Responses of plant diversity and soil microorganism diversity to nitrogen addition in the desert steppe,China

Nitrogen(N)deposition is a significant aspect of global change and poses a threat to terrestrial biodiversity.The impact of plant-soil microbe relationships to N deposition has recently attracted considerable attention.Soil microorganisms have been proven to provide nutrients for specific plant growth,especially in nutrient-poor desert steppe ecosystems.However,the effects of N deposition on plant-soil microbial community interactions in such ecosystems remain poorly understood.To investigate these effects,we conducted a 6-year N-addition field experiment in a Stipa breviflora Griseb.desert steppe in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region,China.Four N treatment levels(N0,N30,N50,and N100,corresponding to 0,30,50,and 100 kg N/(hm2•a),respectively)were applied to simulate atmospheric N deposition.The results showed that N deposition did not significantly affect the aboveground biomass of desert steppe plants.N deposition did not significantly reduce the alfa-diversity of plant and microbial communities in the desert steppe,and low and mediate N additions(N30 and N50)had a promoting effect on them.The variation pattern of plant Shannon index was consistent with that of the soil bacterial Chao1 index.N deposition significantly affected the beta-diversity of plants and soil bacteria,but did not significantly affect fungal communities.In conclusion,N deposition led to co-evolution between desert steppe plants and soil bacterial communities,while fungal communities exhibited strong stability and did not undergo significant changes.These findings help clarify atmospheric N deposition effects on the ecological health and function of the desert steppe.

The Combination of Achnatherum inebrians Extracts and Soil Microorganisms Inhibited Seed Germination and Seedling Growth in Elymus nutans

In a greenhouse experiment,the effects of soil microorganisms and extracts of Achnatherum inebrians on the seed germination and seedling growth of Elymus nutans were studied.The results showed that both the extracts from aboveground and belowground parts of A.inebrians significantly inhibited the germination rate,germination potential,germination index,vigor index,seedling height,root length,and fresh weight of E.nutans,but increased malondialdehyde content,catalase,peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity of E.nutans seedlings(p<0.05).The allelopathy of aqueous extracts of the aboveground parts of A.inebrians was stronger than that of the pre-cipitates.Aqueous extracts of the aboveground parts of A.inebrians decreased seed germination rate,germination potential,germination index,vigor index,seedling length,root length,and seedling fresh weight by 10.45%-74.63%,24.18%-32.50%,19.03%-73.36%,37.83%-88.41%,21.42%-53.14%,2.65%-40.21%,and 20.45%-61.36%,respectively,and malondialdehyde content,peroxidase,catalase,and superoxide dismutase activity increased by 8.09%-62.24%,27.83%-86.47%,22.90%-93.17%,and 11.15%-75.91%,respectively.The above indexes were higher in live soil than in sterilized soil.Soil microorganisms increased the allelopathy of A.inebrians.The seed germination rate,germination potential,germination index,vigor index,seedling length,and seedling fresh weight of E.nutans planted in live soil decreased by 8.22%-48.48%,10.00%-51.85%,8.19%-53.26%,16.43%-60.03%,12.91%-28.81%,and 9.09%-22.86%compared with sterilized soil,respectively.Malondialdehyde content,peroxidase,catalase,and superoxide dismutase activity of E.nutans planted in live soil increased by 53.91%-81.06%,15.71%-57.34%,33.33%-86.31%,and 9.78%-52.51%compared with sterilized soil,respectively.The existence of soil microorganisms enhanced the allelopathy of the secondary metabolites of A.inebrians.A combination of microorganisms and aqueous extracts from the aboveground parts of A.inebrians had the strongest allelopathic effect on E.nutans.

