scholarly journals Facing Climate Change: Application of Microbial Biostimulants to Mitigate Stress in Horticultural Crops

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 794 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Sangiorgio ◽  
Antonio Cellini ◽  
Irene Donati ◽  
Chiara Pastore ◽  
Claudia Onofrietti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Community Interactions ◽  
Symbiotic Interaction ◽  
Horticultural Crops ◽  
Current Scenario ◽  
Microbial Symbionts ◽  
Plant Level

In the current scenario of rapidly evolving climate change, crop plants are more frequently subjected to stresses of both abiotic and biotic origin, including exposure to unpredictable and extreme climatic events, changes in plant physiology, growing season and phytosanitary hazard, and increased losses up to 30% and 50% in global agricultural productions. Plants coevolved with microbial symbionts, which are involved in major functions both at the ecosystem and plant level. The use of microbial biostimulants, by exploiting this symbiotic interaction, represents a sustainable strategy to increase plant performances and productivity, even under stresses due to climate changes. Microbial biostimulants include beneficial fungi, yeasts and eubacteria sharing the ability to improve plant nutrition, growth, productivity and stress tolerance. This work reports the current knowledge on microbial biostimulants and provides a critical review on their possible use to mitigate the biotic and abiotic stresses caused by climate changes. Currently, available products often provide a general amelioration of cultural conditions, but their action mechanisms are largely undetermined and their effects often unreliable. Future research may lead to more specifically targeted products, based on the characterization of plant-microbe and microbial community interactions.

scholarly journals Climate change and Canada’s north coast: research trends, progress, and future directions

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
James D. Ford ◽  
Nicole Couture ◽  
Trevor Bell ◽  
Dylan G. Clark
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Geographic Location ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
North Coast ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Northern Coast ◽  
Knowledge Mobilization ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approaches

This paper identifies and characterizes current knowledge on climate change impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability for Canada’s northern coastline, outlining key research gaps. Warming temperatures and increased precipitation have been documented across the northern coast, with the rate of sea ice decline ranging from 2.9% to 10.4% per decade. Storm intensity and frequency is increasing, and permafrost is warming across the region. Many of these changes are projected to accelerate in the future, with in excess of 8 °C warming in winter possible under a high-emission scenario by 2081–2100. Vulnerability to these changes differs by region and community, a function of geographic location, nature of climate change impacts, and human factors. Capacity to manage climate change is high in some sectors, such as subsistence harvesting, but is being undermined by long-term societal changes. In other sectors, such as infrastructure and transportation, limitations in climate risk management capacity result in continuing high vulnerabilities. There is evidence that adaptation is taking place in response to experienced and projected impacts, although readiness for adaptation is challenged by limited resources, institutional capacity, and a need for support for adaptation across levels of government. Priority areas for future research include (i) expanding the sectoral and geographic focus of understanding on climate change impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability; (ii) integrating climatic and socio-economic projections into vulnerability and adaptation assessments; (iii) developing an evidence base on adaptation options; and (iv) monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of adaptation support. Cross-cutting themes for advancing climate change impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability research on the north coast more broadly include the need for greater emphasis on interdisciplinary approaches and cross-cultural collaborations, support for decision-orientated research, and focus on effective knowledge mobilization.

scholarly journals Nitrogen Fixation in a Changing Arctic Ocean: An Overlooked Source of Nitrogen?

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa W. von Friesen ◽  
Lasse Riemann
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Nitrogen Fixation ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
Arctic Ocean ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Arctic Ocean

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest ocean on Earth, yet estimated to play a substantial role as a global carbon sink. As climate change is rapidly changing fundamental components of the Arctic, it is of local and global importance to understand and predict consequences for its carbon dynamics. Primary production in the Arctic Ocean is often nitrogen-limited, and this is predicted to increase in some regions. It is therefore of critical interest that biological nitrogen fixation, a process where some bacteria and archaea termed diazotrophs convert nitrogen gas to bioavailable ammonia, has now been detected in the Arctic Ocean. Several studies report diverse and active diazotrophs on various temporal and spatial scales across the Arctic Ocean. Their ecology and biogeochemical impact remain poorly known, and nitrogen fixation is so far absent from models of primary production in the Arctic Ocean. The composition of the diazotroph community appears distinct from other oceans – challenging paradigms of function and regulation of nitrogen fixation. There is evidence of both symbiotic cyanobacterial nitrogen fixation and heterotrophic diazotrophy, but large regions are not yet sampled, and the sparse quantitative data hamper conclusive insights. Hence, it remains to be determined to what extent nitrogen fixation represents a hitherto overlooked source of new nitrogen to consider when predicting future productivity of the Arctic Ocean. Here, we discuss current knowledge on diazotroph distribution, composition, and activity in pelagic and sea ice-associated environments of the Arctic Ocean. Based on this, we identify gaps and outline pertinent research questions in the context of a climate change-influenced Arctic Ocean – with the aim of guiding and encouraging future research on nitrogen fixation in this region.

