Microbial Community Structure and Functional Potential in Cultivated and Native Tallgrass Prairie Soils of the Midwestern United States.

ABSTRACT: The North American prairie covered about 3.6 million-km² of the continent prior to European contact. Only 1-2% of the original prairie remains, but the soils that developed under these prairies are some of the most productive and fertile in the world, containing over 35% of the soil carbon in the continental United States. Cultivation may alter microbial diversity and composition, influencing the metabolism of carbon, nitrogen, and other elements. Here, we explored the structure and functional potential of the soil microbiome in paired cultivated-corn (at the time of sampling) and never-cultivated native prairie soils across a three-states transect (Wisconsin, Iowa, and Kansas) using metagenomic and 16S rRNA gene sequencing and lipid analysis. At the Wisconsin site, we also samp

SUBMITTER: Mackelprang R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6104126 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature