In order to assess the effect of soil water deficit (SWD) during fruit development and ripening, on yield and quality of processing tomato under deficit irrigation in the Mediterranean climate, an ...open-field experiment was carried out in two sites differing from soil and climatic characteristics, in Sicily, South Italy. Six irrigation treatments were studied: no irrigation following plant establishment (NI); 100% (F
=
full) or 50% (D
=
deficit) ET
c restoration with long-season irrigation (L) or short-season irrigation up to 1st fruit set (S); and long-season irrigation with 100% ET
c restoration up to beginning of flowering, then 50% ET
c restoration (LFD). The greatest effect of increasing SWD was the rise in fruit firmness, total solids and soluble solids (SS). A negative trend in response to increasing SWD was observed for fruit yield and size. Tough yield and SS were negatively correlated, the final SS yield under the LD regime was close to that of LF, and 47% water was saved. However, SS seems to be more environmental sensitive than SWD, since it varied more between sites than within site. The variations between sites in fruit quality response to deficit irrigation demonstrate that not only SWD but also soil and climatic characteristics influence the quality traits of the crop.
Giant reed (
Arundo donax
) and
Miscanthus
spp. were tested to evaluate their tolerance and phytoremediation capacity in soils contaminated with heavy metals. Giant reed was tested under 450 and ...900 mg Zn kg
−1
, 300 and 600 mg Cr kg
−1
, and 450 and 900 mg Pb kg
−1
contaminated soils, while the
Miscanthus
genotypes
M
. ×
giganteus
,
M. sinensis
, and
M. floridulus
were tested on 450 and 900 mg Zn kg
−1
contaminated soils, along 2 years. Giant reed biomass production was negatively affected by the contamination; however, yield reduction was only significant under 600 mg Cr kg
−1
soil. Zn contamination reduced significantly
M
. ×
giganteus
production but not
M. sinensis
or
M. floridulus
yields. Yet,
M
. ×
giganteus
was also the most productive. Both grasses can be considered as indicators, once metal concentration in the biomass reflected soil metal concentration. Regarding giant reed experiments, higher modified bioconcentration factors (mBCFs, 0.3–0.6) and translocation factors (TFs, 1.0–1.1) were obtained for Zn, in the contaminated soils, followed by Cr (mBCFs, 0.2–0.4, belowground organs; TFs, 0.2–0.4) and Pb (mBCFs, 0.06–0.07, belowground organs; TFs, 0.2–0.4). Metal accumulation also followed the same pattern Zn > Cr > Pb.
Miscanthus
genotypes showed different phytoremediation potential facing similar soil conditions. mBCFs (0.3–0.9) and TFs (0.7–1.5) were similar among species, but highest zinc accumulation was observed with
M
. ×
giganteus
due to the higher biomass production. Giant reed and
M
. ×
giganteus
can be considered as interesting candidates for Zn phytoextraction, favored by the metal accumulation observed and the high biomass produced.
A. donax
and
Miscanthus
genotypes showed to be well suited for phytostabilization of heavy metal contamination as these grasses prevented the leaching of heavy metal and groundwater contamination.
In the present study the effect of temperature, reaction time and dilute oxalic acid (OA) concentration during steam-pretreatment of Miscanthus × gigantueus has been evaluated using the combined ...severity factor (CS). At the highest CS glucan and lignin content in the water insoluble fraction (WIF) increased, while xylan content decreased. While glucose recovery in the water soluble fraction (WSF) was found at low concentration when mild CS were used (≤5.0 g L−1 at CS ≤ 2.17), xylose and arabinose concentrations were higher at low-mild CS (1.58–2.17) with a concentration peak at CS 2.03 (39.9 and 3.2 g L−1 for xylose and arabinose, respectively). The decrease in pentoses coincided with inhibitory formation in the WSF, namely acetic acid, furfural, HMF and phenolic compounds. Glucan conversion rose from 46.1% at CS 1.54 to 91.2% at CS 2.76. Likewise, maximum ethanol concentration was achieved at CS 2.76, corresponding to 20.2 g L−1 and a volumetric ethanol productivity of 0.28 g L−1 h−1. Negative correlations have been found between xylan vs. glucan conversion and xylan vs. ethanol production, suggesting that decreasing the xylan content in WIF increases both saccharification rate and ethanol concentration (R2 0.91 and R2 0.93, respectively). On the other hand, a positive correlation was found between ethanol production and glucan conversion (R2 0.93). Fermentation of WSF by Scheffersomyces (Pichia) stipitis CBS 6054 at CS 1.54 produced 12.1 g L−1 of ethanol after 96 h incubation with a volumetric ethanol productivity of 0.13 g L−1 h−1.
