Letter abstract
Nature Geoscience 1, 836 - 839 (2008)
Published online: 23 November 2008 | doi:10.1038/ngeo361
Subject Categories: Biogeochemistry | Climate science
Increased cuticular carbon sequestration and lignin oxidation in response to soil warming
Xiaojuan Feng1, André J. Simpson1, Kevin P. Wilson2, D. Dudley Williams2 & Myrna J. Simpson1
Rising temperatures are predicted to accelerate the decomposition of labile soil organic compounds such as proteins and carbohydrates, whereas biochemically resistant compounds, such as lipids from leaf cuticles and roots and lignin from woody tissues, are expected to remain stable on decadal to centennial timescales1, 2. However, the extent to which soil warming changes the molecular composition of soil organic matter is poorly understood3, 4. Here we examine the impact of soil warming in a mixed temperate forest on the molecular make-up of soil organic matter. We show that the abundance of leaf-cuticle-derived compounds is increased following 14 months of soil warming; we confirm this with nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of soil organic matter extracts. In contrast, we find that the abundance of lignin-derived compounds is decreased after the same treatment, while soil fungi, the primary decomposers of lignin in soil5, increase in abundance. We conclude that future warming could alter the composition of soil organic matter at the molecular level, accelerating lignin degradation and increasing leaf-cuticle-derived carbon sequestration. With annual litterfall predicted to increase in the world's major forests with a 3 °C warming6, we suggest that future warming may enhance the sequestration of cuticular carbon in soil.
- Department of Physical and Environmental Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M1C 1A4, Canada
Correspondence to: Myrna J. Simpson1 e-mail: myrna.simpson@utoronto.ca
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