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.
2025
Authors
Inger Sundheim FløistadAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
Abstract Our understanding of how migratory wildlife populations affect incidence of infectious diseases spilling over into humans is limited. Ticks are expanding their distribution towards northern latitudes, causing emergence of tick‐borne diseases. Deer serve as reproduction hosts for adult ticks, supporting the tick populations. However, in northern areas, deer populations are partially migratory, and migrants occupy high elevation summer ranges that are unsuitable for ticks. Migration can thus theoretically lead to escape from exposure to ticks and to deer feeding fewer ticks, which lower disease hazard to humans. Combining data on Ixodes ricinus tick abundance with GPS‐tracking data of red deer ( Cervus elaphus ), we quantified the distributional overlap of ticks and red deer along elevational gradients in Norway. Furthermore, we correlated both deer density and the proportion of migratory deer with the incidence of Lyme disease in humans. We found that migratory deer summer ranges had colder climate and overlapped less with tick distribution than those of resident deer. Deer density consistently increased Lyme disease incidence in humans. However, we found only weak evidence that deer migration negatively affected Lyme disease incidence. Our study provides a rare quantification of how host availability, in terms of both host density and migratory movement, affects risk of a zoonotic disease.
Authors
Gerhard Grüll Gry Alfredsen Geir Wæhler Gustavsen Boris Forsthuber Jonas Niklewski Philip Bester van Niekerk Lone Ross Christian BrischkeAbstract
A survey including 3112 responses from individual end users of wood cladding, from Norway, Sweden and Germany, was conducted with questions related to their experience and preferences regarding cladding with and without coatings. Based on these results and established scientific understanding of Service Life Prediction (SLP) of wood cladding, two decision trees were provided to guide end users in selecting a suitable material to meet their expectations when planning a new cladding. This approach makes the users reflect on maintenance requirements and aesthetic changes rather than choosing a product solely based on initial aesthetic appeal.
Authors
Gry Alfredsen Geir Wæhler Gustavsen Lone Ross Jonas Niklewski Philip Bester van Niekerk Christian BrischkeAbstract
To optimise the use of renewable materials in construction, it is essential to understand the factors influencing decisions throughout their design and service life. Life Cycle Costing (LCC) supports sustainable development by aiming to minimise long-term costs through informed planning of service life, maintenance, and replacement. Central to this is the engineering concept of limit states - Ultimate Limit States (ULS) for structural safety and Serviceability Limit States (SLS) for functionality. However, in non-loadbearing applications such as cladding, maintenance is often driven by aesthetic deterioration rather than structural concerns. These aesthetic limit states are subjective and influenced by user preferences, personality traits, and cultural background. In practice, undesired aesthetic changes are among the main reasons for cladding replacement in Europe, alongside fungal decay and modernisation. Premature replacement due to insufficient communication about weathering effects and maintenance needs remains under-addressed. By accounting for variation in user preferences, material selection can be tailored to support a longer service life. This study presents multi-country variation in climate-related perceptions of wood and user preferences for wooden cladding.
Authors
Gry Alfredsen Michael Altgen Mari S. Austigard Johan Mattsson Maria Nunez Lone Ross Sverre Aarseth Tunstad Andreas Treu Igor A. Yakovlev Nanna Bjerregaard PedersenAbstract
A total of 212 iconic wooden cable car pylons were constructed for mining operations in Svalbard, significantly contributing to Longyearbyen's historical identity as a mining town. Fieldwork in Svalbard involved collecting wood samples from 22 of these pylons, targeting wood exposed both aboveground and ground proximity. While the timber used in the constructions was assumed to be untreated Norway spruce (Picea abies), light microscopy revealed that 25% of the timber members were Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris). Wooden beams exposed aboveground showed initial decay over the first 80-90 years, whereas severe fungal decay was observed after about 50 years in wooden poles inserted in the ground. Metabarcoding identified Ascomycetes and Basidiomycetes to be predominating in the wood samples and unveiled new fungal species for Svalbard, including four brown rot, five white rot, and sixteen soft rot species. Macroscopic and microscopic examinations confirmed more advanced decay in ground proximity samples, dominated by brown and soft rot fungi.
