This has positive results for the protective effect as well as for wood production and carbon storage.
and are critically important to global carbon and energy cycles and yet do not attract the interest levels that tropical rainforests do.
Whilst it is assumed generally that'more trees are better'in tropical rainforest this is not necessarily the case for tropical grassy ecosystems and so the outcomes of global carbon and conservation initiatives
They also store about 15%of the world's carbon. Tropical grassy ecosystems are associated with savannas
and management strategies but also a means to conduct very detailed molecular studies focusing on ecotoxicology reproduction
The research provides a new approach integrating knowledge of genes proteins plant chemical compounds and engineering modeling to understand how plants make products
#Predation on invertebrates by woodland salamanders increases carbon capturewoodland salamanders perform a vital ecological service in American forests by helping to mitigate the impacts of global warming.
Woodland salamanders facilitate the capture of this carbon before it is released by feeding on invertebrates (beetles earthworms snails ants etc.
that would otherwise release carbon through consumption of fallen leaves and other forest debris. Woodland salamanders are the most common vertebrate species in American forests;
consequently these small seldom-seen animals may play a significant role in regulating the capture of carbon from leaf litter in forest soils.
and carbon are captured at the litter-soil interface. The objective of the study was to investigate the role of salamanders in regulating invertebrate abundances
and agricultural land use because it increases the storage of carbon and may also enhance agricultural productivity.
Furthermore the same amount of carbon isotope (14c) in a given sample can quite easily result in different dating results
By analyzing metabolic compounds the team was able to show that the bacteria enhance photosynthesis
Their results--obtained from analysing stable isotope ratios of three elements in the bone collagen of 49 adults buried at the Teouma archaeological site on Vanuatu's Efate Island--suggest that its early Lapita settlers ate reef fish
The researchers analysed the isotopic ratios of carbon nitrogen and sulphur in adult human bone collagen and compared these with ratios in ancient and modern plants and animals from the location
and the Centre for Plant Biotechnology and Genomics (CBGP) is studying the tolerance of trees using molecular and biotechnological tools.
#Amazons canopy a patchwork quilt of chemicals generated by plantsin many ways plants act as chemical factories using energy from sunlight to produce carbon-based energy
Carbon emission will be higher in second half of centuryspanish forest ecosystems will quite probably emit high quantities of carbon dioxide in the second half of the 21st century.
Consequently woodlands that now drain carbon will become carbon producers because plant respiration (a process in
and the decomposition of death organic matter will exceed photosynthesis processes (carbon sequestration and oxygen release).
When an object is exposed to light its molecules absorb certain wavelengths and the appearance of color results from the unabsorbed light
Understanding effects of smoke compounds on seed germinationalthough seemingly destructive wildfires help to maintain biodiversity
but the quick release of nutrients heat and compounds found in ash and smoke play an important role in the life cycle of the native flora.
As plant tissue is burned numerous compounds are released some of which have been found to break seed dormancy and stimulate germination.
In a new study published in the March issue of Applications in Plant sciences scientists at Eastern Illinois University have developed a novel system to produce smoke solutions to further investigate the importance of smoke compounds such as butenolides
Because many of the identified compounds are known to be water soluble using a smoke solution is a convenient alternative to direct fumigation of seeds explains Dr. Janice Coons lead author of the study.
Water-soluble compounds are dissolved by bubbling smoke through water contained in a flask. This setup is inexpensive and much more compact than previous systems allowing for the production of smaller volumes of smoke solution within a small space such as a fume hood.
This new apparatus increases the concentration of smoke compounds in the solution and allows for greater control of variables.
For example different species of plants contain different compounds which may have different effects on seed germination.
and colleagues on the other hand provide researchers with the means to distinguish the effects of smoke compounds from other additives.
This drug reduces activity of the body's Ige molecules the antibodies involved in allergic responses
For now the carbon footprint of cutting down forests to make way for palm plantations dwarfs the greenhouse gases coming from the wastewater lagoons.
Taylor whose research typically focuses on carbon cycling in old-growth tropical forests was inspired to do the analysis by undergraduate researcher Hana Fancher who also is a co-author of the journal article.
