Increasing the Amount of Biomass in Field Crops for Carbon Sequestration and Plant Biomass Enhancement Using Biochar

The agricultural sector, especially in developing countries, is vulnerable to the effects of climate change partially caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agricultural areas. Field crops are capable of bio-sequestration in its aboveground and belowground biomass. Incorporating biochar as a soil amendment increases its potential to become an important bio-sequestration which makes the agricultural sector a key contributor to climate change mitigation. This chapter discussed and presented data obtained from research on biochar using to increase plant biomass for carbon sequestration purposes. The biochar was produced from cassava stems by pyrolysis using a patented retort that was especially designed for agriculturalists to produce a low-cost biochar for their own use. The ability to increase biomass of field crops for carbon sequestration is crucial towards reducing the GHG emissions. This research also shed light on an innovative agricultural method, in comparison to traditional farming, that leads to sustainable agriculture in the long run. The biochar research is also a way to transfer research knowledge from laboratory to practical use

Properties of Biochar Prepared from Acacia Wood and Coconut Shell for Soil Amendment

The biochar produced from the agricultural wastes was aimed to amend the extreme degraded soil. The properties of biochar prepared from Acacia wood and coconut shell were investigated by different pyrolysis conditions in order to identify the suitable initial biomass of biochar applied for sandy soil amendment. The slow pyrolysis was applied for preparing biochar under different conditions. The temperature was varied from 300, 400 and 500 oC meanwhile the pyrolysis times were varied to 1, 2 and 3 hours. The parameters indicating biochar property are SA, APD, elemental contents of C, H, O and N, pH, CEC, and WHC. The properties of Acacia biochar and coconut shell biochar were compared using paired T-test at 95% confident interval to analyze the significant difference. The results indicated that the types of the initial biomass and the pyrolysis conditions have an impact on the properties of biochar for both physical and chemical. The suitable temperature was 500 °C for 2 hours. The different types of biomass are significantly effect on the SA, C and O contents, pH, CEC and WHC of the prepared biochar (P<0.05). Properties of Acacia wood biochar indicate that it is more suitable than coconut shell biochar to be applied as sandy soil amendment due to its higher SA, higher CEC, and neutral pH. Meanwhile, coconut shell biochar also can be applied for the typical soil appropriate and increase crop yield.The biochar produced from the agricultural wastes was aimed to amend the extreme degraded soil. The properties of biochar prepared from Acacia wood and coconut shell were investigated by different pyrolysis conditions in order to identify the suitable initial biomass of biochar applied for sandy soil amendment. The slow pyrolysis was applied for preparing biochar under different conditions. The temperature was varied from 300, 400 and 500oC meanwhile the pyrolysis times were varied to 1, 2 and 3 hours. The parameters indicating biochar property are SA, APD, elemental contents of C, H, O and N, pH, CEC, and WHC. The properties of Acacia biochar and coconut shell biochar were compared using paired T-test at 95% confident interval to analyze the significant difference. The results indicated that the types of the initial biomass and the pyrolysis conditions have an impact on the properties of biochar for both physical and chemical. The suitable temperature was 500°C for 2 hours. The different types of biomass are significantly effect on the SA, C and O contents, pH, CEC and WHC of the prepared biochar (P < 0.05). Properties of Acacia wood biochar indicate that it is more suitable than coconut shell biochar to be applied as sandy soil amendment due to its higher SA, higher CEC, and neutral pH. Meanwhile, coconut shell biochar also can be applied for the typical soil appropriate and increase crop yield

Land–Water–Population Model: Developing an Agricultural Resources Management in the Upper Part of Pranburi Watershed

This research proposes the application of the Land-Water-Population (LWPM) concept in the upper part of the Pranburi watershed. The objective of the study is to develop a model for agricultural resources management under the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP). The methodology is divided into three parts; 1) evaluate the soil quality in agricultural areas, 2) analyze water quality in agricultural land; and 3) assess farmer practice in agricultural resources management using a questionnaire. The study findings point to problems in soil and water conservation, suggesting that in the area should prioritize agricultural management, as advocated under the SEP, which provides guidelines for practicing agriculture under the New Theory on land and water management. Adoption of this model under the SEP will facilitate integrated natural resource management and sustainable agriculture by stakeholder participation at community level

Assessment of Elephant Dietary Biomass at the Adjoining Area of Kaeng Krachan Natural Park, Thailand

This study investigated the dietary diversity and biomass of the elephants (Elephas maximus) ranging in the area adjoining Kaeng Krachan Natural Park, Pa Deng Sub-district, Kaeng Krachan District, Petchaburi Province, Thailand. The investigation was conducted by recon-naissance survey transect (Recce) combined with concentric sample plots with 3 different radii to observe vegetation and collect data on trees, saplings, seedlings, and undergrowth from 89 locations in the study area. Six transects along elephant feeding trails were surveyed at 200 m intervals within 15 m from the center of both sides of each line. The vegetation comprised in all 57 families and 140 plant species, of which 28 families and 51 species formed part of the elephant diets. The average biomass in the study area ranged from 8,314-65,863 tons km-2, with an average of 25,000 tons km-2. Huay Rae - Hub Pla Kang trail found the greatest amount of biomass which is 65,863 tons km-2

