scholarly journals Rethinking Crop Nutrition in Times of Modern Microbiology: Innovative Biofertilizer Technologies

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo K. Mitter ◽  
Micaela Tosi ◽  
Dasiel Obregón ◽  
Kari E. Dunfield ◽  
James J. Germida
Keyword(s):  
Plant Nutrition ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Commercial Agriculture ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Promising Strategy ◽  
Crop Nutrition ◽  
Significant Step ◽  
Bacteria And Fungi ◽  
Global Population

Global population growth poses a threat to food security in an era of increased ecosystem degradation, climate change, soil erosion, and biodiversity loss. In this context, harnessing naturally-occurring processes such as those provided by soil and plant-associated microorganisms presents a promising strategy to reduce dependency on agrochemicals. Biofertilizers are living microbes that enhance plant nutrition by either by mobilizing or increasing nutrient availability in soils. Various microbial taxa including beneficial bacteria and fungi are currently used as biofertilizers, as they successfully colonize the rhizosphere, rhizoplane or root interior. Despite their great potential to improve soil fertility, biofertilizers have yet to replace conventional chemical fertilizers in commercial agriculture. In the last 10 years, multi-omics studies have made a significant step forward in understanding the drivers, roles, processes, and mechanisms in the plant microbiome. However, translating this knowledge on microbiome functions in order to capitalize on plant nutrition in agroecosystems still remains a challenge. Here, we address the key factors limiting successful field applications of biofertilizers and suggest potential solutions based on emerging strategies for product development. Finally, we discuss the importance of biosafety guidelines and propose new avenues of research for biofertilizer development.

The overview of existing knowledge on medical cannabis plants growing  

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matěj Malík ◽  
Jiří Velechovský ◽  
Pavel Tlustoš
Keyword(s):  
Plant Nutrition ◽  
Modern Medicine ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Pharmaceutical Sciences ◽  
Medical Cannabis ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Cultivation Technology ◽  
Active Substances ◽  
Selection Of

The use of cannabis for medicinal purposes dates back well before the era of modern medicine, but in recent years research into the use of medical cannabis in the medical and pharmaceutical sciences has grown significantly. In European countries, most cannabis plants have been and still are grown for industrial purposes. For this reason, hemp cultivation technology is relatively well researched, while little is known about the key factors affecting cannabis cultivation for medical purposes. The active substances of cannabis plant targeted by this review are called phytocannabinoids. The biosynthesis of phytocannabinoids is relatively well understood, but the specific environmental factors that influence the type and number of phytocannabinoids have been much less studied. Indoor or greenhouse cultivation, which uses automated lighting, ventilation, irrigation systems and complex plant nutrition has become much more sophisticated and appears to be the most effective method for producing medical cannabis. There are many different cultivation systems for cannabis plants, but one of the essential elements of the process is an optimal plant nutrition and selection of fertilisers to achieve it. This review summarises the existing knowledge about phytocannabinoid biosynthesis and the conditions suitable for growing plants as sources of medical cannabis. This review also attempts to delineate how nutrient type and bioavailability influences the synthesis and accumulation of specific phytocannabinoids based on contemporary knowledge of the topic.  

scholarly journals How to Make Policy-Makers Care about “Wicked Problems” such as Biodiversity Loss?—The Case of a Policy Campaign

2021 ◽  
pp. 527-553
Author(s):  
Agnes Zolyomi
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Wicked Problems ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Media Campaigns ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Difficult Situation ◽  
Economic Theories ◽  
The People

