Who is who in necromass formation and stabilization in soil? The role of fungi and bacteria as complementary players of biogeochemical functioning

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9n98-2026-01-15_09_37_56-lepori-et-al-2025-who-is-who-in-necromass-formation-and-stabilization-in-soil-the-role-of-fungi-and-bacteria-as-complementary-playe.pdf

Abstract

Multiple global change drivers have caused a large carbon debt in our soils. To remedy this debt, understanding the role of microorganisms in soil carbon cycling is crucial to tackle the carbon soil loss. Microbial carbon use efficiency is a parameter that captures the formation of microbially-derived soil organic matter. While it is known that biotic and abiotic drivers influence carbon use efficiency, it remains unclear whether bacteria, fungi and their interactions influence the formation of microbially-derived soil organic carbon and its persistence in soils. Here, we combined the inoculation of distinct communities grown at different moisture levels to manipulate the formation of microbial necromass in a model soil. In a follow-up experiment, we then evaluated the persistence of this previously formed microbially-derived carbon to decomposition. While we show that necromass formation reflects the microbial community composition, the soil organic carbon formed within the most complex community of bacteria and fungi seems to be more resistant to decomposition compared to the soil organic carbon formed within the simpler communities bacteria and fungi simple community, bacteria only and fungi only communities. Moreover, fungal necromass proved to be more thermally-stable than bacterial necromass, if this necromass is formed with both bacteria and fungi present. Our findings reveal that although abiotic factors can influence microbial physiology, the biological origin of microbially-derived carbon and the co-occurrence of fungal and bacterial growth were the stronger drivers explaining soil organic matter persistence in these soils, suggesting the importance of microbial succession in soil organic carbon stabilization.

Introduction

Materials and methods Model soil, inoculation, and incubation conditions

Experiment phase one: formation of microbially-derived soil organic matter

Cumulative respiration

Growth, respiration, and community uptake efficiency measurements

Soil organic matter quantity and quality

Microbial necromass produced during incubation

Density fractionation

Experiment phase two: Persistence of microbially-derived SOM

Statistical analysis

Results Microbial activity and formation of microbial-derived residues during FMSOC

Microorganisms' influence on SOM formation and its thermal stability

Evaluating the dynamics and persistence of SOM of distinct microbial origin during the second incubation

Discussion

Soil necromass formation and persistence |

Author contributions

Conflicts of interest

Funding

Data and code availability

Overview

The study explores how distinct microbial communities influence the persistence of soil organic matter and the formation of microbially-derived carbon, emphasizing the importance of fungal and bacterial interactions in soil carbon stabilization.

Key Points

1Understanding microbial roles is crucial for addressing soil carbon debt
2Complex microbial communities can enhance soil organic carbon persistence
3Fungal necromass is thermally-stable compared to bacterial necromass
4Abiotic factors significantly influence microbial interactions and carbon dynamics
5The study provides insights into sustainable soil management practices.

Details

Authors: Lepori et al.
Category: Biology and Natural Sciences

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