Membrane expansion alleviates endoplasmic reticulum stress independently of the unfolded protein response

Increasing the size of the ER by lipid synthesis helps the cell deal with ER stress

PARP16 is a tail-anchored endoplasmic reticulum protein required for the PERK- and IRE1α-mediated unfolded protein response

Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARPs; also known as ADP-ribosyl transferase D proteins) modify acceptor proteins with ADP-ribose modifications of varying length (reviewed in refs 1, 2, 3). PARPs regulate key stress response pathways, including DNA damage repair and the cytoplasmic stress response. Here, we show that PARPs also regulate the unfolded protein response (UPR) of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Human PARP16 (also known as ARTD15) is a tail-anchored ER transmembrane protein required for activation of the functionally related ER stress sensors PERK and IRE1α during the UPR. The third identified ER stress sensor, ATF6, is not regulated by PARP16. As is the case for other PARPs that function during stress, the enzymatic activity of PARP16 is upregulated during ER stress when it ADP-ribosylates itself, PERK and IRE1α. ADP-ribosylation by PARP16 is sufficient for activating PERK and IRE1α in the absence of ER stress, and is required for PERK and IRE1α activation during the UPR. Modification of PERK and IRE1α by PARP16 increases their kinase activities and the endonuclease activity of IRE1α. Interestingly, the carboxy-terminal luminal tail of PARP16 is required for PARP16 function during ER stress, suggesting that it transduces stress signals to the cytoplasmic PARP catalytic domain.National Cancer Institute (U.S.) (Cancer Center Support Core Grant P30-CA14051)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant 5R01 GM087465-02)Kathy and Curt Marble Cancer Research FundJeptha H. and Emily V. Wade FundVirginia and D.K. Ludwig Fund for Cancer Researc

Physiological modulation of BiP activity by trans-protomer engagement of the interdomain linker.

DnaK/Hsp70 chaperones form oligomers of poorly understood structure and functional significance. Site-specific proteolysis and crosslinking were used to probe the architecture of oligomers formed by the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Hsp70, BiP. These were found to consist of adjacent protomers engaging the interdomain linker of one molecule in the substrate binding site of another, attenuating the chaperone function of oligomeric BiP. Native gel electrophoresis revealed a rapidly-modulated reciprocal relationship between the burden of unfolded proteins and BiP oligomers and slower equilibration between oligomers and inactive, covalently-modified BiP. Lumenal ER calcium depletion caused rapid oligomerization of mammalian BiP and a coincidental diminution in substrate binding, pointing to the relative inertness of the oligomers. Thus, equilibration between inactive oligomers and active monomeric BiP is poised to buffer fluctuations in ER unfolded protein load on a rapid timescale attainable neither by inter-conversion of active and covalently-modified BiP nor by the conventional unfolded protein response.Supported by grants from the Wellcome Trust (Wellcome 084812/Z/08/Z) the European Commission (EU FP7 Beta-Bat No: 277713), a Wellcome Trust Strategic Award for core facilities to the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research (Wellcome 100140) and a US Public Health Service grant NIH-GM54068 (to LH). DR is a Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from eLife via http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.0896

Compensatory Motor Neuron Response to Chromatolysis in the Murine hSOD1(G93A) Model of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

We investigated neuronal self-defense mechanisms in a murine model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the transgenic hSOD1(G93A), during both the asymptomatic and symptomatic stages. This is an experimental model of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress with severe chromatolysis. As a compensatory response to translation inhibition, chromatolytic neurons tended to reorganize the protein synthesis machinery at the perinuclear region, preferentially at nuclear infolding domains enriched in nuclear pores. This organization could facilitate nucleo-cytoplasmic traffic of RNAs and proteins at translation sites. By electron microscopy analysis, we observed that the active euchromatin pattern and the reticulated nucleolar configuration of control motor neurons were preserved in ALS chromatolytic neurons. Moreover the 5'-fluorouridine (5'-FU) transcription assay, at the ultrastructural level, revealed high incorporation of the RNA precursor 5'-FU into nascent RNA. Immunogold particles of 5'-FU incorporation were distributed throughout the euchromatin and on the dense fibrillar component of the nucleolus in both control and ALS motor neurons. The high rate of rRNA transcription in ALS motor neurons could maintain ribosome biogenesis under conditions of severe dysfunction of proteostasis. Collectively, the perinuclear reorganization of protein synthesis machinery, the predominant euchromatin architecture, and the active nucleolar transcription could represent compensatory mechanisms in ALS motor neurons in response to the disturbance of ER proteostasis. In this scenario, epigenetic activation of chromatin and nucleolar transcription could have important therapeutic implications for neuroprotection in ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases. Although histone deacetylase inhibitors are currently used as therapeutic agents, we raise the untapped potential of the nucleolar transcription of ribosomal genes as an exciting new target for the therapy of some neurodegenerative diseases