Phosphorous News and Research

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Peptide Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Plant Flattery

Industrial farming practices often deplete the soil of important nutrients and minerals, leaving farmers to rely on artificial fertilizers to support plant growth. In fact, fertilizer use has more than quadrupled since the 1960s, but this comes with serious consequences.

16 Apr 2025

Unveiling the Hidden Role of Deep-Sea Viruses in Global Climate Dynamics

The significance of deep-sea virology and its impacts on global climate and biogeochemical structures is not unknown, though its importance might be understated.

4 Dec 2024

Mapping Auxiliary Metabolic Genes in Ocean Viruses

The microbes that cycle nutrients in the ocean don't do the work on their own – the viruses that infect them also influence the process.

21 Oct 2024

Xinjiang Cotton Fields Show Lasting Benefits From Mulched Drip Irrigation

Long-term mulched drip irrigation enhances soil health, reduces salinity, and increases cotton yields, showcasing its sustainability in water-scarce areas.

3 Oct 2024

Chemical Transformation Produces a Wide Range of Complex Molecules

Diversity, according to chemists like Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) Professor John Moses, is a doorway to discovery. Scientists are more likely to discover something valuable if they have access to more molecules to study.

8 Jun 2023

Argonne scientists awarded DOE funding to study plant-microbe communication

Argonne scientists awarded funding for bioimaging project to study communication between plants and microbial symbionts.

10 Jan 2023

Phosphorous "loading" after a storm sparks algae explosions

In the lake-rich regions of the world, algae blooms are a growing problem. Not only are the floating green scums a nuisance for anyone hoping to enjoy the water, they can turn toxic and threaten public health.

29 Nov 2022

Evolution of tree roots may have triggered ancient, global-scale extinction events

The evolution of tree roots may have triggered a series of mass extinctions that rocked the Earth's oceans during the Devonian Period over 300 million years ago, according to a study led by scientists at IUPUI, along with colleagues in the United Kingdom.

10 Nov 2022

Rising winter temperatures and rainfall pose a significant new threat to U.S. water quality

Scientists are ringing alarm bells about a significant new threat to U.S. water quality: as winters warm due to climate change, they are unleashing large amounts of nutrient pollution into lakes, rivers, and streams.

7 Oct 2022

Study reveals strong links between aquatic biodiversity and wetland multifunctionality

A new study analyses human impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in 72 lakes distributed across four large neotropical wetlands of Brazil – Amazon, Araguaia, Pantanal and Paraná.

5 Aug 2022

Researchers receive $2.3 million NSF grant to unravel oceanographic mystery

West of St. Petersburg in the Gulf of Mexico is an area called the West Florida Shelf. It's a marine desert, cut off from many of the elements that are essential for life.

3 Aug 2022

Treating Manure to Save the Planet

In this interview, we speak to Karen Schuett, co-founder, and CEO of Livestock Water Recycling, about how they are helping to save the planet.

From Livestock Water Recycling 17 Nov 2021

New research uncovers the secrets of healthy soil in greater detail

Soils, like people, can be healthy or unhealthy. We've recently learned how important the microbes inside our bodies are to human health. Likewise, soil health depends on a complex group of microbes. These bacteria and fungi recycle nutrients and prepare the soils to better support plants.

7 Oct 2021

Researchers develop a new way for pollution remediation

Phosphate pollution in rivers, lakes and other waterways has reached dangerous levels, causing algae blooms that starve fish and aquatic plants of oxygen. Meanwhile, farmers worldwide are coming to terms with a dwindling reserve of phosphate fertilizers that feed half the world's food supply.

1 Jun 2021

Researchers develop new, simpler way to treat sewage

Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have developed a new way to treat sewage that is much simpler, cheaper and greener than existing methods.

From National University of Singapore (NUS) 10 Dec 2020

Phosphorus supply chain dynamics may affect regional food security

Phosphorus is essential in agriculture to maintain higher production levels, where it is applied as a fertilizer. Some of the world regions are experiencing high population growth rates, which means more phosphorus will be needed to produce an increasing amount of food needed in the next decades.

8 Oct 2020

Water quality database helps scientists to monitor and manage health of freshwater lakes

Although less than one per cent of all water in the world is freshwater, it is what we drink and use for agriculture. In other words, it's vital to human survival. York University researchers have just created a publicly available water quality database for close to 12,000 freshwater lakes globally - almost half of the world's freshwater supply - that will help scientists monitor and manage the health of these lakes.

From York University 23 Sep 2020

High-protein distillers dried grains with solubles product has greater energy, protein digestibility

With more ethanol in production and a greater ability to upcycle co-products into animal feed ingredients, companies are creating custom products and partnering with University of Illinois researchers to test for quality and digestibility.

27 Jul 2020

Study shows how fish farming affects microbial communities, nitrate levels in pond ecosystems

Small-scale water bodies with areas less than 0.1 km2, such as natural ponds, constitute the quantitative bulk of global inland water bodies, and are very susceptible to human disturbances and environmental change. In agricultural regions of China, water quality in ponds ha

23 Jun 2020

Researchers find promising anti-counterfeiting measure through high density imaging

Governments, industry and consumers have faced the issue of counterfeit goods for a long time.

29 Apr 2020