Dietary wheat and reduced methane yield are linked to rumen microbiome changes in dairy cows.

Fermentation of pasture grasses and grains in the rumen of dairy cows and other ruminants produces methane as a by-product, wasting energy and contributing to the atmospheric load of greenhouse gasses. Many feeding trials in farmed ruminants have tested the impact of dietary components on feed efficiency, productivity and methane yield (MeY). Such diets remodel the rumen microbiome, altering bacterial, archaeal, fungal and protozoan populations, with an altered fermentation outcome.

Genome-wide association studies dissect the G × E interaction for agronomic traits in a worldwide collection of safflowers ( L.).

Unlabelled: Genome-wide association studies were conducted using a globally diverse safflower ( L) Genebank collection for grain yield (YP), days to flowering (DF), plant height (PH), 500 seed weight (SW), seed oil content (OL), and crude protein content (PR) in four environments (sites) that differed in water availability. Phenotypic variation was observed for all traits. YP exhibited low overall genetic correlations () across sites, while SW and OL had high and high pairwise genetic correlations () across all pairwise sites.

Faecalibacterium diversity in dairy cow milk.

The bacterial species, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, beneficial to humans and animals and found in mammalian and avian gut, is also occasionally found in dairy cow milk. It is one of the butyrate-producing bacteria of the colon, has anti-inflammatory properties and its abundance in the gut is negatively correlated with obesity in humans. Several strains differing in their functional capability, have been identified.

Metabolomics approaches for the discrimination of disease suppressive soils for Rhizoctonia solani AG8 in cereal crops using H NMR and LC-MS.

The suppression of soilborne crop pathogens such as Rhizoctonia solani AG8 may offer a sustainable and enduring method for disease control, though soils with these properties are difficult to identify. In this study, we analysed the soil metabolic profiles of suppressive and non-suppressive soils over 2 years of cereal production. We collected bulk and rhizosphere soil at different cropping stages and subjected soil extracts to liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H NMR) analyses.

Comparative Metatranscriptomics of Wheat Rhizosphere Microbiomes in Disease Suppressive and Non-suppressive Soils for AG8.

The soilborne fungus anastomosis group (AG) 8 is a major pathogen of grain crops resulting in substantial production losses. In the absence of resistant cultivars of wheat or barley, a sustainable and enduring method for disease control may lie in the enhancement of biological disease suppression. Evidence of effective biological control of AG8 through disease suppression has been well documented at our study site in Avon, South Australia.

Transcriptome sequencing of field pea and faba bean for discovery and validation of SSR genetic markers.

Background: Field pea (Pisum sativum L.) and faba bean (Vicia faba L.) are cool-season grain legume species that provide rich sources of food for humans and fodder for livestock.

Transcriptome sequencing of lentil based on second-generation technology permits large-scale unigene assembly and SSR marker discovery.

Background: Lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.) is a cool-season grain legume which provides a rich source of protein for human consumption. In terms of genomic resources, lentil is relatively underdeveloped, in comparison to other Fabaceae species, with limited available data.

A neurotropic herpesvirus infecting the gastropod, abalone, shares ancestry with oyster herpesvirus and a herpesvirus associated with the amphioxus genome.

Background: With the exception of the oyster herpesvirus OsHV-1, all herpesviruses characterized thus far infect only vertebrates. Some cause neurological disease in their hosts, while others replicate or become latent in neurological tissues. Recently a new herpesvirus causing ganglioneuritis in abalone, a gastropod, was discovered.

Haemonchus contortus: molecular characterisation of a small heat shock protein.

A cDNA encoding a predicted small heat shock protein, HSP20, was isolated from the parasitic nematode Haemonchus contortus. This cDNA encoded a predicted protein of 156 amino acids, which had high sequence identity with other nematode small heat shock proteins. Southern blot analysis of genomic DNA suggested that in H.