@article{xu_knight_boone_saleem_finley_gauthier_ayariga_akinrinlola_pulkoski_britt_et al._2024, title={Influence of Fungicide Application on Rhizosphere Microbiota Structure and Microbial Secreted Enzymes in Diverse Cannabinoid-Rich Hemp Cultivars}, volume={25}, ISSN={["1422-0067"]}, DOI={10.3390/ijms25115892}, abstractNote={Microbes and enzymes play essential roles in soil and plant rhizosphere ecosystem functioning. However, fungicides and plant root secretions may impact the diversity and abundance of microbiota structure and enzymatic activities in the plant rhizosphere. In this study, we analyzed soil samples from the rhizosphere of four cannabinoid-rich hemp (Cannabis sativa) cultivars (Otto II, BaOx, Cherry Citrus, and Wife) subjected to three different treatments (natural infection, fungal inoculation, and fungicide treatment). DNA was extracted from the soil samples, 16S rDNA was sequenced, and data were analyzed for diversity and abundance among different fungicide treatments and hemp cultivars. Fungicide treatment significantly impacted the diversity and abundance of the hemp rhizosphere microbiota structure, and it substantially increased the abundance of the phyla Archaea and Rokubacteria. However, the abundances of the phyla Pseudomonadota and Gemmatimonadetes were substantially decreased in treatments with fungicides compared to those without fungicides in the four hemp cultivars. In addition, the diversity and abundance of the rhizosphere microbiota structure were influenced by hemp cultivars. The influence of Cherry Citrus on the diversity and abundance of the hemp rhizosphere microbiota structure was less compared to the other three hemp cultivars (Otto II, BaOx, and Wife). Moreover, fungicide treatment affected enzymatic activities in the hemp rhizosphere. The application of fungicides significantly decreased enzyme abundance in the rhizosphere of all four hemp cultivars. Enzymes such as dehydrogenase, dioxygenase, hydrolase, transferase, oxidase, carboxylase, and peptidase significantly decreased in all the four hemp rhizosphere treated with fungicides compared to those not treated. These enzymes may be involved in the function of metabolizing organic matter and degrading xenobiotics. The ecological significance of these findings lies in the recognition that fungicides impact enzymes, microbiota structure, and the overall ecosystem within the hemp rhizosphere.}, number={11}, journal={INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES}, author={Xu, Junhuan and Knight, Tyson and Boone, Donchel and Saleem, Muhammad and Finley, Sheree J. and Gauthier, Nicole and Ayariga, Joseph A. and Akinrinlola, Rufus and Pulkoski, Melissa and Britt, Kadie and et al.}, year={2024}, month={Jun} }
 @article{ashar_qayyum_bhatti_aziz_bhutta_abdel-maksoud_saleem_eletmany_2023, title={Photo-Induced Super-Hydrophilicity of Nano-Calcite @ Polyester Fabric: Enhanced Solar Photocatalytic Activity against Imidacloprid}, volume={8}, ISSN={["2470-1343"]}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.3c02987}, DOI={10.1021/acsomega.3c02987}, abstractNote={The present study is pertinent to photo-induced, hydrophilic, nano-calcite grown onto the mercerized surface of polyester fabric (PF), treated with UV (10–50 min) and visible light (1–5 h) in addition to its photocatalytic application. The wicking method has been employed to select the most hydrophilic sample of fabric upon irradiation. The micrographs obtained by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy indicated the erosions occurring at the surface of nano-calcite after UV light irradiation, maintaining the crystallinity of the photocatalyst. The surface charge has been measured for as-fabricated and irradiated nano-calcite @ PF for the development of high negative zeta potential after UV light irradiation (−24.6 mV). The irradiated nano-calcite @ PF exhibited a significant change in its contact angle, and the wetting property was enhanced to a considerable extent on UV (55.32°) and visible light irradiation (79.00°) in comparison to as-fabricated nano-calcite @ PF (137.54°). The irradiated samples of nano-calcite @ PF delineated the redshift in harvesting of solar spectrum, as revealed by diffuse reflectance spectroscopy comparative spectra. Additionally, the band gap of untreated nano-calcite was found to be 3.5 eV, while UV- and visible light-irradiated PF showed a reduction in band gap up to 2.95 and 3.15 eV upon UV and visible light irradiation. The photocatalytic efficiency of mesoporous nano-calcite was evaluated by photocatalytic degradation of imidacloprid as the probe pollutant. Higher solar photocatalytic degradation of imidacloprid (94.15%) was attained by UV light-irradiated nano-calcite @ PF. The time-resolved photoluminescence study has verified the high photocatalytic activity of UV light-irradiated nano-calcite @ PF for the generation of high concentration of hydroxyl radicals. The highly efficient reusability of a nano-calcite-based solar photocatalytic reactor has been observed for 10 cycles of treatment of imidacloprid bearing wastewater. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of UV light-exposed (20 min), superhydrophilic, nano-calcite @ PF for mineralization of pollutants suggests it to be an efficient solar photocatalyst for environmental applications.}, number={39}, journal={ACS OMEGA}, publisher={American Chemical Society (ACS)}, author={Ashar, Ambreen and Qayyum, Ayesha and Bhatti, Ijaz Ahmad and Aziz, Humera and Bhutta, Zeeshan Ahmad and Abdel-Maksoud, Mostafa A. and Saleem, Muhammad Hamzah and Eletmany, Mohamed R.}, year={2023}, month={Sep}, pages={35722–35737} }
 @article{chen_saleem_cheng_mi_chu_tuvshintogtokh_hu_bai_2019, title={Effects of aridity on soil microbial communities and functions across soil depths on the Mongolian Plateau}, volume={33}, ISSN={["1365-2435"]}, DOI={10.1111/1365-2435.13359}, abstractNote={Abstract


