ACS agricultural science & technology最新文献

There is a need to develop new and sustainable agricultural technologies to help provide global food security, and nanoscale materials show promising results in this area. In this study, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) and chitosan-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles (CTS-MSNs) were synthesized and applied to soybeans (Glycine max) by two different strategies in greenhouse and field studies to study the role of dissolved silicic acid and chitosan in enhancing plant growth and suppressing disease damage caused by Fusarium virguliforme. Plant growth and health were assessed by measuring the soybean biomass and chlorophyll content in both healthy and Fusarium-infected plants at harvest. In the greenhouse study, foliar and seed applications with 250 mg/L nanoparticle treatments were compared. A single seed treatment of MSNs reduced disease severity by 30% and increased chlorophyll content in both healthy and infected plants by 12%. Based on greenhouse results, seed application was used in the follow-up field study and MSNs and CTS-MSNs reduced disease progression by 12 and 15%, respectively. A significant 32% increase was observed for chlorophyll content for plants treated with CTS-MSNs. Perhaps most importantly, nanoscale silica seed treatment significantly increased (23–68%) the micronutrient (Zn, Mn, Mg, K, B) content of soybean pods, suggesting a potential sustainable strategy for nano-enabled biofortification to address nutrition insecurity. Overall, these findings indicate that MSN and CTS-MSN seed treatments in soybeans enable disease suppression and increase plant health as part of a nano-enabled strategy for sustainable agriculture.

Numerous similarities exist between the structure–activity relationships of pharmaceutical drugs and pesticides, creating the potential for finding new crop management tools with novel mechanisms of action. Analogues of pyrazinamide and its active metabolite pyrazinoic acid were evaluated on a variety of monocot and dicot species to assess their potential as commercial herbicides. Six analogues, applied postemergence at 3 kg ai/ha, controlled yellow nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus) ≥ the commercial standards bentazon or imazethapyr. The compound 5-fluoropyrazine-2-carboxylic acid provided between 71 and 95% control of barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli) and yellow nutsedge with only modest injury (8–25%) to soybean (Glycine max). A similar compound containing a bromine atom in the 5-position controlled yellow nutsedge greater than bentazon and affected soybean, sweet corn (Zea mays convar. saccharata var. rugosa), and rice (Oryza sativa) in a similar fashion to bentazon as well. The herbicidal sites of action targeted by these analogues of pyrazinamide and pyrazinoic acid are unknown, but it is hypothesized that they may be disrupting targets in the biosynthesis pathways of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and/or ethylene.

Forestry-waste biochar was tested as a commercial substrate (peat:lapillus 1:1 v/v) amendment in growing tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.). Substrates were 0% (control), 5%, 10%, 20%, and 40% (% v/v) biochar-enriched and were characterized for their textural and physicochemical properties. After harvesting, tomato production (i.e., plant and fruits), quality (e.g., nutrition and nutraceutics), and safety (i.e., biochar-related pollutants) were assessed according to the different growing media. 10-to-40% biochar-enriched substrates only exceeded the pH threshold set by L.D. 75/2010. Ni and Mn exhibited a similar trend between substrates and fruits, while Cr, Pb, and Cd were absent. Plant biomass increased (up to 11–29%) according to biochar content, which conversely diminished fruit production (∼25–60% reduction). Only acenaphthene exhibited an increasing profile (11–12 μg kg^–1) according to the treatments, nevertheless complying with the European regulations. PLS-DA confirmed practice suitability by substrate–crop correlation, providing prediction models for quality and safety assessment.

Blast disease, caused by the fungus Pyricularia oryzea, has been a significant crop limiting factor, resulting in substantial productivity losses in wheat in Brazil. This study aimed to assess the response of two different wheat cultivars with the 2NS translocation to P. oryzea infection by evaluating the grain yield, hectoliter mass (HLM), and metabolic profile. Specifically, the goal was to identify cultivars with higher resistance to P. oryzea and to study the biochemical mechanisms involved in wheat resistance against blast disease. Statistical analysis, including analysis of variance and Scott–Knott test, was performed on grain yield and HLM. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS)-based metabolomics data analysis was conducted using MS-Dial 4.9 and MetaboAnalyst 4.0 software. For noninfected plants of the two cultivars, no significant differences were observed in the grain yield and HLM. However, after infection by P. oryzea, two distinct groups emerged, exhibiting significant differences between the two cultivars in such variables. The cultivar “1403” was more resistant to blast compared to cultivar “Premium”. Metabolomic analysis revealed a distinct metabolic composition in response to P. oryzae infection, indicating variations in resistance to the pathogen characterized by changes in compounds from the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) and increased levels of d-mannose in infected “Premium” plants.

