Impact of plant protection product applications on soil microbial nitrogen cycle function not fully captured by gene quantification
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Autor:in (Körperschaft)
Publikationsdatum
09.2025
Typ der Arbeit
Studiengang
Sammlung
Typ
01A - Beitrag in wissenschaftlicher Zeitschrift
Herausgeber:innen
Herausgeber:in (Körperschaft)
Betreuer:in
Übergeordnetes Werk
Applied Soil Ecology
Themenheft
DOI der Originalpublikation
Link
Reihe / Serie
Reihennummer
Jahrgang / Band
213
Ausgabe / Nummer
Seiten / Dauer
106297
Patentnummer
Verlag / Herausgebende Institution
Elsevier
Verlagsort / Veranstaltungsort
Auflage
Version
Programmiersprache
Abtretungsempfänger:in
Praxispartner:in/Auftraggeber:in
Zusammenfassung
The widespread use of plant protection products (PPPs) in agriculture raises concerns about their long-term impact on soil health and nitrogen (N) cycling. Current regulatory assessments focus mostly on single active ingredients and microbial mineralisation, ignoring the complexities of formulated PPPs and their influence on microbial functions. We investigated the effects of realistic PPP application scenarios on soil N cycling using a controlled incubation experiment with increasing PPP intensities, measuring potential nitrification (PN), denitrifying enzyme activity (DEA), and N₂O reduction capacity (NRC), alongside molecular analyses of key microbial genes involved in N-cycling. Functional assays were more sensitive to PPP exposure than gene abundances, indicating severe disruptions to N cycling. Among measured processes, PN was the most PPP-sensitive, showing substantial reductions across treatments. DEA and NRC were also strongly inhibited, exhibiting complex temporal patterns. While gene abundances were less responsive, there were significant positive correlations between the gene abundance of archaeal and bacterial ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) and PN, as well as between nitrite reductase (nirK) and DEA. Our findings underscore the importance of updated risk assessments that integrate both molecular and functional indicators. We propose a tiered approach, using gene quantification as an initial screening tool, followed by functional assays to capture biologically relevant changes. Post-registration monitoring of PPP mixtures under field conditions is likewise essential to address cumulative and long-term impacts. Overall, this study highlights the vulnerability of soil N cycling to PPP exposure and provides a framework to enhance environmental risk assessments aimed at safeguarding soil ecosystem functions.
Schlagwörter
Soil function, Formulated pesticide mixtures, Nitrogen cycling, Microbial ecotoxicology, Risk assessment, Bioindicators
Fachgebiet (DDC)
Veranstaltung
Startdatum der Ausstellung
Enddatum der Ausstellung
Startdatum der Konferenz
Enddatum der Konferenz
Datum der letzten Prüfung
ISBN
ISSN
0929-1393
1873-0272
1873-0272
Sprache
Englisch
Während FHNW Zugehörigkeit erstellt
Ja
Zukunftsfelder FHNW
Publikationsstatus
Veröffentlicht
Begutachtung
Peer-Review der ganzen Publikation
Open Access-Status
Hybrid
Lizenz
Zitation
Medici, L., Niklaus, P. A., Walder, F., & Langer, M. (2025). Impact of plant protection product applications on soil microbial nitrogen cycle function not fully captured by gene quantification. Applied Soil Ecology, 213, 106297. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106297