Splachnum rubrum is a moss speciesin the family Splachnaceae . This species is Hedw. First scientific description in 1801.

Brilliant Red Dung Moss (Splachnum rubrum)

New research led by the <a href="https://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a> has found that a substance in pomegranates called “urolithin A” could be used to create novel anti-aging treatments that strengthen muscles and mitochondrial health and thus protect against frailty in old <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/space-travel-may-cause-premature-aging/">age</a>.



Urolithin A is a by-product of a person’s gut bacteria and a diet rich in polyphenols – substances found in pomegranates, berries, and nuts. Since several factors, including age, diet, genetics, or illness, affect the composition of the gut microbiome, people produce urolithin A at different rates. Now, this substance is also available in pill and powder supplements found in health food stores.



Both in its natural and synthetic form, urolithin A boosts the mitochondria – our cell’s “power stations” – which tend to run down with age, causing muscle weakening and frailty. According to scientists, urolithin A helps the body recycle mitochondria by stimulating a process called mitophagy.



“Mitochondria&nbsp;are like batteries that power the cells in your body,” said study senior author David Marcinek, an expert in the role of mitochondria in human metabolism at the University of Washington.



“But over time, they break down. The process of mitophagy recognizes this failure and proactively tears down the mitochondria, reducing it to elemental components that a cell can reuse. But with aging, mitophagy becomes less efficient and your body accumulates this pool of failing mitochondria. It’s one way that muscles become less functional as we age.”



Professor Marcinek and his colleagues enrolled 66 participants who randomly received either 1,000 mg of an urolithin supplement daily for four months or a placebo. At the beginning of the experiment, they had lower levels of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), a substance produced by mitochondria that helps cell function properly.



The scientists found that the supplement group’s fitness and ATP production improved significantly after the treatment, suggesting that urolithin A may indeed help restore bodily capacities in the elderly.



“Even though we did not observe an effect of the supplement in whole body function,” Professor Marcinek said, “these results are still exciting because they demonstrate that just taking a supplement for a short duration actually improved muscle endurance. Fatigue resistance got better in the absence of exercise.”



“I think these changes suggest that&nbsp;the treatment affects&nbsp;the metabolic condition of people. Even though it didn’t affect the maximum ATP production, it improved test subjects’ general metabolism. Just getting them over that point where exercise is possible – a walk around the block or climbing some stairs – might help a person build their own health,” he concluded.&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2788244?utm_source=For_The_Media&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=ftm_links&amp;utm_term=012022">JAMA Network Open</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Pomegranates contain an anti-aging substance

New research led by the University of Washington has found...

Healthy,Food,,Plate,With,Greek,Salad,Of,Mediterranean,Diet,,Tomatoes

A new study shows that adults 65 and older who follow the Mediterranean diet live longer. Interestingly, adherence to the Mediterranean diet was assessed by analyzing biomarkers in plasma and urine, which is a unique approach.



Professor Cristina Andrés-Lacueva is head of the Research Group on Biomarkers and Nutritional &amp; Food Metabolomics of the Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences of the <a href="https://www.ub.edu/web/portal/en/">University of Barcelona</a> (UB) and the CIBER on Fragility and Healthy Ageing (CIBERFES).



According to Professor Andrés-Lacueva, her team developed an index of dietary biomarkers based on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/air-pollutants-confuse-pollinators-and-reduce-food-production/">food</a> groups that are part of the Mediterranean diet, and then assessed their association with mortality. Professor Andrés-Lacueva is also head of the research group in Ciber on Fragility and Healthy Aging (CIBERFES).



The research was carried out over 20 years, using data from 642 participants who were 65 years and older and resided in the Tuscany region of Italy.&nbsp;



The scientists looked at the following biomarkers: polyphenols and resveratrol metabolites (from grape consumption), plasma carotenoids, selenium, vitamin B12, fatty acids and the proportion of monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids.&nbsp;



Using a model and a food questionnaire, the scientists were able to ascertain how closely each participant followed a Mediterranean diet. During the course of the twenty-year study, 425 participants died - 139 from cardiovascular disease and 89 from cancer related causes.&nbsp;



When analyzed, the biomarkers associated with a Mediterranean diet were inversely related to all causes of death. This means that the health benefits of a Mediterranean diet can boost longevity.



Tomás Meroño, co-first signatory of the study, said the study confirms that adherence to the Mediterranean diet (assessed by a panel of dietary biomarkers) is inversely associated with the long-term mortality in older adults, which supports the use of these biomarkers in monitoring evaluations to study the health benefits associated with the Mediterranean diet.



