Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi enhance alfalfa production by changing root morphology and physiology.

Soil phosphorus (P) deficiency can severely limit crop and forage productivity. With limited P resources, breeding programs to select high-P efficiency (HPE) genotypes have been developed, but the role of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in altering root morphology and physiology to increase P use efficiency and production remains poorly understood. In this study, we compared mycorrhizal responsiveness, and plasticity of root morphological and physiological traits between two low-P efficiency (LPE) and two HPE alfalfa genotypes under low and high P treatments.

Microbial changes induced by defoliation: Stronger associations with root traits than soil properties in annual ryegrass.

Microorganisms associated with belowground carbon availability play a critical role in the functions and sustainability of grazing grassland ecosystems. However, research on microbial responses to varying grazing intensities at different soil depths remains limited. This study examined rhizosphere bacterial communities under varying defoliation intensities in a 24-week pot experiment involving repeated defoliation of annual ryegrass (Lolium rigidum).

Robust 1-μm-Resolution Magnetic Probe Enabled by Optical Trapping of Nanodiamonds on a Tapered Fiber.

High-resolution magnetic field scanning is critical for investigating nanoscale spin systems and characterizing defects in microelectronic devices. We present a fabrication-free approach to create robust magnetic probes with 1-μm spatial resolution by synergizing the quantum magnetic sensitivity of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in nanodiamonds with the enhanced photon efficiency of tapered fibers. Through gradient-force optical trapping, nanodiamonds are precisely positioned at the fiber tip, where van der Waals forces immobilize them without requiring micro-nanoprocessing.

Root morphology, exudate patterns, and mycorrhizal symbiosis are determinants to improve phosphorus acquisition in alfalfa.

Differences in phosphorus (P) utilization efficiency (PUtE) and/or yield are closely linked to differences in root functional traits under low soil P availability. However, our understanding of how soil P availability mediates the intraspecific variation in root functional traits for breeding high-P efficiency genotypes to increase PUtE and yield remains limited. We investigated plant growth parameters and pivotal root functional traits associated with P acquisition in 20 alfalfa genotypes with contrasting P efficiencies and supplied with low, medium, or high levels of P.

Quantum Coherence Control at Temperatures up to 1400 K.

Coherent quantum control at high temperatures is important for expanding the quantum world and is useful for applying quantum technologies to realistic environments. Quantum control of spins in diamond has been demonstrated near 1000 K, with the spins polarized and read out at room temperature and controlled at elevated temperatures by rapid heating and cooling. Further increase of the working temperature is challenging due to fast spin relaxation in comparison with the heating and cooling rates.

Interactive effects of dietary leucine and isoleucine affect amino acid profile and metabolism through AKT/TOR signaling pathways in blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala).

The purpose of this research is to explore the interaction between dietary leucine and isoleucine levels on whole-body composition, plasma and liver biochemical indexes, amino acids deposition in the liver, and amino acid metabolism of blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala). The test fish (average weight: 56.00 ± 0.

Vacuum induced transparency in metamaterials.

For the cavity-based electromagnetically induced transparent (EIT), as the coherent driving field is enhanced by the optical cavity, the weak probe field can propagate through the atomic ensemble without absorption even if the driving field is weak. The extreme case of vacuum in the cavity is called "vacuum-induced transparency" (VIT) to distinguish it from the cavity EIT. Here we construct a new kind of cavity made of Metamaterials, i.

Controllable single-photon nonreciprocal propagation between two waveguides chirally coupled to a quantum emitter.

We investigate coherent controlling single-photon nonreciprocal propagation in a pair of waveguides chirally coupled to an atom by using a classical optical field. The results show that for a nonresonant photon, the perfect single-photon nonreciprocal propagation can be realized by adjusting the Rabi frequency and detuning. Furthermore, the nonreciprocal propagation is switchable by using the classic field.

[Modelling the changes of soil organic carbon under different management practices using Daycent model in North China].

The Daycent model was calibrated and validated using measured crop yield and soil organic carbon (SOC) as double assessment standards based on the experimental data from three long-term experiments (i.e. Zhengzhou site in Henan Province, Yucheng site in Shandong Province and Quzhou site in Hebei Province) in North China.

Exogenous abscisic acid reduces water loss and improves antioxidant defence, desiccation tolerance and transpiration efficiency in two spring wheat cultivars subjected to a soil water deficit.

The effect of soil drenching with 10µM abscisic acid (ABA) on the physiological responses of two spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars released in different decades was evaluated when subjected to a water deficit at jointing or at booting. Exogenous ABA application increased the ABA concentration in the leaves, reduced the stomatal conductance (gs), slowed the rate of water use, decreased the lethal leaf water potential (ψ) used to measure desiccation tolerance and lowered the soil water content (SWC) at which leaf relative water content (RWC) began to decrease and wilting was observed.

β-Aminobutyric acid increases abscisic acid accumulation and desiccation tolerance and decreases water use but fails to improve grain yield in two spring wheat cultivars under soil drying.

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of the non-protein amino acid, β-aminobutyric acid (BABA), on the homeostasis between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidant defence during progressive soil drying, and its relationship with the accumulation of abscisic acid (ABA), water use, grain yield, and desiccation tolerance in two spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars released in different decades and with different yields under drought. Drenching the soil with 100 µM BABA increased drought-induced ABA production, leading to a decrease in the lethal leaf water potential (Ψ) used to measure desiccation tolerance, decreased water use, and increased water use efficiency for grain (WUEG) under moderate water stress.