Influence of land use on bacterial and archaeal diversity and community structures in three natural ecosystems and one agricultural soil

Abstract

Studying shifts in microbial communities under different land use can help in determining the impact of land use on microbial diversity. In this study, we analyzed four different land-use types to determine their bacterial and archaeal diversity and abundance. Three natural ecosystems, that is, wetland (WL), grassland (GL), and forest (FR) soils, and one agricultural soil, that is, tea plantation (TP) soil, were investigated to determine how land use shapes bacterial and archaeal diversity. For this purpose, molecular analyses, such as quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR), 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP), were used. Soil physicochemical properties were determined, and statistical analyses were performed to identify the key factors affecting microbial diversity in these soils. Phylogenetic affiliations determined using the Ribosomal Database Project (RDP) database and T-RFLP revealed that the soils had differing bacterial diversity. WL soil was rich in only Proteobacteria, whereas GR soil was rich in Proteobacteria, followed by Actinobacteria. FR soil had higher abundance of Chloroflexi species than these soils. TP soil was rich in Actinobacteria, followed by Chloroflexi, Acidobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Firmicutes. The archaeal diversity of GL and FR soils was similar in that most of their sequences were closely related to Nitrososphaerales (Thaumarchaeota phylum). In contrast, WL soil, followed by TP soil, had greater archaeal diversity than other soils. Eight different archaeal classes were found in WL soil, and Pacearchaeota class was the richest one. The abundance of bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA gene copies in WL and GL soils was significantly higher than that in FR and TP soils. Redundancy analysis showed that bacterial diversity was influenced by abiotic factors, e.g., total organic carbon and pH, whereas total nitrogen, pH, and cation exchange capacity (CEC) significantly affected archaeal community composition. Pearson correlation analysis showed that bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA gene abundance had the highest correlation with clay content (r > 0.905, P < 0.01), followed by total-P, CEC, pH, and silt (%). These results will lead to more comprehensive understanding of how land use affects microbial distribution.

Sustainability of Urban Soil Management: Analysis of Soil Physicochemical Properties and Bacterial Community Structure under Different Green Space Types

“…This study explored soil physicochemical properties and bacterial communities from different sites under different green space types in Beijing: PARK, RESID, ATTACH and STREET. It is well known that soil physicochemical properties can be affected greatly by land use types in agriculture and forests [9,29,30]. Similar findings were found in this study: green space types play critical roles in the maintenance of soil physicochemical properties especially in soil total nitrogen, pH value, soil organic matter and soil moisture content by affecting management practices.…”

Dynamics of Bacterial Communities in a 30-Year Fertilized Paddy Field under Different Organic–Inorganic Fertilization Strategies

“…Additionally, there were significant correlations between the bacterial 16S rDNA gene abundance and soil pH, TN content, and SOC content, which further indicated that these soil properties might be the key factors affecting the bacterial abundance in this study. Bacteria played important roles in soil nutrient cycles [8,10,13], and higher bacterial 16S rDNA gene abundance implied that there might be more bacteria participating in soil N, P, and K cycling and supplying more available N, P, and K resources for rice plants and indirectly influencing the rice production.…”

Spatial Distribution Patterns of Root-Associated Bacterial Communities Mediated by Root Exudates in Different Aged Ratooning Tea Monoculture Systems

“…Our results showed no significant difference in the soil nutrients (N, P, and K).Only soil pH significantly decreased in the 30-year-old tea plantation when compared with the bulk soil and the two-year-old tea field, which resulted in lowering the abundance of rhizospheric microbiota, such as Actinobacteria , Cyanobacteria , Chloroflexi , and WD272 [ 35 ], and showed direct association with Nitrospirae , Gemmatimonadetes , and Acidobacteria. On the other hand, Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes were the most dominant bacterial group present in the 30-year-old tea plantation [ 43 , 44 ], which may be because these bacterial taxa prefer to live in a root vicinity with nutrient deficiency, high soil moisture (MOS), and lower pH. Previous studies on bacterial communities have clearly shown that nutrient deficiency did not significantly impact the soil microbiota, however soil pH was proven to be the most influential factor in shaping the soil microbiota [ 45 , 46 , 47 ].…”