To do that we hope to use several compounds to see if the plant can actually trigger a mechanism to defend itself from the pathogen
if these systemic acquired resistance compounds work and if so why are they working? French said.
We add these compounds whether it is for plant defense responses pathogen control plant health on top of what the growers is applying he said.
and try new chemicals new compounds or new products. Additionally he hopes to move from small plot research to larger plots.
Ideally we would like to work with compounds already labeled for potato or maybe a closely related crop like pepper tomato
and heat tolerance for molecular studies and deployment of these genes in other crops she said.
and cloned will significantly advance understanding of the molecular basis underlying plant tolerances to these stresses Zhang said.
and activity of the reproduction center in the female for mating by a single molecule Takeuchi says.
Before experimenting with contaminated water the group used water mixed with red ink particles ranging from 70 to 500 nanometers in size.
This experiment showed that sapwood is naturally able to filter out particles bigger than about 70 nanometers.
However in another experiment the team found that sapwood was unable to separate out 20-nanometer particles from water suggesting that there is a limit to the size of particles coniferous sapwood can filter.
In general flowering trees have smaller pores than coniferous trees suggesting that they may be able to filter out even smaller particles.
New gas-phase compounds form organic particle ingredientsscientists have made an important step in order to better understand the relationships between vegetation and climate.
In this case gases are converted into particles that reflect solar radiation or act as nuclei for cloud droplets.
However the model calculations have been very inaccurate as there are still large gaps in our knowledge concerning the role of the compounds emitted by plants during the transition between gaseous and solid state.
Large uncertainties do primarily exist regarding the growth of newly formed particles towards cloud nuclei on
The particle growth in the diameter range between about three and one hundred nanometers requires low-volatile organic vapors as has been speculated.
Until recently these compounds could not be measured because they are very short-lived. As soon as these molecules collide with a surfaces they remain adsorbed
and cannot be detected in the gas phase by analytical instruments. To prevent this the ELVOCS are ionized directly under atmospheric conditions in the gas phase
and subsequently transported as an electrically charged ELVOC-molecule into the sensor (mass spectrometer) where the detection takes place.
Every forest visitor can recognize these compounds as the typical fir needle smell. We managed to present the first molecular evidence of a direct and ubiquitous source of ELVOCS arising from the oxidation of monoterpenes and other volatile organic compounds in the gas phase.
This produces vapors with relatively large molecules containing many hydrogen atoms as well as approximately the same number of oxygen as carbon atoms.
The results suggest that about 10 percent of the reacting VOC mass is converted tosecondary organic aerosol over the tree tops.
not only to detect these new compounds but also to explain the mechanism that leads to the formation.
in order to determine the portion of heavy oxygen atoms (18o) in the formed ELVOCS. These experiments allowed us a first insight into the formation mechanism of these compounds
and provide the basis for a series of further experiments as Dr. Torsten Berndt from TROPOS explains.
and one oxygen atom is one of the most common free radicals in the air and is referred therefore often as the detergent of the atmosphere.
The new findings help to explain a significant part of the organic mass of aerosol particles in the air which had remained mysterious to the scientists so far.
which had taken not sufficiently into account the growth of nanoparticles caused by these compounds produced in boreal regions.
#Pine forest particles appear seemingly out of thin air, influence climatepine forests are especially magical places for atmospheric chemists.
Coniferous trees give off pine-scented vapors that form particles very quickly and seemingly out of nowhere.
New research by German Finnish and U s. scientists elucidates the process by which gas wafting from coniferous trees creates particles that can reflect sunlight
and observe particles apparently form from thin air. They're not emitted from anything they just appear said Joel Thornton a University of Washington associate professor of atmospheric sciences and second author on the paper.
The study shows the chemistry behind these particles'formation and estimates they may be the dominant source of aerosols over boreal forests.
Scientists have known for decades that gases from pine trees can form particles that grow from just 1 nanometer in size to 100 nanometers in about a day.
These airborne solid or liquid particles can reflect sunlight and at 100 nanometers they are large enough to condense water vapor and prompt cloud formation.
and then simulated the same particle formation in an air chamber at Germany's JÃ lich Research Centre.
A new type of chemical mass spectrometry let researchers pick out 1 in a trillion molecules and follow their evolution.
