All Soil & Plant Science articles
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NewsHope for global banana farming in genetic discovery
Scientists have pinpointed crucial genetic resistance to fight a fungal disease which threatens the global banana supply in a wild subspecies of the fruit. The team have identified the genomic region that controls resistance to Fusarium wilt Sub Tropical Race 4 (STR4).
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NewsAncestral motif enables broad DNA binding by NIN, a master regulator of rhizobial symbiosis
Researchers investigated the molecular mechanisms whereby the transcription factor NODULE INCEPTION (NIN) - crucial for rhizobial symbiosis - can bind a broader spectrum of DNA sequences than its close homologs, using the legume Lotus japonicus (Miyakogusa) as a model system.
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NewsLower tillage boosts the soil’s natural phosphorus cycle - cutting the need for costly fertilizer inputs
Long-term tillage reduction helps to restore the soil’s natural phosphorus cycle, supporting more sustainable nutrient management with less reliance on costly and finite fertilizer inputs, according to a new study published in Sustainable Microbiology.
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NewsScaling up: Fungus plays key role in crafting spalted wood
A new standardized, scalable process deploys a fungal pest of deciduous trees to create a unique woodworking product - spalted wood, with its distinctive etched black markings.
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NewsNewly discovered bacterium converts carbon dioxide into chemicals using electricity
A newly identified soil bacterium may help unlock cleaner ways to recycle carbon dioxide and produce valuable chemicals using electricity. The sulfate reducing bacterium Fundidesulfovibrio terrae possesses an unusual ability to both export and absorb electrical energy while converting carbon dioxide into acetate.
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NewsBeneficial bacterium deployed to protect turfgrass from fungal foes
A novel strain of Bacillus subtilis helps a variety of plants resist soil‑borne diseases, retain moisture and develop stronger root‑to‑shoot growth. New findings on the effect of UD1022 on dollar spot disease suggests intriguing implications for manufacturing of biological treatments for the fungal disease.
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NewsRecycling strategies of fungi can affect how forests store carbon
Some fungi are wasteful, while others recycle – and this can determine how much carbon is stored in a forest. Researchers have revealed how fungi manage their mycelium, the network that builds the structure of fungus. The results could provide new insights into the carbon cycle and climate.
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NewsManagement practices can enhance soil microbiome functions in plant defense
Researchers analyzed surveys and soil samples from 85 organic farmers in New York to investigate the interaction between beliefs, management practices, and soil microbiome functions.
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NewsBack from blight: Genomics offers a faster path to restoring the American chestnut
After more than a century of devastation from deadly blight, the iconic American chestnut tree could be brought back from the brink of extinction thanks to novel genomic tools and carefully bred hybrids, a new study finds.
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NewsSeashells and coconut char: A coastal recipe for super-compost
Researchers have developed a calcium-modified biochar that speeds up waste recycling and creates nutrient-rich soil, boosting specialized microbial communities that break down tough materials like lignin and convert them into stable humus.
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NewsRoot microbes could help oak trees adapt to drought
Microbes could help oak trees cope with environmental change. A study observing oaks growing in a natural woodland found that the trees’ above- and below-ground microbiomes were resilient to drought, nutrient scarcity, and exposure to pathogenic beetles and bacteria.
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NewsRapid response launched to tackle new yellow rust strains threatening UK wheat
The UK’s wheat is under threat from a newly identified strain of the yellow rust pathogen, prompting an urgent mobilisation of research institutes to protect harvests. The new strain has overcome a key resistance gene that was protecting many major UK wheat varieties from yellow rust infection.
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NewsScientists explain why methane spiked in the early 2020s
A combination of weakened atmospheric removal and increased emissions from warming wetlands, rivers, lakes, and agricultural land increased atmospheric methane at an unprecedented rate in the early 2020s, an international team of researchers report.
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NewsForest soils increasingly extract methane from atmosphere
Researchers evaluated the world’s most comprehensive data set on methane uptake by forest soils. They discovered that under certain climate conditions, which may become more common in the future, their capacity to absorb methane actually increases.
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NewsSoil pH shapes nitrogen competition between wheat and microbes, new study finds
A new study reveals that soil acidity plays a critical role in determining how wheat competes with soil microorganisms for nitrogen, a nutrient essential for plant growth and global food production.
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NewsHow a single protein helps a fungal pathogen invade tea oil trees
Scientists report the discovery of a key mitophagy regulator in Colletotrichum camelliae, the fungus responsible for anthracnose in tea oil trees. A SUN family protein, CaSun1, directly recruits the autophagy protein CaAtg8 to mitochondria, enabling mitophagy during infection.
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NewsPlants influence the composition and function of their surrounding microbiome to suit their needs
An investigation into plant–microbe interactions at the genetic, metabolic and physiological levels revealed that 203 bacterial gene sequences were strongly shaped by the host plant, for example through their metabolic products. One bacterial genus was found to enhance root development even in nitrogen-limited soils.
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NewsGenes from corn’s wild ancestor change soil microbial community, improve sustainability
Corn bred with genes from wild relatives can reshape soil microbial communities and reduce nitrogen loss — with no yield reduction, according to new research. It’s the first time corn’s genetic makeup has been linked with inhibition of nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria.
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NewsHow brick-building bacteria react to toxic chemical in Martian soil
Researchers investigated how bacteria that can mould Martian soil into brick-like structures fare in the presence of perchlorate, a toxic chlorine-containing chemical discovered in Martian soil. It slows down bacterial growth - but surprisingly leads to the formation of stronger bricks.
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NewsHow fire-loving fungi learned to eat charcoal
Wildfire causes most living things to flee or die, but some fungi thrive afterward, even feasting on charred remains. A new study is among the first to investigate how fungi that are barely detectable in the soil before a fire are able to proliferate wildly once an area has burned.