Microplastic analysis in soils: A comparative assessment.

Microplastic (MiP) contamination poses environmental risks, but harmonizing data from different quantification methods and sample matrices remains challenging. We compared analytical protocols for MiP quantification in soil, consisting of Digital, Fluorescence, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), and Raman Microscopy as well as quantitative Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (Py-GC-MS) and 1-proton nuclear magnetic resonance (H NMR) spectroscopy as detection techniques. Each technique was coupled with a specific extraction procedure and evaluated for three soils with different textures and organic carbon contents, amended with eight types of large MiPs (0.

Macro- and microplastics leachates: Characterization and impact on seed germination.

Although plastic mulch enhances crop yield, its removal and disposal present significant challenges, contributing to macro- and microplastic pollution in agricultural soils. The adverse effects of this pollution on soil and plant health are not fully understood but may stem from the plastic particles or the toxicity of leached chemical additives. This study assessed the impact of macro- and microplastics from nondegradable LDPE-based (LDPEb) and biodegradable PBAT-based (PBATb) mulch films, along with their leachates, on the germination of three plant species.

Assessing pesticide residue occurrence and risks in the environment across Europe and Argentina.

The widespread and extensive use of pesticides in European crop production to reduce losses from weeds, diseases, and insects may have serious consequences on the ecosystem and human health. This study aimed to identify 20 active substances of high health risk, based on their detection frequency within and across the environmental matrices (soil, crop, water, and sediment) and to identify their associated hazardous effects. A sampling campaign was conducted across 10 case study sites in Europe and 1 in Argentina and included conventional and organic farming systems.

Pesticide residues in European sediments: A significant concern for the aquatic systems?

The presence of pesticide residues in waterbed sediments poses a significant concern for aquatic ecosystems' health. This study examined pesticide contamination in sediments of 38 water bodies, embedded in agricultural-dominated regions, across eight European countries. Three indicators were targeted: occurrence, type, and concentrations of multiple pesticide residues in sediments.

Identifying pesticides of high concern for ecosystem, plant, animal, and human health: A comprehensive field study across Europe and Argentina.

The widespread and excessive use of pesticides in modern agricultural practices has caused pesticide contamination of the environment, animals, and humans, with confirmed serious health consequences. This study aimed to identify the 20 most critical substances based on an analysis of detection frequency (DF) and median concentrations (MC) across environmental and biological matrices. A sampling campaign was conducted across 10 case study sites in Europe and 1 in Argentina, each encompassing conventional and organic farming systems.

Occurrence and distribution of pesticides and transformation products in ambient air in two European agricultural areas.

Pesticides present a significant risk for both humans and the environment. However, quantitative data for a broad range of airborne pesticides in agricultural areas are missing. During or after the application, pesticides can reach the atmosphere and partition between the particulate and gaseous phase.

Soil microeukaryotic communities and phosphorus-cycling microorganisms respond to chloropicrin fumigation and azoxystrobin application.

Fumigants and fungicides are effective at controlling soil-borne pathogens but might also adversely affect soil beneficial microbes, such as soil phosphorus (P) solubilizing microbes, further altering nutrient cycling processes. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of the fumigant chloropicrin (CP) and the fungicide azoxystrobin (AZO) on soil microeukaryotes and P-cycling related soil bacteria through a greenhouse experiment. Soil microeukaryotic communities and bacterial communities containing two phosphomonoesterase encoding genes (phoC and phoD) were analysed using high-throughput sequencing methods.

Pesticide Residues in Organic and Conventional Agricultural Soils across Europe: Measured and Predicted Concentrations.

During the growing season of 2021, 201 soil samples from conventionally and organically managed fields from 10 European countries and 8 cropping systems were taken, and 192 residues of synthetic pesticides were analyzed. Pesticide residues were found in 97% of the samples, and 88% of the samples contained mixtures of at least 2 substances. A maximum of 21 substances were found in conventionally managed fields, and a maximum of 12 were found in organically managed fields.

