Article
Plant Sciences
Sara Torre, Federico Sebastiani, Guia Burbui, Francesco Pecori, Alessia L. Pepori, Iacopo Passeri, Luisa Ghelardini, Alberto Selvaggi, Alberto Santini
Summary: Riparian ecosystems, particularly the distribution of tree riparian species, are heavily impacted by human activities. This study on the phylogeography of the southern distribution of Ulmus laevis highlights the significant role of genetic diversity in Serbian population and the low genetic differentiation between populations.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Theresa L. Cole, Chengran Zhou, Miaoquan Fang, Hailin Pan, Daniel T. Ksepka, Steven R. Fiddaman, Christopher A. Emerling, Daniel B. Thomas, Xupeng Bi, Qi Fang, Martin R. Ellegaard, Shaohong Feng, Adrian L. Smith, Tracy A. Heath, Alan J. D. Tennyson, Pablo Garcia Borboroglu, Jamie R. Wood, Peter W. Hadden, Stefanie Grosser, Charles-Andre Bost, Yves Cherel, Thomas Mattern, Tom Hart, Mikkel-Holger S. Sinding, Lara D. Shepherd, Richard A. Phillips, Petra Quillfeldt, Juan F. Masello, Juan L. Bouzat, Peter G. Ryan, David R. Thompson, Ursula Ellenberg, Peter Dann, Gary Miller, P. Dee Boersma, Ruoping Zhao, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Huanming Yang, De-Xing Zhang, Guojie Zhang
Summary: This study investigates the pace and drivers of penguin diversification by analyzing genomes from all existing and recently extinct penguin lineages, combined with data from fossil penguins, as well as morphological and biogeographic data from all existing and extinct species. The findings offer new insights into the genetic basis and evolution of adaptations in penguins.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yuan Yuan, Yaolei Zhang, Peijun Zhang, Chang Liu, Jiahao Wang, Haiyu Gao, A. Rus Hoelzel, Inge Seim, Meiqi Lv, Mingli Lin, Lijun Dong, Haoyang Gao, Zixin Yang, Francesco Caruso, Wenzhi Lin, Rute R. da Fonseca, Ding Wang, Xianyan Wang, Marianne H. Rasmussen, Mingming Liu, Jinsong Zheng, Liyuan Zhao, Paula F. Campos, Hui Kang, Maria Iversen, Yue Song, Xinyu Guo, Jiao Guo, Yating Qin, Shanshan Pan, Qiwu Xu, Lingfeng Meng, A. Yunga, Shanshan Liu, Simon Ming-Yuen Lee, Xin Liu, Xun Xu, Huanming Yang, Guangyi Fan, Kun Wang, Songhai Li
Summary: The study generated high-quality genome assemblies of 17 marine mammals, revealing unique and convergent genomic variations associated with the transition to aquatic life in marine mammal lineages. The research advances understanding of the timing, pattern, and molecular changes associated with the evolution of mammalian lineages adapting to aquatic life.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Natasha L. Bell, Steven N. Jeffers, Daniel R. Hitchcock, Sarah A. White
Summary: This study found that certain aquatic plant species can be infected by specific Phytophthora species in aqueous growing solutions, potentially serving as sources of inoculum in nurseries. In experiments conducted from 2016 to 2018, roots of some aquatic plants were infected with multiple Phytophthora species in water, highlighting the potential role of these plants as sources of disease in ornamental plant production.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Yi Yang, Nan Zhang, Qi You, Xin Chen, Yinqing Zhang, Lingyan Zhu
Summary: Due to the increasing applications, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are released into the environment and undergo various transformations. The presence of chloride ion (Cl-) in aquatic environments and its strong affinity for silver play a significant role in these transformations. The concentration of Cl- affects the multistep chlorination of AgNPs, with dissolution accelerated at a Cl/Ag ratio of 1, and the intensive etching effect of Cl- leading to significant morphology changes. The overall transformation rate increases when the Cl/Ag ratio reaches 10,000, due to complexation of Cl- with AgCl(s) to form soluble AgClx(x-1)-species.