Bioturbation Effects of Benthic Fish on Soil Microorganism of Paddy Field

[Objective]The research aimed to explore the bioturbation effects of benthic fish Misgurnus anguillicaudatus on soil microorganism（microflora,biomass,and special physiological groups） of paddy field.[Method]The experiments were conducted locally and quantitatively in field,using plate count and MPN methods.[Result]In the microflora of paddy soil tested,the quantity of bacteria is the largest,followed by actinomycetes and fungus.Compared with the control paddy fields,in rice-fish paddy fields the quantities of bacteria,actinomycetes and fungus were higher,at significance level P 〈0.05,P 〈0.01,and P 〈0.01 respectively.The microbial biomass C and N in rice-fish paddy fields is remarkably higher than those in control paddy fields,both at significance level P 〈0.01;the microbial biomass P in rice-fish paddy fields is higher than that in control paddy fields,but at significance level P 〈0.05.Benthic fish promotes the growth of soil azotobacter,cellulolytic bacteria,nitrobacteria,sulfur bacteria,and ammonifying bacteria,restricts the reproduction of nitrate reducing bacteria and sulfate reducing bacteria.[Conclusion]The benthic fish had important effects on microflora,microbial biomass,and special microorganism physiological groups of paddy soil,improves the living conditions of soil microorganisms,promotes the soil fertility and bio-chemical activity,which is beneficial for improving the supply ability of soil nutrients such as N,P,S,as well as the efficiency of nutrient utilization.

Impact of Transgenic Bt+CpTI Cotton on Soil Enzyme Activities and Soil Microorganisms

Due to its strong and effective insecticidal properties, transgenic Bt＋CpTI cotton has witnessed an expanding planting area in recent years, and the impact of its cultivation on soil ecosystem becomes an important part of environmental risk assessment. Using transgenic Bt＋CpTI cotton sGK321 and its parental homologous conventional cotton Shiyuan 321 as the study objects, a comparative analysis was conducted on the changes in enzyme activities （urease, alkaline phosphatase, and catalase） of the rhizosphere soil and changes in the number of culturable microor-ganisms （bacteria, fungi, and actinomycetes） at different growth stages （seedling stage, budding stage, flower and bol stage, and bol opening stage） of sGK321 and Shiyuan 321 under the condition of 13 years field plantings. The results showed that, the populations of bacteria, fungi, and actinomycete and the soil enzyme activi-ties of urease, alkaline phosphatase and catalase had a similar variation trend along with the cotton growing process for transgenic cotton and conventional cotton. Some occasional and inconsistent effects on soil enzyme activities and soil fungi composi-tion in the rhizosphere soil of transgenic Bt＋CpTI cotton were found at the seedling stage, budding stage, flower and bol stage as compared with that of conventional cotton. The amount of bacteria and actinomycetes were not significantly different during a certain stage; however, the activities of urease, catalase, alkaline phos-phatase, also with the number of fungi were significantly different, e.g. the urease activities at seedling stage, the alkaline phosphatase at seedling and budding stages, and the soil culturable fungi at flower and bol stage were less than that of conven-tional cotton, while the soil alkaline phosphatase activities at flower and bol stage were higher. Cluster analysis showed that soil enzyme activities and microbial popu-lation changed mainly along the growth processes, suffering little from the planting of transgenic Bt＋CpTI cotton.

Heavy metal availability and impact on activity of soil microorganisms along a Cu/Zn contamination gradient

All the regulations that define a maximum concentration of metals in the receiving soil are based on total soil metal concentration. However, the potential toxicity of a heavy metal in the soil depends on its speciation and availability. We studied the effects of heavy metal speciation and availability on soil microorganism activities along a Cu/Zn contamination gradient. Microbial biomass and enzyme activity of soil contaminated with both Cu and Zn were investigated. The results showed that microbial biomass was negatively affected by the elevated metal levels. The microbial biomass-C （Cmic）/organic C （Corg） ratio was closely correlated to heavy metal stress. There were negative correlations between soil microbial biomass, phosphatase activity and NH4NO3 extractable heavy metals. The soil microorganism activity could be predicted using empirical models with the availability of Cu and Zn. We observed that 72% of the variation in phosphatase activity could be explained by the NH4NO3-extractable and total heavy metal concentration. By considering different monitoring approaches and different viewpoints, this set of methods applied in this study seemed sensitive to site differences and contributed to a better understanding of the effects of heavy metals on the size and activity of microorganisms in soils. The data presented demonstrate the relationship between heavy metals availability and heavy metal toxicity to soil microorganism along a contamination gradient.

