Hopp til hovedinnholdet

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.

2017

To document

Abstract

In the Nordic countries, changes in pore structure during winter can affect e.g. water transport capacity in soils after winter. A reduction in pore space can cause an increase in runoff volume due to snowmelt and rain, resulting in flooding and soil erosion. This study quantified the effect of freezing-thawing cycles (FTCs) on the macropore structure of a silt and a sandy soil. Six consecutive FTCs were applied to intact soil samples, which were scanned after 0, 1, 2, 4 and 6 FTCs with an industrial X-ray scanner. Using state-of-the-art image processing and analysis techniques, changes in soil macropore network characteristics were quantified. The results showed that freezing-thawing affected the looser sandy soil more than the silt with its more cohesive structure. However, in both soils freezing-thawing had a negative effect on properties of macropore networks (e.g. reduction in macroporosity, thickness and specific surface area of macropores). These findings can help improve understanding of how undisturbed soils react to different winter conditions, which can be beneficial in the development of models for predicting flooding and soil erosion.

To document

Abstract

Armillaria possesses several intriguing characteristics that have inspired wide interest in understanding phylogenetic relationships within and among species of this genus. Nuclear ribosomal DNA sequence– based analyses of Armillaria provide only limited information for phylogenetic studies among widely divergent taxa. More recent studies have shown that translation elongation factor 1-α (tef1) sequences are highly informative for phylogenetic analysis of Armillaria species within diverse global regions. This study used Neighbor-net and coalescence-based Bayesian analyses to examine phylogenetic relationships of newly determined and existing tef1 sequences derived from diverse Armillaria species from across the Northern Hemisphere, with Southern Hemisphere Armillaria species included for reference. Based on the Bayesian analysis of tef1 sequences, Armillaria species from the Northern Hemisphere are generally contained within the following four superclades, which are named according to the specific epithet of the most frequently cited species within the superclade: (i) Socialis/Tabescens (exannulate) superclade including Eurasian A. ectypa, North American A. socialis (A. tabescens), and Eurasian A. socialis (A. tabescens) clades; (ii) Mellea superclade including undescribed annulate North American Armillaria sp. (Mexico) and four separate clades of A. mellea (Europe and Iran, eastern Asia, and two groups from North America); (iii) Gallica superclade including Armillaria Nag E (Japan), multiple clades of A. gallica (Asia and Europe), A. calvescens (eastern North America), A. cepistipes (North America), A. altimontana (western USA), A. nabsnona (North America and Japan), and at least two A. gallica clades (North America); and (iv) Solidipes/Ostoyae superclade including two A. solidipes/ostoyae clades (North America), A. gemina (eastern USA), A. solidipes/ostoyae (Eurasia), A. cepistipes (Europe and Japan), A. sinapina (North America and Japan), and A. borealis (Eurasia) clade 2. Of note is that A. borealis (Eurasia) clade 1 appears basal to the Solidipes/Ostoyae and Gallica superclades. The Neighbor-net analysis showed similar phylogenetic relationships. This study further demonstrates the utility of tef1 for global phylogenetic studies of Armillaria species and provides critical insights into multiple taxonomic issues that warrant further study.

To document

Abstract

 Auxin gradients are sustained by series of influx and efflux carriers whose subcellular local- ization is sensitive to both exogenous and endogenous factors. Recently the localization of the Arabidopsis thaliana auxin efflux carrier PIN-FORMED (PIN) 6 was reported to be tissue- specific and regulated through unknown mechanisms.  Here, we used genetic, molecular and pharmacological approaches to characterize the molecular mechanism(s) controlling the subcellular localization of PIN6.  PIN6 localizes to endomembrane domains in tissues with low PIN6 expression levels such as roots, but localizes at the plasma membrane (PM) in tissues with increased PIN6 expression such as the inflorescence stem and nectary glands. We provide evidence that this dual local- ization is controlled by PIN6 phosphorylation and demonstrate that PIN6 is phosphorylated by mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) MPK4 and MPK6. The analysis of transgenic plants expressing PIN6 at PM or in endomembrane domains reveals that PIN6 subcellular localization is critical for Arabidopsis inflorescence stem elongation post-flowering (bolting). In line with a role for PIN6 in plant bolting, inflorescence stems elongate faster in pin6 mutant plants than in wild-type plants.  We propose that PIN6 subcellular localization is under the control of developmental signals acting on tissue-specific determinants controlling PIN6-expression levels and PIN6 phosphorylation.

To document

Abstract

The forest landscape across the Nordic and Baltic regions hosts numerous lakes and watercourses, which must be included in forest management. In this study, national policy designs regarding protection zones for surface waters on forest land were reviewed and compared for the Nordic countries, Estonia and Latvia. The focus was how each country regulates protection zones, whether they are voluntary or mandatory, and the rationale behind adopting a low or high degree of prescriptiveness. Iceland and Denmark had a low degree of policy prescriptiveness, whereas Norway, Estonia and Latvia had a high degree of prescriptiveness. Sweden and Finland relied to a large extent on voluntary commitments. The prescribed zone widths within the region ranged from 1 m to 5 km. The results indicated that land-use distribution, forest ownership structure and historical and political legacies have influenced the varying degrees of prescriptiveness in the region.

To document

Abstract

Deoxynivalenol (DON) in cereals, produced by Fusarium fungi, cause poisoning in humans and animals. Fusarium infections in cereals are favoured by humid conditions. Host species are susceptible mainly during the anthesis stage. Infections are also positively correlated with a regional history of Fusarium infections, frequent cereal production and non-tillage field management practices. Here, previously developed process-based models based on relative air humidity, rain and temperature conditions, Fusarium sporulation, host phenology and mycelium growth in host tissue were adapted and tested on oats. Model outputs were used to calculate risk indices. Statistical multivariate models, where independent variables were constructed from weather data, were also developed. Regressions of the risk indices obtained against DON concentrations in field experiments on oats in Sweden and Norway 2012–14 had coefficient of determination values (R2) between 0.84 and 0.88. Regressions of the same indices against DON concentrations in oat samples averaged for 11 × 11 km grids in farmers’ fields in Sweden 2012–14 resulted in R2 values between 0.27 and 0.41 for randomly selected grids and between 0.31 and 0.62 for grids with average DON concentration above 1000 μg kg–1 grain in the previous year. When data from all three years were evaluated together, a cross-validated statistical partial least squares model resulted in R2 = 0.70 and a standard error of cross-validation (SECV) = 522 μg kg–1 grain for the period 1 April–28 August in the construction of independent variables and R2 = 0.54 and SECV = 647 μg kg–1 grain for 1 April–23 June. Factors that were not accounted for in this study probably explain large parts of the variation in DON among samples and make further model development necessary before these models can be used practically. DON prediction in oats could potentially be improved by combining weather-based risk index outputs with agronomic factors.