Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake
The effects of acid on the microbial decomposition of the dominant aquatic macrophyte (Carex sp.) in Toolik Lake, Alaska were studied in microcosms during the ice-free season of 1980. Toolik Lake is slightly buffered, deep, and very oligotrophic. Microbial activities, as determined by 14C-acetate in...
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ftpubmed:oai:pubmedcentral.nih.gov:244204 2023-05-15T15:08:16+02:00 Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake McKinley, Vicky L. Vestal, J. Robie 1982-05 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC244204 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16346015 en eng http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC244204 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16346015 General Microbial Ecology Text 1982 ftpubmed 2013-08-29T16:09:03Z The effects of acid on the microbial decomposition of the dominant aquatic macrophyte (Carex sp.) in Toolik Lake, Alaska were studied in microcosms during the ice-free season of 1980. Toolik Lake is slightly buffered, deep, and very oligotrophic. Microbial activities, as determined by 14C-acetate incorporation into extractable lipids, associated with Carex litter were significantly (P < 0.01) reduced within 2 days at pHs of 3.0 and 4.0, but not 5.0, 5.5, or 6.0, as compared with ambient controls (pH 7.4). ATP levels were significantly reduced at pH 3.0, but not at the other pHs tested. After 18 days, microbial activity significantly correlated with weight loss (P < 0.05), nitrogen content (P < 0.01), and C/N ratios (P < 0.01) of the litter, but did not correlate with ATP levels. Scanning electron microscopy of the litter surface revealed that the fungi present at ambient pH did not become dominant at pHs below 5.5, diatoms were absent below pH 4.0, and bacterial numbers and extracellular slime were greatly reduced at pH 4.0 and below. Mineralization of Carex14C-lignin-labeled or 14C-cellulose-labeled lignocellulose was reduced at pH 2.0, but not at pH 4.0, 5.0, or 6.0, compared with controls (pH 7). We concluded that if the pH of the water from this slightly buffered lake was sufficiently reduced, rates of litter decomposition would be significantly reduced. Text Arctic Alaska PubMed Central (PMC) Arctic Arctic Lake ENVELOPE(-130.826,-130.826,57.231,57.231) |
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PubMed Central (PMC) |
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language |
English |
topic |
General Microbial Ecology |
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General Microbial Ecology McKinley, Vicky L. Vestal, J. Robie Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake |
topic_facet |
General Microbial Ecology |
description |
The effects of acid on the microbial decomposition of the dominant aquatic macrophyte (Carex sp.) in Toolik Lake, Alaska were studied in microcosms during the ice-free season of 1980. Toolik Lake is slightly buffered, deep, and very oligotrophic. Microbial activities, as determined by 14C-acetate incorporation into extractable lipids, associated with Carex litter were significantly (P < 0.01) reduced within 2 days at pHs of 3.0 and 4.0, but not 5.0, 5.5, or 6.0, as compared with ambient controls (pH 7.4). ATP levels were significantly reduced at pH 3.0, but not at the other pHs tested. After 18 days, microbial activity significantly correlated with weight loss (P < 0.05), nitrogen content (P < 0.01), and C/N ratios (P < 0.01) of the litter, but did not correlate with ATP levels. Scanning electron microscopy of the litter surface revealed that the fungi present at ambient pH did not become dominant at pHs below 5.5, diatoms were absent below pH 4.0, and bacterial numbers and extracellular slime were greatly reduced at pH 4.0 and below. Mineralization of Carex14C-lignin-labeled or 14C-cellulose-labeled lignocellulose was reduced at pH 2.0, but not at pH 4.0, 5.0, or 6.0, compared with controls (pH 7). We concluded that if the pH of the water from this slightly buffered lake was sufficiently reduced, rates of litter decomposition would be significantly reduced. |
format |
Text |
author |
McKinley, Vicky L. Vestal, J. Robie |
author_facet |
McKinley, Vicky L. Vestal, J. Robie |
author_sort |
McKinley, Vicky L. |
title |
Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake |
title_short |
Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake |
title_full |
Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake |
title_fullStr |
Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake |
title_full_unstemmed |
Effects of Acid on Plant Litter Decomposition in an Arctic Lake |
title_sort |
effects of acid on plant litter decomposition in an arctic lake |
publishDate |
1982 |
url |
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC244204 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16346015 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-130.826,-130.826,57.231,57.231) |
geographic |
Arctic Arctic Lake |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Arctic Lake |
genre |
Arctic Alaska |
genre_facet |
Arctic Alaska |
op_relation |
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC244204 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16346015 |
_version_ |
1766339656018821120 |