Aim The formation of thermokarst lakes could make a large amount of carbon accessible to microbial degradation, potentially intensifying the permafrost carbon‐climate feedback via carbon dioxide/methane emissions. Because of their diverse functional roles, prokaryotes could strongly mediate biogeochemical cycles in thermokarst lakes. However, little is known about the large‐scale patterns and drivers of these communities. Loca...

Mineralization of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in thermokarst lakes plays a non‐negligible role in the permafrost carbon (C) cycle, but remains poorly understood due to its complex interactions with external C and nutrient inputs (i.e., aquatic priming and nutrient effects). Based on large‐scale lake sampling and laboratory incubations, in combination with 13 C‐stable‐isotope labeling, optical spectroscopy, and high‐throughp...

Significant attention has been given to the way in which the soil nitrogen (N) cycle responds to permafrost thaw in recent years, yet little is known about anaerobic N transformations in thermokarst lakes, which account for more than one‐third of thermokarst landforms across permafrost regions. Based on the N isotope dilution and tracing technique, combined with qPCR and high‐throughput sequencing, we presented large‐scale mea...

Ecosystem carbon (C) dynamics after permafrost thaw depends on more than just climate change since soil nutrient status may also impact ecosystem C balance. It has been advocated that nitrogen (N) release upon permafrost thaw could promote plant growth and thus offset soil C loss. However, compared with the widely accepted C‐N interactions, little is known about the potential role of soil phosphorus (P) availability. We combin...

Large uncertainties exist in carbon (C)‐climate feedback in permafrost regions, partly due to an insufficient understanding of warming effects on nutrient availabilities and their subsequent impacts on vegetation C sequestration. Although a warming climate may promote a substantial release of soil C to the atmosphere, a warming‐induced increase in soil nutrient availability may enhance plant productivity, thus offsetting C los...