Can biochar and oxalic acid alleviate the toxicity stress caused by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in soil microbial communities?

It remains unclear whether biochar amendment can mediate changes in soil microbial communities caused by organic contaminants in the rhizosphere. In this study, phenanthrene-contaminated soil was amended with biochar and oxalic acid (OA) alone or in combination and incubated for 21 days. Phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) and high-throughput sequencing were used to evaluate shifts in bacterial and fungal community structure. Phenanthrene stress led to significant shifts in both soil bacterial and fungal community structure, in particularly, 82% of microbial phyla decreased in abundance. Biochar and/or OA improved the phenanthrene-polluted soil by positively mediating shifts in soil microbial communities stressed by phenanthrene. Specifically, biochar and/or OA led to the survival of certain microbial taxa that were inhibited by phenanthrene stress. In addition, many functional microbial individuals and genes participating in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) degradation were positively stimulated by high phenanthrene stress and further stimulated by the simultaneous application of biochar and OA. Based on these findings, tandem biochar and rhizoremediation may be a feasible strategy for relieving PAH toxicity to soil microbial communities.