ABSTRACT
Soil organic matter refers to all organic carbon-containing substances in the soil, ranging from relatively undecomposed plant litter and microbial remains to highly polymerized, stable products of degradation and synthesis. Most lipids in soils are probably products of partially decomposed and undecomposed plants and animals, although lipids of microbial origin are also present. The chemical composition of soil lipids is complex, as the result of the nature and reactivity of the various compounds added to soil from plant litter, animals, insects, and microorganisms. The amount of lipids in any soil represents the net result of all processes, such as the addition of plant residues and microbial synthesis and degradation. Soil microorganisms, under adequate environmental conditions, possess the enzymatic capability to degrade low molecular weight fatty acids, but no report mentions the biodgradation of long-chain alkanes and polyesters with 30 to 100 carbon atoms, which are common in agricultural soils.
