Has global deforestation accelerated due to the COVID-19 pandemic?

As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded,questions arose as to whether the pandemic would amplify or pacify tropical deforestation.Early reports warned of increased deforestation rates;however,these studies were limited to a few months in 2020 or to selected regions.To better understand how the pandemic infl uenced tropical deforestation globally,this study used historical deforestation data(2004–2019)from the Terra-i pantropical land cover change monitoring system to project expected deforestation trends for 2020,which were used to determine whether observed deforestation deviated from expected trajectories after the fi rst COVID-19 cases were reported.Time series analyses were conducted at the regional level for the Americas,Africa and Asia and at the country level for Brazil,Colombia,Peru,the Democratic Republic of Congo and Indonesia.Our results suggest that the pandemic did not alter the course of deforestation trends in some countries(e.g.,Brazil,Indonesia),while it did in others(e.g.,Peru).We posit the importance of monitoring the long-term eff ects of the pandemic on deforestation trends as countries prioritize economic recovery in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Disposal and Use of Sewage on Agricultural Lands in Pakistan: A Review

Raw sewage is widely used on agricultural soils in urban areas of developing countries to meet water shortages. Although it is a good source of plant nutrients, such sewage also increases the heavy metal load to soils, which may impact the food chain. Management options for sewage contaminated soils includes addition of nontoxic compounds such as lime, calcium sulfate and organic matter, which form insoluble metal complexes, thus reducing metal phytoavailability to plants. In this paper we review the variation in irrigation quality of sewage at different sites and its impact on the quality of soils and vegetables. Although quality of sewage was highly variable at source, yet the effluent from food industries was relatively safe for irrigation. In comparison effluent samples collected from textile, dyeing, calendaring, steel industry, hospitals and clinical laboratories, foundries and tanneries were hazardous with respect to soluble salts, sodium adsorption ratio and heavy metals like zinc, copper, iron, manganese, nickel, cobalt and cadmium. The sewage quality in main drains was better than that at the industry outlet, but was still not safe for irrigation. In general, higher accumulation of metals in fruits and vegetable roots was recorded compared to that in plant leaves. Edible parts of vegetables (fruits and/or leaves) accumulated metals more than the permissible limits despite the soils contained ammonium bicarbonate diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid extractable metals within a safe range. In either case further scientific investigations are needed to ensure safe management strategies. Cadmium appeared to be the most threatening metal especially in leafy vegetables. It is advisable to avoid leafy vegetables cultivation in sewage irrigated areas everywhere to restrict its entry into food chain.

Review of Sodic Soil Reclamation with a Snapshot of Current Research Activity

For centuries, reclamation of sodic soils has been an essential part of cropping practices in several parts of the world. Parallel to increasing population, the need for new cropland constantly re-evaluates land suitability concepts. Therefore, the importance of sodic soils as potential croplands is increasing worldwide. Although theoretically farmers can choose from a wide variety of reclamation options, according to profitability, business plans, and human and financial resources, in practice, few reclamation methods are applied at large scale. This article touches on the early history, 20th Century intensive research, and current trends of sodic soil reclamation. New approaches such as leaching, chemical amendments, addition of organic material, and biological and microbial improvements are discussed, and also brand-new approaches are reviewed. The early history is reviewed using historical books, the achievements of the last hundred years using basic technical literature, mostly books, and the current approaches of our time with fresh publications, mostly papers and two very recent conferences published in English.

Hungaro Durum Rye—Breeding, Genome Composition and Amino Acid Content of the First Triticale Cultivar for Human Consumption

Hungaro triticale cultivar was bred for human consumption and animal fodder in Kisvárda, Hungary. The breeding method applied for the recombinant secondary hexaploid triticale proved to be effective since the favourable traits of wheat, durum wheat and rye were successfully combined in the genome of the new cultivar. The first aim was to characterize the genome composition. Multicolour genomic in situ hybridization (mcGISH) was used for the genome compositional analysis. According to the results, the cultivar contains the wheat AB genome (AABB = 28 chromosomes) and the whole rye (R) genome (RR = 14 chromosomes). The presence of D genome, however, could not be detected within the detection limit of the GISH method. Hungaro is the very first triticale in Hungary that has been used for human consumption (milling industry, baking industry, pasta production). In this study, amino acid content of flours was measured. Amino acid investigations on Hungaro durum rye’s flour showed that the quantity of essential amino acids, especially of methionine and cysteine, are higher in Hungaro durum rye than in the also investigated Ryefood rye cultivar and the GK ?thalom wheat cultivar. The genes inherited from the wheat species ensure high yield and great baking and dough making qualities. Therefore, its flour is suitable in itself for pastry and dough production (without mixing it with other flours). Its characteristics inherited from rye guarantee excellent abiotic and biotic resistance.