Assessing pesticide residues occurrence and risks in water systems: A Pan-European and Argentina perspective.

Freshwater ecosystems face a particularly high risk of biodiversity loss compared to marine and terrestrial systems. The use of pesticides in agricultural fields is recognized as a relevant stressor for freshwater environments, exerting a negative impact worldwide on the overall status and health of the freshwater communities. In the present work, part of the Horizon 2020 funded SPRINT project, the occurrence of 193 pesticide residues was investigated in 64 small water bodies of distinct typology (creeks, streams, channels, ditches, rivers, lakes, ponds and reservoirs), located in regions with high agricultural activity in 10 European countries and in Argentina.

Effects of mixtures of herbicides on nutrient cycling and plant support considering current agriculture practices.

The use of mixtures of pesticides and consecutive pesticide applications challenge current regulations aimed at protecting ecosystem health due to unpredictable effects of complex and dynamic mixtures. In this study, we tested the ecotoxicological effects of mixtures of herbicides, applied following a real application scheme of soybean production on soil health in a mesocosm experiment. The experiment included two sequential applications; first, glyphosate + dicamba + clethodim, and 30 days later, flumioxazin + metolachlor.

Pesticide residues with hazard classifications relevant to non-target species including humans are omnipresent in the environment and farmer residences.

Intensive and widespread use of pesticides raises serious environmental and human health concerns. The presence and levels of 209 pesticide residues (active substances and transformation products) in 625 environmental samples (201 soil, 193 crop, 20 outdoor air, 115 indoor dust, 58 surface water, and 38 sediment samples) have been studied. The samples were collected during the 2021 growing season, across 10 study sites, covering the main European crops, and conventional and organic farming systems.

Occurrence of pesticide residues in indoor dust of farmworker households across Europe and Argentina.

Pesticides are widely used as plant protection products (PPPs) in farming systems to preserve crops against pests, weeds, and fungal diseases. Indoor dust can act as a chemical repository revealing occurrence of pesticides in the indoor environment at the time of sampling and the (recent) past. This in turn provides information on the exposure of humans to pesticides in their homes.

Intensive vegetable production under plastic mulch: A field study on soil plastic and pesticide residues and their effects on the soil microbiome.

Intensive agriculture relies on external inputs to reach high productivity and profitability. Plastic mulch, mainly in the form of Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE), is widely used in agriculture to decrease evaporation, increase soil temperature and prevent weeds. The incomplete removal of LDPE mulch after use causes plastic contamination in agricultural soils.

Collection of human and environmental data on pesticide use in Europe and Argentina: Field study protocol for the SPRINT project.

Current farm systems rely on the use of Plant Protection Products (PPP) to secure high productivity and control threats to the quality of the crops. However, PPP use may have considerable impacts on human health and the environment. A study protocol is presented aiming to determine the occurrence and levels of PPP residues in plants (crops), animals (livestock), humans and other non-target species (ecosystem representatives) for exposure modelling and impact assessment.

Characterization of the Habitat- and Season-Independent Increase in Fungal Biomass Induced by the Invasive Giant Goldenrod and Its Impact on the Fungivorous Nematode Community.

Outside its native range, the invasive plant species giant goldenrod () has been shown to increase belowground fungal biomass. This non-obvious effect is poorly characterized; we don't know whether it is plant developmental stage-dependent, which fractions of the fungal community are affected, and whether it is reflected in the next trophic level. To address these questions, fungal assemblages in soil samples collected from invaded and uninvaded plots in two soil types were compared.

Shifts in the Active Rhizobiome Paralleling Low Densities in Fields Under Prolonged Organic Soil Management.

Plants manipulate their rhizosphere community in a species and even a plant life stage-dependent manner. In essence plants select, promote and (de)activate directly the local bacterial and fungal community, and indirectly representatives of the next trophic level, protists and nematodes. By doing so, plants enlarge the pool of bioavailable nutrients and maximize local disease suppressiveness within the boundaries set by the nature of the local microbial community.

