Influence of Arbuscular Mycorrhizae on Biomass Production and Nitrogen Fixation of Berseem Clover Plants Subjected to Water Stress.

Several studies, performed mainly in pots, have shown that arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis can mitigate the negative effects of water stress on plant growth. No information is available about the effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis on berseem clover growth and nitrogen (N) fixation under conditions of water shortage. A field experiment was conducted in a hilly area of inner Sicily, Italy, to determine whether symbiosis with AM fungi can mitigate the detrimental effects of drought stress (which in the Mediterranean often occurs during the late period of the growing season) on forage yield and symbiotic N2 fixation of berseem clover. Soil was either left under water stress (i.e., rain-fed conditions) or the crop was well-watered. Mycorrhization treatments consisted of inoculation of berseem clover seeds with arbuscular mycorrhizal spores or suppression of arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis by means of fungicide treatments. Nitrogen biological fixation was assessed using the 15N-isotope dilution technique. Arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis was able to mitigate the negative effect of water stress on berseem clover grown in a typical semiarid Mediterranean environment. In fact, under water stress conditions, arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis resulted in increases in total biomass, N content, and N fixation, whereas no effect of crop mycorrhization was observed in the well-watered treatment

Synthesis and Structures of Two Triorganotin(IV) Polymers R3Sn{O2CC6H4[N=C(H)}{C(CH3)CH(CH3)-3-OH]-p}n (R = Me and Ph) Containing a 4-[(2Z)-(3-Hydroxy-1-methyl-2-butenylidene)amino] benzoic Acid Framework

Two new polymeric triorganotin(IV) complexes R3Sn{O2CC6H4[N=C(H)}{C(CH3)CH(CH3)-3-OH]-p}n ([Me3Sn(LH)]n: 1) and([Ph3Sn(LH)]n: 2) containing a 4-[(2Z)-(3-hydroxy-1-methyl-2-butenylidene)amino]benzoate (LH) framework were prepared.Both compounds have been characterized by 1H, 13C, 119Sn NMR, IR and 119Sn Mossbauer spectroscopic techniques in combination with elemental analyses. The crystal structures of complexes 1 and 2 reveal that they exist as polymeric zig-zag chains in which the LH-bridged Sn-atoms adopt a trans-R3SnO2 trigonal bipyramidal configuration with R groups in the equatorial positions and the axial sites occupied by an oxygen atom from the carboxylate ligand and the alcoholic oxygen atom of the next carboxylate ligand in the chain. The carboxylate ligands coordinate in the zwitterionic form with the alcoholic proton moved to the nearby nitrogen atom

The interaction of native DNA with iron(III)-N,N’-ethylene-bis(salicylideneiminato)-chloride

The interaction between native calf thymus deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and FeIII-N,N′-ethylene-bis (salicylideneiminato)- chloride, Fe(Salen)Cl, was investigated in aqueous solutions by UV-visible (UV-vis) absorption, circular dichroism (CD), thermal denaturation and viscosity measurements. The results obtained from CD, UV-vis and viscosity measurements exclude DNA intercalation and can be interpreted in terms of an electrostatic binding between the Fe(Salen)+ cation and the phosphate groups of DNA. The trend of the UV-vis absorption band of the Fe(Salen)Cl complex at different ratios [DNAphosphate]/[Fe(Salen)Cl] and the large increase of the melting temperature of DNA in the presence of Fe(Salen)Cl, support the hypothesis of an external electrostatic interaction between the negatively charged DNA double helix and the axially stacked positively charged Fe(Salen)+ moieties, analogously to what reported for a number of porphyrazines and metal-porphyrazine complexes interacting with DNA

Nitrogen uptake and nitrogen fertilizer recovery in old and modern wheat genotypes grown in the presence or absence of interspecific competition

Choosing genotypes with a high capacity for taking up nitrogen (N) from the soil and the ability to efficiently compete with weeds for this nutrient is essential to increasing the sustainability of cropping systems that are less dependent on auxiliary inputs. This research aimed to verify whether differences exist in N uptake and N fertilizer recovery capacity among wheat genotypes and, if so, whether these differences are related to a different competitive ability against weeds of wheat genotypes. To this end, 12 genotypes, varying widely in morphological traits and year of release, were grown in the presence or absence of interspecific competition (using Avena sativa L. as a surrogate weed). Isotopic tracer 15N was used to measure the fertilizer N uptake efficiencies of the wheat genotypes and weed. A field experiment, a split-plot design with four replications, was conducted during two consecutive growing seasons in a typical Mediterranean environment. In the absence of interspecific competition, few differences in either total N uptake (range: 98–112 kg N ha–1) or the 15N fertilizer recovery fraction (range: 30.0–36.7%) were observed among the wheat genotypes. The presence of competition, compared to competitor-free conditions, resulted in reductions in grain yield (49%), total N uptake (29%), and an 15N fertilizer recovery fraction (32%) that were on average markedly higher in modern varieties than in old ones. Both biomass and grain reductions were strongly related to the biomass of the competitor (correlation coefficients > 0.95), which ranged from 135 g m–2 to 573 g m–2. Variations in both grain and biomass yield due to interspecific competition were significantly correlated with percentage of soil cover and leaf area at tillering, plant height at heading, and total N uptake, thus highlighting that the ability to take up N from the soil played a certain role in determining the different competitive abilities against weed of the genotypes

Addition of high C:N crop residues to a P-limited substrate constrains the benefits of arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis for wheat P and N nutrition