Arid and semi‐arid grassland ecosystems cover about 15% of the global land surface and provide vital soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) sequestration. Although half of the soil C and N is stored in deep soils (below 30 cm), no regional‐scale study of microbial properties and their functions through the soil profile has been conducted in these drylands.

To explore the distribution and determinants of microbial properties and C and N mineralization rates through soil profile along aridity gradient at a regional scale, we investigated these variables for four soil layers (0–20, 20–40, 40–60 and 60–100 cm) in 132 plots on the Mongolia Plateau.

Soil microbial properties (biomass and bacteria:fungi ratio) and C and N mineralization rates decreased with increasing soil depth and aridity at the regional scale. Aridity‐induced declines in soil microbial properties mainly resulted from the negative effects of aridity on ANPP/root biomass and soil organic C (SOC) in the surface soil layers (0–20 and 20–40 cm) but from the direct and indirect (via SOC and soil C/N) negative effects of aridity in the deep soil layers (40–60 and 60–100 cm).

Aridity‐induced declines in soil C mineralization rates mainly resulted from the negative indirect effect of aridity on SOC and microbial properties in each soil layer, with weaker effects of SOC and stronger effects of soil microbes in the deep soil layers. Aridity‐induced declines in soil N mineralization rates mainly resulted from the negative indirect effect of aridity on SOC in the three soil layers above 60 cm and mainly resulted from the negative direct effect of aridity in the 60–100 cm soil layer.

Aridity via direct or indirect effects strongly determined the patterns of soil microbial properties and C and N mineralization throughout soil profiles on the Mongolian Plateau. These findings suggest that the increases in aridity are likely to induce changes in soil micro‐organisms and their associated functions across soil depths of semi‐arid grasslands, and future models should consider the dynamic interactions between substrates and microbial properties across soil depths in global drylands.

A plain language summary is available for this article.}, number={8}, journal={FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY}, author={Chen, Dima and Saleem, Muhammad and Cheng, Junhui and Mi, Jia and Chu, Pengfei and Tuvshintogtokh, Indree and Hu, Shuijin and Bai, Yongfei}, year={2019}, month={Aug}, pages={1561–1571} }
 @article{chen_xing_lan_saleem_wu_hu_bai_2019, title={Direct and indirect effects of nitrogen enrichment on soil organisms and carbon and nitrogen mineralization in a semi-arid grassland}, volume={33}, ISSN={["1365-2435"]}, DOI={10.1111/1365-2435.13226}, abstractNote={Abstract


Semi‐arid grasslands on the Mongolian Plateau are expected to experience high inputs of anthropogenic reactive nitrogen in this century. It remains unclear, however, how soil organisms and nutrient cycling are directly affected by N enrichment (i.e., without mediation by plant input to soil) vs. indirectly affected via changes in plant‐related inputs to soils resulting from N enrichment.

To test the direct and indirect effects of N enrichment on soil organisms (bacteria, fungi and nematodes) and their associated C and N mineralization, in 2010, we designated two subplots (with plants and without plants) in every plot of a six‐level N‐enrichment experiment established in 1999 in a semi‐arid grassland.

