Transient O 2 pulses direct Fe crystallinity and Fe(III)-reducer gene expression within a soil microbiome

Background Many environments contain redox transition zones, where transient oxygenation events can modulate anaerobic reactions that influence the cycling of iron (Fe) and carbon (C) on a global scale. In predominantly anoxic soils, this biogeochemical cycling depends on Fe mineral composition and the activity of mixed Fe(III)-reducer populations that may be altered by periodic pulses of molecular oxygen (O2).