Publications by authors named "Thomas D Alcock"

Background And Aims: A vigorous root system is crucial for maize seedling establishment. Its formation and subsequent plant performance are hindered by nutrient- and water deficiency. Upon germination, maize seedlings develop primary, then seminal roots, covered with pubescent root hairs.

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Oilseed rape and other crops of Brassica napus have a high demand for boron (B). Boron deficiencies result in the inhibition of root growth, and eventually premature flower abortion. Understanding the genetic mechanisms underlying flower abortion in B-limiting conditions could provide the basis to enhance B-efficiency and prevent B-deficiency-related yield losses.

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Intensive cultivation and post-harvest vegetable oil production stages are major sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Variation between production systems and reporting disparity have resulted in discordance in previous emissions estimates. The aim of this study was to assess global systems-wide variation in GHG emissions resulting from palm, soybean, rapeseed and sunflower oil production.

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Backgorund: Cowpea is a crop widely used in developing countries due its rusticity. Besides its rich genotypic variability, most breeding programs do not explore its potential to improve elements uptake. Selenium (Se) is a scarce element in most soils, resulting in its deficiency being common in human diets.

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Magnesium (Mg) and calcium (Ca) are essential mineral nutrients poorly supplied in many human food systems. In grazing livestock, Mg and Ca deficiencies are costly welfare issues. Here, we report a Brassica rapa loss-of-function schengen3 (sgn3) mutant, braA.

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Selenium (Se) is a beneficial element to higher plants. Application of Se at low concentrations enhances the antioxidant metabolism reducing the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by plant membrane cells. This study aimed to evaluate how the application of Se in the forms sodium selenate and sodium selenite regulates ROS scavenging in field-grown cowpea plants.

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Background: Selenium (Se) is a nutrient for animals and humans, and is considered beneficial to higher plants. Selenium concentrations are low in most soils, which can result in a lack of Se in plants, and consequently in human diets. Phytic acid (PA) is the main storage form of phosphorus in seeds, and it is able to form insoluble complexes with essential minerals in the monogastric gut.

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Large nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizer inputs are used in many crop systems. Identifying genetic loci controlling nutrient accumulation may be useful in crop breeding strategies to increase fertilizer use efficiency and reduce financial and environmental costs. Here, variation in leaf nitrate concentration across a diversity population of 383 genotypes of was characterized.

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Peanut (), a major source of vegetable oil in many Asian countries, has become an integral part of human diet globally due to its high nutritional properties and option to consume in different forms. In order to meet the demand of vegetable oil, many peanut breeding programs of China have intensified their efforts in increasing oil content in newly bred varieties for reducing the import of edible oils in China. In this context, transcriptome sequencing data generated on 49 peanut cultivars were analyzed to identify candidate genes and develop molecular markers for seed oil content across multiple environments.

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Calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) are essential plant nutrients and vital for human and animal nutrition. Biofortification of crops has previously been suggested to alleviate widespread human Ca and Mg deficiencies. In this study, new candidate genes influencing the leaf accumulation of Ca and Mg were identified in young plants using associative transcriptomics of ionomics datasets.

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