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Soil conditioners improve Cd-contaminated farmland soil microbial communities to inhibit Cd accumulation in rice

ZHAO Jun-yang, LU Hua-ming, QIN Shu-tao, PAN Peng, TANG Shi-de, CHEN Li-hong, WANG Xue-li, TANG Fang-yu, TAN Zheng-long, WEN Rong-hui, HE Bing

2023, 22 (8): 2521-2535. DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2023.02.023

Abstract （208） PDF in ScienceDirect

The addition of silicon (Si) and organic fertilizers to soil conditioners can inhibit the transfer of heavy metal ions from soil to crops. However, it is not clear how Si and organic fertilizers affect soil properties and the micro-ecological environment and thereby reduce cadmium (Cd) accumulation in rice. In this study, the effects of L-type soil conditioners containing Si and organic fertilizers on bacterial and fungal community diversity, soil pH, organic matter, and available Si were analyzed with field experiments at two sites in Liuzhou City and Hezhou City, respectively, in Guangxi, China. With the increase of Si and organic fertilizer content in soil conditioner, rice yield respectively increased by 16.8–25.8 and 6.8–13.1%, and rice Cd content decreased significantly by 8.2–21.1 and 10.8–40.6%, respectively, at the two experimental sites. Soil microbiome analysis showed that the increase in abundance of Firmicutes and Actinobacteriota bacteria associated with Cd adsorption and sequestration, and Basidiomycota fungal populations associated with degradation of macromolecules favored the inhibition of soil Cd activity (soil exchangeable Cd decreased by 14.4–14.8 and 18.1–20.6%). This was associated with an increase in organic matter and Si content caused by applying soil conditioners. In conclusion, L-type soil conditioners, rich in Si and organic fertilizer, can reduce soil Cd bioavailability by regulating the dominant Cd passivating flora in the soil and ultimately reduce Cd accumulation in rice.

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Occurrence pattern and morphological polymorphism of weedy rice in China

WANG Hao-quan, DAI Wei-min, ZHANG Zi-xu, LI Meng-shuo, MENG Ling-chao, ZHANG Zheng, LU Huan, SONG Xiao-ling, QIANG Sheng

2023, 22 (1): 149-169. DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2022.08.001

Abstract （303） PDF in ScienceDirect

Rice, the main food crop in China, has been sporadically reported to suffer from weedy rice infestation. However, the overall occurrence and distribution pattern of Chinese weedy rice remains unclear because a systematic survey has not been conducted. In order to reveal the infestation of Chinese weedy rice, a field survey was conducted in 999 sampling sites all over the rice-growing regions in China from 2009 to 2016 using seven-scale visual scoring of the level of weed infestation. Weedy rice was found 39% occurrence incidence in a total of 387 sites. The sampling sites with 50% or higher overall weedy rice infestation index mainly radiated from Jiangsu, Heilongjiang, Ningxia and Guangdong to the whole East China, Northeast China, Northwest China and South China. A total of 45 morphological characters from 287 populations (collected simultaneously with the field survey) out of those occurred sites were observed and analyzed using multivariate analysis in common gardens with the same cultivation conditions in 2017 and 2019. Canonical correlation analysis showed that 45 morphological characters were significantly related to the latitude, mean temperature, minimum temperature, precipitation and mean diurnal range factors. The 287 weedy rice populations were divided into three morphological groups with climate-dependent geographical differentiation: strong tiller type only in Jiangsu, large leaf type in South China and Central China and large grain type mainly in North China. Weedy rice seriously infested rice fields and had a geography, climate and cultivated rice type-dependent morphological and biotype differentiation in China. It is suggested to pay attention to the harmfulness of weedy rice and adopt comprehensive control strategies.

