Healthy land
Land has a wide variety of uses: agricultural, residential, industrial, and recreational. Microbes play a key role in the terrestrial ecosystem, providing symbiotic relationships with plants. Human use of land has led to the exhaustion of nutrients in soils, contamination of land, and a reduction in biodiversity. Applying our knowledge of microbes will be essential in restoring the biodiversity of affected ecosystems. Greater research into how microbes impact human life on land could all have a positive impact, by increasing crop production, repurposing areas of land and improving microbial biodiversity in soil, land, and water.
News
Two paths to healthier soils: Scientists reveal how straw and biochar store carbon differently
Researchers discovered that combining manure with straw or biochar significantly increased soil organic carbon, but through two distinct pathways. Straw primarily stimulated microbial activity and carbon transformation, while biochar improved soil structure and the physical protection of carbon.
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NewsTurning agricultural waste into soil-building substances: Manganese-modified biochar gives fungi a powerful boost
A new study reveals how manganese-modified biochar helps beneficial fungi break down agricultural residues and accelerate the formation of valuable humic substances, offering a promising approach to sustainable organic waste recycling and soil improvement.
NewsBacteria bond grains of sand into architectural elements
Cement manufacturing is one of the largest sources of CO2 emissions in the construction industry. One scientist is researching an alternative that works in a totally different way: instead of firing rocks at over 1,000°C, she is getting bacteria to bond grains of sand together into solid architectural elements.
NewsAspens ‘remember’ past drought in their leaves
Drought may leave more than narrow rings inside a tree trunk. New research suggests quaking aspen can retain a chemical ‘memory’ of dry years, changing the defensive compounds in their leaves and reshaping the fungal communities that live on them long after soils have rewetted.
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Microalgae show promise as sustainable fertiliser for malting barley
New research has demonstrated that microalgae could provide a sustainable alternative to conventional mineral fertilisers for malting barley production. The study explored whether microalgae could help reduce the agricultural sector’s reliance on synthetic mineral fertilisers while maintaining crop performance and grain quality.
NewsScientists discover ‘D-rex’, a giant fungus from Chinese forests whose unique lineage dates back 65 million years
Deep in the forests of Yunnan, China, scientists have discovered a ‘fungal giant’ that challenges our understanding of how large fungi can become. The newly described species, Dianjunus rex, produces vertical fruiting bodies up to 50 cm high and weighing up to 2.2 kg – the largest known within the phylum Ascomycota.
NewsElephants continue to shape the savanna even after death
Researchers who studied the sites of elephant carcasses in South Africa’s Kruger National Park discovered that decomposition creates nutrient hotspots that can persist on the landscape for years, possibly decades. This flush of nutrients fuels microbial activity and plant vigor, which attracts herbivores to the site long after the visual signs of the elephant have disappeared.
NewsPerpetual Next signs agreement to accelerate the roll-out of standardized biomethanol plants
Perpetual Next have signed a License and Engineering Agreement with Air Liquide Engineering and Technologies for the supply of syngas-to-methanol technology for Perpetual Next’s first biomethanol facility, with an option to extend across other biomethanol sites.
NewsMultitarget compound strengthens tomato defenses against TYLCV with layered response
Scientists testing compounds against tomato yellow leaf curl virus found that one antiviral appears to protect tomato plants by coordinating several defensive routes rather than depending on one narrow antiviral action. It strengthens resistance-associated gene activity while also engaging host proteins that may support viral infection.
NewsResearchers uncover blueprint for more sustainable agriculture
Researchers have revealed an entirely unexpected blueprint for how one of the oldest microbes on Earth processes nitrogen to create ammonia, the building block of fertilizer. They uncovered a previously unknown structure in a key enzyme responsible for biological nitrogen fixation.
NewsFungi that colonise human faeces: first scientific study lays the groundwork for myco-sanitation
Filamentous fungi can colonise fresh human faeces, and the choice of fungal species shapes how the material changes, according to a new study. Depending on the species, the fungi accelerated degradation, reduced faecal indicator bacteria, suppressed faecal odour or changed the appearance of the material.
NewsBeetles build with a yellow pigment gene
More than 80 years ago scientists discovered that differences in yellow pigmentation were critical to courtship success and failure for fruit flies. New research has added a deeper perspective to the study of Yellow, showing how in tortoise beetles this protein has been co-opted as a building material to house symbiotic bacteria.
NewsPenguin poo is melting Antarctic snow by keeping algae green
Penguin poo is fertilizing snow algae blooms along the Antarctic Peninsula, feeding dense green algae patches along the coastline, a new study shows. These expanding stretches of green snow melt faster than clean, white snow, potentially speeding up the spread of snow- and ice- free areas of Antarctica.
NewsWine-like terroir: Influence of wild plants results in distinctive microbial and flavour signatures in Munkoyo
Wild plants traditionally used as natural starter cultures for fermentation of Munkoyo, a traditional non/very low-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage consumed in parts of Africa, can influence not only the initiation of fermentation but also the microbial communities and flavour characteristics of the final beverage.
NewsPetal ‘windows’ affect the abundance of microbes within flowers
Some flowers have petals with small semi-translucent sections. Research reveals that these “windows” alter the amount of light and heat entering the flower and create conditions that influence microbial abundance.
NewsNew microscopy investment will help unlock solutions to costly crop diseases
The James Hutton Institute has secured £640,000 from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) ALERT 2025 programme to install a new confocal microscope that will enable scientists to undertake a range of studies at the cellular level, while also opening up new scientific possibilities through enhanced imaging capabilities.
NewsScientists use bacteria to produce muconic acid from plants
Researchers have engineered a soil bacterium to synthesize muconic acid, a valuable chemical in the manufacturing industry, from plant matter.
NewsStudy finds promising signs of resistance to beech leaf disease
A new study has found evidence that the development of beech leaf disease symptoms is genetically controlled, providing the first indication that some American beech trees may have natural resistance to the disease.
NewsDesert alga could hold the key to more resilient crops
A single-celled green alga from the sand dunes of the Negev Desert has, within just a few years, become a key model organism in modern photosynthesis research. Chlorella ohadii helps researchers better understand plants’ adaptability to extreme environmental conditions.
NewsYosemite toad killer may be hiding in animals’ own homes
The Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) fungus has long been thought to live in and infect threatened Yosemite toads through their skin when they were in the water. Biologists have discovered that previously healthy toads emerged from winter hibernation burrows heavily infected, suggesting that the fungus proliferates underground in winter.
NewsStudent earns competitive fellowship for research on corn’s defense against bacteria
New funding has been awarded for research focused on understanding how plants protect themselves against pathogens. Peyton Sorensen looks specifically at corn and two of its bacterial pathogens: Xanthomonas and Clavibacter, which cause bacterial leaf streak and Goss’s bacterial wilt and blight, respectively.
NewsSoil Stars join forces to develop ambitious challenges to tackle global soil degradation
Scientists, farmers, policymakers, business leaders, investors and leading voices from science and culture have joined forces to develop ambitious new challenges designed to harness the power of soil microbes to tackle global soil degradation.
NewsWealth and health aren’t the only indicators of national happiness – there are also cats. And their parasites!
National happiness is influenced by complex relationships beyond basic economic factors, according to a study that finds that cats and their parasites are strongly correlated with both positive and negative happiness scores worldwide.