Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation

About: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation is a government organization based out in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Soil water. The organization has 33765 authors who have published 79910 publications receiving 3356114 citations.

Essential biodiversity variables

Abstract: Reducing the rate of biodiversity loss and averting dangerous biodiversity change are international goals, reasserted by the Aichi Targets for 2020 by Parties to the United Nations (UN) Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) after failure to meet the 2010 target (1, 2). However, there is no global, harmonized observation system for delivering regular, timely data on biodiversity change (3). With the first plenary meeting of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) soon under way, partners from the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON) (4) are developing—and seeking consensus around—Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs) that could form the basis of monitoring programs worldwide.

Visible and Near Infrared Spectroscopy in Soil Science

Abstract: This chapter provides a review on the state of soil visible–near infrared (vis–NIR) spectroscopy Our intention is for the review to serve as a source of up-to-date information on the past and current role of vis–NIR spectroscopy in soil science It should also provide critical discussion on issues surrounding the use of vis–NIR for soil analysis and on future directions To this end, we describe the fundamentals of visible and infrared diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and spectroscopic multivariate calibrations A review of the past and current role of vis–NIR spectroscopy in soil analysis is provided, focusing on important soil attributes such as soil organic matter (SOM), minerals, texture, nutrients, water, pH, and heavy metals We then discuss the performance and generalization capacity of vis–NIR calibrations, with particular attention on sample pretratments, covariations in data sets, and mathematical data preprocessing Field analyses and strategies for the practical use of vis–NIR are considered We conclude that the technique is useful to measure soil water and mineral composition and to derive robust calibrations for SOM and clay content Many studies show that we also can predict properties such as pH and nutrients, although their robustness may be questioned For future work we recommend that research should focus on: (i) moving forward with more theoretical calibrations, (ii) better understanding of the complexity of soil and the physical basis for soil reflection, and (iii) applications and the use of spectra for soil mapping and monitoring, and for making inferences about soils quality, fertility and function To do this, research in soil spectroscopy needs to be more collaborative and strategic The development of the Global Soil Spectral Library might be a step in the right direction

Antagonistic Interaction between Abscisic Acid and Jasmonate-Ethylene Signaling Pathways Modulates Defense Gene Expression and Disease Resistance in Arabidopsis

Abstract: The plant hormones abscisic acid (ABA), jasmonic acid (JA), and ethylene are involved in diverse plant processes, including the regulation of gene expression during adaptive responses to abiotic and biotic stresses. Previously, ABA has been implicated in enhancing disease susceptibility in various plant species, but currently very little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon. In this study, we obtained evidence that a complex interplay between ABA and JA-ethylene signaling pathways regulate plant defense gene expression and disease resistance. First, we showed that exogenous ABA suppressed both basal and JA-ethylene–activated transcription from defense genes. By contrast, ABA deficiency as conditioned by the mutations in the ABA1 and ABA2 genes, which encode enzymes involved in ABA biosynthesis, resulted in upregulation of basal and induced transcription from JA-ethylene responsive defense genes. Second, we found that disruption of AtMYC2 (allelic to JASMONATE INSENSITIVE1 [JIN1]), encoding a basic helix-loop-helix Leu zipper transcription factor, which is a positive regulator of ABA signaling, results in elevated levels of basal and activated transcription from JA-ethylene responsive defense genes. Furthermore, the jin1/myc2 and aba2-1 mutants showed increased resistance to the necrotrophic fungal pathogen Fusarium oxysporum. Finally, using ethylene and ABA signaling mutants, we showed that interaction between ABA and ethylene signaling is mutually antagonistic in vegetative tissues. Collectively, our results indicate that the antagonistic interactions between multiple components of ABA and the JA-ethylene signaling pathways modulate defense and stress responsive gene expression in response to biotic and abiotic stresses.