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Functional diversity of soil microbial communities in response to supplementing 50% of the mineral N fertilizer with organic fertilizer in an oat field

ZHANG Mei-jun, JIA Ju-qing, LU Hua, FENG Mei-chen, YANG Wu-de

2021, 20 (8): 2255-2264. DOI: 10.1016/S2095-3119(20)63331-7

Abstract （141） PDF in ScienceDirect

The effects of supplementing 50% of the mineral N fertilizer with organic fertilizer on the metabolism and diversity of soil microbial communities in an oat field were investigated using Biolog-Eco plates. The experiment consisted of five treatments: no fertilizer (CK), mineral N fertilizer applied at 90 and 45 kg ha^–1 N in the form of urea (U1 and U2, respectively), and U2 supplemented with organic fertilizer in the form of sheep manure at 90 and 45 kg ha^–1 N (U2OM1 and U2OM2, respectively). Each treatment had three replications. The experiment was conducted in 2018 and 2019 in Pinglu District, Shanxi Province, China. The carbon source utilization by soil microbial communities, such as amino acids, amines, carbohydrates, carboxylic acids, and polymers, increased when 50% of the mineral N fertilizer was replaced with organic fertilizer in both years. This result was accompanied by increased richness, dominance, and evenness of the microbial communities. The utilization of amino acid, amine, and carboxylic acid carbon sources and community evenness were further improved when the organic fertilizer amount was doubled in both years. Biplot analysis indicated that amines and amino acids were the most representative of the total carbon source utilization by the soil microbial communities in both years. The highest oat yield was achieved at a total N application rate of 135 kg ha^–1 in the treatment involving 45 kg ha^–1 N in the form of urea and 90 kg ha^–1 N in the form of sheep manure in both years. It was concluded that the application of 50% of the conventional rate of mineral N fertilizer supplemented with an appropriate rate of organic fertilizer enhanced both the functional diversity of soil microbial communities and oat yield. Amine and amino acid carbon sources may be used as a substitute for total carbon sources for assessing total carbon source utilization by soil microbial communities in oat fields in future studies.

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Exogenous prohexadione-calcium enhances soybean yield under saline-alkali stress by modulating ion homeostasis, ascorbate-glutathione defense and photosynthesis

Minglong Yu, Lu Huang, Aaqil Khan, Naijie Feng, Dianfeng Zheng

DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2025.04.005 Online: 07 April 2025

Abstract （7） PDF in ScienceDirect

Prohexadione-calcium (Pro-Ca) has been shown to positively regulate crop tolerance to saline-alkali stress. However, the optimal concentration for Pro-Ca application and the mechanisms through which it enhances saline-alkali tolerance and yield in soybean remain unclear. This study aimed to determine the optimal concentration of exogenously applied Pro-Ca and revealed the mechanisms underlying Pro-Ca’s effect on remediation and yield response in soybean under saline-alkali stress. The results indicated that saline-alkali stress negatively impacted the morphological and physiological traits of soybean seedlings by triggering the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), leading to oxidative damage of the grana lamellae due to excessive accumulation of Na⁺. An application of 100 mg L⁻¹ Pro-Ca was found to be optimal, promoting dry matter accumulation and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) by significantly reducing Na⁺ uptake under saline-alkali stress. Moreover, integrated physiological, ultrastructural, and transcriptomic analyses indicated that Pro-Ca significantly enhanced the ascorbate-glutathione (AsA-GSH) cycle by up-regulating the expression of related genes to enhance the activities of ascorbate peroxidase (APX), glutathione reductase (GR), dehydroascorbate reductase (DHAR), monodehydroascorbate reductase (MDHAR), and the AsA/DHA and GSH/GSSG ratios to quench ROS, thereby protecting both thylakoid and mitochondrial membrane from degradation. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) encoding ascorbate and aldarate metabolism were significantly (P<0.05) enriched in the integral component of membrane. Furthermore, Pro-Ca treatment up-regulated the expression of genes encoded photosystems under saline-alkali stress, which reduced the photoinhibition and stomatal limitation (L_s) and mitigating damage photosystem and preventing yield reduction. In summary, foliar application of Pro-Ca could efficiently enhance soybean seedlings tolerance to saline-alkali stress by inhibiting Na⁺ influx, enhancing the AsA-GSH cycle, maintaining biomembrane system, and improving photosynthetic efficiency.

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