Combined Effects of Drying–Rewetting and Ammonium Addition on Methanotrophs in Agricultural Soil: A Microcosm Study

Irina K. Kravchenko (), Aleksei O. Zverev, Liana G. Gogmachadze and Aleksey L. Stepanov
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Irina K. Kravchenko: Winogradsky Institute of Microbiology, Research Center of Biotechnology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow 119071, Russia
Aleksei O. Zverev: All-Russian Research Institute for Agricultural Microbiology (ARRIAM), Saint Petersburg 196608, Russia
Liana G. Gogmachadze: Faculty of Soil Science, Moscow State University, Moscow 119192, Russia
Aleksey L. Stepanov: Faculty of Soil Science, Moscow State University, Moscow 119192, Russia

Agriculture, 2024, vol. 14, issue 12, 1-17

Abstract: Oxidation of methane by soil microorganisms is an important mechanism controlling the content of this potent greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Agricultural soils operate under stressful conditions, and ammonium (N-fertilization) and drying (global warming) may have a significant impact on methane oxidation. In order to investigate how soil methanotrophs respond to drying–rewetting (DW), ammonium addition (100 mg/g) (A), and their combined action (MS), agricultural soil microcosms were incubated over the three months and methane oxidation was measured before and after perturbations, while community composition was monitoring using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. A significant decline in the methane-oxidation activity after perturbations was found, with subsequent restoration, and the combined treatment was more effective than the sum of individual treatments, indicating a synergistic effect. After rewetting, the structure of the bacterial community returned to pre-dry-down levels, but the application of ammonia and combined action lead to irreversible changes in the structure of soil methanotrophic communities. Methanotroph Methylomicrobium were significantly reduced under disturbances, while there was a significant increase in the representation of Methylobacter accompanied by the facultative methylotroph Methylovorus . We concluded that methanotrophic communities in agricultural soil demonstrated flexibility, and even when the abundance of dominant populations drops, ecosystem functions can recover.

Keywords: agricultural soils; methane oxidation; stress effect; ammonium; drying–rewetting; synergistic effect; 16S rRNA sequencing; soil microbiota (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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