"A healthy diet is considered one of the fundamental factors to achieve healthy aging," wrote the study authors. "Indeed, a growing body of epidemiological evidence shows that the Mediterranean diet (MD) may delay or prevent frailty, cognitive decline, and the onset of many chronic diseases in older subjects."&nbsp;



"Furthermore, several observational studies, including the European Prospective study into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)-elderly study, a cohort of 74,607 men and women aged ≥60 years, have shown inverse associations between a greater adherence to different MD scores (MDS), in both the Mediterranean and non-Mediterranean countries, and total mortality."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/">BCM Medicine</a>.



---By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mediterranean diet can lead to longer life

A new study shows that adults 65 and older who...

In a recent study from <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">UC Riverside</a> researchers investigated whether black-eyed peas had lost any of their ability to attract Bradyrhizobium (nitrogen-fixing bacteria from the soil) and establish them inside nodules in the roots. As black-eyed peas are an important crop in many parts of the world, this ability may have been lost during domestication or selective breeding over centuries.&nbsp;



All plants need nitrogen in order to form the proteins needed for growth. If there is not enough nitrogen present, plants will not grow successfully. Although the atmosphere contains around 80 percent nitrogen gas (N2), plants cannot use it in this form. Instead, it has to be “fixed” into the form of ammonia (NH3), nitrate (NO3-) or nitrite (NO2-). It is most often bacteria in the soil that fix nitrogen into these forms, thereby making essential nutrients available for absorption by plant roots.



Legumes, including crop plants such as peas, beans and lucerne, go a step further than this. They attract nitrogen-fixing bacteria by secreting enticing chemicals through their roots. Once bacteria have attached to the root hairs, the plant secretes different substances that the bacteria to enter root hair cells and travel into the main root. Once inside the root, the bacteria cause root cells to divide and form a tumor-like nodule which is where nitrogen-fixing activity can take place. &nbsp;



In the symbiotic relationship that ensues, the legume plants receive a useful, fixed form of nitrogen to use for growth, and the plants provide a supply of carbohydrates to the bacteria, along with a safe place to live.



“The ability of legumes to do this caused them immense success as the third biggest plant family on the planet,” said Joel Sachs, UCR professor of evolution and ecology.&nbsp;



Unfortunately, plant breeders often select intensely for above-ground characteristics of crop plants, such as their yield, disease resistance and protein content, when trying to improve the quality of the plants. They do not focus on the important ability of roots to attract bacteria and enter into a symbiotic relationship with them – something that is essential for the supply of nitrogen to the growing plants.



Study lead author Gabriel Ortiz wanted to find to find out whether modern farming practices had resulted in a loss of symbiotic ability in black-eyed pea plants. In many cases, plants heavily impacted by humans do not benefit as much from relationships with bacteria as their wild relatives do.&nbsp;



The researchers used genome-wide analyses, along with a greenhouse inoculation study, to investigate genomic diversity, heritability, and symbiosis trait variation among 20 different varieties of wild and early-domesticated black-eyed peas.&nbsp;



They found that, although there was evidence that the peas experienced modest decreases in genome diversity during early domestication, they had kept their natural ability to form beneficial symbiotic relationships with nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The experiments even showed that domesticated populations made more root nodules than wild varieties of black-eyed peas.&nbsp;



“In fact, some of the strains in the experiment appear to have gained more benefit from bacteria than their wild ancestors,” Sachs said.



The authors attribute this unexpected result to the fact that black-eyed pea landraces were developed in Africa where the low nutrient conditions would have favored plant genotypes that use symbiosis with nitrogen-fixing bacteria in an efficient manner. This implies that early breeders inadvertently selected for plants with excellent ability to attract and protect these symbiotic bacteria.&nbsp;



Modern breeders have largely neglected symbiosis traits when selectively breeding black-eyed peas, but future artificial selection for improved plant responses to nitrogen-fixing bacteria could increase plant performance and sustainability.



“We can use this information in the future to design better performing plants,” said Ortiz. He and his team focused on black-eyed peas because they are also drought tolerant, another important trait for Southern California growers.&nbsp;



Furthermore, farmers can use black-eyed pea crops to enrich their soil with nitrogen, rather than having to add inorganic fertilizer. When nitrogen fertilizer is applied it can end up being carried away with rain water and polluting rivers, lakes and oceans, or it can enter the atmosphere as a greenhouse gas.



