I22-Small angle scattering & Diffraction
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[34844, 37870]
Open Access
Abstract: Efficient food resources management, particularly through minimization of waste across the production and supply chain, is essential for creating a resilient, circular agri-food system. The rice industry is one of the largest sectors in agri-food, supporting over half of the global population. This work focuses on valorizing the lipidic fraction of rice bran, a major by-product of rice processing, to contribute to reducing the environmental impact of rice production. Novel purification processes of rice bran wax (RBX) from rice bran are presented, together with their environmental impact assessment. Rice bran butter (RBB) was initially extracted using supercritical CO2, followed by the separation of its main components, rice bran oil (RBO) and rice bran wax (RBX), through combinations of different physical unit operations including crystallization, centrifugation, solvent extraction and filtration. The purification strategies developed involved green solvents such as ethanol and isopropanol, compared to the commonly used hexane. The purified products were characterized in terms of their chemical properties via chromatographic techniques. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction were used to determine structural and thermal properties of the material extracted. A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was also conducted to determine the environmental impact of the designed extraction and separation processes. The LCA highlighted that the optimal process configuration balances wax extraction yield, energy consumption, and solvent use. Process #2 using ethanol emerged as the most sustainable option, achieving the highest performance with the lowest environmental impact.
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Dec 2025
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I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Pyung-Gang
Lee
,
Linxiang
Yin
,
Xin
Wei
,
Jingyuan
Shi
,
Geoffrey
Masuyer
,
Travis G.
Wentz
,
Pengsheng
Chen
,
Ying
Xu
,
Junjie
Liang
,
Haonan
Zhang
,
Sara
Persson Kosenina
,
Briallen
Lobb
,
Michael
Mansfield
,
Sarjeet S.
Gill
,
Sabine
Pellett
,
Pal
Stenmark
,
Andrew C.
Doxey
,
Min
Dong
Open Access
Abstract: Insecticidal bacterial proteins play key roles in insect-bacteria interactions and have been used as biopesticides. Here, we identify two insecticidal proteins in Paeniclostridium ghonii, designated PG-toxin 1 (PG1) and PG-toxin 2 (PG2), which are homologs of botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs). Unlike BoNTs, PG1 and PG2 contain two separate proteins: One is the protease light chain (LC), and the other is the heavy chain containing the translocation domain and the receptor binding domain. Crystal and cryo–electron microscopy structures show a conserved BoNT-like architecture but without an interchain disulfide bond. Functional characterizations establish that the LCs of PG1 and PG2 cleave insect synaptosomal–associated protein 25 (SNAP25), but not human or rat SNAP25, and microinjection of PG1 and PG2 caused paralysis and death in Drosophila and Aedes mosquitoes. These findings identified unique two-component BoNT-like insecticidal proteins, revealing insights into the evolution of the BoNT family of toxins, and broadening our understanding of bacteria that can be used for biopest controls.
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Nov 2025
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Open Access
Abstract: Background and aims: Certain plant species, including some trees, have been observed growing not only in soil but also in soil parent materials. However, the root traits and mechanisms enabling these species to penetrate soil parent materials are not yet thoroughly understood. This systematic review aims to identify and discuss the root traits and mechanisms that allow plant roots to grow into soil parent materials. It will also draw insights from the characteristics and mechanisms that plants employ to overcome the challenges posed by compacted soils. Methods: We adhered to the 'Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses' (PRISMA) guidelines for our methodology. Results: We identified increased root radial pressure, investment in root biomass, fine root development, root trematotropism, mycorrhizal associations, root hairs, and root exudates as key traits aiding plants in soil penetration. The mentioned root traits and mechanisms have also been shown to help plants overcome compacted soil, except for mycorrhizal associations. Conclusion: The key root traits and mechanisms identified in this review lay the groundwork for a deeper understanding of root-soil parent material interactions and plant adaptations in changing physical environments. This enhances our ability to select the next generation of robust and resilient crops capable of thriving in complex root-soil parent material interactions. Future research on root-parent material interactions in food crops holds promise for improving our understanding of how crops can grow beyond traditional soil limitations (such as soil depth).
