Fusarium species of the Gibberella fujikuroi species complex cause serious diseases on different crops such as rice, wheat and maize. An important group of plant pathogens is the Gibberella fujikuroi species complex (GFC) of closely related Fusarium species which are associated with specific hosts; F. verticillioides and F. proliferatum are particularly associated with maize where they can cause serious ear-, root-, and stalk rot diseases. Two other closely related species of the GFC, F. mangiferae and F. fujikuroi, which share about 90Prozent sequence identity with F. verticillioides, are pathogens on mango and rice, respectively. All of these species produce a broad spectrum of secondary metabolites such as phytohormones (gibberellins, auxins, and cytokinins), and harmful mycotoxins, such as fumonisin, fusarin C, or fusaric acid in large quantities. However, the spectrum of those mycotoxins might differ between closely related species suggesting that secondary metabolites might be determinants for host specificity. In this project, we will study the potential impact of secondary metabolites (i.e. phytohormones and certain mycotoxins) and some other species-specific factors (e.g. species-specific transcription factors) on host specificity. The recently sequenced genomes of F. mangiferae and F. fujikuroi by our groups and the planned sequencing of F. proliferatum will help to identify such determinants by genetic manipulation of the appropriate metabolic pathway(s).
Our long term activities aim at a functional understanding of alpine plant life. Overall our research shifted gradually from studying resource acquisition (e.g. photosynthesis) toward resource investment and questions of developement. As with treeline, sink activity seems to be the major determinant of growth. A common misconception associated with alpine plant life finds its expression in the use of the terms 'stress' and 'limitation'. See the critique in: Körner C (1998) Alpine plants: stressed or adapted? In: Press MC, Scholes JD, Barker MG (eds.) Physiological Plant Ecology. Blackwell Science , 297-311. Ongoing experimental work: The influence of photoperiod on growth and development in high elevation taxa (Ph.D. by Franziska Keller in cooperation with the Dept. of Geography, University of Fribourg). We test, whether and which species are responsive to earlier snow melt. It appears there exists a suite of different sensitivities, suggesting biodiversity shifts. We also tested the influence of nutrient addition on high elevation pioneer plants and run a longer term project on the interactive effect on sheep tramplng, nitrogen deposition and warming as part of the Swiss National Project NFP 48. A Europe-wide assessment of ground temperatures in alpine grassland is part of ALPNET (see associated organisations). The assessment provides a basis for comparing biodiversity in alpine biota from 69 to 37 degree of northern latitude. (Nagy et al. (2003) Ecological Studies, Vol. 167. 577 p. Springer, Berlin). A synthesis of research in functional ecology of alpine plants over the past 100 years was published in 1999.
Fragmentation of the natural environment has contributed to major biodiversity loss in South East Asia. Reptiles represent a significant biomass and occupy important functions in our ecosystem. However, these organisms are highly sensitive to relatively minor changes in temperature and habitat alteration. In this study we will investigate the effects of habitat fragmentation and potentially climate change on agamids at several sites in Southeast Asia. We will identify the species richness of agamids, their habitat use, and their diet. By using morphometrics, we aim to correlate morphology and habitat use and diet to explore the ecological niches these lizards occupy. We will also test for microhabitat preferences and optima to understand the ecological impacts on these species caused by forest fragmentation. We hope to use this approach to lay the foundations for macro-ecological modelling proving insights into future distributions and the impact of habitat connectivity.
Lake Sevan, the only large water reservoir within the South Caucasus, is under severe ecological pressure, and understanding the species composition of the lake and especially the rivers of its drainage basin is of central importance to inform natural resource management decisions in Armenia. Due to the limited capacity in the area for exact and fast taxonomic identification of benthic invertebrates, we started to compile a DNA barcode reference database of aquatic arthropods from the Lake Sevan drainage basin, spearheaded by Dr. Marine Dallakyan from Yerevan's Scientific Center of Zoology and Hydroecology (Armenian Academy of Sciences), whose first visit to ZFMK has been financed by DAAD. The project is closely linked to the efforts undertaken and planned within the GGBC(link is external) project. The project results are aimed at making future standardized assessment of aquatic biodiversity monitoring in Armenia and the Caucasus easier, faster, and more reliable.
