Microbial Community Structure and Litter Decomposition in Stratified Soils of a Long Term Reduced Tillage Experiment

The aim of the present study was to examine decomposition of plant material (maize straw, green and rooibos tea) in stratified soils of the long-term tillage experiment, established in 1999 and shifted from conventional to organic farming system in 2015. The plowing in conventional tillage (CT) has been done by moldboard plow 20 cm deep, while in minimum tillage (MT), soil disturbance has been up to 10 cm deep by a Special disc harrow. More than 15 years of long term Minimum tillage, with reduced soil disturbances and improved residue management, resulted in stratification of soil organic carbon and nutrients with highest concentrations in the very topsoil

Resilience of bacteria, archaea, fungi and N-cycling microbial guilds under plough and conservation tillage, to agricultural drought

Climate change causes droughts, which in turn cause significant physiological stress for soil microorganisms. In this study, we investigated how the abundance of total bacterial, crenarchaeal and fungal communities and the abundance of N-cycling microbial guilds responded to a severe agricultural drought event in a long-term experiment of minimum tillage (MT) and conventional ploughing (CT) at two soil depths. This study was financially supported by the European Commission within the EcoFINDERS project (FP7-264465), CORE Organic Plus funding bodies within the FertilCrop project, and by the Slovenian Research Agency within the programme P4-0085

Consequences of minimum soil tillage on abiotic soil properties and composition of microbial communities in a shallow Cambisol originated from fluvioglacial deposits.

A long-term field experiment was run for 12 years to evaluate the impact of minimum tillage (MT) compared to conventional mouldboard ploughing (CT) on soil chemical, physical and microbial properties in a shallow Cambisol formed over fluvioglacial deposits of Drava river in Slovenia. Significant differences between MT and CT were found in vertical distribution of soil organic C (SOC) and nutrients (total N and plant available potassium); under MT, concentrations decreased from the soil surface to the lower layers, as opposed to CT which maintained rather uniform distribution down to the ploughing depth. MT in comparison with CT also increased the proportion of water-stable 2–4-mm-sized aggregates (80.9 and 61.3 %, respectively), water holding capacity (24.8 and 22.2 %, respectively) and plant available water (13.4 and 10.3 %, respectively) in the upper 0–10-cm soil layer. Bulk density, porosity, the proportion of water-stable 1–2-mm-sized aggregates and infiltration rate showed no significant differences between the tillage treatments. SOC content in the upper 0–10-cm soil layer was not significantly different between MT and CT (1.60 ± 0.07 and 1.45 ± 0.05 %, respectively), as well as the overall stock in the investigated soil profile (0–60 cm) remained unaffected (57.4 ± 0.8 and 59.1 ± 2.2 t ha−1, respectively). Microbial biomass, estimated by the total soil DNA, was higher in MT than CT in the 0–10-cm layer. Furthermore, a positive linear dependence of microbial biomass on SOC content was observed. Fingerprinting of bacterial, fungal and archaeal communities indicated that microbial community composition changed by long-term MT, whereas changes in microbial diversity were not detected for any domain. The most pronounced shifts in the composition were found for bacterial communities in the 10–20-cm layer, while the composition of fungal communities slightly changed in the upper 0–10 cm of MT soil. The composition of archaeal communities was not affected by the tillage or by the soil depth. Our results indicate that MT generates modest changes in soil structure and soil water retention properties and could support measures against erosion, drought and nutrient leaching. Considering increased microbial biomass in the topsoil of MT and shifts in microbial diversity, the impacts of MT on soil microbiome are also evident and need to be further investigated to identify the affected functional traits

Proteomic analyses of early response of unicellular eukaryotic microorganism Tetrahymena thermophila exposed to TiO2 particles.

