Inoculating trees with an edible fungi can produce more protein per hectare than pasture-raised beef, while reforesting, storing carbon and restoring biodiversity.
Rivers are among the most embattled ecosystems on Earth. Researchers are testing a new, inexpensive way to study river health by using eDNA to count the species that rivers harbor.
Siouxsie Wiles, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Penicillin originally came from a fungus, and with thousands of fungi to explore, Aotearoa New Zealand has a potential treasure trove of bacteria-killing compounds.
This is the first time researchers have calculated the amount of carbon released from the world’s decaying wood. They found insects play an enormous role.
Gemma Ware, The Conversation and Daniel Merino, The Conversation
This is a transcript of episode 15 of The Conversation Weekly podcast, which includes a story on the discovery of microscopic fungi at the world’s largest seed bank.
We may think of plants as passive life forms, but they can cooperate, share resources, send one another warnings, and distance themselves from their communities when survival depends on it.
Fungi are a small but important part of the gut microbiome. A new study in mice shows that how much weight mice gain on a processed food diet depends on this fungal microbiome.
Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair in Biological Sciences, Professor of Biological Sciences and Biomedical Informatics, and Director of the Vanderbilt Evolutionary Studies Initiative, Vanderbilt University