Do microorganism stoichiometric alterations affect carbon sequestration in paddy soil subjected to phosphorus input?

Ecological stoichiometry provides a powerful tool for integrating microbial biomass stoichiometry with ecosystem processes, opening far-reaching possibilities for linking microbial dynamics to soil carbon (C) metabolism in response to agricultural nutrient management. Despite its importance to crop yield, the role of phosphorus (P) with respect to ecological stoichiometry and soil C sequestration in paddy fields remains poorly understood, which limits our ability to predict nutrient-related soil C cycling. Here, we collected soil samples from a paddy field experiment after 7 years of superphosphate application along a gradient of 0, 30, 60, 90 (P-0 through P-90, respectively) kg P ha-1 y-1 in order to evaluate the role of exogenous P on soil C sequestration through regulating microbial stoichiometry. P fertilization increased soil total organic C and labile organic C by 1-14% and 4-96%, respectively, while rice yield is a function of the activities of soil β-1, 4-glucosidase (BG), acid ...