AbstractPolicy-makers define our lives to a great extent, and are therefore the people everybody wants to talk to. They receive hundreds of messages in various forms day-by-day with the aim of making them decide for or against something. They are in an especially difficult situation as regards the so-called “wicked” or “diffuse” problems such as climate change and biodiversity loss (Millner and Olivier, 2015; Sharman and Mlambo, 2012; Zaccai and Adams, 2012). These problems are limitedly tackled at the policy level despite their major socio-economic and environmental implications, which is often explained by their complexity with a sense of remoteness of effects (Cardinale et al., 2012; WWF, 2018). Communicating advocacy or scientific messages of biodiversity is therefore both a challenge and an under-researched topic (Bekessy et al., 2018; Posner et al., 2016; Primmer et al., 2015; Wright et al., 2017), where both social and natural sciences and both scientists and practitioners are needed to contribute (Ainscough et al., 2019). In order to be successful in delivering messages, communication not only needs to be self-explanatory and easy to consume but novel as well. It additionally helps if the message arrives in a more extraordinary format to draw even more attention. Based on experiences drawn from a conservation and advocacy NGO’s work, this chapter will divulge various socio-economic theories about creative methods, communication, and influencing decision-makers through a campaign fighting for the preservation of key nature legislation. It will be demonstrated how different EU policy-makers, including representatives of the European Commission and Members of the European Parliament, the general public, and other stakeholders, were addressed with various messages and tools (e.g., short films, social media campaigns, fact sheets, involvement of champions). In addition to other key factors such as public support, knowledge of the target audience and political context, the probable impacts and limitations of these messages will also be elaborated. The relevance to the integration and employment of better socio-economic theories into improving communication is straightforward. It is crucial to tailor-make future advocacy work of “wicked problems” such as biodiversity loss and climate change, since these are not usually backed up by major lobby forces and are, therefore, financed inadequately compared to their significance. Understanding the way in which policy-makers pick up or omit certain messages, as well as what framing, methods and channels are the most effective in delivering them to the policy-makers, is pivotal for a more sustainable future.

scholarly journals Engineering Highly Homogenous Tetravalent IgGs with Enhanced Sperm Agglutination Potency

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhawana Shrestha ◽  
Alison Schaefer ◽  
Elizabeth C. Chavez ◽  
Alexander J. Kopp ◽  
Timothy M. Jacobs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Side Effects ◽  
Hormonal Contraception ◽  
Infertile Woman ◽  
Exogenous Hormones ◽  
Infertile Women ◽  
Unintended Pregnancies ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Promising Strategy ◽  
Sperm Antibodies

AbstractMillions of women avoid using available contraceptives and risk unintended pregnancies every year, due to perceived and/or real side-effects associated with the use of exogenous hormones. Naturally occurring anti-sperm antibodies can prevent fertilization in immune infertile women by limiting sperm permeation through mucus, particularly multivalent antibodies such as sIgA that offers robust agglutination potencies. Unfortunately, sIgA remains challenging to produce in large quantities and easily aggregates. Here, we designed two tetravalent anti-sperm IgGs with a Fab domain previously isolated from an immune infertile woman. Both constructs possess at least 4-fold greater agglutination potency and induced much more rapid sperm agglutination than the parent IgG while exhibiting comparable production yields and identical thermostability as the parent IgG. These tetravalent IgGs offer promise for non-hormonal contraception and underscore the multimerization of IgG as a promising strategy to improve existing mAb therapeutics.

scholarly journals Emerging Scientists Supplementary Issue II: Nature inspired Antimicrobial Nanotextured Surfaces

2020 ◽  
Vol 04 (Supp01) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Tan Yee Lin
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Antimicrobial Resistance ◽  
Antimicrobial Properties ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Health Security ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Promising Strategy ◽  
Contact Killing ◽  
Supplementary Issue

The development of cross infections arising from bacteria transmission on frequently touched facilities has led to an urgent need to promptly disinfect these surfaces, such as hand railings, door handles and elevator buttons. Conventional antimicrobial disinfectants are not ideal as they contribute to the growing antimicrobial resistance crisis. In recent years, the discovery that the wings of insects such as the Clanger cicada (Psaltoda claripennis) possess naturally occurring antimicrobial properties has led to a growing interest to synthetically recreate these surfaces. The use of a physical contact killing mechanism on such nanotextured surfaces is a promising strategy for curbing the proliferation of bacteria, as it is unlikely to contribute to the formation of antimicrobial resistance. Here, I highlight the key advantages of using these antimicrobial nanotextured materials and how they could play a role in safeguarding public health security, especially during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

scholarly journals Influences of Ingredients and Bakers on the Bacteria and Fungi in Sourdough Starters and Bread

mSphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aspen T. Reese ◽  
Anne A. Madden ◽  
Marie Joossens ◽  
Guylaine Lacaze ◽  
Robert R. Dunn
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Community ◽  
Internal Transcribed Spacer ◽  
Amplicon Sequencing ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Skin Microbiome ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Sourdough Bread ◽  
Bacteria And Fungi ◽  
Bidirectional Exchange

