Safety of eucalyptus-based herbicides to crops - a study with Solanum lycopersicum L. as a model species.

The development of eco-friendly herbicides is a crucial step towards sustainable agriculture. Over recent years, eucalyptus-based herbicides have been acknowledged as effective and promising strategies for weed management to reduce the application of synthetic herbicides, whose excessive use is associated with negative impacts in all environmental matrices. In previous studies, we developed two novel eucalyptus-based herbicides, EucaBio_solid (pre-emergent) and EucaBio_liquid (post-emergent), which showed strong herbicidal activities against Portulaca oleracea L.

A multispecies microcosm to assess the effect of footwear wastes on soil biota: a contribution towards sustainability.

Due to the high quantities of solid waste with high concentrations of chromium that the footwear industry produces and its disposal sites, it is vital to understand whether leather residue itself is harmful to the ecosystem. Thus, a microcosm test with multispecies (Brassica oleracea and Eisenia fetida) was carried out using an agricultural soil contaminated with two different leather residues (Wet Blue and Finished Leather) from the footwear industry. After the stabilization period, Brassica oleracea seedlings and Eisenia fetida adults were exposed to these treatments.

Common dolphin's shipping noise risk assessment on the Portuguese coast.

Ocean noise generated by human activities at sea has been increasing over the decades, affecting marine ecosystems. Ship traffic flow between the Mediterranean or South Atlantic and northern Europe makes the coast of Portugal one of the most intense shipping highways on a global scale. Among the cetaceans of the coast of Portugal, the common dolphin (Delphinus delphis) was selected as a target species.

Unravelling the role of proline in glyphosate-mediated toxicity - tolerance mechanism or stress signal?

Glyphosate (GLY), the most widely used herbicide, has been regarded as an emergent environmental contaminant due to its constant and cumulative use, with potential harm to non-target organisms, such as crops, disrupting cells' redox balance. Therefore, plants need to fine-tune their antioxidant (AOX) mechanisms to thrive under GLY-contaminated environments. Proline overaccumulation is a common response in plants exposed to GLY, yet its role in GLY-induced toxicity remains unclear.

Progesterone and brassinosteroids synergistically enhance progesterone removal and antioxidant capacity of L.

Progesterone (PROG) has been detected at various concentrations in the environment and has adverse effects on humans and wildlife. This work evaluated the impact of PROG in L. plants, its removal capacity, and how 2,4-epibrassinolide (24-EBL) affects this process.

The ectomycorrhizal fungus Paxillus involutus positively modulates Castanea sativa Miller (var. Marsol) responses to heat and drought co-exposure.

Castanea sativa Miller, a high-valuable crop for Mediterranean countries, is facing frequent and prolonged periods of heat and drought, severely affecting chestnut production. Aiming to tackle this problem, this study unraveled the influence of mycorrhizal association with the fungi Paxillus involutus (Batsch) on young chestnut plants' responses to combined heat (42 °C; 4 h/day) and drought (no irrigation until soil moisture reached 25%) over 21 days of stress exposure. Heat stress had no harmful effects on growth, photosynthesis, nor induced oxidative stress in either mycorrhizal (MR) or non-mycorrhizal (NMR) chestnut plants.

Enhancing tomato plants' tolerance to combined heat and salt stress - The role of arbuscular mycorrhizae and biochar.

The Mediterranean basin is highly susceptible to climate change, with soil salinization and the increase in average temperatures being two of the main factors affecting crop productivity in this region. Following our previous studies on describing the detrimental effects of heat and salt stress co-exposure on tomato plants, this study aimed to understand if substrate supplementation with a combination of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and biochar could mitigate the negative consequences of these stresses. Upon 21 days of exposure, stressed tomato plants grown under supplemented substrates showed increased tolerance to heat (42 °C for 4 h/day), salt (100 mM NaCl), and their combination, presenting increased biomass and flowering rate.

Unravelling the combined impacts of drought and Cu in barley plants - double trouble?

The occurrence of drought in soils, particularly in those contaminated by metals, poses a current threat to crops, as these factors can interact and induce unique stress responses. Therefore, this study mainly focused on understanding the crosstalk between drought and copper (Cu) stress in the physiology of the barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) plant.

