All Documents - The Lens. The Lens. Domesticated Animals and Biodiversity: Early Agriculture at the Gates of Europe and Long-term Ecological Consequences. Sarah B. McClure<img alt="Corresponding author contact information" src=" <img src=" alt="E-mail the corresponding author"> Department of Anthropology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, United States Available online 14 November 2013 Abstract The human effects that dominate current ecological and climatic regimes have deep roots.
Keywords Biodiversity; Domesticated animals; Holocene; Europe 1. The Anthropocene outlines a new period in the ecological history of the world, dominated by the effects of human activity (Crutzen, 2002). The origins and spread of plant agriculture and animal husbandry are increasingly understood as fundamental turning points for human–environmental interactions, health, nutrition, disease, social organization, exchange and interaction. Species biodiversity is a topic of ongoing interest in modern day Europe. The Handbook of Plant Biosecurity. Genomics of Plant Genetic Resources. EMBL European Bioinformatics Institute. Open Access Button. Aflatoxins - finding solutions for improved food safety. Aflatoxins are a naturally occurring carcinogenic byproduct of common fungi on grains and other crops, particularly maize and groundnuts. They pose a significant public health risk in many tropical developing countries and are also a barrier to the growth of domestic and international commercial markets for food and feed.
In recent years the aflatoxin problem has garnered greatly increased attention from both policy and donor communities around the globe. What can be done to reduce the detrimental impacts of aflatoxins? Because growth of the molds that produce aflatoxins is caused by multiple factors, and because they must be controlled along the entire value chain from production to consumption, only a robust multifaceted approach to controlling aflatoxins is likely to be effective. The nineteen briefs in this set thus provide different perspectives on aflatoxin risks and solutions. Download Full textTable of Contents and Introduction 1. Click to launch the full edition in a new window. The Garden Professors - WSU Extension. Guidebook | HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. Genetics, genomics and biotechnology are fast-paced and ever-changing fields with new discoveries occurring every day.
To help educators stay up to date on these discoveries and how to bring them into the classroom, the HudsonAlpha Education Outreach team publishes an annual Biotechnology Guidebook. A PDF version of the guidebook is available at the bottom of this page for downloading. The 2012 Gudebook includes 23 articles on foundational concepts and their applications including genetically modified organisms, cancer, identifying genetic factors for disease, new treatment approaches and forensics. The 2012 Guidebook also includes 41 New Findings articles exploring exciting advances that have occurred within the last year. All of the articles are linked to the Alabama Course of Study for high school biology, genetics, AP biology and ten other career and technical education courses. Trends in Biotechnology - New Articles. Vitor B. Pinheiro, Philipp Holliger DOI: Publication stage: In Press Corrected Proof xNatural nucleic acids, DNA and RNA, are uniquely suited to their information storage role as they allow accurate propagation of chemical information through specific base pairing during replication.
DNA and RNA are composed of a limited set of four chemically analogous monomers – the nucleosides adenosine, guanosine, cytidine, and thymidine (or uridine for RNA). The natural nucleosides are composed of three chemical moieties – an aromatic nucleobase, a conformationally flexible ribofuranose, and the anionic phosphate diester linkage between monomers. Terrence H. DOI: xPhytoremediation is a cost-effective green alternative to traditional soil remediation technologies such as excavation followed by chemical processing. Sarah M. DOI: Stephan Noack, Wolfgang Wiechert J. Pocket K - ISAAA Publications. Transgenic Crops: An Introduction and Resource Guide. Despite the poor understanding of the process, plant breeding was a popular activity. Gregor Mendel himself, the father of genetics, was a plant breeder, as were some of the leading botanists of his time. Mendel's 1865 paper ( explaining how dominant and recessive alleles could produce the traits we see and could be passed to offspring was the first major insight into the science behind the art.
