Das Projekt "A novel tool to trace fire-derived organic matter deposition in a high-resolution sedimentary record of the past 250 years" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Zürich, Geographisches Institut durchgeführt. Black carbon (BC) residues from the incomplete combustion of vegetation and fossil fuels are ubiquitous in soil, sediment and water. Due to its stability, BC is an important component of the slow cycling global carbon pool. Analysis of BC in environmental matrices such as soils and sediments is complicated by its diverse nature. Sediments are the quantitatively most important sink in the global black carbon cycle and represent archives of BC deposition on local and regional scales, but the identification and apportionment of the BC sources (fossil fuel combustion versus vegetation fires) remain unclear to date. Benzene polycarboxylic acids (BPCA) are molecular markers specific for BC and are used to measure quantity and quality of BC. The method provides information about the degree of condensation and allows characterization of different forms of BC (e.g. charcoal, soot). Recent advances in BPCA analysis improved the method in terms of sample preparation and made analyses faster and more accurate. Compound specific radiocarbon (14C) dating is a powerful tool in geochemistry and archaeological sciences to trace the fate of specific molecules in soils and sediments. Up to now, 14C measurements are inaccurate for BC, as established methods measure 14C contents of oxidation resistant bulk carbon. In the proposed research project, I will follow a novel approach for BPCA separation with subsequent determination of its 14C contents. This technique will allow to precisely estimate the apportionment of sources of BC found in sediments and the age of black carbon in soils. In this project I will take advantage of an existing set of well-dated lake sediment samples. These sediment cores feature undisturbed lamination, thus providing a high-resolution record of BC depositions over more than two centuries. Analyzing this unique sample set, the qualitative and quantitative information yielded by the BPCA method and the novel approach for radiocarbon dating of BC molecular markers will be used to construct a historical record of black carbon emissions. The data will be used to apportion the measured BC concentrations to either fossil fuel or biomass burning since pre-industrial times and to identify the type of BC being preferentially preserved in aquatic sediments. The outcome of the project will help to elucidate the environmental fate of BC and will be an important contribution to the accurate calculation of a global BC budget.
Das Projekt "The response of tree root systems to interacting above ground stress" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Eidgenössische Forschungsanstalt für Wald, Schnee und Landschaft durchgeführt. The proposed project aims to identify carbohydrate-related genes in poplar roots that are regulated by above ground stress. Ozone, elevated CO2 defoliation by clipping and shading will be applied to poplar in order to modulate the carbohydrate metabolism. Stress regulated genes will be identified by application of oligonucleotide microarray analyses and the expression of carbohydrate-related genes will be quantified. Gene expression profiling will be complemented with biochemical analysis of metabolites and carbohydrate-metabolising enzymes in poplar roots.
Das Projekt "Obstzüchtung (Apfel, Aprikose, Birne) und Genressourcen Obst" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Forschungsanstalt Agroscope, Changins-Wädenswil ACW Changins durchgeführt. 1. Die Schweizer Obstbranche benötigt innovative Produkte mit Mehrwert, um künftig konkurrenzfähig zu bleiben. ACW-Neuzüchtungen bei Apfel, Birne und Aprikose leisten einen Beitrag zur Swissness und zur erfolgreichen Positionierung am Markt. ACW-Sorten wie Milwa (Diwa®) und La Flamboyante (Mairac®) konnten in der Schweiz und international erfolgreich im Markt eingeführt werden. Aktuell sind die Neuheiten Galiwa und die feuerbrandrobuste 'ACW 14959'. ACW arbeitet in der Obstzüchtung vernetzt, wendet neuste Techniken der molekularen Selektion an und beteiligt sich an Projekten zu deren Entwicklung wie z.B. EU-Projekt Fruitbreedomics. Das Sortenmarketing erfolgt über die VariCom GmbH (www.varicom.ch). 2. Der Kernobstanbau ist in der Schweiz von der Bakterienkrankheit Feuerbrand stark bedroht und betroffen. Der Einsatz von Antibiotika gegen diese Krankheit ist kein erwünschter und nachhalter Ansatz. Die Entwicklung von feuerbrandtoleranten und -resistenten Sorten ist eine nachhaltige Strategie, die in der ACW-Züchtung intensiv verfolgt und mit Drittmittelprojekten zusätzlich forciert wird. Erste vielversprechende feuerbrandtolerante Neuzüchtungen bei Apfel und Birne sind in der Pipeline. 3. Bei den Obstgenressourcen erfolgt die Erhaltung in der Schweiz dezentral und koordiniert durch die SKEK (Schweiz. Kommission für die Erhaltung von Kulturpflanzen). ACW ist ein gefragter Kooperationspartner bei der Charakterisierung der Obstgenressourcen (Infrastruktur für Feuerbrandtests, molekulare Sortencharakterisierung) und für die internationale Koordination. Die Ergebnisse und Netzwerke sind auch für die ACW-Züchtung wertvoll.