•Miscanthus × giganteus biomass has been pretreated with dilute oxalic acid.•Enzymatic hydrolysis showed a glucan conversion of 91.2%.•SSF using Schefferomyces (Pichia) stipitis CBS 6054 reached 20.2 g L−1 of ethanol.•Negative correlations have been found between xylan vs. glucan conversion and xylan vs. ethanol.•Hemicellulose hydrolysate was fermented to ethanol with high yield (380 g kg−1).
Abstract
Castor (
Ricinus communis
L.) is an important oilseed crop worldwide whose inedible oil is widely used in the industrial, pharmaceutical, and agricultural sectors. Castor plants show high ...conversion potential for use as biorefining feedstocks. The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of two nitrogen fertilization levels (0 and 120 kg N ha
−1
) on seed and oil yield. From a biorefinery perspective, the residual biomass of seed processing was analyzed in terms of fiber composition and biomethane production carrying out a biological pretreatment using two white‐rot fungi (
Pleurotus ostreatus
and
Irpex lacteus
). Nitrogen fertilization resulted in an increase in seed and oil yields and a difference in capsule husk composition. Fungal pretreatment of capsule husks showed promising effects on anaerobic digestion, increasing the biomethane yield compared to untreated biomass. The highest lignin degradation and the lowest cellulose loss during pretreatment were obtained with
I. lacteus
, and this fungal pretreatment resulted in the highest biomethane yield (103.2 NmL g
−1
volatile solids) for the fertilized biomass.
Growing industrial crops on marginal lands has been proposed as a strategy to minimize competition for arable land and food production. In the present study, eight experimental sites in three ...different climatic zones in Europe (Mediterranean, Atlantic and Continental), seven advanced industrial crop species giant reed (two clones), miscanthus (M. × giganteus and two new seed‐based hybrids), saccharum (one clones), switchgrass (one variety), tall wheatgrass (one variety), industrial hemp (three varieties) and willow (eleven clones), and six marginality factors alone or in combination (dryness, unfavorable texture, stoniness, shallow soil, topsoil acidity, heavy metal and metalloid contamination) were investigated. At each site, biophysical constraints and low‐input management practices were combined with prevailing climatic conditions. The relative yield of a site‐specific low‐input system compared with the site‐specific control was from small to large (i.e. from −99% in industrial hemp in the Mediterranean to +210% in willow in the Continental zone), due to the genotype‐by‐management interaction along with climatic variation between growing seasons. Genotype selection and improved knowledge on crop response to changing environmental, site‐specific biophysical constraint and input application has been detected as key to profitably grow industrial crops on marginal areas. This study may act to provide hints on how to scale up investigated cropping systems, through low‐input practices, under similar environmental and soil conditions tested at each site. However, further attention to detail on the agronomy of early plant development and management in larger multi‐year and multi‐location field studies with commercially scalable agronomies are needed to validate yield performances, and thereby to inform on the best industrial crop options.
Growing industrial crops on marginal lands has been proposed as a strategy to minimize competition for arable land and food production. This study can bring an advancement to knowledge on the suitability of certain industrial crops to marginal and contaminated soils to mitigate indirect land‐use change (i‐LUC) in accordance with the RED II and to meet the European Green Deal towards an EU climate neutral in 2050. It ultimately can assist to make general recommendations of the most appropriate crop and management options at the different regions, climates, soils and marginal land types.
