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Response of bacterial communities and plant-mediated soil processes to nitrogen deposition and precipitation in a desert steppe

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Abstract

Background and aims

Changes in nitrogen (N) and precipitation levels can substantially alter soil properties and plant growth, thereby altering soil microbial diversity and functionality.

Method

We used manipulated precipitation treatments (50% reduction, control, and plus 50%) and tested two N fertilization levels (control and plus 35 kg N ha−1 yr−1) from a 4-year field experiment to evaluate the effects on soil bacterial diversity, community composition, and N-cycle gene abundance.

Results

N additions significantly increased ammonia-oxidizing bacterial abundance (via AOB-amoA) but decreased denitrification genes (i.e., nirS and nosZ). Decreased precipitation significantly decreased the abundance of N-cycle genes (AOB-amoA, nirS, and nosZ), while increased precipitation conversely increased the abundance of these same genes. Decreased precipitation led to differences in the microbial community composition that favored drought resistance, indicating that plant-associated microbiomes may be able to modulate plant growth fitness in the context of extreme environmental conditions. N additions substantially altered soil bacterial communities, increasing the relative abundance of certain bacteria and of nitrification-related genes in a manner that depended on precipitation fluctuations.

Conclusions

Differences in the bacterial community composition and N-cycle genes determined the functional response of a grassland ecosystem to decreased precipitation conditions, and therefore could affect the influence of N deposition on plant growth as well as the physical and chemical properties of the soil.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Xiangjun Yun, Shixian Sun, and many others for setting up the experiments. This study was financially supported by the Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41601269, 31770542), the National Natural Science Foundation of Inner Mongolia, China (2019MS3001), the Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China and USA (31761123001-1) and the Central Public-Interest Scientific Institution Basal Research Fund (Grant no. 1610332018006, 1610332015020, and 1610332016006). This was a key project of the Science and Technology Ministry of Inner Mongolia entitled “Grass and Livestock Resource-Saving Production System and Sustainable Development Mode of Ecologically Vulnerable Areas” ([2018]1351).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Grassland Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hohhot, 010010, China

    Zhen Wang, Risu Na, Xiliang Li, Na Ta, Ke Jin & Hai Wang

  2. Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology and Restoration of Ministry of Agriculture, Hohhot, 010010, China

    Zhen Wang

  3. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, 35B Takeru Higuchi Hall, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA

    Liz Koziol

  4. Semiarid Prairie Agricultural Research Center (SPARC), AAFC-AAC, 1030, Swift Current, Saskatchewan, S9H 3X2, Canada

    Michael P. Schellenberg

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  1. Zhen Wang
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Fig. S1

The effects of N additions and altered precipitation on bacterial alpha diversity using the Chao 1 richness index (a), Shannon–Wiener index (b), and Simpson’s diversity index (c) in the control (CK), decreased precipitation (DP), increased precipitation (IP), N addition (CN), decreased precipitation plus N addition (DN), and increased precipitation plus N addition (IN) treatments. Values represent mean ± standard error (n = 4). (PNG 82 kb)

High Resolution Image (TIF 188 kb)

Fig. S2

Multivariate regression tree analysis of bacterial alpha diversity indices (Chao1 richness estimator index, Shannon diversity index, and the Simpson index) and soil physicochemical variables. Bars plotted under each cluster represent the bacterial alpha diversity. The distribution patterns of bacterial diversity value represent the difference of bacterial alpha diversity among each split. Treatment names and the number of soil samples included in the analysis are shown under each bar plot. (PNG 87 kb)

Fig. S3

Structural equation models showing the direct and indirect effects on bacterial microbial community structure under N addition (a), decreased precipitation (DP) (b) and increased precipitation (IP) (c) on soil microbial community composition through affecting abiotic and biotic factors. Solid arrows indicate positive relationships and arrows indicate negative relationships. The thickness of solid and dashed arrows represents significant (P < 0.05, marked *; P < 0.01, marked **; P < 0.001, marked *** in the figure) and non-significant (P > 0.05) paths. Values associated with arrows represent standardized path coefficients. The abbreviations of the explanatory variables are as follows: SW, soil water content; SR, plant species richness number; ANPP: plant aboveground net primary productivity; pH, soil pH value; TN, soil total nitrogen content. (PNG 166 kb)

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Wang, Z., Na, R., Koziol, L. et al. Response of bacterial communities and plant-mediated soil processes to nitrogen deposition and precipitation in a desert steppe. Plant Soil 448, 277–297 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04424-4

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