Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2006
Abstract
Results from a literature review on pinewood ecology, silviculture, genetics, aspects of history and forest resources of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) in western Norway are presented. The pinewoods cover 40 per cent of the forested land, 0.31 million ha. During the last 75 years, the area has increased by 17 per cent and the growing stock has risen from 10 to 34 million m3. The impact of man in previous times was very marked, and has had a significant influence on the present forest conditions. The pronounced climatic gradients mixed with the topographic variation - from the coastal plains via the fjord systems to the high mountains - is reflected in rather steep gradients in the pine forest vegetation. Various floristic elements can be distinguished, from oceanic via the suboceanic in the outer islands to the thermophytic, boreonemoral and boreal elements in the inner fjord districts and valleys. The introduction of spruce (Picea spp.) plantations on 10-15 per cent of former native pine forests has not negatively affected the bird fauna at the landscape scale. Although not particular species rich, the pine forests harbour species usually not found in other forest types. So far, most work in the field of silviculture and forest ecology in the pinewoods of West Norway has been in the form of case studies. Implications of the results for forestry in the region are briefly discussed.
Abstract
We describe the cloning and characterization of a single copy gene from Trichoderma atroviride P1 encoding a novel 30 kDa chitinase, Ech30. Ech30 is a family 18 chitinase showing low sequence similarity to other Trichoderma chitinases. Real-time quantitative RT-PCR studies revealed that expression of the ech30 gene was induced by the presence of Botrytis cinerea in plate confrontation assays, but hardly by chitin in liquid cultures. Studies of Ech30 purified from an Escherichia coli strain overexpressing the ech30 gene devoid of the leader sequence and a predicted intron, showed that the gene encodes an active chitinase, which, as expected for family 18 chitinases, is inhibited by allosamidin.
2005
Abstract
In spring 2002, extensive damages were recorded in southeast Norway on nursery-grown Norway spruce seedlings that had either wintered in nursery cold storage or had been planted out in autumn 2001. The damages were characterised by leader shoot dieback and necroses on the upper or lower part of the 2001-year-shoot. Gremmeniella abietina and Phomopsis sp. were frequently isolated from the diseased seedlings. RAMS (random amplified microsatellites) profiling indicated that the G.abietina strains associated with diseased nursery seedlings belonged to LTT (large-tree type) ecotype, and inoculation tests confirmed their pathogenicity on Norway spruce. Based on sequence analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of ribosomal DNA, the Phomopsis strains associated with diseased seedlings do not represent any characterized Phomopsis species associated with conifers. Phomopsis sp. was not pathogenic in inoculation tests, this implying it may be a secondary colonizer. ITS-based real-time PCR assays were developed in order to detect and quantify Gremmeniella and Phomopsis in the nursery stock. We describe here the Gremmeniella - associated shoot dieback symptoms on Norway spruce seedlings and conclude that the unusual disease outburst was related to the Gremmeniella epidemic caused by the LTT type on large pines in 2001.
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Axel Schmidt Zeneli Gazmend Ari Hietala Carl Gunnar Fossdal Paal Krokene Erik Christiansen Jonathan GershenzonAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
Rhizoctonia solani was frequently isolated in the Italian Alps from ursery-grown European beech (Fagus sylvatica) seedlings displaying symptoms of cotyledon rot. Koch?s postulates were verified and mode of infection of the associated isolates was investigated with light and scanning electron microscopy. Population structure of the pathogen was investigated by scoring the anastomosis reaction type in pairings between different isolates from the same seedbed. One pathogen genotype showed a large distribution area within the seedbed, this implying that the inoculum had been building up in the seedbed over a longer time period. Hyphal anastomosis tests and sequence analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of ribosomal DNA indicated that the pathogen belongs to AG 2-1 of R. solani. ITS sequence analysis indicates that the isolates from beech are closely related to R. solani isolates causing a disease on tulip. The striking similarities between the two diseases are discussed.
Abstract
In field experiments, clones of Norway spruce [Picea abies (L.) Karst.] showed different degrees of resistance against pathogenic fungi inoculated into the bark that correlate with differences in polyphenolic parenchyma (PP) cells of the bark. Cells of spruce callus cultures, particularly towards the callus surface, resemble PP cells and this study looks at changes in callus cells during infection and the relative resistance of cultures from clones of low (weak) or high (strong) resistance to fungal infection. Callus cultures, initiated from trees with different resistance, were co-inoculated with Ceratocystis polonica (Siem.) C. Moreau and Heterobasidion annosum (Fr.) Bref. Callus cells from strong clones resemble PP cells of bark tissue from strong clones, having more polyphenolic bodies, while callus cells from weak clones are more similar to PP cells from those clones, which have less extensive phenolic bodies. Callus cultures from trees with weak resistance were more quickly overgrown by both species of pathogenic fungi than cultures from trees with strong resistance. Callus cells of infected cultures showed changes similar to activated PP cells of bark, including enhanced accumulation of polyphenolics. Phenolic bodies were more numerous and more extensive (larger and denser) in callus cells of strong versus weak clones under all conditions. Thus, callus cells may perform similar functions in defense as PP cells in the bark. Callus from trees of varying resistance seem to reflect the relative resistance of the trees from which they are derived, and this study indicates that some mechanisms of resistance can be studied using callus from trees of different resistance.
Authors
Øystein Johnsen Carl Gunnar Fossdal Nina Elisabeth Nagy Jørgen A.B. Mølmann OG Dæhlen Tore SkrøppaAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
The spruce bark beetle is the most serious pest of mature spruce trees in Eurasia. At low population densities it breeds in weakened or newly dead trees, but at high densities it becomes a tree killer. The exact factors triggering outbreaks are not fully understood, but climatic variables are important candidates. Populations in SE Norway have been monitored since 1979. Various time series methods are used to explore the role of climate in outbreaks of the spruce bark beetle in space and time, and to estimate the distribution of bivoltism under different scenarios of climate change. Large windfall events appear to be a major synchronizer of beetle outbreaks in areas subjected to regionalized weather systems, and the northern border of bivoltism may be moved towards north as a function of increasing temperature. Preliminary models of the population dynamics emphasize the frequency of large windfall events and phenological changes due to temperature increase. Final aims are to estimate the regional risks of forest damage under different scenarios of climate change, and to describe practices that may reduce the impact for forest managers.