Don Arthur Cowan

Trace gas oxidation supports sub-surface microbial communities across Namib Desert fog and aridity gradients

Dana Z. Tribbia, Pedro Humberto Lebre, Xabier Vázquez-Campos, Angelique E. Ray et autres

ABSTRACT Widely accepted climate predictions indicate that drylands will expand to cover more than half of the Earth’s terrestrial surface by the end of the 21st century. In these environments, harsh conditions, including nutrient and water limitations, restrict plant and animal life, …

au, fr, Afrique du Sud, us, Namibie (code pays fourni par la source)

Ring-formation in a Namibian resurrection grass and its relation to climate, neighborhood competition and soil microbes

Stephan Getzin, Don Arthur Cowan, Pedro Humberto Lebre, Franziska Messirek et autres

Ring-formation in plants is observed worldwide in drylands. The mechanisms underlying the shift from spot-like tussocks to open rings with a central dieback can be multi-facetted and are often not clearly discernable. We therefore applied a holistic approach to study a wide-spread …

Namibie, de, Afrique du Sud (code pays fourni par la source)

Lipids and organic acids of rhizosheath shape adaptation and microbiome interactions of xerophytic, perennial desert spear grasses (Stipagrostis spp.)

Soukaina Abdelwahed, Ramona Marasco, Oumaima Zidi, Mouna Mahjoubi et autres

Aridity drives global convergence of desert microbiomes and biogeochemical activities

Pok Man Leung, Sean K. Bay, Wei Wen Wong, Thanavit Jirapanjawat et autres

Deserts cover a third of the world's surface, supporting unique biomes and ecosystem services. Yet, we lack a comprehensive assessment of what defines and drives the microbial communities that dominate life in these regions. Here, we conducted a standardized field survey in …

au, nz, Tunisie, Afrique du Sud, us, bg, dk, ch, il, gb, in, fi, ca, my, es (code pays fourni par la source)

Safeguarding microbial biodiversity: microbial conservation specialist group within the species survival commission of the International Union for Conservation of Nature

Jack A. Gilbert, Amber Hartman Scholz, Maria Gloria Domínguez-Bello, Lisé Korsten et autres

us, gb, de, nl, Afrique du Sud, at, au, cn, Soudan, cz, mx, fr, sa, ca (code pays fourni par la source)

From description to implementation: key takeaways from the 3rd African Microbiome Symposium

Kristien Nel Van Zyl, Olubukola Oluranti Babalola, Reinhard Böhmer, Don Arthur Cowan et autres

The 3rd African Microbiome Symposium was held in Cape Town, South Africa, from 20 to 22 November 2024. The symposium featured a diverse range of local and international microbiome research and provided a platform for 79 researchers, students, and industry members to …

Afrique du Sud, gb, us, fr, nl (code pays fourni par la source)

Safeguarding microbial biodiversity: microbial conservation specialist group within the species survival commission of the International Union for Conservation of Nature

Jack A. Gilbert, Amber Hartman Scholz, Maria Gloria Domínguez-Bello, Lisé Korsten et autres

Microorganisms—including microscopic single-cell and multicellular life—form the biological foundation of life on Earth. They regulate biogeochemical cycles, control climate-relevant gas fluxes, and underpin the health of all multicellular organisms (Cavicchioli et al. 2019, Lennon et al. 2023, 2024, Peixoto, 2024a) (Fig. 1A …

us, gb, de, Afrique du Sud, at, au, cn, mx, cl, sa, ca, fr (code pays fourni par la source)

Comparative genomics reveals adaptive traits in novel Antarctic lithic cyanobacteria

Marc W. Van Goethem, Surendra Vikram, Don Arthur Cowan, Thulani Peter Makhalanyane

BACKGROUND: Terrestrial polar cyanobacteria persist at the cold limits of life, enduring a suite of extreme stressors including sub-zero temperatures, frequent freeze–thaw cycles, oligotrophic soils, variable light regimes with long periods of darkness, and desiccation. To survive, cyanobacteria have evolved diverse physiological …

Afrique du Sud, sa (code pays fourni par la source)

Launching the IUCN Microbial Conservation Specialist Group as a global safeguard for microbial biodiversity

Jack A. Gilbert, Raquel Silva Peixoto, Amber Hartman Scholz, Maria Gloria Domínguez-Bello et autres

us, gb, sa, de, Afrique du Sud, at, au, cn, mx, cl, ch, ca (code pays fourni par la source)

Effects of Fire Intensity on Soil Microbial Ecology in a Grassland Ecosystem

Pedro Humberto Lebre, Jacques Fouché, Jason Bosch, Luis R. Pertierra et autres

ABSTRACT In temperate grasslands, periodic or seasonal burning is considered critical for maintaining plant diversity and ecosystems. Under global change scenarios such as warmer and wetter climates and increasing alien invasions, fire is predicted to increase in intensity in many ecosystems. While …

Afrique du Sud, cz, es, ch (code pays fourni par la source)

Assessing ML classification algorithms and NLP techniques for depression detection: An experimental case study

Giuliano Lorenzoni, Cristina Tavares, Nathalia Moraes do Nascimento, Paulo Carvalho de Alencar et autres

CONTEXT AND BACKGROUND: Depression has affected millions of people worldwide and has become one of the most common mental disorders. Early mental disorder detection can reduce costs for public health agencies and prevent other major comorbidities. Additionally, the shortage of specialized personnel …

ca (code pays fourni par la source)

Oxalate content of vegetation and termite frass in western South Africa

Teneille Nel, Catherine E. Clarke, Michele Louise Francis, Dmitriy Babenko et autres

Abstract Oxalate salts in organic matter are potential substrates for the oxalate‐carbonate pathway, which can sequester carbon in drylands. We compared calcium oxalate (CaOx) and water‐soluble oxalate (SOx) concentrations of samples of vegetation and termite excrement (frass) collected from termite mounds in …

us, Afrique du Sud (code pays fourni par la source)