This review addresses the possible ecological effects of transgenic plants on micro-organisms in the field, hence, in the phytosphere and in the soil matrix. The important steps involved in the interaction between plant DNA and bacteria and the factors that influence the horizontal gene transfer (HGT) process will be discussed. HGT is a process in which two partners are involved, even if indire...

Physico-chemical properties of three Fadama farm site soils located in Ado-Ekiti, IkereEkiti and Ifaki Ekiti, all in Ekiti State, Nigeria, were evaluated. The parameters evaluated for were pH, particle size distribution, free Fe2O3 and Al2O3, organic matter, base saturation percentage and total exchangeable bases in eleven zones and thirty-three soil samples. The pH values showed that the soils...

Slope exposure is known to affect soil biogeochemical processes in mountainous forest ecosystems, but little attention has yet been paid its influence at a aggregate scale. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of slope (north- vs south-facing slope) on physico-chemical and microbiological properties bulk dry-sieved water-stable size fractions both organic (OF) mineral (AE) horizons an Italian al...

Isolation and characterization of actinomycetes from soil samples from altitudinal gradient of North-East India were investigated for computational RNomics based phylogeny. A total of 52 diverse isolates of Streptomyces from the soil samples were isolated on four different media and from these 6 isolates were selected on the basis of cultural characteristics, microscopic and biochemical studies...

The relationships between the structural variations of a fenisol and the plant parasitic nematode communities of sugarcane were studied along three transects. These transects, about 20 m long, started in horizon A and ended in a levelled area where horizon C began. Results were analysed with the Co-inertia analysis method, which allowed us to study simultaneously the soil and nematode data. Pro...

Tropical regions have been considered the world's primary agricultural frontier; however, some physico-chemical deficiencies, such as low soil organic matter content, poor soil structure, high erodibility, soil acidity, and aluminum toxicity, have affected their productive capacity. Lime and gypsum are commonly used to improve soil chemical fertility, but no information exists about the long-te...

The term bioremediation has been introduced to describe the process of using biological agents to remove toxic waste from environment. Bioremediation is the most effective management tool to manage the polluted environment and recover contaminated soil. The hazardous wastes generated from the chemical processes/operations are being treated using physico-chemical and biological methods by the re...

The utilization of treated agro-industrial effluents has been recommended as sound option for agriculture irrigations practices and sustainable land management programme. This paper presents the impact of utilizing treated effluent form a distillery industry on physico-chemical properties of soils in an agriculture plot. The effluent was applied in 50 and 100% strength and a control plot receiv...

The transfer of Pb from the soil to crops is a serious food hygiene security problem in China because of industrial, agricultural, and historical contamination. In this study, the characteristics of exogenous Pb transfer from 17 Chinese soils to a popular wheat variety (Xiaoyan 22) were investigated. In addition, bioaccumulation prediction models of Pb in grain were obtained based on soil prope...

Despite several lines of observational evidence, there is a lack of consensus on whether higher fungal:bacterial (F:B) ratios directly cause higher soil carbon (C) storage. We employed RNA sequencing, protein profiling and isotope tracer techniques to evaluate whether differing F:B ratios are associated with differences in C storage. A mesocosm (13)C labeled foliar litter decomposition experime...