Because of severe abiotic limitations, Antarctic soils represent simplified systems, where microorganisms are the principal drivers of nutrient cycling. This relative simplicity makes these ecosystems particularly vulnerable to perturbations, like global warming, and the Antarctic Peninsula is among the most rapidly warming regions on the planet. However, the consequences of the ongoing warming of Antarctica on microorganisms and the processes they mediate are unknown. Here, using 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing and qPCR, we report highly consistent responses in microbial communities across disparate sub-Antarctic and Antarctic environments in response to 3 years of experimental field warming (+0.5 to 2 \uffc2\uffb0C). Specifically, we found significant increases in the abundance of fungi and bacteria and in the Alphaproteobacteria-to-Acidobacteria ratio, which could result in an increase in soil respiration. Furthermore, shifts toward generalist bacterial communities following warming weakened the linkage between the bacterial taxonomic and functional richness. GeoChip microarray analyses also revealed significant warming effects on functional communities, specifically in the N-cycling microorganisms. Our results demonstrate that soil microorganisms across a range of sub-Antarctic and Antarctic environments can respond consistently and rapidly to increasing temperatures.
", "keywords": ["0301 basic medicine", "Climate Change", "Antarctic Regions", "global warming", "open-top chambers", "Soil", "03 medical and health sciences", "RNA", " Ribosomal", " 16S", "carbon cycle", "nitrogen cycle", "SDG 13 - Climate Action", "SDG 14 - Life Below Water", "14. Life underwater", "Soil Microbiology", "0303 health sciences", "Bacteria", "GeoChip microarrays", "Fungi", "Temperature", "Nitrogen Cycle", "15. Life on land", "Microarray Analysis", "Biota", "13. Climate action", "international", "Antarctica"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/ismej.2011.124"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/The%20ISME%20Journal", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1038/ismej.2011.124", "name": "item", "description": "10.1038/ismej.2011.124", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1038/ismej.2011.124"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2011-09-22T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00233.x", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-09-22T16:17:13Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2003-03-11", "title": "Do Open-Top Chambers Overestimate The Effects Of Rising Co2 On Plants? An Analysis Using Spring Wheat", "description": "AbstractThe microclimate in facilities for studying effects of elevated CO2 on crops differs from ambient conditions. Open\uffe2\uff80\uff90top chambers (OTCs) increase temperature by 1\uffe2\uff80\uff933\uffe2\uff80\uff83\uffc2\uffb0C. If temperature and CO2 interact in their effect on crops, this would limit the value of OTC experiments. Furthermore, interaction of CO2 and temperature deserves study because increases in atmospheric CO2 concentration are expected to cause global warming.
This paper describes two experiments in which a recently developed cooling system for OTCs was used to analyse the effects of temperature on photosynthesis, growth and yield of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L., cv. Minaret). Two levels of CO2 were used (350 and 700\uffe2\uff80\uff83ppm), and two levels of temperature, with cooled OTCs being 1.6\uffe2\uff80\uff932.4 \uffc2\uffb0C colder than noncooled OTCs.
Photosynthetic rates were increased by elevated CO2, but no effect of temperature was found. Cross\uffe2\uff80\uff90switching CO2 concentrations as well as determination of A\uffe2\uff80\uff93Ci curves showed that plant photosynthetic capacity after anthesis acclimated to elevated CO2. The acclimation may be related to the effects of CO2 on tissue composition: elevated CO2 decreased leaf nitrogen concentrations and increased sugar content. Calculations of the seasonal mean crop light\uffe2\uff80\uff90use efficiency (LUE) were consistent with the photosynthesis data in that CO2 increased LUE by 20% on average whereas temperature had no effect. Both elevating CO2 and cooling increased grain yield, by an average of 11% and 23%, respectively. CO2 and temperature stimulated yield via different mechanisms: CO2 increased photosynthetic rate, but decreased crop light interception capacity (LAI), whereas cooling increased grain yield by increasing LAI and extending the growing season with 10 days. The effects of CO2 and temperature were not additive: the CO2 effect was about doubled in the noncooled open\uffe2\uff80\uff90top chambers. In most cases, effects on yield were mediated through increased grain density rather than increased individual grain weights.