Article
Horticulture
Qiqi Zhang, Cui Wang, Jun He, Yuanchao Xu, Hongbo Li, Tianshu Sun, Sen Chai, Hongjia Xin, Kuipeng Xu, Shan Mou, Zhonghua Zhang
Summary: The study identified 241 GRAS family genes in six cucurbit crops, with pumpkin having the highest number possibly due to recent whole-genome duplication. The researchers classified cucurbit GRAS genes into 16 subfamilies and found species-specific motifs and specific-expression patterns in certain subfamilies. They also predicted the role of GRAS genes in regulating hypocotyl elongation in weak or dark light conditions. These findings contribute to our understanding of GRAS genes in cucurbit crops and provide valuable resources for genetic research and agronomic improvement in the Cucurbitaceae family.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ruiqiu Zhang, Huizhu Guo, Yuqing Hua, Xueyan Cui, Yinping Shi, Xiao Li
Summary: This study collected acute toxicity data for three representative aquatic species, developed artificial intelligence models based on the data, and achieved good performance on external validation sets. The study also identified structural alerts for aquatic toxicity, providing useful information for understanding the mechanisms of chemical aquatic toxicity.
ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Xiuxiu Zhu, Chenguang Zheng, Xue Dong, Haiguang Zhang, Zhen Ye, Huaijun Xue, Wenjun Bu
Summary: This study clarified the species boundary between M. cribraria and its closely related species and revealed the phylogeographical pattern and evolutionary history of M. cribraria. The results have important implications for the monitoring and management of this agricultural pest.
PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Biology
Lin Yang, Jinhong Tian, Liu Xu, Xueli Zhao, Yuyang Song, Dawei Wang
Summary: This study sequenced six new chloroplast genomes of the endangered Magnoliaceae family and analyzed the phylogenetic relationships of 37 published chloroplast genomes in the family. The findings showed the typical quadripartite structure of chloroplast genomes in Magnoliaceae and provided insights into the intergeneric relationships of the family. These findings will contribute to adjusting the phylogenetic position of Magnoliaceae at the molecular level.
Review
Environmental Sciences
N. D. Baloyi, M. Tekere, K. W. Maphangwa, V Masindi
Summary: Phthalate esters (PEs) are widely used synthetic organic chemicals known for their environmental pollution and devastating effects on living organisms and humans. They enter water systems through direct or indirect pathways, with advancements in instrumentation and methodologies improving the ability to measure trace levels of PEs in aquatic ecosystems.
FRONTIERS IN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Flavia Rogerio, Riccardo Baroncelli, Francisco Borja Cuevas-Fernandez, Sioly Becerra, JoAnne Crouch, Wagner Bettiol, M. Andrea Azcarate-Peril, Martha Malapi-Wight, Veronique Ortega, Javier Betran, Albert Tenuta, Jose S. Dambolena, Paul D. Esker, Pedro Revilla, Tamra A. Jackson-Ziems, Juerg Hiltbrunner, Gary Munkvold, Ivica Buhinicek, Jose L. Vicente-Villardon, Serenella A. Sukno, Michael R. Thon
Summary: Understanding the genetic diversity and reproductive biology of plant pathogens is crucial for controlling diseases. We studied the genetic diversity and reproductive biology of the maize anthracnose pathogen, Colletotrichum graminicola, in 14 countries. Our results show that the pathogen populations are correlated with geographical origin and migration between countries is ongoing. We also found evidence of genetic recombination, which has important implications for disease management and breeding programs.
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Evelyn Hodgson, Nicola J. Rooney, Jo Hockenhull
Summary: Horseback safari rides are popular in Africa, but encounters between horses and wildlife may cause stress. This study observed the behavior of horses and wildlife during close encounters on horseback safaris and found that different wildlife species had different reactions towards horses. Horses were more wary of giraffe. Further studies, including physiological measurements of stress, are recommended.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Vanika Garg, Olga Dudchenko, Jinpeng Wang, Aamir W. Khan, Saurabh Gupta, Parwinder Kaur, Kai Han, Rachit K. Saxena, Sandip M. Kale, Melanie Pham, Jigao Yu, Annapurna Chitikineni, Zhikang Zhang, Guangyi Fan, Christopher Lui, Vinodkumar Valluri, Fanbo Meng, Aditi Bhandari, Xiaochuan Liu, Tao Yang, Hua Chen, Babu Valliyodan, Manish Roorkiwal, Chengcheng Shi, Hong Bin Yang, Neva C. Durand, Manish K. Pandey, Guowei Li, Rutwik Barmukh, Xingjun Wang, Xiaoping Chen, Hon-Ming Lam, Huifang Jiang, Xuxiao Zong, Xuanqiang Liang, Xin Liu, Boshou Liao, Baozhu Guo, Scott Jackson, Henry T. Nguyen, Weijian Zhuang, Wan Shubo, Xiyin Wang, Erez Lieberman Aiden, Jeffrey L. Bennetzen, Rajeev K. Varshney
Summary: This study developed chromosome-length genome assemblies of six legume species and demonstrated their utility in crop improvement. The improved genome assemblies provided insights into the evolutionary events of legume species and contributed to enhanced genetic improvement applications.
