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Enhanced stabilisation of soil carbon via arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and biochar

A.R.G. Mason,Bahareh Bicharanloo,M. Salomon,A.J. Lowe,Feike A. Dijkstra,Timothy Cavagnaro

Published 2025 in Scientific Reports

ABSTRACT

The fate of carbon (C) in soil is governed by a complex interplay of chemical, physical, and biological processes that determine whether C inputs are rapidly respired or stabilised within more permanent pools. The latter is critical for climate change mitigation, as soil can act as both a source and sink of atmospheric CO₂. Optimising stabilisation pathways is therefore essential to increasing soil C persistence and ensuring meaningful sequestration outcomes. Despite growing recognition of the role of fungi in soil C cycling, the biological mechanisms governing long-term soil C storage remain poorly understood. Here, we introduce the Hyphal Carbon Transfer Theory, which proposes that fungal hyphae can transport plant-derived C from the plant sphere to more stable soil environments. We test this theory by examining the effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation on C partitioning across plant and soil pools using stable isotope ¹³C pulse labelling. We also evaluated biochar as a potential facilitator of this process, given its role in enhancing carbon retention through physical protection, adsorption capacity, and modulation of microbial activity. Biochar did not alter AMF colonisation; however, elevated ¹³C concentrations in both the stable soil fraction and biochar-associated extracts under AMF colonisation indicate that AMF facilitate C transfer away from the highly respiratory root zone toward physically protected microsites. These results point to a previously underappreciated pathway of soil C stabilisation, in which fungal-mediated transport and biochar interactions contribute to C accrual through physical protection and sorption mechanisms.

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