“When the plant senses it is going to die, it releases the bacteria into the soil, replenishing it,” Ortiz explained. “Growers could alternate seasons of legumes with other crops, leaving the soil full of nitrogen-fixing bacteria that reduce the need for fertilizer.”



“To make agriculture more sustainable, one of the things we need to do is focus on the plant’s ability to get services from microbes already in the soil, rather than trying to get those services by dumping chemicals,” Sachs said.&nbsp;



The study is <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/evo.14424">published</a> in the journal&nbsp;<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/15585646">Evolution</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Black-eyed peas could reduce the need for fertilizer

In a recent study from UC Riverside researchers investigated whether...

Insects don’t have noses and are not able to “smell” the roses in the familiar sense of the word. Instead, most odor molecules are detected by chemoreceptors that occur on an insect’s antennae. Using these chemical receptors, insects are capable of perceiving and differentiating between thousands of&nbsp;airborne compounds. They use these chemical signals to locate forage <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-plants-wont-survive-the-loss-of-seed-dispersing-animals/">plants</a> and mates, as well as to avoid predators.



But now, new research indicates that common air pollutants present in rural and urban environments may be hampering the ability of insects to detect the chemical signals so crucial to their activity as pollinators.&nbsp;



A team of scientists from the <a href="http://www.reading.ac.uk/">University of Reading</a> has conducted the first study to observe that common air pollutants, including diesel exhaust fumes and ozone, have a negative impact on the success of pollination by insects.&nbsp;



“We knew from our previous lab studies that diesel exhaust can have negative effects on insect pollinators, but the impacts we found in the field were much more dramatic than we had expected," said Dr. Robbie Girling, who led the project.



These previous laboratory studies by members of the Reading team showed that&nbsp;chemicals in <a href="https://www.reading.ac.uk/news-archive/press-releases/pr649662.html">diesel fumes react with and can change the scents of flowers such that the insects cannot locate the flowers. </a>The research suggested that pollution could contribute to the ongoing declines in pollinating insects, by making it harder for them to locate the pollen and nectar that form their food.



In the new study, the researchers aimed to gather evidence showing how air pollution affects different species of pollinating insects, some of which rely on scent more heavily than others.



The study, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, used a purpose-built fumigation facility to regulate levels of nitrogen oxides (NOx) – present in diesel exhaust fumes – and ozone in an open field environment. They then observed the effects these pollutants had on the pollination of black mustard plants by free-flying, locally-occurring pollinating insects over the course of two summer field seasons.



Although the experiments made use of pollution levels that were way below the maximum acceptable levels considered as safe in the US, the results of the field experiments were dramatic. The researchers observed 62 to 70 percent fewer pollinator visits to the plants located in polluted air. This reduction was seen in seven different groups of pollinators, including bees, moths, hoverflies and butterflies.&nbsp;



There were also 83 to 90 percent fewer visits to flowers by these insects, and ultimately a 14 to 31 percent reduction in pollination success, based on the measurement of seed yield and other factors.



“The findings are worrying because these pollutants are commonly found in the air many of us breathe every day," said Dr. James Ryalls. "We know that these pollutants are bad for our health, and the significant reductions we saw in pollinator numbers and activity shows that there are also clear implications for the natural ecosystems we depend on.”



Insects are important pollinators of crops upon which we depend for food and so a reduction in pollinating activity could have far-reaching economic and social consequences. Around 70 percent of crop species rely on insects for pollination; these include apples, strawberries and cocoa.&nbsp;



In addition, pollination supports around eight percent of the total value of agricultural food production, worldwide. The pollinating activity of insects thus generates hundreds of billions of pounds worth of economic value each year.&nbsp;



Furthermore, far higher levels of air pollutants are found in many areas around the world where people and businesses breach the regulations. For example, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/air-pollution-england-defra-labour-who-nitrogen-dioxide-luke-pollard-b404484.html?r=55147">2019 analysis</a> recorded illegal levels of nitrogen dioxide present in local authorities, in large areas of northern England (including Cheshire and Gateshead), and in southern England (including Wiltshire, Chichester and rural areas such as the New Forest).



“This truly cross-disciplinary work demonstrated very clearly how atmospheric pollutants negatively impact on pollination with direct consequences for food production as well as the resilience of our natural environment," concluded study co-author Dr. Christian Pfrang.



Their results are published today in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2022.118847">&nbsp;journal&nbsp;</a><a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/environmental-pollution">Environmental Pollution</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Air pollutants confuse pollinators and reduce food production

Insects don’t have noses and are not able to “smell”...

