https://phys.org/biology-news/agriculture/ en-us Agriculture, livestock, farming and food processing news University of Mississippi researchers are studying how plants respond to heat at the molecular level, an important consideration for farmers, businesses and policymakers as global temperatures rise. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-reveal-backup-temperatures.html Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 15 Jun 2026 17:50:01 EDT news700762201 With El Niño-driven heat and prolonged dry spells threatening rice production, scientists from Japan's National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), other Japanese research institutions and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) have discovered a gene that helps rice "escape" heat during its most sensitive flowering stage. The gene, called EMF3 (Early Morning Flowering 3), shifts rice flowering to the early morning, when temperatures are cooler. By flowering earlier in the day, rice can avoid heat stress that would otherwise reduce grain formation and lower yields in tropical and subtropical regions. The research is published in the Plant Biotechnology Journal. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-newfound-rice-gene-shifts-hours.html Biotechnology Mon, 15 Jun 2026 13:40:08 EDT news700744502 Global rice production nearly doubled between the 1960s and the 2010s, despite the negative impacts of climate change, according to a new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The study found that management decisions—including expanded irrigation and increased nutrient inputs—played a central role in sustaining rice production and offsetting climate-related losses. The results suggest that future food security will depend not only on environmental conditions but also on how rice production systems are managed and adapted to changing conditions. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-global-rice-production-years-climate.html Agriculture Wed, 10 Jun 2026 19:30:01 EDT news700329842 Rapidly intensifying global climate instability is causing increasingly erratic temperature fluctuations. When sudden cold snaps strike during a crop's critical flowering window, they trigger irreversible pollen abortion, slashing yields of staple crops by 20% to 60%. Passive defenses offer minimal protection at a high cost, while breeding for continuous cold resistance often backfires by wasting vital energy under normal temperatures. Shifting the breeding paradigm toward "on-demand" climate resilience—maintaining high yields in favorable seasons while securing stable performance under stress—is critical. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-cold-crops-demand-climate-resilience.html Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 10 Jun 2026 17:40:04 EDT news700321081 At a Maryland vineyard, Debi Persing guided her Boston terrier, Xephyr, slowly down a row of grapevines. Vineyard workers and scientists had already identified several invasive spotted lanternfly egg masses hidden among the vines. They believed they had found them all. Then Xephyr stopped at a vine they had marked clear. The little dog sat and pawed at the plant insistently. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-dogs-uncover-invasive-pests-experts.html Veterinary medicine Tue, 09 Jun 2026 07:00:02 EDT news700152121 Similar to the way DNA damage can contribute to human diseases such as cancer, it can also disrupt growth, development and survival in plants. Every day, plants endure environmental stresses such as sunlight, radiation, drought and soil stress—all of which can damage their DNA. However, they cannot move away from danger. How do plants handle all that damage? https://phys.org/news/2026-06-survive-constant-dna-newly-protein.html Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 08 Jun 2026 19:30:01 EDT news700157401 Rice is a staple food for nearly half the global population and an important dietary source of magnesium, a mineral essential for human health, plant growth and energy metabolism. Although magnesium is known to influence grain quality and taste, the biological mechanism controlling how the mineral reaches rice grains has remained largely unknown. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-magnesium-discovery-rice-nutrition.html Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 08 Jun 2026 18:10:01 EDT news700156741 Maize (Zea mays L.) plays an important role in global food security. During 9,000 years of maize domestication and breeding, however, protein content was not a major breeding target. Consequently, many beneficial gene variants associated with higher protein content were gradually lost from cultivated maize. As a result, modern maize varieties often have low seed protein content, leading to a heavy reliance on imported soybean meal for livestock feed. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-recovered-wild-maize-gene-boosts.html Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 08 Jun 2026 14:20:06 EDT news700139643 What if a common herb found in the kitchen could help farmers grow healthier crops? As the global population grows and agriculture faces increasing environmental challenges, scientists are searching for innovative ways to improve crop productivity while reducing reliance on chemical inputs. