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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Cloning crops in a CELSS via tissue culture: Prospects and problems

Micropropagation is currently used to clone fruits, nuts, and vegetables and involves controlling the outgrowth in vitro of basal, axillary, or adventitious buds. Following clonal multiplication, shoots are divided and rooted. This process has greatly reduced space and energy requirements in greenhouses and field nurseries and has increased multiplication rates by greater than 20 fold for some vegetatively propagated crops and breeding lines. Cereal and legume crops can also be cloned by tissue culture through somatic embryogenesis. Somatic embryos can be used to produce 'synthetic seed', which can tolerate desiccation and germinate upon rehydration. Synthetic seed of hybrid wheat, rice, soybean and other crops could be produced in a controlled ecological life support system. Thus, yield advantages of hybreds over inbreds (10 to 20 percent) could be exploited without having to provide additional facilities and energy for parental-line and hybrid seed nurseries.

Carman, John G.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Climate smart agriculture and global food-crop production

Most business-as-usual scenarios for farming under changing climate regimes project that the agriculture sector will be significantly impacted from increased temperatures and shifting precipitation patterns. Perhaps ironically, agricultural production contributes substantially to the problem with yearly greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of about 11% of total anthropogenic GHG emissions, not including land use change. It is partly because of this tension that Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) has attracted interest given its promise to increase agricultural productivity under a changing climate while reducing emissions. Considerable resources have been mobilized to promote CSA globally even though the potential effects of its widespread adoption have not yet been studied. Here we show that a subset of agronomic practices that are often included under the rubric of CSA can contribute to increasing agricultural production under unfavorable climate regimes while contributing to the reduction of GHG. However, for CSA to make a significant impact important investments and coordination are required and its principles must be implemented widely across the entire sector.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2026

Transcriptomic and functional analyses uncover a conserved effector driving genotype-dependent virulence in the Sphaerulina musiva-Populus trichocarpa interaction

The introduction of invasive microbes compromises the structure, biodiversity, and function of naïve ecosystems. Sphaerulina musiva, a hemibiotrophic pathogen that causes leaf spot and stem cankers in Populus species, exemplifies an invasive fungal pathogen spread by human activities. However, the genetic mechanisms of pathogenicity and virulence are poorly understood, impeding mitigation strategies. We utilized RNA sequencing to identify fungal effectors linked to stem canker formation, informing the development of future strategies for effective disease management. Our analysis revealed 70 genes differentially expressed at 2 weeks and 110 genes at 3 weeks between inoculated trees and controls. Notably, the gene with the highest expression at 2 weeks and the second highest at 3 weeks was homologous to Extracellular protein 2 (Ecp2). Complementary genome-wide association studies linked sequence polymorphisms in this locus to phenotypic variation in disease severity. Infiltration of S. musiva Ecp2 into Populus trichocarpa leaves induced necrosis in susceptible genotypes. Gene disruption using a CRISPR-Cas9 RNP system resulted in a genotype-dependent reduction of stem canker and disease severity. Tracing the evolutionary history of this effector across the fungal kingdom, we uncovered clade-specific gene-family expansions and orthologs in new species. These findings raise questions about the function and adaptive significance of these gene families in fungal lifestyles. Our study provides the first tractable target for breeding resistant poplar genotypes, addressing the challenges of managing S. musiva and uncovering mechanisms that drive its virulence, and provides deeper insights into the evolutionary dynamics of a conserved small-secreted protein with a diversity of functions.

Sondreli, Kelsey L [Oregon State University]↗
NASA NTRS2018

Global Patterns of Crop Yield Stability Under Additional Nutrient and Water Inputs

Agricultural production must increase to feed a growing and wealthier population, as well as to satisfy increasing demands for biomaterials and biomass-based energy. At the same time, deforestation and land-use change need to be minimized in order to preserve biodiversity and maintain carbon stores in vegetation and soils. Consequently, agricultural land use needs to be intensified in order to increase food production per unit area of land. Here we use simulations of AgMIP's Global Gridded Crop Model Intercomparison (GGCMI) phase 1 to assess implications of input-driven intensification (water, nutrients) on crop yield and yield stability, which is an important aspect in food security. We find region- and crop-specific responses for the simulated period 1980+/-2009 with broadly increasing yield variability under additional nitrogen inputs and stabilizing yields under additional water inputs (irrigation), reflecting current patterns of water and nutrient limitation. The different models of the GGCMI ensemble show similar response patterns, but model differences warrant further research on management assumptions, such as variety selection and soil management, and inputs as well as on model implementation of different soil and plant processes, such as on heat stress, and parameters. Higher variability in crop productivity under higher fertilizer input will require adequate buffer mechanisms in trade and distribution/storage networks to avoid food price volatility.

