NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology: Potential for Diversified Crop Rotations to Promote Solid Phosphorus Cycling in Agroecosystems

该行动资助了美国国家科学基金会2023财年生物学博士后研究奖学金，扩大生物学中代表性不足群体的参与。该奖学金支持研究员的研究和培训计划，该计划将增加在生物学中代表性不足的群体的参与。该研究员将领导一个项目，调查多样化作物轮作促进农业土壤磷循环的潜力。磷是一种重要的植物营养物质，对植物的生长发育起着重要作用。在农业中，磷肥可以帮助满足作物的营养需求并最大限度地提高作物产量，但由于磷储量的消耗和其他环境问题，这些肥料的未来实用性尚不确定。通过长期的研究试验，该研究员将确定多样化的作物轮作是否能够支持土壤磷的自然循环，以帮助提高作物产量，同时最大限度地减少农业对磷肥的需求。这最终将有助于为作物生产制定更可持续和基于生态的管理做法。作为该项目的一部分，研究员将通过加州大学合作推广的各种推广平台向农民和相关利益攸关方传播他们的研究成果。该研究员还将通过麦克奈尔学者计划等项目为来自边缘背景的本科生提供研究指导。最后，该研究员将利用加州大学戴维斯分校研究生院的关系，为来自边缘背景的博士后学者建立一个支持组织和项目。该项目的总体假设是，多样化的作物轮作将有利于改变土壤的物理化学和生物特性，这将促进土壤磷循环，植物磷吸收和生产力。该研究员将在中西部的四个长期研究地点比较多样化玉米-大豆轮作和非多样化玉米-大豆轮作的土壤特性。该研究员将进行土壤理化分析，包括土壤有机质和总碳氮含量分析，以研究作物轮作对磷循环相关特性的影响；进行土壤宏基因组和元转录组测序，比较轮作方法之间的微生物分类和功能组成；进行玉米表型分析，将土壤特性的变化与植物性状联系起来。该研究员还将利用收集到的数据实施结构方程建模，以研究生物和非生物土壤特性、磷库和植物生产力之间的关系。该研究员将通过各种平台传播这项工作的发现，包括农民外展和同行评议的科学期刊文章。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2023, Broadening Participation of Groups Underrepresented in Biology. The Fellowship supports a research and training plan for the Fellow that will increase the participation of groups underrepresented in biology. The Fellow will lead a project investigating the potential for diversified crop rotations to enhance soil phosphorus cycling in agriculture. Phosphorus is an important plant nutrient as it plays a major role in plant growth and development. In agriculture, phosphorus fertilizers can help meet the nutritional needs of crop plants and maximize crop yields, yet the future practicality of these fertilizers is uncertain due to depleting phosphorus reserves and other environmental concerns. Using long-term research trials, the Fellow will determine if diversified crop rotations can support natural soil phosphorus cycling to help support crop yields while minimizing the need for phosphorus fertilizers in agriculture. This will ultimately help to develop more sustainable and ecologically based management practices for crop production. As part of the project, the Fellow will disseminate findings from their research to farmers and relevant stakeholders through a variety of extension platforms with the University of California Cooperative Extension. The Fellow will also provide research mentorship to undergraduate students from marginalized backgrounds through programs such as the McNair Scholars Program. Lastly, the Fellow will leverage connections at University of California, Davis, Graduate Studies to establish a support organization and programming for postdoctoral scholars from marginalized backgrounds. The overarching hypothesis of the project is that diversified crop rotations will beneficially alter soil physiochemical and biological properties, which will enhance soil phosphorus cycling, plant phosphorus uptake, and productivity. The Fellow will compare soil properties between diversified corn-soybean rotations and non-diversified corn-soybean rotations across four long-term research sites located throughout the Midwest. The Fellow will perform soil physiochemical analyses, including analysis of soil organic matter and total carbon and nitrogen content, to examine the effects of crop rotation on properties relevant to phosphorus cycling, soil metagenomic and metatranscriptomic sequencing to compare microbial taxonomic and functional composition between rotation methods, and corn phenotypic analyses to link changes in soil properties to plant traits. The Fellow will also implement structural equation modeling using the data gathered to study relationships between biotic and abiotic soil properties, phosphorus pools, and plant productivity. The Fellow will disseminate findings from this work through diverse platforms, including farmer outreach and peer-reviewed scientific journal articles.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.