New findings show that a micro RNA from the shoot keeps legume roots susceptible to symbiotic infection by downregulating a gene that would otherwise hinder root responses to symbiotic bacteria. These findings help us understand what it takes to make nitrogen-fixing symbiosis efficient, and what we need to do to exploit it agronomically.
articles
In the Heart of the Corn Belt, an Uphill Battle for Clean Water
"Health trumps politics,” said Iowa State Senator David Johnson before taking the stage at a raucous rally in Des Moines last winter to support strengthening the state’s water quality. In the marble rotunda of the state capitol, he rose to denounce the nitrogen and phosphates that have been flowing in ever-increasing quantities into Iowa’s public water supplies — and was cheered by the small crowd of family farmers, concerned mothers, and his new political allies, the legislature’s drastically outnumbered Democrats. Johnson had been one of the longest-serving Republicans in Iowa until he left the party to become an independent in 2016 after defying it repeatedly on one of the most divisive issues in Iowa — the integrity of the state’s water.
Amazon Mangrove Forest Stores Twice as Much Carbon Per Acre as Region’s Famous Rainforest
Scientists have determined for the first time that Amazon’s waterlogged coastal mangrove forests, which are being clear cut for cattle pastures and shrimp ponds, store significantly more carbon per acre than the region’s famous rainforest.
Study Finds First Evidence of Climate Change Impacts on East Antarctic Vegetation
Mosses reveal a colder, windier and drier climate.
As Climate Changes, Plants Might Not Suck Carbon From the Air Fast Enough
Current climate change models might be overestimating how much carbon dioxide plants can suck from the atmosphere.
Urbanization is Cutting Off Life Support to NYC’s Wetlands
Researchers find that urbanization is weakening the New York City shoreline.