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-sweet-basil-carbon-dots-potential.html Biotechnology Sat, 06 Jun 2026 12:40:02 EDT news699871272 The chronic disease schistosomiasis wreaks havoc on more than 220 million people around the world, with the vast majority of cases being in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite decades of mass drug administration campaigns, schistosomiasis remains one of the world's most widespread neglected tropical diseases. Rice farmers and their families are particularly at risk, as the parasitic worms that cause the disease are spread by freshwater snails found in the standing water of rice fields. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-ricefish-culturing-curb-schistosomiasis-food.html Ecology Thu, 04 Jun 2026 19:20:02 EDT news699807901 A new study from the University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (CAFE) helps explain how plants can lose track of their own disease warnings. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-nitric-oxide-overload-immune.html Plants & Animals Wed, 03 Jun 2026 19:20:01 EDT news699718802 The arrival of winter marks not only a change in weather, temperature, and day length, but also a change in our activity and behavior. The social outdoor events and trips to the beach over summer soon become a distant memory, and we ready ourselves for more solitary evenings indoors with a hot drink and a good book. Things slow down. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-pave-resilient-winter-cereals-warmer.html Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 03 Jun 2026 18:20:01 EDT news699706850 Water deficit resistance in plants has long been a topic of interest for cultivating reliable crops. Some plants can alter their above-ground structure to lock in moisture, while others develop deep, industrious roots that find hard-to-reach water sources. While such responses are obvious to the naked eye, we know little about how responses to environmental stress occur at the microscopic, cellular level. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-tiny-membrane-tethers-revealed-key.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 02 Jun 2026 11:00:02 EDT news699608101 New research by scientists at the University of Calgary has found that plants, ranging from canola to rice to tomatoes, actively shut down their own ability to take up iron when they experience drought. It's a finding that could have implications for the nutritional value of agricultural crops. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-drought-rewires-roots-iron-uptake.html Ecology Mon, 01 Jun 2026 12:40:03 EDT news699533641 Scientists have uncovered how the interplay between cell shape and mechanical stress influences the orientation of stomata (microscopic pores on the leaf surface) during early plant development. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-leaf-stomata-young-reveal.html Cell & Microbiology Sun, 31 May 2026 15:00:02 EDT news699190902 Many soybean farmers use seeds treated with fungicides to ward off disease, but the profits from these increased yields might not offset the cost of the treatment in most cases, according to a study published in Scientific Reports by researchers at Penn State. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-fungicide-soybean-seeds-boost-harvests.html Agriculture Sun, 31 May 2026 10:00:01 EDT news699200272 When viruses invade a plant, you might expect an all-out immune war. But new research published in Science shows that, much like in humans, too strong an immune response can actually do more harm than good. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-immunity-survive-viral-infections.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 29 May 2026 14:40:02 EDT news699274682 Most major crops, such as wheat and corn, require expensive nitrogen fertilizer to flourish. But what if bacteria could help those plants draw nitrogen from the atmosphere, as peas and beans do? https://phys.org/news/2026-05-nitrogen-genes-bacterial-strains-path.html Biotechnology Thu, 28 May 2026 18:30:03 EDT news699204001 A new study shows crop species, and not soil type, primarily determines the beneficial functions provided by root-associated microbes. In the study, soil obtained from across nine UK locations was used to cultivate six key arable crops (wheat, barley, oats, fava beans, oilseed rape, and sugar beet). Researchers found that although the local soil environment selected which kinds of bacteria were present, the crop species determined the beneficial microbial functions of those bacteria. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-crops-growth-boosting-microbes-soil.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 28 May 2026 16:30:01 EDT news699199741 New research reveals that plants have the ability to detect their neighbors' growth rates through aromatic cues called volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and subsequently adjust how much energy they invest into their own growth or defense strategies through responsive gene expression. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-growth-strategies-spying-neighbors-scents.html Plants & Animals Thu, 28 May 2026 04:00:03 EDT news699090661 Fermentation is one of the oldest methods of preserving food. Long before refrigerators existed, people relied on microorganisms to keep food—including meat—safe to eat. Ph.D. research by VUB researcher Ana Sosa Fajardo (VUB Research Group of Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology) now sheds light on why a fermented sausage, for instance, is not only safe to eat but also enjoyable in terms of flavor. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-invisible-bacteria-flavor-safety-salami.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 27 May 2026 13:00:08 EDT news699098703 Global climate change is reshaping agricultural ecosystems. As warmer winters become more prevalent, snow droughts caused by insufficient snowfall are becoming more frequent. This leaves winter wheat, which relies on snow cover for insulation and water supply, vulnerable to low-temperature frost damage and water stress, posing a major threat to global food security. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-droughts-threaten-global-food-climate.html Ecology Wed, 27 May 2026 11:40:02 EDT news699095222 You've probably heard of Stardew Valley or Farmville, video games where you manage a virtual farm. Now, what if you could monitor real plants from the comfort of your home? Thanks to new research at Binghamton University, State University of New York, that's becoming a reality. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-personal-farmville-vr-greenhouse-users.html Biotechnology Wed, 27 May 2026 09:40:06 EDT news699091262 In Danish fisheries, fish-eating seabirds are a menace. They often swoop down and feed on fish trapped in nets, which can hit profits and also sometimes lead to the accidental death of the birds. So scientists deployed an unusual-looking, non-lethal method to deter them. It worked, but not for long, as they discuss in a paper published in the journal Royal Society Open Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-fake-predator-eyes-seabirds-theyre.html Ecology Wed, 27 May 2026 09:16:06 EDT news699092128 For about half the global population, rice is the staple food. Yet every year, a fungal disease—rice blast—destroys harvests that could feed 60 million people. Researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have uncovered how the pathogen outsmarts the rice plant's defense system. The findings, published in the Journal of Experimental Botany, open up new possibilities for making rice more resilient, directly benefiting global food security. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-rice-defense-fungal-lifesaving-response.html Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 26 May 2026 15:00:03 EDT news699017305 Have you ever eaten a green potato, or a bunch of rhubarb leaves? Hopefully not, because these two plant parts can be toxic to humans. While they may seem edible, they contain chemicals that can make you seriously ill. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-safe-food-scientists.html Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 26 May 2026 08:40:01 EDT news698998441 Over the course of evolution, plants have developed an elegant strategy to counteract a lack of phosphate in the soil—they form symbiotic relationships with soil fungi. These mycorrhizal fungi efficiently supply their plant partners with phosphate and other essential minerals. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-key-soil-fungi-symbiosis-longstanding.html Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 22 May 2026 14:00:08 EDT news698672461 A study led by researchers from the Department of Microbiology at the University of Malaga has revealed how organic farming—using natural substances and processes and avoiding the use of synthetic chemicals—can, in the long term, help crops become more resistant to drought in a natural way. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-farming-solution-natural-drought-resilience.html Ecology Thu, 21 May 2026 10:20:03 EDT news698576221 Seeds like wheat, rice, and corn are at the center of the global food supply and provide most of the daily calories consumed worldwide. But despite their importance, scientists still do not fully understand many of the basic biological processes that allow these seeds to grow, transport nutrients, and develop traits that determine crop resiliency. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-seed-atlas-uncovers-genes-crop.html Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 21 May 2026 05:00:08 EDT news698509562 In a silent war that has raged for millions of years, plants have evolved a sophisticated chemical arsenal to fight back against invading pathogens. Now, a team of researchers from Peking University and Tsinghua University has finally mapped out the blueprints for one of nature's most effective deterrents, solving a biological puzzle that has baffled scientists for nearly half a century. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-scientists-year-mystery-immunity-debneyol.html Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 20 May 2026 15:40:07 EDT news698500987