Soil microbiology articles within Nature Communications

Featured

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Atmospheric methane may be consumed by microorganisms in soil, but the mechanisms behind high-affinity methane oxidization remain poorly understood. Here, Jia et al. show that known methanotrophic bacteria are responsible for atmospheric methane uptake in periodically drained wetland ecosystems.

    • Yuanfeng Cai
    • , Yan Zheng
    •  & Zhongjun Jia

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Soil surface temperature, which affects many biogeochemical processes, depends on soil albedo. Here, Couradeau et al.show that some cyanobacteria can increase the temperature of arid-land soil surface by as much as 10 °C through the accumulation of a sunscreen metabolite.

    • Estelle Couradeau
    • , Ulas Karaoz
    •  & Ferran Garcia-Pichel

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Fitness advantages conferred on species living at low density is thought to be one mechanism by which stable biodiversity is maintained. Here, Liu et al. show that recruitment of seedlings in high-density populations of a subtropical tree is suppressed by soil pathogens, with little effect at low-density.

    • Yu Liu
    • , Suqin Fang
    •  & Fangliang He

  • Review Article
    | Open Access

    Belowground soil biota play key roles in maintaining proper ecosystem functioning, but studies on their extinction ecology are sparse. Here, Veresoglou et al. review the risks to soil biota posed by global change, and highlight the technical challenges involved in identifying extinction events.

    • Stavros D. Veresoglou
    • , John M. Halley
    •  & Matthias C. Rillig

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Production and consumption of metabolites by soil microorganisms are important for nutrient cycling and maintenance of microbial diversity. Here, Baran et al. study metabolite uptake and release by desert soil microorganisms, showing that coexisting microbes can have divergent substrate preferences.

    • Richard Baran
    • , Eoin L. Brodie
    •  & Trent R. Northen

  • Article |

    Dimethylsulphide (DMS) is a volatile compound produced by marine microbes through degradation of dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSP). Here, Carrión et al.describe an alternative pathway for DMS production from methanethiol that is widespread among bacteria, especially from soil environments.

    • O. Carrión
    • , A. R. J. Curson
    •  & J. D. Todd

  • Article |

    In microbial biogeography, little is known about processes involved in soil bacterial diversity turnover. By conducting a wide-scale investigation, this study shows that dispersal limitation and environmental selection of bacteria are not mutually exclusive, highlighting the importance of landscape diversity.

    • L. Ranjard
    • , S. Dequiedt
    •  & P. Lemanceau

  • Article |

    Microbes appear to play an important role in carbon sequestration. Here, the composition of microbial residues in a California grassland with elevated carbon dioxide, warming and nitrogen deposition reveals that warming and nitrogen deposition can both alter the fraction of carbon derived from microbes in soils.

    • Chao Liang
    •  & Teri C. Balser

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