The higher growth response to elevated CO2 in noncooled vs. cooled OTCs shows that a cooling system may remove a bias towards overestimating crop growth response to CO2 in open\uffe2\uff80\uff90top chambers.
", "keywords": ["2. Zero hunger", "0106 biological sciences", "Open-top chambers", "Spring wheat", "Temperature", "CO2", " grain yeild", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "Photosynthesis", "01 natural sciences"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00233.x"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Global%20Change%20Biology", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00233.x", "name": "item", "description": "10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00233.x", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00233.x"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "1999-04-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00249.x", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-09-22T16:17:13Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2003-03-11", "title": "Seasonal Changes In The Response Of Winter Wheat To Elevated Atmospheric Co2 Concentration Grown In Open-Top Chambers And Field Tracking Enclosures", "description": "SummaryWinter wheat was grown at ambient and elevated (ambient plus 350\uffe2\uff80\uff83\uffce\uffbcL\uffe2\uff80\uff83L\uffe2\uff80\uff931) CO2 concentrations in open top chambers and in field\uffe2\uff80\uff90tracking sun\uffe2\uff80\uff90lit climatized enclosures (elevated is 718\uffe2\uff80\uff83\uffce\uffbcL\uffe2\uff80\uff83L\uffe2\uff80\uff931). There was no significant effect of CO2 concentration on sheath, leaf and root biomass and leaf area in the early spring (January to April). 24\uffe2\uff80\uff90h canopy CO2 exchange rate (CCER) was not significantly affected either. However, elevated CO2 concentration increased CCER at midday, decreased evapotranspiration rate and increased instantaneous water\uffe2\uff80\uff90use\uffe2\uff80\uff90efficiency during early spring. Leaf, sheath and root nitrogen concentration per unit dry weight decreased and nonstructural carbohydrate concentration increased under elevated CO2, and N\uffe2\uff80\uff90uptake per unit ground area decreased significantly (\uffe2\uff80\uff93\uffe2\uff80\uff8322%) towards the end of this period.
These results contrast with results from the final harvest, when grain yield and biomass were increased by 19% under elevated CO2. N concentration per dry weight was reduced by 5%, but N\uffe2\uff80\uff90uptake per unit ground area was significantly higher (+\uffe2\uff80\uff8311%) for the elevated CO2 treatment. 24\uffe2\uff80\uff90h and midday\uffe2\uff80\uff90CCER increased significantly more in late spring (period of 21 April to 30 May) (respectively by +\uffe2\uff80\uff8340% and 53%) than in the early spring (respectively 5% and 19%) in response to elevated CO2. Midday evapotranspiration rate was reduced less by elevated CO2 in the late spring (\uffe2\uff80\uff93\uffe2\uff80\uff8313%) than in early spring (\uffe2\uff80\uff93\uffe2\uff80\uff8321%). The CO2 response of midday and 24\uffe2\uff80\uff90h CCER decreased again (+\uffe2\uff80\uff8327% and +\uffe2\uff80\uff8323% resp.) towards the end of the growing season.
We conclude that the low response to CO2 concentration during the early spring was associated with a growth\uffe2\uff80\uff90restriction, caused by low temperature and irradiance levels. The reduction of nitrogen concentration, the increase of nonstructural carbohydrate, and the lower evapotranspiration indicated that CO2 did have an effect towards the end of early spring, but not on biomass accumulation. Regression analysis showed that both irradiance and temperature affected the response to CO2.
