Responses of the Soil Microbial Community to Salinity Stress in Maize Fields

Abstract

To investigate the diversity and structure of soil bacterial and fungal communities in saline soils, soil samples with three increasing salinity levels (S1, S2 and S3) were collected from a maize field in Yanqi, Xinjiang Province, China. The results showed that the K+, Na+, Ca2+ and Mg2+ values in the bulk soil were higher than those in the rhizosphere soil, with significant differences in S2 and S3 (p p 2+, available phosphorus (AP), saturated electrical conductivity (ECe) and available kalium (AK) as the dominant environmental factors correlated with bacterial community structures (p 2+ and ECe as the dominant factors correlated with fungal community structures (p < 0.001). The relative abundances of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes showed positive correlations with the salinity gradient. Our findings regarding the bacteria having positive correlations with the level of salinization might be a useful biological indicator of microorganisms in saline soils.

Keywords

• soil salinization
• bacteria
• fungi
• soil microbial diversity
• soil microbial community composition