Did you Know Archives - Page 4 of 6

The Clasp protein, seen here in an image from an electron microscope,  helps cells divide within the roots and shoots of the thale cress plant.

Calling all plant cells

Internal communication system aids and  guides plant development, researchers say

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff September 5, 2018

Western Canadian researchers have discovered an internal messaging system plants use to manage the growth and division of cells. These growth-management processes are critical for all organisms, because without them, cells can proliferate out of control — as they do in cancers and bacterial infections. Researchers from the University of British Columbia, along with colleagues

Sierra mix corn variety found in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Did you know?, News

Corn that finds its own nitrogen

Researchers have known about it since the 1980s but were only recently able to analyze it

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff August 27, 2018

Is it possible to grow cereal crops without having to rely on energy requiring commercial fertilizers? In a new study publishing August 7 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology, researchers describe a newly identified corn variety which acquires nitrogen by feeding its sugars to beneficial bacteria, which can in turn take up nitrogen from the

The researchers studied Acmispon strigosus, a plant in the pea family that is native to the southwestern United States.

Did you know?, News

Reach for the top

It’s not just soil microbes that set crops up for success — it’s the right ones

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff August 21, 2018

Beautiful things can happen when plants surround themselves with the right microbes, according to researchers at the University of California (Riverside). They looked at Acmispon strigosus, a plant in the pea family, and found a thirteenfold growth increase in plants that partnered with a highly effective strain of the nitrogen-fixing bacteria Bradyrhizobium. The ability of

South Sudanese women walk to the site of a UN’s World Food Program (WFP) food aid air drop near the town of Katdalok, in Jonglei State of South Sudan July 30, 2018.

Did you know?, News, Other

Climate taxes could fuel food insecurity

The impact could easily outstrip the effects of a changing climate itself

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff August 15, 2018

One of the reasons climate mitigation systems like carbon taxes are touted is the growing risk of food insecurity in a changing climate. But new research suggests the policies themselves, if they’re not carefully designed, could fuel even more widespread hunger and food insecurity than the direct impacts of climate change. Those are the findings

Maybe flaxseed can help avoid these situations.

Did you know?, News, Other

Omega-3 supplements not so heart healthy?

But they might make the kids behave better

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff August 8, 2018

There’s good news and bad news from two recent university studies on the benefits of consuming omega-3 supplements. Omega-3 is a type of fatty acid found in oily fish such as salmon, or in plant sources such as flaxseed or canola oil. Its consumption has been widely recommended as a means of preventing heart disease. The bad

A depiction of the herbicide molecule (top), which inhibits an enzyme (bottom) that plants need.

Did you know?, News, Other

Neutralizing weeds’ defence system

Researchers identify a new mechanism to battle herbicide resistance

By Ucla Release July 31, 2018

Plants and unseen soil micro-organisms all need precious space to grow. And to gain that space, a microbe might produce and use chemicals that kill its plant competitors. But the microbe also needs immunity from its own poisons. By looking for that protective shield in micro-organisms, specifically the genes that can make it, a team

Rice farmers in India. PHOTO: KEVIN KRAJICK

Did you know?, News

Swapping crops

Growing crops other than rice could save water and improve nutrition

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff July 25, 2018

Researchers say the best choice for some developing countries may be to rethink the types of crops they’re growing. A paper by researchers at Columbia University, published recently in the journal Science Advances, examined the situation in India and found plenty of challenges based on its widespread cultivation of rice. It’s a water-hungry plant that’s

A study has found the grain is an ideal and safe contrast agent for diagnosing swallowing disorders. PHOTO: UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO

Did you know?, News

Barley not barium

The familiar cereal crop can also be an imaging agent for medical tests

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff July 10, 2018

Toasted barley could aid the medical field in diagnosing certain medical conditions. That’s because the toasted grain, when struck by a common laser beam, illuminates the throat and gastrointestinal tract. The discovery could improve the ability to diagnose swallowing disorders, which affect millions, as well as gut disorders. What’s more, because many human diets already

Higher carbon dioxide levels could negatively impact the nutritional value of rice, an important crop to many lower-income countries.

Cereals, Did you know?

Rice’s nutritional value decreases in higher CO2 concentrations

Researchers examine how climate change can impact dietary quality of crops

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff June 19, 2018

Rice grown at higher carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations, like those possible later this century, has lower nutritional value, according to a recent study. Notably, some varieties of rice seemed to react differently to increased levels of CO2, say the study’s authors, showing relatively smaller decreases in nutritional value. The finding that rice’s nutritional quality can

Take-all infection causing shiny black discolouration of lower stem area of wheat plant and poor root development. Note black colour and almost absence of feeder roots.

Did you know?, News

How wheat can root out the take-all fungus

A team of young researchers has now pinpointed a way of easing cereals’ risks from a deadly root pathogen

By Manitoba Co-operator Staff June 12, 2018

British researchers say the key to preventing the buildup of the take-all fungus is to foster beneficial fungus, which can help the plants to help themselves. Working out the right conditions to support those beneficial fungi and identifying the cereal varieties that are best suited to make the most of that help is the challenge

Daily Network News

Canadian food, agriculture coalition to underscore CUSMA importance in Washington

Canada’s inflation in October eases to 2.2 per cent on lower gasoline, food prices

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures rise on first WASDE since September

Tag Archives Did you Know

Calling all plant cells

Corn that finds its own nitrogen

Reach for the top

Climate taxes could fuel food insecurity

Omega-3 supplements not so heart healthy?

Neutralizing weeds’ defence system

Swapping crops

Barley not barium

Rice’s nutritional value decreases in higher CO2 concentrations

How wheat can root out the take-all fungus

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