More than a meat- or synthetic nitrogen fertiliser-substitute: a review of legume phytochemicals as drivers of 'One Health' via their influence on the functional diversity of soil- and gut-microbes.

Legumes are essential to healthy agroecosystems, with a rich phytochemical content that impacts overall human and animal well-being and environmental sustainability. While these phytochemicals can have both positive and negative effects, legumes have traditionally been bred to produce genotypes with lower levels of certain plant phytochemicals, specifically those commonly termed as 'antifeedants' including phenolic compounds, saponins, alkaloids, tannins, and raffinose family oligosaccharides (RFOs). However, when incorporated into a balanced diet, such legume phytochemicals can offer health benefits for both humans and animals.

Nitrogen fixation by common beans in crop mixtures is influenced by growth rate of associated species.

Background: Legumes can fix atmospheric nitrogen (N) and facilitate N availability to their companion plants in crop mixtures. However, biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) of legumes in intercrops varies largely with the identity of the legume species. The aim of our study was to understand whether BNF and concentration of plant nutrients by common bean is influenced by the identity of the companion plant species in crop mixtures.

Hydroponic Common-Bean Performance under Reduced N-Supply Level and Rhizobia Application.

This study aims to explore the possibility of a reduced application of inorganic nitrogen (N) fertiliser on the yield, yield qualities, and biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) of the hydroponic common bean ( L.), without compromising plant performance, by utilizing the inherent ability of this plant to symbiotically fix N. Until the flowering stage, plants were supplied with a nutrient solution containing N-concentrations of either a, 100%, conventional standard-practice, 13.

Fresh Pod Yield, Physical and Nutritional Quality Attributes of Common Bean as Influenced by Conventional or Organic Farming Practices.

The aim of the current study wat to comparatively assess the impact of different nitrogen (N) fertilization schemes on fresh pod yield and yield quality in either organically or conventionally grown common beans ( L.). Prior to common bean crop establishment, the experimental field site was cultivated following either organic (a) or conventional (b) farming practices with a winter non-legume crop ( var.

Supply Chain Perspectives on Breeding for Legume-Cereal Intercrops.

Compared to sole crops, intercropping-especially of legumes and cereals-has great potential to improve crop yield and resource use efficiency, and can provide many other ecosystem services. However, the beneficial effects of intercrops are often greatly dependent on the end use as well as the specific species and genotypes being co-cultivated. In addition, intercropping imposes added complexity at different levels of the supply chain.

Global DNA methylation and cellular 5-methylcytosine and H4 acetylated patterns in primary and secondary dormant seeds of Capsella bursa-pastoris (L.) Medik. (shepherd's purse).

Despite the importance of dormancy and dormancy cycling for plants' fitness and life cycle phenology, a comprehensive characterization of the global and cellular epigenetic patterns across space and time in different seed dormancy states is lacking. Using Capsella bursa-pastoris (L.) Medik.

The Push, Pull, and Enabling Capacities Necessary for Legume Grain Inclusion into Sustainable Agri-Food Systems and Healthy Diets.

Legume grains are traditional crops that have been modernized as processed foods and animal protein alternatives in recent years. This modernization has largely been fueled by new technological developments driven by increased consumer demands for plant protein and gluten-free options. However, consumers must be mindful that legumes have other nutritional attributes besides protein that help achieve healthier diets, and recent evidence suggests that consuming 100 g of legume grains per day would promote nutrient-dense diets and could be a target level to harmonize international strategies for recommended daily allowances.

Differential Interspecific Adaptation to Abiotic Stress by Species.

The success of seed-based conservation and restoration efforts using native plant species is largely determined by ensuring two key life history transitions are accommodated. These are from "seed to germinated seed" and "germinated seed to established seedling." In turn, optimization of these life history transitions is determined by a "genetic × environmental" interaction and later largely characterized by localized climatic (abiotic) conditions.

Native Seed Supply and the Restoration Species Pool.

Globally, annual expenditure on ecological restoration of degraded areas for habitat improvement and biodiversity conservation is approximately $18bn. Seed farming of native plant species is crucial to meet restoration goals, but may be stymied by the disconnection of academic research in seed science and the lack of effective policies that regulate native seed production/supply. To illustrate this problem, we identified 1,122 plant species important for European grasslands of conservation concern and found that only 32% have both fundamental seed germination data available and can be purchased as seed.

A Spectrophotometric Assay for Robust Viability Testing of Seed Batches Using 2,3,5-Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride: Using L. as a Model.

A comparative analysis was carried out of published methods to assess seed viability using 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) based assays of seed batches. The tests were carried out on seeds of barley ( cv. Optic) as a model.