Maize↗
DOE OSTI2022

Genomic prediction of hybrid performance for agronomic traits in sorghum

Hybrid breeding in sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] utilizes the cytoplasmic-nuclear male sterility (CMS) system for seed production and subsequently harnesses heterosis. Since the cost of developing and evaluating inbred and hybrid lines in the CMS system is costly and time-consuming, genomic prediction of parental lines and hybrids is based on genetic data genotype. We generated 602 hybrids by crossing two female (A) lines with 301 diverse and elite male (R) lines from the sorghum association panel and collected phenotypic data for agronomic traits over two years. We genotyped the inbred parents using whole genome resequencing and used 2,687,342 high quality (minor allele frequency > 2%) single nucleotide polymorphisms for genomic prediction. For grain yield, the experimental hybrids exhibited an average mid-parent heterosis of 40%. Genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) for hybrid performance yielded an average prediction accuracy of 0.76–0.93 under the prediction scenario where both parental lines in validation sets were included in the training sets (T2). However, when only female tester was shared between training and validation sets (T1F), prediction accuracies declined by 12–90%, with plant height showing the greatest decline. Mean accuracies for predicting the general combining ability of male parents ranged from 0.33 to 0.62 for all traits. Our results showed hybrid performance for agronomic traits can be predicted with high accuracy, and optimizing genomic relationship is essential for optimal training population design for genomic selection in sorghum breeding.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

N-dependent dynamics of root growth and nitrate and ammonium uptake are altered by the bacterium Herbaspirillum seropedicae in the cereal model Brachypodium distachyon

Nitrogen (N) fixation in cereals by root-associated bacteria is a promising solution for reducing use of chemical N fertilizers in agriculture. However, plant and bacterial responses are unpredictable across environments. We hypothesized that cereal responses to N-fixing bacteria are dynamic, depending on N supply and time. To quantify the dynamics, a gnotobiotic, fabricated ecosystem (EcoFAB) was adapted to analyse N mass balance, to image shoot and root growth, and to measure gene expression of Brachypodium distachyon inoculated with the N-fixing bacterium Herbaspirillum seropedicae. Phenotyping throughput of EcoFAB-N was 25–30 plants h -1 with open software and imaging systems. Herbaspirillum seropedicae inoculation of B. distachyon shifted root and shoot growth, nitrate versus ammonium uptake, and gene expression with time; directions and magnitude depended on N availability. Primary roots were longer and root hairs shorter regardless of N, with stronger changes at low N. At higher N, H. seropedicae provided 11% of the total plant N that came from sources other than the seed or the nutrient solution. The time-resolved phenotypic and molecular data point to distinct modes of action: at 5 mM NH 4 NO 3 the benefit appears through N fixation, while at 0.5 mM NH 4 NO 3 the mechanism appears to be plant physiological, with H. seropedicae promoting uptake of N from the root medium.Future work could fine-tune plant and root-associated microorganisms to growth and nutrient dynamics.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Evaluation of residue management practices on barley residue decomposition

Optimizing barley (hordeum vulgare L.) production in Idaho and other parts of the Pacific Northwest (PNW) should focus on farm resource management. The effect of post-harvest residue management on barley residue decomposition has not been adequately studied. Thus, the objective of this study was to determine the effect of residue placement (surface vs. incorporated), residue size (chopped vs. ground-sieved) and soil type (sand and sandy loam) on barley residue decomposition. A 50-day(d) laboratory incubation experiment was conducted at a temperature of 25°C at the Aberdeen Research and Extension Center, Aberdeen, Idaho, USA. Following the study, a Markov-Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) modeling approach was applied to investigate the first-order decay kinetics of barley residue. An accelerated initial flush of residue carbon(C)-mineralization was measured for the sieved (Day 1) compared to chopped (Day 3 to 5) residues for both surface incorporated applications. The highest evolution of carbon dioxide (CO 2 )-C of 8.3 g kg -1 dry residue was observed on Day 1 from the incorporated-sieved application for both soils. The highest and lowest amount of cumulative CO 2 -C released and percentage residue decomposed over 50-d was observed for surface-chopped (107 g kg -1 dry residue and 27%, respectively) and incorporated-sieved (69 g kg -1 dry residue and 18%, respectively) residues, respectively. There were no significant differences in C-mineralization from barley residue based on soil type or its interactions with residue placement and size (p >0.05). The largest decay constant k of 0.0083 d -1 was calculated for surface-chopped residue where the predicted half-life was 80 d, which did not differ from surface sieved or incorporated chopped. In contrast, incorporated-sieved treatments only resulted in a k of 0.0054 d -1 and would need an additional 48 d to decompose 50% of the residue. Future residue decomposition studies under field conditions are warranted to verify the residue C-mineralization and its impact on residue management.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Multi-Trait Regressor Stacking Increased Genomic Prediction Accuracy of Sorghum Grain Composition

