Soil fungi remain active and invest in storage compounds during drought independent of future climate conditions

2024/11/29 by Alberto Canarini, Lucia Fuchslueger, Jörg Schnecker +8 · 1 voice · 4 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Environmental Science · #Gut microbiota and health #Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology #Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics

paper · pdf · doi:10.1038/s41467-024-54537-y

openalex publication_date 2024/11/29 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30

Abstract

Abstract Microbial growth is central to soil carbon cycling. However, how microbial communities grow under climate change is still largely unexplored. Here we use a unique field experiment simulating future climate conditions (increased atmospheric CO 2 and temperature) and drought concomitantly and investigate impacts on soil microbial activity. We trace 2 H or 18 O applied via water-vapor exchange into membrane (and storage) fatty acids or DNA, respectively, to assess community- and group-level adjustments in soil microbial physiology (replication, storage product synthesis, and carbon use efficiency). We show that, while bacterial growth decreases by half during drought, fungal growth remains stable, demonstrating a remarkable resistance against soil moisture changes. In addition, fungal investment into storage triglycerides increases more than five-fold under drought. Community-level carbon use efficiency (the balance between anabolism and catabolism) is unaffected by drought but decreases in future climate conditions, favoring catabolism. Our results highlight that accounting for different microbial growth strategies can foster our understanding of soil microbial contributions to carbon cycling and feedback on the climate system.

Citations

• MICROBIAL STRESS-RESPONSE PHYSIOLOGY AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR ECOSYSTEM FUNCTION
• Responses of soil microbial communities to water stress: results from a meta‐analysis
• Use and misuse of PLFA measurements in soils
• Microbial carbon use efficiency promotes global soil carbon storage

Cited by

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• Unraveling complexity in climate change effects on beneficial plant–microbe interactions: mechanisms, resilience, and future directions
• Combining 13C, 15N, and 2H tracers to measure feeding and metabolic activity in marine, shallow-water sponges – A pilot study

Discussions

• Some studies have previously reported that certain microorganisms can travel through smoke and/or dust over long distances, a phenomenon that may increase in regions prone to aridification. Drought do [bsky, 10 points, 0 comments]

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