▶ Early cut determined a reduction of yield and longevity and a higher quality traits. ▶ Yield and quality are suitable in dry cultivation of alfalfa of Mediterranean areas. ▶ Combination of two ...harvest times guarantees a wider production calendar. ▶ Leaf/stem ratio in alfalfa resulted correlated to protein content and was strongly affected by harvest time.
The best trade-off between quantity and quality in forage crops is one the most important targets of the agronomic research, since quantitative and qualitative traits are generally inversely correlated. With the aim of exploring the effect of harvest time (early and late), soil water content (irrigated and rainfed) and variety (Equipe, Europe and Midi) on duration, yield and quality of alfalfa, a four year trial was carried out in a Mediterranean environment. Early cut resulted in a reduction of forage yield (12%) with a faster reduction of longevity, but with a higher quality characteristics in terms of protein (20.2%) and fibre (23.1%) compared to the late cut (18.0 and 25.9%, respectively for protein and fibre). Dry treatment led to a limited reduction of yield and quality traits, suggesting alfalfa is a potential forage resource for the improvement of hilly areas of Mediterranean environment. The tested varieties show all a good regrowth capability allowing three, sometimes four, cut per year. The obtained results pointed out that the combination of early and late harvest times would allow a better distribution of the forage production between the months of June and September as well as a fair useful forage regrowth during the months of October and November.
Some physiological, oxidative, and antioxidant enzymatic patterns were assessed in plants of three local Sicilian landraces of long shelf-life tomatoes ('Custonaci', 'Salina', and 'Vulcano'), as ...compared to the commercial tomato hybrid 'Faino' (control). Three water treatments were considered in open-field: DRY (no irrigation); IRR (long-season full irrigation); REW (drought/rewatering cycles). During the growing season, soil water deficit (SWD) was estimated, and relative water content (RWC), specific leaf area (SLA), proline and malondialdehyde (MDA) content, and glutathione peroxidase (GPX), catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities were measured in leaves. Differently from control, RWC in local landraces exhibited a similar pattern in REW and DRY, indicating a low capacity to re-hydrate after rewatering. Positive correlation of proline content vs. SWD in all local landraces highlights an osmotic adjustment occurring in these tomatoes in response to limited soil water content. Long shelf-life tomatoes suffered minor oxidative stress due to severe soil water deficit, as revealed by the lower levels of MDA with respect to the control. Significant correlation of CAT vs. SWD for all tomatoes indicates that this antioxidant enzyme, among those analyzed, may be considered as a biomarker for a water stress condition more than for oxidative stress due to water deficit.
Perennial rhizomatous grasses are regarded as leading energy crops due to their environmental benefits and their suitability to regions with adverse conditions. In this paper, two different ...experiments were carried out in order to study the salinity (
S
) and water stress (
WS
) effects on biomass production in giant reed (
Arundo donax
L.). In Experiment 1, eight clones of giant reed were subjected to four salinity (
S
) and water stress (
WS
) treatments: (1) well watered with non-saline solution, (2) water stress with non-saline solution, (3) well watered with saline solution and 4) water stress with saline solution. In Experiment 2, five clones of giant reed were subjected to increasing
S
levels in two locations: University of Catania (UNICT-Italy) (1) well watered with non-saline solution and (2) well watered with mild saline solution; and University of Barcelona (UB-Spain) (3) well watered with non-saline solution and (4) well watered with severe saline solution. Photosynthetic and physiological parameters as well as biomass production were measured in these plants. According to our data, giant reed seems to be more tolerant to
S
than
WS
. Both stresses mainly affected stomatal closure to prevent dehydration of the plant, eventually decreasing the photosynthetic rate. The differential performance of the giant reed clones was ranked according to their tolerance to
S
and
WS
by using the Stress Susceptibility Index. ‘Agrigento’ was the most
WS
resistant clone and ‘Martinensis’ was the most
S
resistant. ‘Martinensis’ and ‘Piccoplant’ were found to be the most suitable clones for growing under both stress conditions. Moreover, ‘Fondachello’, ‘Cefalú’ and ‘Licata’ were the most resistant clones to increasing
S
levels.
