Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Adjustment And Optimization Of The Cropping Systems Under Water Constraint, Pingli An, Wei Ren, Xiliin Liu, Mengmei Song, Xuemin Li

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

The water constraint on agricultural production receives growing concern with the increasingly sharp contradiction between demand and supply of water resources. How to mitigate and adapt to potential water constraint is one of the key issues for ensuring food security and achieving sustainable agriculture in the context of climate change. It has been suggested that adjustment and optimization of cropping systems could be an effective measure to improve water management and ensure food security. However, a knowledge gap still exists in how to quantify potential water constraint and how to select appropriate cropping systems. Here, we proposed a concept of …

Comparative Transcriptomic Analysis Of Two Brassica Napus Near-Isogenic Lines Reveals A Network Of Genes That Influences Seed Oil Accumulation, Jingxue Wang, Sanjay Kumar Singh, Chunfang Du, Chen Li, Jianchun Fan, Sitakanta Pattanaik, Ling Yuan

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Rapeseed (Brassica napus) is an important oil seed crop, providing more than 13% of the world’s supply of edible oils. An in-depth knowledge of the gene network involved in biosynthesis and accumulation of seed oil is critical for the improvement of B. napus. Using available genomic and transcriptomic resources, we identified 1,750 acyl-lipid metabolism (ALM) genes that are distributed over 19 chromosomes in the B. napus genome. B. rapa and B. oleracea, two diploid progenitors of B. napus, contributed almost equally to the ALM genes. Genome collinearity analysis demonstrated that the majority of the …

Vasoactivity And Vasoconstriction Changes In Cattle Related To Time Off Toxic Endophyte-Infected Tall Fescue, James L. Klotz, Glen E. Aiken, Jessica R. Bussard, Andrew P. Foote, David L. Harmon, Ben M. Goff, F. Neal Schrick, James R. Strickland

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Previous research has indicated that serotonergic and α-adrenergic receptors in peripheral vasculature are affected by exposure of cattle grazing toxic endophyte-infected (E+; Epichlöe coenophialia) tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum). The objective of this experiment was to determine the period of time necessary for the vascular effects of ergot alkaloids to subside. Two experiments were conducted to investigate changes in vascular contractile response and vasoconstriction over time relative to removal from an ergot alkaloid-containing E+ tall fescue pasture. In Experiment 1, lateral saphenous vein biopsies were conducted on 21 predominantly Angus steers (357 ± 3 kg body weight) at …

Hydroclimatic Contrasts Over Asian Monsoon Areas And Linkages To Tropical Pacific Ssts, Hai Xu, Jianghu Lan, Enguo Sheng, Bin Liu, Keke Yu, Yuanda Ye, Zhengguo Shi, Peng Cheng, Xulong Wang, Xinying Zhou, Kevin M. Yeager

Earth and Environmental Sciences Faculty Publications

Knowledge of spatial and temporal hydroclimatic differences is critical in understanding climatic mechanisms. Here we show striking hydroclimatic contrasts between northern and southern parts of the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau (ETP), and those between East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) and Indian summer monsoon (ISM) areas during the past ~2,000 years. During the Medieval Period, and the last 100 to 200 years, the southern ETP (S-ETP) area was generally dry (on average), while the northern ETP (N-ETP) area was wet. During the Little Ice Age (LIA), hydroclimate over S-ETP areas was wet, while that over N-ETP area was dry …

Methane Emissions From Global Rice Fields: Magnitude, Spatiotemporal Patterns, And Environmental Controls, Bowen Zhang, Hanqin Tian, Wei Ren, Bo Tao, Chaoqun Lu, Jia Yang, Kamaljit Banger, Shufen Pan

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Given the importance of the potential positive feedback between methane (CH₄) emissions and climate change, it is critical to accurately estimate the magnitude and spatiotemporal patterns of CH₄ emissions from global rice fields and better understand the underlying determinants governing the emissions. Here we used a coupled biogeochemical model in combination with satellite-derived contemporary inundation area to quantify the magnitude and spatiotemporal variation of CH₄ emissions from global rice fields and attribute the environmental controls of CH₄ emissions during 1901–2010. Our study estimated that CH₄ emissions from global rice fields varied from 18.3 ± …