Results showed that when a pine-scented molecule combines with ozone in the surrounding air some of the resulting free radicals grab oxygen with unprecedented speed.
The radical is so desperate to become a regular molecule again that it reacts with itself.
The new oxygen breaks off a hydrogen from a neighboring carbon to keep for itself
Current chemistry would predict that 3 to 5 oxygen molecules could be added per day during oxidation Thornton said.
But researchers observed the free radical adding 10 to 12 oxygen molecules in a single step.
This new bigger molecule wants to be in a solid or liquid state rather than gas
and condenses onto small particles of just 3 nanometers. Researchers found so many of these molecules are produced that they can clump together
and grow to a size big enough to influence climate. I think unravelling that chemistry is going to have some profound impacts on how we describe atmospheric chemistry generally Thornton said.
Boreal or pine forests give off the largest amount of these compounds so the finding is especially relevant for the northern parts of North america Europe and Russia.
and he believes the rapid oxidation may apply to a broad range of atmospheric compounds.
Forests are thought to emit exponentially more of these scented compounds as temperatures rise. Understanding how those vapors react could help to predict how forested regions will respond to global warming
and some fraction of them will be converted to particles which can potentially shade the Earth's surface Thornton said.
Timothy Durrett assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biophysics was part of the collaboration that used various plant
This is the first time a study has been published that supports the protective role of the bioactive compounds in strawberries in tackling recognised markers and risk factors for cardiovascular diseases.
which compounds of this fruit are behind their beneficial effects but all the signs and epidemiological studies point towards anthocyanins the vegetable pigments that afford them their red colour.
So we wanted to elucidate the molecular basis of that resistance in the population and design a field applicable diagnostic assay for its monitoring.'
X-ray crystallography of the protein coded by the gene illustrated exactly how the mutation conferred resistance by opening up the'active site'where DDT molecules bind to the protein so more can be broken down.
'For the first time we have been able to identify a molecular marker for metabolic resistance (the type of resistance most likely to lead to control failure) in a mosquito population
Like crystals these states greatly suppress variations in the density of particles--as in the individual granules of a substance--across large spatial distances
whose group studies the geometry and dynamics of densely packed objects such as particles. Torquato then worked with the paper's first author Yang Jiao who received his Ph d. in mechanical
We still know nothing about the cellular and molecular mechanisms that underlie this beautiful and highly organized arrangement in birds.
and this is the important compound in the production of the new acid. The scientists paired silicate particles with chlorosulfonic acid and this made the acid molecules attach themselves to the silicate compounds.
The result was an entirely new molecule--the acid RHSO3H --which can replace the enzymes in the work of breaking down cellulose to sugar explains Per Morgen.
He is particularly proud that all levels in this new way of producing bioethanol are environmentally friendly and accessible for all The catalyst acid is made â#rom readily available plant left overs
and therefore how much carbon they are keeping out of the atmosphere--that is as long as scientists know how to interpret the measurements of forest growth.
The forest wasn't storing that much more carbon; taller trees were growing a few meters to the side
or virus particle on the flowers that they visit and these may then infect wild bees.
The most surprising find was insight into the molecular basis for genes involved in maturation--a forever-young lifestyle said senior author Joachim Messing director of the Waksman Institute of Microbiology at Rutgers University.
Genes for another compound related to cell walls called expansins which are involved with cell wall and root growth were reduced also.
and assimilated by the plant to become part of DNA proteins and many other compounds. Uptake is controlled by a number of factors including availability demand
Frommer had developed previously technology to spy on transport protein activity by using fluorescent tags in a cell's DNA to monitor the structural rearrangements that a transporter undergoes as it moves its target molecule.
These coatings included significant amounts of soil organic carbon microbes and pathogens. After the coatings dried they were incorporated into the topsoil layer of the alluvial soils using tillage equipment. â#oebecause the flooding occurred during the non-growing season for corn
The next steps in realizing the potential of this research are to determine just how these antibodies recognize their target antigen molecules and bind to them.
New study narrows possibilities for gaining control of nanotube typea single-walled carbon nanotube grows from the round cap down so it's logical to think the cap's formation determines
A nanotube is an atom-thick sheet of carbon atoms arranged in hexagons and rolled into a tube.
