Elucidating the microbiome of the sustainable peat replacers composts and nature management residues.

Sustainable peat alternatives, such as composts and management residues, are considered to have beneficial microbiological characteristics compared to peat-based substrates. Studies comparing microbiological characteristics of these three types of biomass are, however, lacking. This study examined if and how microbiological characteristics of subtypes of composts and management residues differ from peat-based substrates, and how feedstock and (bio)chemical characteristics drive these characteristics.

Can multi-cropping affect soil microbial stoichiometry and functional diversity, decreasing potential soil-borne pathogens? A study on European organic vegetable cropping systems.

Crop diversification in spatial and temporal patterns can optimize the synchronization of nutrients plant demand and availability in soils, as plant diversity and soil microbial communities are the main drivers of biogeochemical C and nutrient cycling. The introduction of multi-cropping in organic vegetable production can represent a key strategy to ensure efficient complementation mediated by soil microbiota, including beneficial mycorrhizal fungi. This study shows the effect of the introduction of multi-cropping in five European organic vegetable systems (South-West: Italy; North-West: Denmark and Belgium; North-East: Finland and Latvia) on: (i) soil physicochemical parameters; (ii) soil microbial biomass stoichiometry; (iii) crop root mycorrhization; (iv) bacterial and fungal diversity and composition in crop rhizosphere; (v) relative abundance of selected fungal pathogens species.

Biochar-Enhanced Resistance to in Strawberry Fruits (But Not Leaves) Is Associated With Changes in the Rhizosphere Microbiome.

Biochar has been reported to play a positive role in disease suppression against airborne pathogens in plants. The mechanisms behind this positive trait are not well-understood. In this study, we hypothesized that the attraction of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) or fungi (PGPF) underlies the mechanism of biochar in plant protection.

Bacterial Enrichment Cultures Biotransform the Mycotoxin Deoxynivalenol into a Novel Metabolite Toxic to Plant and Porcine Cells.

The mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON), produced in wheat, barley and maize by and , is threatening the health of humans and animals. With its worldwide high incidence in food and feed, mitigation strategies are needed to detoxify DON, maintaining the nutritional value and palatability of decontaminated commodities. A promising technique is biological degradation, where microorganisms are used to biotransform mycotoxins into less toxic metabolites.

Shifts in the rhizobiome during consecutive in planta enrichment for phosphate-solubilizing bacteria differentially affect maize P status.

Phosphorus (P) is despite its omnipresence in soils often unavailable for plants. Rhizobacteria able to solubilize P are therefore crucial to avoid P deficiency. Selection for phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) is frequently done in vitro; however, rhizosphere competence is herein overlooked.

Understanding the Shift in the Microbiome of Composts That Are Optimized for a Better Fit-for-Purpose in Growing Media.

Three characteristics are considered key for optimal use of composts in growing media: maturity, pH and organic matter content. Maturation is a critical step in the processing of composts contributing to compost quality. Blending of composts with chopped heath biomass, sieving out the larger fraction of composts and acidification of composts by adding elemental sulfur may be used either to increase organic matter content or to reduce pH for a better fit in growing media.

Chemically versus thermally processed brown shrimp shells or Chinese mitten crab as a source of chitin, nutrients or salts and as microbial stimulant in soilless strawberry cultivation.

Brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) shells and Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis) were chemically demineralized and deproteinized (denoted as M1 to M4 for the shrimp shells and M5 to M7 for the Chinese mitten crab), and shrimp shells were torrefied at 200 to 300 °C (denoted as R200, R255, R300), and were compared with a commercially available chitin source (denoted as reference chitin). Based on their chemical characteristics, a selection of chitin sources was tested for their N mineralization capacity. The N release was high for the chemically treated shrimp shells and Chinese mitten crab, but not for the torrefied shrimp shells with or without acid treatment, indicating that treatment at 200 °C or higher resulted in low N availability.

Parallel and costly changes to cellular immunity underlie the evolution of parasitoid resistance in three Drosophila species.

A priority for biomedical research is to understand the causes of variation in susceptibility to infection. To investigate genetic variation in a model system, we used flies collected from single populations of three different species of Drosophila and artificially selected them for resistance to the parasitoid wasp Leptopilina boulardi, and found that survival rates increased 3 to 30 fold within 6 generations. Resistance in all three species involves a large increase in the number of the circulating hemocytes that kill parasitoids.