The paper was largely ignored until 1900, when three scientists working on breeding problems rediscovered it and publicized Mendel's findings. Major advances in plant breeding followed the revelation of Mendel's discovery. A variation on the wide crossing procedure is to select plants that have single chromosomes or chromosome arms substituted from one species into another. Scientists discover genetic key to efficient crops. Thomas Slewinski Cross section of a mature maize leaf showing Kranz (German for wreath) anatomy around a large vein. The bundle sheath cells (lighter red) encircle the vascular core (light blue). Mesophyll cells (dark red) encircle the bundle sheath cells. The interaction and cooperation between the mesophyll and bundle sheath is essential for the C4 photosynthetic mechanism.
With projections of 9.5 billion people by 2050, humankind faces the challenge of feeding modern diets to additional mouths while using the same amounts of water, fertilizer and arable land as today. Cornell researchers have taken a leap toward meeting those needs by discovering a gene that could lead to new varieties of staple crops with 50 percent higher yields. The gene, called Scarecrow, is the first discovered to control a special leaf structure, known as Kranz anatomy, which leads to more efficient photosynthesis. The finding "provides a clue as to how this whole anatomical key is regulated," said Turgeon. Science and Agricultural Biotechnology — Agricultural Biotechnology Communicators. Science and Agricultural Biotechnology What is biotechnology and why is it being used in our food supply? Agricultural biotechnology is really a collection of scientific techniques, including genetic engineering, used to improve plants, animals and microorganisms.
Throughout history societies have been concerned with having a safe and abundant food supply. Our ancestors learned to improve their crops and livestock by breeding them to be hardier and provide more food. What is genetic engineering? All living things - including the fruits, vegetables and meat that we eat - contain genes that provide the instructions that tell the cells how to function. How long has genetic engineering been used in agriculture and food production? The first food products of biotechnology - an enzyme used in cheese production and a yeast used for baking - appeared on the market in 1990. What other products are genetically engineered? Genomics and Breeding for Climate-Resilient Crops: Vol. 1 Concepts and ... - Google Books. World changing technology enables crops to take nitrogen from the air. A major new technology has been developed by The University of Nottingham, which enables all of the world’s crops to take nitrogen from the air rather than expensive and environmentally damaging fertilisers.
Nitrogen fixation, the process by which nitrogen is converted to ammonia, is vital for plants to survive and grow. However, only a very small number of plants, most notably legumes (such as peas, beans and lentils) have the ability to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere with the help of nitrogen fixing bacteria. The vast majority of plants have to obtain nitrogen from the soil, and for most crops currently being grown across the world, this also means a reliance on synthetic nitrogen fertiliser.
Professor Edward Cocking, Director of The University of Nottingham’s Centre for Crop Nitrogen Fixation, has developed a unique method of putting nitrogen-fixing bacteria into the cells of plant roots. The proof of concept has already been demonstrated. Story credits. Argentina desarrolla papa GM resistente a virus. Investigadores argentinos desarrollaron una papa genéticamente modificada (GM) resistente al Virus de la Papa Y (PVY), el cual reduce entre el 20% y el 80% la productividad del cultivo. Un equipo de científicos argentinos desarrolló plantas de papa resistentes al Virus de la Papa Y (PVY, por su sigla en inglés), una enfermedad que afecta a mas del 50 por ciento de los cultivos y reduce su productividad desde un 20% hasta un 80%, en los casos más severos.
El equipo es liderado por Fernando Bravo Almonacid, investigador principal del Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas de Argentina -CONICET en el Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular (INGEBI, CONICET-UBA), quien explica que “este virus provoca deformación y decoloración de las hojas, que afecta la fotosíntesis. Esto lleva a que el tubérculo crezca menos y se reduzca la productividad de los cultivos”.