Introgression of sharp eyespot resistance from Dasypyrum villosum chromosome 2VL into bread wheat

Wheat sharp eyespot, a stem disease caused by the soilborne fungus Rhizoctonia cerealis van der Hoeven,has become a threat to wheat production worldwide. Exploiting resistance resources from wild relatives of wheat is a promising strategy for controlling this disease. In this study, a new wheat–Dasypyrum villosum T2DS·2V#4L translocation line in the background of Chinese Spring(CS) showed stable resistance to R. cerealis. Introgression of the T2DS·2V#4L chromosome into wheat cultivar Aikang 58 by backcrossing produced a marked increase in sharp eyespot resistance in NIL-T2DS·2V#4L in comparison with NILT2DS·2DL, and no detrimental effects of 2V#4L on agronomic traits were observed in the BC2F2, BC2F2:3,and BC2F2:4generations. Flow-sorted sequencing of 2V#4L yielded 384.3 Mb of assembled sequence, and8836 genes were predicted of which 6154 had orthologs in at least one of the 2AL, 2BL, and 2DL arms of CS, whereas 1549 genes were unique to 2V#4L. About 100,000 SNPs were detected in genes of 2V#4L and2DL in 10 sequenced bread wheat cultivars. A Kompetitive Allele Specific Polymerase chain reaction and30 conserved ortholog sequence markers were developed to trace the 2V#4L chromatin in wheat backgrounds. T2DS·2V#4L compensating translocation lines represent novel germplasm with sharp eyespot resistance and the markers will allow rapid detection in breeding programs.

Corrigendum to“Introgression of sharp eyespot resistance from Dasypyrum villosum chromosome 2VL into bread wheat”[Crop J.11(2023)1512–1520]

The authors regret to report some missing information in the authorship and associated changes of the paper.On page 1512,the author information reads:“Caiyun Liu a,Wei Guo a,Yang Wang b,Bisheng Fu a,Jaroslav Dolezel c,Ying Liu a,Wenling Zhai a,Mahmoud Said c,d,István Molnár c,d,e,Katerina Holušovác,Ruiqi Zhang b,*,Jizhong Wu a,f,g,*”.It should be changed to“Caiyun Liu a,1,Wei Guo a,1,Yang Wang b,Bisheng Fu a,Jaroslav Dolezel c,Ying Liu a,Wenling Zhai a,Mahmoud Said c,d,István Molnár c,d,e,Katerina Holušovác,Ruiqi Zhang b,*,Jizhong Wu a,f,g,*”.On page 1512 in the footnote,the following sentence should be added below the corresponding authors’information:1 These authors contributed equally to this work.The correction has been updated above.The authors would like to apologize for any inconvenience caused.

The Digital Agricultural Knowledge and Information System(DAKIS):Employing digitalisation to encourage diversified and multifunctional agricultural systems