The story goes that, in 1820, a farmworker in the fields around Debenham in Suffolk, spotted a spectacular ear of barley. John Andrews picked the ear and planted the seeds at home in his <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/urban-gardens-provide-a-reliable-food-supply-for-pollinators/">garden</a>. When his landlord, Charles Chevalier, saw the remarkable barley that grew from these seeds, he was impressed and wished to grow more of it. He harvested it and began to propagate more plants, calling the new variety “Chevalier.”



At the time, barley was very important in the malting process used in the brewing of beer and very soon the new variety was being grown widely. In fact, by the end of the 19th century more than 80% of all malting barley in England was of the Chevalier type. The properties of this variety were considered so superior that the name Chevalier became synonymous with malting barley.&nbsp;



The variety became popular around the world, including in Sweden, where it was cultivated and improved, using breeding techniques, during the second half of the 19th century.&nbsp; Today, Chevalier is part of the lineage of many modern malting barley varieties and beer brewers have begun to consider returning to the use of this type, as well as other classic varieties of barley.



This has led Swedish researchers from the universities of Linköping and Stockholm to investigate whether the Chevalier variety of barley did indeed originate from a single plant, as described anecdotally. They wished to clarify how this cultivar was spread and adopted to Nordic seed systems of the time, and used molecular genetic analysis to establish whether the early Chevalier variety was used for selective breeding purposes to produce today’s varieties of malting barley.



“When we started this study, we were primarily curious about whether Chevalier barley had been discovered and used in the same way as today’s modern varieties, with a genetic signature unique to Chevalier, and where the name is a sort of brand name for a certain kind of product,” said Jenny Hagenblad, associate professor of population genetics at the Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology (IFM) at Linköping University.



The researchers tested seeds from two different sources. Firstly, seeds were obtained from museum specimens of historical grains labeled “Chevalier.” These samples had been collected and stored at various times during the 19th century, with the oldest sample dating from 1865. Secondly, the researchers used seeds from current Chevalier accessions preserved in genebanks. In total, 282 individual seeds, representing 47 accessions, were used in the study.&nbsp;



Genetic analysis of the seeds revealed that many of them did indeed belong to a specific variety – Chevalier, and that this variety had been bred and kept pure for its superior malting qualities. From the very beginning, Chevalier was considered a premium malting barley and sold at higher prices than other cultivars. Farmers may have gone to great lengths to keep this cultivar pure, long before they knew the details of Mendelian inheritance or genes. In the light of these samples of pure Chevalier seeds, researchers were tempted to think it possible that a single plant may have given rise to all successive generations of this type of barley.&nbsp;



However, not all the sample jars marked “Chevalier” contained true Chevalier barley seeds.&nbsp;



Some of the samples contained unimproved landrace barley, representing the varieties that were present in Nordic countries before the introduction of the Chevalier cultivar. Other samples contained mixtures of Chevalier and landrace seeds, while a few samples also had seeds that were, hybrids (crosses) between Chevalier and other varieties.&nbsp;



From these results it was clear that the designation “Chevalier” was applied rather loosely in the 19th century. The seed mixtures indicated that, after the Chevalier variety was brought to Sweden, local farmers mixed it – deliberately or accidentally –with seeds from local landraces.&nbsp;



Although barley is usually self-fertilizing, there is a small incidence (2%) of cross-fertilization. This can lead to the development of a hybrid variety which would then have characteristics of both the Chevalier parent and the local landrace parent. The result would be a Chevalier-type malting barley that was also adapted to local environmental conditions. Not only did this generate new diversity from which farmers could obtain their future seeds, but hybrids often give increased yield as well.



According to the authors of the study, their findings indicate that farmers were practicing plant improvement methods long before there was an understanding of genetics. The processes used during the 1800s by farmers in Sweden were not very different from the plant improvement methods developed in the early 20th century, when genotypes superior in yield or quality were combined with locally adapted material to create the first modern cultivars.



“We can see signs of how people, long before the development of modern plant breeding, were already unwittingly using the very methods that became the foundation for the revolution in Swedish farming during the early 20th century,” said study co-author Matti Leino, a researcher in crop history at Stockholm University.