Modeling PCo2 Variability In The Gulf Of Mexico, Zuo Xue, Ruoying He, Katja Fennel, Wei-Jun Cai, Steven Lohrenz, Wei-Jen Huang, Hanqin Tian, Wei Ren, Zhengchen Zang

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

A three-dimensional coupled physical–biogeochemical model was used to simulate and examine temporal and spatial variability of sea surface pCO₂ in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). The model was driven by realistic atmospheric forcing, open boundary conditions from a data-assimilative global ocean circulation model, and observed freshwater and terrestrial nutrient and carbon input from major rivers. A 7-year model hindcast (2004–2010) was performed and validated against ship measurements. Model results revealed clear seasonality in surface pCO₂ and were used to estimate carbon budgets in the Gulf. Based on the average of model simulations, the GoM was a …

Regulation Of Pyrroloquinoline Quinone-Dependent Glucose Dehydrogenase Activity In The Model Rhizosphere-Dwelling Bacterium Pseudomonas Putida Kt2440, Ran An, Luke Moe

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Soil-dwelling microbes solubilize mineral phosphates by secreting gluconic acid, which is produced from glucose by a periplasmic glucose dehydrogenase (GDH) that requires pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) as a redox coenzyme. While GDH-dependent phosphate solubilization has been observed in numerous bacteria, little is known concerning the mechanism by which this process is regulated. Here we use the model rhizosphere-dwelling bacterium Pseudomonas putida KT2440 to explore GDH activity and PQQ synthesis, as well as gene expression of the GDH-encoding gene (gcd) and PQQ biosynthesis genes (pqq operon) while under different growth conditions. We also use reverse transcription-PCR to identify transcripts …

A R2r3-Myb Transcription Factor Regulates The Flavonol Biosynthetic Pathway In A Traditional Chinese Medicinal Plant, Epimedium Sagittatum, Wenjun Huang, A. B. M. Khaldun, Jianjun Chen, Chanjuan Zhang, Haiyan Lv, Ling Yuan, Ying Wang

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Flavonols as plant secondary metabolites with vital roles in plant development and defense against UV light, have been demonstrated to be the main bioactive components (BCs) in the genus Epimedium plants, several species of which are used as materials for Herba Epimedii, an important traditional Chinese medicine. The flavonol biosynthetic pathway genes had been already isolated from Epimedium sagittatum, but a R2R3-MYB transcription factor regulating the flavonol synthesis has not been functionally characterized so far in Epimedium plants. In this study, we isolated and characterized the R2R3-MYB transcription factor EsMYBF1 involved in regulation of the flavonol biosynthetic pathway …

High-Input Management Systems Effect On Soybean Seed Yield, Yield Components, And Economic Break-Even Probabilities, John M. Orlowski, Bryson J. Haverkamp, Randall G. Laurenz, David A. Marburger, Eric W. Wilson, Shaun N. Casteel, Shawn P. Conley, Seth L. Naeve, Emerson D. Nafziger, Kraig L. Roozeboom, William J. Ross, Kurt D. Thelen, Chad Lee

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Elevated soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] prices have spurred interest in maximizing soybean seed yield and has led growers to increase the number of inputs in their production systems. However, little information exists about the effects of high-input management on soybean yield and profitability. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of individual inputs, as well as combinations of inputs marketed to protect or increase soybean seed yield, yield components, and economic break-even probabilities. Studies were established in nine states and three soybean growing regions (North, Central, and South) between 2012 and 2014. In each site-year …

Performance Of Endophyte Infected Tall Fescue In Europe And North America, Kari Saikkonen, Timothy D. Phillips, Stanley H. Faeth, Rebecca L. Mcculley, Irma Saloniemi, Marjo Helander

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Human assisted plant invasions from Europe to North America have been more common than the reverse. We tested endophyte-mediated performance of tall fescue in parallel three year experiments in Europe and the USA using endophyte infected and uninfected wild and cultivated plants. Experimental plants were subjected to nutrient and water treatments. Whereas endophyte infection increased tall fescue performance in general, the effects of endophytes on plant growth and reproduction varied among plant origins under different environmental conditions. Naturally endophyte-free Finnish cultivar ‘Retu’ performed equally well as ‘Kentucky-31’ in both geographic locations. All Eurasian origin plants performed well in the US. …