scholarly journals Benthic estuarine communities in Brazil: moving forward to long term studies to assess climate change impacts

2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (spe2) ◽  
pp. 81-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angelo Fraga Bernardino ◽  
Paulo Roberto Pagliosa ◽  
Ronaldo Adriano Christofoletti ◽  
Francisco Barros ◽  
Sergio A. Netto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Mangrove Forests ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Estuarine Ecosystems

Abstract Estuaries are unique coastal ecosystems that sustain and provide essential ecological services for mankind. Estuarine ecosystems include a variety of habitats with their own sediment-fauna dynamics, all of them globally undergoing alteration or threatened by human activities. Mangrove forests, saltmarshes, tidal flats and other confined estuarine systems are under increasing stress due to human activities leading to habitat and species loss. Combined changes in estuarine hydromorphology and in climate pose severe threats to estuarine ecosystems on a global scale. The ReBentos network is the first integrated attempt in Brazil to monitor estuarine changes in the long term to detect and assess the effects of global warming. This paper is an initial effort of ReBentos to review current knowledge on benthic estuarine ecology in Brazil. We herein present and synthesize all published work on Brazilian estuaries that has focused on the description of benthic communities and related ecological processes. We then use current data on Brazilian estuaries and present recommendations for future studies to address climate change effects, suggesting trends for possible future research and stressing the need for long-term datasets and international partnerships.

Drought-induced tree mortality: ecological consequences, causes, and modeling

2012 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weifeng Wang ◽  
Changhui Peng ◽  
Daniel D. Kneeshaw ◽  
Guy R. Larocque ◽  
Zhibin Luo
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Forest Decline ◽  
Tree Mortality ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Species Turnover ◽  
Optimal Growth ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Ecological Consequences ◽  
Carbon Demand

Drought-induced tree mortality, which rapidly alters forest ecosystem composition, structure, and function, as well as the feedbacks between the biosphere and climate, has occurred worldwide over the past few decades, and is expected to increase pervasively as climate change progresses. The objectives of this review are to (1) highlight the likely ecological consequences of drought-induced tree mortality, (2) synthesize the hypotheses related to drought-induced tree mortality, (3) discuss the implications of current knowledge for modeling tree mortality processes under climate change, and (4) highlight future research needs. First, we emphasize the likely ecological consequences of tree mortality from ecosystem to biome to continental scales. We then document and criticize multiple non-exclusive tree mortality hypotheses (e.g., carbon starvation — carbon supply is less than carbon demand; and hydraulic failure — desiccation from failed water transport) from a more comprehensive ecological perspective. Next, we extend a forest decline concept model, Manion’s framework, by considering new emerging environmental conditions, for a more thorough understanding of the effects of climate change on forest decline. We find that an increase in drought frequency and (or) climate-change-type droughts may trigger increased background tree mortality rates and severe forest dieback events, accelerating species turnover and ecological regime shifts. The contribution of CO2 fertilization, rising temperature within the optimal growth range, and increased nitrogen deposition may defer or reduce this trend in tree mortality, but such contributions will vary between locations, species, and tree sizes. Multiple hypotheses proposed for drought-induced tree mortality are discussed, but coupling carbon and water cycles could help resolve the debate. The absence of a physiological understanding of tree mortality mechanisms limits the predictive ability of current models from stand-level process-based models to dynamic global vegetation models. We thus suggest that long-term observations, experiments, and models should be tightly interwoven during the research process to better forecast future climate changes and evaluate their impacts on forests.

Amruthapala (Decalepis arayalpathra (J. Joseph and V. Chandras.) Venter): A Comprehensive Review on Diversity, Therapeutic Uses, and Valorization of Bioactive Constituents

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 376-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonali Mishra ◽  
Nupur Srivastava ◽  
Velusamy Sundaresan ◽  
Karuna Shanker
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Metabolite ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Critical Discussion ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Bioactive Constituents ◽  
Medicinal Uses ◽  
Comprehensive Review ◽  
Therapeutic Uses ◽  
Decalepis Arayalpathra