Multifunctional and diversified agriculture can address diverging pressures and demands by simultaneously enhancing productivity,biodiversity,and the provision of ecosystem services.The use of digital technologies can support this by designing and managing resource-efficient and context-specific agricultural systems.We present the Digital Agricultural Knowledge and Information System(DAKIS)to demonstrate an approach that employs digital technologies to enable decision-making towards diversified and sustainable agriculture.To develop the DAKIS,we specified,together with stakeholders,requirements for a knowledge-based decision-support tool and reviewed the literature to identify limitations in the current generation of tools.The results of the review point towards recurring challenges regarding the consideration of ecosystem services and biodiversity,the capacity to foster communication and cooperation between farmers and other actors,and the ability to link multiple spatiotemporal scales and sustainability levels.To overcome these challenges,the DAKIS provides a digital platform to support farmers'decision-making on land use and management via an integrative spatiotemporally explicit approach that analyses a wide range of data from various sources.The approach integrates remote and in situ sensors,artificial intelligence,modelling,stakeholder-stated demand for biodiversity and ecosystem services,and participatory sustainability impact assessment to address the diverse drivers affecting agricultural land use and management design,including natural and agronomic factors,economic and policy considerations,and socio-cultural preferences and settings.Ultimately,the DAKIS embeds the consideration of ecosystem services,biodiversity,and sustainability into farmers'decision-making and enables learning and progress towards site-adapted small-scale multifunctional and diversified agriculture while simultaneously supporting farmers'objectives and societal demands.

山黧豆160年研究历程及进展

在全球范围内曾多次发生因过量食用山黧豆导致神经中毒事件,使得国内外对于山黧豆的种植和利用存在一定的误解和偏见,山黧豆的优良农艺价值和潜在功能食品利用价值也受到一定限制。但山黧豆适应性强、分布范围广,是全球气候变化条件下农业可持续发展和地力维持的优选作物,在食品安全、生态文明建设和乡村振兴新形势下,进一步研究和挖掘利用这一古老的优良作物具有重要的战略意义。山黧豆相关研究报道可追溯到1861年,距今已有160年的历史。在同行学者的不懈努力下,山黧豆基础研究及种质资源利用等方面均取得了显著的阶段性成果。该文系统回顾了山黧豆研究160年以来的发展历程,依托历史文献进行了梳理和分析。首先,基于山黧豆神经活性物质β-ODAP的分离和鉴定、神经山黧豆中毒机制的探索、β-ODAP生物合成途径解析等重要研究节点将整个山黧豆研究进程划分为山黧豆中毒因素的探索、神经山黧豆中毒机理解析和神经山黧豆中毒及β-ODAP生物学功能的再认识等三个阶段。其次,总结了山黧豆在毒理学研究、种质资源利用、品质改良基础研究等方面取得的重要进展。特别是以兰州大学为代表的中国学者在β-ODAP的分析检测、生物合成途径、山黧豆生理生态学研究及种质资源利用等方面进行了深入探讨,确立了中国在国际山黧豆研究中的主流地位。最后,针对目前山黧豆分子生物学基础研究相对滞后、种质资源缺乏系统利用等问题进行了展望,提出了未来的重点发展方向,为山黧豆种质资源的进一步深入挖掘和应用提供参考。

Increased resistance of drought by Trichoderma harzianum fungal treatment correlates with increased secondary metabolites and proline content

Plant secondary metabolites play vital role in plant stress response. In this study we investigated whether root colonization of tomato （Solanum lycopersicum） infected by Trichoderma harzianum leads to alterations in the biosynthesis of secondary plant metabolites including phytohormones and osmolyte proline under drought stress. Exposure of tomato to drought caused a drastic decline in plant growth and physiological parameters. Tomato inoculated with T. harzianum showed increased root and shoot growth and chlorophyll pigments as compared to uninoculated controls as well as drought stressed plants. Proline and total soluble protein content was increased in plants inoculated with T. harzianum under both normal as well as drought conditions. An obvious increase in phenol and flavonoid content was observed due to T. haczianum. In addition, T. hat-zianum inoculated plants maintained higher levels of growth regulators indole acetic acid, indole butyric acid, and gibberellic acid under drought stress. Improved secondary metabolites which play an important role in plant stress tolerance by T. hat-zianum may have coordinately worked for bringing the growth regulation by protecting membranes from reactive oxygen species （ROS） and enhance plant growth through accessing more nutrients by root system.

