PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “ecosystem engineer”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources
PubMed2006

Genetic technologies meet the public: the discourses of concern.

To clarify concerns that the public has with genetic technologies, the article presents the results of focus group interviews conducted in Denmark in 2000. The concerns of the public are divided into three ideal-typical categories: social (dealing with environmental and health risks), economic (dealing with both the threats and opportunities of the new technologies), and cultural (taking up ethical and moral concerns). Following a general discussion of why it is important to take these discourses of concern seriously, each discursive category is discussed with examples taken from the focus group interviews.

Biotechnology↗
PubMed2004

[Changes of carbon storage and carbon sequestration in plantation ecosystems on purple soil].

This paper studied the carbon storages and carbon sequestration capacities of degraded plantation ecosystems in purple soil area. Using space-time replacement method, four ecological restoration treatments (I, II, III and IV) were selected on the basis of erosion intensions from high to low in Ninghua, Fujian. Treatment I was not treated with any other measures after afforestation. Treatment II adopted engineering soil and water conservation measure after afforestation. In treatment III, the engineering measure associated biological measure was taken after afforestation. As for treatment IV, enclosure was adopted to protect against anthropogenic disturbances after afforestation. We observed that the carbon sequestration potential was increased with weakening erosion degree, i.e., I < II < III < IV. The carbon storage of 4 treatments was 1.4, 8.5, 25.6 and 37.6 t x hm(-2), and the annual assimilation of CO2 was 712.87, 1458.01, 9718.10 and 11,109.56 kg x hm(-2), respectively. It was suggested that the restored forest ecosystem was one of the important carbon sinks in this area. Engineering soil and water conservation measure associated biological measure would be the main means of restoring degraded ecosystem. But presently, the reasonable strategy was to decrease human's disturbances, and hence, the enclosure for reforestation could be used to transform forest ecosystem into carbon sink.

Carbon↗
PubMed2026

De-extinction technology and its application to conservation.

De-extinction, once the realm of science fiction, has evolved into a tangible scientific endeavor thanks to breakthroughs in genome sequencing, engineering, advanced assisted reproductive technologies, and stem cell biology. Alongside this work are innovations in reintroduction science and artificial intelligence, which are refining strategies for species translocations, rewilding, and long-term ecosystem monitoring of de-extinct species and populations. While the primary motivation for de-extinction is restoring lost ecological functions to eroded ecosystems, each of these technologies can also be applied to conservation biology for de-endangerment, offering new solutions for biodiversity preservation. This review synthesizes the technological advancements emerging from de-extinction science and explores their broad applications in conservation, demonstrating how de-extinction is both about resurrecting lost species and about expanding the conservation toolkit to sustain and rebuild biodiversity in the face of accelerating environmental change.

Conservation of Natural Resources↗
PubMed2026

Bacterial motility in rhizosphere colonization: mechanisms, constraints, and implications for microbial inoculants.

Although the potential of microbial inoculants for sustainable agriculture and environmental restoration has been widely recognized, their field performance remains highly variable and often unpredictable. Current research and development frameworks for microbial inoculants primarily focus on their plant growth-promoting functions and metabolic traits, often overlooking the ecological processes that determine whether introduced strains can successfully disperse, access, and establish within the rhizosphere. Increasing evidence suggests that successful dispersal and establishment cannot be assumed in the highly heterogeneous conditions of soil systems. Here, we summarize the key mechanisms underlying bacterial motility and discuss its role within the broader framework of microbial dispersal, highlighting how motility-mediated processes contribute to rhizosphere colonization. We propose that bacterial motility represents a key mechanistic determinant of biofertilizer efficacy. Its role extends beyond the ability of inoculant strains to physically reach the rhizosphere, encompassing competitive colonization on the root surface, long-term persistence, and the ability to respond to dynamic root-derived chemical gradients associated with newly developing root tissues. We argue that inoculant motility should be elevated from a passive descriptive trait to a core design parameter that can be systematically incorporated and regulated during the development and optimization of microbial inoculants. We outline a multi-tiered strategic framework for next-generation biofertilizer engineering that integrates strain selection, community design, motility regulation, and deployment strategies, thereby unlocking the full potential of synthetic microbial consortia for sustainable agriculture, ecosystem restoration, and climate change mitigation.

Biofertilizer↗
PubMed2001

Surmounting the engineering challenges of Everglades restoration.

