The climatic challenge: which plants will people use in the next century?

More than 31,000 useful plant species have been documented to fulfil needs and services for humans or the animals and environment we depend on. Despite this diversity, humans currently satisfy most requirements with surprisingly few plant species; for example, just three crops – rice, wheat and maize – comprise more than 50% of plant derived calories. Here, we synthesize the projected impact of global climatic change on useful plants across the spectrum of plant domestication. We illustrate the demographic, spatial, ecophysiological, chemical, functional, evolutionary and cultural traits that are likely to characterise useful plants and their resilience in the next century. Using this framework, we consider a range of possible pathways for future human use of plants. These are centred on two trade-offs: i) diversification versus specialization in the range of species we utilize, and ii) substitutionof the species towards those better suited to future climate versus facilitating adaptation in our existing suite of dominant useful plants. In the coming century, major challenges to agriculture and biodiversity will be dominated by increased climatic variation, shifting species ranges, disruption to biotic interactions, nutrient limitation and emerging pests and pathogens. These challenges must be mitigated, whilst enhancing sustainable production to meet the needs of a growing population and a more resource intensive standard of living. With the continued erosion of biodiversity, our future ability to choose among these pathways and trade-offs is likely to be diminished

Maintenance and expansion of genetic and trait variation following domestication in a clonal crop

Clonal propagation enables favourable crop genotypes to be rapidly selected and multiplied. However, the absence of sexual propagation can lead to low genetic diversity and accumulation of deleterious mutations, which may eventually render crops less resilient to pathogens or environmental change. To better understand this trade-off, we characterize the domestication and contemporary genetic diversity of Enset (Ensete ventricosum), an indigenous African relative of bananas (Musa) and a principal starch staple for 20 million Ethiopians. Wild enset reproduction occurs strictly by sexual outcrossing, but for cultivation, it is propagated clonally and associated with diversification and specialization into hundreds of named landraces. We applied tGBS sequencing to generate genome-wide genotypes for 192 accessions from across enset's cultivated distribution, and surveyed 1340 farmers on enset agronomic traits. Overall, reduced heterozygosity in the domesticated lineage was consistent with a domestication bottleneck that retained 37% of wild diversity. However, an excess of putatively deleterious missense mutations at low frequency present as heterozygotes suggested an accumulation of mutational load in clonal domesticated lineages. Our evidence indicates that the major domesticated lineages initially arose through historic sexual recombination associated with a domestication bottleneck, followed by the amplification of favourable genotypes through an extended period of clonal propagation. Among domesticated lineages, we found a significant phylogenetic signal for multiple farmer-identified food, nutrition and disease resistance traits and little evidence of contemporary recombination. The development of future-climate adapted genotypes may require crop breeding, but outcrossing risks exposing deleterious alleles as homozygotes. This trade-off may partly explain the ubiquity and persistence of clonal propagation over recent centuries of comparative climate stability

State of the world’s plants and fungi 2020

Kew’s State of the World’s Plants and Fungi project provides assessments of our current knowledge of the diversity of plants and fungi on Earth, the global threats that they face, and the policies to safeguard them. Produced in conjunction with an international scientific symposium, Kew’s State of the World’s Plants and Fungi sets an important international standard from which we can annually track trends in the global status of plant and fungal diversity

Effect of green body density on the properties of graphite-molybdenum-titanium composite sintered by spark plasma sintering

[EN] This manuscript contains a study about the effect of the degree of compaction of green parts on the properties of a Graphite-5.5 vol. % Molybdenum- 0.6 vol. % Titanium composite obtained by SPS. The composite, sintered at 2000 degrees C, below the eutectic temperature of the C-Mo system (2584 degrees C), exhibits different properties depending on the direction of the applied pressure. On this matter, properties are significantly better in-plane than in the other directions. Samples uniaxially pressed at 60 MPa to obtain the green compact exhibit highly improved properties which are competitive with those obtained under extreme conditions, i.e. uniaxial pressure at 300 MPa and sintering temperature > 2000 degrees C in presence of a liquid phase. The composite production process could be easier scaled up to the industrial level. Thus, this graphite-molybdenum-titanium composite could be used as heat sink in a panoply of applications.This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation. Call Programa Estatal de I+D+i Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad [RTI2018-102269-B-I00] . Daniel Fernandez-Gonzalez acknowledges the grant (Juan de la Cierva-Formacion program) FJC2019-041139-I funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 (Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion, Agencia Estatal de Investigacion). Authors are grateful to Ainhoa Macias San Miguel from Nano-materials and Nanotechnology Research Center (CINN) for providing technical assistance.Suárez, M.; Fernández-González, D.; Gutiérrez-González, C.; Díaz, L.; Borrell Tomás, MA.; Moya, J.; Torrecillas, R.... (2022). Effect of green body density on the properties of graphite-molybdenum-titanium composite sintered by spark plasma sintering. Journal of the European Ceramic Society. 42(5):2048-2054. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2021.12.0732048205442

Synthesis and processing of improved graphite-molybdenum-titanium composites by colloidal route and spark plasma sintering

