Effect of artificial root exudates on the forest soil microbial community and nitrogen dynamics

Nakayama, Masataka  ; Tateno, Ryunosuke*

Root exudates, carbon compounds secreted from plant fine roots, enhance nutrient cycles within root surrounding soil (rhizosphere) by stimulating microbial activities and growth. However, there is a lack of knowledge about the effect of the differences in the chemical composition of root exudates and the diversity of root exudates on the nitrogen cycle within the rhizosphere. Here, we investigated the impact of the differences in root exudates on the nitrogen cycles and microbial community using artificial root exudates (ARE). We added ARE from the simulated fine root and changed their diversity from 1 to 3 per incubation system. Soil microbial gene abundances varied among ARE types and diversity, but the differences were not statistically significant. In addition, there was a non-significant effect of ARE on nitrogen cycling processes. These results indicated that the diversity and compositions of root exudates did not affect the microbial community and nitrogen cycle for at least a short time.