Studies on nutrient uptake of rice and characteristics of soil microorganisms in a long-term fertilization experiments for irrigated rice

The ecosystem characteristics of soil microorganism and the nutrient uptake of irrigated rice were investigated in a split-block experiment with different fertilization treatments, including control (no fertilizer application), PK, NK, NP, NPK fertilization, in the main block, and conventional rice and hybrid rice comparison, in the sub block. Average data of five treatments in five years indicated that the indigenous N supply (INS) capacity ranged from 32.72 to 93.21 kg/ha; that indigenous P supply (IPS)capacity ranged from 7.42 to 32.25 kg/ha; and that indigenous K supply (IKS) capacity ranged from 16.24 to 140.51 kg/ha, which showed that soil available nutrient pool depletion might occur very fast and that P, K deficiency has become a constraint to increasing yields of consecutive crops grown without fertilizer application. It was found that soil nutrient deficiency and unbalanced fertilization to rice crop had negative effect on the diversity of the microbial community and total microbial biomass in the soil.The long-term fertilizer experiment (LTFE) also showed that balanced application of N, P and K promoted microbial biomass growth and improvement of community composition. Unbalanced fertilization reduced microbial N and increased C/N ratio of the microbial biomass. Compared with inbred rice, hybrid rice behavior is characterized by physiological advantage in nutrient uptake and lower internal K use efficiency.

Ecological effects of crude oil residues on the functional diversity of soil microorganisms in three weed rhizospheres

Ecological effects of crude oil residues on weed rhizospheres are still vague. The quantitative and diversity changes and metabolic responses of soil-bacterial communities in common dandelion （Taraxacum officinale）, jerusalem artichoke （Silphiurn perfoliatum L.） and evening primrose （A colypha australis L.） rhizospheric soils were thus examined using the method of carbon source utilization. The results indicated that there were various toxic effects of crude oil residues on the growth and reproduction of soil bacteria, but the weed rhizospheres could mitigate the toxic effects. Total heterotrophic counting colony-forming units （CFUs） in the rhizospheric soils were significantly higher than those in the non-rhizospheric soils. The culturable soil-bacterial CFUs in the jerusalem artichoke （S. perfoliatum） rhizosphere polluted with 0.50 kg/pot of crude oil residues were almost twice as much as those with 0.25 kg/pot and without the addition of crude oil residues. The addition of crude oil residues increased the difference in substrate evenness, substrate richness, and substrate diversity between non-rhizospheric and rhizospheric soils of T. officinale and A. australis, but there was no significant （p〉0.05） difference in the Shannon＇s diversity index between non-rhizospheric and rhizospheric soils of S. perfoliatum. The rhizospheric response of weed species to crude oil residues suggested that S. perfoliatum may be a potential weed species for the effective plant-microorganism bioremediation of contaminated soils by crude oil residues.

The Effect of Nitrogen Deposition on Soil Microorganisms in the Woodland-Grassland Border of Tibet

Nitrogen deposition was simulated from July 2014 to August 2015 in the grassland, woodland, and woodland-grassland border in Zhuqudeng Village, Bujiu Township, Linzhi County,(CK, 0 kg·hm^2·a^(-1); LN, 25 kg·hm^2·a^(-1), MN, 50 kg·hm^2·a^(-1); HN, 150 kg·hm^2·a^(-1)). NH_4NO_3 was used as nitrogen source to analyze the number of microorganisms in soil layers of 0–20 cm and 20–40 cm and explore the effect of different degrees of nitrogen deposition on soil microorganisms in grassland, woodland, and woodlandgrassland border. The results showed that: the number of bacteria in the grassland increased significantly under the treatment of LN, and the number of bacteria in the woodland-grassland border and woodland had a rising response under the influence of nitrogen deposition; the number of actinomycetes in the grassland increased in MN and HN treatment, and significantly increased in the border and woodland under LN treatment; the number of molds decreased sharply in the grassland, woodland, and woodland-grassland border.

