2026-02-03 ロードアイランド大学(URI)
<関連情報>
- https://www.uri.edu/news/2026/02/microbes-under-the-snow-the-hidden-and-vulnerable-world-that-fuels-spring/
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-025-02213-2
マルチオミクスにより、雪解け期の土壌微生物ブルームに関連する窒素動態が明らかに Multi-omics reveals nitrogen dynamics associated with soil microbial blooms during snowmelt
Patrick O. Sorensen,Ulas Karaoz,Harry R. Beller,Markus Bill,Nicholas J. Bouskill,Jillian F. Banfied,Rosalie K. Chu,David W. Hoyt,Elizabeth Eder,Emiley Eloe-Fadrosh,Allison Sharrar,Malak M. Tfaily,Jason Toyoda,Nikola Tolic,Shi Wang,Allison R. Wong,Kenneth H. Williams,Yangquanwei Zhong & Eoin L. Brodie
Nature Microbiology Published:27 January 2026
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-025-02213-2

Abstract
Snowmelt triggers a soil microbial bloom and crash that affects nitrogen (N) export in high-elevation watersheds. The mechanisms underlying these microbial dynamics are uncertain, making soil nitrogen processes difficult to predict as snowpack declines globally. Here, integration of genome-resolved metagenomics, metatranscriptomics and metabolomics in a high-elevation watershed revealed ecologically distinct soil microorganisms linked across the snowmelt time-period by their unique nitrogen cycling capacities. The molecular properties and transformations of dissolved organic N suggested that degradation or recycling of microbial biomass provided N for biosynthesis during the microbial bloom. Winter-adapted Bradyrhizobia spp. oxidized amino acids anaerobically and had the highest gene expression for denitrification during the microbial bloom. A pulse of nitrate was driven by spring-adapted Nitrososphaerales after snowmelt, but dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonia (DNRA) gene expression indicated significant nitrate retention potential. These findings inform our understanding of nitrogen cycling in environments sensitive to snowpack decline due to global change.


