Harvesting as an alternative to burning for managing Spinifex Grasslands in Australia

Sustainable harvesting of grasslands can buffer large scale wildfires and the harvested biomass can be used for various products. Spinifex (Triodia spp.) grasslands cover ≈30% of the Australian continent and form the dominant vegetation in the driest regions. Harvesting near settlements is being considered as a means to reduce the occurrence and intensity of wildfires and to source biomaterials for sustainable desert living. However, it is unknown if harvesting spinifex grasslands can be done sustainably without loss of biodiversity and ecosystem function. We examined the trajectory of plant regeneration of burned and harvested spinifex grassland, floristic diversity, nutrient concentrations in soil and plants, and seed germination in controlled ex situ conditions. After two to three years of burning or harvesting in dry or wet seasons, species richness, diversity, and concentrations of most nutrients in soil and leaves of regenerating spinifex plants were overall similar in burned and harvested plots. Germination tests showed that 20% of species require fire-related cues to trigger germination, indicating that fire is essential for the regeneration of some species. Further experimentation should evaluate these findings and explore if harvesting and intervention, such as sowing of fire-cued seeds, allow sustainable, localised harvesting of spinifex grasslands.

Biolistic transformation of elite indica rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivars through semi-solid and liquid medium selection systems

Following microprojectile mediated delivery of a plasmid construct (pAHC-25) encoding bar (bialophos resistance) gene into five-day-old scutellar calli derived from mature embryos, the effectiveness of selection procedure for bar-gene expressing tissue was compared for two indica rice cultivars (IR-64 and Karnal Local). While IR-64 transformants could be selected through the generally used semi-solid selection medium, the same procedure was not effective in the basmati cultivar Karnal Local. In the latter case, while lower concentrations (2–4 mg 1−1) of the selective agent phosphinothricin (PPT) yielded only escapes, higher concentrations (6–8 mg l−1) inhibited proliferation of transformed as well as untransformed sectors. For Karnal Local, a liquid medium based selection system was successfully utilized for recovering transformed sectors and, eventually, regenerants. The study demonstrates the generation of transformants of two elite indica cultivars using the environment-independent system of mature embryos from seeds.

Cultivation

The interest in potentially economically valuable plants (for food, timber, dyes, fabric, and drugs) was part of the concerted effort given by colonial governments towards providing botanic gardens in new colonies. While convicts and guards laboured in Brisbane Town from 1825 until 1849, botanists such as Alan Cunningham were discovering the delights of native plants in their numerous excursions. Their observations and collections of seeds were sent south (to the local botanic gardens at Melbourne and Sydney) and onward to the Royal Botanic Gardens in Britain (at Kew and Edinburgh). This set the local pattern for future exchanges among the global British Imperial botanic garden network...

Seed germination may explain differences in invasiveness and prevalence : a case study using cat's claw creeper (Dolichandra unguis-cati)

High germination rates and rapid germination behavior in response to different environmental cues are traits that may be associated with invasiveness. Cat’s claw creeper (Dolichandra unguis-cati (L.) Lohmann (syn. Macfadyena unguis-cati (L.) Gentry), a Weed of National Significance has two forms, a long-pod (LP) form and a short-pod (SP) from. The LP form occurs in only a few localities in southeast Queensland while the SP form is widely distributed in Queensland and New South Wales. The aims of this investigation were: to evaluate whether there are significant differences in germination traits between the two forms of cat’s claw creeper; and if there are any significant differences, to find out whether the differences in germination can be related to prevalence and invasiveness levels for the two forms. Long pod and short pod seeds collected in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 from various localities in Qld were germinated in growth chambers in early 2013. The growth chambers were set to 10/20 ºC, 15/25 ºC and 20/30 ºC temperature cycles. Seeds from 2009-2012 of either form did not germinate, while for the fresh seeds (2013), SP exhibited significantly higher total germination percentage and rates than LP. Assuming that the two forms were introduced in Australia at around the same period, these results could explain why SP is widely distributed (and therefore more invasive) in Qld and NSW while LP is only confined to a few localities in southeast Qld.