Background: Decalepis arayalpathra (J. Joseph and V. Chandras.) Venter is used primarily for nutrition besides its therapeutic values. Traditional preparations/formulations from its tuber are used as a vitalizer and blood purifier drink. The folklore medicinal uses cover inflammation, cough, wound healing, antipyretic, and digestive system management. A comprehensive review of the current understanding of the plant is required due to emerging concerns over its safety and efficacy. Objective: The systematic collection of the authentic information from different sources with the critical discussion is summarised in order to address various issues related to botanical identity, therapeutic medicine, nutritional usage, phytochemical, and pharmacological potentials of the D. arayalpathra. Current use of traditional systems of medicine can be used to expand future research opportunities. Materials and Methods: Available scripted information was collected manually, from peered review research papers and international databases viz. Science Direct, Google Scholar, SciFinder, Scopus, etc. The unpublished resources which were not available in database were collected through the classical books of ‘Ayurveda’ and ‘Siddha’ published in regional languages. The information from books, Ph.D. and MSc dissertations, conference papers and government reports were also collected. We thoroughly screened the scripted information of classical books, titles, abstracts, reports, and full-texts of the journals to establish the reliability of the content. Results: Tuber bearing vanilla like signature flavor is due to the presence of 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde (HMB). Among five other species, Decalepis arayalpathra (DA) has come under the ‘critically endangered’ category, due to over-exploitation for traditional, therapeutic and cool drink use. The experimental studies proved that it possesses gastro-protective, anti-tumor, and antiinflammatory activities. Some efforts were also made to develop better therapeutics by logical modifications in 2-Hydroxy-4-methoxy-benzaldehyde, which is a major secondary metabolite of D. arayalpathra. ‘Amruthapala’ offers the enormous opportunity to develop herbal drink with health benefits like gastro-protective, anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory actions. Results: The plant has the potential to generate the investigational new lead (IND) based on its major secondary metabolite i.e. 2-Hydroxy-4-methoxy-benzaldehyde. The present mini-review summarizes the current knowledge on Decalepis arayalpathra, covering its phytochemical diversity, biological potentials, strategies for its conservation, and intellectual property rights (IPR) status. Chemical Compounds: 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde (Pubchem CID: 69600), α-amyrin acetate (Pubchem CID: 293754), Magnificol (Pubchem CID: 44575983), β-sitosterol (Pubchem CID: 222284), 3-hydroxy-p-anisaldehyde (Pubchem CID: 12127), Naringenin (Pubchem CID: 932), Kaempferol (Pubchem CID: 5280863), Aromadendrin (Pubchem CID: 122850), 3-methoxy-1,2-cyclopentanedione (Pubchem CID: 61209), p-anisaldehyde (Pubchem CID: 31244), Menthyl acetate (Pubchem CID: 27867), Benzaldehyde (Pubchem CID: 240), p-cymene (Pubchem CID: 7463), Salicylaldehyde (Pubchem CID: 6998), 10-epi-γ-eudesmol (Pubchem CID: 6430754), α -amyrin (Pubchem CID: 225688), 3-hydroxy-4-methoxy benzaldehyde (Pubchem CID: 12127).

Disparities in Health Between Black and White Americans: Current Knowledge and Directions for Future Research

2018 ◽  
pp. 456-478
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Fuller-Rowell ◽  
David S. Curtis ◽  
Adrienne M. Duke
Keyword(s):  
Health Disparities ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Public Investment ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sociocultural Factors ◽  
White Americans ◽  
Biological Mechanisms ◽  
Black And White ◽  
Racial Ethnic

Conceptual frameworks for racial/ethnic health disparities are abundant, but many have received insufficient empirical attention. As a result, there are substantial gaps in scientific knowledge and a range of untested hypotheses. Particularly lacking is specificity in behavioral and biological mechanisms for such disparities and their underlying social determinants. Alongside lack of political will and public investment, insufficient clarity in mechanisms has stymied efforts to address racial health disparities. Capitalizing on emergent findings from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study and other longitudinal studies of aging, this chapter evaluates research on health disparities between black and white US adults. Attention is given to candidate behavioral and biological mechanisms as precursors to group differences in morbidity and mortality and to environmental and sociocultural factors that may underlie these mechanisms. Future research topics are discussed, emphasizing those that offer promise with respect to illuminating practical solutions to racial/ethnic health disparities.

scholarly journals Protocol for a systematic review on the experience of informal caregivers for people with a moderate to advanced dementia within a domestic home setting

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles James ◽  
Catherine Walshe ◽  
Katherine Froggatt
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Informal Caregivers ◽  
Informal Caregiving ◽  
Bibliographic Databases ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Advanced Dementia ◽  
Home Setting ◽  
Search Terms

