Keywords
Chongxi wetland
Enzyme-driven nutrient cycling
Ecological restoration
Rhizosphere microbiome
Submitted : 2026-02-17
Accepted : 2026-03-04
Published : 2026-03-19
Abstract
This study comparatively assessed soil enzyme activities in three constructed plant communities and one natural community in the Chongxi tidal flat wetland of the Yangtze River Estuary. The results demonstrated that rhizosphere soil in Alnus trabeculosa plantations exhibited significantly higher alkaline phosphatase, protease, urease, and catalase activities compared to artificial communities dominated by Phragmites communis, Salix matsudana, and Taxodium distichum (P<0.01). Vertical distribution analysis revealed that protease and urease activities markedly decreased with depth (61.93% reduction on average), while catalase activity remained stable. Alkaline phosphatase activity generally declined with depth but displayed a distinct peak at 15–30 cm. Notably, rhizosphere soil enzyme activities were 1.07–2.84 times higher than non-rhizosphere levels. These findings highlight Alnus trabeculosa as a keystone species for enhancing soil biogeochemical functions in estuarine wetland restoration.
References
Murray NJ, Worthington TA, Bunting P, et al., 2022, High-resolution Mapping of Losses and Gains of Earth’s Tidal Wetlands. Science (New York, N. Y.), 376(6594): 744–749.
Bao YZ, Liu TX, Duan LM, et al., 2021, Comparison of an Improved Penman-Monteith Model and SWH Model for Estimating Evapotranspiration in a Meadow Wetland in a Semiarid Region. Science of The Total Environment, 2021(794): 148736.
Ghosh BD, Debnath S, Sarkar UK, et al., 2023, Ecological Assessment of a Subtropical Floodplain Wetland of the Ganga Basin in the Context of Changing Climate Using GIS Tools. Journal of Water and Climate Change, 2023(14): 4220–4235.
Crowther TW, Van DHJ, Wan J, et al., 2019, The Global Soil Community and its Influence on Biogeochemistry. Science, 2019(365): eaav0550.
Burns GR, DeForest LJ, Marxsen J, et al., 2013, Soil Enzymes in a Changing Environment: Current Knowledge and Future Directions. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 2013(58): 216–234.
Gatica G, Fernandez ME, Juliarena MP, et al., 2022, Forest Land-use Change and its Impact on Soil Enzyme Activities and Microbial Biomass. Forest Ecology and Management, 2022(507): 120009.
Pires LF, Auler AC, Roque WL, et al., 2020, Advances in Soil Enzyme Research in Agricultural Ecosystems. Geoderma, 2020(362): 114103.
Xu G, Jiao LM, Liu JF, et al., 2019, Understanding Urban Expansion Combining Macro Patterns and Micro Dynamics in Three Southeast Asian Megacities, Science of the Total Environment, 2019(660): 375–383.
Wang XZ, Zhang Y, Li JP, et al., 2025, Diversity and Functional Insights into Endophytic Fungi in Halophytes from West Ordos Desert Ecosystems. Journal of Fungi, 2025(11): 30.
Xie T, Cui BS, Li SZ, et al., 2019, Management of Soil Thresholds for Seedling Emergence to Re-establish Plant Species on Bare Flats in Coastal Salt Marshes. Hydrobiologia, 2019(827): 51–63.
Kiss SM, Dracan BD, Radulesu, 1975, Biological Significance of Enzymes Accumulated in Soil. Advances in Agronomy, 1975(27): 25–87.
Gould IJ, Quinton JN, Weigelt A, et al., 2016, Plant Diversity and Root Traits Benefit Physical Properties Key to Soil Function in Grasslands. Ecology Letters, 19(9): 1140–1149.
Loeppmann S, Blagodatskaya E, Pausch J, et al., 2016, Enzyme Properties down the Soil Profile: A Matter of Substrate Quality in Rhizosphere and Detritusphere. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 103(12): 274–283.
Li XH, 2001, Soil Enzyme Chemistry. Academic Press, Beijing.
Mehvar S, Filatova T, Sarker MH, et al., 2019, Climate Change-driven Losses in Ecosystem Services of Coastal Wetlands: A Case Study in the West Coast of Bangladesh. Ocean & Coastal Management, 2019(169): 273–283.
Zhang S, Zhong H, Huang LL, et al., 2024, Recovery of Soil Organic Carbon Storage Driven by Microbial Communities during Long-term Natural Restoration in Wetland Ecosystems. Ecological engineering, 2024(199): 107170.
Kumar S, Garkoti SC, 2022, Rhizosphere Influence on Soil Microbial Biomass and Enzyme Activity in Banj Oak, Chir Pine and Banj Oak Regeneration Forests in the Central Himalaya. Geoderma, 2022(409): 115626.
Davide B, Matthias R, Klaus S, et al., 2012, Revealing Structure and Assembly Cues for Arabidopsis Root-inhabiting Bacterial Microbiota. Nature, 488(7409): 91–95.
Pereira APA, Cherubin MR, de Araujo ASF, et al., 2024, Soil Quality Evaluation in Mono and Mixed Eucalypt Plantation. Sustainability, 2024(16): 2534.
Zhang ZL, Guo WJ, Wang JP, et al., 2023, Extraradical Hyphae Alleviate Nitrogen Deposition-induced Phosphorus Deficiency in Ectomycorrhiza-dominated Forests. New Phytologist, 2023(239): 1651–1664.