Transgenic Brassica napus plants overexpressing AtNHX1, a vacuolar Na(+)/H(+) antiport from Arabidopsis thaliana, were able to grow, flower, and produce seeds in the presence of 200 mM sodium chloride. Although the transgenic plants grown in high salinity accumulated sodium up to 6% of their dry weight, growth of the these plants was only marginally affected by the high salt concentration. More...

To elucidate the influence of airborne materials on the ecosystem of Japan's Yakushima Island, we determined the elemental compositions and Sr and Nd isotope ratios in streamwater, soils, vegetation, and rocks. Streamwater had high Na and Cl contents, low Ca and HCO(3) contents, and Na/Cl and Mg/Cl ratios close to those of seawater, but it had low pH (5.4 to 7.1), a higher Ca/Cl ratio than seaw...

HIGHLIGHTS Spectral analysis is feasible to identify salinized areas. The most saline areas are lowlands with deficiency of natural drainage. studied soils in surface and saline-sodic subsurface.

Salt-affected soils contain high levels of soluble salts (saline soil) and exchangeable sodium (alkali soil). Globally, about 932 million ha (Mha), including 831 Mha agricultural land, is salt-affected. Salinity sodicity adversely affect soil microbial diversity enzymatic activities, thereby carbon nitrogen dynamics greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from soils. In this review article, we synthesiz...