Desertification is a significant problem for arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid regions of Earth, whereby grasslands and shrublands become a comparatively barren desert as vegetation disappears over time. This poses an extreme ...
Two factors that play a key role in climate change—increased climate warming and elevated ozone levels—appear to have detrimental effects on soybean plant roots, their relationship with symbiotic microorganisms in the ...
Environment
Jul 9, 2021
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157
Scientists have long understood that forest biodiversity is driven in part by something called rare-species advantage—that is, an individual tree has a better chance of survival if there are only a few other trees of the ...
Ecology
Oct 3, 2019
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328
(Phys.org) —A new study undertaken by a diverse group of scientists in Sweden has found that contrary to popular belief, most of the carbon that is sequestered in northern boreal forests comes about due to fungi that live ...
Researchers who were looking for organisms that eke out a living in some of the most inhospitable soils on Earth have found a hardy few. A new DNA analysis of rocky soils in the martian-like landscape on some volcanoes in ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jun 8, 2012
6
0
A new tool to excavate bacterial genomes that potentially hide a rich array of pharmaceutical treasures has led to the discovery of a novel antibiotic. The study, reported in the August issue of Microbiology, could lead to ...
Biotechnology
Aug 1, 2010
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0
Farmland often harbors a multitude of pathogens which attack plants and reduce yields. A Swiss research team has now shown that inoculating the soil with mycorrhizal fungi can help maintain or even improve yields without ...
Ecology
Nov 29, 2023
1
3229
Using micro-engineered soil models, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have investigated the effect of tiny polystyrene particles on bacteria and fungi. While these nanoplastics reduced both bacterial and fungal growth, ...
Bio & Medicine
Oct 9, 2023
0
125
Mycorrhizal fungi have been supporting life on land for at least 450 million years by helping to supply plants with soil nutrients essential for growth. In recent years, scientists have found that in addition to forming symbiotic ...
Ecology
Jun 5, 2023
0
396
The banana borer Cosmopolites sordidus and the disease Fusarium wilt, caused by the soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum, are among the most harmful pests that threaten the livelihoods of banana growers, who face major challenges ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 28, 2022
0
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