Soil Microbes as Regulators of Grassland C and N Cycling Under Climate Change
A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Grassland and Pasture Science".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 February 2026 | Viewed by 23
Special Issue Editors
Interests: grassland type characteristics and soil microbial diversity distribution mechanism
Interests: effects of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur inputs on the structure and function of grassland soil microbial communities
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Grasslands, critical for carbon sequestration and nutrient provisioning, face unprecedented pressure from climate change. Soil microorganisms drive biogeochemical cycles sustaining these ecosystems, yet their regulatory mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Historically, research focused on abiotic factors or plant dynamics; only recently has the integrative role of microbial communities in grassland resilience gained prominence.
This Special Issue aims to synthesize mechanistic insights into how soil microbes mediate carbon and nitrogen fluxes in grasslands under climate change stressors. We seek interdisciplinary studies linking microbial traits, community dynamics, and process rates to predict ecosystem functioning. The scope spans microbial physiology, community ecology, biogeochemistry, and modeling.
We highlight the following:
Microbial feedbacks to warming, nitrogen deposition, drought, and elevated CO₂;
Trait-based approaches linking microbial diversity to C/N turnover;
Plant–microbe–mineral interactions governing soil organic matter persistence;
Multiomics integration (genomics, metabolomics) to uncover regulatory networks;
Microbial management strategies enhancing grassland sustainability.
We invite original research, reviews, and methodological advances addressing the following:
Field/experimental studies quantifying microbial-mediated C/N cycling;
Novel assessments of microbial functional traits and metabolic efficiency;
Cross-scale integration (molecular to ecosystem) of microbial controls;
Predictive modeling of microbial–climate interactions;
Restoration ecology focusing on microbial functional recovery.
Dr. Baihui Ren
Dr. Zhirui Wang
Dr. Jiangping Cai
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- soil microbes
- grassland ecosystems
- carbon cycling
- nitrogen cycling
- climate change
- regulatory mechanisms
- microbial traits
- nutrient provisioning
- functional recovery
- multiomics integration
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