A Comparative Nitrogen Balance and Productivity Analysis of Legume and Non-legume Supported Cropping Systems: The Potential Role of Biological Nitrogen Fixation.

The potential of biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) to provide sufficient N for production has encouraged re-appraisal of cropping systems that deploy legumes. It has been argued that legume-derived N can maintain productivity as an alternative to the application of mineral fertilizer, although few studies have systematically evaluated the effect of optimizing the balance between legumes and non N-fixing crops to optimize production. In addition, the shortage, or even absence in some regions, of measurements of BNF in crops and forages severely limits the ability to design and evaluate new legume-based agroecosystems.

Rhizobium altiplani sp. nov., isolated from effective nodules on Mimosa pudica growing in untypically alkaline soil in central Brazil.

Root nodule bacteria were isolated from nodules on Mimosa pudica L. growing in neutral-alkaline soils from the Distrito Federal in central Brazil. The 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis of 10 strains placed them into the genus Rhizobium with the closest neighbouring species (each with 99 % similarity) being Rhizobium grahamii, Rhizobium cauense, Rhizobium mesoamericanum and Rhizobium tibeticum.

Improving intercropping: a synthesis of research in agronomy, plant physiology and ecology.

Intercropping is a farming practice involving two or more crop species, or genotypes, growing together and coexisting for a time. On the fringes of modern intensive agriculture, intercropping is important in many subsistence or low-input/resource-limited agricultural systems. By allowing genuine yield gains without increased inputs, or greater stability of yield with decreased inputs, intercropping could be one route to delivering ‘sustainable intensification’.

The rheological properties of the seed coat mucilage of Capsella bursa-pastoris L. Medik. (shepherd's purse).

The outer surface of myxospermous seed coats contains mucilage which absorbs large amounts of water relative to its dry weight. Ecologically, the seed mucilage can affect seed germination and dormancy. Upon hydration, a large proportion of the seed mucilage is lost to the soil and the physics of soil-seed mucilage interactions has not been assessed.

Co-adaptation of seed dormancy and flowering time in the arable weed Capsella bursa-pastoris (shepherd's purse).

Background And Aims: The duration of the plant life cycle is an important attribute that determines fitness and coexistence of weeds in arable fields. It depends on the timing of two key life-history traits: time from seed dispersal to germination and time from germination to flowering. These traits are components of the time to reproduction.

A mathematical model of mucilage expansion in myxospermous seeds of Capsella bursa-pastoris (shepherd's purse).

Background And Aims: Myxospermy is a term which describes the ability of a seed to produce mucilage upon hydration. The mucilage is mainly comprised of plant cell-wall polysaccharides which are deposited during development of those cells that comprise the seed coat (testa). Myxospermy is more prevalent among those plant species adapted to surviving on arid sandy soils, though its significance in determining the ecological fitness of plants is unclear.

Heterogeneity in the distribution of genetically modified and conventional oilseed rape within fields and seed lots.

The implementation of co-existence in the commercialisation of GM crops requires GM and non-GM products to be segregated in production and supply. However, maintaining segregation in oilseed rape will be made difficult by the highly persistent nature of this species. An understanding of its population dynamics is needed to predict persistence and develop potential strategies for control, while to ensure segregation is being achieved, the production of GM oilseed rape must be accompanied by the monitoring of GM levels in crop or seed populations.

Sources of uncertainty in the quantification of genetically modified oilseed rape contamination in seed lots.

Testing of seed and grain lots is essential in the enforcement of GM labelling legislation and needs reliable procedures for which associated errors have been identified and minimised. In this paper we consider the testing of oilseed rape seed lots obtained from the harvest of a non-GM crop known to be contaminated by volunteer plants from a GM herbicide tolerant variety. The objective was to identify and quantify the error associated with the testing of these lots from the initial sampling to completion of the real-time PCR assay with which the level of GM contamination was quantified.

Identification, cloning and expression analysis of strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) mitochondrial citrate synthase and mitochondrial malate dehydrogenase.

Salt-extractable proteins from the cell walls of immature and ripe strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch. cv. Elsanta) fruit were separated using two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.

Infection and colonization of rice seedlings by the plant growth-promoting bacterium Herbaspirillum seropedicae Z67.

A beta-glucoronidase (GUS)-marked strain of Herbaspirillum seropedicae Z67 was inoculated onto rice seedling cvs. IR42 and IR72. Internal populations peaked at over 10(6) log CFU per gram of fresh weight by 5 to 7 days after inoculation (DAI) but declined to 10(3) to 10(4) log CFU per gram of fresh weight by 28 DAI.