scholarly journals Niche Differentiation of Comammox Nitrospira in the Mudflat and Reclaimed Agricultural Soils Along the North Branch of Yangtze River Estuary

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinxin Wang ◽  
Lu Lu ◽  
Xue Zhou ◽  
Xiufeng Tang ◽  
Lu Kuang ◽  
...  

The discovery of complete ammonia oxidation (comammox), oxidizing ammonia to nitrate via nitrite in a single organism, has redefined the traditional recognition of the two-step nitrification driven by two functional groups (ammonia-oxidizing and nitrite-oxidizing microorganisms). However, the understanding of the distribution and niche differentiation of comammox Nitrospira in the estuarine mudflats and their reclaimed agricultural soils is still limited. Here, we investigated the abundance, diversity and community structures of comammox Nitrospira in the mudflats and the reclaimed agricultural soils in the northern Yangtze River estuary. Quantitative PCR showed the abundances of amoA genes of comammox were lower than that of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) in nearly all samples. Amplicon sequencing of amoA genes revealed that the community structures of comammox Nitrospira were significantly (P < 0.001) different between the original mudflats and the reclaimed agricultural soils, indicating niche differentiation among comammox Nitrospira clades (clade A.1, clade A.2, and clade B). The clade A.1 was the dominant group of comammox Nitrospira in the mudflats, while clade B predominated in the agricultural soils. However, the members of clade A.2 could be clearly divided into two groups, the mudflat-preferred and agricultural soil-preferred groups, suggesting more complicated ecological preferences within this sub-clade. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that salinity, organic matter (OM) and NO3–-N had a significantly influence on the distribution of comammox Nitrospira in the estuarine environment. Clade A.1 and nearly half members of clade A.2 were positively correlated with salinity, and negatively correlated with the concentrations of OM and NO3–-N. In contrast, the clade B and the other half members of clade A.2 showed the exact opposite pattern: a negative correlation with salinity and positive correlation with OM and NO3–-N. The co-occurrence network demonstrated that the operational taxonomic units (OTUs) within the same (sub-)clade were mostly positively correlated, indicating the similar niche preferences among the members from the same (sub-)clade of comammox Nitrospira. Taken together, our results revealed the niche differentiation of comammox Nitrospira in estuarine ecosystems where salinity and OM were the primary factors responsible for the distinct ecological distribution patterns.

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 1875
Author(s):  
Wenping Xie ◽  
Jingsong Yang ◽  
Rongjiang Yao ◽  
Xiangping Wang

Soil salt-water dynamics in the Yangtze River Estuary (YRE) is complex and soil salinity is an obstacle to regional agricultural production and the ecological environment in the YRE. Runoff into the sea is reduced during the impoundment period as the result of the water-storing process of the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, which causes serious seawater intrusion. Soil salinity is a problem due to shallow and saline groundwater under serious seawater intrusion in the YRE. In this research, we focused on the temporal variation and spatial distribution characteristics of soil salinity in the YRE using geostatistics combined with proximally sensed information obtained by an electromagnetic induction (EM) survey method in typical years under the impoundment of the TGR. The EM survey with proximal sensing method was applied to perform soil salinity survey in field in the Yangtze River Estuary, allowing quick determination and quantitative assessment of spatial and temporal variation of soil salinity from 2006 to 2017. We developed regional soil salinity survey and mapping by coupling limited laboratory data with proximal sensed data obtained from EM. We interpreted the soil electrical conductivity by constructing a linear model between the apparent electrical conductivity data measured by an EM 38 device and the soil electrical conductivity (EC) of soil samples measured in laboratory. Then, soil electrical conductivity was converted to soil salt content (soil salinity g kg−1) through established linear regression model based on the laboratory data of soil salinity and soil EC. Semivariograms of regional soil salinity in the survey years were fitted and ordinary kriging interpolation was applied in interpolation and mapping of regional soil salinity. The cross-validation results showed that the prediction results were acceptable. The soil salinity distribution under different survey years was presented and the area of salt affected soil was calculated using geostatistics method. The results of spatial distribution of soil salinity showed that soil salinity near the riverbanks and coastlines was higher than that of inland. The spatial distribution of groundwater depth and salinity revealed that shallow groundwater and high groundwater salinity influenced the spatial distribution characteristics of soil salinity. Under long-term impoundment of the Three Gorges Reservoir, the variation of soil salinity in different hydrological years was analyzed. Results showed that the area affected by soil salinity gradually increased in different hydrological year types under the impoundment of the TGR.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 317
Author(s):  
Wanli Hou ◽  
Menglin Ba ◽  
Jie Bai ◽  
Jianghua Yu

In view of the expansion and directional change mechanisms of Yangtze River water diluted with sea water in the shelf region (also known as Changjiang diluted water [CDW]) during summer and autumn, a three-dimensional hydrodynamic model of the Yangtze River Estuary (YRE) and its adjacent waters was established based on the Finite Volume Community Ocean Model (FVCOM). Compared with the measured data, the model accurately simulates the hydrodynamic characteristics of the YRE. On that basis, the influence of the expansion patterns of the CDW in both summer and autumn was studied. It was found that, in 2019, the CDW expanded to the northeast in the summer and to the southeast in the autumn, and that the route of the CDW is mainly controlled by the wind, not the runoff. Current seasonal winds also change the transportation route of the CDW by affecting its hydrodynamic field. Typhoons are frequent in both summer and autumn, causing abnormalities in both the transportation route and expansion of the CDW. During a typhoon, a large amount of the CDW is transported in a continuous and abnormal manner, accelerating the path turning of the CDW. This paper enhances the existing theoretical research of the CDW and provides a reference with respect to the expansion of diluted water all over the world.


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