Nitrogen deposition effects on soil organic matter chemistry are linked to variation in enzymes, ecosystems and size fractions

Grandy, A. Stuart; Sinsabaugh, Robert L.; Neff, Jason C.; Štursová, Martina; Zak, Donald R.

doi:10.1007/s10533-008-9257-9

Cited by 120 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 53 publications

(52 reference statements)

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“…It could be that C accrual in our grassland soils partly results from the N-induced suppression of heterotrophic respiration (Janssens et al 2010;Lu et al 2011) and the inhibition of some extracellular enzyme activities (Ramirez et al 2012), including the activity of lignin-degrading enzymes as has been observed in forest ecosystems. Grandy et al (2008) found that although chronic N deposition can stimulate BG activity it could also increase the ratio of lignin derivatives to polysaccharides, which is ultimately related to C accrual in forest soils.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Chronic nitrogen fertilization and carbon sequestration in grassland soils: evidence of a microbial enzyme link

et al. 2015

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Chronic nitrogen (N) fertilization can greatly affect soil carbon (C) sequestration by altering biochemical interactions between plant detritus and soil microbes. In lignin-rich forest soils, chronic N additions tend to increase soil C content partly by decreasing the activity of lignin-degrading enzymes. In cellulose-rich grassland soils it is not clear whether cellulose-degrading enzymes are also inhibited by N additions and what consequences this might have on changes in soil C content. Here we address whether chronic N fertilization has affected (1) the C content of light versus heavier soil fractions, and (2) the activity of four extracellular enzymes including the C-acquiring enzyme b-1,4-glucosidase (BG; necessary for cellulose hydrolysis). We found that 19 years of chronic N-only addition to permanent grassland have significantly increased soil C sequestration in heavy but not in light soil density fractions, and this C accrual was associated with a significant increase (and not decrease) of BG activity. Chronic N fertilization may increase BG activity because greater N availability reduces root C:N ratios thus increasing microbial demand for C, which is met by C inputs from enhanced root C pools in N-only fertilized soils. However, BG activity and total root mass strongly decreased in high pH soils under the application of lime (i.e. CaCO 3 ), which reduced the ability of these organo-mineral soils to gain more C per units of N added. Our study is the first to show a potential 'enzyme link' between (1) long-term additions of inorganic N to grassland soils, and (2) the greater C content of organo-mineral soil fractions. Our new hypothesis is that the 'enzyme link' occurs because (a) BG activity is stimulated by increased microbial C demand relative to N under chronic fertilization, and (b) increased BG activity causes more C from roots and from microbial Responsible Editor: Sharon A. Billings. Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Chronic nitrogen fertilization and carbon sequestration in grassland soils: evidence of a microbial enzyme link

et al. 2015

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“…Analysis of EEA offers a means of relating functional organization of microbial communities to environmental variables (Alvarez and Guerrero 2000). Numerous reports revealed that soil EEA exhibited significant responses to N additions (e.g., Saiya-Cork et al 2002;Sinsabaugh et al 2005;Grandy et al 2008;Wang et al 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mixed Inorganic and Organic Nitrogen Addition Enhanced Extracellular Enzymatic Activities in a Subtropical Forest Soil in East China

Guo

Wang

Feng

et al. 2010

Water Air Soil Pollut

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To date, numerous studies have employed single type nitrogen (N) addition methods in reporting influences of N deposition on soil extracellular enzymatic activities (EEA) during litter decomposition in forest ecosystems. As natural atmospheric N deposition is a set of complex compounds including inorganic N and organic N, it is essential for investigating responses of soil EEA to various mixed N fertilization. In a subtropical forest stand in Zijin Mountain, East China, various N fertilizers with different inorganic N and organic N ratios were added to soils monthly from 2008 to 2009. Samples were harvested from N fertilized and control plots every 4 months. Subsequently, six EEA were assayed. A laboratory experiment was also conducted simultaneously. Both field and laboratory experiments showed that various mixed N fertilizations revealed different influences on soil EEA. Acceleration of most soil EEA by mixed N fertilization was greater than that of single N fertilization. The majority of soil extracellular enzymes exhibited the highest activities under mixed N fertilization, with the ratio of inorganic N to organic N at 3:7. These results suggested that N type and ratio of inorganic N and organic N were important factors controlling soil EEA, and the 3:7 ratio of inorganic N and organic N may be the optimum for soil EEA.