Authors
Yosef Al Shoffe Terence Robinson Gennaro Fazio Emily Follett Matthew Clark James Luby David Bedford Lee Kalcsits Gregory PeckAbstract
'Honeycrisp' apples are a crisp cultivar known for their unique texture and flavor. This cultivar is considered revolutionary in the world of crispy apples due to its high value and strong consumer preference. Many new cultivars have recently been developed using 'Honeycrisp' as a parent. However, growing, producing, storing, and marketing 'Honeycrisp' apples present significant challenges. A holistic approach to 'Honeycrisp' production will be discussed, covering aspects such as soil health, rootstocks, orchard management, environmental factors, physiological disorder development, storage protocols, and marketing strategies for sustainable production.
Authors
Lucia Piana Segadelli S. Angeli N. Carl Beierkuhnlein Chattová B. Cid Rodríguez M. Dinelli E. Gargini A. Greggio N. Hájek M. Holway J. H. Jacobsen D. Jutta Kapfer Leira M. Mustoni A. Peszek L. Rybak M. Petraglia A. Spitale D. Stevens L. E. Thapa B. Tomaselli M. Tromboni F. Marco CantonatiAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Åsmund Mikalsen KvifteAbstract
Presentasjon av NIBIO, NIBIO Fureneset og noko om jord og nedbryting
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Monica Sanden Eirill Ager-Wick Johanna Eva Bodin Nur Duale Kristian Prydz Volha Shapaval Tage Thorstensen Anne-Marthe Ganes Jevnaker Ville Erling SipinenAbstract
Oilseed rape LBFLFK was developed by Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated transformation. In total the following 13 genes were introduced, which would be expected to result in the expression of 11 new proteins: c-D12D(Ps) encoding a delta-12 desaturase (Ps); c-D6D(Ot) encoding a delta-6 desaturase (Ot); c-D6E(Tp) encoding a delta-6 elongase (Tp); c-D6E(Pp) encoding a delta-6 elongase (Pp); c-D5D(Tc), delta-5 desaturase (Tc); c-O3D(Pi) encoding a omega-3 desaturase (Pi); c-O3D(Pir) encoding a omega-3 desaturase (Pir); c-D5E(Ot) encoding a delta-5 elongase (Ot); c-D4D(Tc) encoding a delta-4 desaturase (Tc); c-D4D(Pl) encoding a delta-4 desaturase (Pl); and c-AHAS(At) encoding an acetohydroxy acid synthase (also named acetolactate synthase, (ALS)). These proteins impact the content of omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) in the seeds and also confers tolerance to imidazolinone herbicides. Two gene expression cassettes were introduced twice (O3D(Pir) and D5D(Tc) but have different seed-specific promotors to increase expression during seed maturation. Expression of the ten EPA and DHA biosynthesis genes results in the conversion of oleic acid (OA) to EPA and DHA in LBFLFK canola seeds. The VKM GMO panel has assessed the documentation in the application EFSA‐GMO‐DE‐2019‐ 157. The VKM GMO panel has no additional observations regarding the limitations of the scientific documentation when considering the full scope of the application, as pointed out by EFSA: “The GMO Panel is unable to conclude on the adequacy of the PMEM plan proposed by the applicant. The GMO Panel cannot conclude on the safety of oilseed rape LBFLFK when considering the full scope of the application. On the other hand, the GMO Panel concludes that the consumption of RBD LBFLFK oil is safe and does not represent any nutritional concern for humans under the conditions of use proposed by the applicant and considered during the pre-market risk assessment.” As no hazards specific to Norway have been identified, the VKM GMO panel supports EFSAs conclusions with the implied reservations regarding oilseed rape LBFLFK. Therefore, a full risk assessment of oilseed rape LBFLFK was not performed by the VKM GMO Pan