ABSTRACT Sourdough starters are naturally occurring microbial communities in which the environment, ingredients, and bakers are potential sources of microorganisms. The relative importance of these pools remains unknown. Here, bakers from two continents used a standardized recipe and ingredients to make starters that were then baked into breads. We characterized the fungi and bacteria associated with the starters, bakers’ hands, and ingredients using 16S and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and then measured dough acidity and bread flavor. Starter communities were much less uniform than expected, and this variation manifested in the flavor of the bread. Starter communities were most similar to those found in flour but shared some species with the bakers’ skin. While humans likely contribute microorganisms to the starters, the reverse also appears to be true. This bidirectional exchange of microorganisms between starters and bakers highlights the importance of microbial diversity on bodies and in our environments as it relates to foods. IMPORTANCE Sourdough starters are complex communities of yeast and bacteria which confer characteristic flavor and texture to sourdough bread. The microbes present in starters can be sourced from ingredients or the baking environment and are typically consistent over time. Herein, we show that even when the recipe and ingredients for starter and bread are identical, different bakers around the globe produce highly diverse starters which then alter bread acidity and flavor. Much of the starter microbial community comes from bread flour, but the diversity is also associated with differences in the microbial community on the hands of bakers. These results indicate that bakers may be a source for yeast and bacteria in their breads and/or that bakers’ jobs are reflected in their skin microbiome.

scholarly journals The Anti-Neuroinflammatory Role of Anthocyanins and Their Metabolites for the Prevention and Treatment of Brain Disorders

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (22) ◽  
pp. 8653
Author(s):  
Joana F. Henriques ◽  
Diana Serra ◽  
Teresa C. P. Dinis ◽  
Leonor M. Almeida
Keyword(s):  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Fruits And Vegetables ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Brain Inflammation ◽  
Brain Diseases ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Pathological Conditions ◽  
Promising Strategy ◽  
Prevention And Treatment

Anthocyanins are naturally occurring polyphenols commonly found in fruits and vegetables. Numerous studies have described that anthocyanin-rich foods may play a crucial role in the prevention and treatment of different pathological conditions, which have encouraged their consumption around the world. Anthocyanins exhibit a significant neuroprotective role, mainly due to their well-recognized antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Neuroinflammation is an intricate process relevant in both homeostatic and pathological circumstances. Since the progression of several neurological disorders relies on neuroinflammatory process, targeting brain inflammation has been considered a promising strategy in those conditions. Recent data have shown the anti-neuroinflammatory abilities of many anthocyanins and of their metabolites in the onset and development of several neurological disorders. In this review, it will be discussed the importance and the applicability of these polyphenolic compounds as neuroprotective agents and it will be also scrutinized the molecular mechanisms underlying the modulation of neuroinflammation by these natural compounds in the context of several brain diseases.

Biological Conservation

2019 ◽  
pp. 87-120
Author(s):  
Gerardo P. Reyes ◽  
Nandakumar Kanavillil ◽  
Ryan Stevens
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Environmental Issues ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Environmental Knowledge ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Biological Conservation ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
The Public ◽  
Meaningful Engagement

Despite building a clear and compelling message about the importance of conserving biodiversity and what we risk in depleting it, meaningful engagement from implicated stakeholders remains limited. Past studies have examined the gap between the possession of environmental knowledge and displaying behavior that would help to conserve it. Essentially, increasing awareness and interest in environmental issues does not ensure that individuals will make the necessary changes in behaviours detrimental to biological conservation. This is a concern as failure to meaningfully engage the public into acting on conservation strategies will hamper efforts to curb biodiversity loss. Herein the authors investigate why action to address biodiversity loss has been slow or deficient in many jurisdictions. The authors draw from models and theories developed in health and social sciences to provide context to the key factors that prevent action and propose steps that could be taken to stimulate it.