Effects of deficit irrigation with saline water on spring wheat growth and yield in arid Northwest China

Field experiments were conducted in 2008 and 2009 to study the effects of deficit irrigation with saline water on spring wheat growth and yield in an arid region of Northwest China. Nine treatments included three salinity levels sl, s2 and s3 （0.65, 3.2, and 6.1 dS/m） in combination with three water levels wl, w2 and w3 （375, 300, and 225 mm）. In 2008, for most treatments, deficit irrigation showed adverse effects on wheat growth; meanwhile, the effect of saline irrigation was not apparent. In 2009, growth parameters of wl treatments were not always optimal under saline irrigation. At 3.2 and 6.1 dS/m in 2008, the highest yield was obtained by wl treatments, however, in 2009, the weight of 1,000 grains and wheat yield both followed the order w2 〉 wl 〉 w3. In this study, spring wheat was sensitive to water deficit, especially at the booting to grain-filling stages, but was not significantly affected by saline irrigation and the combination of the two factors. The results demonstrated that 300-mm irrigation water with a salinity of less than 3.2 dS/m is suitable for wheat fields in the study area.

Explainable artificial intelligence and interpretable machine learning for agricultural data analysis

Artificial intelligence and machine learning have been increasingly applied for prediction in agricultural science.However,many models are typically black boxes,meaning we cannot explain what the models learned from the data and the reasons behind predictions.To address this issue,I introduce an emerging subdomain of artificial intelligence,explainable artificial intelligence(XAI),and associated toolkits,interpretable machine learning.This study demonstrates the usefulness of several methods by applying them to an openly available dataset.The dataset includes the no-tillage effect on crop yield relative to conventional tillage and soil,climate,and management variables.Data analysis discovered that no-tillage management can increase maize crop yield where yield in conventional tillage is<5000 kg/ha and the maximum temperature is higher than 32°.These methods are useful to answer(i)which variables are important for prediction in regression/classification,(ii)which variable interactions are important for prediction,(iii)how important variables and their interactions are associated with the response variable,(iv)what are the reasons underlying a predicted value for a certain instance,and(v)whether different machine learning algorithms offer the same answer to these questions.I argue that the goodness of model fit is overly evaluated with model performance measures in the current practice,while these questions are unanswered.XAI and interpretable machine learning can enhance trust and explainability in AI.

Subsurface accumulation of CaCO3 and Cl- from groundwater under black locust and poplar plantations

When conditions are similar,more water evaporates from forest plantations than herbaceous vegetation,thereby affecting hydrological fluxes and ion transport in the soil.The vertical distribution of CaCO3 and Cl^-ions shifts due to afforestation.The effect of groundwater depth and clay content were studied in the Great Hungarian Plain where forest area has been increasing for decades by analyzing soil and groundwater samples from stands of black locust(Robinia pseudoacacia,11 plots)and poplar(Populus spp.,11 plots).All study sites contained one herbaceous(control)and one or more forested plots.CaCO3 and Cl^-ions accumulated in the soil profile in greater quantities under tree cover than in the controls.The scale of this process largely depended on the species and on soil and ion properties.Under black locust,Cl^-accumulated between 1.3 and 6.3 m,with a maximum difference of 0.3 pCl unit(pCl is Cl^-activity,the negative of the logarithm to base 10 of the concentration of the chloride ion,determined using an ion-selective electrode,it is a dimensionless quantity.),while the difference in CaCO3 accumulation was at most 3.5%in some layers,compared to control plots.This result may be explained by the difference in the mobility of Ca+and Cl^-ions.Different mechanisms were noticeable under poplar plantations due to their higher water uptake:Cl-accumulation was detected below 0.9 m to the groundwater with a maximum difference of 0.5 pCl units,while CaCO3 accumulation was continuous at depths of 2.3–6.8 m with a maximum difference of 8.4%,compared to the controls.With increasing clay content,there was a discernible effect on CaCO3 and Cl-accumulation under black locust,but not observed under poplars.These differences were explained by the differences in water uptake mechanisms and root patterns of the two species and the different mobility of Ca2^+and Cl-ions.