The results of the study have been published in the journal&nbsp;<a href="https://acsess.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/14350653">Crop Science</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Barley was bred for exceptional qualities in the 19th century

The story goes that, in 1820, a farmworker in the...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.ubc.ca/">University of British Columbia</a> has taken a closer look at the ultraviolet "bullseye" patterns found on sunflowers. The ultraviolet (UV) <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dragonfly-wing-colors-driven-by-climate-and-sexual-selection/">colors</a> are invisible to humans, yet clearly visible to many insects.&nbsp;



The bullseye patterns were already known to make the flowers more attractive to bees, but scientists have now discovered that they do much more. The researchers found that chemicals in the UV markers also help the plants respond to stress from drought and extreme temperatures.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Unexpectedly, we noticed that sunflowers growing in drier climates had flowers with larger UV bullseyes, and found that those flowers are able to retain water more efficiently. This suggests that these larger UV bullseyes help plants adapt to these drier environments,” said study lead author Dr. Marco Todesco, a research associate in the UBC Department of Botany.



Dr. Todesco and colleagues grew nearly 2,000 individual sunflowers of two different species in a lab in 2016 and 2019. Measuring the UV patterns and examining the genome of the plants, the researchers found that sunflowers growing in different regions of North America had differently sized bullseye patterns. Bees were better able to see the larger bullseyes.&nbsp;



The experts also found that the same gene that controlled the bullseye pattern was used in the production of UV-absorbant flavonoids, which help the plants survive stresses from things like drought and high temperatures.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Floral UV patterns appear therefore to play at least a dual role in adaptation; besides their well-known effect on enhancing pollination, they also regulate water loss from flowers,” said study senior author Dr. Loren Rieseberg. “That’s not something you would necessarily expect a flower color to do, and it exemplifies the complexity and efficiency of adaptation - solving two problems with a single trait.”



The scientists feel more research into this adaptation could help improve the resilience of sunflower crops in the future.&nbsp;



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://elifesciences.org/">eLife</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

"Invisible" colors in sunflowers do more than just attract bees

A new study from the University of British Columbia has...

When plants grow, their stems, roots and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/caterpillars-spotted-for-the-first-time-on-alpine-rose-leaves/">leaves</a> increase in size and abundance in a coordinated manner. The changes in one type of organ keep pace with the changes in the other types. Dividing cells need to communicate with one another in order to achieve this, and previous research has identified that plants package important messages into molecules of RNA, which are sent from cell to cell.&nbsp;



New research, published today in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/">Science</a>, adds to this understanding by identifying a special protein in the cells of plants that acts as an escort and helps the RNA molecules to travel to where they are needed.&nbsp;



By studying the mustard-like plant&nbsp;Arabidopsis thaliana, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) Professor&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cshl.edu/research/faculty-staff/david-jackson/">David Jackson</a>&nbsp;and his team found that without this escort protein, known as AtRRP44a, the plant cells cannot communicate or coordinate the growth of the plant.&nbsp;



While all animal and plant cells are surrounded by a membrane, plant cells alone have an additional wall around each cell. Chemical messages can cross this cell wall through tiny holes called plasmodesmata.&nbsp;



Munenori Kitagawa is a postdoc in the Jackson lab who led the study. He explained that plasmodesmata are nanochannels embedded in the cell wall. "They mediate [the transport of various signals] from cell to cell, including protein, RNA, hormones, ions, and nutrients.”



Kitagawa investigated exactly how plasmodesmata regulate the movement of chemical messages from one cell to the next. He and his colleagues discovered that the protein AtRRP44a is involved in the transport of RNA molecules through the nanochannels in the cell wall. Decreasing the amount of AtRRP44a available slowed down the movement of RNA messages between cells and, because they then lacked the right messages, the plants failed to develop properly.&nbsp;



A protein similar to this escort protein is present in other plants, yeasts, and animals. The researchers were able to swap out part of the&nbsp;Arabidopsis thaliana&nbsp;signaling system and replace it with a part from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cshl.edu/corn-2-0/">corn</a>;&nbsp;this restored normal development, showing that many kinds of plants share this signaling system.&nbsp;



“Plants are very sophisticated," said Jackson. "We think of them just sitting in their environment, not moving, but really they’re processing a lot of information. The different parts of the plant are talking to each other, sharing whether they have some pathogen attack or if they need some nutrients.”



“This paper represents an important step towards understanding how information is exchanged between cells to control development and other processes,” said John McDowell, a program officer in the&nbsp;<a href="https://nsf.gov/">U.S. National Science Foundation</a>’s Directorate for Biological Sciences. “By revealing a new component of cell-to-cell communication, this research opens the door for further investigation that could allow us to harness this process.”



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Plant cells message each other using RNA and escort proteins

When plants grow, their stems, roots and leaves increase in...

Brilliant Red Dung Moss

Description

Taxonomic tree: