All Soil & Plant Science articles – Page 5
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Fungus shows promise to battle plant pathogens in wheat crops
An endophytic fungus shows promise in fighting plant pathogens in wheat crops, boosting productivity and improving sustainability by providing an alternative to reducing reliance on synthetic pesticides, a new study has found.
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Thar desert rhizobacterium offers potential as green biofertilizer that protects plants against drought stress.
A rhizobacterium found in the Thar desert in India has the potential to become an environmentally friendly biofertilizer while also protecting plants against drought stress.
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Researchers identify microbes that help plants thwart parasite
Researchers have shown that soil microbes induce changes in sorghum roots that make the plant more resistant to infection by witchweed. They identified specific strains of bacteria that trigger these resistance traits and could be applied as a soil ’probiotic’.
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Maize genes control little helpers in the soil
Researchers studying different local varieties of maize have discovered that the genetic makeup of the plants also helps to influence which microorganisms cluster around the roots.
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New soil model integrates microbes and large perennial grasses
A new soil model integrates soil microbes and the distinct physiological traits of large perennial grasses into DayCent.
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Climate change disrupts vital ecosystems in the Alps
Reduced snow cover and shifting vegetation patterns in the Alps, both driven by climate change, are having major combined impacts on biodiversity and functioning of ecosystems in the high mountains, according to new research published today.
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Scientists create 3D image of the symbiotic communities around plant roots
Researchers report that microbial community composition varies along the root and that this is influenced by the root spatial metabolism.
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Climate change alters the hidden microbial food web in peatlands
A study of protists shows that a neglected part of the peatlands’ microbial food web is sensitive to climate change, and in ways that are currently not accounted for in models that predict future warming.
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Genes identified that allow bacteria to thrive despite toxic heavy metal in soil
Some soil bacteria can acquire sets of genes that enable them to pump the heavy metal nickel out of their systems, a study has found. This enables the bacteria to not only thrive in otherwise toxic soils but help plants grow there as well.
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Study reviews valorization of depolymerized lignin using microorganisms
Lignin is an abundant natural polymer which is eliminated as a byproduct in the pulp and paper industry. A recent review article explored different microbial processes available for sustainable lignin valorization, yielding not only environmental, but also economic benefits. Researchers highlighted the current advancements as well as ...
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Scientists discover new microbial insights hiding above a 60-year-old fire
Soil microbes near the Centralia mine fire reveal new information about how nature responds to — and potentially recovers from — unnatural disasters.
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Scientists harness fungal bioluminescence to create glow-in-the-dark plants
Synthetic biologists have reported the discovery of multiple plant enzymes – hispidin synthases – that can perform the most complex reaction of the bioluminescence pathway.
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Scientists ID new genus of fungi on grasses
This study examined a mushroom species, Campanella subdendrophora, also known as Tetrapyrgos subdendrophora, which fruits on grasses in the US Pacific Northwest, and determined that a new genus, Metacampanella was needed for this taxon.
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Study explains how a fungus can control an extremely harmful pest
The research was conducted at SPARCBio, a center established by FAPESP and biological control company Koppert at the University of São Paulo’s Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture.
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Marine algae implants could boost crop yields
Scientists have discovered the gene that enables marine algae to make a unique type of chlorophyll. They successfully implanted this gene in a land plant, paving the way for better crop yields on less land. Source: Robert Jinkerson/Tingting Xiang/UCR Fluorescence image of coral Acropora juvenile polyps hosting the ...
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AMI experts issue warning over UK’s Sustainable Farming Initiative
Applied Microbiology International has urged the UK government to take microbiological considerations into account when creating initiatives like the Sustainable Farming Incentive - warning that the potential benefits arising from such schemes will be limited otherwise.
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Magnetic resonance imaging shows how infection progresses in strawberry crown
Researchers from the Department of Technical Physics and the Department of Environmental and Biological Sciences at the University of Eastern Finland have used magnetic resonance imaging, MRI, to investigate how the pathogen Phytophthora cactorum affects the growth and development of strawberry plants. This pathogen causes crown rot in strawberries and ...
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Study reveals convergent evolution of algal CO2-fixing organelles
Various pyrenoid-associated proteins have been reported among the algae studied, suggesting that CO2-fixing organelles evolved independently in each algal group.
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Scientists target seed microbes to improve seed resilience
Fonio (Digitaria exilis), a type of millet, is the oldest indigenous crop in West Africa and one of the fastest maturing cereals. Despite its low yield, the combination of quick maturation and drought tolerance and its ability to thrive in poor soils make it a useful model for understanding how ...
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Researchers reveal molecular mechanism of CsMLO8/11 in regulating cucumber powdery mildew resistance
Scientists have made important progress in uncovering the molecular mechanism of powdery mildew (PM) resistance in cucumber.