Key biological functions involved in cell survival have been studied to understand the difference between the impact of exposure to TiO2 nanoparticles (TiO2-NPs) and their bulk counterparts (bulk-TiO2). By selecting a unicellular eukaryotic model organism and applying proteomic analysis an overview of the possible impact of exposure could be obtained. In this study, we investigated the early response of unicellular eukaryotic protozoan Tetrahymena thermophila exposed to TiO2-NPs or bulk-TiO2 particles at subtoxic concentrations for this organism. The proteomic analysis based on 2DE + nLC-ESI-MS/MS revealed 930 distinct protein spots, among which 77 were differentially expressed and 18 were unambiguously identified. We identified alterations in metabolic pathways, including lipid and fatty acid metabolism, purine metabolism and energetic metabolism, as well as salt stress and protein degradation. This proteomic study is consistent with our previous findings, where the early response of T. thermophila to subtoxic concentrations of TiO2 particles included alterations in lipid and fatty acid metabolism and ion regulation. The response to the lowest TiO2-NPs concentration differed significantly from the response to higher TiO2-NPs concentration and both bulk-TiO2concentrations. Alterations on the physiological landscape were significant after exposure to both nano- and bulk-TiO2; however, no toxic effects were evidenced even at very high exposure concentrations. This study confirms the relevance of the alteration of the lipid profile and lipid metabolism in understanding the early impact of TiO2-NPs in eukaryotic cells, for example, phagocytosing cells like macrophages and ciliated cells in the respiratory epithelium.Funding agencies: Swedish Research Council-Natural Science; Carl Trygger Foundation; VINNOVA-Vinnmer program; Oscar Lilli Lamms Minne Foundation; Langmanska kulturfonden; Lars Hiertas Minne foundation; IKERBASQUE; Basque Foundation for science; Angpanneforening Research fo</p

Proteomic analyses of early response of unicellular eukaryotic microorganism <i>Tetrahymena thermophila</i> exposed to TiO₂ particles

<p>Key biological functions involved in cell survival have been studied to understand the difference between the impact of exposure to TiO₂ nanoparticles (TiO₂-NPs) and their bulk counterparts (bulk-TiO₂). By selecting a unicellular eukaryotic model organism and applying proteomic analysis an overview of the possible impact of exposure could be obtained. In this study, we investigated the early response of unicellular eukaryotic protozoan <i>Tetrahymena thermophila</i> exposed to TiO₂-NPs or bulk-TiO₂ particles at subtoxic concentrations for this organism. The proteomic analysis based on 2DE + nLC-ESI-MS/MS revealed 930 distinct protein spots, among which 77 were differentially expressed and 18 were unambiguously identified. We identified alterations in metabolic pathways, including lipid and fatty acid metabolism, purine metabolism and energetic metabolism, as well as salt stress and protein degradation. This proteomic study is consistent with our previous findings, where the early response of <i>T. thermophila</i> to subtoxic concentrations of TiO₂ particles included alterations in lipid and fatty acid metabolism and ion regulation. The response to the lowest TiO₂-NPs concentration differed significantly from the response to higher TiO₂-NPs concentration and both bulk-TiO₂ concentrations. Alterations on the physiological landscape were significant after exposure to both nano- and bulk-TiO₂; however, no toxic effects were evidenced even at very high exposure concentrations. This study confirms the relevance of the alteration of the lipid profile and lipid metabolism in understanding the early impact of TiO₂-NPs in eukaryotic cells, for example, phagocytosing cells like macrophages and ciliated cells in the respiratory epithelium.</p

The Effect of Price on Surgeons’ Choice of Implants: A Randomized Controlled Survey

Purpose Surgical costs are under scrutiny and surgeons are being held increasingly responsible for cost containment. In some instances, implants are the largest component of total procedure cost, yet previous studies reveal that surgeons’ knowledge of implant prices is poor. Our study aims to (1) understand drivers behind implant selection and (2) assess whether educating surgeons about implant costs affects implant selection. Methods We surveyed 226 orthopedic surgeons across 6 continents. The survey presented 8 clinical cases of upper extremity fractures with history, radiographs, and implant options. Surgeons were randomized to receive either a version with each implant's average selling price (“price-aware” group), or a version without prices (“price-naïve” group). Surgeons selected a surgical implant and ranked factors affecting implant choice. Descriptive statistics and univariate, multivariable, and subgroup analyses were performed. Results For cases offering implants within the same class (eg, volar locking plates), price-awareness reduced implant cost by 9% to 11%. When offered different models of distal radius volar locking plates, 25% of price-naïve surgeons selected the most expensive plate compared with only 7% of price-aware surgeons. For cases offering different classes of implants (eg, plate vs external fixator), there was no difference in implant choice between price-aware and price-naïve surgeons. Familiarity with the implant was the most common reason for choosing an implant in both groups (35% vs 46%). Price-aware surgeons were more likely to rank cost as a factor (29% vs 21%). Conclusions Price awareness significantly influences surgeons’ choice of a specific model within the same implant class. Merely including prices with a list of implants leads surgeons to select less expensive implants. This implies that an untapped opportunity exists to reduce surgical expenditures simply by enhancing surgeons’ cost awareness. Type of study/level of evidence Economic/Decision Analyses I