Microbial degradation and assimilation of veratric acid in oxic and anoxic groundwaters.

Microbial communities are key players in groundwater ecosystems. In this dark environment, heterotrophic microbes rely on biomass produced by the activity of lithoautotrophs or on the degradation of organic matter seeping from the surface. Most studies on bacterial diversity in groundwater habitats are based on 16S gene sequencing and full genome reconstructions showing potential metabolic pathways used in these habitats.

Artificial light at night decreases plant diversity and performance in experimental grassland communities.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) affects many areas of the world and is increasing globally. To date, there has been limited and inconsistent evidence regarding the consequences of ALAN for plant communities, as well as for the fitness of their constituent species. ALAN could be beneficial for plants as they need light as energy source, but they also need darkness for regeneration and growth.

How artificial light at night may rewire ecological networks: concepts and models.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is eroding natural light cycles and thereby changing species distributions and activity patterns. Yet little is known about how ecological interaction networks respond to this global change driver. Here, we assess the scientific basis of the current understanding of community-wide ALAN impacts.

Insect communities under skyglow: diffuse night-time illuminance induces spatio-temporal shifts in movement and predation.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is predicted to have far-reaching consequences for natural ecosystems given its influence on organismal physiology and behaviour, species interactions and community composition. Movement and predation are fundamental ecological processes that are of critical importance to ecosystem functioning. The natural movements and foraging behaviours of nocturnal invertebrates may be particularly sensitive to the presence of ALAN.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) causes shifts in soil communities and functions.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is increasing worldwide, but its effects on the soil system have not yet been investigated. We tested the influence of experimental manipulation of ALAN on two taxa of soil communities (microorganisms and soil nematodes) and three aspects of soil functioning (soil basal respiration, soil microbial biomass and carbon use efficiency) over four and a half months in a highly controlled Ecotron facility. We show that during peak plant biomass, increasing ALAN reduced plant biomass and was also associated with decreased soil water content.

Light pollution in complex ecological systems.

Light pollution has emerged as a burgeoning area of scientific interest, receiving increasing attention in recent years. The resulting body of literature has revealed a diverse array of species-specific and context-dependent responses to artificial light at night (ALAN). Because predicting and generalizing community-level effects is difficult, our current comprehension of the ecological impacts of light pollution on complex ecological systems remains notably limited.

Draft genome sequence of a endosymbiont from (Fritsch, 1958) (Acari, Syringophilidae).

We present the draft genome of a endosymbiont from quill mites. This is the first representative of a recently discovered distinct lineage (supergroup P). We hope the genome will be a useful resource for comparative evolutionary and genomic studies across the globally distributed symbiont .

The global biogeography of tree leaf form and habit.

Understanding what controls global leaf type variation in trees is crucial for comprehending their role in terrestrial ecosystems, including carbon, water and nutrient dynamics. Yet our understanding of the factors influencing forest leaf types remains incomplete, leaving us uncertain about the global proportions of needle-leaved, broadleaved, evergreen and deciduous trees. To address these gaps, we conducted a global, ground-sourced assessment of forest leaf-type variation by integrating forest inventory data with comprehensive leaf form (broadleaf vs needle-leaf) and habit (evergreen vs deciduous) records.

Bridging the gap: how to adopt opportunistic plant observations for phenology monitoring.

Plant phenology plays a vital role in assessing climate change. To monitor this, individual plants are traditionally visited and observed by trained volunteers organized in national or international networks - in Germany, for example, by the German Weather Service, DWD. However, their number of observers is continuously decreasing.

Freshwater fish diversity in the western Amazon basin shaped by Andean uplift since the Late Cretaceous.

South America is home to the highest freshwater fish biodiversity on Earth, and the hotspot of species richness is located in the western Amazon basin. The location of this hotspot is enigmatic, as it is inconsistent with the pattern observed in river systems across the world of increasing species richness towards a river's mouth. Here we investigate the role of river capture events caused by Andean mountain building and repeated episodes of flooding in western Amazonia in shaping the modern-day richness pattern of freshwater fishes in South America, and in Amazonia in particular.

The positive effect of plant diversity on soil carbon depends on climate.

Little is currently known about how climate modulates the relationship between plant diversity and soil organic carbon and the mechanisms involved. Yet, this knowledge is of crucial importance in times of climate change and biodiversity loss. Here, we show that plant diversity is positively correlated with soil carbon content and soil carbon-to-nitrogen ratio across 84 grasslands on six continents that span wide climate gradients.

Indonesian marine and its medicinal contribution.

The archipelagic country of Indonesia is populated by the densest marine biodiversity in the world which has created strong global interest and is valued by both Indigenous and European settlements for different purposes. Nearly 1000 chemicals have been extracted and identified. In this review, a systematic data curation was employed to collate bioprospecting related manuscripts providing a comprehensive directory based on publications from 1988 to 2022.

Estimating effective survey duration in camera trap distance sampling surveys.

Among other approaches, camera trap distance sampling (CTDS) is used to estimate animal abundance from unmarked populations. It was formulated for videos and observation distances are measured at predetermined 'snapshot moments'. Surveys recording still images with passive infrared motion sensors suffer from frequent periods where animals are not photographed, either because of technical delays before the camera can be triggered again (i.