Photocatalytic Reduction Of Fumarate To Succinate On Zns Mineral Surfaces, Ruixin Zhou, Marcelo I. Guzman

Chemistry Faculty Publications

The reductive tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) cycle is an important central biosynthetic pathway that fixes CO₂ into carboxylic acids. Among the five reductive steps in the rTCA cycle, the two-electron reduction of fumarate to succinate proceeds nonenzymatically on the surface of photoexcited sphalerite (ZnS) colloids suspended in water. This model reaction is chosen to systematically study the surface photoprocess occurring on ZnS in the presence of [Na₂S] (1–10 mM) hole scavenger at 15 °C. Experiments at variable pH (5–10) indicate that monodissociated fumaric acid is the primary electron acceptor forming the monoprotic form of succinic acid. The following …

Nanoparticles Composed Of Zn And Zno Inhibit Peronospora Tabacina Spore Germination In Vitro And P. Tabacina Infectivity On Tobacco Leaves, George Wagner, Victor Korenkov, Jonathan D. Judy, Paul M. Bertsch

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Manufactured nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly being used for commercial purposes and certain NP types have been shown to have broad spectrum antibacterial activity. In contrast, their activities against fungi and fungi-like oomycetes are less studied. Here, we examined the potential of two types of commercially available Zn NPs (Zn NPs and ZnO NPs) to inhibit spore germination and infectivity on tobacco leaves resulting from exposure to the fungi-like oomycete pathogen Peronospora tabacina (P. tabacina). Both types of NPs, as well as ZnCl₂ and bulk ZnO control treatments, inhibited spore germination compared to a blank control. ZnO ENMs …

Identifying Rare Fhb-Resistant Segregants In Intransigent Backcross And F2 Winter Wheat Populations, Anthony J. Clark, Daniela Sarti-Dvorjak, Gina Brown-Guedira, Yanhong Dong, Byung-Kee Baik, David A. Van Sanford

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Fusarium head blight (FHB), caused mainly by Fusarium graminearum Schwabe [telomorph: Gibberella zeae Schwein.(Petch)] in the US, is one of the most destructive diseases of wheat (Triticum aestivum L. and T. durum L.). Infected grain is usually contaminated with deoxynivalenol (DON), a serious mycotoxin. The challenge in FHB resistance breeding is combining resistance with superior agronomic and quality characteristics. Exotic QTL are widely used to improve FHB resistance. Success depends on the genetic background into which the QTL are introgressed, whether through backcrossing or forward crossing; QTL expression is impossible to predict. In this study four high-yielding soft red …

Mapping Irrigated And Rainfed Wheat Areas Using Multi-Temporal Satellite Data, Ning Jin, Bo Tao, Wei Ren, Meichen Feng, Rui Sun, Liang He, Wei Zhuang, Qiang Yu

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Irrigation is crucial to agriculture in arid and semi-arid areas and significantly contributes to crop development, food diversity and the sustainability of agro-ecosystems. For a specific crop, the separation of its irrigated and rainfed areas is difficult, because their phenology is similar and therefore less distinguishable, especially when there are phenology shifts due to various factors, such as elevation and latitude. In this study, we present a simple, but robust method to map irrigated and rainfed wheat areas in a semi-arid region of China. We used the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) at a 30 × 30 m spatial resolution …

Characterizing Genotype X Management Interactions On Soybean Seed Yield, David A. Marburger, Bryson J. Haverkamp, Randall G. Laurenz, John M. Orlowski, Eric W. Wilson, Shaun N. Casteel, Chad D. Lee, Seth L. Naeve, Emerson D. Nafziger, Kraig L. Roozeboom, William J. Ross, Kurt D. Thelen, Shawn P. Conley

