Site properties, environmental factors, and crop identify influence soil bacterial communities more than municipal biosolid application.

Reducing the environmental impact of Canadian field crop agriculture, including the reliance on conventional synthesised fertilisers, are key societal targets for establishing long-term sustainable practices. Municipal biosolids (MSB) are an abundant, residual organic material, rich in phosphate, nitrogen and other oligo-nutrients, that could be used in conjunction with conventional fertilisers to decrease their use. Though MBS have previously been shown to be an effective fertiliser substitute for different crops, including corn and soybean, there remain key knowledge gaps concerning the impact of MBS on the resident soil bacterial communities in agro-ecosystems. We hypothesised that the MBS fertiliser amendment would not significantly impact the structure or function of the soil bacterial communities, nor contribute to the spread of human pathogenic bacteria, in corn or soybean agricultural systems. In field experiments, fertiliser regimes for both crops were amended with MBS, and compared to corn and soybean plots with standard fertiliser treatments. We repeated this across four different agricultural sites in Quebec, over 2021 and 2022. We sampled MBS-treated, and untreated soils, and identified the composition of the soil bacterial communities via 16S rRNA metabarcoding. We found no indication that the MBS fertiliser amendment altered the structure of the soil bacterial communities, but rather that the soil type and crop identities were the most significant factors in structuring the bacterial communities. Moreover, there was no evidence that the MBS-treated soils were enriched in potential human bacterial pathogens over the two years of our study. Our analysis indicates that not only can MBS function as substitutes for conventional, synthesised fertilisers, but that they also do not disrupt the structure of the resident soil bacterial communities in the short term. Finally, we suggest that the use of MBS in agro-ecosystems poses no greater concern to the public than existing soil bacterial communities. This highlights the significant role MBS could potentially have in reducing the use of conventional industrial fertilisers and improving agricultural production, without risking environmental contamination.

Fertilisation of agricultural soils with municipal biosolids: Glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid inputs to Québec field crop soils.

Municipal biosolids (MBS) are suggested to be abundant, sustainable, inexpensive fertilisers, rich in phosphorus and nitrogen. However, MBS can also contain glyphosate and phosphonates that can degrade to AMPA. Glyphosate-based herbicides (GBH) are used in field crops all over the world. Most glyphosate generally degrades within a few weeks, mainly as aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA). AMPA is more persistent than glyphosate, and can accumulate from one crop year to the next. AMPA is phytotoxic even to glyphosate-resistant crops. The aims of this study were to assess whether MBS applications constitute: 1) an additional source of glyphosate and AMPA to agricultural soils with respect to GBH, 2) a significant source of trace metals, and 3) a partial replacement of mineral fertilisation while maintaining similar yields. To this end, four experimental agricultural sites were selected in Québec (Canada). Soil samples (0-20 cm) were collected to estimate the as yet unmeasured contribution of MBS application to glyphosate and AMPA inputs in agricultural soils. MBS applied in 2021 and 2022 had mean concentrations of 0.69 ± 0.53 µg glyphosate/dry g and 6.26 ± 1.93 µg AMPA/dry g. Despite the presence of glyphosate and AMPA in MBS, monitoring of these two compounds in corn and soybean crops over two years showed no significant difference between plots treated with and without MBS applications. For the same site, yields measured at harvest were similar between treatments. MBS application could thus represent a partial alternative to mineral fertilisers for field crops, while limiting the economic and environmental costs associated with their incineration and landfilling. It is also an economic advantage for agricultural producers given the possibility of using fewer mineral fertilisers and therefore reducing the environmental impact of their use.

Biochemical and molecular responses during overwintering of red clover populations recurrently selected for improved freezing tolerance.

