Impact of slurry removal frequency on CH emission and subsequent biogas production; a one-year case study.

Anaerobic digestion of animal slurry to produce biogas is the dominated treatment approach and a storage period is normally applied prior to digestion. Pre-storage, however, contributes to CH emissions and results in loss of biogas potential. Manure management was found to be an efficient approach to reduce not only the on-site CH emission but may also have extended influence on CH emission/losses for storage and subsequent biogas process, while the connection remains unclear.

Towards smart and sustainable development of modern berry cultivars in Europe.

Fresh berries are a popular and important component of the human diet. The demand for high-quality berries and sustainable production methods is increasing globally, challenging breeders to develop modern berry cultivars that fulfill all desired characteristics. Since 1994, research projects have characterized genetic resources, developed modern tools for high-throughput screening, and published data in publicly available repositories.

Seasonal Variations of Host Plant Diversity and Parasitoid Complex in Southern and Central Benin.

Fall armyworm (FAW) (J.E. Smith, 1797) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) was recorded for the first time in 2016 attacking maize fields in central and west Africa.

Co-composting of digestate and garden waste with biochar: effect on greenhouse gas production and fertilizer value of the matured compost.

Biogas digestate is a nitrogen (N) rich waste product that has potential for application to soil as a fertilizer. Composting of digestate is recognized as an effective step to reduce potentially negative consequences of digestate application to soils. However, the structure of the digestate and the high N content can hinder effective composting.

Benthic Microbial Communities in a Seasonally Ice-Covered Sub-Arctic River (Pasvik River, Norway) Are Shaped by Site-Specific Environmental Conditions.

The Pasvik River experiences chemical, physical, and biological stressors due to the direct discharges of domestic sewage from settlements located within the catchment and runoff from smelter and mine wastes. Sediments, as a natural repository of organic matter and associated contaminants, are of global concern for the possible release of pollutants in the water column, with detrimental effects on aquatic organisms. The present study was aimed at characterizing the riverine benthic microbial community and evaluating its ecological role in relation to the contamination level.

Starch-Rich Microalgae as an Active Ingredient in Beer Brewing.

Microalgal biomass is widely studied for its possible application in food and human nutrition due to its multiple potential health benefits, and to address raising sustainability concerns. An interesting field whereby to further explore the application of microalgae is that of beer brewing, due to the capacity of some species to accumulate large amounts of starch under specific growth conditions. The marine species is a well-known starch producer, and was selected in this study for the production of biomass to be explored as an active ingredient in beer brewing.

Triterpene Content in Flesh and Peel of Apples Grown on Different Rootstocks.

Advancements in rootstock breeding and selection have revolutionized the manner in which apples are grown throughout the world. Fruit tree breeding has typically focused on key horticultural characteristics. Even though agents with health benefits have been investigated more frequently during the recent years, information about the effect of different cultivation factors, such as the rootstock, on triterpene concentration is still lacking.

Molecular Diagnostic Tools Applied for Assessing Microbial Water Quality.

Microbial water quality is of vital importance for human, animal, and environmental health. Notably, pathogenically contaminated water can result in serious health problems, such as waterborne outbreaks, which have caused huge economic and social losses. In this context, the prompt detection of microbial contamination becomes essential to enable early warning and timely reaction with proper interventions.

Analyzing dynamic species abundance distributions using generalized linear mixed models.

Understanding the mechanisms of ecological community dynamics and how they could be affected by environmental changes is important. Population dynamic models have well known ecological parameters that describe key characteristics of species such as the effect of environmental noise and demographic variance on the dynamics, the long-term growth rate, and strength of density regulation. These parameters are also central for detecting and understanding changes in communities of species; however, incorporating such vital parameters into models of community dynamics is challenging.

Metabolic pathways for biosynthesis and degradation of starch in Tetraselmis chui during nitrogen deprivation and recovery.

Tetraselmis chui is known to accumulate starch when subjected to stress. This phenomenon is widely studied for the purpose of industrial production and process development. Yet, knowledge about the metabolic pathways involved is still immature.

A re-analysis of NH sorption on biochar: Have expectations been too high?

Sorption of nutrients such as NH is often quoted as a critical property of biochar, explaining its value as a soil amendment and a filter material. However, published values for NH sorption to biochar vary by more than 3 orders of magnitude, without consensus as to the source of this variability. This lack of understanding greatly limits our ability to use quantitative sorption measurements towards product design.