A continent-wide study reveals clear relationships between regional abiotic conditions and post-dispersal seed predation

Aim Large-scale patterns linking energy availability, biological productivity and diversity form a central focus of ecology. Despite evidence that the activity and abundance of animals may be limited by climatic variables associated with regional biological productivity (e.g. mean annual precipitation and annual actual evapotranspiration), it is unclear whether plant–granivore interactions are themselves influenced by these climatic factors across broad spatial extents. We evaluated whether climatic conditions that are known to alter the abundance and activity of granivorous animals also affect rates of seed removal. Location Eleven sites across temperate North America. Methods We used a common protocol to assess the removal of the same seed species (Avena sativa) over a 2-day period. Model selection via the Akaike information criterion was used to determine a set of candidate binomial generalized linear mixed models that evaluated the relationship between local climatic data and post-dispersal seed predation. Results Annual actual evapotranspiration was the single best predictor of the proportion of seeds removed. Annual actual evapotranspiration and mean annual precipitation were both positively related to mean seed removal and were included in four and three of the top five models, respectively. Annual temperature range was also positively related to seed removal and was an explanatory variable in three of the top four models. Main conclusions Our work provides the first evidence that energy and precipitation, which are known to affect consumer abundance and activity, also translate to strong, predictable patterns of seed predation across a continent. More generally, these findings suggest that future changes in temperature and precipitation could have widespread consequences for plant species composition in grasslands, through impacts on plant recruitment.

Temporal and spatial patterns of seed dispersal of Musa acuminata by Cynopterus sphinx

The foraging behavior of greater short-nosed fruit bats (Cynopterus sphinx) on wild banana (Musa acuminata) and subsequent dispersal of seeds were studied in the Tropical Rainforest Conservation Area, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Yunnan province, by direct observation of marked fruits, mist netting, and seed collection. The mean number (± SE) of individual C. sphinx captured by mist net were 2.2 ± 0.33/day and 1.4 ± 0.32/day in the rainy season (September to October) and dry season (November to December), respectively; the difference was not significant. The number of seed pellets expelled was 9.0 ± 1.12/day and 7.2 ± 1.37/day in the rainy and dry seasons respectively; again the difference was not significant. The removal curves for marked fruit were similar for 10 focal trees. Fruits were consumed heavily within two weeks after ripening and all the marked fruit were removed within one month. The difference in seed dispersal was significant between different feeding roosts indicating that patterns of seed dispersal may not be uniform. We found the seeds of M. acuminata can be dispersed by C. sphinx to a distance of about 200 m, and C. sphinx can be considered as an effective seed disperser of M. acuminata.

Mechanics of Polyropylene-Seed-Coat-Fibres Composites AndPolyropylene –Wood Fibres Composites-A Comparative Study

Forestry by-products have potential applications as components of wood composites. Replacement of conventional pine radiata wood-fibres by the fibres from the seeds (SCF) of the by-products, require determining and optimizing the mechanical properties to producing highest quality products. Response to mechanical stress is an important aspect to consider towards partial or full replacement of the wood-fibres by SCFs. In the present study the critical strain energy release rate, and the fracture toughness are derived from the published data. The present work uses rules of mixture to derive the mechanical and the physical properties of the SCF and relates the performance of the composites of the wood-fibres and the SCF to chemical composition, dispersion, weight and Vf of the fibres. We have also derived the Gc, the critical strain energy release rate, KIC, the fracture toughness of the composites.

Community environment education centers : Facilitating community created ecoscapes

This study focuses on designing a community environment education center (CEEC) for Chillingham, as a hub for community transition to sustainability, redressing social fragmentation, youth unemployment, a high eco-footprint and economic rural decline due to globalisation. The ecologically sustainable development framework was delivered by integrating environment education and community development through project-based experiential learning. The development of Chillingham Community Centre involved case study research and incorporated participatory design charrettes, transformative learning, eco-positive development and community-public-private partnerships. This process evolved from community strategic planning in a small rural village buffering world heritage rainforests impacted by a rapidly expanding urban conurbation on Australia’s east coast. This community space encompasses socio-environmental flows connecting people to each other and the ecoscape to grow natural capital, community cohesion and empower eco-governance. Modelling passive solar design, on-site renewable energy/water/nutrient cycling, community garden/market and environment education programs sowed the seeds for a green local economy, demonstrating community capacity to participate in transition to sustainability. A small rural community can demonstrate to other communities that a CEEC enables people to meet their socio-environmental and economic needs locally and sustainably. The ecologically sustainable solution is holistic, all settlements need to be richly biodiverse, locally specific and globally wise.

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths (STEM)

"Historically, science had a place in education before the time of Plato and Aristotle (e.g., Stonehenge). Technology gradually increased since early human inventions (e.g., indigenous tools and weapons), rose up dramatically through the industrial revolution and escalated exponentially during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, particularly with the advent of the Internet. Engineering accomplishments were evident in the constructs of early civil works, including roads and structural feats such as the Egyptian pyramids. Mathematics was not as clearly defined BC (Seeds 2010), but was utilized for more than two millennia (e.g., Archimedes, Kepler, and Newton) and paved its way into education as an essential scientific tool and a way of discovering new possibilities. Hence, combining science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) areas should not come as a surprise but rather as a unique way of packaging what has been ..."--Publisher Website

Optimal eradication: When to stop looking for an invasive plant

The notion of being sure that you have completely eradicated an invasive species is fanciful because of imperfect detection and persistent seed banks. Eradication is commonly declared either on an ad hoc basis, on notions of seed bank longevity, or on setting arbitrary thresholds of 1% or 5% confidence that the species is not present. Rather than declaring eradication at some arbitrary level of confidence, we take an economic approach in which we stop looking when the expected costs outweigh the expected benefits. We develop theory that determines the number of years of absent surveys required to minimize the net expected cost. Given detection of a species is imperfect, the optimal stopping time is a trade-off between the cost of continued surveying and the cost of escape and damage if eradication is declared too soon. A simple rule of thumb compares well to the exact optimal solution using stochastic dynamic programming. Application of the approach to the eradication programme of Helenium amarum reveals that the actual stopping time was a precautionary one given the ranges for each parameter. © 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd/CNRS.

Experimental and statistical investigation of Australian native plants for second-generation biodiesel production

This work explores the potential of Australian native plants as a source of second-generation biodiesel for internal combustion engines application. Biodiesels were evaluated from a number of non-edible oil seeds which are grow naturally in Queensland, Australia. The quality of the produced biodiesels has been investigated by several experimental and numerical methods. The research methodology and numerical model developed in this study can be used for a broad range of biodiesel feedstocks and for the future development of renewable native biodiesel in Australia.

Climate-ready crops: Intellectual property, agriculture, and climate change

In The Climate Change Review, Ross Garnaut emphasised that ‘Climate change and climate change mitigation will bring about major structural change in the agriculture, forestry and other land use sectors’. He provides this overview of the effects of climate change on food demand and supply: ‘Domestic food production in many developing countries will be at immediate risk of reductions in agricultural productivity due to crop failure, livestock loss, severe weather events and new patterns of pests and diseases.’ He observes that ‘Changes to local climate and water availability will be key determinants of where agricultural production occurs and what is produced.’ Gert Würtenberger has commented that modern plant breeding is particularly concerned with addressing larger issues about nutrition, food security and climate change: ‘Modern plant breeding has an increasing importance with regard to the continuously growing demand for plants for nutritional and feeding purposes as well as with regard to renewal energy sources and the challenges caused by climate changes.’ Moreover, he notes that there is a wide array of scientific and technological means of breeding new plant varieties: ‘Apart from classical breeding, technologies have an important role in the development of plants that satisfy the various requirements that industrial and agricultural challenges expect to be fulfilled.’ He comments: ‘Plant variety rights, as well as patents which protect such results, are of increasingly high importance to the breeders and enterprises involved in plant development programmes.’ There has been larger interest in the intersections between sustainable agriculture, environmental protection and food security. The debate over agricultural intellectual property is a polarised one, particularly between plant breeders, agricultural biotechnology companies and a range of environmentalist groups. Susan Sell comments that there are complex intellectual property battles surrounding agriculture: 'Seeds are at the centre of a complex political dynamic between stakeholders. Access to seeds concerns the balance between private rights and public obligations, private ownership and the public domain, and commercial versus humanitarian objectives.' Part I of this chapter considers debates in respect of plant breeders’ rights, food security and climate change in relation to the UPOV Convention 1991. Part II explores efforts by agricultural biotechnology companies to patent climate-ready crops. Part III considers the report of the Special Rapporteur for Food, Olivier De Schutter. It looks at a variety of options to encourage access to plant varieties with climate adaptive or mitigating properties.