In 2014, 4 years after subplots with and without plant were established, N enrichment had substantially altered the soil bacterial, fungal and nematode community structures due to declines in biomass or abundance whether plants had been removed or not. N enrichment also reduced the diversity of these groups (except for fungi) and the soil C mineralization rate and induced a hump‐shaped response of soil N mineralization. As expected, plant removal decreased the biomass or abundance of soil organisms and C and N mineralization rates due to declines in soil substrates or food resources.

Analyses of plant‐removal‐induced changes (ratios of without‐ to with‐plant subplots) showed that micro‐organisms and C and N mineralization rates were not enhanced as N enrichment increased but that nematodes were enhanced as N enrichment increased, indicating that the effects of plant removal on soil organisms and mineralization depended on trophic level and nutrient status.

Surprisingly, there was no statistical interaction between N enrichment and plant removal for most variables, indicating that plant‐related inputs did not qualitatively change the effects of N enrichment on soil organisms or mineralization. Structural equation modelling confirmed that changes in soil communities and mineralization rates were more affected by the direct effects of N enrichment (via soil acidification and increased N availability) than by plant‐related indirect effects. Our results provide insight into how future changes in N deposition and vegetation may modify below‐ground communities and processes in grassland ecosystems.

A plain language summary is available for this article.}, number={1}, journal={FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY}, author={Chen, Dima and Xing, Wen and Lan, Zhichun and Saleem, Muhammad and Wu, Yunqiqige and Hu, Shuijin and Bai, Yongfei}, year={2019}, month={Jan}, pages={175–187} }
 @article{ahmad_saleem_dole_matthysse_2016, title={BIO-CONTROL ACTIVITY OF BACTERIAL STRAINS ON POSTHARVEST PERFORMANCE OF Gladiolus L. HYBRIDS 'MAMMOTH'}, volume={53}, ISSN={["2076-0906"]}, DOI={10.21162/pakjas/16.3769}, abstractNote={Gladiolus (Gladiolus L. hybrids), one of the most popular bulbous cut flowers of the world, has the problem of shorter vase life due to vascular occlusion by bacteria. Stem blockage in cut flowers is generally caused by bacterial proliferation along with their decay products (Teixeira-da-Silva, 2003). Bio-control through bacteria represent a potential alternative management approach (Jetiyanon and Kloepper, 2002) and may help in developing an organic method for effectively controlling detrimental microbes in the vase solutions (Carlson et al., 2015). The bio-control agents are used for biological management of pests to control a specific microbe (Shanmugam et al., 2011; Sajjad et al., 2014). Among bacterial antagonists, Pseudomonas fluorescens is most effective against a wide range of plant pathogens infecting different plants such as carnation, bean, radish, cucumber, tomato, and tobacco (van Loon et al., 1998), while P. fulva has extended vase life of cut zinnia stems (Carlson et al., 2015). Moreover, Burkholderia cepacia and Bacillus spp. (spore forming Gram-positive bacteria) have effectively been used to control plant diseases (Kloepper et al., 2004). Use of compatible and multiple bio-control agents in various groups also helps to control plant diseases, such as combinations of bacteria (Raupach and Kloepper, 1998; Shanmugam et al., 2002), fungi (Paulitz et al., 1990), bacteria and fungi (Duffy et al., 1996), yeasts (Janisiewicz, 1996), and bacteria and yeast (Janisiewicz and Bors, 1995). An experiment was conducted to compare different beneficial bacterial strains for their efficacy to control detrimental bacteria in vase solutions with gladiolus stems. There is dire need to develop organic preservatives for keeping flower organic grown without chemicals until end of vase life. However, there are currently no effective organic preservatives available in the market and those available are not effective (Ahmad et al., 2014). Organic carbohydrate source and acidifier are available but organic biocides are not available. Therefore, this study was conducted to elucidate the effect of bio-control bacterial strains, some of which have been proved effective for various agronomic crops, in controlling detrimental bacteria in vase solutions and effect on the postharvest water relations and quality characteristics of cut gladiolus. Moreover, the findings of the study would help develop an organic floral preservative to be used for handling organically grown cut flowers. Pak. J. Agri. Sci., Vol. 53(3), 593-598; 2016 ISSN (Print) 0552-9034, ISSN (Online) 2076-0906 DOI:10.21162/PAKJAS/16.3769 http://www.pakjas.com.pk}, number={3}, journal={PAKISTAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES}, author={Ahmad, Iftikhar and Saleem, Muhammad and Dole, John M. and Matthysse, Ann G.}, year={2016}, month={Sep}, pages={593–598} }