Review on the Effects of Combined Pollution of Lead and Chromium on Soil Microorganisms and Treatment Methods

Heavy metals—Pb and Cr are important causes of environmental pollution, and they often coexist in nature. At present, the effects of Pb and Cr toxicity on soil microorganisms have been less studied, in soil environment which is extremely complex. Simulating soil environment and studying microbial reaction under various heavy metal conditions are of great significance for revealing microbial tolerance to heavy metals. In this paper, firstly, the related concepts of soil rechecking pollution are discussed, and the physical and chemical properties and forms of lead and chromium are introduced accordingly. Secondly, the effects of combined pollution of lead and chromium on soil microbial biomass, soil microbial community structure and soil microbial activity were discussed. Finally, the relevant treatment methods of heavy metal contaminated soil were put forward.

Distribution Patterns of Soil Microorganisms under Different Vegetation Types along the Riparian Wetland of the Ulson River and Its Influencing Factors

Wetlands are important for maintaining global ecosystem functions,mitigating global climate change,and regulating regional climate change.Ecological problems caused by global climate change have had serious impacts on plant distribution patterns in the wetlands of riparian zones,as well as on microbial community habitats in the soil.This study was based on a field sampling survey of the distribution characteristics of plant communities in the Ulson River,combined with remote sensing to obtain the spatial distribution pattern of vegetation in the riparian wetland.High-throughput sequencing technology combined with the characteristics of soil physicochemical factors were then used to explore the distribution characteristics of the community structures of soil bacteria and fungi under different vegetation types in the Ulson River Basin,in order to reveal the pattern of changes of soil microbial microorganisms under the different vegetation types in the wetlands of the riparian area and the factors driving those changes.The results showed an obvious banding phenomenon of wetland vegetation in the Ulson River Basin.Proteobacteria ranked first in relative abundance in all the sample plots and were the dominant bacteria in the study area.Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were the dominant fungi in the study area.In swamp areas,degenerate swamp soils,soil moisture content,and soil bulk density affected the microbial richness directly or indirectly by controlling soil nutrients.Plant aboveground biomass was the most significant factor influencing microbial diversity in a typical wet meadow sample.In salinized meadows and swamped meadows,electrical conductivity affected microbial richness and soil bulk density was the main factor influencing microbial diversity.The findings of this study can provide a theoretical basis for the ecological restoration of degraded riparian wetlands and further clarification of soil ecosystem functions in riparian wetlands.

Effects of long-term fencing on soil microbial community structure and function in the desert steppe,China

One of the goals of grazing management in the desert steppe is to improve its ecosystem.However,relatively little is known about soil microbe communities in the desert steppe ecosystem under grazing management.In this study,we investigated the diversity and aboveground biomass of Caragana korshinskii Kom.shrub communities in long-term fencing and grazing areas,combined with an analysis of soil physical-chemical properties and genomics,with the aim of understanding how fence management affects plant-soil-microbial inter-relationships in the desert steppe,China.The results showed that fence management(exclosure)increased plant diversity and aboveground biomass in C.korshinskii shrub area and effectively enhanced soil organic carbon(233.94%),available nitrogen(87.77%),and available phosphorus(53.67%)contents.As well,the Shannon indices of soil bacteria and fungi were greater in the fenced plot.Plant-soil changes profoundly affected the alpha-and beta-diversity of soil bacteria.Fence management also altered the soil microbial community structure,significantly increasing the relative abundances of Acidobacteriota(5.31%-8.99%),Chloroflexi(3.99%-5.58%),and Glomeromycota(1.37%-3.28%).The soil bacterial-fungal co-occurrence networks under fence management had higher complexity and connectivity.Based on functional predictions,fence management significantly increased the relative abundance of bacteria with nitrification and nitrate reduction functions and decreased the relative abundance of bacteria with nitrate and nitrite respiration functions.The relative abundances of ecologically functional fungi with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi,ectomycorrhizal fungi,and saprotrophs also significantly increased under fence management.In addition,the differential functional groups of bacteria and fungi were closely related to plant-soil changes.The results of this study have significant positive implications for the ecological restoration and reconstruction of dry desert steppe and similar areas.

