Differential Effects of Nitrogen Chemical Forms on Soil Bacterial Communities and Ecosystem Multifunctionality in a Temperate Meadow Steppe

TY - JOUR

T1 - Differential Effects of Nitrogen Chemical Forms on Soil Bacterial Communities and Ecosystem Multifunctionality in a Temperate Meadow Steppe

AU - Ma, Jian Guo

AU - Liu, He Yong

AU - Sardans, Jordi

AU - Ochoa-Hueso, Raúl

AU - Yang, Guo Jiao

AU - Yergeau, Étienne

AU - Peñuelas, Josep

AU - Xiao-Tao, L.

AU - Wang, Zheng Wen

AU - Han, Xing Guo

AU - Wang, Xiao Bo

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2025 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

PY - 2025/12

Y1 - 2025/12

N2 - Understanding the impact of nitrogen (N) enrichment on soil microbial community and its associations with ecosystem functionality is crucial, given rising global atmospheric N deposition and even greater agricultural inputs. Most previous studies simulating N deposition used single N species, yet the specific effects of different N forms are not fully understood. This limitation hinders our capacity to link changes in soil microbial communities with ecosystem multifunctionality and to assess the impact of atmospheric N deposition on ecosystem services. To bridge this knowledge gap, our study, conducted from 2016 to 2018 in a typical temperate grassland in Inner Mongolia, China, evaluated the differential effects of the addition of four N forms—ammonium bicarbonate (AC), ammonium nitrate (AN), ammonium sulfate (AS), and urea (UR)—on soil bacterial community structure and function, taxonomic interactions, and ecosystem multifunctionality. These forms were applied at five levels (0, 2, 10, 20, and 50 g N m−2 year−1) with five replicates as part of a long-term experiment. Our findings reveal that N forms in combination with increased N loading differentially influence bacterial community structure and functional characteristics, and co-occurrence networks, alongside ecosystem multifunctionality. Notably, AN/AS significantly reduced bacterial taxonomic and functional diversity and network complexity, unlike AC, which showed minimal changes. The alteration in bacterial community structure and function under AN/AS was more significantly linked to changes in ecosystem multifunctionality than those under AC/UR, with AC having minimal connections. Additionally, keystone taxa responded differently to N levels and showed varied correlations with ecosystem multifunctionality. These results underscore the distinct effects of different N forms on soil bacterial communities and their cascading influence on ecosystem multifunctionality, emphasizing the need for management practices targeted to the specific chemical species of N deposition and fertilization.

AB - Understanding the impact of nitrogen (N) enrichment on soil microbial community and its associations with ecosystem functionality is crucial, given rising global atmospheric N deposition and even greater agricultural inputs. Most previous studies simulating N deposition used single N species, yet the specific effects of different N forms are not fully understood. This limitation hinders our capacity to link changes in soil microbial communities with ecosystem multifunctionality and to assess the impact of atmospheric N deposition on ecosystem services. To bridge this knowledge gap, our study, conducted from 2016 to 2018 in a typical temperate grassland in Inner Mongolia, China, evaluated the differential effects of the addition of four N forms—ammonium bicarbonate (AC), ammonium nitrate (AN), ammonium sulfate (AS), and urea (UR)—on soil bacterial community structure and function, taxonomic interactions, and ecosystem multifunctionality. These forms were applied at five levels (0, 2, 10, 20, and 50 g N m−2 year−1) with five replicates as part of a long-term experiment. Our findings reveal that N forms in combination with increased N loading differentially influence bacterial community structure and functional characteristics, and co-occurrence networks, alongside ecosystem multifunctionality. Notably, AN/AS significantly reduced bacterial taxonomic and functional diversity and network complexity, unlike AC, which showed minimal changes. The alteration in bacterial community structure and function under AN/AS was more significantly linked to changes in ecosystem multifunctionality than those under AC/UR, with AC having minimal connections. Additionally, keystone taxa responded differently to N levels and showed varied correlations with ecosystem multifunctionality. These results underscore the distinct effects of different N forms on soil bacterial communities and their cascading influence on ecosystem multifunctionality, emphasizing the need for management practices targeted to the specific chemical species of N deposition and fertilization.

KW - ecosystem function

KW - keystone taxa

KW - network complexity

KW - nitrogen compounds

KW - nitrogen deposition

KW - soil microorganisms

U2 - 10.1111/gcb.70648

DO - 10.1111/gcb.70648

M3 - Article

C2 - 41376491

AN - SCOPUS:105024579734

SN - 1354-1013

VL - 31

JO - Global Change Biology

JF - Global Change Biology

IS - 12

M1 - e70648

ER -