Series Editor:
Christian V. Stevens, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Belgium
Titles in the Series:
Wood Modification: Chemical, Thermal and Other Processes
Callum A. S. Hill
Renewables‐Based Technology: Sustainability Assessment
Jo Dewulf, Herman Van Langenhove
Biofuels
Wim Soetaert, Erik Vandamme
Handbook of Natural Colorants
Thomas Bechtold, Rita Mussak
Surfactants from Renewable Resources
Mikael Kjellin, Ingegärd Johansson
Industrial Applications of Natural Fibres: Structure, Properties and Technical Applications
Jörg Müssig
Thermochemical Processing of Biomass: Conversion into Fuels, Chemicals and Power
Robert C. Brown
Biorefinery Co‐Products: Phytochemicals, Primary Metabolites and Value‐Added Biomass Processing
Chantal Bergeron, Danielle Julie Carrier, Shri Ramaswamy
Aqueous Pretreatment of Plant Biomass for Biological and Chemical Conversion to Fuels and Chemicals
Charles E. Wyman
Bio‐Based Plastics: Materials and Applications
Stephan Kabasci
Introduction to Wood and Natural Fiber Composites
Douglas D. Stokke, Qinglin Wu, Guangping Han
Cellulosic Energy Cropping Systems
Douglas L. Karlen
Introduction to Chemicals from Biomass, 2nd Edition
James H. Clark, Fabien Deswarte
Lignin and Lignans as Renewable Raw Materials: Chemistry, Technology and Applications
Francisco G. Calvo‐Flores, Jose A. Dobado, Joaquín Isac‐García, Francisco J. Martín‐Martínez
Sustainability Assessment of Renewables‐Based Products: Methods and Case Studies
Jo Dewulf, Steven De Meester, Rodrigo A. F. Alvarenga
Cellulose Nanocrystals: Properties, Production and Applications
Wadood Hamad
Fuels, Chemicals and Materials from the Oceans and Aquatic Sources
Francesca M. Kerton, Ning Yan
Bio‐Based Solvents
François Jérôme and Rafael Luque
Nanoporous Catalysts for Biomass Conversion
Feng‐Shou Xiao and Liang Wang
Thermochemical Processing of Biomass: Conversion into Fuels, Chemicals and Power 2nd Edition
Robert Brown
Forthcoming Titles:
Chitin and Chitosan: Properties and Applications
Lambertus A.M. van den Broek, and Carmen G. Boeriu
Waste Valorization: Waste Streams in a Circular Economy
Sze Ki Lin, Chong Li, Guneet Kaur, Xiaofeng Yang
Biorefinery of Inorganics: Recovering Mineral Nutrients from Biomass and Organic Waste
Eric Meers and Gerard Velthof
Process Systems Engineering for Biofuels Development
Adrián Bonilla‐Petriciolet, Gade Pandu Rangaiah
Biobased Packaging: Material, Environmental and Economic Aspects
Mohd Sapuan Salit, Rushdan Ahmad Ilyas
Edited by
DANNY GEELEN and LIN XU
Horticell, Department of Plants and Crops
Faculty of Bioscience Engineering
Ghent University
Belgium
This edition first published 2020
© 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd
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The right of Danny Geelen and Lin Xu to be identified as the editors of the editorial material in this work has been asserted in accordance with law.
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Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication Data
Names: Geelen, Danny, editor. | Xu, Lin, 1986‐ editor.
Title: The chemical biology of plant biostimulants / edited by Danny
Geelen, Lin Xu.
Description: First edition. | Hoboken, NJ : Wiley, [2020] | Series: Wiley
series in renewable resources | Includes bibliographical references and
index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019035985 (print) | LCCN 2019035986 (ebook) | ISBN
9781119357193 (hardback) | ISBN 9781119357247 (adobe pdf) | ISBN
9781119357100 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Plant growth promoting substances. | Plant biotechnology. |
Plants–Composition. | Botanical chemistry.