scholarly journals Microbes are trophic analogs of animals

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (49) ◽  
pp. 15119-15124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shawn A. Steffan ◽  
Yoshito Chikaraishi ◽  
Cameron R. Currie ◽  
Heidi Horn ◽  
Hannah R. Gaines-Day ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Food Chain ◽  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Trophic Position ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Food Web Ecology ◽  
Global Biodiversity ◽  
Isotopic Fingerprinting ◽  
Heterotrophic Biomass

In most ecosystems, microbes are the dominant consumers, commandeering much of the heterotrophic biomass circulating through food webs. Characterizing functional diversity within the microbiome, therefore, is critical to understanding ecosystem functioning, particularly in an era of global biodiversity loss. Using isotopic fingerprinting, we investigated the trophic positions of a broad diversity of heterotrophic organisms. Specifically, we examined the naturally occurring stable isotopes of nitrogen (15N:14N) within amino acids extracted from proteobacteria, actinomycetes, ascomycetes, and basidiomycetes, as well as from vertebrate and invertebrate macrofauna (crustaceans, fish, insects, and mammals). Here, we report that patterns of intertrophic 15N-discrimination were remarkably similar among bacteria, fungi, and animals, which permitted unambiguous measurement of consumer trophic position, independent of phylogeny or ecosystem type. The observed similarities among bacterial, fungal, and animal consumers suggest that within a trophic hierarchy, microbiota are equivalent to, and can be interdigitated with, macrobiota. To further test the universality of this finding, we examined Neotropical fungus gardens, communities in which bacteria, fungi, and animals are entwined in an ancient, quadripartite symbiosis. We reveal that this symbiosis is a discrete four-level food chain, wherein bacteria function as the apex carnivores, animals and fungi are meso-consumers, and the sole herbivores are fungi. Together, our findings demonstrate that bacteria, fungi, and animals can be integrated within a food chain, effectively uniting the macro- and microbiome in food web ecology and facilitating greater inclusion of the microbiome in studies of functional diversity.

scholarly journals Disc wall structural abnormalities can act as initiation sites for herniation

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 227-238
Author(s):  
K Wade ◽  
N Berger-Roscher ◽  
V Rasche ◽  
H Wilke
Keyword(s):  
High Field ◽  
Loading Rate ◽  
Axial Rotation ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Lateral Bending ◽  
Ultra High Field ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Structural Abnormalities ◽  
Ultra High Field Mri

Both posture and loading rate are key factors in the herniation process and can determine the failure mechanism of the disc. The influence of disc structure on the herniation process has yet to be directly observed, thus the aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that discs containing greater levels of pre-existing disruption would be more vulnerable to herniation when subjected to severe levels of posture and loading. 30 ovine lumbar motion segments were subjected to combinations of 4 loading conditions (0 - 12° flexion,0 - 9° lateral bending, 0 - 4° axial rotation, 0-1500 N axial compression) for 1000 loading cycles at 2 Hz in a dynamic disc loading simulator. The discs were scanned in an ultra-high field MRI (magnetic resonance imaging, 11.7 T) prior to and following testing. 4 discs herniated and 7 discs suffered nucleus displacement. These discs contained pre-existing defects in the central dorsal annulus. Generally, following testing, discs contained more dorsal annulus disruption, including 7 discs which developed similar characteristic defects although these did not herniate. Overall, more severe complex postures produced more disruption. While more severe postures such as twisting and bending increased disc damage, these results are probably the first directly showing that naturally occurring defects in the disc can act as initiation sites for herniation. The clinical significance of these findings is that, in principle at least, MRI based techniques could be capable of identifying vulnerable discs, with the obvious caveat that further correlation with clinical techniques is required.

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