Inonotus obliquus is a fungus that causes white heart rot on several broad-leaved species. This fungus forms typical charcoal-black, sterile conks (chaga) or cinder conks on infected stems of the birche (Betula spp). The dark brown pulp of the sterile conk is formed by a pure mycelial mass of fungus. Chaga are a folk remedy in Russia, reflecting the circumboreal distribution of I. obliquus in b...

Forest ecosystems face challenges of climate change and the pressure economic activity on biodiversity. As European policies turn into Green Deal, ecological forestry systems, which aim to increase or at least not reduce biodiversity while maintaining high forest productivity, are becoming particularly relevant. This study examines distribution regularities lower storeys main tree species in fe...

Although cavitation and refilling cycles could be common in plants, it is unknown whether these cycles weaken the cavitation resistance of xylem. Stem or petiole segments were tested for cavitation resistance before and after a controlled cavitation-refilling cycle. Cavitation was induced by centrifugation, air drying of shoots, or soil drought. Except for droughted plants, material was not sig...

We explored possible interactions among gray wolves (Canis lupus), Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus elaphus), and thinleaf alder (Alnus incana spp. tenuifoli) in northern Yellowstone National Park. We developed an alder age structure based on annual growth rings for plants growing along six streams in areas accessible to ungulates on the northern range. Alder stems (n = 412) along the six streams ori...

This study examined the climate sensitivity of the growth of riparian Alnus incana ssp. tenuifolia (thinleaf alder), a keystone nitrogen-fixer, on the Tanana River floodplain of interior Alaska. We investigated correlations between alder radial growth and inter-annual variation in monthly meteorology and hydrology, spatial patterns of alder climate sensitivity in relationship to depth of subsur...

Phytoremediation is a promising alternative to conventional soil clean-up methods; however, up to date, there is still not enough information on plant species suitable for application in this field of science. Therefore, plant screening on contaminated sites can lead to the identification of further species of interest. In the present study, pedological and botanical characteristics of an indus...

Skin prick testing is an essential test procedure to confirm sensitization in IgE-mediated allergic disease in subjects with rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma, urticaria, anapylaxis, atopic eczema and food and drug allergy. This manuscript reviews the available evidence including Medline and Embase searches, abstracts of international allergy meetings and position papers from the world allergy litera...

Although oak woodlands are a characteristic landscape component in the Swat Hindukush Mountain ranges, little is known about their current or historical stand population structure and regeneration dynamics related to environmental variables. Therefore, present study assessed structure, status, relationship of communities with The 30 oak-dominated forest sites using quadrates method, sampling 30...