Differentially Expressed Genes between Two Barley Cultivars Contrasting in Drought Tolerance

Drought tolerance is a key trait for increasing and stabilizing barley productivity in dry areas. A number of genes have been described that respond to drought at the transcriptional level (Seki et al., 2002; Cheong et al.,

Response of <i>Arabidopsis</i>Clones to Toxic Compounds Released by Various <i>Rhizoctonia</i>Species

Response of 3 Arabidopsis clones to 41 strains of eight Rhizoctonia species was studied in model experiments. The seed germination was decelerated in most of the cases, although the inhibitory effect varied within large limits. The pre-emergence damping off and root neck rot leading to damping off were the most frequent symptoms of disease syndrome caused by toxic metabolites. The clone transformed with cDNA clone overexpressing gstf4 gene exhibited significantly improved tolerance as compared to parental one, meanwhile the sensitivity of Dmannose pyrophosphorylase/mannose-1-pyrophosphatase deficient clone dramatically increased. Strains of R. solani of AG-2, AG-4 and AG-7 and Athelia rolfsii produced the most toxic metabolites, however, no strict relationships were revealed between taxonomic position of Rhizoctonia strains and toxicity of their metabolites.

Characterization of Newly Developed Wheat/Barley Introgression Lines in Respect of Aluminium Tolerance

The Al tolerance of newly developed wheat/barley disomic addition, substitution and translocation lines carry chromosomes of three different barley cultivars was evaluated by comparing the root growth in solution containing 75 μM AlCl3 at pH 4.0 to that of known Al-tolerant and sensitive wheat genotypes. The wheat Asakaze komugi, barley Manas cultivars and their hybrid derivatives were found to have high levels of Al tolerance. The wheat line Mv9kr1, barley cultivar Igri and progenies of the hybrids were sensitive to Al. In most cases, the Al tolerance of the wheat/barley introgression lines derived from Al-sensitive wheat Mv9kr1 and barley Betzes with moderate Al tolerance was similar to that of the wheat parents, but the 2DS.2DL-1HS translocation line of Mv9kr1/Betzes exhibited more intensive root growth, while accumulating less Al than the parental lines. This indicates that either the lack of the distal part of chromosome 2DL or the presence of the distal part of 1HS improved the Al tolerance level.

Endophytic bacteria associated with halophyte Seidlitzia rosmarinus Ehrenb.ex Boiss.from saline soil of Uzbekistan and their plant beneficial traits

Endophytic bacteria of halophytic plants play essential roles in salt stress tolerance.Therefore,an understanding of the true nature of plant-microbe interactions under extreme conditions is essential.The current study aimed to identify cultivable endophytic bacteria associated with the roots and shoots of Seidlitzia rosmarinus Ehrenb.ex Boiss.grown in the salt-affected soil in Uzbekistan and to evaluate their plant beneficial traits related to plant growth stimulation and stress tolerance.Bacteria were isolated from the roots and the shoots of S.rosmarinus using culture-dependent techniques and identified by the 16S rRNA gene.RFLP(Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism)analysis was conducted to eliminate similar isolates.Results showed that the isolates from the roots of S.rosmarinus belonged to the genera Rothia,Kocuria,Pseudomonas,Staphylococcus,Paenibacillus and Brevibacterium.The bacterial isolates from the shoots of S.rosmarinus belonged to the genera Staphylococcus,Rothia,Stenotrophomonas,Brevibacterium,Halomonas,Planococcus,Planomicrobium and Pseudomonas,which differed from those of the roots.Notably,Staphylococcus,Rothia and Brevibacterium were detected in both roots and shoots,indicating possible migration of some species from roots to shoots.The root-associated bacteria showed higher levels of IAA(indole-3-acetic acid)synthesis compared with those isolated from the shoots,as well as the higher production of ACC(1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate)deaminase.Our findings suggest that halophytic plants are valuable sources for the selection of microbes with a potential to improve plant fitness under saline soils.

Exploration of Genetic Pattern of Phenological Traits in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) under Drought Stress

