Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2022
Authors
Samuel Wilkinson Lars Sandved Dalen Thomas Olufsen Skrautvol Jurriaan Ton Paal Krokene Melissa MagerøyAbstract
Norway spruce (Picea abies) is an economically and ecologically important tree species that grows across northern and central Europe. Treating Norway spruce with jasmonate has long-lasting beneficial effects on tree resistance to damaging pests, such as the European spruce bark beetle Ips typographus and its fungal associates. The (epi)genetic mechanisms involved in such long-lasting jasmonate induced resistance (IR) have gained much recent interest but remain largely unknown. In this study, we treated 2-year-old spruce seedlings with methyl jasmonate (MeJA) and challenged them with the I. typographus vectored necrotrophic fungus Grosmannia penicillata. MeJA treatment reduced the extent of necrotic lesions in the bark 8 weeks after infection and thus elicited long-term IR against the fungus. The transcriptional response of spruce bark to MeJA treatment was analysed over a 4-week time course using mRNA-seq. This analysis provided evidence that MeJA treatment induced a transient upregulation of jasmonic acid, salicylic acid and ethylene biosynthesis genes and downstream signalling genes. Our data also suggests that defence-related genes are induced while genes related to growth are repressed by methyl jasmonate treatment. These results provide new clues about the potential underpinning mechanisms and costs associated with long-term MeJA-IR in Norway spruce.
Authors
Daniel Kpienbaareh R. Bezner Kerr Hanson Nyantakyi-Frimpong Daniel Amoak Katja Poveda Sekhar Udaya Nagothu Cassandra Vogel Aaron Iverson Mehreteab Tesfai Isaac Luginaah Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter Jinfei Wang Georg Küstner Stephanie Enloe Vera Mayer Laifolo Dakishoni Esther Lupafya Lizzie Shumba Timothy Chunga Penjani Kanyimbo Petros Munthali Tinkani Gondwe Innocent Mhoni Mwapi Mkandawire Tapiwa Mkandawire Pressings Moyo Yolice TemboAbstract
How can agroecological research methods effectively engage smallholder farmers, who provide over half of the world’s food supply, and whose farm management activities have significant impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services? This question is highly relevant in Malawi where the research took place, but in other low-income countries in Africa with mostly agrarian populations, in which multi-scalar processes drive high food insecurity, alongside declining biodiversity, worsening land degradation and climate change. We analyse an innovative transdisciplinary agroecological approach that attempts to bridge the science-practice-policy gap by examining the potential of agro-ecological measures to enhance functional biodiversity and ecosystem services. This study involves a longitudinal, case-control and participatory research design in a region where thousands of farmers have experimented with agroecological practices, e.g., legume intercropping, composting, and botanical sprays. Innovative transdisciplinary agroecological research activities involved farmer participatory research, ecological monitoring and field experiments, social science methods (both qualitative and quantitative), participatory methodologies (public participatory Geographic Information Systems - PPGIS and scenario planning and testing) and stakeholder engagement to foster science-policy linkages. We discuss the theoretical and methodological implications of this novel transdisciplinary and participatory approach about pluralism, decolonial and translational ecological research to foster sustainability and climate resilience of tropical farming systems.
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Chapter 9 begins with a brief introduction followed by a conceptual framework showing the linkages and interactions between different institutional, market, and policy factors affecting adoption of climate-neutral and resilient farming systems in the agriculture sector. The chapter then discusses the barriers for adoption, which operate at various levels in the value chains (VCs). The role played by stakeholders (VC actors, farmers’ group, research, government agencies, and donors) in the farmers’ adoption and the dynamics and partnerships to be developed between different VC actors for upscaling CNRFS is analyzed. Experiences from case studies in Africa (Kenya and Rwanda) are shared, demonstrating how strategies to overcome weaknesses and adoption barriers in the selected value chain together with the support of multi-actor partnerships. Toward the end, some concluding remarks and policy recommendations for upscaling CNRFS are provided.
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In 2021, mean defoliation remained at approximately the same level as in 2020 with no change for broadleaves and only a very slight increase for conifers. Deciduous temperate oaks had the highest increase in mean defoliation (+1.4%), while common beech had the largest decrease (-1.7%). Based on the data of the past 20 years, trends show a considerable increase in defoliation of Austrian pine and evergreen oaks (7.1% and 6.7%, respectively). On the other hand, the increase in defoliation for deciduous temperate oaks (2.6%) and common beech (3.4%) has been relatively low and the trend for Scots pine and Norway spruce shows a moderate increase in defoliation of 4.3 and 3.8%, respectively. No trend was detected for deciduous (sub-) Mediterranean oaks. There was again a decrease in the number of observed damage symptoms compared to last year. As in previous years, the number of recorded damage symptoms per assessed tree was substantially higher for broadleaves than for conifers. Insects, abiotic causes, and fungi were the most common damage agent groups for all species, comprising altogether more than half of all damage records. Tree mortality increased again slightly in 2021, mainly due to abiotic factors.
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Authors
Trygve S. AamlidAbstract
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Authors
Marian M. Weigel Lars Olav Brandsæter Therese With Berge Jukka Salonen Timo Lötjönen Bärbel GerowittAbstract
No abstract has been registered