(+)-1(
R)-Coclaurine (
1) and (−)-1(
S)-norcoclaurine (
3), together with quercetin 3-
O-β-
d-glucuronide (
4), were isolated from the leaves of
Nelumbo nucifera (Nymphaceae), and identified as ...anti-HIV principles. These compounds can serve as new leads for further development of anti-AIDS agents.
(+)-1(
R)-Coclaurine (
1) and (−)-1(
S)-norcoclaurine (
3), together with quercetin 3-
O-β-
d-glucuronide (
4), were isolated from the leaves of
Nelumbo nucifera (Nymphaceae), and identified as anti-HIV principles. Compounds
1 and
3 demonstrated potent anti-HIV activity with EC
50 values of 0.8 and <0.8
μg/mL, respectively, and therapeutic index (TI) values of >125 and >25, respectively. Compound
4 was less potent (EC
50 2
μg/mL). In a structure–activity relationship study, other benzylisoquinoline, aporphine, and bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids, including liensinine (
14), negferine (
15), and isoliensinine (
16), which were previously isolated from the leaves and embryo of
Nelumbo nucifera, were evaluated for anti-HIV activity. Compounds
14–16 showed potent anti-HIV activities with EC
50 values of <0.8
μg/mL and TI values of >9.9, >8.6, and >6.5, respectively. Nuciferine (
12), an aporphine alkaloid, had an EC
50 value of 0.8
μg/mL and TI of 36. In addition, synthetic coclaurine analogs were also evaluated. Compounds
1,
3,
12, and
14–
16 can serve as new leads for further development of anti-AIDS agents.
The Mediterranean long shelf-life tomato (or long storage tomato) is a plant traditionally cultivated under no irrigation in the Southern regions of Italy, whose fruits have typical high sensory and ...nutritional quality. However, yield levels are kept low under current cultivation conditions. In this study, the effects of repeated cycles of drying and rehydration on crop productivity and nutritional quality of fruits in terms of polyphenols and carotenoids content were assessed in long shelf-life tomatoes cultivated in a typical semi-arid area of Southern Italy. The three local Sicilian landraces ‘Custonaci’, ‘Salina’ and ‘Vulcano’, and the commercial tomato hybrid ‘Faino’ (control) were submitted to three irrigation treatments: DRY (no irrigation); IRR (long-season full irrigation); REW (drought/rewatering cycles). Total 450, 4710, and 1849 m3 ha−1, were distributed in DRY, IRR, and REW, respectively. At harvest, fruit yield, polyphenols (as total, flavonoids, and hydroxycinnamoyl quinic acids-HCQA), and carotenoids contents (lycopene and β-carotene) were measured. All cultivars benefitted from very limited irrigation in REW, raising their productivity (up to +147% in ‘Vulcano’) with respect to that of plants overstressed in DRY. Irrigation water use efficiency in REW was higher than that in IRR. Water shortage in REW led to a polyphenols content of fruits that was slightly lower (171.1 μg g−1) than that in DRY, but higher than that in IRR (116.8 μg g−1). All local landraces had greater contents (>160 μg g−1) than control (113.0 μg g−1). Under REW and DRY, the two landraces ‘Salina’ and ‘Vulcano’ produced fruits with the same polyphenols and flavonoids contents. Overall, the two water stressed treatments (DRY and REW) did not differ for HCQA content (>66 μg g−1), which was significantly higher than that in the irrigated plots (<50.55 μg g−1). Lycopene content in DRY and REW exceeded 100 μg g−1; among local types, ‘Vulcano’ exhibited the highest content (106.7 μg g−1). The β-carotene content did not change in ‘Custonaci’ and ‘Salina’, whereas in ‘Vulcano’ it was greater in DRY and REW. Only in ‘Faino’ water limitation in REW exerted a clear promoting effect on β-carotene content of fruits. The results of the present study reveal how rewatering after long-lasting drought periods is beneficial to long shelf-life tomatoes in terms of productivity. Appropriate drought cycles in REW may also help the fruits to retain high nutritional levels.
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