A perfect conducting metallic nanotube would have arranged the atoms in armchairs so-called because cutting the nanotube in half would make the top look like a series of wells with atoms for armrests.
Turn the hexagons 30 degrees though will make a semiconducting zigzag nanotube. Nanotubes can be one
Warning against abrupt stop to geoengineering method (if started) As a range of climate change mitigation scenarios are discussed University of Washington researchers have found that the injection of sulfate particles into the atmosphere to reflect sunlight
#New pomegranate-inspired design solves problems for lithium-ion batteriesan electrode designed like a pomegranate--with silicon nanoparticles clustered like seeds in a tough carbon rind--overcomes several remaining
obstacles to using silicon for a new generation of lithium-ion batteries say its inventors at Stanford university and the Department of energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.
Silicon anodes could store 10 times more charge than the graphite anodes in today's rechargeable lithium-ion batteries
and encasing the nanoparticles in carbon yolk shells that give them room to swell and shrink during charging.
and coated each cluster with a second thicker layer of carbon. These carbon rinds hold the pomegranate clusters together
and provide a sturdy highway for electrical currents. And since each pomegranate cluster has just one-tenth the surface area of the individual particles inside it a much smaller area is exposed to the electrolyte thereby reducing the amount of gunk that forms to a manageable level.
Although the clusters are too small to see individually together they form a fine black powder that can be used to coat a piece of foil
#Carbon nanotube fibers outperform copper in carrying electrical currenton a pound-per-pound basis carbon nanotube-based fibers invented at Rice university have greater capacity to carry electrical current
But a series of tests at Rice showed the wet-spun carbon nanotube fiber still handily beat copper carrying up to four times as much current as a copper wire of the same mass.
Scanning electron microscope images show typical carbon nanotube fibers created at Rice university and broken into two by high-current-induced Joule heating.
Just a year ago the journal Science reported that Pasquali's lab in collaboration with scientists at the Dutch firm Teijin Aramid created a very strong conductive fiber out of carbon nanotubes.
Certain types of carbon nanotubes can carry far more electricity than copper. The ideal cable would be made of long metallic armchair nanotubes that would transmit current over great distances with negligible loss
and materials scientists working on carbon nanotubes. That has generated some confusion in the literature over the right comparisons to make he said.
The outcome is that these fibers have the highest CCC ever reported for any carbon-based fibers Kono said.
but we have the advantage that carbon fiber is light. So if you divide the CCC by the mass we win.
or manipulating the valence electrons in an atom's outermost orbital shell to strike the perfect conductive balance.
Most high-temperature superconductors contain atoms with only one orbital impacting performance--but what about mixing those elements with more complex configurations?
Now researchers at the U s. Department of energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have combined atoms with multiple orbitals
Using advanced electron diffraction techniques the scientists discovered that orbital fluctuations in iron-based compounds induce strongly coupled polarizations that can enhance electron pairing--the essential mechanism behind superconductivity.
Flowing electricity can have a similar effect on the atomic lattices of superconductors repelling the negatively charged valence electrons in the surrounding atoms.
For example each barium atom alone has 56 electrons but we're only concerned with the two in the outermost layer.
After an electron beam strikes the sample it bounces off the charged particles to reveal the configuration of the atomic lattice
The CBED data revealed that the arsenic atoms--placed above and below the iron in a sandwich-like shape (see image)--exhibited little shift or polarization of valence electrons.
However when the scientists transformed the compound into a superconductor by doping it with cobalt the electron distribution radically changed.
The quadrupole polarization of the iron which indicates the orbital fluctuation couples intimately with the arsenic dipole polarization--this mechanism may be key to the emergence of high-temperature superconductivity in these iron-based compounds.
and particles at the edge of our solar system that appears to be a directional roadmap in the sky of the local interstellar magnetic field.