Cherry leaf roll virus (CLRV) is a plant pathogen of economic and ecologic importance. It is globally distributed in a wide range of forest, fruit, and ornamental trees and shrubs. In several areas of cherry and walnut production CLRV causes severe losses in yield and quality. With current reference to the rapid dissemination and strong symptom expression in Finnish birches and the Germany-wide distribution of CLRV in birches and elderberry, we continuously investigate and gradually reveal CLRV transmission pathways as by pollen, seeds or water. However, modes and interactions responsible for the wide intergeneric host transmission as well as for the exceptional CLRV epidemic in Fennoscandia still remain unknown. In this project systematic studies shall investigate biological vectors as a causal agent to finally derive control mechanisms and strategies to avoid new epidemics in different hosts and geographic regions. Detailed monitoring of the invertebrate fauna of birch stands/forests and elderberry plantations in Germany and Finland shall reveal potential vectors to subsequently study them in detail by approved virus detection methods and transmission experiments. Molecular analyses of the CLRV coat protein shall prove its role as a viral determinant for a virus/vector interaction. Consequently, this project essentially will contribute important answers on the CLRV epidemiology, and this will be a key element within the first network of research on plant viral pathogens in forest trees.
Gegenstand des Forschungsprojektes ist eine Untersuchung der Phylogeographie ausgewählter Taxa eierlegender Zahnkarpfen (Cyprinodontiformes, Aplocheilidae) mit molekulargenetischen Methoden. Es soll die Hypothese getestet werden, ob Evolution und Radiation in dieser Fischgruppe entscheidend durch die historische und rezente Entwicklung des zentralafrikanischen Regenwaldes beeinflußt wurde. Aufgrund der engen Habitatbindung der untersuchten Artgruppen an den Regenwald wird diese Hypothese von den bisherigen Bearbeitern favorisiert. Für die betrachteten Taxa soll das Ausmaß der genetischen Unterschiede zwischen den Arten und den verschiedenen Populationen ermittelt werden, um Rückschlüsse auf Biogeographie, Phylogenie, Artbildungsprozesse und Evolutionsverlauf ziehen zu können. die biogeographischen und phylogenetischen Ergebnisse sollen dann mit den vorliegenden Daten zur Geologie und zur Regenwaldgenese verglichen werden, um festzustellen, ob hier eine Korrelation vorliegt und sich dadurch weitere Details zur bisher nur in groben Zügen bekannten Genese west- und zentralafrikanischer Regenwaldgebiete gewinnen lassen. Die betrachteten Verbreitungsgebiete umfassen dabei mehrere der angenommenen Regenwaldrefugien im Bereich Nigeria, Kamerun, Äquatorial Guinea und Gabun.
Comprehension of belowground competition between plant species is a central part in understanding the complex interactions in intercropped agricultural systems, between crops and weeds as well as in natural ecosystems. So far, no simple and rapid method for species discrimination of roots in the soil exists. We will be developing a method for root discrimination of various species based on Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR)-Attenuated Total Reflexion (ATR) Spectroscopy and expanding its application to the field. The absorbance patterns of FTIR-ATR spectra represent the chemical sample composition like an individual fingerprint. By means of multivariate methods, spectra will be grouped according to spectral and chemical similarity in order to achieve species discrimination. We will investigate pea and oat roots as well as maize and barnyard grass roots using various cultivars/proveniences grown in the greenhouse. Pea and oat are recommendable species for intercropping to achieve superior grain and protein yields in an environmentally sustainable manner. To evaluate the effects of intercropping on root distribution in the field, root segments will be measured directly at the soil profile wall using a mobile FTIR spectrometer. By extracting the main root compounds (lipids, proteins, carbohydrates) and recording their FTIR-ATR spectra as references, we will elucidate the chemical basis of species-specific differences.