Drought is the major detrimental environmental factor for wheat(Triticum aestivum L.)production.The exploration of genetic patterns underlying drought tolerance is of great significance.Here we report the gene actions controlling the phenological traits using the line×tester model studying 27 crosses and 12 parents under normal irrigation and drought conditions.The results interpreted via multiple analysis(mean performance,correlations,principal component,genetic analysis,heterotic and heterobeltiotic potential)disclosed highly significant differences among germplasm.The phenological waxiness traits(glume,boom,and sheath)were strongly interlinked.Flag leaf area exhibits a positive association with peduncle and spike length under drought.The growing degree days(heat-units)greatly influence spikelets and grains per spike,however,the grain yield/plant was significantly reduced(17.44 g to 13.25 g)under drought.The principal components based on eigenvalue indicated significant PCs(first-seven)accounted for 79.9%and 73.9%of total variability under normal irrigation and drought,respectively.The investigated yield traits showed complex genetic behaviour.The genetic advance confronted a moderate to high heritability for spikelets/spike and grain yield/plant.The traits conditioned by dominant genetic effects in normal irrigation were inversely controlled by additive genetic effects under drought and vice versa.The magnitude of dominance effects for phenological and yield traits,i.e.,leaf twist,auricle hairiness,grain yield/plant,spikelets,and grains/spike suggests that selection by the pedigree method is appropriate for improving these traits under normal irrigation conditions and could serve as an indirect selection index for improving yield-oriented traits in wheat populations for drought tolerance.However,the phenotypic selection could be more than effective for traits conditioned by additive genetic effects under drought.We suggest five significant cross combinations based on heterotic and heterobeltiotic potential of wheat genotypes for improved yield and enhanced biological production of wheat in advanced generations under drought.

Genetic Diversity and Association Analysis for Salinity Tolerance, Heading Date and Plant Height of Barley Germplasm Using Simple Sequence Repeat Markers

The objective of this study was to investigate the genetic diversity of barley accessions. Additionally, association trait analysis was conducted for grain yield under salinity, heading date and plant height. For this purpose, 48 barley genotypes were analyzed with 22 microsatellite simple sequence repeat （SSR） markers. Four of the 22 markers （Bmac316, scssr03907, HVM67 and Bmag770） were able to differentiate all barley genotypes. Cluster and principal coordinate analysis allowed a clear grouping between countries from the same region. The genotypes used in this study have been evaluated for agronomic performance in different environments. Conducting association analysis for grain yield under salinity conditions using TASSEL software revealed a close association of the marker Bmag749 （2H, bin 13） in two different environments with common significant alleles （175, 177）, whereas the HVHOTR1 marker （2H, bin 3） was only significant in Sakhar Egypt with alleles size being 158 and 161. Heading date also showed an association with scssr03907 through the common significant specific allele 111 and EBmac0415 markers in three different agro climatic locations, whereas HVCMA, scssr00103 and HVM67 were linked to heading date in the Egyptian environment only. The plant height association analysis revealed significant markers Bmag770 via the significant allele 152 and scssr09398.

A Meta-Analysis on Phenotypic Variation in Cadmium Accumulation of Rice and Wheat:Implications for Food Cadmium Risk Control

In some densely-populated countries, farmland has been widely cadmium (Cd) contaminated, and the utilization of the contaminated farmland for crop production is currently unavoidable. This necessitates the use of low-Cd crops (i.e., pollution-safe cultivars, the crop varieties with the ability to accumulate a low level of Cd in their edible parts when grown on polluted soil) in these areas and highlights the importance of knowledge on phenotypic variation in crop Cd accumulation for food Cd risk control. Studies on phenotypic variation in heavy metal accumulation started decades ago for a wide range of crops, and synthesis of the scattered experimental results in the literature is in need. We built a Low-Cd Crops Database based on literature research, and relevant meta-analysis was performed to quantitatively explore the phenotypic variation in Cd uptake and translocation of rice and wheat. Considerable variability existed among rice (median grain Cd bioconce nt ration factor (BCF) of 0.10) and wheat (median grain Cd BCF of 0.21) phenotypes in grain Cd accumulation, and this variability was labile to soil pH and the level of Cd stress. Wheat statistically had a higher root-to-shoot Cd-translocating ability than rice, highlighting potential food Cd risks and the importance of growing low-Cd wheat in slightly Cd-contaminated regions. Meanwhile, no correlations were detected among soil-to-root, root-to-shoot, and shoot-to-grain translocation factors, implying that Cd uptake and internal translocation in crops were probably controlled by different underlying gene tic mechanisms. Root-to-shoot Cd transport could be a favorable target trait for selecting and breeding low-Cd rice and wheat. In all, this review provides a comprehensive low-Cd crop list for remediation practice and a systematic meta-analysis inferring food Cd risks based on plant capacity for Cd accumulation and desired traits for low-Cd crop breeding.