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Increased soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] commodity prices in recent years have generated interest in high-input systems to increase yield. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of current, high-yielding cultivars under high- and low-input systems on soybean yield and yield components. Research trials were conducted at 19 locations spanning nine states from 2012 to 2014. At each location, six high-yielding cultivars were grown under three input systems: (i) standard practice (SP, current recommended practices), (ii) high-input treatment consisting of a seed treatment fungicide, insecticide, nematistat, inoculant, and lipo-chitooligosaccharide (LCO); soil-applied N fertilizer; foliar LCO, fertilizer, …

The Effect Of Root Exudate 7,4'-Dihydroxyflavone And Naringenin On Soil Bacterial Community Structure, Márton Szoboszlay, Alison White-Monsant, Luke A. Moe

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Our goal was to investigate how root exudate flavonoids influence the soil bacterial community structure and to identify members of the community that change their relative abundance in response to flavonoid exudation. Using a model system that approximates flavonoid exudation of Medicago sativa roots, we treated a soil with 7,4′-dihydroxyflavone and naringenin in two separate experiments using three different rates: medium (equivalent to the exudation rate of 7,4′-dihydroxyflavone from M. sativa seedlings), high (10× the medium rate), and low (0.1× the medium rate). Controls received no flavonoid. Soil samples were subjected to ATP assays and 16S rRNA gene amplicon …

Experimental Genome-Wide Determination Of Rna Polyadenylation In Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Stephen A. Bell, Chi Shen, Alishea Brown, Arthur G. Hunt

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

The polyadenylation of RNA is a near-universal feature of RNA metabolism in eukaryotes. This process has been studied in the model alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii using low-throughput (gene-by-gene) and high-throughput (transcriptome sequencing) approaches that recovered poly(A)-containing sequence tags which revealed interesting features of this critical process in Chlamydomonas. In this study, RNA polyadenylation has been studied using the so-called Poly(A) Tag Sequencing (PAT-Seq) approach. Specifically, PAT-Seq was used to study poly(A) site choice in cultures grown in four different media types—Tris-Phosphate (TP), Tris-Phosphate-Acetate (TAP), High-Salt (HS), and High-Salt-Acetate (HAS). The results indicate that: 1. As reported before, the motif UGUAA is …

Composting Swine Manure From High Rise Finishing Facilities, Edwin L. Ritchey, Kim Cook

Plant and Soil Sciences Research Report

Swine production has restructured considerably in recent years with increased production on fewer farms (Key et al., 2011). Most swine production facilities manage manure in liquid form either in deep pits underneath production facilities or in lagoons adjacent to the production facilities (Key et al., 2011). This management uses water to rinse manure from the facilities, which dilutes the nutrient concentration and value of the manure. The liquid forms are applied to land through irrigation systems or by liquid manure spreaders. Liquid manure management can have some operational constraints that composting eliminates (Bernal et al., 2009). The most common issue …

Rocks To Roads To Ruin: A Brief History Of Western Kentucky’S Rock-Asphalt Industry, 1888–1957, J. Richard Bowersox

Information Circular--KGS

The history of western Kentucky’s rock-asphalt industry required substantial research of primary sources to correct the disjointed and often conflicting record published to date. Its history is checkered with characters from visionary entrepreneurs and ambitious businessmen to financial scoundrels. The earliest evidence of exploitation of bitumen resources at the surface in western Kentucky is in Native American artifacts recovered from several sites. Early settlers in the region used heavy oil and bitumen found in seeps as lubricants and wood preservatives, among other uses. The commercial value of the widespread western Kentucky rock-asphalt deposits was first recognized in the 1880’s, leading …

Effects Of Chemical Amendments To Swine Manure On Runoff Quality, Elizabeth L. Bullock, Dwayne R. Edwards, Phillip A. Moore Jr., Richard S. Gates

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Land-applied swine manure can be an environmental concern when runoff losses of manure constituents occur. The use of chemical amendments to mitigate these losses has been investigated for poultry litter, but materials such as swine manure have received less attention in this context, particularly at the plot scale or larger. The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the impacts of aluminum sulfate (alum; Al₂(SO₄)₃), aluminum chloride (AlCl₃), and ferric chloride (FeCl₃) addition on runoff of selected constituents of land-applied swine manure. Manure was collected from feeder pigs fed a …