Classification: LCC QK731 .C5155 2020 (print) | LCC QK731 (ebook) | DDC
575.9/7–dcundefined
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019035985
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019035986
Cover Design: Wiley
Cover Images: © Fotokostic/Shutterstock; © Foto2rich/Shutterstock; © alexey_ds/Getty Images; © ILYA AKINSHIN/Shutterstock; Education globe © Ingram Publishing/Alamy Stock Photo
Adam Blaszczak | Cytozyme Laboratories Inc., Utah, USA |
Michael Canady | Cytozyme Laboratories Inc., Utah, USA |
Shane O'Connell | Shannon Applied Biotechnology Centre, Institute of Technology Tralee, Ireland |
Adam Timothy Cross | Department of Environment and Agriculture, ARC Centre for Mine Site Restoration, Curtin University, Australia |
Nuria De Diego | Department of Chemical Biology and Genetics, Centre of the Region Haná for Biotechnological and Agricultural Research, Faculty of Science, Palacký University, Czech Republic |
Siamsa M. Doyle | Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC), Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden |
Danny Geelen | Horticell, Department of Plants and Crops, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Belgium |
Oscar Goñi | Shannon Applied Biotechnology Centre, Institute of Technology Tralee, Ireland |
Patrick du Jardin | Plant Biology Laboratory, Gembloux Agro‐Bio Tech, University of Liège, Belgium |
Manoj G. Kulkarni | Research Centre for Plant Growth and Development, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal Pietermaritzburg, South Africa |
Richard T. Lamar | Bio Huma Netic, USA |
Giovanni Povero | Valagro S.p.A., Italy |
Patrick Quille | Shannon Applied Biotechnology Centre, Institute of Technology Tralee, Ireland |
Sara Raggi | Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC), Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden |
Kannan R.R. Rengasamy | Research Centre for Plant Growth and Development, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal Pietermaritzburg, South Africa |
Stéphanie Robert | Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC), Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden |
Lukáš Spíchal | Department of Chemical Biology and Genetics, Centre of the Region Haná for Biotechnological and Agricultural Research, Faculty of Science, Palacký University, Czech Republic |
Johannes van Staden | Research Centre for Plant Growth and Development, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu‐Natal Pietermaritzburg, South Africa |
Wendy A. Stirk | Research Centre for Plant Growth and Development, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu‐Natal Pietermaritzburg, South Africa |
Hoang Khai Trinh | Horticell, Department of Plants and Crops, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Belgium |
Pawel Wiatrak | Cytozyme Laboratories Inc., Utah, USA |
Wei San Wong | Department of Environment and Agriculture, ARC Centre for Mine Site Restoration, Curtin University, Australia; and School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Australia |
Elizabeth Wozniak | Cytozyme Laboratories Inc., Utah, USA |
Lin Xu | Horticell, Department of Plants and Crops, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Belgium |
Jean Wan Hong Yong | Department of Biosystems and Technology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden |
Hong Tao Zhong | School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Australia |
Renewable resources, their use and modification are involved in a multitude of important processes with a major influence on our everyday lives. Applications can be found in the energy sector, paints and coatings, and the chemical, pharmaceutical, and textile industry, to name but a few.
The area interconnects several scientific disciplines (agriculture, biochemistry, chemistry, technology, environmental sciences, forestry…), which makes it very difficult to have an expert view on the complicated interaction. Therefore, the idea to create a series of scientific books that will focus on specific topics concerning renewable resources has been very opportune and can help to clarify some of the underlying connections in this area.
In a very fast‐changing world, trends are not only characteristic for fashion and political standpoints; science is also not free from hypes and buzzwords. The use of renewable resources is again more important nowadays; however, it is not part of a hype or a fashion. As the lively discussions among scientists continue about how many years we will still be able to use fossil fuels – opinions ranging from 50 to 500 years – they do agree that the reserve is limited and that it is essential not only to search for new energy carriers but also for new material sources.
In this respect, renewable resources are a crucial area in the search for alternatives for fossil‐based raw materials and energy. In the field of energy supply, biomass and renewables‐based resources will be part of the solution alongside other alternatives such as solar energy, wind energy, hydraulic power, hydrogen technology, and nuclear energy. In the field of material sciences, the impact of renewable resources will probably be even bigger. Integral utilization of crops and the use of waste streams in certain industries will grow in importance, leading to a more sustainable way of producing materials. Although our society was much more (almost exclusively) based on renewable resources centuries ago, this disappeared in the Western world in the nineteenth century. Now it is time to focus again on this field of research. However, it should not mean a ‘retour à la nature’, but it should be a multidisciplinary effort on a highly technological level to perform research towards new opportunities, to develop new crops and products from renewable resources. This will be essential to guarantee a level of comfort for a growing number of people living on our planet. It is ‘the’ challenge for the coming generations of scientists to develop more sustainable ways to create prosperity and to fight poverty and hunger in the world. A global approach is certainly favoured.