A functional MRI study of the relationship between naming treatment outcomes and resting state functional connectivity in post-stroke aphasia

Background: The majority of studies investigating the neural mechanisms underlying treatment in people with aphasia have examined task-based brain activity. However, the use of resting-state fMRI may provide another method of examining the brain mechanisms responsible for treatment-induced recovery, and allows for investigation into connectivity within complex functional networks Methods: Eight people with aphasia underwent 12 treatment sessions that aimed to improve object naming. Half the sessions employed a phonologically-based task, and half the sessions employed a semantic-based task, with resting-state fMRI conducted pre- and post-treatment. Brain regions in which the amplitude of low frequency fluctuations (ALFF) correlated with treatment outcomes were used as seeds for functional connectivity (FC) analysis. FC maps were compared from pre- to post-treatment, as well as with a group of 12 healthy older controls Results: Pre-treatment ALFF in the right middle temporal gyrus (MTG) correlated with greater outcomes for the phonological treatment, with a shift to the left MTG and supramarginal gyrus, as well as the right inferior frontal gyrus, post-treatment. When compared to controls, participants with aphasia showed both normalization and up-regulation of connectivity within language networks post-treatment, predominantly in the left hemisphere Conclusions: The results provide preliminary evidence that treatments for naming impairments affect the FC of language networks, and may aid in understanding the neural mechanisms underlying the rehabilitation of language post-stroke.

Small gold nanoparticles as crystallization "catalysts": Effect of seed size and concentration on Au-ZnO hetero nanoparticles

This work reports the effect of seed nanoparticle size and concentration effects on heterogeneous crystal nucleation and growth in colloidal suspensions. We examined these effects in the Au nanoparticle-seeded growth of Au-ZnO hetero-nanocrystals under synthesis conditions that generate hexagonal, cone-shaped ZnO nanocrystals. It was observed that small (~ 4 nm) Au seed nanoparticles form one-to-one Au-ZnO hetero dimers and that Au nanoparticle seeds of this size can also act as crystallization ‘catalysts’ that readily promote the nucleation and growth of ZnO nanocrystals. Larger seed nanoparticles (~9 nm, ~ 11 nm) provided multiple, stable ZnO-nucleation sites, generating multi-crystalline hetero trimers, tetramers and oligomers.

Cytotoxic C20 diterpenoid alkaloids from the Australian endemic rainforest plant Anopterus macleayanus

In order to identify new anticancer compounds from nature, a prefractionated library derived from Australian endemic plants was generated and screened against the prostate cancer cell line LNCaP using a metabolic assay. Fractions from the seeds, leaves, and wood of Anopterus macleayanus showed cytotoxic activity and were subsequently investigated using a combination of bioassay-guided fractionation and mass-directed isolation. This led to the identification of four new diterpenoid alkaloids, 6α-acetoxyanopterine (1), 4′-hydroxy-6α-acetoxyanopterine (2), 4′-hydroxyanopterine (3), and 11α-benzoylanopterine (4), along with four known compounds, anopterine (5), 7β-hydroxyanopterine (6), 7β,4′-dihydroxyanopterine (7), and 7β-hydroxy-11α-benzoylanopterine (8); all compounds were purified as their trifluoroacetate salt. The chemical structures of 1–8 were elucidated after analysis of 1D/2D NMR and MS data. Compounds 1–8 were evaluated for cytotoxic activity against a panel of human prostate cancer cells (LNCaP, C4-2B, and DuCaP) and nonmalignant cell lines (BPH-1 and WPMY-1), using a live-cell imaging system and a metabolic assay. All compounds showed potent cytotoxicity with IC50 values of <400 nM; compound 1 was the most active natural product from this series, with an IC50 value of 3.1 nM toward the LNCaP cell line. The live-cell imaging assay on 1–8 showed a concentration- and time-dependent effect on the cell morphology and proliferation of LNCaP cells.