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“…In the South, the highest N fertilization rate resulted in higher C-residue recovery in the POM fraction (Figure 3), greater N-POM stock (Figure 2), and C-POM amount accretion (compared to the CTR) (Figure 1). Grandy et al (2008) reported that the increased N availability in lignin-rich litter could lead to a higher soil C content, mainly due to the accumulation of lignin-derived compounds in the POM fraction. The greater C accrual in this fraction may have further implications for SOM stabilization.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Probably, the effect of N on the decomposition process may be linked to the response of the microbial community to changes in the C/N and lignin/N ratio (Cotrufo et al, 2013). Furthermore, the consequence of increasing N availability on soil C stabilization depends upon the various chemical changes that occur in each soil organic matter (SOM) fraction (Grandy et al, 2008). For instance, the addition of mineral N induced higher C accumulation in recalcitrant SOM fraction and reduced the soil labile C:recalcitrant C ratio of temperate forests (Du et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contribution of Eucalyptus Harvest Residues and Nitrogen Fertilization to Carbon Stabilization in Ultisols of Southern Bahia

Oliveira

Silva

Ferreira

et al. 2018

Rev. Bras. Ciênc. Solo

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Eucalyptus forests in southern Bahia (BA) are planted in soils with a sandy surface layer and humid tropical climate, conditions that lead to soil carbon (C) decomposition. Recent studies have shown that nitrogen (N) may be important for soil C stabilization. The aim of this study was to evaluate the contribution of Eucalyptus harvest residues and nitrogen fertilization to C stabilization in Ultisols of southern BA. The experiment was conducted in Eucalyptus clonal plantations cultivated in two regions of Eunápolis, BA, Brazil, with different clay content: southern region (140 g kg -1 of clay) and western region (310 g kg -1 of clay). Five treatments were evaluated: one control (CTR), without Eucalyptus harvest residues and N fertilization, and four treatments with harvest residues combined with four rates of N fertilization: 0, 25, 50, and 100 kg ha N) of particulate organic matter (POM) and mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) were determined. In the southern region after 36 months, the C-MAOM stocks in the 0.00-0.10 m layer of the CTR decreased by 33 %. The addition of harvest residue followed by 100 kg ha -1 N increased C-POM and N-POM stocks (0.00-0.10 m) compared to the CTR, and the final N-POM stocks and residue-C recovery in the surface soil layer were positively correlated with the increase in N fertilization rates. In the western region, residue maintenance resulted in increased C-MAOM stocks (0.00-0.10 m) compared to the CTR, but an increase in N availability reduced this increment. The increase in N fertilization rates did not alter C stocks, but reduced N stocks of POM and MAOM in the upper soil layer. At the end of the experiment, N fertilizer recovery (0.00-0.60 m) was similar among the regions evaluated. In soil with lower clay content, higher N availability led to higher C and N stocks in the particulate fraction. In soils with high clay content, physical and chemical protections are more important than N fertilization for soil C stabilization, and just maintaining harvest residues may suffice to increase C and N in the more stable SOM fraction.

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Nitrogen deposition effects on soil organic matter chemistry are linked to variation in enzymes, ecosystems and size fractions

Cited by 120 publications

References 53 publications

Chronic nitrogen fertilization and carbon sequestration in grassland soils: evidence of a microbial enzyme link

Chronic nitrogen fertilization and carbon sequestration in grassland soils: evidence of a microbial enzyme link

Mixed Inorganic and Organic Nitrogen Addition Enhanced Extracellular Enzymatic Activities in a Subtropical Forest Soil in East China

Contribution of Eucalyptus Harvest Residues and Nitrogen Fertilization to Carbon Stabilization in Ultisols of Southern Bahia

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