Chronic exposure to pesticides disrupts the bacterial and fungal co-existence and the cross-kingdom network characteristics of honey bee gut microbiome.

Gut microbiome communities have a significant impact on bee health and disease and have been shown to be shaped by a variety of factors, including exposure to pesticides and inhive chemicals. However, it is unknown whether pesticide exposure affects the coexistence and cross-kingdom network parameters of bee gut microbiome communities because microbes may compete in the gut environment under different stressors. Therefore, we conducted additional analysis of the microbiome data from our previous study in which we discovered that exposure to two novel insecticides flupyradifurone (FPF) and sulfoxaflor (Sulf) or/and a fungicide, azoxystrobin (Azoxy) caused dysbiosis of bee gut microbiota that was associated with an increase in the relative abundance of opportunistic pathogens such as Serratia marcescens.

Tree communities and functional traits determine herbivore compositional turnover.

There are many factors known to drive species turnover, although the mechanisms by which these operate are less clear. Based on comprehensive datasets from the largest tree diversity experiment worldwide (BEF-China), we used shared herbivore species (zeta diversity) and multi-site generalized dissimilarity modelling to investigate the patterns and determinants of species turnover of Lepidoptera herbivores among study plots across a gradient in tree species richness. We found that zeta diversity declined sharply with an increasing number of study plots, with complete changes in caterpillar species composition observed even at the fine spatial scale of our study.

Multidimensional responses of grassland stability to eutrophication.

Eutrophication usually impacts grassland biodiversity, community composition, and biomass production, but its impact on the stability of these community aspects is unclear. One challenge is that stability has many facets that can be tightly correlated (low dimensionality) or highly disparate (high dimensionality). Using standardized experiments in 55 grassland sites from a globally distributed experiment (NutNet), we quantify the effects of nutrient addition on five facets of stability (temporal invariability, resistance during dry and wet growing seasons, recovery after dry and wet growing seasons), measured on three community aspects (aboveground biomass, community composition, and species richness).

Habitat-based biodiversity responses to macroclimate and edaphic factors in European fen ecosystems.

Understanding large-scale drivers of biodiversity in palustrine wetlands is challenging due to the combined effects of macroclimate and local edaphic conditions. In boreal and temperate fen ecosystems, the influence of macroclimate on biodiversity is modulated by hydrological settings across habitats, making it difficult to assess their vulnerability to climate change. Here, we investigate the influence of macroclimate and edaphic factors on three Essential Biodiversity Variables across eight ecologically defined habitats that align with ecosystem classifications and red lists.

A physiologically based model of bile acid metabolism in mice.

Bile acid (BA) metabolism is a complex system that includes a wide variety of primary and secondary, as well as conjugated and unconjugated BAs that undergo continuous enterohepatic circulation (EHC). Alterations in both composition and dynamics of BAs have been associated with various diseases. However, a mechanistic understanding of the relationship between altered BA metabolism and related diseases is lacking.

Modeling of land use/land cover dynamics using artificial neural network and cellular automata Markov chain algorithms in Goang watershed, Ethiopia.

Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) change has inhibited sustainable development for the last millennia by affecting climate, biological cycles, and ecosystem services and functions. In this regard, understanding the historical and future patterns of LULC change plays a crucial role in implementing effective natural resource management. This study aimed to model and characterize the spatiotemporal trajectories of landscape change between the 1984 and 2060 periods.

Oxidation is an underappreciated post-translational modification in the regulation of immune responses associated with changes in phosphorylation.

Although macrophages are known to be affected by their redox status, oxidation is not yet a well-recognized post-translational modification (PTM) in regulating macrophages and immune cells in general. While it has been described that the redox status of single cysteines in specific proteins is relevant for macrophage functions, global oxidation information is scarce. Hence, we globally assessed the impact of oxidation on macrophage activation using untargeted proteomics and PTM-omics.

Tree diversity increases productivity through enhancing structural complexity across mycorrhizal types.

Tree species diversity and mycorrhizal associations play a central role for forest productivity, but factors driving positive biodiversity-productivity relationships remain poorly understood. In a biodiversity experiment manipulating tree diversity and mycorrhizal associations, we examined the roles of above- and belowground processes in modulating wood productivity in young temperate tree communities and potential underlying mechanisms. We found that tree species richness, but not mycorrhizal associations, increased forest productivity by enhancing aboveground structural complexity within communities.

Sex-driven neighborhood effects on herbivory in the dioecious Mediterranean palm Chamaerops humilis L.

Although it is well recognized that the strength of plant-herbivore interactions can vary with the plant sex, the distance, and the density of conspecific neighbors, no study has yet assessed their combined influence. Here, we filled this knowledge gap by focusing on the dioecious palm Chamaerops humilis L., and its two main herbivores, the invasive moth Paysandisia archon Burmeister and the feral goat Capra hircus L.

The poleward naturalization of intracontinental alien plants.

Plant introductions outside their native ranges by humans have led to substantial ecological consequences. While we have gained considerable knowledge about intercontinental introductions, the distribution and determinants of intracontinental aliens remain poorly understood. Here, we studied naturalized (i.