Genomic prediction has enabled plant breeders to estimate breeding values of unobserved genotypes and environments. The use of genomic prediction will be extremely valuable for compositional traits for which phenotyping is labor-intensive and destructive for most accurate results. We studied the potential of Bayesian multi-output regressor stacking (BMORS) model in improving prediction performance over single trait single environment (STSE) models using a grain sorghum diversity panel (GSDP) and a biparental recombinant inbred lines (RILs) population. A total of five highly correlated grain composition traits—amylose, fat, gross energy, protein and starch, with genomic heritability ranging from 0.24 to 0.59 in the GSDP and 0.69 to 0.83 in the RILs were studied. Average prediction accuracies from the STSE model were within a range of 0.4 to 0.6 for all traits across both populations except amylose (0.25) in the GSDP. Prediction accuracy for BMORS increased by 41% and 32% on average over STSE in the GSDP and RILs, respectively. Prediction of whole environments by training with remaining environments in BMORS resulted in moderate to high prediction accuracy. Our results show regression stacking methods such as BMORS have potential to accurately predict unobserved individuals and environments, and implementation of such models can accelerate genetic gain.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Identification of Novel Genomic Associations and Gene Candidates for Grain Starch Content in Sorghum

Starch accumulated in the endosperm of cereal grains as reserve energy for germination serves as a staple in human and animal nutrition. Unraveling genetic control for starch metabolism is important for breeding grains with high starch content. In this study, we used a sorghum association panel with 389 individuals and 141,557 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to fit linear mixed models (LMM) for identifying genomic regions and potential candidate genes associated with starch content. Three associated genomic regions, one in chromosome (chr) 1 and two novel associations in chr-8, were identified using combination of LMM and Bayesian sparse LMM. All significant SNPs were located within protein coding genes, with SNPs ∼ 52 Mb of chr-8 encoding a Casperian strip membrane protein (CASP)-like protein (Sobic.008G111500) and a heat shock protein (HSP) 90 (Sobic.008G111600) that were highly expressed in reproductive tissues including within the embryo and endosperm. The HSP90 is a potential hub gene with gene network of 75 high-confidence first interactors that is enriched for five biochemical pathways including protein processing. The first interactors of HSP90 also showed high transcript abundance in reproductive tissues. The candidates of this study are likely involved in intricate metabolic pathways and represent candidate gene targets for source-sink activities and drought and heat stress tolerance during grain filling.

genomics↗
NASA NTRS1972

The usefullness of ERTS-1 and supporting aircraft data for monitoring plant development in rangeland environments

The author has identified the following significant results. Preliminary analysis of ERTS-1 MSS imagery of annual and perennial rangeland in California yields the following observations: (1) Sufficient geomorphological detail can be resolved to differentiate upland and bottomland range sites in the foothill range areas. (2) Dry and green meadowland can be differentiated on MSS band 5. (3) Color composites prepared by NASA-Goddard were useful for locating perennial rangeland with varying amounts of herbaceous ground cover. (4) The ERTS-1 images received and interpreted cover nearly 50% of the state of California and show nearly two-thirds of the annual grassland type. (5) Satellite imagery obtained during the late summer season should be optimum for differentiating grassland from brushland and forested land. (6) The ERTS-1 imagery clearly shows areas which at one time were part of the annual grassland but which are now used for dry land farming (cropping of cereal grains). Similarly, the imagery show areas which have been converted from brushland to grassland.

Carneggie, D. M.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Agriculture, bioenergy, and water implications of constrained cereal trade and climate change impacts

International trade increases connections and dependencies between countries, weaving a network of global supply chains. Agricultural commodity trade has implications for crop producers, consumers, crop prices, water and land uses, and other human systems. Interconnections among these systems are not always easy to observe when external impacts penetrate across multiple sectors. To better understand the interactions of non-linear and globally coupled agricultural-bioenergy-water systems under the broader economy, we introduce systematic perturbations in two dimensions, one human (restrictions on agricultural trade) and the other physical (climate impacts on crop yields). We explore these independently and in combination to distinguish the consequences of individual perturbation and interactive effects in long-term projections. We show that most regions experience larger changes in cereal consumption due to cereal import dependency constraints than due to the impacts of climate change on agricultural yields. In the scenario where all regions ensure an import dependency ratio of zero, the global trade of cereals decreases ~50% in 2050 compared to the baseline, with smaller decreases in cereal production and consumption (4%). The changes in trade also impact water and bioenergy: global irrigation water consumption increases 3% and corn ethanol production decreases 7% in 2050. Climate change results in rising domestic prices and declining consumption of cereal crops in general, while the import dependency constraint exacerbates the situation in regions which import more cereals in the baseline. The individual and interactive effects of trade perturbations and climate change vary greatly across regions, which are also affected by the regional ability to increase agricultural production through intensification or extensification.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1985