Das Projekt "FIRE-Tool: New tools in reconstructing wildfire history from sedimentary records using organic geochemical methods" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Zürich, Geographisches Institut durchgeführt. The fire regimes of Australia, the most fire prone continent on earth, have been changing during the late Quaternary and up to the present under the influence of a changing climate and vegetation, Aboriginal impact and then by European settlers. Because fire history is an important parameter in understanding palaeoenvironmental conditions in many parts of the world, it has been reconstructed primarily by palynologists using lake cores and traditional tools (visible charcoal), combined with dating (14C, 210Pb, 137Cs) and the reconstruction of the past vegetation (pollen). Quantifying only (microscopically) visible charcoal may reflect charcoal from forest fires which are relatively large in size and structurally sound. However these techniques are less likely to quantify smaller charcoal fractions derived from grasses - probably the main contributor of charcoal in Australias vast savannas and open grassy woodlands. Therefore, we are developing a new methodology to infer past wildfires by using geochemical tools that potentially assess the whole range of fire residues in sedimentary records and that can yield additional information about the vegetation burned. In particular, we propose that a geochemical marker method (benzene polycarboxylic acids (BPCA)) would be capable to detect sedimentary fire residues that are too small to detect with standard microscopic methods. So far, however, these geochemical markers have not been used to quantify fire residues in lake sediment cores, neither have they been cross-compared to the presence of visible charcoal, which is indicative of palaeofires. The proof-of-concept study is conducted at two Australian sites where we would use molecular markers (BPCA) together with other geochemical methods to quantify past occurrences of fire and burned vegetation types. First we screen samples from about 200 depth intervals with a relatively rapid technique (MIR-PLS, mid-infrared spectroscopy with partial least square analysis) to observe major organic and inorcanic properties. Then, an in-depth, and more time-consuming characterization follows on some 20 samples from those sections of the cores, which have been identified by MIR-PLS to show significant changes in charcoal and organic carbon abundance. These sections will be analyzed using more sophisticated molecular scale techniques including the BPCA molecular marker method. (abridged text)
Das Projekt "Genetische Verbesserung der Holzqualitaet (FAIR FP4)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität für Bodenkultur Wien, Institut für Botanik durchgeführt. The aim of this project is to increase the efficiency with which tree breeders select genotypes of economic value to foresters and wood users. Objectives are the estimation of genetic parameters for wood properties known to influence the yield and value of end products. Further, we identify molecular markers for a subset of these wood properties, for use in marker assisted selection and finally to determine the economic weights of these wood properties, for use in selection indices.
Das Projekt "Molekulare Diagnose und Epidemiologie von agronomisch wichtigen Organismen und Eigenschaften" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Agroscope FAW Wädenswil, Eidgenössische Forschungsanstalt für Obst-, Wein- und Gartenbau durchgeführt. Ausarbeitung von: 1. zuverlaessigen molekularen Bestimmungsschluesseln und 2. von Resistenzmanagementstrategien. Diese Informationen bilden die Entscheidungsgrundlagen fuer den optimierten Einsatz von Pflanzenschutzmitteln im Sinne einer nachhaltigen Landwirtschaft.
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