Renewing agricultural grasslands for improved yields and forage quality generally involves eliminating standing vegetation with herbicides, ploughing and reseeding. However, grassland renewal may negatively affect soil quality and related ecosystem services. On clay soil in the north of the Netherlands, …

Thermal disinfection is probably the oldest water treatment method ever used. Similarly to other disinfection processes, it targets the inactivation of pathogenic (micro)organisms present in water, wastewater and other media. In this work, a pilot-scale continuous-flow thermal disinfection system was …

Plastic pollution has increased over the years and this affects especially seabirds which are vulnerable to this type of pollution. A species that is used as indicator species for plastic pollution is the short-tailed shearwater (Ardenna tenuirostris). These seabirds belong to the procellariids group …

Due to the depletion of fossil fuel resources and concern about increasing atmospheric CO2 levels, the production of microbial oil as source for energy and chemicals is considered as a sustainable alternative. A promising candidate strain for the production of microbial oil is the oleaginous yeast Schwanniomyces …

In de afgelopen jaren is er steeds vaker gezocht naar nieuwe methodes om het klimaat van het verleden te kunnen reconstrueren. Voor temperatuur bepalen wordt er onderzocht of Mg isotoop ratio’s hier een indicator voor kunnen zijn. Het verschil tussen twee isotoop ratio’s wordt uitgedrukt in de delta …

MSc. course “Molecular Mechanisms of Disease” - ‘Excellence in Communication’

A Mycobacterial Antacid

Decomposition is an ecosystem process, mainly important in the carbon and nitrogen cycles. When looking at what drives decomposition, there are three major drivers. These are plant litter quality, microbes and soil animals (detritivores). A large problem in understanding the decomposition process is …

To locate mating partners and essential resources such as food, oviposition sites and shelter, insects rely to a large extent on chemical cues. While most research has focused on cues derived from plants and insects, there is mounting evidence that indicates that micro‐organisms emit volatile compounds …