Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Cycling in Terrestrial Ecosystems: Isotope and Microbial Approaches
A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Soil and Plant Nutrition".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 191
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling are central to the functioning and sustainability of terrestrial ecosystems, regulating soil fertility, plant productivity, and feedbacks to climate change. Over recent decades, advances in stable isotope techniques, molecular biology, and microbial ecology have greatly improved the mechanistic understanding of C and N transformations in soils. Nevertheless, major uncertainties remain regarding the sources, turnover pathways, and stabilization mechanisms of soil organic matter, as well as the roles of plant–soil–microbe interactions under global change drivers such as nutrient enrichment, land-use change, and climate warming.
This Special Issue aims to advance and synthesize current knowledge on soil C and N cycling by integrating isotope-based approaches with microbial, biochemical, and ecological perspectives. We welcome original research articles and reviews employing stable isotopes (e.g., 13C, 15N), microbial community and functional analyses, and process-based experiments across agricultural and natural ecosystems. Studies addressing rhizosphere processes, mineral-associated organic matter formation, priming effects, and ecosystem management implications are particularly encouraged.
Dr. Hongfei Liu
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- soil carbon cycling
- nitrogen cycling
- stable isotopes
- soil microbial ecology
- plant–soil–microbe interactions
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