The South Florida Water Management District, in partnership with other agencies and stakeholders, is undertaking one of the world's largest ecosystem restoration programs. The foundation of the nutrient control program for the Everglades is a set of six large constructed wetlands, referred to as Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs). The initial treatment goal is to reduce phosphorus entering the Everglades to 50 parts per billion. The STAs comprise almost 17,000 hectares, with a capital cost of approximately $700 million. Approximately 4,720 hectares are currently operational, another 2,600 hectares are in the start-up phase, and construction is just getting under way on the remaining areas. Throughout the design process, engineers and scientists collaborated to capture the best available information on wetland treatment systems, and to develop the most appropriate design criteria. Some of the more challenging issues included characterizing stormwater inflows and phosphorus loads, determining appropriate nutrient removal performance characteristics, and estimating hydraulic design parameters relating to densely vegetated systems. The design process combined in-house staff with engineering consultants, construction contractors, external review groups and independent peer-review. This paper summarizes major design aspects and key assumptions, and sets the stage for addressing future challenges associated with achieving long-term water quality goals of Everglades restoration.

Conservation of Natural Resources↗
PubMed2006

Match your innovation strategy to your innovation ecosystem.

High-definition televisions should, by now, be a huge success. Philips, Sony, and Thompson invested billions of dollars to develop TV sets with astonishing picture quality. From a technology perspective, they've succeeded: Console manufacturers have been ready for the mass market since the early 1990s. Yet the category has been an unmitigated failure, not because of deficiencies, but because critical complements such as studio production equipment were not developed or adopted in time. Under-performing complements have left console producers in the position of offering a Ferrari in a world without gasoline or highways--an admirable engineering feat, but not one that creates value for customers. The HDTV story exemplifies the promise and peril of innovation ecosystems--the collaborative arrangements through which firms combine their individual offers into a coherent, customer-facing solution. When they work, innovation ecosystems allow companies to create value that no one firm could have created alone. The benefits of these systems are real. But for many organizations the attempt at ecosystem innovation has been a costly failure. This is because, along with new opportunities, innovation ecosystems also present a new set of risks that can brutally derail a firm's best efforts. Innovation ecosystems are characterized by three fundamental types of risk: initiative risks--the familiar uncertainties of managing a project; interdependence risks--the uncertainties of coordinating with complementary innovators; and integration risks--the uncertainties presented by the adoption process across the value chain. Firms that assess ecosystem risks holistically and systematically will be able to establish more realistic expectations, develop a more refined set of environmental contingencies, and arrive at a more robust innovation strategy. Collectively, these actions will lead to more effective implementation and more profitable innovation.

Commerce↗
PubMed1983

Prospects for development and use of recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid techniques with ruminal bacteria.

Over the last decade, developments in recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid techniques and molecular biology have revolutionized bacterial genetics, creating vast, new potential uses of bacteria (as well as animal and plant cells) that were not even considered previously. Bacterial production of hormones is but one example. With bacterial species with well developed genetic systems, such as Escherichia coli, it is now possible genetically to "design" or "engineer" bacterial strains having specific characteristics. One reasonable future approach toward improvement of animal agriculture would be manipulation of the rumen ecosystem via the use of genetically modified ruminal bacteria, but significant obstacles exist with this approach. Genetic systems of ruminal and of anaerobic bacteria of the mammalian gastrointestinal tract, in general, have not been studied and are largely unknown. In this paper, the various criteria for possible establishment of recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid systems in ruminal bacteria are outlined. Secondly, applications for utilizing genetically engineered ruminal bacteria to control digestion of specific feedstuffs, to regulate specific fermentation products, and to control growth of specific bacterial species are discussed.

Anaerobiosis↗
PubMed2003

The microbiology of biological phosphorus removal in activated sludge systems.

Activated sludge systems are designed and operated globally to remove phosphorus microbiologically, a process called enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR). Yet little is still known about the ecology of EBPR processes, the microbes involved, their functions there and the possible reasons why they often perform unreliably. The application of rRNA-based methods to analyze EBPR community structure has changed dramatically our understanding of the microbial populations responsible for EBPR, but many substantial gaps in our knowledge of the population dynamics of EBPR and its underlying mechanisms remain. This review critically examines what we once thought we knew about the microbial ecology of EBPR, what we think we now know, and what still needs to be elucidated before these processes can be operated and controlled more reliably than is currently possible. It looks at the history of EBPR, the currently available biochemical models, the structure of the microbial communities found in EBPR systems, possible identities of the bacteria responsible, and the evidence why these systems might operate suboptimally. The review stresses the need to extend what have been predominantly laboratory-based studies to full-scale operating plants. It aims to encourage microbiologists and process engineers to collaborate more closely and to bring an interdisciplinary approach to bear on this complex ecosystem.

