In this global study with participation from Liana Kindermann and Anja Linstädter from our sub-project A01 “Future Carbon Storage”, researchers combined soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus measurements with metagenomic data from 200 natural ecosystems across major biomes. The results show that increasing aridity not only alters soil nutrient balances but also drives a fundamental shift in microbial functional strategies. As soils become drier and carbon becomes relatively scarcer, microbes invest less in resource acquisition and decomposition and more in growth, cellular maintenance, and drought resistance. By linking soil elemental ratios to microbial functional potential at a global scale, the study provides a new framework for understanding how climate-driven drying may reshape microbial metabolism and, ultimately, carbon and nutrient cycling in ecosystems worldwide.
Aridity-related differences in soil elemental ratios reshape microbial functional traits across global biomes
By Chunkai Li, Youzhi Feng, Tadeo Sáez-Sandino […] Liana Kindermann, Anja Linstädter et. al
Abstract
Aridity alters soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) stoichiometry, yet the implications of these processes for soil microbial functional traits and potentials at the genomic level remain poorly synthesized. Here we combine measurements of soil C, N and P pools and ratios with shotgun metagenomes from 200 natural ecosystems spanning major biomes worldwide. Across sites, increased aridity is associated with lower soil C:N and N:P (and C:P) ratios and with a coordinated shift in microbial functional potential. Genes linked to catabolic resource acquisition—including carbohydrate-active enzymes and pathways for degradation of plant litter and organophosphorus compounds—are declined as C becomes relatively scarce. In contrast, genes supporting anabolic investment in growth and drought resistance, such as RNA transcription, protein synthesis and intracellular transport, are increased. These patterns indicate that aridity-related change in soil elemental ratios is coupled to a broad shift from catabolic to anabolic strategies in soil microbiomes. By linking soil elemental ratios to microbial functional traits across biomes, our study provides a framework for anticipating how climate-driven drying may reorganize microbial metabolism with consequences for carbon and nutrient cycling.
Reference
Li C, Feng Y, Sáez-Sandino T, […] Kindermann L […] Linstädter A. et al. 2026. Aridity-related differences in soil elemental ratios reshape microbial functional traits across global biomes. Nature Communications, DOI
