Soil microbial genomic responses to aridity-driven elemental imbalance across global biomes
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Aridification is known to disrupt soil biogeochemical cycles by altering the stoichiometry of key elements, such as carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). However, how soil microbiome metabolically responds to these imbalances, and the resulting implications for terrestrial ecosystem services, remain virtually unknown. By analyzing soil samples from 200 ecosystems across globally distributed biomes, our results revealed an overall microbial genomic adjustment to elemental imbalances driven by aridity. Genes involved in microbial anabolism were promoted with aridification, whereas those associated with catabolism were suppressed. Thus, while genes encoding extracellular enzymes responsible for the degradation of litter and organic matter decreased, genes related to RNA transcription and the synthesis and transport of intracellular proteins essential for microbial resistance and growth increased. Collectively, our findings highlighted that aridity-driven soil elemental imbalances are strongly associated with shifts in soil microbial metabolism from catabolism to anabolism, reflecting a microbial survival strategy that prioritizes growth over energy and nutrient acquisition under global-scale aridification.
