Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Cesar A. Perez-Fernandez, Paul Wilburn, Alfonso Davila, Jocelyne DiRuggiero
Summary: This study investigated the adaptation mechanisms of extremophilic microbial communities in the Atacama Desert to extreme environmental conditions. The findings suggest that opportunistic salt-in strategists take over the halite communities at the driest sites, benefiting from newly released compounds by the death of microorganisms least adapted to the new conditions. These observations provide valuable information on microbial community adaptations and resilience to climate change.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Zhihao Zhang, Xutian Chai, Akash Tariq, Fanjiang Zeng, Xiangyi Li, Corina Graciano
Summary: The study found that plant species significantly affected microbial communities in monocultures, but not in intercropping systems. Intercropping induced a more complex rhizosphere microbial community and a more stable bulk soil microbial network. Keystone taxa were prevalent in intercropping systems, mainly Actinobacteria. Overall, planting patterns and soil compartments, rather than plant identities, played a key role in differentiating root-associated microbiomes. Intercropping can modify the co-occurrence patterns of bulk soil and rhizosphere microorganisms in desert ecosystems.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Jiaqiang Liu, Xiang Sun, Yiling Zuo, Qiannan Hu, Xueli He
Summary: This study investigated the diversity and community composition of phyllosphere epiphytic microorganisms on different desert plants in Gansu, China, using next-generation sequencing. The study revealed diverse epiphytic bacteria on the leaves of desert plants and their ecological functions. The findings contribute to our understanding of plant-associated microbial communities in the desert ecosystem and biodiversity assessment in the desert region.
MICROBIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Geology
Chihua Wu, Juan Pedro Rodriguez-Lopez
Summary: The winter supercooling of oasis waters in hyper-arid plateau deserts leads to the formation of ice floes, which undergo dynamic processes such as ice floe break up and transportation by strong desert winds. These cryospheric processes play a significant role in intraclast reworking, critical for understanding Mesozoic paleoclimates.
Article
Soil Science
Xiaolei Sun, Simon Matthias May, Wulf Amelung, Ni Tang, Dominik Brill, Franko Arenas-Diaz, Daniel Contreras, Barbara Fuentes, Roland Bol, Erwin Klumpp
Summary: This study investigates the formation and content of water-dispersible colloids (WDCs) in the Atacama Desert and finds that they are influenced by both topography and sediment age. The distribution of WDCs differs between younger and older fan sections, with younger sections having a higher concentration near shrubs and older sections exhibiting larger variations in WDC content. Overall, this research highlights the unique role of colloids as tracers of soil development processes.
Article
Microbiology
Fabiana Canini, Luigimaria Borruso, Kevin K. Newsham, Federica D'Alo, Luigi P. D'Acqui, Laura Zucconi
Summary: This study compared fungal communities in rocks and soils in inner Victoria Land, Antarctica, and found significant differences in diversity between the two substrates. Lichen-forming fungi dominated rocks, possibly due to the more protected environment and the ability for photosynthetic activity. In contrast, yeasts were dominant in soils, with their abundance correlated to edaphic factors. The study suggests that strong selection pressures in different habitats contribute to the divergence of fungal communities.
ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Geology
J. A. Kidder, M. I. Leybourne, D. Layton-Matthews
Summary: Epithermal deposits are economically important sources of precious and base metals found in many metallogenic belts globally. However, exploration efforts are hindered by post-mineral cover in prospective districts. Hydrogeochemistry, the study of water-rock interaction, shows promise as an exploration tool in these environments. A case study of the Vaquillas epithermal deposit in northern Chile demonstrates the potential of hydrogeochemistry to identify anomalies and provide valuable insights for exploration in areas with significant post-mineral cover.
INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGY REVIEW
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Christof Sager, Alessandro Airo, Kai Mangelsdorf, Felix L. Arens, Cornelia Karger, Dirk Schulze-Makuch
Summary: In the hyper-arid Atacama Desert, the microbial life in the Yungay region represents potential habitats in the fracture networks of salt-poor sand wedges outlining salt-cemented polygons. The habitability of the soil was assessed through the abundance of phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) and various soil characteristics. The results showed that the polygon subsurface exhibited increased habitability due to the soil's ability to retain water, while soil heterogeneities might affect the detection of microbial response in the sand wedge subsurface.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-BIOGEOSCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Hui Yin, Akash Tariq, Bo Zhang, Guanghui Lv, Fanjiang Zeng, Corina Graciano, Mauro Santos, Zhihao Zhang, Peng Wang, Shuyong Mu
Summary: The study found that leaf economics and hydraulic traits are coupled in plants in hyper-arid regions, with factors such as mean annual precipitation, soil salt, and soil nutrients influencing these traits. This coupling provides an economical and efficient strategy for plants to adapt to harsh environments.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Mary C. Barlow, Xinxiang Zhu, Craig L. Glennie
Summary: This paper utilizes a U-Net CNN to map stream boundaries in the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica, and explores the impact of topographic features on stream boundary detection. The results show that elevation and slope are the most effective feature combinations, and meandering streams outperform other geometries in terms of prediction performance.
