Organic carbon (OC) and nitrogen (N) storage in soil plays an important role in global climate change and in maintaining food security. Pollution of soil with heavy metals has occurred in many parts of the world, but their effects on soil OC and N have not been well addressed. Relevant data were extracted from peer\uffe2\uff80\uff90reviewed journal papers and analysed by a meta\uffe2\uff80\uff90analysis to determine how long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term heavy metal pollution affected soil OC and N status. Plant biomass decreased significantly because heavy metals in soil decreased soil OC and N concentrations by 5.0 and 17.9%, respectively, but increased the C/N ratio by 5.1%. The largest reductions in soil OC and N concentrations were in soil more strongly polluted by metals. The changes in soil OC and N with metal pollution varied with climatic conditions. More substantial decreases in OC and N concentrations were likely to occur in polluted soil with large background contents of OC and low pH. Overall, heavy metals were linked to greater reductions in soil OC and N concentrations in natural ecosystems than in agro\uffe2\uff80\uff90ecosystems. These results provided a quantitative evaluation of the effects of heavy metal pollution on the decrease in soil C and N concentrations and, therefore, on global climate change. Further consideration should be given to changes in the cycling of C and N in soil polluted with metals in natural and agro\uffe2\uff80\uff90ecosystems.
", "keywords": ["2. Zero hunger", "anzsrc-for: 0503 Soil Sciences", "550", "anzsrc-for: 4105 Pollution and Contamination", "anzsrc-for: 0703 Crop and Pasture Production", "anzsrc-for: 4106 Soil sciences", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "41 Environmental Sciences", "15. Life on land", "01 natural sciences", "6. Clean water", "anzsrc-for: 41 Environmental Sciences", "anzsrc-for: 0607 Plant Biology", "4105 Pollution and Contamination", "13. Climate action", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "0105 earth and related environmental sciences"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1111/ejss.12327"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/European%20Journal%20of%20Soil%20Science", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1111/ejss.12327", "name": "item", "description": "10.1111/ejss.12327", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1111/ejss.12327"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2016-03-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1111/ejss.13090", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-07-27T16:19:22Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2021-01-22", "title": "Inconsistent effects of agricultural practices on soil fungal communities across 12 European long\u2010term experiments", "description": "AbstractCropping practices have a great potential to improve soil quality through changes in soil biota. Yet the effects of these soil\uffe2\uff80\uff90improving cropping systems on soil fungal communities are not well known. Here, we analysed soil fungal communities using standardized measurements in 12 long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term experiments and 20 agricultural treatments across Europe. We were interested in whether the same practices (i.e., tillage, fertilization, organic amendments and cover crops) applied across different sites have predictable and repeatable effects on soil fungal communities and guilds. The fungal communities were very variable across sites located in different soil types and climatic regions. The arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) were the fungal guild with most unique species in individual sites, whereas plant pathogenic fungi were most shared between the sites. The fungal communities responded to the cropping practices differently in different sites and only fertilization showed a consistent effect on AMF and plant pathogenic fungi, whereas the responses to tillage, cover crops and organic amendments were site, soil and crop\uffe2\uff80\uff90species specific. We further show that the crop yield is negatively affected by cropping practices aimed at improving soil health. Yet, we show that these practices have the potential to change the fungal communities and that change in plant pathogenic fungi and in AMF is linked to the yield. We further link the soil fungal community and guilds to soil abiotic characteristics and reveal that especially Mn, K, Mg and pH affect the composition of fungi across sites. In summary, we show that fungal communities vary considerably between sites and that there are no clear directional responses in fungi or fungal guilds across sites to soil\uffe2\uff80\uff90improving cropping systems, but that the responses vary based on soil abiotic conditions, crop type and climatic conditions.
Highlights
Soil fungi were analysed using standardized measurements in 12 long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term experiments and 20 agricultural treatments
Fungal communities responded to the cropping practices differently at different sites
Only reduced fertilization showed a consistent effect on AMF and plant pathogenic fungi, whereas the responses to tillage, cover crops and organic amendments were site specific.
Fungal community structure varied significantly between sites, crops and climate conditions; therefore, more cross\uffe2\uff80\uff90site studies are needed in order to manage beneficial soil fungi in agricultural systems.