Impacts of Micro- and Nano-Plastics on Soil Properties and Plant Production in Agroecosystems: A Mini-Review

Micro- and nano-plastics (MNPs) are tiny plastic particles resulting from plastic product degradation. Soil MNPs have been identified as potential influential factors affecting various soil properties and crop biomass productivity. This mini-review provides a synthesis of recent findings concerning their effects on soil physicochemical properties, microorganisms, organic carbon content, soil nutrients, greenhouse gas emissions, soil fauna, and their impacts on plant ecophysiology, growth, and production. The results indicate that MNPs may markedly impede soil aggregation ability, increase porosity, decrease soil bulk density, enhance water retention capacity, influence soil pH and electrical conductivity, and escalate soil water evaporation. Exposure to MNPs may predominantly induce changes in soil microbial composition, reducing the diversity and complexity of microbial communities and microbial activity while enhancing soil organic carbon stability, influencing soil nutrient dynamics, and stimulating organic carbon decomposition and denitrification processes, leading to elevated soil respiration and methane emissions, and potentially decreasing soil nitrous oxide emission. Additionally, MNPs may adversely affect soil fauna, diminish seed germination rates, promote plant root growth, yet impair plant photosynthetic efficacy and biomass productivity. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the impacts and mechanistic foundations of MNPs. Future research avenues are suggested to further explore the impacts and economic implications.

Influence of salinity and water content on soil microorganisms

Salinization is one of the most serious land degradation problems facing world.Salinity results in poor plant growth and low soil microbial activity due to osmotic stress and toxic ions.Soil microorganisms play a pivotal role in soils through mineralization of organic matter into plant available nutrients.Therefore it is important to maintain high microbial activity in soils.Salinity tolerant soil microbes counteract osmotic stress by synthesizing osmolytes which allows them to maintain their cell turgor and metabolism.Osmotic potential is a function of the salt concentration in the soil solution and therefore affected by both salinity(measured as electrical conductivity at a certain water content)and soil water content.Soil salinity and water content vary in time and space.Understanding the effect of changes in salinity and water content on soil microorganisms is important for crop production,sustainable land use and rehabilitation of saline soils.In this review,the effects of soil salinity and water content on microbes are discussed to guide future research into management of saline soils.

Effect of Lanthanum on Quantity of Major Microorganism Groups in Yellow Cinnamon Soil

Different accumulations of La in yellow cinnamon soil were simulated as results of long term application of rare earth elements and dosage response curves of three major soil microorganism groups and three physiological groups were obtained. La accumulated from 5%～50% of adsorption capacity(ADC) had inhibitory effects on the total number of bacteria in soil. La accumulated below 30% ADC stimulated the growth of actinomycetes with the highest effect at 20% ADC. The total number of fungi was strongly stimulated by La up to 50% ADC with the highest effect at 30% ADC. The aerobic cellulolytic bacteria and celluloloytic fungi were stimulated by La below 10% ADC and up to 50% ADC, respectively. La above 10% ADC had very strong inhibitory effects on soil ammonifiers.

