Abstract (from http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v521/n7551/full/nature14238.html): Over 20% of Earth’s terrestrial surface is underlain by permafrost with vast stores of carbon that, once thawed, may represent the largest future transfer of carbon from the biosphere to the atmosphere1. This process is largely dependent on microbial responses, but we know little about microbial activity in intact, let alone in thawing, permafrost. Molecular approaches have recently revealed the identities and functional gene composition of microorganisms in some permafrost soils2, 3, 4 and a rapid shift in functional gene composition during short-term thaw experiments3. However, the fate of permafrost carbon depends on climatic,...
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