Temperature sensitivity of permafrost carbon release mediated by mineral and microbial properties.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 34362729.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1126/sciadv.abe3596 and PMC identifier 8346221.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC.
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Abstract
Temperature sensitivity (<i>Q</i> <sub>10</sub>) of permafrost carbon (C) release upon thaw is a vital parameter for projecting permafrost C dynamics under climate warming. However, it remains unclear how mineral protection interacts with microbial properties and intrinsic recalcitrance to affect permafrost C fate. Here, we sampled permafrost soils across a 1000-km transect on the Tibetan Plateau and conducted two laboratory incubations over 400- and 28-day durations to explore patterns and drivers of permafrost C release and its temperature response after thaw. We find that mineral protection and microbial properties are two types of crucial predictors of permafrost C dynamics upon thaw. Both high C release and <i>Q</i> <sub>10</sub> are associated with weak organo-mineral associations but high microbial abundances and activities, whereas high microbial diversity corresponds to low <i>Q</i> <sub>10</sub> The attenuating effects of mineral protection and the dual roles of microbial properties would make the permafrost C-climate feedback more complex than previously thought.