Bioavailability and speciation of
arsenic (As) are impacted by
fertilization and bacteria in the rice rhizosphere. In this study,
we investigated the effects of long-term manure application on As
bioavailability, microbial community structure, and functional genes
in a rice paddy field. The results showed that manure application
did not affect total As in the soil but increased soluble As forms
by 19%, increasing arsenite (As(III)) accumulation in rice grains
and roots by 34 and 64% compared to a control. A real-time quantitative
polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and high-throughput sequencing analysis
demonstrated that manure application increased the relative abundance
of Rhizobium, Burkholderia, Sphingobium, and Sphingomonas containing
arsenate reductase genes (arsC) in the rhizosphere
soil, consistent with the 529% increase in arsC,
which may have promoted arsenate (As(V)) reduction and increased As
availability in pore water. In addition, manure application significantly
altered the iron (Fe)-plaque microbial community structure and diversity.
The microbes, particularly, Bradyrhizobium, Burkholderia, and Ralstonia, were mostly
associated with As, Fe, and sulfur (S) cycles. This result was consistent
with changes in the functional genes related to As, Fe, and S transformation.
Although manure application promoted As(V) reduction (arsC) in Fe-plaque by 682%, it inhibited Fe and S reduction by decreasing
FeIII reduction bacteria (Geobacteraceae) and the sulfate-reducing
gene (dsrA) abundance. Further, manure application
changed the composition of the microbial community that contained
the arsC gene. In short, caution needs to be excised
even in the soil with a low As concentration as manure application
increased As(III) accumulation in rice grains.
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