Agricultural and Biological Sciences

17 open-access papers in Agricultural and Biological Sciences, free to watch.

4:03

Fire and ant interactions mediated by honeydew and extrafloral nectar in an australian tropical savanna

Fernanda M. P. Oliveira, Carlos H. F. Silva, Melinda L. Moir, Inara R. Leal, Alan N. Andersen

Fire usually sounds like a force that breaks relationships in nature. But in this Australian savanna, frequent burning helped plants and ants connect more often, and brought more of the most protective ants into the picture. Fire usually sounds destructive, but in this Australian savanna it increased some ant partnerships, especially ants visiting plant nectar, and increased the share of dominant, high-quality mutualists.

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3:51

Comparative study of the bronchodilator efficacy and adverse effects of salbutamol and hyoscine butylbromide in horses with severe asthma

Berta Mozo Vives, Sophie Mainguy‐Seers, Jean‐Pierre Lavoie

When a horse cannot breathe, two medicines can open its narrowed airways quickly. But the treatment that lasts longer may also be the one that avoids problems with the heart and gut. Two drugs can open a horse’s airways with similar strength, but one lasts up to three hours while the other lasts about one, and the shorter-acting option is the one linked to faster heart rates and quieter gut sounds.

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4:21

Competition for Nitrogen Resources: An Explanation of the Effects of a Bioprotective Strain Metschnikowia pulcherrima on the Growth of Hanseniaspora Genus in Oenology

Maëlys Puyo, Léa Scalabrino, Rémy Romanet, Scott Simonin, Géraldine Klein, Hervé Alexandre, Raphaëlle Tourdot‐Maréchal

A natural yeast added to grape juice can protect the future wine from unwanted microbes, but only against some of them. The surprising reason may be a struggle over the same basic food: nitrogen. A protective yeast is supposed to suppress unwanted microbes, but here, it worked against one Hanseniaspora species and failed against another. The clue points not to oxygen, but to a race for nitrogen resources.

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5:06

Integrating the Soil Microbiota and Metabolome Reveals the Mechanism through Which Controlled Release Fertilizer Affects Sugarcane Growth

Zhaonian Yuan, Qiang Liu, Lifang Mo, Ziqin Pang, Chaohua Hu

More fertilizer does not necessarily mean more sugar. This study found that sugarcane did best when nutrients arrived at the right pace, apparently by changing the living community and chemical signals around its roots. A controlled-release fertilizer did more than feed sugarcane. At one application rate, it was linked to higher sugar yield while reshaping the root-zone microbes and metabolites surrounding the plant.

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4:17

Patterns and drivers of plant carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus stoichiometry in a novel riparian ecosystem

Lei Wang, Muhammad Arif, Jie Zheng, Changxiao Li

Every winter, floodwater covers this riverbank by about thirty metres. When the water retreats, the plants are not simply recovering: their leaves, stems, and roots are carrying different chemical priorities. A riverbank ecosystem flooded thirty meters every winter reveals a surprising split: flooding changes plant carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus concentrations, yet the plants maintain similar nutrient ratios along the inundation gradient.

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