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Oct 2025
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B18-Core EXAFS
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[34510, 39677]
Open Access
Abstract: Excessive nitrogen fertiliser use has resulted in reactive nitrogen losses to the environment through gaseous N emissions, like N2O, resulting in agriculture being a major anthropogenic source of N2O gas emissions globally. Using engineered nanomaterials to deliver reactive nitrogen can aid in more efficient nutrient delivery to crops, maximising yield and crop quality, while minimising reactive losses to the environment. ZSM-5-15, a nano-zeolite, increased cumulative N2O emissions by 134% when applied in combination with a 50% dose of conventional nitrogen fertiliser. This is theorised to be through ion exchange of ZSM-5-15’s extra-framework NH4+ ion load being released, allowing nitrifying microbes to act on the newly released NH4+ and increase N2O emissions. BEA-19, a similar zeolite to ZSM-5-15 but with a slightly altered Si:Al ratio, size and charge, causes no increase in N2O emissions. While ZSM-5-15 increases reactive N emissions it also drives improved lettuce growth, with 13% more biomass accumulation compared to a half dose of conventional fertiliser. Ce0.75Zr0.25O2, a nano-metal oxide, improves growth by 6% and maintains the nutritive quality of lettuce, with higher Zn, Cu, Mg, K, Fe and Mn contents, without increasing N2O emissions. Nano-Ce0.75Zr0.25O2 transforms in soil to form CeO2 and Ce0.9Zr0.1O2, leaching Zr4+ ions some of which partly form ZrCl4. These compounds may then act on lettuce roots and soil microbes independently. These results indicate how nanomaterials may impact reactive nitrogen emissions through effects on soil microbial communities.
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Sep 2025
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I03-Macromolecular Crystallography
I04-1-Macromolecular Crystallography (fixed wavelength)
I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Ekaterina
Kot
,
Matteo P.
Ferla
,
Patricia H.
Hollinshead
,
Charles W. E.
Tomlinson
,
Daren
Fearon
,
Jasmin C.
Aschenbrenner
,
Lizbe
Koekemoer
,
Max
Winokan
,
Michael
Fairhead
,
Xiaomin
Ni
,
Rod
Chalk
,
Katherine S.
England
,
Laura
Ortega Varga
,
Mark
Greer Montgomery
,
Nicholas P.
Mulholland
,
Frank
Von Delft
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[28172, 34598, 30602, 36049]
Open Access
Abstract: BACKGROUND: In order to alleviate the growing issue of herbicide resistance, diversification of the herbicide portfolio is necessary. A promising yet underutilized mode-of-action is the inhibition of fatty acid thioesterases (FATs), which terminate de novo fatty acid (FA) biosynthesis by releasing FAs from acyl carrier protein (ACP) cofactors. These enzymes impact plant growth and sterility by determining the amount and length of FAs present. In this study we report a crystallographic fragment screening approach for the identification of novel chemical matter targeting FATs. RESULTS: We have solved the crystal structure of Arabidopsis thaliana FatA to 1.5 Å and conducted a crystallographic fragment screen which identified 129 unique fragments bound in 141 different poses. Ten fragments demonstrated on-scale potency, two of these exploiting different interactions to known herbicides. Elaboration of one of the fragments resulted in an improvement of affinity from ~20 μm to ~90 nm KD. Finally, superposition of our crystal structures revealed that some fragments exploit large conformational changes in the substrate binding site. CONCLUSION: We have fully enabled FatA as a target for rapid, rational hit-to-lead development, with robust structural, biophysical and biochemical assays. We provide a set of fragment hits which represent diverse, novel scaffolds that both recapitulate interactions made by current herbicides, and also target novel regions within the active and dimer sites. Our fragments can be readily merged and allow for effective catalogue-based structure–activity relationship (SAR) exploration. Together these data will accelerate the development of novel, alternative herbicides to combat herbicide resistance.
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Sep 2025
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Krios II-Titan Krios II at Diamond
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[34108]
Open Access
Abstract: Understanding the molecular basis of regulated nitrogen (N2) fixation is essential for engineering N2-fixing bacteria that fulfill the demand of crop plants for fixed nitrogen, reducing our reliance on synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. In Azotobacter vinelandii and many other members of Proteobacteria, the two-component system comprising the anti-activator protein (NifL) and the Nif-specific transcriptional activator (NifA)controls the expression of nif genes, encoding the nitrogen fixation machinery. The NifL-NifA system evolved the ability to integrate several environmental cues, such as oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon availability. The nitrogen fixation machinery is thereby only activated under strictly favorable conditions, enabling diazotrophs to thrive in competitive environments. While genetic and biochemical studies have enlightened our understanding of how NifL represses NifA, the molecular basis of NifA sequestration by NifL depends on structural information on their interaction. Here, we present mechanistic insights into how nitrogen fixation is regulated by combining biochemical and genetic approaches with a low-resolution cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) map of the oxidized NifL-NifA complex. Our findings define the interaction surface between NifL and NifA and reveal how this interaction can be manipulated to generate bacterial strains with increased nitrogen fixation rates able to secrete surplus nitrogen outside the cell, a crucial step in engineering improved nitrogen delivery to crop plants.