Priorities for worldwide remote sensing of agricultural crops

The world's crops are ranked according to total harvested area, and comparisons are made among major world regions of differences in crops produced. The eight leading world crops are wheat, rice, corn, barley, millet, soybeans, sorghum, and cotton. Regionally, millet and sorghum are most important in Africa, wheat is the most extensively grown crop in north-central America, Europe, USSR, and Oceania; corn is the dominant crop in South America; and rice is the most extensively grown crop in Asia. Agriculture in the USA is considered in more detail to show the national economic impact of variations in value per hectare among crops. On the world scene, the cereals are the most important crops, but locally, such crops as tobacco can play a dominant role.

Bowker, D. E.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Diversifying and perennializing plants in agroecosystems alters retention of new C and N from crop residues

Abstract Managing soils to retain new plant inputs is key to moving toward a sustainable and regenerative agriculture. Management practices, like diversifying and perennializing agroecosystems, may affect the decomposer organisms that regulate how new residue is converted to persistent soil organic matter. Here we tested whether 12 years of diversifying/perennializing plants in agroecosystems through extended rotations or grassland restoration would decrease losses of new plant residue inputs and, thus, increase retention of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in soil. We tracked dual‐labeled ( 13 C and 15 N), isotopically enriched wheat ( Triticum aestivum ) residue in situ for 2 years as it decomposed in three agroecosystems: maize–soybean (CS) rotation, maize–soybean–wheat plus red clover and cereal rye cover crops (CSW2), and spring fallow management with regeneration of natural grassland species (seven to 10 species; SF). We measured losses of wheat residue (C wheat and N wheat ) in leached soil solution and greenhouse gas fluxes, as well as how much was recovered in microbial biomass and bulk soil at 5‐cm increments down to 20 cm. CSW2 and SF both had unique, significant effects on residue decomposition and retention dynamics that were clear only when using nuanced metrics that able to tease apart subtle differences. For example, SF retained a greater portion of C wheat in 0–5 cm surface soils (155%, p = 0.035) and narrowed the C wheat to N wheat ratio ( p < 0.030) compared to CS. CSW2 increased an index of carbon‐retention efficiency, C wheat retained in the mesocosm divided by total measured, from 0.18 to 0.27 (49%, p = 0.001), compared to CS. Overall, we found that diversifying and extending the duration of living plants in agroecosystems can lead to greater retention of new residue inputs in subtle ways that require further investigation to fully understand.

McDaniel, Marshall D.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Nitrogen-Fixing Gamma Proteobacteria Azotobacter vinelandii—A Blueprint for Nitrogen-Fixing Plants?

The availability of fixed nitrogen limits overall agricultural crop production worldwide. The so-called modern “green revolution” catalyzed by the widespread application of nitrogenous fertilizer has propelled global population growth. It has led to imbalances in global biogeochemical nitrogen cycling, resulting in a “nitrogen problem” that is growing at a similar trajectory to the “carbon problem”. As a result of the increasing imbalances in nitrogen cycling and additional environmental problems such as soil acidification, there is renewed and increasing interest in increasing the contributions of biological nitrogen fixation to reduce the inputs of nitrogenous fertilizers in agriculture. Interestingly, biological nitrogen fixation, or life’s ability to convert atmospheric dinitrogen to ammonia, is restricted to microbial life and not associated with any known eukaryotes. It is not clear why plants never evolved the ability to fix nitrogen and rather form associations with nitrogen-fixing microorganisms. Perhaps it is because of the large energy demand of the process, the oxygen sensitivity of the enzymatic apparatus, or simply failure to encounter the appropriate selective pressure. Whatever the reason, it is clear that this ability of crop plants, especially cereals, would transform modern agriculture once again. Successfully engineering plants will require creating an oxygen-free niche that can supply ample energy in a tightly regulated manner to minimize energy waste and ensure the ammonia produced is assimilated. Nitrogen-fixing aerobic bacteria can perhaps provide a blueprint for engineering nitrogen-fixing plants. This short review discusses the key features of robust nitrogen fixation in the model nitrogen-fixing aerobe, gamma proteobacteria Azotobacter vinelandii, in the context of the basic requirements for engineering nitrogen-fixing plants.