This challenge can only be dealt with if scientists are attracted to this area and are recognized for their efforts in this interdisciplinary field. It is, therefore, also essential that consumers recognize the fate of renewable resources in a number of products.
Furthermore, scientists do need to communicate and discuss the relevance of their work. The use and modification of renewable resources may not follow the path of the genetic engineering concept in view of consumer acceptance in Europe. Related to this aspect, the series will certainly help to increase the visibility of the importance of renewable resources. Being convinced of the value of the renewables approach for the industrial world, as well as for developing countries, I was myself delighted to collaborate on this series of books focusing on different aspects of renewable resources. I hope that readers become aware of the complexity, the interaction and interconnections, and the challenges of this field and that they will help to communicate on the importance of renewable resources.
I certainly want to thank the people of Wiley's Chichester office, especially David Hughes, Jenny Cossham, and Lyn Roberts, in seeing the need for such a series of books on renewable resources, for initiating and supporting it, and for helping to carry the project to the end.
Last, but not least, I want to thank my family, especially my wife Hilde and children Paulien and Pieter‐Jan, for their patience and for giving me the time to work on the series when other activities seemed to be more inviting.
Christian V. Stevens,
Faculty of Bioscience Engineering
Ghent University, Belgium
Series Editor ‘Renewable Resources’
June 2005
The development of tools and practices that improve sustainability of farming is a prevailing trend for the agriculture and food industries in the twenty‐first century. Plant biostimulants, as a group of molecules promoting plant growth and health, are an element of the portfolio of measures that aims to enhance the profitability of crop production in a context of reduced input and increased sustainability. The concept of biostimulants has evolved over the years, and now not only includes small chemicals and metabolites, but can also consist of microbes. Among the scientific community and policy makers, it is acknowledged that biostimulants do not promote plant growth by means of providing nutrients, instead their active ingredients stimulate the plant biochemical pathways in a positive manner. As a result, plants cope better with unfavourable or stress conditions, and growth and development are promoted. The research and development of biostimulants is greatly facilitated by chemical biology, shaped by the discovery of synthetic compounds with bioactivity reminiscent of various plant growth regulators. The positive effects of biostimulants on plant growth resemble those of synthetic small molecules, since they are active at low concentrations and show a high level of selectivity. However, not every aspect of biostimulants is phenocopied by synthetic chemicals and in particular, the possibility that combinations of compounds are required to support specific bioactivity remains a hypothesis to be proven. Numerous studies have reported on different sources of biostimulants and their effects on improvements of nutrient use efficiency, resistance to abiotic stress and crop growth. It should be noted that the investigations are largely focussed on describing the impact on plant physiology and development, and very few really address the underlying mechanism.
In the book The Chemical Biology of Plant Biostimulants, different aspects of biostimulants are brought together, providing an overview of the variety of materials exploited as biostimulants, their biological activity and agricultural applications (Part I, IV and V). Microbes are excluded because their modes of action are likely to be more complex and different from chemical biostimulants. As different groups of biostimulants display different bioactivity and specificity, advances in biostimulant research are illustrated by different examples of biostimulants, such as humic substance, seaweed extracts and substances with hormone‐like activities (Part II). Moreover, methods to screen for new biostimulant compounds by exploring natural sources are reported in Part III.
The readers will find in this book both summaries of publications reporting on biostimulants and their activity, as well as insights into the mechanisms by which these products act at the various levels of the plant. We hope that this will be informative for a wide range of readers, scientists and industrialists alike, as well as interested agricultural practitioners looking for more knowledge about the development and application of biostimulants.
Our book reassembles the expertise from a panel of internationally‐renowned scientists and entrepreneurs in the area of biostimulants and biofertilizers. We would like to thank and acknowledge all the contributors for their efforts and input to create the content for this book. As biostimulants are an emerging field it has not been easy to gather and evaluate the literature and generate the various types of input for the chapters. We also would like to acknowledge the Flemish Research Foundation (FWO) for supporting our biostimulant research.
Danny Geelen
Lin Xu
May 2019
Ghent, Belgium