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Micro-organisms
Climate change and genetic resources for food and
agriculture:
state of knowledge, risks and opportunities
Fen BeedInternational Institute of Tropical Agriculture
Special Information SeminarFAO, Rome, 16 July 2011
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Abundance of micro-organisms
microbes: bacteria, fungi, archaea (extremophiles), protista
(algae, slime moulds, protozoa), viruses
everywhere, and in vast numbers
1,000-15,0001 millionfungi
400-5,0001 billionbacteria
10-500100,000algae
10-15010-100nematodes
5-1501-10mites
100-1,5000earthworms
biomass
(kg per ha)
number per gram of
soil (~teaspoon)
organism
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Diversity of micro-organisms
Millenium Ecosystem Assessment (2004)
largely ignored in biodiversity repositories
very rapid reproduction modes, further increasing
biodiversity
only 1% can be cultured artificially and classified through
traditional means
understanding diversity of microbial genetic resources is
necessary before describing impacts of climate change
number of species (in thousand)
insects and myriapodsfungi
Chelicerata
Protista
nematodes
plants
molluscs
crustaceans
vertebrates
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Functional groups of micro-organisms
soil inhabitantssoil inhabitants
plant and root plant and root
inhabitantsinhabitants
biological control biological control
agentsagents
plant pathogensplant pathogensfood food
productionproduction
many taxa belong to several functional groups
novel tools for identifying functions now available
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Functions of micro-organisms
soil soil inhabitantsinhabitants
soil health indicatorsbioremediation water regulation
carbon sequestrationsoil formation and structure nutrient
cycling and storage
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Functions of micro-organisms
soil soil inhabitantsinhabitants
plant and root plant and root inhabitantsinhabitants
soil health indicatorsbioremediation water regulation
carbon sequestrationsoil formation and structure nutrient
cycling and storage
nitrogen fixation: Rhizobia
nutrient absorption: mycorrhizae
disease suppression: endophytes
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Functions of micro-organisms
soil soil inhabitantsinhabitants
plant and root plant and root inhabitantsinhabitants
biological control biological control agentsagents
soil health indicatorsbioremediation water regulation
carbon sequestrationsoil formation and structure nutrient
cycling and storage
nitrogen fixation: Rhizobia
nutrient absorption: mycorrhizae
disease suppression: endophytes
natural bio-control: disease-suppressive soils
bio-control products
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Functions of micro-organisms
pathogenspathogens
on crops:huge economic losses
on weeds, pests and diseases: beneficial
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Functions of micro-organisms
pathogenspathogens
food productionfood production
on crops:huge economic losses
on weeds, pests and diseases: beneficial
transformation conservation
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Impact of climate change on micro-organisms
changes in distribution: shifting ecological niches aflatoxin
fungi are xerophilic
changes in interactions with other taxaplants: C3 versus C4
plants
changes in performancemycorrhizal fungi perform better at high
temperature
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Impact of climate change on micro-organisms
precise effects difficult to predict:
lack of current knowledge
wide array of diversity and interactions
mediated through other organisms
changes in distribution: shifting ecological niches aflatoxin
fungi are xerophilic
changes in interactions with other taxaplants: C3 versus C4
plants
changes in performancemycorrhizal fungi perform better at high
temperature
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Opportunities for micro-organisms as climate changes
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crop rotation and intercropping, no tillage
green and organic manure fertilization
understand function of key micro-organisms and functional
redundancy
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Opportunities for micro-organisms as climate changes
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greenhouse gasses
nutrient acquisition and transformation
durable pest and disease suppression
food shelf-life and quality
chemical fertilizers
chemical pesticides
cold storage, packing, transport
ecosystem resilience through increased biodiversity:
crop rotation and intercropping
green and organic manure fertilization
understand function of key micro-organisms and functional
redundancy
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Characterization/collections of micro-organisms
importance of crop genetic resources recognized (seed vault -
Svalbard Global Crop Diversity Trust)
but crop genetic resources interact with micro-organism genetic
resources
so we need to characterize micro-organisms: taxonomy, function,
variability
by addressing gaps in collections of micro-organism genetic
resources:
diagnostic tools and research on novel methods (metagenome
analysis)biased towards developed nations and temperate
climatesunder-resourcedknowledge and capacity gaps
(coordination)lack of scientific input for decision support lack of
an enabling policy environment (access and benefit sharing)
only then can the diversity of micro-organism genetic resources
be harnessed and used to adapt to and mitigate negative impacts of
climate change
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Conclusions – micro-organism GRFA
agriculture and food production are dependent on hidden but
critical role of diverse (taxonomy and function)
micro-organisms
synergy with cropping systems needs to recognised and
managed
as agriculture and climate change intensify, micro-organism
genetic resources can be used to adapt to and mitigate climate
change
mechanisms needed to increase research and characterisation of
taxonomy, function and diversity, and influence of interactions
global policies and appropriate access and benefit sharing
regime required to coordinate conservation and use
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FAO
Co-authors
Anna BenedettiConsiglio per la Ricerca e la Sperimentazione in
Agricoltura (CRA), Italy
Gianluigi CardinaliUniversità degli Studi di Perugia, Italy
Sukumar ChakrabortyCSIRO, Australia
Thomas DuboisIITA, Uganda
Karen GarrettKansas State University, United States of
America
Michael HalewoodBioversity International, Italy
Acknowledgements