Aerobiosis↗
PubMed2002

Potential for the environmental impact of transgenic crops.

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in how changes in agricultural practice associated with the introduction of particular genetically modified (GM) crops might indirectly impact the environment. There is also interest in any effects that might be associated with recombinant and novel combinations of DNA passing into the environment, and the possibility that they may be taken up by microorganisms or other live biological material. From the current state of knowledge, the impact of free DNA of transgenic origin is likely to be negligible compared with the large amount of total free DNA. We can find no compelling scientific arguments to demonstrate that GM crops are innately different from non-GM crops. The kinds of potential impacts of GM crops fall into classes familiar from the cultivation of non-GM crops (e.g., invasiveness, weediness, toxicity, or biodiversity). It is likely, however, that the novelty of some of the products of GM crop improvement will present new challenges and perhaps opportunities to manage particular crops in creative ways.

Consumer Product Safety↗
PubMed2001

Human impact on the fish diversity in the four largest lakes of Sweden.

The four largest Swedish lakes, Vänern, Vättern, Mälaren, Hjälmaren, host important commercial fisheries for char, salmon, trout, whitefish, vendace (cisco), perch, pike-perch, pike and eel, i.e. highly diverse biological resources. Case studies illustrate physical, chemical and biological impacts on some of these commercial species caused by constructions of dams and ship canals, eutrophication, and overexploitation. Although some original species have been lost and a few new species have been added, the recent human interference has basically caused major shifts in dominance of the fish community structures because of eutrophication, alterations in the abundance of eel or crayfish, and due to overfishing. The latter is in some cases caused by the Great Lake Fishery Paradox--in an environment with several predators and competitors, but with ample food resources, especially salmonid fish but also species like pike-perch may adapt a life history favoring growth over sexual maturation. If harvested at a conventional size these populations will decline rapidly due to too small spawning stocks.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Microencapsulated BioBullets for the control of biofouling zebra mussels.

The widespread invasion of freshwaters by the zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha, during the last 2 decades has made it one of the world's most economically and ecologically important pests. Since arriving in the North American Great Lakes in the 1980s, zebra mussels have become a major biofouler, blocking the raw water cooling systems of power stations and water treatment works and costing U.S. dollars 1-5 billion per year. Despite the development of numerous control methods, chlorination remains the only widespread and licensed technique. Zebra mussels are able to sense chlorine and othertoxins in their surrounding environment and respond by closing their valves, thus enabling them to avoid toxic effects for up to 3 weeks. Furthermore, prolonged dosing of chlorine in raw water produces ecotoxic trihalomethanes (THMs) by reaction with organic material in the water. We have developed a novel, environmentally safe, and effective method for controlling the zebra mussel: the BioBullet. Our method uses the encapsulation of an active ingredient (KCI) in microscopic particles of edible material. The mussels' natural filtering ability then removes and concentrates the particles from the water, without stimulating the valve-closing response. By using the mussels' filtering behavior to concentrate BioBullets the absolute quantity of active ingredient added to the water can be reduced substantially. Our approach allows us to engineer the particles to break up and dissolve completely within a few hours, thus eliminating the risk of polluting the wider ecosystem. We demonstrate that the effectiveness of a toxin in the control of biofouling filter-feeders can be enhanced greatly by using our technique. This paves the way for a new approach to the control of some of the world's most important economic pests.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Low-temperature extremophiles and their applications.

Psychrophilic (cold-adapted) organisms and their products have potential applications in a broad range of industrial, agricultural and medical processes. In order for growth to occur in low-temperature environments, all cellular components must adapt to the cold. This fact, in combination with the diversity of Archaea, Bacteria and Eucarya isolated from cold environments, highlights the breadth and type of biological products and processes that might be exploited for biotechnology. Relative to this undisputed potential, psychrophiles and their products are under-utilised in biotechnology; however, recent advances, particularly with cold-active enzymes, herald rapid growth for this burgeoning field.

Adaptation, Biological↗