Background and Objectives: The project area is located in the Ashanti Region of Ghana / West Africa in the transition zone of the moist semideciduous forest and tropical savannah zone. Main land use in this region is subsistence agriculture with large fallow areas. As an alternative land-use, forest plantations are under development by the Ghanaian wood processing company DuPaul Wood Treatment Ltd. Labourers from the surrounding villages are employed as permanent or casual plantation workers. Within three forest plantation projects of approximately 6,000 ha, DuPaul offers an area of 164 ha (referred to as Papasi Plantation) - which is mainly planted with Teak (Tectona grandis) - for research purposes. In return, the company expects consultations to improve the management for sustainable timber and pole production with exotic and native tree species. Results: In a first research approach, the Papasi Plantation was assessed in terms of vegetation classification, timber resources (in qualitative and quantitative terms) and soil and site conditions. A permanent sampling plot system was established to enable long-term monitoring of stand dynamics including observation of stand response to silvicultural treatments. Site conditions are ideally suited for Teak and some stands show exceptionally good growth performances. However, poor weed management and a lack of fire control and silvicultural management led to high mortality and poor growth performance of some stands, resulting in relative low overall growth averages. In a second step, a social baseline study was carried out in the surrounding villages and identified landowner conflicts between some villagers and DuPaul, which could be one reason for the fire damages. However, the study also revealed a general interest for collaboration in agroforestry on DuPaul land on both sides. Thirdly, a silvicultural management concept was elaborated and an improved integration of the rural population into DuPaul's forest plantation projects is already initiated. If landowner conflicts can be solved, the development of forest plantations can contribute significantly to the economic income of rural households while environmental benefits provide long-term opportunities for sustainable development of the region. Funding: GTZ supported PPP-Measure, Foundation
Together with several colleagues from Argentina and Peru (main investigator is Paola Carrasco (Universidad Nacional de Cordoba), but also Gustavo Scrocchi (CONICET and Instituto de Herpetologia, San Miguel de Tucuman), Pablo Venegas (Centro de Ornitologia y Biodiversidad (CORBIDI), Lima), Juan Chaparro (Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad del Cusco, Cusco)), we started a collaboration on the phylogeny of bothropoid pitvipers (Bothrops, Bothrocophias), with the aim to solve systematic conflicts within the Bothrops-complex (to agree 50 species) using a phylogenetic analysis combining a large number of morphological and molecular data. Until recently, most phylogenetic analyses of the South American pitviper genus Bothrops used exclusively mitochondrial DNA sequences, whereas few of them have included morphological traits. Moreover, the systematic affinities of some species remain unclear. As part of this project we are currently working on a systematic revision of the Bothrops-complex in Peru (11 + 2 new species). We recently published the first data including the description of a new species (Carrasco et al. 2019) and a manuscript with the description of a second new species is in preparation. Additionally, the morphological variability in the Bothrops neuwiedii species group will be examined, with special respect to the widely distributed B. diporus. Bothrops diporus shall serve as a model species for studying possible influences of environmental factors on the phenotypical diversity of species in the genus Bothrops. The collaborative work started mid of 2015. First results of the collaborative project were presented at the XVI Congreso Argentino de Herpetología in San Miguel de Tucumán (September 2015), the I Congreso Argentino-Paraguayo de Herpetologia in Posadas, Argentina and Encarnación, Paraguay (September 2016), the XVIII Congreso Argentino de Herpetologia in Salta, Argentina (October 2017), the Latinamerican Congress of Herpetology in Quito, Ecuador (July 2017), and will be presented at the 3rd Biology of Pitvipers Symposium in Rodeo, USA (July 2019). Paola Carrasco just submitted a proposal to SYNTHESYS+ to visit the ZFMK in early 2020, in which I will serve as her host. In this visit, besides intensifying our collaboration, Paola wants to study different genera of Viperidae from our collection in the framework of our collaborative project.
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