Agriculture sciences

Boost for protein and plant research at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU). The German Research Foundation (DFG) has approved the new Collaborative Research Centre (SFB) 1664 "Diversity of Plant Proteoforms - SNP2Prot". The university will receive around 12.5 million euros for the first funding period, which will last just under four years.

The abbreviation "BonaRes" stands for "soil as a sustainable resource for the bioeconomy". This funding initiative launched by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) in 2015 focuses on the sustainable use of soil as a scarce resource.

Climate change, global population growth and urbanisation: our food and agricultural systems are facing a multitude of complex challenges. New solutions are needed for sustainable, resource-efficient and adaptable agricultural production. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) wants to play an active role in shaping the transformation towards a sustainable, future-proof agricultural and food industry.

Algae on the beach are rather annoying. However, these unloved aquatic plants are not only important for the marine ecosystem, as they can filter pollutants. Algae are also a valuable raw material for the bioeconomy for the production of food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, biomaterials and biofuels. In order to utilise this potential, microalgae have so far been cultivated in plants on land. Algae farms in the sea are barely established in this country.

Floods, drought and heat are making life increasingly difficult for farmers in this country. Important ecosystem services such as water supply and soil fertility are being impaired by climate change, resulting in crop losses. One way to counter the crisis is regenerative agriculture. Here, the focus is on measures to regenerate soil and soil organisms and to preserve biodiversity. Instead of intensive cultivation, tillage is reduced and the soil is covered by permanent planting.

Whether fertilisers, pesticides or heavy agricultural machinery: Intensive farming is partly responsible for the global extinction of species. Experts have therefore long been advising farmers to use crop rotations or flowering meadows as well as soil conservation measures such as mulching to increase diversity in arable farming. In a large-scale study conducted by the Universities of Hohenheim and Copenhagen, researchers have now analysed the effects of diversified agriculture worldwide for the first time.

Plants mediate their interactions with the environment via chemical signals. One example of this is the alkaloid gramine, which is produced by barley, one of the world's most widely cultivated cereals. Gramine provides protection against herbivorous insects and grazing animals and inhibits the growth of other plants. The toxin is particularly present in the green parts of the plant, such as leaves and stalks, but hardly ever in the grains, which can be safely used for food production.

Climate change is also increasingly causing crop losses in viticulture. In particular, the rapid alternation between drought and heavy rainfall damages the grapes and promotes the spread of fungal diseases such as vine peronospora (Plasmopara viticola) and grey mould rot (Botrytis cinerea). Winegrowers therefore use plant protection products to protect the grape varieties. In order to meet the climate-related challenges in viticulture in an environmentally friendly way, experts are focussing on fungus-resistant grape varieties, known as PIWIs.

There are many fungi and bacteria that live in symbiosis with plant roots and enrich each other. Plants can only grow because they are supplied with nutrients and water from the soil via the roots with the help of microorganisms. This diverse community of microorganisms, also known as the microbiome, also protects the host plant from harmful organisms and is therefore a guarantee for plant health.