Degradation of Bioplastics in Soil and Their Degradation Effects on Environmental Microorganisms

Degradation of three kinds of bioplastics and their effects on microbial biomass and microbial diversity in soil environment were analyzed. The degradation rate of bioplastic in soil was closely related to the main components in the bioplastics. Poly (butylene succinate)-starch (PBS-starch) and poly (butylene succinate) (PBS) were degraded by 1% to 7% after 28 days in a soil with an initial bacterial biomass of 1.4 × 109 cells/g-soil, however poly lactic acid (PLA) was not degraded in the soil after 28 days. When the powdered-bioplastics were examined for the degradation in the soil, PBS-starch also showed the highest degradability (24.4% degradation after 28 days), and the similar results were obtained in the case of long-term degradation experiment (2 years). To investigate the effect of bacterial biomass in soil on biodegradability of bioplastics, PBS-starch was buried in three kinds of soils differing in bacterial biomass (7.5 × 106, 7.5 × 107, and 7.5 × 108 cells/g-soil). The rate of bioplastic degradation was enhanced accompanied with an increase of the bacterial biomass in soil. 16S rDNA PCR-DGGE analysis indicated that the bacterial diversity in the soil was not affected by the degradation of bioplastics. Moreover, the degradation of bioplastic did not affect the nitrogen circulation activity in the soil.

Influences of Oyster Shell Soil Conditioner on Soil and Plant Rhizospheric Microorganisms

Oyster shell soil conditioner had significant influence on soil and rhizospheric microorganisms in their biomass,respiratory intensity and nutritional requirement. It could stimulate growth of soil and rhizospheric microorganisms, especially nitrogen-fixers, and intensify soil respiration in proportion to the dose and fertilizing time of the conditioner, leading to the increase in the number of nitrogen fixing bacteria and the decrease in the number of bacteria with special nutrition demands.

Effects of deficit irrigation on soil microorganisms and growth of Arabica coffee(Coffea arabica L.)under different shading cultivation modes

In the present research,the rational coupling mode of irrigation and shading cultivation for rapid growth and water saving of young Arabica coffee shrubs was investigated from 2016 to 2017.Taking full irrigation(FI,1.2Ep)as the control,the effects of three deficit irrigation(DI)(DI1,DI2 and DI3,with 1.0Ep,0.8Ep and 0.6Ep)on soil water content,temperature,microorganism population density,photosynthetic characteristics,canopy structure and dry mass of Arabica coffee under three shading cultivation modes(S0,monoculture coffee;S1,mild shading cultivation,intercropping with one line of Arabica coffee and one line of castor(Ricinus communis L.);S2,severe shading cultivation,intercropping with one line of Arabica coffee and two lines of castor)were investigated using plot experiments.Compared to FI,DI1 not obviously changed the population density of soil bacteria and actinomycetes,but increased net photosynthetic rate(Pn),crown area and dry mass of Arabica coffee by 7.0%,9.53%and 10.46%,respectively.In addition,DI1 also decreased total radiation under canopy(TRUC)by 5.51%.DI2 and DI3 reduced the population density of soil bacteria,fungi and actinomycetes ranging 8.94%-47.06%.Compared to S0,S1 increased the population density of soil fungi,bacteria and actinomycetes by 13.99%,30.77%and 9.72%,respectively.S1 also increased Pn,transpiration rate(Tr),leaf apparent radiation use efficiency(ARUE),leaf area index(LAI)and dry mass by 9.29%,5.39%,60.98%,10.31%and 30.02%,respectively.DI1S1 obtained the highest Pn and dry mass and higher LAI and the lowest TRUC.DI1S1 increased Pn,ARUE and dry mass by 18.98%,72.37%and 62.90%respectively but decreased TRUC by 21.77%when compared to FIS0.Thus,DI1S1 was found to be the rational mode of irrigation and shading cultivation for young Arabica coffee.

Response of soil microorganisms to vegetational succession in Ziwuling Forest

This study investigates the changes in soil microbial populations as vegetational succession progress from abandoned farmland to climax forest in the Ziwuling Forest,which is located in the northern part of the Loess Plateau,China.Different organic C and total extractable N between the fumigated and non-fumigated soils were assumed to be released from soil microorganisms.Soil microbial C was calculated using Kec=0.38 and microbial N was calculated using Ken=0.45.The released P was converted to microbial biomass P using Kep=0.40.Soil bacteria,fungi,and actinomycetes increased as the vegetational succession progressed.Microbial C was of the highest amount in farmland.Microbial C,N,and P generally increased from abandoned land to climax community.The results indicated significant(P<0.05)diversities of soil microbial biomass under different vegetation.There was a significant correlation between microbial biomass and soil nutrients.Knowledge about soil microbial populations is important for forecasting vegetational succession and determining the ecological condition of the environment.