Beach wrack: Discussing ecological roles, risks, and sustainable bioenergy and agricultural applications.

The equilibrium of the marine ecosystem is currently threatened by several constraints, among which climate change and anthropogenic activities stand out. Indeed, these factors favour the growth of macroalgae, which sometimes end up stranded on the beaches at the end of their life cycle, forming what is known as beach wrack. Despite its undeniable important ecological role on beaches, as it is an important source of organic matter (OM), and provides food and habitat for several invertebrates, reptiles, small mammals, and shorebirds, the overaccumulation of beach wrack is often associated with the release of greenhouse gases, negatively impacting tourist activities, and generating economic expenses for its removal.

Are tomato plants co-exposed to heat and salinity able to ensure a proper carbon metabolism? - An insight into the photosynthetic hub.

Abiotic stress combinations, such as high temperatures and soil/water salinization, severely threaten crop productivity worldwide. In this work, an integrative insight into the photosynthetic metabolism of tomato plants subjected to salt (100 mM NaCl) and/or heat (42 °C; 4 h/day) was performed. After three weeks, the stress combination led to more severe consequences on growth and photosynthetic pigments than the individual stresses.

Unveiling the efficacy of pre-emergent application of young Eucalyptus globulus leaves as a weed control strategy: Bridging macroscopic effects and cellular responses.

Allelopathy, the inhibition of neighbouring plant growth by certain plants, can be particularly useful if applied in a targeted way for weed management. So, this study aimed to assess and characterize the herbicidal activity of fresh and dried leaves from young Eucalyptus globulus Labill. trees applied as a soil amendment.

Leaf Aqueous Extract Differentially Inhibits the Growth of Three Bacterial Tomato Pathogens.

As available tools for crop disease management are scarce, new, effective, and eco-friendly solutions are needed. So, this study aimed at assessing the antibacterial activity of a dried leaf Labill. aqueous extract (DLE) against pv.

Accumulation of Proline in Plants under Contaminated Soils-Are We on the Same Page?

Agricultural soil degradation is occurring at unprecedented rates, not only as an indirect effect of climate change (CC) but also due to intensified agricultural practices which affect soil properties and biodiversity. Therefore, understanding the impacts of CC and soil degradation on plant physiology is crucial for the sustainable development of mitigation strategies to prevent crop productivity losses. The amino acid proline has long been recognized for playing distinct roles in plant cells undergoing osmotic stress.

Young Tomato Plants Respond Differently under Single or Combined Mild Nitrogen and Water Deficit: An Insight into Morphophysiological Responses and Primary Metabolism.

This study aimed to understand the morphophysiological responses and primary metabolism of tomato seedlings subjected to mild levels of nitrogen and/or water deficit (50% N and/or 50% W). After 16 days of exposure, plants grown under the combined deficit showed similar behavior to the one found upon exposure to single N deficit. Both N deficit treatments resulted in a significantly lower dry weight, leaf area, chlorophyll content, and N accumulation but in a higher N use efficiency when compared to control (CTR) plants.

Enzymatic and Non-Enzymatic Antioxidant Responses of Young Tomato Plants (cv. Micro-Tom) to Single and Combined Mild Nitrogen and Water Deficit: Not the Sum of the Parts.

This study aims to perform a broad analysis of the antioxidant (AOX) responses of young tomato plants exposed to single and combined mild nitrogen (N) and water deficits through the evaluation of oxidative biomarkers, non-enzymatic and enzymatic AOX components. 'Micro-Tom' seedlings were subjected to four treatments: control (CTR; 100%N + 100%W), N deficit (N; 50%N), water deficit (W; 50%W), and combined deficits (N + W; 50%N + 50%W). An enhancement of several non-enzymatic and enzymatic components was found in plants subjected to N + W deficit, which presented higher anthocyanins accumulation (up to 103%) as well as higher levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) transcripts at root level and of ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and catalase (CAT) transcripts at shoot level.

Relevance of the Exocyst in Arabidopsis Mutant for Cellular Homeostasis under Stress.

