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Circadian methane oxidation in the root zone of rice plants

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Abstract

In the root zone of rice plants aerobic methanotrophic bacteria catalyze the oxidation of CH4 to CO2, thereby reducing CH4 emissions from paddy soils to the atmosphere. However, methods for in situ quantification of microbial processes in paddy soils are scarce. Here we adapted the push–pull tracer-test (PPT) method to quantify CH4 oxidation in the root zone of potted rice plants. During a PPT, a test solution containing CH4 ± O2 as reactant(s), Cl− and Ar as nonreactive tracers, and BES as an inhibitor of CH4 production was injected into the root zone at different times throughout the circadian cycle (daytime, early nighttime, late nighttime). After a 2-h incubation phase, the test solution/pore-water mixture was extracted from the same location and rates of CH4 oxidation were calculated from the ratio of measured reactant and nonreactive tracer concentrations. In separate rice pots, O2 concentrations in the vicinity of rice roots were measured throughout the circadian cycle using a fiber-optic sensor. Results indicated highly variable CH4 oxidation rates following a circadian pattern. Mean rates at daytime and early nighttime varied from 62 up to 451 μmol l−1 h−1, whereas at late nighttime CH4 oxidation rates were low, ranging from 13 to 37 μmol l−1 h−1. Similarly, daytime O2 concentration in the vicinity of rice roots increased to up to 250% air saturation, while nighttime O2 concentration dropped to below detection (<0.15% air saturation). Our results suggest a functional link between root-zone CH4 oxidation and photosynthetic O2 supply.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Christof Sautter and his team for the cultivation of the rice plants, and Ruben Kretzschmar (all at ETH Zurich) for providing the climate chamber. Funding for this project was provided by ETH Zurich through grant no. TH-20 06-3.

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  1. Institute of Biogeochemistry and Pollutant Dynamics, ETH Zurich, Universitätstrasse 16, 8092, Zurich, Switzerland

    R. Cho, M. H. Schroth & J. Zeyer

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  1. R. Cho
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  2. M. H. Schroth
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Correspondence to M. H. Schroth.

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Cho, R., Schroth, M.H. & Zeyer, J. Circadian methane oxidation in the root zone of rice plants. Biogeochemistry 111, 317–330 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-011-9651-6

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