Establishing a consistent local interstellar magnetic field direction using IBEX low-energy neutral atoms and galactic cosmic rays at ten orders of magnitude higher energy levels has wide-ranging implications for the structure of our heliosphere
#Madagascar sells first forest carbon credits to Microsoftthe Government of Madagascar has approved carbon sales with Microsoft
and its carbon offset partner The Carbonneutral Company and Zoo Zurich. The carbon credit sales will support the Government of Madagascar's REDD+Project (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation plus conservation) in the Makira Natural Park and mark the first sale
of government-owned REDD+credits in Africa. Through carbon credit sales from avoided deforestation the Makira REDD+Project will finance the long-term conservation of one of Madagascar's most pristine remaining rainforest ecosystems harboring rare and threatened plants and animals
while improving community land stewardship and supporting the livelihoods of the local people. Through a unique funding distribution mechanism designed by WCS
and the Government of Madagascar the funds from carbon sales will be used by the Government of Madagascar for conservation capacity building
The Government of Madagascar is thrilled to have played the role of pioneer in carbon sales in Africa.
and Zoo Zurich and join us in this effort to conserve Madagascar's unique biodiversity through the sale of future carbon credits said Pierre Manganirina Randrianarisoa the Secretary general of the Ministry of Environment and Forests.
and a first for Madagascar in advancing the use of carbon credits to fight climate change while protecting biodiversity and human livelihoods.
The Makira project enables clients to do this by selling carbon credits while also delivering biodiversity value and community support.
Last September the Government of Madagascar and WCS announced that 710588 carbon credits had been certified for sale from the Makira Forest REDD+Project.
REDD+is an international framework that assigns a financial value to the carbon stored in forests offering compensation to developing countries for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation while investing in low-carbon paths
REDD+additionally includes the role of conservation sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.
and verified by the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and has received a'Gold'level validation by the Climate Community and Biodiversity Alliance.
It certainly stacks up with the skeletal isotope evidence to provide a clear picture that seafood was of little importance in the diets of the Neolithic farmers of the region.
Returning to the pots the Bristol team used a compound-specific carbon isotope technique they have developed to identify the actual fats preserved in the cooking pots showing that dairy products dominated the menu right across Britain
Follow-up molecular work will provide us with more information but additional survey work will have to be undertaken to determine the actual population size within the sanctuary.
#Algae research gives hope for renewable carbon-negative source of food, medicinesthe University of Greenwich has won funding for three pieces of research related to algae.
Algae research gives hope for renewable carbon-negative source of food and medicinesbright pink-orange microalgae found in salt lakes
However it also produces a range of compounds of great interest in pharmaceutical cosmetic nutraceutical
The race is on to develop a broader spectrum of compounds from algae which can be turned into high-value products including food and medicines.
because it produces a wide range of compounds appropriate for the'biorefinery'concept which aims to use every element of a biomass.
We need to apply biotechnology to explore the production of a broader spectrum of compounds.
Roberts is also planning to study how the body's natural gut bacteria impact the digestion of berry-based compounds.
and store carbon from the atmosphere and thereby counteract climate change caused by human carbon emissions.
Jack Juvik a U of I crop sciences researcher explained that the combined application of two compounds both are extracted natural products from plants increased the presence of cancer-fighting agents in broccoli
and dramatically increase the abundance of those helpful anticancer compounds Meja also reduces the shelf life after harvest he said.
So the researchers tried using the recently developed compound 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) which has been shown to interfere with receptor proteins in the plant that are receptor-sensitive to ethylene.
They applied the compound after harvesting the same broccoli that had already been treated with Meja before harvest.
What this compound does is that it more competitively lands on the protein and binds to or pushes out ethylene Juvik explained.
Like Meja 1-MCP is also a nontoxic compound naturally produced in plants although Juvik said synthetic forms can be produced.
and 1-MCP treatments required very small amounts of the compounds. It's very cheap
He said the effects should be similar for a related compound 24-D. The general consensus is that the effects of the increased use of these herbicides are going to be said variable Egan.
This indicates the important role of external cues in shaping the molecular processes that regulate behavior.
Before now breeding for resistance to Yellow (Tan) Spot and Septoria Nodorum Blotch was very time-consuming--no molecular markers were in use.
Professor Oliver said this research had never been done before as direct mapping for disease resistance had led not to useful molecular markers.
Methanogens play a key role in carbon cycling. When plants die some of their biomass is trapped in areas that are devoid of oxygen such as the bottom of lakes.
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