ,&nbsp;Yuting Liang","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106777","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106777","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Modern coexistence theory quantifies niche and fitness differences to elucidate species competition mechanisms, yet its application to temperature-driven shifts in soil microbial competitive outcomes remains limited. Here, we observed that high temperatures intensified competition among abundant bacterial genera in soil incubation experiments, particularly leading to the competitive dominance of <em>Pseudomonas</em> over <em>Rhodococcus</em>. Specifically, in competitive experiments involving <em>Rhodococcus erythropolis</em> NSX2 and <em>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</em> SB, SB successfully outcompeted NSX2, achieving a dominance of 61.6 % at 32 °C. This competitive dominance correlated with increased niche differences (from 0.45 to 0.88) and reduced fitness differences (from 0.83 to 0.35) at higher temperatures. Additionally, single-cell Raman spectroscopy and metabolite analysis revealed that high temperature enhanced cross-feeding, resulting in the production of more beneficial metabolites and fewer antibacterial quinolones. When metabolites served as the sole carbon source under high-temperature conditions, the growth and population density of SB were significantly promoted. These findings underscore the pivotal role of temperature in shaping soil microbial competitive dominance by regulating metabolic interactions. This study advances our understanding of soil microbial competition within the framework of modern coexistence theory. By integrating the theory with metabolic analysis, this work highlights the importance of temperature-dependent microbial interactions in changing ecosystems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106777"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145923263","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":"Ecotoxicological impact of Albendazole and low-density polyethylene microplastics on the collembola Folsomia candida (Willem, 1902)","authors":"Bartolo Forestieri ,&nbsp;Diego Voccia ,&nbsp;Lucrezia Lamastra ,&nbsp;Esperanza Huerta Lwanga ,&nbsp;Dimitrios G. Karpouzas ,&nbsp;Cristina Nuzzi ,&nbsp;Ilaria Negri","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106764","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106764","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Plastics offer significant benefits but also pose serious environmental concerns, especially in areas of intensive livestock production where they frequently coexist in soil with veterinary drugs such as albendazole (ABZ), a broad-spectrum anthelmintic. ABZ can enter soil ecosystems either directly through cattle excretion or indirectly via the application of contaminated manure, raising concerns about its potential harmful effects on soil health. Collembola play a vital role in soil ecosystems through organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling and the species <em>Folsomia candida</em> is widely used in ecotoxicological studies due to its sensitivity to pollutants. This study examined the individual and combined effects of 28-day exposure to low-density polyethylene (LDPE) microplastics (MPs) at 0 and 0.1 <em>w</em>/w% (0 and 1000 mg kg⁻¹), alone or in combination with ABZ at 0, 0.0001, 0.1, and 1 w/w % (0, 1, 1000, and 10,000 mg kg⁻¹) on <em>F. candida</em> in a sandy soil (LUFA 2.2.). Results showed that LDPE alone had no lethal or reproductive effects on <em>F. candida</em>, while ABZ, either alone or with MPs, significantly reduced the insect reproduction, pointing at ABZ as the key driver of the adverse effects. Reproductive inhibition was observed even at 1 mg kg⁻¹, suggesting that ABZ may affect soil mesofauna at concentrations that can occur in manure-amended agricultural soils. The absence of differences in <em>F. candida</em> survival and reproduction suggests no synergistic effects between ABZ and MPs, nor any potential co-action mechanisms influencing ABZ behaviour under the specific experimental conditions, including soil substrate characteristics.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106764"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145923268","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 microbial mechanism of the impact of grazing degradation on the soil multifunctionality of the hummock wetland on the riverscape","authors":"Xiaoai Cao ,&nbsp;Huamin Liu ,&nbsp;Rui Zhang ,&nbsp;Yunhao Wen ,&nbsp;Shan Jiang ,&nbsp;Zhichao Xu ,&nbsp;Lu Wen ,&nbsp;Yi Zhuo ,&nbsp;Dongwei Liu ,&nbsp;Ke Yu ,&nbsp;Lixin Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106785","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2026.106785","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The hummock-hollow microtopography of riparian wetlands is crucial for maintaining soil multifunctionality (SMF) by shaping heterogeneous hydrological and nutrient gradients, but long-term overgrazing is leading to a significant degradation of this feature on the riverscape. In this study, the undegraded and grazing degraded hummock wetlands of the Morigele River in Hulun Buir were selected. The physical and chemical properties of the soil, SMF index, microbial community, and function were comprehensively determined to reveal the regulatory mechanism of microtopography and degradation on SMF. The results showed that grazing degradation significantly reduced the storage of SOC, DOC, TP, AP, and other nutrients in hummock soil, weakening the hummock-hollow difference in SMF and resulting in riverscape homogenization. Grazing degradation significantly suppressed the α-diversity of both bacterial and fungal communities in hummock soils, while the hollow changed slightly. The genes of carbon fixation (<em>mcl</em>, <em>hycB</em>), aerobic respiration (<em>coxAC</em>), methane