Heavy-Oil And Bitumen Resources Of The Big Clifty Sandstone, Northeastern Grayson County And Adjacent Hardin County, Kentucky, J. Richard Bowersox

Report of Investigations--KGS

Rock asphalt (bitumen-saturated sandstone) was produced from the Big Clifty Sandstone near Tar Hill and Big Clifty in northeastern Grayson County, and at Summit in adjacent Hardin County, from 1889 to 1940. Noncommercial amounts of oil were distilled from Big Clifty rock asphalt before 1930. Resource assessments conducted throughout the area during the mid-1920's described substantial rock-asphalt deposits. Later assessments in 1951, 1965, and the early 1980's, however, overlooked the northeastern Grayson County area. A new evaluation in 2015 estimated that the historically developed area between Clifty Creek and meeting Creek, and between the Summit Fault and Eveleigh Fault Zone, …

Heavy-Oil And Bitumen Resources Of The Western Kentucky Tar Sands, J. Richard Bowersox

Report of Investigations--KGS

Heavy-oil and bitumen resources in western Kentucky are present in the Upper Mississippian Big Clifty and Hardinsburg Sandstones and Lower Pennsylvanian Kyrock and Bee Spring Sandstone Members of the Caseyville Formation in a belt extending from Logan County on the south to Breckinridge and Hardin Counties on the north.

Net oil-saturated intervals in the tar sands range from 2.5 to 4.7 m thick, largely in downthrown fault blocks in and bounding the Rough Creek Graben. Records from 1,500 wells, analysis of reservoir properties from 3,769 plugs from 135 coreholes, and bulk volume of hydrocarbon calculated in 139 surface samples were …

Earthquake Hazard Mitigation In The New Madrid Seismic Zone: Science And Public Policy, Alice M. Orton, Zhenming Wang, Lanmin Wang, Edward W. Woolery

Report of Investigations--KGS

In the central United States, earthquake sources that are not well defined, long earthquake recurrence intervals, and uncertain ground-motion attenuation models have contributed to an overstatement of seismic hazard for the New Madrid Seismic Zone on the national seismic hazard maps published by the U.S. Geological Survey. A series of informal interviews in western Kentucky with local businesspersons, public officials, and other professionals in occupations associated with seismic-hazard mitigation discussed seismic-mitigation policies in relation to depressed local economy. Scientific and relative economic analysis was then performed using scenario earthquake models developed with the Federal Emergency management Agency's Hazus-MH software. The …

Injecting Liquids And Gases Deep Underground, Stephen F. Greb

Map and Chart--KGS

Every year, thousands of wells are drilled into underground reservoirs in search of water, oil, and natural gas. The gases and fluids are trapped inside tiny pores and cracks in underground reservoirs.

Mapped Karst Groundwater Basins In The Elizabethtown 30 X 60 Minute Quadrangle, James C. Currens, Robert J. Blair

Map and Chart--KGS

This map shows karst groundwater basins in the Elizabethtown 30 x 60 minute quadrangle, determined primarily by groundwater tracer studies. It can be used to quickly identify the groundwater basins and springs to which a site may drain. Major springs and the relative size of their catchment areas can be evaluated for potential as water supplies. The map also serves as a geographic index to literature on karst groundwater in the area.

Storing Co2 Deep Underground, Stephen F. Greb

Map and Chart--KGS

No abstract provided.

Site Characteristics, Instrumentation, And Recordings Of The Central United States Seismic Observatory, Edward W. Woolery, Zhenming Wang, N. Seth Carpenter

Report of Investigations--KGS

The Central United States Seismic Observatory is a vertical seismic array in southwestern Kentucky within the New Madrid Seismic Zone. It is intended to record the effects of local geology, including thick sediment overburden, on seismic-wave propagation, particularly strong ground motion. The three-borehole array is composed of seismic sensors placed on the surface, in the bedrock, and at various depths within the 585-m-thick sediment overburden. The array's deep borehole also provides a unique opportunity to describe the geology and geophysically measure the complete Late Cretaceous through Quaternary stratigraphy in the northern Mississippi Embayment.

Based on the surface and borehole geophysical …