46 research outputs found
Hydrological legacy determines the type of enzyme inhibition in a peatlands chronosequence
© 2017 The Author(s). Peatland ecosystems contain one-third of the world's soil carbon store and many have been exposed to drought leading to a loss of carbon. Understanding biogeochemical mechanisms affecting decomposition in peatlands is essential for improving resilience of ecosystem function to predicted climate change. We investigated biogeochemical changes along a chronosequence of hydrological restoration (dry eroded gully, drain-blocke
Short-term dynamics of soil carbon, microbial biomass, and soil enzyme activities as compared to longer-term effects of tillage in irrigated row crops
Microbial quality of soil from the Pampa biome in response to different grazing pressures
Rapid cost-effective analysis of microbial activity in soils using modified fluorescein diacetate method
Functional Soil Biological Measurements to Support Healthy Soils
Soil microorganisms contribute significantly to terrestrial ecosystem functioning through their activities. Various methods exist to characterize soil microbial activity and functional diversity including those that focus on potential enzyme activities and the respiratory responses of microbes to different substrates. Here, we describe: (1) the fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis assay for total potential microbial enzyme activity; (2) measurement of beta-glucosidase activity using ρ-nitrophenyl (pNP); (3) multienzyme assay using 4-methylumbelliferone (MUB); and (4) MicroResp assays to measure the respiratory responses of microbes to different substrates and generate a community level physiological profile (CLPP)