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Sep 2025
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Abstract: Globally, phosphorus (P) is one of the most limiting macronutrients for agricultural production. Humid tropical soils have historically low natural P contents, with most P forming high-binding energy compounds with mineral colloids. No-tillage (NT) systems, where fertilizers are positioned in the furrow, can influence plant nutrient uptake and fertilizer use efficiency. In this study, 31P nuclear magnetic resonance (31P–NMR) and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) were used to evaluate P species in the soil solid phase and solution, focusing on different positions: crop row, between crop rows, and rhizosphere of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] and wheat (Triticum spp.) cultivated for 36 years in an Oxisol under NT and conventional tillage (CT, with disc plowing and harrowing). Labile P levels were, on average, 25 % higher in NT compared to CT, mainly due to increases in moderately labile and non-labile fractions (p < 0.05). Total P did not differ between systems, with inorganic P representing 65–69 % of total P. In both crops, P was enriched in the rhizosphere and crop row relative to the between-row position, with orthophosphate accounting for 72–85 % of Na-EDTA-extracted P. XANES and chemical fractionation consistently indicated a predominance of P associated with Fe and Al oxyhydroxides. Additionally, XANES detected phytic acid accumulation in the rhizosphere, suggesting a role for root and microbial processes in shaping organic P dynamics. These results highlight the importance of long-term soil management in enhancing P bioavailability and fertilizer use efficiency in tropical agroecosystems.
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Aug 2025
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DIAD-Dual Imaging and Diffraction Beamline
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James
Le Houx
,
Daniel
Mckay Fletcher
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Alberto
Leonardi
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Katherine A.
Williams
,
Nancy
Walker
,
Fernando
Alvarez-Borges
,
Ebrahim
Afsar Dizaj
,
Madhu
Murthy
,
Ronan
Smith
,
Liam
Perera
,
Navid
Aslani
,
Andrew
James
,
Sharif
Ahmed
,
Tiina
Roose
,
Siul
Ruiz
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[30961, 32138, 33343]
Open Access
Abstract: Soil compaction and escalating global drought increase soil strength and stiffness. It remains unclear which plant root biomechanical mechanisms/traits enable growth in these harsh conditions. Here, we combine synchrotron X-ray computed tomography with spatially resolved X-ray diffraction to characterize the biomechanics of a replica root-soil system. We map the strain field around the root tip analog, finding strong agreement with finite element simulations, thereby demonstrating a promising new in vivo measurement protocol.
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Jul 2025
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I12-JEEP: Joint Engineering, Environmental and Processing
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[37256]
Open Access
Abstract: Fertilisers play a key role in agriculture, providing key nutrients needed by crops to ensure a secure food supply. However, with increasing prices and rising environmental concerns, there is a growing need to rely on alternative and sustainable fertiliser sources, introducing the opportunity to use organic amendments to formulate organo-mineral fertilisers (OMF). Despite their environmental advantages, the inherent variability in composition of organic amendments within OMF poses a challenge for their standardization. This study aims to use OMF derived from anaerobic digestate and coupled with carbon capture technologies to analyze for its physical characteristics and chemical composition using neutron computed tomography (NCT), X-ray computed tomography (XCT) and Raman spectroscopy (RS). This is a feasibility study to assess using non-destructive techniques on OMF as previously this has not been explored. This work represents the first attempt to utilize a combination of imaging techniques to investigate on OMF and demonstrates their feasibility for measuring the variability between individual samples. This is a proof-of-concept study which shows that combining NCT and XCT can provide images on how uniformly packed each OMF pellet are. The use of RS is to characterize OMF is more challenging largely due to the high fluorescence background arising from its matrix. This study needs to be further developed to enable image-based analysis using machine learning algorithms to determine characteristics of large batches of OMF. Further development is needed building on this work to quantify OMF pellet characteristics so that it can be confidently used as novel fertilisers in agriculture.
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Jun 2025
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I18-Microfocus Spectroscopy
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[33049]
Open Access
Abstract: Risk management for agricultural use of digested sewage sludge requires better understanding of the behaviour and fate of contaminant metals in the plant root zone. A study employing rhizo-pot and plug-tray experiments was conducted to identify the zone near spring barley roots (Hordeum vulgare) where concentration and speciation of Cu and Zn are affected. Cu and Zn bonding environments in the root epidermis/cortex and vascular tissue were also identified. In the digested sludge-amended soil, spring barley absorbed Cu only from the immediate vicinity of the roots (<< 1 mm), but Zn was taken up from further afield (> 1 mm). In the rhizosphere Cu was predominately present as Cu(I) oxides or as Cu(II) absorbed/bonded to phosphate, whereas Zn was present as Zn(II) in inner-sphere complexes with metal oxide surfaces, as Zn(II) sulphides or Zn(II) bonded to/incorporated into carbonates. Cu taken-up by spring barley roots was largely sequestered in the root epidermis and/or cortex predominately in the coordination environments similar to those seen in the rhizosphere. Only a small proportion of the Cu was translocated into the vascular tissue (where it is in the same two bonding environments). Zn taken-up by spring barley roots was present as Zn(II) sulphides, Zn(II) absorbed to/incorporated into carbonates, or Zn(II)-organic complexes. Zn was readily translocated from roots to shoots. Better understanding of these differences in the mobility and uptake of Cu and Zn in sludge-amended agricultural soils could be used to undertake element specific risk assessments.
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May 2025
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