Correlation between microbial communities and volatile organic compounds in an urban soil provides clues on soil quality towards sustainability of city flowerbeds

Soil functionality is critical to the biosphere as it provides ecosystem services relevant for a healthy planet. The soil microbial composition is significantly impacted by anthropogenic activities, including urbanization. In this context, the study of soil microorganisms associated to urban green s...

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Published in:Heliyon 2024-01, Vol.10 (1), p.e23594-e23594, Article e23594
Main Authors: Sillo, Fabiano, Neri, Luisa, Calvo, Alice, Zampieri, Elisa, Petruzzelli, Gianniantonio, Ferraris, Irene, Delledonne, Massimo, Zaldei, Alessandro, Gioli, Beniamino, Baraldi, Rita, Balestrini, Raffaella
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacteria
bioactive properties
biodiversity
biosphere
DNA barcoding
ecosystems
Fungi
Italy
microbial communities
Soil
Soil health
soil quality
Urban environment
urban soils
urbanization
Volatile Organic Compound
volatile organic compounds
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Summary:Soil functionality is critical to the biosphere as it provides ecosystem services relevant for a healthy planet. The soil microbial composition is significantly impacted by anthropogenic activities, including urbanization. In this context, the study of soil microorganisms associated to urban green spaces has started to be crucial toward sustainable city development. Microbes living in the soil produce and degrade volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The VOC profiles may be used to distinguish between soils with various characteristics and management practices, reflecting variations in the activity of soil microbes that use a variety of metabolic pathways. Here, a combined approach based on DNA metabarcoding and GC-MS analysis was used to evaluate the soil quality from urban flowerbeds in Prato (Tuscany, Italy) in terms of microbial biodiversity and VOC emission profiles, with the final aim of evaluating the possible correlation between composition of microbial community and VOC patterns. Results showed that VOCs in the considered soil originated from anthropic and biological activity, and significant correlations between specific microbial taxa and VOCs were detected. Overall, the study demonstrated the feasibility of the use of microbe-VOC correlation as a proxy for soil quality assessment in urban soils. [Display omitted]
ISSN:2405-8440
2405-8440
DOI:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e23594