Microbiology↗
NASA NTRS1994

Bioregenerative life-support systems

Long-duration future habitation of space involving great distances from Earth and/or large crew sizes (eg, lunar outpost, Mars base) will require a controlled ecological life-support system (CELSS) to simultaneously revitalize atmosphere (liberate oxygen and fix carbon dioxide), purify water (via transpiration), and generate human food (for a vegetarian diet). Photosynthetic higher plants and algae will provide the essential functions of biomass productivity in a CELSS, and a combination of physicochemical and bioregenerative processes will be used to regenerate renewable resources from waste materials. Crop selection criteria for a CELSS include nutritional use characteristics as well as horticultural characteristics. Cereals, legumes, and oilseed crops are used to provide the major macronutrients for the CELSS diet. A National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Specialized Center of Research and Training (NSCORT) was established at Purdue University to establish proof of the concept of the sustainability of a CELSS. The Biosphere 2 project in Arizona is providing a model for predicted and unpredicted situations that arise as a result of closure in a complex natural ecosystem.

NASA Discipline Life Support Systems↗
DOE OSTI2026

Connecting agriculture and renewable energy: insights into microclimatic changes, physiological, biochemical, and yield responses under agrivoltaics: a review

Agrivoltaics, the synergistic integration of agriculture and solar energy production on the same piece of land, has emerged as a compelling dual-use solution that maximizes land productivity while simultaneously addressing the need for sustainable agricultural practices and renewable energy generation. Despite the growing global interest in this dual-use system, the microclimatic shifts created beneath solar panels and their consequences for crop performance remain insufficiently synthesized. This review highlights the intricate interactions between agrivoltaics systems and plant microclimates, discussing their impacts on various physiological processes, metabolic pathways, and overall yield responses in different crop species. Evidence indicates that moderated light intensity and altered microclimates can enhance water-use efficiency, stabilize photosynthetic function, and trigger beneficial metabolic adjustments; however, responses remain highly species-specific and strongly dependent on regional climate conditions and panel configuration. Yield outcomes vary widely among vegetables, cereals, pulses, and fruit crops, highlighting the necessity for tailored agronomic strategies and crop selection within agrivoltaic designs. A critical knowledge gap identified in this review concerns the limited understanding of molecular and omics-level responses underlying plant adaptation to agrivoltaic environments. We further provide a detailed and interdisciplinary overview of adaptive agronomic strategies, and optimal crop selection, tailored to agrivoltaic systems. Despite the benefits of land use efficiency and simultaneous food and energy production, challenges remain concerning initial investment, technological adaptation, social and legal barriers, and shade-induced yield penalties. Further research in this area will be critical to enhancing the agricultural, environmental, and economic sustainability of agrivoltaics while simultaneously augmenting their practical utility and appeal to farmers in the future.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Cover crops and poultry litter impact on soil structural stability in dryland soybean production in southeastern United States

Abstract This study explored the efficacy of soil aggregate indices in quantifying soil structural development, utilizing 5‐year field experiment data from the Southeastern United States. The experiment utilized a split‐plot design with cover crops (native vegetation as control, cereal rye (Secale cerealeL.), winter wheat (Triticum aestivum), hairy vetch (Vicia villosa), and mustard (Brassica rapa) plus cereal rye as the main factor and fertilizer source (no fertilizer as control, inorganic fertilizer with phosphorus, potassium, and elemental sulfur, and poultry litter) as the secondary factor. Aggregate size fractions were determined using the wet‐sieving method, and aggregate stability index (ASI), mean weight diameter (MWD), geometric mean diameter (GMD), and fractal dimension (FD) were calculated to assess soil structural stability. Main effects results indicated that cereal rye (55.11%) and poultry litter (50.97%) exhibited the highest ASI values. The highest MWD, GMD, and FD were observed under mustard plus cereal rye (1.187 mm), cereal rye (0.462 mm), and hairy vetch (2.573), respectively. Principal component analysis revealed that cover crops significantly improved soil aggregate structure and stability, overcoming limitations of sole fertilization practices. Regression analysis suggested that ASI, MWD, and GWD positively correlated with soil organic carbon, whereas FD negatively correlated with MWD, GMD, and ASI. Principal component analysis exhibited that FD decreased with increasing soil organic carbon, ASI, MWD, and GMD, demonstrating that lower FD values indicate enhanced soil aggregation and structure. Assessed indices, FD included, effectively gauged soil structural stability. These metrics should be prioritized in managerial decisions to support soil productivity and health in agricultural systems.

Agriculture↗