The effects of climate change on food safety and plant health represent a relatively new area of study. However, evidence from recent studies is clear: climate change contributes to increased and new food safety & plant health risks as one of several global change factors. This volume analyzes the scientific understanding of the relationship between climate change, food safety, plant pests, plant diseases, and trade. It identifies and discusses four key areas for future policy consideration: risk assessment, SPS capacity in developing countries, climate change resilience, and basic research challenges. We must effectively communicate the impacts of climate change on plant health and build the capacity of national plant protection organizations. More importantly, we need to mobilize resources that will help build stronger national phytosanitary systems that can prevent the spread of plant pests, thereby protecting our food sources and environment, and facilitating safe trade.

Nature is a vast source of inspiration and information for the resolution of complex problems and can influence many varieties of design. Biomimetics, biodesign and bionics are three branches of interdisciplinary research merging biological and applied sciences. This volume collects cases that highlight recent breakthroughs in these disciplines. Biological features such as patterns, shapes, mechanisms, colors, structures, and more can be analyzed, organized, and modeled for application in human creations. Therefore, design, engineering, and architecture projects can benefit from solutions that were already tested and verified through evolution in the natural world. With the development of new technologies for the investigation, simulation, and testing of natural features, the path from nature to product can be accelerated. The cases presented in this work showcase how technological advancements are leading to improved design solutions and influencing our very comprehension of natureand its complex organization.

This book addressed the pressing challenges of climate change, land scarcity, and food security, offering a comprehensive synthesis of research on using, managing, and reclaiming marginal lands in Africa. Unfavourable climatic conditions and rapid population growth intensify competition for land, putting pressure on traditional agricultural soils thus necessitating a transition towards underutilized marginal lands. Reclaiming these damaged and undervalued areas through various technologies presents a promising path not only to food independence but also to second-generation biofuel feedstock production, utilizing excess biomass from these revived lands. While recent years have seen increased focus on restoring degraded lands, a crucial gap remains i.e. a unified knowledge base detailing the efficacy of various reclamation technologies. This book fills that void, empowering farmers and policymakers with the insights they need to make informed decisions, mobilize resources effectively, and ultimately help Africa meet its projected 60% food demand increase.

Actinomycetes are a group of Gram-positive bacteria of which many representatives are prominent for being prolific producers of bioactive natural products including antibiotics, fungicides, antitumor agents, or immunosuppressants. SARP transcriptional regulators are widely distributed among actinomycetes, especially in streptomycetes and are known to activate antibiotic biosynthesis. The set of genes responsible for the production of natural products, including pathway specific transcriptional regulators such as SARPs, are typically located in contiguous regions of the genome known as "biosynthetic gene clusters" (BGCs). In this book, Oona Rössler reports on the activation of antibiotic BGCs in selected actinomycetes strains upon heterologous expression of the SARP-type regulator PapR2 from Streptomyces pristinaespiralis. Applying a bioinformatic screening for the abundance of SARP genes and SARP consensus sequences as part of BGCs, the author has selected actinomycetes candidate strains from the DSMZ strain collection for heterologous SARP expression. It is shown that overexpression of papR2 increased the production of predominantly unknown antimicrobial compounds in more than half of the selected actinomycetes strains, as observed by bioassays against different microbial test strains including bacteria and fungi.

This edited book brings out a comprehensive collection of information on capsaicinoids. Primarily, this book includes compiled knowledge on various aspects of capsaicin from ethnobotany to the most important clinical applications. This book covers topics emphasizing chemistry, biosynthesis, anticancer activities, bioavailability, currently undergoing experimental phases, and biotechnological methods, including cell cultures, and metabolic engineering in heterologous microbial and plant systems to enhance capsaicin production. Capsaicinoids are a group of important compounds that are particularly synthesized by various members of the genus Capsicum in their placenta. Capsaicin is the most abundant vanilloid compound among the different capsaicinoids in hot peppers. Other capsaicinoids include dihydrocapsaicin, nordihydrocapsaicin, homocapsaicin, and homodihydrocapsaicin. The capsaicin has been proven as an important bioactive molecule with several properties against many ailments, such as cancer, diabetes, obesity and diseases of the airway and urinary tract. Capsaicin interacts with TRPV1 receptors in humans. These compounds exert their functions by interacting with the TRPV receptors.

This book sheds light on this global environmental issue and proposes solutions to reduce contamination through multi-disciplinary approaches. Water is considered a vital resource because it is necessary for all aspects of human and ecosystem survival. However, due to natural processes and anthropogenic activities, various pollutants have been added to the groundwater system. Among these, heavy metals are some of the most serious pollutants. Cd, a toxic heavy metal used in Ni-Cd batteries, the coloration of plastic and various discarded electronic products released into the water system causes serious health issues. The chronic exposure to Cd produces a wide variety of acute and chronic effects in humans.

This edited book focuses on the application and implementation of bioremediation and other strategies to create a sustainable and healthy environment. It provides a collection of approaches to environmental biotechnology for wastewater treatment, removal of soil heavy metals, degradation of pesticides, removal of dyes, waste management, and microbial conversion of environmental pollutants. This book brings to the fore contributions of certain globally important environmental biotechnologist.

This non-fiction book provides information about the latest findings on research and therapy of nerve regeneration with catchy drawings and in understandable words. Why do nerves in the extremities regenerate, but the axons in the spinal cord do not? Can transplanted stem cells or biopolymers restore regeneration? Are bioprostheses able to functionally replace amputated arms or legs? Neuroscientist Lars Klimaschewski answers these questions and reports on exciting findings from anatomy, cell and molecular biology and neurotechnology. Find out, among other things, how a brain-computer interface processes signals from the brain in order to control the arm or leg muscles again via electrodes after a paraplegia.