Many aspects concerning the role of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in plant nutrient uptake from organic sources remain unclear. Here, we investigated the contribution of AM symbiosis to N and P uptake by durum wheat after the addition of a high C:N biomass to a P-limited soil. Plants were grown in pots in the presence or absence of a multispecies AM inoculum, with (Org) or without (Ctr) the addition of (15)N-labelled organic matter (OM). A further treatment, in which (15)N was applied in mineral form (Ctr+N) in the same amount as that supplied in the Org treatment, was also included. Inoculation with AM had positive effects on plant growth in both control treatments (Ctr and Ctr+N), mainly linked to an increase in plant P uptake. The addition of OM, increasing the P available in the soil for the plants, resulted in a marked decrease in the contribution of AM symbiosis to plant growth and nutrient uptake, although the percentage of mycorrhization was higher in the Org treatment than in the controls. In addition, mycorrhization drastically reduced the recovery of (15)N from the OM added to the soil whereas it slightly increased the N recovery from the mineral fertiliser. This suggests that plants and AM fungi probably exert a differential competition for different sources of N available in the soil. On the whole, our results provide a contribution to a better understanding of the conditions under which AM fungi can play an effective role in mitigating the negative effects of nutritional stresses in plants. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00572-021-01031-8

Addition of high C:N crop residues to a P-limited substrate constrains the benefits of arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis for wheat P and N nutrition

Many aspects concerning the role of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in plant nutrient uptake from organic sources remain unclear. Here, we investigated the contribution of AM symbiosis to N and P uptake by durum wheat after the addition of a high C:N biomass to a P-limited soil. Plants were grown in pots in the presence or absence of a multispecies AM inoculum, with (Org) or without (Ctr) the addition of 15N-labelled organic matter (OM). A further treatment, in which 15N was applied in mineral form (Ctr+N) in the same amount as that supplied in the Org treatment, was also included. Inoculation with AM had positive effects on plant growth in both control treatments (Ctr and Ctr+N), mainly linked to an increase in plant P uptake. The addition of OM, increasing the P available in the soil for the plants, resulted in a marked decrease in the contribution of AM symbiosis to plant growth and nutrient uptake, although the percentage of mycorrhization was higher in the Org treatment than in the controls. In addition, mycorrhization drastically reduced the recovery of 15N from the OM added to the soil whereas it slightly increased the N recovery from the mineral fertiliser. This suggests that plants and AM fungi probably exert a differential competition for different sources of N available in the soil. On the whole, our results provide a contribution to a better understanding of the conditions under which AM fungi can play an effective role in mitigating the negative effects of nutritional stresses in plants

An assessment of factors controlling N₂O and CO₂ emissions from crop residues using different measurement approaches

Management of plant residues plays an important role in maintaining soil quality and nutrient availability for plants and microbes. However, there is considerable uncertainty regarding the factors controlling residue decomposition and their effects on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the soil. This uncertainty is created both by the complexity of the processes involved and limitations in the methodologies commonly used to quantify GHG emissions. We therefore investigated the addition of two soil residues (durum wheat and faba bean) with similar C/N ratios but contrasting fibres, lignin and cellulose contents on nutrient dynamics and GHG emission from two contrasting soils: a low-soil organic carbon (SOC), high pH clay soil (Chromic Haploxerert) and a high-SOC, low pH sandy-loam soil (Eutric Cambisol). In addition, we compared the effectiveness of the use of an infrared gas analyser (IRGA) and a photoacoustic gas analyser (PGA) to measure GHG emissions with more conventional gas chromatography (GC). There was a strong correlation between the different measurement techniques which strengthens the case for the use of continuous measurement approaches involving IRGA and PGA analyses in studies of this type. The unamended Cambisol released 286% more CO2 and 30% more N2O than the Haploxerert. Addition of plant residues increased CO2 emissions more in the Haploxerert than Cambisol and N2O emission more in the Cambisol than in the Haploxerert. This may have been a consequence of the high N stabilization efficiency of the Haploxerert resulting from its high pH and the effect of the clay on mineralization of native organic matter. These results have implication management of plant residues in different soil types

Nitrogen fertilization and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi do not mitigate the adverse effects of soil contamination with polypropylene microfibers on maize growth

Soil contamination with microplastics may adversely affect soil properties and functions and consequently crop productivity. In this study, we wanted to verify whether the adverse effects of microplastics in the soil on maize plants (Zea mays L.) are due to a reduction in nitrogen (N) availability and a reduced capacity to establish symbiotic relationships with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. To do this, we performed a pot experiment in which a clayey soil was exposed to two environmentally relevant concentrations of polypropylene (PP; one of the most used plastic materials) microfibers (0.4% and 0.8% w/w) with or without the addition of N fertilizer and with or without inoculation with AM fungi. The experiment began after the soil had been incubated at 23 °C for 5 months. Soil contamination with PP considerably reduced maize root and shoot biomass, leaf area, N uptake, and N content in tissue. The adverse effects increased with the concentration of PP in the soil. Adding N to the soil did not alleviate the detrimental effects of PP on plant growth, which suggests that other factors besides N availability played a major role. Similarly, although the presence of PP did not inhibit root colonization by AM fungi (no differences were observed for this trait between the uncontaminated and PP-contaminated soils), the addition of the fungal inoculum to the soil failed to mitigate the negative impact of PP on maize growth. Quite the opposite: mycorrhization further reduced maize root biomass accumulation. Undoubtedly, much research remains to be done to shed light on the mechanisms involved in determining plant behavior in microplastic-contaminated soils, which are most likely complex. This research is a priority given the magnitude of this contamination and its potential implications for human and environmental health