Article
Plant Sciences
Bo Zhang, Gangliang Tang, Hui Yin, Shenglong Zhao, Muhammad Shareef, Bo Liu, Xiaopeng Gao, Fanjiang Zeng
Summary: Groundwater depth significantly affects the nutrient concentration and resorption of desert phreatophyte Alhagi sparsifolia, but not its utilization efficiency. This study provides new insights into the nutrient cycling strategy of phreatophytic plants in hyper-arid ecosystems under changing external environments.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Andre Vicente Liz, Dennis Roedder, Duarte Vasconcelos Goncalves, Guillermo Velo-Anton, Pedro Tarroso, Philippe Geniez, Pierre-Andre Crochet, Silvia B. Carvalho, Jose Carlos Brito
Summary: This study reveals a high and widespread diversity of lizards in the arid regions of the Sahara Desert, with their history linked to climate change. Northern Sahara acts as a unique hotspot for diversity, while the southern regions connect wide-ranging lineages from the Red Sea to the Atlantic coast. Terrain and land cover influence genetic diversity and geographic structure.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Christoph Rosinger, Johannes Rousk, Michael Bonkowski, Janet Rethemeyer, Andrea Jaeschke
Summary: Extreme environmental conditions in the Atacama Desert make it one of the most inhospitable habitats for life on Earth. This study investigated the physiological responses of soil microorganisms to a simulated precipitation event in these extreme soils. The results revealed that microbial growth did occur following rewetting, although at much lower rates compared to other soil systems. Carbon supplementation increased bacterial growth and respiration responses, indicating a carbon-limited microbial community. The study also found evidence of an active archaeal community in the hyper-arid soils upon rewetting.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Agronomy
Ahmed S. Abuzaid, Mohamed A. E. AbdelRahman, Mohamed E. Fadl, Antonio Scopa
Summary: Modeling land degradation vulnerability in newly-reclaimed desert oases using remote sensing data, GIS tools, and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) showed that chemical soil quality, physical soil quality, and vegetation quality were the main drivers of land degradation vulnerability in the studied area. The LDV map indicated that nearly 85% of the area was prone to moderate degradation risks.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Christof Sager, Alessandro Airo, Felix L. Arens, Dirk Schulze-Makuch
Summary: Polygonal networks in the Atacama Desert can be used as proxies to indicate saline soils and hyper-arid conditions.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Arvind Kumar Jaiswal, Brajesh Singh, Ashiv Mehta, Milan Lal
Summary: Potato is a major tuber crop that faces significant post-harvest losses every year due to its perishable nature. This study investigates post-harvest losses in potatoes during various stages, including farm operations, handling, packaging, storage, and at the wholesaler/retailer/household level. The findings suggest that weight/moisture loss during storage is the highest form of loss, and storing potatoes at 10-12 degrees C with sprout suppressant is preferable.
Editorial Material
Microbiology
Bruna D. Batista, Brajesh K. Singh
ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Eleonora Egidi, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Miguel Berdugo, Emilio Guirado, Davide Albanese, Brajesh K. Singh, Claudia Coleine
Summary: Increases in aridity negatively impact fungal community composition. The most important environmental factors driving community shifts are UV index, climate seasonality, and sand content. Increases in UV and temperature seasonality are associated with higher probability of plant pathogen and saprotroph occurrence, while these factors have a negative relationship with litter and soil saprotroph richness. These findings highlight the sensitivity of fungal groups in drylands to shifts in UV radiation and climate seasonality.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Raphael Eisenhofer, Kylie L. Brice, Michaela D. J. Blyton, Scott E. Bevins, Kellie Leigh, Brajesh K. Singh, Kristofer M. Helgen, Ian Hough, Christopher B. Daniels, Natasha Speight, Ben D. Moore
Summary: Gut microbiota composition in koalas is relatively stable over days to months, but shows more variation in wild populations. This research is valuable for comparing different koala populations and developing interventions for this endangered species.
Review
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Ayesha Ahmed, Pengfei He, Yueqiu He, Brajesh K. Singh, Yixin Wu, Shahzad Munir, Pengbo He
Summary: Endophytic microbes play a crucial role in plant fitness and stress resilience, and can provide effective solutions for sustainable increase in agriculture productivity. Shifting agriculture practices towards nature-based solutions can contribute to global food security and environmental sustainability.
CRITICAL REVIEWS IN BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Paula Lopezosa, Miguel Berdugo, Jimmy Morales-Marquez, Estrella Pastor, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Andreu Bonet, Juntao Wang, Brajesh K. Singh, Santiago Soliveres
Summary: Soil biota plays crucial roles in nutrient cycling and climate regulation, and contributes significantly to global biodiversity. However, little is known about how soil biota responds to habitat fragmentation and degradation. In this study, we investigated the response of different soil trophic groups to changes in habitat derived from forest management and tree die-off in a Mediterranean ecosystem.
JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Zoology
Hongwei Liu, Mark A. Hall, Laura E. Brettell, Juntao Wang, Megan Halcroft, Scott Nacko, Robert Spooner-Hart, James M. Cook, Markus Riegler, Brajesh K. Singh
Summary: We investigated the gut microbiomes of two species of stingless bees in eastern Australia and explored potential correlations with geographical and morphological factors. Our findings reveal the core microbiomes of these bees and the influence of body size, species identity, and management approach on gut microbial diversity and composition. We also observed a decrease in similarity between bee colonies as geographic distance increased. Interestingly, the abundance of bacteria was higher than that of fungi in the bee guts.
JOURNAL OF INVERTEBRATE PATHOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Microbiology
Brajesh K. Singh, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Eleonora Egidi, Emilio Guirado, Jan E. Leach, Hongwei Liu, Pankaj Trivedi
Summary: This review explores the impact of future climate scenarios on plant pathogen burden and biogeography, as well as their interaction with the plant microbiome and the consequences on plant disease and productivity. Climate change increases the risk of disease outbreaks by altering pathogen evolution and host-pathogen interactions, and facilitating the emergence of new pathogenic strains. The spread of plant diseases can also be increased as pathogen range shifts to new areas.
NATURE REVIEWS MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Agronomy
Hongwei Liu, Juntao Wang, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Haiyang Zhang, Jiayu Li, Brajesh K. Singh
Summary: This study provides evidence that soil-borne pathogens disrupt plant microbiomes and affect the plant's immune response to pathogens.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Jinsong Liang, Huan Lin, Brajesh Singh, Aijie Wang, Zhenzhen Yan
Summary: This study investigates antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in biofilters of drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) and finds that the source water types significantly influence the ARGs abundance. Although the ARGs abundance is higher in surface water biofilters compared to groundwater biofilters, the risk pattern of ARGs is similar in both. Additionally, two antibiotics biosynthesis pathways are found to be positively correlated with several ARG types, indicating their potential roles in the ecological genesis of ARGs.
Article
Microbiology
Brajesh K. Singh, Zhen-Zhen Yan, Maxine Whittaker, Ronald Vargas, Ahmed Abdelfattah
Summary: An integrated science-policy-society interface is required to address One Health goals, with explicit considerations of soil microbiomes.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Shengen Liu, Cesar Plaza, Raul Ochoa-Hueso, Chanda Trivedi, Juntao Wang, Pankaj Trivedi, Guiyao Zhou, Juan Pineiro, Catarina S. C. Martins, Brajesh K. K. Singh, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo
Summary: This study manipulated leaf litter and soil microbial diversity to investigate their independent and interactive effects on plant productivity, litter decomposition, soil respiration, and enzymatic activity. It found that both leaf litter diversity and soil microbial diversity contributed to multiple ecosystem functions, with fungal saprobes community composition being particularly important.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Poonam Kumari, Nikky Deepa, Prabodh Kumar Trivedi, Brajesh K. Singh, Vaibhav Srivastava, Akanksha Singh
Summary: Many plants have bioactive secondary metabolites that are important in the pharmaceutical industry. To meet industry demands and conserve natural habitats, medicinal plants are being cultivated on a large scale. However, the use of agrochemicals for higher yield and pest management has negative impacts on the ecosystem, including biodiversity loss and health hazards. Endophytic microorganisms have potential as eco-friendly alternatives, and their interactions with plants can lead to the synthesis of pharmaceutically important compounds. This review explores the relationship between plants and endophytes, highlighting their multifaceted interactions and proposing the manipulation of the microbiome for a more sustainable and pharmaceutically enriched future.
MICROBIAL CELL FACTORIES
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tao Wen, Penghao Xie, Hongwei Liu, Ting Liu, Mengli Zhao, Shengdie Yang, Guoqing Niu, Lauren Hale, Brajesh K. Singh, George A. Kowalchuk, Qirong Shen, Jun Yuan
Summary: Prebiotics are compounds that selectively stimulate beneficial microorganisms and can be used to manage human gut health. In this study, the authors identify metabolites from the rhizosphere soil that can be used as prebiotics to protect tomato and other Solanaceae crops from pathogen invasion. The application of these prebiotics also enriches the rhizosphere soil microbiome and enhances pathways related to carbon metabolism and autotoxin degradation.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Jiayu Li, Juntao Wang, Hongwei Liu, Catriona A. Macdonald, Brajesh K. Singh
Summary: Microbial inoculants have gained attention as an eco-friendly solution for improving agriculture productivity worldwide. However, the inconsistent impacts of these inoculants can be attributed to limited knowledge of their mechanisms on crop growth and their ecological characteristics. Evaluating the ability of inoculants to colonize new habitats is believed to be an important step in enhancing their consistency and efficiency. In this study, the impact of three microbial inoculants on wheat growth under drought conditions was investigated, and colonization by Bacillus paralicheniformis and Bacillus subtilis was found to be crucial for promoting crop growth.
MICROBIAL BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