To reduce pesticide exposure to nontarget organisms in the United States (US), mitigations are being proposed a priori for regulatory compliance. Consequently, agricultural best management practices (BMPs) for pesticide runoff, proposed in the Environmental Protection Agency’s Endangered Species Act (ESA) workplan [USEPA. ESA Workplan Update: Nontarget Species Mitigation for RegistrationReview and Other FIFRA Actions, 2022. https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-11/esa-workplan-update.pdf (accessed Feb, 2023)], were inventoried and their feasibility was evaluated. For mitigation “menus” to be successful, they must be comprehensive and include options for a variety of environmental conditions. Based on this inventory, the most adopted practices by landowners were soil cover and erosion control practices due to their widespread applicability to most cropland. In contrast, the least adopted practices were water management and vegetative buffer practices due to increased costs and land requirements. This work can support the refinement of the pesticide risk assessment process, including future mitigation options, and assist landowners in selecting the most feasible BMPs for their individual operation in compliance with the ESA.

The only commercially relevant source for natural rubber (NR) is the Para rubber tree, Hevea brasiliensis. The need to find new sources of NR is increasing rapidly due to challenges from climate change and environmental impacts. NR from Taraxacum kok-saghyz (TKS) is a promising alternative. To compete with the pricing of NR from the rubber tree, an economically viable extraction system with a high output of NR is needed. The mechanisms involved in the separation of rubber from other plant constituents and potential rubber agglomeration during mechanical extraction processes are described through experimental results but not as extraction models. To analyze these mechanisms, two different wet-mill extraction system setups are investigated in this study: single-stage extraction and two-stage extraction with premilling. Two extraction models for mechanical rubber extraction mechanisms are identified and described: (i) the Model of Rolling Shear Mechanism with mild extraction behavior and rubber agglomeration, and (ii) the Model of Abrasion Shear Mechanism, which limits the rubber yield and promotes fast rubber agglomeration. The insights into the mechanisms are described and discussed through sieve analysis, rubber yield, dirt content, microscopic analyses, and viscoelastic analyses of the extracted rubber.

This study examines microplastics (MPs) for the first time in the soil of Diamond City, Surat (Gujarat, India) in terms of their abundance, distribution, chemical composition, and ecological risk assessment. A stereomicroscope and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were used to measure the physical and chemical properties of the MPs. The outcome showed the omnipresence of MPs in Surat city’s soil, with an average abundance of 103.2 ± 57.28 particles 100 g^–1. Over 90% of all MPs were made of polyethylene (70.19%), polypropylene (17.53%), and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (6.92%) polymers. The white/transparent-colored MPs having a size of about 2–5 mm are predominantly available. The principal component analysis (PCA) results indicate that the discovered MPs in the soil samples are mostly represented by fragments and fibers, which account for 52.90% of the total variance in the data set. Additionally, in the current research, the ecological risk assessment of MPs in soil, the pollution load index (PLI), the polymer hazard index (PHI), and the ecological risk index (ERI) of MPs were studied. The PLI values greater than 1 were observed, indicating that all sampling sites were polluted with MPs. Based on the abundance, type of polymer, and toxicity of MPs found in the soil sample, an evaluation concluded that there is a moderate to medium ecological risk associated with MPs polluting the city soil. The greatest PHI value in this study is 239.69 (risk category: medium), while the lowest PHI value is 8.69 (risk category: low). The greenness profile of the method was assessed using the software-based analytical greenness metric (AGREE) tool. The developed approach is partially green, as shown by an AGREE metric score of 0.53. The present investigations emphasize the critical importance of taking action in metropolitan areas such as Surat to mitigate MP pollution and improve waste management practices for a greener and cleaner ecosystem in the future. These findings will inspire the creation of ecofriendly alternatives crucial for reducing plastic consumption, safeguarding ecosystems, and mitigating MPs’ impact on the soil quality.

To protect the environment, pesticides often require mitigation measures to reduce losses via runoff, erosion, spray drift, and other routes of transport. Although many mitigation measures are generally effective at reducing pesticide losses from treated areas, it is often unknown whether they provide the desired protection level for the environment including threatened and endangered (“listed”) species. In this paper, we use the Agricultural Policy/Environmental eXtender model (APEX) to quantify reductions in pesticide losses via runoff and erosion for common mitigation measures. These measures are currently being considered for the protection of listed species in the United States (i.e., vegetative buffers, contour cropping, planting of cover crops, and no-till practices). Analyses were conducted for two pesticides, atrazine and pendimethalin, for each of the two crop groups, corn, and vegetables/ground fruits. Separate analyses were conducted for different hydrologic regions, in which these crops are grown in the United States. Our results indicate that the effectiveness of the runoff mitigation measures, whether singly or in combination, varies with pesticide, crop, and region. We also found that there are diminishing returns as more mitigations are added to the analysis. Such factors need to be considered when developing suites of potential mandatory pesticide mitigations (i.e., pick lists) for the protection of threatened and endangered species in the United States.