Se espera que la papa resistente al virus PVY próximamente pueda comercializarse. Vitamin A Cassava Dissemination Officially Launched in Nigeria | HarvestPlus. Washington D.C. -The dissemination of vitamin A cassava reached an important milestone in Nigeria on July 30 with a formal national launch under the Agricultural Transformation Agenda of the Federal Government. Agriculture Minister Dr. Akin Adesina, alongside representatives from the Ministry of Health, officiated at the event in Akwa-Ibom state attended by over 2,000 farmers and other agriculture, nutrition and development stakeholders. “The national launch is a recognition that biofortified staple food crops such as vitamin A cassava can constitute an important component in the strategy to improve nutritional and public health outcomes in Nigeria,” says Paul Ilona, the HarvestPlus Nigeria Country Manager.
“HarvestPlus is proud and committed to support the dissemination of vitamin A cassava in Nigeria.” The three launched varieties can meet 25 percent of the daily vitamin A needs of consumers in a country where vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is a serious public health concern. Collide-a-Scape. Of the all the famous names associated with climate change, there are two I would love to see headlined in a debate–against each other. Both of these individuals believe global warming presents an existential threat, both believe Big Green is part of the problem, and both offer a radically different path to decarbonization of the global economy. Yes, the debate between Naomi Klein and James Hansen would be fascinating.
Klein, as you probably have heard, is the author of a new and much discussed book titled, “This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs the Climate.” Her publisher describes it as a brilliant explanation of why the climate crisis challenges us to abandon the core “free market” ideology of our time, restructure the global economy, and remake our political systems. The New Statesmen, a liberal UK publication, opens its review of the book thusly: Look, I’m not saying that markets have no role in combatting climate change. What happens then? Respectful Insolence - "A STATEMENT OF FACT CANNOT BE INSOLENT." THE MISCELLANEOUS RAMBLINGS OF A SURGEON/SCIENTIST ON MEDICINE, QUACKERY, SCIENCE, PSEUDOSCIENCE, HISTORY, AND PSEUDOHISTORY (AND ANYTHING ELSE THAT INTERESTS HIM. National Center for Biotechnology Information.
Infos sur l’agriculture et environnement. Improved herbivore resistance in cultivated tomato with the sesquiterpene biosynthetic pathway from a wild relative. Michael Specter: The danger of science denial. An Uncertain Truth. This is the second installment of a three-part series on radical skepticism and the rise of conspiratorial thinking about science. In 1969, a series of historic memorandums began to circulate at a tobacco company in Kentucky.
The documents addressed growing public concern over the health risks associated with smoking and outlined a brazen response: The cigarette manufacturers would "establish—once and for all—that no scientific evidence has ever been produced, presented or submitted to prove conclusively that cigarette smoking causes cancer. " To support this ludicrous assertion (which the tobacco executives knew to be false) would require a spin campaign of monumental proportions. That campaign's inaugural words have now become a slogan for corporate connivery: "Doubt is our product," read one infamous memo, "since it is the best means of competing with the 'body of fact' that exists in the mind of the general public. " What makes this mode of thinking so effective—and so prevalent?
Oral HPV Infection is Three Times More Common in Men than Women, Study Shows. First author and study leader Dr. Maura Gillison, medical oncologist and head and neck cancer specialist at the OSUCCC – James, describes the findings of her paper, “Prevalence of Oral HPV Infection in the United States, 2009-2010" published online Jan. 26, 2012, by Journal of the American Medical Association. COLUMBUS, Ohio – New research shows that men are three times more likely to have an oral human papilloma virus (HPV) infection than women.
The findings help explain why HPV-related oral cancers are three times more common in men than women. Dr. Maura Gillison, a medical oncologist and head and neck cancer specialist at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. “This study of oral HPV infection is the first step toward developing potential oropharyngeal cancer prevention strategies,” says Gillison, who is the Jeg Coughlin Chair in Cancer Research at the OSUCCC-James. Other key findings include the following: Digital Resources on the Commons | IASC-COMMONS. Accountability and risk governance: a scenario-informed reflection on European regulation of GMOs - Journal of Risk Research - Knowledgebase: Latin America.