scholarly journals The importance of mycorrhiza in agroforestry systems for the stability of ecosystems in semi-arid zones and simple quantification of soil fungi - A study at the Mollesnejta research center for Andean Agroforestry in the valley of Cochabamba, Bolivia

Bionatura ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 02 (Bionatura Conference Serie) ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Ungar ◽  
Jakob Vögerl ◽  
Nora Medrano Mercado ◽  
Noemi Stadler-Kaulich

Soil erosion and poor production conditions in developing countries are a major problem for local primary care. It is therefore even more important to ensure a functioning and stable ecosystem from which agricultural plants profit, too. Trees have found a brilliant way to gather enough nutrients for their survival. They enter a symbiosis with special types of fungi, the so-called mycorrhiza. This leads to more resistance of the crops, especially against drought. There is a method that can be used with the simplest means to prove that mycorrhizae are found in tree roots and thus assure improvement of soil fertility.

2008 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominic Brown ◽  
John Taylor ◽  
Martin Bell

In recent years, with the formation of organisations such as the Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre, social science interest in the Australian desert has re-surfaced with a research emphasis that is focused on creating sustainable futures for the region. One consequence of this is a demand for detailed demographic information to allow an assessment of different quanta of need in social and economic policy, and for assessment of the impact of these in environmental policy. However, demographic analysis on human populations in the desert to date has attracted very little research attention. In this paper we begin to address this lack of analysis by focusing on the populations, both aboriginal and non-aboriginal, of the arid and semi-arid zones of Australia. We extend earlier analysis by including for the first time demographic information on the semi-arid as well as the arid zone to establish the spatial pattern of population growth within the whole desert area drawing attention to the resulting settlement structure as an outcome of prevailing social, cultural and economic conditions. By examining population structure and demographic components of population change we also present for the first time population projections for the semi-arid zone and, therefore, in combination with the arid zone, for the entire Australian desert. All of this provides a basis for considering social and economic policy implications and the nature of underlying processes that drive change in this region.


Author(s):  
Hanamant M. Halli ◽  
S.S. Rathore ◽  
N. Manjunatha ◽  
Vinod Kumar Wasnik

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alia Ahmed ◽  
Amjad Hameed ◽  
Shazia Saeed

AbstractRecent focus is on analysis of biological activities of extracts from plant species. Zygophyllaceae is exceedingly important angiosperm family with many taxa being used in folk medicines widely dispersed in arid and semi-arid zones of Balochistan, Pakistan. Only a small proportion of them have been scientifically analyzed and many species are nearly facing extinction. Therefore present investigation explores the biochemical and bioactive potential of fourteen folk medicinal plants usually used for treatments of different ailments. Fresh aerial parts of nine taxa and two fruit samples were collected from plants growing in arid and semi-arid zones of Balochistan and analyzed for enzymatic, non-enzymatic and other biochemical activities. Higher phytochemical activities were detected in the aerial parts. Superoxide dismutase was detected maximum in Fagonia indica, (184.7±5.17 units/g), ascorbate peroxidase in Tribulus longipetalus subsp. longipetalus (947.5±12.5 Units/g), catalase and peroxidase was higher in Peganum harmala (555.0±5.0 and 2597.8±0.4 units/g respectively). Maximum esterase and alpha amylase activity was found in Zygophyllum fabago (14.3±0.44 and 140±18.8 mg/g respectively). Flavonoid content was high in T. longipetalus subsp. longipetalus (666.1±49 μg/ml). The highest total phenolic content and tannin was revealed in F. olivieri (72125±425 and 37050±1900 μM/g. respectively). Highest value of ascorbic acid was depicted in F. bruguieri var. rechingeri (448±1.5 μg/g). Total soluble Proteins and reducing sugars were detected higher in P. harmala (372.3±54 and 5.9±0.1 mg/g respectively). Maximum total antioxidant capacity (TAC) was depicted in Z. simplex (16.9±0.01 μM/g). Pigment analysis exhibited the high value of lycopene and total carotenoids in T. terrestris (7.44±0.2 and 35.5±0.0 mg/g respectively). Chlorophyll a, b and total chlorophyll content was found maximum in T. longipetalus subsp. pterophorus (549.1±9.9, 154.3±10 and 703.4±20.2 ug/g respectively). All taxa exhibited anti-inflammatory activity as well as anti-diabetic inhibitory potential. Seed extracts of Zygophyllum eurypterum (96%) exhibited highest inhibitory potential, along with twelve other taxa of Zygophyllaceae indicated (96-76%) activity when compared with the standard drug diclofenac sodium (79%). Seeds of T. longipetalus subsp. longipetalus (85%) exhibited the highest anti-diabetic activity; other eleven taxa also exhibited inhibitory activity of α-amylase ranging from (85-69%) compared with Metformin (67%) standard drug. Phytochemical screening revealed that selected taxa proved to be the potential source of natural antioxidants and could further be explored for in-vivo studies and utilized in pharmaceutical industries as potent therapeutic agents validating their ethno-pharmacological uses.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aristeidis Varis ◽  
Christopher Miller ◽  
Patrick Cuthbertson ◽  
Abay Namen ◽  
Zhaken Taimagambetov ◽  
...  