", "keywords": ["soil‐", "DIVERSITY", "0607 Plant Biology", "0703 Crop and Pasture Production", "Soil Science", "ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAL FUNGI", "FERTILIZATION", "improving cropping systems", "soil fungi", "0503 Soil Sciences", "S Agriculture (General)", "CROPS", "METAANALYSIS", "TILLAGE", "2. Zero hunger", "Science & Technology", "long‐", "LAND-USE", "soil-improving cropping systems", "Agriculture", "Agronomy & Agriculture", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "PERFORMANCE", "15. Life on land", "4106 Soil sciences", "long-term experiments", "organic amendments", "tillage", "term experiments", "POPULATIONS", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "BIODIVERSITY", "Life Sciences & Biomedicine"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/ejss.13090"}, {"href": "https://rau.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/16456/1/ejss.13090.pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10.1111/ejss.13090"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/European%20Journal%20of%20Soil%20Science", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1111/ejss.13090", "name": "item", "description": "10.1111/ejss.13090", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1111/ejss.13090"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2021-02-18T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10449/84375", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-07-27T16:26:01Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-02-26", "title": "Class-wide genomic tendency throughout specific extremes in black fungi", "description": "Open AccessThe classes Dothideomycetes and Eurotiomycetes include constitutively melanized fungi adapted to extreme conditions and they are widely distributed in diverse hostile habitats worldwide. Yet, despite the growing interest in these fungi, there is a considerable gap of knowledge on their functionality. Their genomic analysis is still in its infancy and the possibility to understand their adaptive strategies and exploit their potentialities in bioremediation is very limited. Here, we supply a genome catalog of 118 black fungi, encompassing diferent ecologies, phylogenies and lifestyles, as a frst example of a comparative genomic study at high level of diversity. Results indicate that, as a rule, Dothideomycetes show more variable genome size and that larger genomes are associated with harshest conditions; low temperature tolerance and DNA repair capacity are overrepresented in their genomes. In Eurotiomycetes high temperature tolerance and capacity to metabolize hydrocarbons are more frequently present and these abilities are positively correlated with the human presence. The genomic features are consistent with the prevalent ecologies in the two classes. Indeed, Dothideomycetes are more common in cold and dry environments with high capacity for DNA repair being consistent with the normally highly UV-impacted conditions in their habitats; in contrast, Eurotiomycetes spread mainly in hot human-impacted sites with industrial pollution. Mean annual temperature and isothermality are positively correlated with tolerance to high temperatures in Dothideomycetes, suggesting that, despite their preference for the cold, they are potentially equipped to survive even when temperatures rise due to the global warming.", "keywords": ["570", "Black Fungi", "Plant Biology", "Health Disparities (rcdc)", "Mycology & Parasitology", "Biotechnology (rcdc)", "Microbiology", "3105 Genetics (for-2020)", "0607 Plant Biology (for)", "0605 Microbiology (for)", "Genetics", "Black fungi \u00b7 Stress resistance \u00b7 Comparative genomics \u00b7 Extreme environments", "14. Life underwater", "3108 Plant biology (for-2020)", "2. Zero hunger", "Evolutionary Biology", "31 Biological Sciences (for-2020)", "Black fungi", "Genetics (rcdc)", "3107 Microbiology (for-2020)", "Comparative genomics", "Human Genome", "500", "Mycology & Parasitology (science-metrix)", "3104 Evolutionary biology (for-2020)", "Extreme environments", "Biological Sciences", "15. Life on land", "Human Genome (rcdc)", "3. Good health", "Health Disparities", "0603 Evolutionary Biology (for)", "13. Climate action", "8. Economic growth", "Stress resistance", "Settore BIO/19 - MICROBIOLOGIA GENERALE", "Biotechnology"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://iris.unitn.it/bitstream/11572/450837/1/FUDI_Coleine%20et%20al%20v2..pdf"}, {"href": "https://iris.unitn.it/bitstream/11572/450837/3/s13225-024-00533-y.pdf"}, {"href": "https://escholarship.org/content/qt86f967px/qt86f967px.pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10449/84375"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Fungal%20Diversity", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10449/84375", "name": "item", "description": "10449/84375", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10449/84375"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2024-02-26T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10037/33301", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"license": "Open Access", "updated": "2026-07-27T16:25:44Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2024-03-21", "title": "Global consortium for the classification of fungi and fungus-like taxa", "description": "The Global Consortium for the Classification of Fungi and fungus-like taxa is an international initiative of more than 550 mycologists to develop an electronic structure for the classification of these organisms. The members of the Consortium originate from 55 countries/regions worldwide, from a wide range of disciplines, and include senior, mid-career and early-career mycologists and plant pathologists. The Consortium will publish a biannual update of the Outline of Fungi and fungus-like taxa, to act as an international scheme for other scientists. Notes on all newly published taxa at or above the level of species will be prepared and published online on the Outline of Fungi website (https://www.outlineoffungi.org/), and these will be finally published in the biannual edition of the Outline of Fungi and fungus-like taxa. Comments on recent important taxonomic opinions on controversial topics will be included in the biannual outline. For example, \u2018to promote a more stable taxonomy in Fusarium given the divergences over its generic delimitation\u2019, or \u2018are there too many genera in the Boletales?