metabolism (<em>mcrA</em>), and organic P mineralization (<em>phoA, glpR, phnW, phnA</em>) were enriched in the undegraded plots, while the genes of carbon decomposition (<em>MAN2C1, K01179, K01224, cbhA, K01185, MAN, gmuG</em>), denitrification (<em>nirK, nosZ</em>), and P starvation response regulation (<em>phoR</em>) were significantly enriched in the degraded plots, and the microtopography amplified the functional differences. Random forests with PLS-PM modeling confirmed that soil microbial function was significant predictors of SMF. Grazing degradation indirectly weakens SMF through a cascading path of “soil properties-microbial functions-SMF”. Microtopography maintains SMF through dual pathways of directly regulating element distribution and indirectly shaping microbial functions. The core mechanism for the decline of SMF in hummock wetlands is homogenization of microtopography because of grazing degradation, accompanied by the imbalance of “resource-biological” synergy. Restoration should first reshape the nutrient gradient of hummock-hollow and then activate key microbial functional groups to achieve the synergistic improvement of riverscape multifunctionality and ecological resilience.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106785"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145923312","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":"Root exudate-mediated plant–microbe interactions and next-generation strategies for sustainable nitrogen management in agricultural soils","authors":"Nazir Ahmed ,&nbsp;Zhengzhou Yang ,&nbsp;Lihua Zhong ,&nbsp;Zahoor Ahmed ,&nbsp;Abdul Khalique ,&nbsp;Zameer Hussain ,&nbsp;Saqib Hussain ,&nbsp;Bilquees Bozdar ,&nbsp;Mehar-un-Nisa Narejo ,&nbsp;Muzammil Hussain ,&nbsp;Zhengjie Zhu","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106758","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106758","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Agricultural nitrogen (N) losses remain a major global concern, with substantial fractions of applied fertilizer escaping as nitrate (NO₃⁻) leachate, ammonia (NH₃) emissions, and nitrous oxide (N₂O), thereby reducing nitrogen use efficiency and contributing to climate and water quality degradation. Strategies that retain ammonium and moderate biological oxidation are central for mitigating these losses. This review provides an integrative assessment of two major approaches to suppress nitrification: synthetic nitrification inhibitors and plant-derived root exudates. We evaluate their mechanisms, performance across contrasting soils, and associated trade-offs, including microbial guild shifts and the risk of increased NH₃ volatilization. We further examined emerging innovations such as exudate-responsive fertilizers, nanomaterial-enhanced delivery systems, precision sensing technologies, and the breeding or engineering of crops with elevated biological inhibition capacity. Building on these developments, we proposed a conceptual framework linking root exudation, soil physicochemical filters, microbial functional groups, and field-scale N outcomes. Key challenges include rapid exudate transformation, soil-dependent efficacy, regulatory barriers, and the need to recalibrate monitoring tools in ammonium-enriched rhizosphere. Together, these insights outline a multi-scale pathway to improve N retention, enhance crop N-use efficiency, and more resilient agroecosystems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106758"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145923316","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":"Linking fine root and fungal traits to rhizosphere soil multifunctionality in a temperate forest","authors":"Dongli Li ,&nbsp;Zhenghu Zhou ,&nbsp;Ruihan Li ,&nbsp;Ying Jin ,&nbsp;Chunhua Lv","doi":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106756","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106756","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Plant-fungus interactions in the rhizosphere play a vital role in regulating soil ecosystem processes, yet the coordination between fine root and fungal traits and their impact on rhizosphere soil multifunctionality remains poorly understood. Here, we compared fine root and fungal traits of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) and ectomycorrhizal (ECM) tree species in northeast China and assessed their influence on rhizosphere soil multifunctionality. The results showed that ECM tree species exhibited a more conservative root strategy, with greater root diameter, higher tissue density, and lower specific root length and nitrogen content compared with AM tree species. Fungal communities in ECM rhizosphere also showed a slower strategy, with higher fungal oligotroph/copiotroph ratio, greater relative abundance of mycorrhizal fungi, larger genome sizes, and smaller body sizes than those in AM rhizosphere. The positive correlation between the first principal component of fine root traits and that of rhizosphere fungal traits indicates a coordinated strategy, where faster acquisitive fine-root strategies select for faster fungal strategies in the rhizosphere, characterized by lower relative abundance of mycorrhizal fungi, smaller genomes, and larger body sizes of copiotrophic fungi. Notably, rhizosphere soil multifunctionality was significantly higher in AM tree species compared with ECM tree species, likely driven by the fast resource-acquisition strategies of both fine roots and rhizosphere fungal communities. These findings collectively highlight the pivotal roles of fine root and fungal traits in shaping rhizosphere soil multifunctionality in temperate forests.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":8099,"journal":{"name":"Applied Soil Ecology","volume":"219 ","pages":"Article 106756"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145923320","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}