Conversion of upland to paddy alters the spatial distribution and abundance of microorganisms involved in the soil nitrogen cycle

Microorganisms are pivotal in regulating the soil nitrogen cycle (N-cycling). However, a significant gap in knowledge exists concerning changes in gene abundance and microbial communities driving this cycle. This gap is pronounced in the spatial distribution of land use in the northeastern black soil zone in northeast China, where nitrogen limits productivity. Hence, we explored bacterial-mediated nitrogen cycling in converted Mollisols, transitioning from upland to paddy fields. We assessed functional gene abundances and key functional groups through quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and Miseq sequencing, respectively.

微生物在调控土壤氮循环（N-cycling）中发挥着至关重要的作用。然而，目前学界对驱动该循环的基因丰度变化与微生物群落动态仍存在显著的认知空白。这一空白在中国东北黑土区的土地利用空间分布格局中尤为突出，该区域氮素是作物生产力的限制因子。因此，本研究针对由旱田转为水田的软土（Mollisols）中细菌介导的氮循环展开探究。本研究分别通过实时荧光定量聚合酶链式反应（qPCR）与Miseq测序技术，对功能基因丰度与关键功能类群进行了评估。