JOURNAL OF ADVANCED RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Felix Heeger, Elizabeth C. Bourne, Christian Wurzbacher, Elisabeth Funke, Anna Lipzen, Guifen He, Vivian Ng, Igor Grigoriev, Dietmar Schlosser, Michael T. Monaghan
Summary: Fungi play a significant role in the decomposition of lignocellulose in ecosystems. The study focused on a specifically aquatic ascomycete, Clavariopsis aquatica, and found that it has the ability to modify lignin and use the carbohydrate components of lignocellulose as carbon and energy sources. The research sheds light on the lignocellulose degradation capabilities of aquatic fungi.
Article
Plant Sciences
Witoon Purahong, Shakhawat Hossen, Ali Nawaz, Dolaya Sadubsarn, Benjawan Tanunchai, Sven Dommert, Matthias Noll, La-aw Ampornpan, Petcharat Werukamkul, Tesfaye Wubet
Summary: The microbial communities of the aquatic plant Hanseniella heterophylla are diverse and include beneficial microbes. There are distinct differences in the microbial compositions between highly disturbed and low disturbed areas, with potentially harmful microbes present in highly disturbed areas that may pose a threat to human health.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Francisco Carvalho, Claudia Pascoal, Fernanda Cassio, Amilcar Teixeira, Ronaldo Sousa
Summary: Invasive signal crayfish have negative impacts on taxonomic and functional biodiversity in freshwater ecosystems. Their presence leads to a decrease in invertebrate abundance, richness, and diversity, as well as changes in community structure. Additionally, crayfish presence increases leaf litter breakdown, but this effect decreases at sites with higher crayfish abundance.
FRESHWATER BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Encarnacion Fenoy, Arunava Pradhan, Claudia Pascoal, Juan Rubio-Rios, Daniela Batista, Francisco J. Moyano-Lopez, Fernanda Cassio, J. Jesus Casas
Summary: Evidence suggests a strong connection between biodiversity and ecosystem functions in aquatic fungal communities, which can be influenced by environmental variables and leaf-litter traits. Functional redundancy among fungi may counteract the effects of biodiversity changes on ecosystem functioning. Temperature and nutrients impact taxonomic and functional diversity of aquatic fungi in leaf-litter decomposition processes.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Diana Graca, Isabel Fernandes, Fernanda Cassio, Claudia Pascoal
Summary: This study finds that stressors related to global change affect the growth of aquatic hyphomycetes, and the response to nutrient enrichment and moisture varies among different strains. Intraspecific diversity becomes more important in response to increasing stress gradient.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Francisco Carvalho, Ronaldo Sousa, Fernanda Cassio, Claudia Pascoal
Summary: Climate change is expected to affect the impacts of invasive alien species. Under increased temperatures, competitive interactions may occur between invasive crayfish species, leading to different effects on leaf-litter breakdown and fine particulate organic matter production.
BIOLOGICAL INVASIONS
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Daniela Batista, Arunava Pradhan, Claudia Pascoal, Fernanda Cassio
Summary: This study assessed the impacts of different sizes of plastic on decomposers in freshwater ecosystems, finding that plastics have both direct and indirect effects on microbial decomposers and higher trophic levels. The properties of plastic appear to influence its toxicity to organisms.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Biology
Sergi Sabater, Anna Freixa, Laura Jimenez, Julio Lopez-Doval, Giorgio Pace, Claudia Pascoal, Nuria Perujo, Dylan Craven, Juan David Gonzalez-Trujillo
Summary: Both gradual and extreme weather changes have complex ecological responses in river ecosystems, but the effects of trend or event changes on biodiversity and functioning are still unclear. A comprehensive analysis of 71 published studies showed that extreme changes in water flow and temperature significantly reduce species richness, while gradual changes have no such effect. Event effects, particularly those affecting hydrological dynamics, have twice the impact on biodiversity and primary productivity compared to gradual changes. Dryness associated with flow interruption has the largest impact on river biota and ecosystem functions among extreme weather events.
BIOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Review
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Sahadevan Seena, Christiane Baschien, Juliana Barros, Kandikere R. Sridhar, Manuel A. S. Graca, Heikki Mykra, Mirco Bundschuh
Summary: This article introduces the ecosystem services provided by aquatic hyphomycetes, categorizing them into regulating services, supporting services, provisioning services, and cultural services. The importance of increasing awareness and valuation of these services is emphasized, along with the need to map, quantify, and acknowledge the critical services offered by these fungi globally.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Sofia Duarte, Pedro E. Vieira, Barbara R. Leite, Marcos A. L. Teixeira, Joao M. Neto, Filipe O. Costa
Summary: This study demonstrated the potential of DNA metabarcoding in improving macrozoobenthos monitoring in transitional ecosystems. The results showed that metabarcoding detected a higher number of species and phyla compared to the morphology-based approach. It also increased the efficiency and quality of assessments, allowing for faster and more robust identifications of all specimens in a sample.
ESTUARINE COASTAL AND SHELF SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Rebeca Arias-Real, Margarita Menendez, Isabel Munoz, Claudia Pascoal
Summary: Fungi in intermittent rivers and ephemeral streams have different strategies and adaptations to cope with drying, but these adaptations may have trade-offs that affect ecosystem functioning. This study found that drying duration and frequency were the most influential variables in determining fungal species differentiation. The research also identified four drying niche-based groups with different responses to drying. Furthermore, the study showed that species in the drying specialist group had a weak contribution to ecosystem processes, indicating trade-offs between drying resistance and growth energy.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Jose Pedro Ramiao, Claudia Carvalho-Santos, Rute Pinto, Claudia Pascoal
Summary: Climate change is expected to significantly reduce hydropower generation by decreasing reservoir flow-in. This study assessed the impact of climate change on a Portuguese river basin and found that the short-term reservoir flow-in may decrease by 55% and the long-term by 90%. The findings are important for policymakers and water managers in anticipating the impact of climate change on hydropower generation and planning for a renewable energy transition.
WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Ana S. Lavrador, Joao T. Fontes, Pedro E. Vieira, Filipe O. Costa, Sofia Duarte
Summary: The introduction of non-indigenous species is a major threat to European coastal ecosystems. DNA-based assessments are increasingly used for monitoring these species, but their accuracy depends on the reliability of DNA barcode reference libraries. This study aimed to compile and audit a DNA barcode reference library for marine invertebrate non-indigenous species in Europe.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Juliana Barros, Santosh Kumar, Sahadevan Seena
Summary: Co-contamination of freshwaters by nanoplastics and metals affects the cellular and physiological activities of aquatic fungi. Functionalised nanoplastics enhance metal adsorption, leading to reactive oxygen species accumulation and plasma membrane disruption. The impact of metals on fungal growth depends on their co-existence with nanoplastics.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
J. Lourenco, C. Gutierrez-Canovas, F. Carvalho, F. Cassio, C. Pascoal, G. Pace
Summary: Freshwaters are extremely vulnerable due to various stressors caused by human activities and environmental changes. A comprehensive study was conducted in North Portugal, analyzing the effects of multiple stressors on macroinvertebrates. The study found that nutrient enrichment, dissolved oxygen depletion, and thermal stress were the most significant stressors, affecting both taxonomic and functional diversity.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
H. Salazar, P. M. Martins, Daniela Batista, K. P. Shejale, R. K. Sharma, R. Krishnapriya, S. Ferdov, G. Botelho, A. Fidalgo-Marijuan, Fernanda Cassio, S. Lanceros-Mendez
Summary: The application of nanomaterials in removing arsenic from water is one of the most promising remediation methods. This study evaluates the adsorption capacity of three active materials with different properties and confirms their suitability for arsenic water remediation applications.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE-WATER RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