Low freezing tolerance reduces the persistence of red clover under northern climate. The incidence of winter damages in perennial crops could increase in the future due to the adverse effects of the predicted warmer fall temperature on plant cold acclimation. To accelerate breeding progress, two cultivars of red clover Christie (C-TF0) and Endure (E-TF0) were exposed to a recurrent selection protocol for freezing tolerance performed indoor. New populations were obtained after five (C-TF5 and E-TF5), six (C-TF6 and E-TF6), and seven (C-TF7 and E-TF7) cycles of recurrent selection. These populations were overwintered under natural conditions and monitored for freezing tolerance and cold-induced molecular traits. Freezing tolerance was improved by up to 6 °C in recurrently selected populations when compared to initial cultivars confirming that further progress are achieved with advanced cycles of selection. Monthly analysis of biochemical changes shows that higher starch concentrations at the onset of the fall hardening period are contributing to the acquisition of superior freezing tolerance through its impact on sucrose accumulation. They also contribute to the vigor of spring regrowth by sustaining more pinitol and proline synthesis. Larger concentrations of these metabolites in populations with higher levels of freezing tolerance (TF7) hint at their involvement in winter survival of red clover. Among genes differentially expressed in response to both cold acclimation and recurrent selection, a concomitant cold induction of APPR9 and cold repression of 1-aminocyclopropane-carboxylate synthase suggests a link between the repression of a pathway regulated by ethylene and the improvement of freezing tolerance in red clover.

Effect of photoperiod prior to cold acclimation on freezing tolerance and carbohydrate metabolism in alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.).

Cold acclimation proceeds sequentially in response to decreases in photoperiod and temperature. This study aimed at assessing the impact of photoperiod prior to cold acclimation on freezing tolerance and related biochemical and molecular responses in two alfalfa cultivars. The fall dormant cultivar Evolution and semi-dormant cultivar 6010 were grown in growth chambers under different photoperiods (8, 10, 12, 14 or 16h) prior to cold acclimation. Freezing tolerance was evaluated as well as carbohydrate concentrations, levels of transcripts encoding enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism as well as a K-3dehydrin, before and after cold acclimation. The fall dormant cultivar Evolution had a better freezing tolerance than the semi-dormant cultivar 6010. The effect of photoperiod prior to cold acclimation on the level of freezing tolerance differed between the two cultivars: an 8h-photoperiod induced the highest level of freezing tolerance in Evolution and the lowest in 6010. In Evolution, the 8h-induced superior freezing tolerance was associated with higher concentration of raffinose-family oligosaccharides (RFO). The transcript levels of sucrose synthase (SuSy) decreased whereas those of sucrose phosphatase synthase (SPS) and galactinol synthase (GaS) increased in response to cold acclimation in both cultivars. Our results indicate that RFO metabolism could be involved in short photoperiod-induced freezing tolerance in dormant alfalfa cultivars.

Rhizobial strains exert a major effect on the amino acid composition of alfalfa nodules under NaCl stress.

Specific amino acids have protective functions in plants under stress conditions. This study assessed the effects of rhizobial strains on the amino acid composition in alfalfa under salt stress. Two alfalfa cultivars (Medicago sativa L. cv Apica and salt-tolerant cv Halo) in association with two Sinorhizobium meliloti strains with contrasting growth under salt stress (strain A2 and salt-tolerant strain Rm1521) were exposed to different levels of NaCl (0, 20, 40, 80 or 160 mM NaCl) under controlled conditions. We compared root and shoot biomasses, as well as root:shoot ratio for each association under these conditions as indicators of the salt tolerance of the symbiosis. Amino acid concentrations were analyzed in nodules, leaves and roots. The total concentration of free amino acids in nodules was mostly rhizobial-strain dependent while in leaves and roots it was mostly responsive to salt stress. For both cultivars, total and individual concentrations of amino acids including asparagine, proline, glutamine, aspartate, glutamate, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), histidine and ornithine were higher in Rm1521 nodules than in A2 nodules. Conversely, lysine and methionine were more abundant in A2 nodules than in Rm1521 nodules. Proline, glutamine, arginine, GABA and histidine substantially accumulated in salt-stressed nodules, suggesting an enhanced production of amino acids associated with osmoregulation, N storage or energy metabolism to counteract salt stress. Combining the salt-tolerant strain Rm1521 and the salt-tolerant cultivar Halo enhanced the root:shoot ratios and amino acid concentrations involved in plant protection which could be in part responsible for the enhancement of salt tolerance in alfalfa.

Dataset of protein changes induced by cold acclimation in red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) populations recurrently selected for improved freezing tolerance.

The data provide an overview of proteomic changes in red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) in response to cold acclimation and recurrent selection for superior freezing tolerance. Proteins were extracted from crowns of two red clover cultivars grown under non-acclimated or cold-acclimated conditions, and plants obtained from the initial genetic background (TF0) and from populations obtained after three (TF3) and four cycles (TF4) of recurrent selection for superior freezing tolerance. Proteins were analyzed using a two-dimensional fluorescence difference gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) coupled to mass spectroscopy (MS and MS/MS). Differentially regulated proteins were subsequently identified using MALDI TOF/TOF analysis. The data are related to a recently published research article describing proteome composition changes associated with freezing tolerance in red clover, "A proteome analysis of freezing tolerance in red clover (Trifolium pratense L.)" (Bertrand et al., 2016 [1]). They are available in the ProteomeXchange Consortium database via the PRIDE partner repository under the dataset identifier PRIDE: PXD003689.

A proteome analysis of freezing tolerance in red clover (Trifolium pratense L.).

BACKGROUND: Improvement of freezing tolerance of red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) would increase its persistence under cold climate. In this study, we assessed the freezing tolerance and compared the proteome composition of non-acclimated and cold-acclimated plants of two initial cultivars of red clover: Endure (E-TF0) and Christie (C-TF0) and of populations issued from these cultivars after three (TF3) and four (TF4) cycles of phenotypic recurrent selection for superior freezing tolerance. Through this approach, we wanted to identify proteins that are associated with the improvement of freezing tolerance in red clover. RESULTS: Freezing tolerance expressed as the lethal temperature for 50 % of the plants (LT50) increased markedly from approximately -2 to -16 °C following cold acclimation. Recurrent selection allowed a significant 2 to 3 °C increase of the LT50 after four cycles of recurrent selection. Two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) was used to study variations in protein abundance. Principal component analysis based on 2D-DIGE revealed that the largest variability in the protein data set was attributable to the cold acclimation treatment and that the two genetic backgrounds had differential protein composition in the acclimated state only. Vegetative storage proteins (VSP), which are essential nitrogen reserves for plant regrowth, and dehydrins were among the most striking changes in proteome composition of cold acclimated crowns of red clovers. A subset of proteins varied in abundance in response to selection including a dehydrin that increased in abundance in TF3 and TF4 populations as compared to TF0 in the Endure background. CONCLUSION: Recurrent selection performed indoor is an effective approach to improve the freezing tolerance of red clover. Significant improvement of freezing tolerance by recurrent selection was associated with differential accumulation of a small number of cold-regulated proteins that may play an important role in the determination of the level of freezing tolerance.

Cloning, expression and characterization of an insect geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase from Choristoneura fumiferana.

Geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase (GGPPS) catalyzes the condensation of the non-allylic diphosphate, isopentenyl diphosphate (IPP; C5), with allylic diphosphates to generate the C20 prenyl chain (GGPP) used for protein prenylation and diterpenoid biosynthesis. Here, we cloned the cDNA of a GGPPS from the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana, and characterized the corresponding recombinant protein (rCfGGPPS). As shown for other type-III GGPPSs, rCfGGPPS preferred farnesyl diphosphate (FPP; C15) over other allylic substrates for coupling with IPP. Unexpectedly, rCfGGPPS displayed inhibition by its FPP substrate at low IPP concentration, suggesting the existence of a mechanism that may regulate intracellular FPP pools. rCfGGPPS was also inhibited by its product, GGPP, in a competitive manner with respect to FPP, as reported for human and bovine brain GGPPSs. A homology model of CfGGPPS was prepared and compared to human and yeast GGPPSs. Consistent with its enzymological properties, CfGGPPS displayed a larger active site cavity that can accommodate the binding of FPP and GGPP in the region normally occupied by IPP and the allylic isoprenoid tail, and the binding of GGPP in an alternate orientation seen for GGPP binding to the human protein. To begin exploring the role of CfGGPPS in protein prenylation, its transcripts were quantified by qPCR in whole insects, along with those of other genes involved in this pathway. CfGGPPS was expressed throughout insect development and the abundance of its transcripts covaried with that of other prenylation-related genes. Our qPCR results suggest that geranylgeranylation is the predominant form of prenylation in whole C. fumiferana.