[EN] Graphite-molybdenum-titanium composites might attract significant interest as heat sinks for different sector applications due to their excellent thermal, electrical and mechanical properties. This type of composites was already studied but following the powder metallurgy and spark plasma sintering (SPS) route. The aim of the present investigation is to study a new route of fabrication of these composites to improve their properties: colloidal synthesis and SPS process. The results obtained for graphite-10 vol% Mo-1 vol% Ti composites prepared by both routes are compared. It has been proved that the properties of the composites are significantly improved by the colloidal route compared with the powder metallurgy route, i. e. electrical conductivity by a factor of 3, thermal properties by a factor of 8 and bending strength by a factor of 4.This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation. Call Programa Estatal de I+D+i Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad [RTI2018-102269-B-I00] . This research was also supported by a Juan de la Cierva Formacion grant from the Spanish Ministry of Sci-ence and Innovation (MCINN) to Daniel Fernandez-Gonzalez [FJC2019-041139-I] . A. Borrell acknowledges for her RYC-2016-20915. Authors are grateful to Ainhoa Macias San Miguel from Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology Research Center (CINN) for providing technical assistance.Suárez, M.; Fernández-González, D.; Díaz, L.; Borrell Tomás, MA.; Moya, J.; Fernández, A. (2021). Synthesis and processing of improved graphite-molybdenum-titanium composites by colloidal route and spark plasma sintering. Ceramics International. 47(21):30993-30998. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2021.07.2673099330998472

Null-thermal expansion coefficient LAS-nSiC composite by slip-casting

[EN] In the present work, lithium aluminosilicate (LAS) reinforced with SiC nanoparticles (nSiC) is successfully pre-pared by slip-casting for the first time. The stability of aqueous suspension is investigated in terms of its rheo-logical properties. The isoelectic point (IEP) of beta-Eucryptite particulate system was found to be at pH 6.1. To obtain the best processing conditions, LAS-nSiC suspension with 55 wt% of solids and 0.06 wt% of Tetramethyl ammonium hydroxide (TMAH) as dispersant is recommended. The slurry is slip-casted in plaster of Paris molds and sintered at 1430 degrees C for different holding times in controlled atmosphere. Microstructure, mechanical and coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) properties of the sintered samples have been evaluated. LAS-nSiC com-posite sintered at 1430 degrees C shows dense and free-cracked microstructure with a CTE close to zero.This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, Called Programa Estatal de I+D+i Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad [RTI2018-102269-B-I00] . Likewise, the authors acknowledge the financial support of PID2020-119130GB-I00 project funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. A. Borrell acknowledges the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for her RyC contract [RYC-2016-20915] . Authors are grateful to Ainhoa Macias San Miguel from Nano-materials and Nanotechnology Research Center (CINN-CSIC-UNIOVI- PA) for providing technical assistance.Suárez, M.; Díaz, L.; Bartolomé, J.; Borrell Tomás, MA.; López-Esteban, S.; Torrecillas, R.; Moya, J.... (2022). Null-thermal expansion coefficient LAS-nSiC composite by slip-casting. Journal of the European Ceramic Society. 42(15):7228-7236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2022.08.00172287236421

Synthesis and sintering at low temperature of a new nanostructured beta- Eucryptite dense compact by spark plasma sintering

[EN] The solid state reaction between kaolin and Li2CO3 with a 1:1 M composition has been studied in the temperature range 380 degrees C-550 degrees C. The role played by Li2CO3 (basic medium) in the thermal transformation of the kaolin has been investigated by X-Ray diffraction, FESEM, TEM, MAS-NMR and XPS techniques. For the first time, a nanostructured high density beta-Eucryptite ( < 10 nm) has been obtained by Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) at 550 degrees C in high vacuum. The atmosphere used in sintering treatments has a determinant role in lithium migration and crystallization of beta-Eucryptite. In the case of low vacuum treatments, an amorphous LiAlSiO4 geopolymer type material was obtained. Due to exclusive properties and performances of beta-Eucryptite based materials, the results reported in the present investigation open new perspectives for new nanostructured and amorphous functional materials with null thermal expansion, ionic conduction and remarkable mechanical properties.The authors acknowledge the Principado de Asturias (Spain) for funding through the projects GRUPIN IDI/2018/000232 and MAT201678362-C4-2. A. Borrell acknowledges the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for her RyC contract (RYC-2016-209.15).Suárez, M.; Fernández, A.; Díaz, L.; Sobrados, I.; Sanz, J.; Borrell Tomás, MA.; Palomares, F.... (2020). Synthesis and sintering at low temperature of a new nanostructured beta- Eucryptite dense compact by spark plasma sintering. Ceramics International. 46(11):18469-18477. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2020.04.1521846918477461

Lead-free low-melting-point glass as bonding agent for TiO2 nanoparticles

[EN] This work is a study of the properties of TiO2-anatase nanoparticles attached by a low-melting point inorganic glass (530 degrees C). Unlike other low-melting glasses, this composition does not contain any toxic metal. Likewise, it shows an excellent wettability on ceramic nanoparticles. A small addition of 5 vol% of glass remarkably enhances the mechanical strength of the composites with respect to pure TiO2 calcined at the same temperature, becoming twice this value. Self-cleaning properties analyzed using the methylene blue 385 nm UV-A photodegradation test showed that, after different UV-light periods, the photo-efficiency of TiO2-anatase was not altered by the presence of this glass.This work was supported by CSIC under grant 201960E103 and by the Spanish Ministry of Science Innovation and Universities (MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE) under award RTI2018-094958-B-I00. Dr. Borrell acknowledges the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for her RyC contract (RYC-2016-20915).Lopez-Esteban, S.; Cabal, B.; Borrell Tomás, MA.; Bartolomé, J.; Fernandez, A.; Faraldos, M.; Bahamonde, A.... (2021). Lead-free low-melting-point glass as bonding agent for TiO2 nanoparticles. Ceramics International. 47(5):6114-6120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2020.10.1906114612047