Plants must adapt to cope with adverse environmental conditions that affect their growth and development. To overcome these constraints, they can alter their developmental patterns by modulating cellular processes and activating stress-responsive signals. Alongside the activation of the antioxidant (AOX) system, a high number of genes are expressed, and proteins must be distributed to the correct locations within the cell.

Untargeted metabolomic profiling of fresh and dried leaf extracts of young and mature trees indicates differences in the presence of specialized metabolites.

Aqueous extracts from leaves contain a wide variety of specialized metabolites, mainly polyphenols and appreciable amounts of volatile compounds, which are responsible for their diverse biological activities, such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, and allelopathic features. For this reason, several studies have been conducted to explore the composition of leaf extracts for multiple therapeutic and commercial applications. However, so far, the available bibliographic reports only refer to the chemical composition of extracts prepared with leaves from mature trees, leaving much to clarify about the composition of juvenile eucalyptus leaf extracts.

Ecotoxicological relevance of glyphosate and flazasulfuron to soil habitat and retention functions - Single vs combined exposures.

Glyphosate (GLY) and flazasulfuron (FLA) are two non-selective herbicides commonly applied together. However, research focused on their single and combined ecotoxicological impacts towards non-target organisms is still inconclusive. Therefore, this study aimed to test their single effects on soil's habitat and retention functions, and to unravel their combined impacts to earthworms and terrestrial plants.

Impact of Combined Heat and Salt Stresses on Tomato Plants-Insights into Nutrient Uptake and Redox Homeostasis.

Currently, salinity and heat are two critical threats to crop production and food security which are being aggravated by the global climatic instability. In this scenario, it is imperative to understand plant responses to simultaneous exposure to different stressors and the cross-talk between underlying functional mechanisms. Thus, in this study, the physiological and biochemical responses of tomato plants ( L.

Nano-FeO as a tool to restore plant growth in contaminated soils - Assessment of potentially toxic elements (bio)availability and redox homeostasis in Hordeum vulgare L.

This work aimed to evaluate the potential of FeO nanoparticles (nano-FeO) to alleviate potentially toxic elements (PTEs) - induced stress in barley plants (Hordeum vulgare L.), focusing on bioaccumulation patterns and on plant growth and redox homeostasis. To achieve this goal, plants grew in two agricultural soils, contaminated by different levels of PTEs, collected from an industrial area, previously amended, or not, with 1% (w/w) nano-FeO.

Specific glutathione-S-transferases ensure an efficient detoxification of diclofenac in Solanum lycopersicum L. plants.

Diclofenac (DCF) is a very common pharmaceutical that, due to its high use and low removal rate, is considered a prominent contaminant in surface and groundwater worldwide. In this study, Solanum lycopersicum L. cv.

Fucoid Macroalgae Have Distinct Physiological Mechanisms to Face Emersion and Submersion Periods in Their Southern Limit of Distribution.

During high tide, macroalgae are submersed, facing adequate environmental conditions, however, at low tide, these species can be exposed to high UV radiation and desiccation, leading to an overproduction of reactive oxygen species, causing oxidative stress. Since intertidal organisms present differential sensitivity to abiotic fluctuations, this study aimed to evaluate the physiological responses [photosynthetic pigments, hydrogen peroxide (HO), lipid peroxidation (LP), and thiols and proline] of three macroalgae, from different intertidal levels, towards tidal regimes. Samples of , , and were collected from beaches located on the southern limit of distribution in periods of potential stress (Summer and Spring), under low and high tide.

Foliar Application of Sodium Nitroprusside Boosts L. Tolerance to Glyphosate by Preventing Redox Disorders and Stimulating Herbicide Detoxification Pathways.

Strategies to minimize the effects of glyphosate (GLY), the most used herbicide worldwide, on non-target plants need to be developed. In this context, the current study was designed to evaluate the potential of nitric oxide (NO), provided as 200 µM sodium nitroprusside (SNP), to ameliorate GLY (10 mg kg soil) phytotoxicity in tomato plants. Upon herbicide exposure, plant development was majorly inhibited in shoots and roots, followed by a decrease in flowering and fruit set; however, the co-application of NO partially prevented these symptoms, improving plant growth.