Molecular Identification of Infectious Enteropathogens in Faeces of Healthy Horses.

Zoogenic faecal contamination of the environment is one of the indices included in the evaluation of ecological threats, health hazards and adverse impacts on various ecosystems. The risks and environmental concerns are associated with the fact that faeces of wild and domesticated animals constitute the largest source of environmental loading of enteropathogens associated with transmission of zoonotic diseases (enteric zoonoses). Although sick animals are more likely to transmit pathogens, healthy ones can also be the carriers and defecate them into the environment.

Moose in our neighborhood: Does perceived hunting risk have cascading effects on tree performance in vicinity of roads and houses?

Like large carnivores, hunters both kill and scare ungulates, and thus might indirectly affect plant performance through trophic cascades. In this study, we hypothesized that intensive hunting and enduring fear of humans have caused moose and other forest ungulates to partly avoid areas near human infrastructure (perceived hunting risk), with positive cascading effects on recruitment of trees. Using data from the Norwegian forest inventory, we found decreasing browsing pressure and increasing tree recruitment in areas close to roads and houses, where ungulates are more likely to encounter humans.

Known and Potential Invertebrate Vectors of Raspberry Viruses.

The estimated global production of raspberry from year 2016 to 2020 averaged 846,515 tons. The most common cultivated spp. is European red raspberry ( L.

Host-Pathogen Interactions in Leaf Petioles of Common Ash and Manchurian Ash Infected with .

Some common ash trees () show tolerance towards shoot dieback caused by the invasive ascomycete . Leaf petioles are considered to serve as a pathogen colonization route to the shoots. We compared four common ash clones with variation in disease tolerance, and included the native host, Manchurian ash (), as a reference.

Phenolic Content and Antioxidant Activity in Apples of the 'Galaval' Cultivar Grown on 17 Different Rootstocks.

Apple cultivars are one of the main factors setting the composition of bioactive compounds in apples and the quality of the fruit. However, research has been providing increasing amounts of data on the influence of rootstocks on the variations in the composition of bioactive compounds in apples. The aim of the study was to determine the influence of rootstocks on the changes in the qualitative and quantitative composition of phenolic compounds and their antioxidant activity in vitro in apple flesh and peel.

Mitogenomics of the suborder Cottoidei (Teleostei: Perciformes): Improved assemblies, mitogenome features, phylogeny, and ecological implications.

We determined the mitogenome of Cyclopterus lumpus using a hybrid sequencing approach, and another four closely related species in the Liparidae based on available next-generation sequence data. We found that the mitogenome of C. lumpus was 17,266 bp in length, where the length and organisation were comparable to those reported for cottoids.

Genetic studies of fall armyworm indicate a new introduction into Africa and identify limits to its migratory behavior.

The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) is native to the Americas and a major pest of corn and several other crops of economic importance.

Honey bees and climate explain viral prevalence in wild bee communities on a continental scale.

Viruses are omnipresent, yet the knowledge on drivers of viral prevalence in wild host populations is often limited. Biotic factors, such as sympatric managed host species, as well as abiotic factors, such as climatic variables, are likely to impact viral prevalence. Managed and wild bees, which harbor several multi-host viruses with a mostly fecal-oral between-species transmission route, provide an excellent system with which to test for the impact of biotic and abiotic factors on viral prevalence in wild host populations.

Volatile Organic Compound Profiles From Wheat Diseases Are Pathogen-Specific and Can Be Exploited for Disease Classification.

Plants and fungi emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are either constitutively produced or are produced in response to changes in their physico-chemical status. We hypothesized that these chemical signals could be utilized as diagnostic tools for plant diseases. VOCs from several common wheat pathogens in pure culture (, , , , and ) were collected and compared among isolates of the same fungus, between pathogens from different species, and between pathogens causing different disease groups [Fusarium head blight (FHB) and Septoria nodorum blotch (SNB)].

Apple Fruit Growth and Quality Depend on the Position in Tree Canopy.

Modern apple orchard systems should guarantee homogeneity of fruit internal and external qualities and fruit maturity parameters. However, when orchards reach productive age, a variation of these parameters takes place and mostly it is related to uneven light distribution within the tree canopy. The aim of the study was to evaluate the canopy position's effect on fruit internal and external quality parameters.