", "keywords": ["2. Zero hunger", "0106 biological sciences", "Yield", "Open-top chambers", "Co2-temperature interaction", "Triticum aestivum", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "15. Life on land", "01 natural sciences", "Seasonal influences", "Early spring growth", "Wheat", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "Co2-light interaction"], "contacts": [{"organization": "Dijkstra, P., Schapendonk, A.H.C.M., Groenwold, K., Jansen, M., van de Geijn, S.C.,", "roles": ["creator"]}]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00249.x"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Global%20Change%20Biology", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00249.x", "name": "item", "description": "10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00249.x", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10.1046/j.1365-2486.1999.00249.x"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "1999-06-01T00:00:00Z"}}, {"id": "10576/15457", "type": "Feature", "geometry": null, "properties": {"updated": "2026-09-22T16:22:05Z", "type": "Journal Article", "created": "2020-03-30", "title": "Decomposition rate and stabilization across six tundra vegetation types exposed to >20\u00a0years of warming", "description": "Litter decomposition is an important driver of soil carbon and nutrient cycling in nutrient-limited Arctic ecosystems. However, climate change is expected to induce changes that directly or indirectly affect decomposition. We examined the direct effects of long-term warming relative to differences in soil abiotic properties associated with vegetation type on litter decomposition across six subarctic vegetation types.In six vegetation types, rooibos and green tea bags were buried for 70-75\u00a0days at 8\u00a0cm depth inside warmed (by open-top chambers) and control plots that had been in place for 20-25\u00a0years. Standardized initial decomposition rate and stabilization of the labile material fraction of tea (into less decomposable material) were calculated from tea mass losses. Soil moisture and temperature were measured bi-weekly during summer and plant-available nutrients were measured with resin probes.Initial decomposition rate was decreased by the warming treatment. Stabilization was less affected by warming and determined by vegetation type and soil moisture. Soil metal concentrations impeded both initial decomposition rate and stabilization.While a warmer Arctic climate will likely have direct effects on initial litter decomposition rates in tundra, stabilization of organic matter was more affected by vegetation type and soil parameters and less prone to be affected by direct effects of warming.", "keywords": ["Open-top chamber", "2. Zero hunger", "0106 biological sciences", "Litter quality", "Arctic Regions", "Global warming", "Climate Change", "04 agricultural and veterinary sciences", "Vegetation composition", "15. Life on land", "Milj\u00f6vetenskap", "01 natural sciences", "Soil", "Arctic", "Tea Bag Index for decomposition", "13. Climate action", "0401 agriculture", " forestry", " and fisheries", "Soil chemistry", "Tundra", "Environmental Sciences", "Ecosystem"]}, "links": [{"href": "https://doi.org/10576/15457"}, {"rel": "related", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/Science%20of%20The%20Total%20Environment", "name": "related record", "description": "related record", "type": "application/json"}, {"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "10576/15457", "name": "item", "description": "10576/15457", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items/10576/15457"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection", "name": "collection", "description": "Collection", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main"}], "time": {"date": "2020-07-01T00:00:00Z"}}], "links": [{"rel": "self", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "This document as GeoJSON", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items?keywords=Open-top+chamber&f=json", "hreflang": "en-US"}, {"rel": "alternate", "type": "text/html", "title": "This document as HTML", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items?keywords=Open-top+chamber&f=html", "hreflang": "en-US"}, {"rel": "collection", "type": "application/json", "title": "Collection URL", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main", "hreflang": "en-US"}, {"type": "application/geo+json", "rel": "first", "title": "items (first)", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items?keywords=Open-top+chamber&", "hreflang": "en-US"}, {"rel": "last", "type": "application/geo+json", "title": "items (last)", "href": "https://repository.soilwise-he.eu/cat/collections/metadata:main/items?keywords=Open-top+chamber&offset=7", "hreflang": "en-US"}], "numberMatched": 7, "numberReturned": 7, "distributedFeatures": [], "timeStamp": "2026-09-22T20:50:40.716653Z"}