Petroleum‐contamination drives the shift of microbiome through modifying soil metallome

Abstract

AbstractSoil oil‐pollution is one of the most severe environmental issues at present. Shifts of soil metallome and microbiome are essential indicators for risk assessment and remediation of field soil pollutions. However, how soil metallome and microbiome react to petroleum‐contamination is not well studied. In this research, soil samples were collected from a short‐term and long‐term petroleum‐contaminated oil field. The soil physicochemical properties, metallome, microbiome, and soil microbial networks were investigated. Results showed that the contents of soil total petroleum hydrocarbon, total carbon, total nitrogen, total sulfur, total phosphorus, calcium, copper, manganese, lead, and zinc were increased by petroleum‐contamination because petroleum is rich in these elements. In contrast, the soil pH was lowered resulting from soil sulfur oxidation regardless of the petroleum pollution duration. Petroleum‐contamination also reduced bacterial and fungal α‐diversity indices because of the selective pressure of petroleum. Furthermore, bacterial α‐diversity was negatively correlated with soil total petroleum hydrocarbon content and electrical conductivity, and fungal α‐diversity was negatively correlated with soil electrical conductivity. Moreover, the relative abundances of Proteobacteria, Ascomycota, Oleibacter, and Fusarium in soil were increased by petroleum‐contamination. Network analysis showed that number of links, modules, and the network invulnerability decreased in short‐term contaminated soil, followed by the long‐term contaminated group, and the main reason should be the environmental disturbance caused by petroleum‐contamination. These results demonstrate that short‐term heavy petroleum contamination can cause shifts in soil physicochemical properties, metallome, and microbiome and assemble a less complex and vulnerable soil microbial network. Moreover, natural restoration can hardly amend soil properties and microbial network structure. This research emphasizes that the uncommonly studied soil metallome may play a vital part in the reaction of microbial communities to petroleum‐contamination.