Response of activity and community composition of nitrite-oxidizing bacteria to partial substitution of chemical fertilizer by organic fertilizer

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 28; no. 23; pp. 29332 - 29343
• Main Authors: Liang, Fei, Wen, Yongkang, Dong, Xiao, Wang, Yiyao, Pan, Guangyuan, Jiang, Fangying, Luo, Huaying, Jin, Wenjun, Wang, Jun, Song, He
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.06.2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Abundance; Agrochemicals; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Bacteria; Community composition; Community structure; Crop yield; disturbed soils; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Fertilization; Fertilizers; field experimentation; mineral fertilizers; Nitrification; Nitrites; Nitrobacter; Nitrobacter hamburgensis; Nitrogen; Nitrospira; Organic fertilizers; Organic matter; Organic nitrogen; Oxidation; Relative abundance; Research Article; Soil fertility; Soil organic matter; Soils; Substitutes; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Chemical fertilizer; Nitrobacter; Organic fertilizer; Nitrospira; Nitrification
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-020-12038-7

Nitrite oxidation as the second step of nitrification can become the determining step in disturbed soil systems. As a beneficial fertilization practice to maintain high crop yield and soil fertility, partial substitution of chemical fertilizer (CF) by organic fertilizer (OF) may exert a notable disturbance to soil systems. However, how nitrite oxidation responds to different proportions of CF to OF is still unclear. We sampled soils from a 4-year field experiment subject to a gradient of increasing proportions of OF to CF application. Activity, size, and structure of Nitrospira -like and Nitrobacter -like nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) community were measured. The results revealed that with increasing proportion of OF to CF application, potential nitrite oxidation activity (PNO) showed a marked decreasing trend. PNO was significantly correlated with the abundance of Nitrobacter -like but not Nitrospira -like NOB. The abundance of Nitrobacter -like was significantly influenced by soil organic matter, organic nitrogen (N), and available N. In addition, PNO was also affected by the structure of Nitrobacter -like NOB. The relative abundance of Nitrobacter hamburgensis , alkalicus , winogradskyi , and vulgaris responded differently to the proportions of OF to CF application. Organic N, organic matter, and available N were the main factor shaping their community structure. Overall, Nitrobacter -like NOB is more sensitive and plays a more important role than Nitrospira -like NOB in responding to different proportions of OF to CF application.