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Updated: Aug 5, 2026

An Anaerobic Biosensor Assay for the Detection of Mercury and Cadmium
Published on: December 17, 2018
Bioavailable heavy-metal pressure is linked to microbial functional vulnerability and carbon-use niche contraction in
Wenming Liu1,2, Jiaxin Shen1,2, Yongxu Lin1,2
1Endoscopic Center, The First Affiliated Hospital, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China.
Abstract:
Heavy-metal contamination threatens microbial processes in karst agricultural soils, but functional responses to the bioavailable metal fraction remain insufficiently resolved. We integrated soil properties, total and DTPA-extractable metals, microbial abundance and community profiles, and Biolog EcoPlate traits to quantify microbial functional vulnerability in Pb-Zn mining-affected agricultural soils. DTPA-extractable metal pressure was positively associated with functional vulnerability (Spearman ρ = 0.626, p < 0.001) and negatively associated with carbon-use niche breadth (ρ = -0.481, p < 0.001). Contraction occurred across several substrate classes and remained consistent in covariate-adjusted and sensitivity analyses. Community reorganization, independent contaminated-soil datasets, and a targeted qPCR microcosm experiment further connected the field pattern with shifts in microbial community structure and functional marker genes. These findings identify carbon-use niche contraction as an informative functional response to bioavailable metal mixtures and support its use alongside chemical indicators when assessing remediation and sustainable management of contaminated karst soils.
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