Microbial shuttles for carbon storage in soil microaggregates
Research platform identifying soil microbes that convert plant-derived carbon into stable by-products, enabling agricultural management practices that enhance soil carbon sequestration while maintaining crop yields.
Overview
This research program investigates the role of specific soil microbes as natural shuttles for carbon sequestration. By identifying microbial taxa that rapidly assimilate plant-derived carbon and convert it into resistant cellular structures, the team aims to enable agricultural soils to store more stable carbon without sacrificing productivity. The work addresses how common management practices such as fertilization, irrigation, and tillage disrupt microbial carbon pathways, and seeks strategies to tip the balance toward microbes that build long-lasting soil carbon stocks.
Technical specifications
Core research capabilities:
- Quantitative stable isotope probing to measure growth rates of soil microbial taxa directly in rhizosphere soil
- Metagenomic sequencing of isotopically enriched fractions to extract microbial traits linked to stable by-product formation
- Metabolomic profiling to detect fingerprints of carbon-shuttling microbes across soil compartments and management treatments
- Cultivation of candidate carbon-shuttling bacteria and fungi from a robust strain collection sourced from southern California grassland soils
- Field and laboratory experiments manipulating water and nitrogen inputs to assess microbial, plant, and soil responses
Key insights generated:
- Identification of microbial taxa with high potential for stable carbon formation based on growth rate, carbon assimilation, and resistant biomass traits
- Characterization of how water, nitrogen, and plant inputs shape microbial metabolism and carbon storage outcomes
- Evidence linking microbial necromass signatures to soil microaggregate formation
Technology readiness level
The program is at an advanced research stage with established field plots, ongoing laboratory experiments, and a well-characterized culture collection already producing data on microbial metabolism and trait variation. Current efforts focus on integrating isotope probing, metagenomics, and metabolomics to pinpoint candidate carbon-shuttling microbes, followed by laboratory and field validation of their direct impact on stable carbon formation. The work is positioned to translate findings into agricultural management recommendations and potential microbial inoculant strategies.
About University of California, Irvine
UC Irvine is a comprehensive public research university in the University of California system, known for large-scale research and a collaborative, cross-disciplinary culture. Industry engages through an adjacent research and technology park, an on-campus innovation hub that co-locates startups with corporate teams, and access to shared core laboratories across campus. Integration with a major academic health system provides pathways for clinical collaboration and translation. Research is supported by competitive federal funding from agencies such as NIH, NSF, DOE, and DOD, alongside state and industry partnerships. A central technology transfer office streamlines IP, licensing, and startup formation.
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