Central Asian caves with Palaeolithic deposits are few but they provide a rich record of human fossils and cultural assemblages that has been used to model Late Pleistocene hominin dispersals. However, previous research has not yet systematically evaluated the formation processes that influence the frequency of Palaeolithic cave sites in the region. To address this deficiency, we combined field survey and micromorphological analyses in the piedmont zone of south Kazakhstan. Here we present our preliminary results focusing on selected sites of the Qaratau mountains. Sediment cover varies among the surveyed caves and loess-like sediments dominate the cave sequences. The preservation of cave deposits is influenced by reworking of cave sediments within the caves but also by the broader erosional processes that shape semi-arid landscapes. Ultimately, deposits of potentially Pleistocene age are scarce. Our study provides new data in the geoarchaeologically neglected region of Central Asia and demonstrates that micromorphology has great analytical potential even within the limitations of rigorous survey projects. We outline some of the processes that influence the formation and preservation of cave deposits inKazakhstan, as well as broader implications for the distribution of Palaeolithic cave sites in Central Asia and other semi-arid environments.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 049-052
Author(s):  
Samanpreet Singh ◽  
◽  
Avinash Kumar Bhatia ◽  
Kamal Sharma ◽  
Dushyant Sharma ◽  
...  

Terminalia chebula Retz. commonly known as ‘Harar’ belongs to the family Combretaceae. It is found in deciduous forests throughout the greater part of India, China, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Bangladesh, etc. In India, it is distributed throughout the greater part except in arid zones. The fruits are common constituent of ‘Triphala’, capable of imparting youthful vitality and receptivity of mind and sense and are extensively used for clinical research, tanning and furniture purposes and also contain 1.73% nitrogen and 2.75% Calcium. The demand for its fruit has increased tremendously, because of its medicinal value; its fruits are sold at a price of ` 10-60 kg-1. However, the poor germination capacity, lack of natural regeneration and knowledge regarding its propagation are the limiting factors for its adoption in agroforestry systems. There is need of more productive planting stock with lower juvenile period and comparatively large fruit size.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Kelly A Courts ◽  
Rebecca A Hubbard ◽  
Hans B Kersten ◽  
Heather Klusaritz

Abstract Objective: The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends screening for food insecurity (FI) at all well-child visits due to well-documented negative effects of experiencing FI in childhood. Before age 3, children have twelve recommended primary care visits at which screening could occur. Little is known regarding the stability of FI status at this frequency of screening. Design: Data derived from electronic health records were used to retrospectively examine the stability of household FI status. Age-stratified (infant v. toddler) analyses accounted for age-based differences in visit frequency. Regression models with time since last screening as the predictor of FI transitions were estimated via generalised estimating equations adjusting for age and race/ethnicity. Setting: A paediatric primary care practice in Philadelphia. Participants: 3451 distinct patients were identified whose health record documented two or more household FI screens between April 1, 2012 and July 31, 2018 and were aged 0–3 years at first screen. Results: Overall, 9·5 % of patients had a transition in household FI status, with a similar frequency of transitioning from food insecure to secure (5·0 %) and from food secure to insecure (4·5 %). Families of toddlers whose last screen was more than a year ago were more likely to experience a transition to FI compared with those screened 0–6 months prior (OR 1·91 (95 % CI 1·05, 3·47)). Conclusions: Screening more than annually may not contribute substantially to the identification of transitions to FI.


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