[Soil Microbial Diversity and Its Response to Heavy Metals in Yuncheng Salt Lake Wetland]

The distribution characteristics and influencing factors of soil microbial communities in the Yuncheng Salt Lake wetland were investigated by analyzing soil samples from different regions using high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics analysis techniques. The diversity and structural characteristics of soil microbial communities in the region were revealed, and the potential correlations between microbial communities and heavy metal elements in the soil were assessed. This study aims to provide scientific guidance for local environmental protection and ecological restoration. The results showed significant spatial differences in heavy metal content in Yuncheng Salt Lake wetland soil, with higher total heavy metal content and Pb and Cr content on the southern shore compared to those in other regions. The dominant bacteria in southern shore soil, Acidobacteria and Firmicutes, as well as the dominant ecological function, nitrate reduction, differed significantly from those in other regions. The dominant fungal phylum did not show significant spatial differences； however, the dominant ecological function, animal pathogens - coprophilous - endophytic - epiphytic - saprophytic - ligninolytic fungi, was significantly higher than in other regions. The diversity and richness of bacterial communities in the study area were higher than those of fungi, and the construction process was primarily deterministic, whereas fungal community construction was predominantly stochastic. Heavy metals driving changes in soil bacterial community structure in this region were Cr, Hg, Zn, As, and Ni, with various heavy metals significantly correlated with Actinobacteria and Acidobacteria. The heavy metals driving changes in fungal community structure were Cr, As, Zn, Pb, and Hg, with As significantly negatively correlating with Basidiomycota.