Soil ammonia oxidation process and its driving factors in the riparian zone of drainage ditch in saline-alkali area of Ningxia, Northwest China

doi:10.13287/j.1001-9332.202507.033

Abstract

Abstract: Ammonia oxidation plays a critical role in nitrogen cycling within riparian zones. To investigate this process in saline-alkali soils of the Yinbei region, northern Yinchuan, Ningxia, we selected five distinct riparian types along the Third Drainage Ditch: gravel-reed mixed zone, reed zone, high-salt Bassia scoparia zone, Iris lactea embankment zone and bare soil zone. We quantified soil potential nitrification rates (PNR), environmental factors, and analyzed ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) communities via me-tagenomics and qPCR targeting amoA genes. The results showed that the total potential nitrification rate (PNR_total) in the riparian zones ranged from 0.47 to 1.37 μmol N·g^-1·d^-1, with PNR_AOA (potential nitrification rate of AOA) being higher than PNR_AOB (potential nitrification rate of AOB). The copy number of AOA amoA genes (2.63×10⁶-2.06×10⁷ copies·g^-1) was significantly higher than AOB amoA genes (7.14×10⁵-9.55×10⁶ copies·g^-1). The PNR and amoA gene copy number in the reed zone, gravel-reed mixed zone, and I. lactea embankment zone were higher than those in the high-salt B. scoparia zone and bare soil zone, indicating that nitrification in the riparian zones was dominated by AOA. AOA were affiliated with the phylum Nitrososphaerota, with the dominant genera being unclassified_f__Nitrososphaeraceae and Candidatus Nitrosocosmicus. The physicochemical factors, including ammonium, nitrite, nitrate, electrical conductivity, total organic carbon, and total nitrogen exhibited significant differences among different riparian zones. PNR_AOA and PNR_total were significantly influenced by ammonium, total nitrogen, total organic carbon and pH, and PNR_total showed a highly significant positive correlation with amoA gene copy number. Structural equation modeling (SEM) results indicated that pH and total organic carbon were the primary factors affecting nitrification in the riparian zones and that AOA amoA gene copy number showed significant positive correlation with nitrification rate.

Key words: riparian zone, potential nitrification rate, ammonia-oxidizing microorganism, amoA gene, structural equation modeling (SEM)

SUN Xiyan, QI Ruotong, LI Hongxu, ZHENG Lanxiang. Soil ammonia oxidation process and its driving factors in the riparian zone of drainage ditch in saline-alkali area of Ningxia, Northwest China[J]. Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology, 2025, 36(7): 2201-2212.

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