\u2019 and even more importantly, \u2018what should be done with the tremendously diverse \u2018dark fungal taxa?\u2019 There are undeniable differences in mycologists\u2019 perceptions and opinions regarding species classification as well as the establishment of new species. Given the pluralistic nature of fungal taxonomy and its implications for species concepts and the nature of species, this consortium aims to provide a platform to better refine and stabilise fungal classification, taking into consideration views from different parties. In the future, a confidential voting system will be set up to gauge the opinions of all mycologists in the Consortium on important topics. The results of such surveys will be presented to the International Commission on the Taxonomy of Fungi (ICTF) and the Nomenclature Committee for Fungi (NCF) with opinions and percentages of votes for and against. Criticisms based on scientific evidence with regards to nomenclature, classifications, and taxonomic concepts will be welcomed, and any recommendations on specific taxonomic issues will also be encouraged; however, we will encourage professionally and ethically responsible criticisms of others\u2019 work. This biannual ongoing project will provide an outlet for advances in various topics of fungal classification, nomenclature, and taxonomic concepts and lead to a community-agreed classification scheme for the fungi and fungus-like taxa. Interested parties should contact the lead author if they would like to be involved in future outlines.", "keywords": ["[SDE] Environmental Sciences", "570", "Biologisk systematik", "scientific criticism", "Evolution", "[SPI] Engineering Sciences [physics]", "[SDV]Life Sciences [q-bio]", "0607 Plant Biology", "Plant Science", "Biological Systematics", "Mycology", "FATTY-ACID-COMPOSITION", "[SPI]Engineering Sciences [physics]", "taxonomy", "Behavior and Systematics", "DNA-SEQUENCE DATA", "taksonomia", "Biowissenschaften; Biologie", "NOMENCLATURE", "INCORPORATING ANAMORPHIC FUNGI", "NATURAL CLASSIFICATION", "TREE", "580", "Science & Technology", "Ecology", "IDENTIFICATION", "klasyfikacja", "classification", " nomenclature", " scientific criticism", " taxonomy", "Botany", "Botanik", "15. Life on land", "classification; nomenclature; scientific criticism; taxonomy", "naukowy krytycyzm", "nomenklatura", "[STAT] Statistics [stat]", "SPECIES RECOGNITION", "[STAT]Statistics [stat]", "[SDV] Life Sciences [q-bio]", "3107 Microbiology", "classification", "[SDE]Environmental Sciences", "3108 Plant biology", "nomenclature", "LEVEL PHYLOGENETIC CLASSIFICATION", "Life Sciences & Biomedicine", "LEAF-LITTER", "QK01 Systematic botany / n\u00f6v\u00e9nyrendszertan", "0605 Microbiology"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://www.research.unipd.it/bitstream/11577/3509765/2/5.%20Hyde%20et%20al%202023.pdf"}, {"href": "https://doi.org/10037/33301"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Mycosphere", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10037/33301", "name": "item", "description": "10037/33301", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10037/33301"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2023-01-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "3124284276", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-07-27T16:27:37Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2021-01-23", "title": "Inconsistent effects of agricultural practices on soil fungal communities across 12 European long\u2010term experiments", "description": "AbstractCropping practices have a great potential to improve soil quality through changes in soil biota. Yet the effects of these soil\uffe2\uff80\uff90improving cropping systems on soil fungal communities are not well known. Here, we analysed soil fungal communities using standardized measurements in 12 long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term experiments and 20 agricultural treatments across Europe. We were interested in whether the same practices (i.e., tillage, fertilization, organic amendments and cover crops) applied across different sites have predictable and repeatable effects on soil fungal communities and guilds. The fungal communities were very variable across sites located in different soil types and climatic regions. The arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) were the fungal guild with most unique species in individual sites, whereas plant pathogenic fungi were most shared between the sites. The fungal communities responded to the cropping practices differently in different sites and only fertilization showed a consistent effect on AMF and plant pathogenic fungi, whereas the responses to tillage, cover crops and organic amendments were site, soil and crop\uffe2\uff80\uff90species specific. We further show that the crop yield is negatively affected by cropping practices aimed at improving soil health. Yet, we show that these practices have the potential to change the fungal communities and that change in plant pathogenic fungi and in AMF is linked to the yield. We further link the soil fungal community and guilds to soil abiotic characteristics and reveal that especially Mn, K, Mg and pH affect the composition of fungi across sites. In summary, we show that fungal communities vary considerably between sites and that there are no clear directional responses in fungi or fungal guilds across sites to soil\uffe2\uff80\uff90improving cropping systems, but that the responses vary based on soil abiotic conditions, crop type and climatic conditions.
Highlights
Soil fungi were analysed using standardized measurements in 12 long\uffe2\uff80\uff90term experiments and 20 agricultural treatments
Fungal communities responded to the cropping practices differently at different sites
Only reduced fertilization showed a consistent effect on AMF and plant pathogenic fungi, whereas the responses to tillage, cover crops and organic amendments were site specific.
Fungal community structure varied significantly between sites, crops and climate conditions; therefore, more cross\uffe2\uff80\uff90site studies are needed in order to manage beneficial soil fungi in agricultural systems.