Abstract Background The knowledge about the experience of informal caregivers who provide care to people with moderate to advanced dementia in a domestic home setting is limited. A consequence of long hours of caregiving in addition to dealing with normal challenges of daily living is their experience of a poor quality of life. Some of their experiences may be described in terms of a feeling of powerlessness to make changes during care provision. This feeling may also suggest an experience of moral distress. The aim of this systematic review is to synthesise qualitative evidence relating to these experiences. Methods This review adopts a narrative synthesis approach. A search will be conducted for studies written in the English language in the bibliographic databases MEDLINE Complete, CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Web of Science and Academic Search Complete covering periods from 1984 to present. Included studies will be qualitative or mixed-methods designs. The search terms will be related to dementia and caregivers, and the process will be focused on dementia at the moderate to the advanced stages within the domestic home setting. Reference lists of included papers will also be searched for additional relevant citations. Search terms and strategies will be checked by two independent reviewers. The identification of abstracts and full texts of studies will be done by the author, while the quality and the risk of bias will also be checked by the two independent reviewers. Discussion Psychological distress is cited as an experience reported within informal caregiving. For the caregiver, it is associated with a negative impact on general health. To date, no synthesis exists on the specific experience of informal caregiving for people with moderate to advanced dementia within the domestic home setting. This review considers that variation of accounts contributes to how the informal caregivers’ general experience is explored in future research. This may enable gaps in current knowledge to be highlighted within the wider context of caregiving in the domestic home setting. Systematic review registration This review is registered with PROSPERO (CRD42020183649).

scholarly journals Molecular Mechanisms of Insulin Resistance in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: Unraveling the Conundrum in Skeletal Muscle?

2019 ◽  
Vol 104 (11) ◽  
pp. 5372-5381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nigel K Stepto ◽  
Alba Moreno-Asso ◽  
Luke C McIlvenna ◽  
Kirsty A Walters ◽  
Raymond J Rodgers
Keyword(s):  
Insulin Resistance ◽  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Polycystic Ovary ◽  
Evidence Synthesis ◽  
Basic Research ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Ovary Syndrome

Abstract Context Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine condition affecting 8% to 13% of women across the lifespan. PCOS affects reproductive, metabolic, and mental health, generating a considerable health burden. Advances in treatment of women with PCOS has been hampered by evolving diagnostic criteria and poor recognition by clinicians. This has resulted in limited clinical and basic research. In this study, we provide insights into the current and future research on the metabolic features of PCOS, specifically as they relate to PCOS-specific insulin resistance (IR), that may affect the most metabolically active tissue, skeletal muscle. Current Knowledge PCOS is a highly heritable condition, yet it is phenotypically heterogeneous in both reproductive and metabolic features. Human studies thus far have not identified molecular mechanisms of PCOS-specific IR in skeletal muscle. However, recent research has provided new insights that implicate energy-sensing pathways regulated via epigenomic and resultant transcriptomic changes. Animal models, while in existence, have been underused in exploring molecular mechanisms of IR in PCOS and specifically in skeletal muscle. Future Directions Based on the latest evidence synthesis and technologies, researchers exploring molecular mechanisms of IR in PCOS, specifically in muscle, will likely need to generate new hypothesis to be tested in human and animal studies. Conclusion Investigations to elucidate the molecular mechanisms driving IR in PCOS are in their early stages, yet remarkable advances have been made in skeletal muscle. Overall, investigations have thus far created more questions than answers, which provide new opportunities to study complex endocrine conditions.

Climate-induced treeline mortality during the termination of the Little Ice Age in the Greater Yellowstone Ecoregion, USA

The Holocene ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 095968362110116
Author(s):  
Maegen L Rochner ◽  
Karen J Heeter ◽  
Grant L Harley ◽  
Matthew F Bekker ◽  
Sally P Horn
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Tree Ring ◽  
Little Ice Age ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Frost Damage ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Variability ◽  
Whitebark Pine ◽  
Engelmann Spruce ◽  
Greater Yellowstone

Paleoclimate reconstructions for the western US show spatial variability in the timing, duration, and magnitude of climate changes within the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA, ca. 900–1350 CE) and Little Ice Age (LIA, ca. 1350–1850 CE), indicating that additional data are needed to more completely characterize late-Holocene climate change in the region. Here, we use dendrochronology to investigate how climate changes during the MCA and LIA affected a treeline, whitebark pine ( Pinus albicaulis Engelm.) ecosystem in the Greater Yellowstone Ecoregion (GYE). We present two new millennial-length tree-ring chronologies and multiple lines of tree-ring evidence from living and remnant whitebark pine and Engelmann spruce ( Picea engelmannii Parry ex. Engelm.) trees, including patterns of establishment and mortality; changes in tree growth; frost rings; and blue-intensity-based, reconstructed summer temperatures, to highlight the terminus of the LIA as one of the coldest periods of the last millennium for the GYE. Patterns of tree establishment and mortality indicate conditions favorable to recruitment during the latter half of the MCA and climate-induced mortality of trees during the middle-to-late LIA. These patterns correspond with decreased growth, frost damage, and reconstructed cooler temperature anomalies for the 1800–1850 CE period. Results provide important insight into how past climate change affected important GYE ecosystems and highlight the value of using multiple lines of proxy evidence, along with climate reconstructions of high spatial resolution, to better describe spatial and temporal variability in MCA and LIA climate and the ecological influence of climate change.

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