Organic amendment strengthens interkingdom associations in the soil and rhizosphere of barley (Hordeum vulgare).

Anthropogenic modification of soil systems has diverse impacts on food web interactions and ecosystem functioning. To understand the positive, neutral or adverse effects of agricultural practices on the associations of community members of soil microbes and microfaunal biomes, we characterized the effects of different fertilization types (organic, inorganic and a combination of organic and inorganic) on the food web active communities in the bulk soil and rhizosphere compartments in field conditions. We examined the influence of fertilization on (i) individual groups (bacteria, protozoa and fungi as microbe representatives and metazoans as microfauna representatives) and (ii) inter-kingdom interactions (focusing on the interactions between bacteria and eukaryotic groups) both neglecting and considering environmental factors in our analysis in combination with the microbial compositional data.

Conventional and organic soil management as divergent drivers of resident and active fractions of major soil food web constituents.

Conventional agricultural production systems, typified by large inputs of mineral fertilizers and pesticides, reduce soil biodiversity and may negatively affect ecosystem services such as carbon fixation, nutrient cycling and disease suppressiveness. Organic soil management is thought to contribute to a more diverse and stable soil food web, but data detailing this effect are sparse and fragmented. We set out to map both the resident (rDNA) and the active (rRNA) fractions of bacterial, fungal, protozoan and metazoan communities under various soil management regimes in two distinct soil types with barley as the main crop.

Root traits and belowground herbivores relate to plant-soil feedback variation among congeners.

Plant-soil feedbacks contribute to vegetation dynamics by species-specific interactions between plants and soil biota. Variation in plant-soil feedbacks can be predicted by root traits, successional position, and plant nativeness. However, it is unknown whether closely related plant species develop more similar plant-soil feedbacks than more distantly related species.

Effect of auxin on cytodifferentiation and production of quinoline alkaloids in compact globular structures of Cinchona ledgeriana.

Fine cell suspension cultures of Cinchona ledgeriana produce only very low amounts of quinoline alkaloids. These cultures formed self-propagating compact globular structures (CGS) on medium containing 2,4-D and BAP. These CGS could be induced to produce significant amounts of quinoline alkaloids by replacing 2,4-D by low amounts of 1-NAA, which was accompanied by histological changes of the CGS.

Characterization of a Suspension Culture of Tabernaemontana elegans on Growth, Nutrient Uptake, and Accumulation of Indole Alkaloids*.

A suspension culture of TABERNAEMONTANA ELEGANS was characterized on growth, nutrient uptake (carbohydrate, nitrogen, and phosphate), and on accumulation of indole alkaloids. Besides tryptamine seven indole alkaloids were isolated and identified: vobasine, vobasinol, perivine, isositsirikine, apparicine, tubotaiwine, and O-acetylvallesamine. In spite of the presence of vobasinol as major product, only trace amounts of dimeric indole alkaloids could be detected.

Accumulation of indole alkaloids in a suspension culture of Tabernaemontana divaricata.

Cell suspension cultures of TABERNAEMONTANA DIVARICATA were found to produce relatively large amounts of indole alkaloids. For their isolation an ion-pair DCCC method was used in combination with preparative TLC. The alkaloids were identified as tabernaemontanine, perivine, vobasine, voaphylline, voaphylline-hydroxyindolenine, vallesamine, apparicine, 16-hydroxy-16,22-dihydroapparicine, pericyclivine, tubotaiwine, 19- S-heyneanine, and coronaridine.

Induction of triterpene biosynthesis by elicitors in suspension cultures of Tabernaemontana species.

Treatment of suspension cultures of some Tabernaemontana species (Apocynaceae) with elicitors (e.g. cellulase, Candida albicans) result in a rapid de novo production of antimicrobial active triterpenes.