Effects of Humus Fertilizer from Fermented Branches on Microorganisms and Enzyme Activity in the Soil under Dracontomelon duperreranum Trees

[Objective] This study aimed to explore the effect of humus fertilizer from fermented branches on pH, total porosity, contents of organic matter, alkaline hy- drolysable nitrogen, available phosphorus, rapidly available potassium, the number of microorganisms and the activity of enzymes in the soil under Dracontomelon duper- reranum trees. [Method] Experiments were carried out to study the physical and chemical properties of soil under Dracontomelon duperreranum trees, and soil with- out any fertilizer treatment was used as control. [Result] The results showed that application of humus fertilizer from fermented branches raised the total porosity of soil, and improved the contents of soil organic matter, available phosphorus, rapidly available potassium, the number of soil microorganisms and the activity of soil en- zymes. In addition, the number of soil microorganisms was positively related to the activity of soil enzymes. [Conclusion] Application of humus fertilizer from fermented branches markedly raised the ratio of the number of bacteria to the number of fungi, and promoted the transformation of fungi-rich soil into bacteria-rich soil, which thus significantly enhanced the soil fertility and improved the soil environment under Dracontomelon duperreranum trees.

Response of soil respiration to short-term changes in precipitation and nitrogen addition in a desert steppe

Changes in precipitation and nitrogen(N)addition may significantly affect the processes of soil carbon(C)cycle in terrestrial ecosystems,such as soil respiration.However,relatively few studies have investigated the effects of changes in precipitation and N addition on soil respiration in the upper soil layer in desert steppes.In this study,we conducted a control experiment that involved a field simulation from July 2020 to December 2021 in a desert steppe in Yanchi County,China.Specifically,we measured soil parameters including soil temperature,soil moisture,total nitrogen(TN),soil organic carbon(SOC),soil microbial biomass carbon(SMBC),soil microbial biomass nitrogen(SMBN),and contents of soil microorganisms including bacteria,fungi,actinomyces,and protozoa,and determined the components of soil respiration including soil respiration with litter(RS+L),soil respiration without litter(RS),and litter respiration(RL)under short-term changes in precipitation(control,increased precipitation by 30%,and decreased precipitation by 30%)and N addition(0.0 and 10.0 g/(m^(2)·a))treatments.Our results indicated that short-term changes in precipitation and N addition had substantial positive effects on the contents of TN,SOC,and SMBC,as well as the contents of soil actinomyces and protozoa.In addition,N addition significantly enhanced the rates of RS+L and RS by 4.8%and 8.0%(P<0.05),respectively.The increase in precipitation markedly increased the rates of RS+L and RS by 2.3%(P<0.05)and 5.7%(P<0.001),respectively.The decrease in precipitation significantly increased the rates of RS+L and RS by 12.9%(P<0.05)and 23.4%(P<0.001),respectively.In contrast,short-term changes in precipitation and N addition had no significant effects on RL rate(P>0.05).The mean RL/RS+L value observed under all treatments was 27.63%,which suggested that RL is an important component of soil respiration in the desert steppe ecosystems.The results also showed that short-term changes in precipitation and N addition had significant interactive effects on the rates of RS+L,RS,and RL(P<0.001).In addition,soil temperature was the most important abiotic factor that affected the rates of RS+L,RS,and RL.Results of the correlation analysis demonstrated that the rates of RS+L,RS,and RL were closely related to soil temperature,soil moisture,TN,SOC,and the contents of soil microorganisms,and the structural equation model revealed that SOC and SMBC are the key factors influencing the rates of RS+L,RS,and RL.This study provides further insights into the characteristics of soil C emissions in desert steppe ecosystems in the context of climate change,which can be used as a reference for future related studies.