Wageningen University & Research

The Global Pesticide Complex: Infrastructure, Fragility and Frontiers of Agrarian Change

ABSTRACT Although most pesticides have long been on the market, the political economy surrounding their production, regulation and use has undergone considerable change, spurring renewed interest in the social sciences. The global pesticide complex (GPC) is an analytical device t...

Trophic reorganization may contribute to shifts in nitrogen transformations following alleviation of saline alkaline stress

Soil salinization is a widespread form of land degradation, yet how saline-alkaline stress is linked to belowground micro-food webs and shapes nitrogen transformations remains poorly understood. Here we compare natural saline–sodic and reclaimed farmland soils in northeastern Chi...

Roof Structure Extraction from Remote Sensing Images

Accurate roof structure extraction from aerial imagery is important for applications such as solar energy assessment, urban analysis, and 3D city modeling, where roof surfaces require geometrically reliable polygonal representations. Although instance segmentation methods can det...

Double Reduction in Allotetraploid Peanut and the Role of Chromosomal Imbalance in Unexpected Linkage Map Artifacts

Abstract Polyploidization in peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) fixed heterosis but also caused a genetic bottleneck isolating cultivated peanut from its wild diploid relatives. Mechanisms such as homoeologous exchange can partially restore genetic diversity by generating new allelic c...

When scale matters: Drivers of faunal diversity in cacao production landscapes in the Peruvian Amazon

Preserving biodiversity in tropical agricultural areas relies on a fine balance between crop management strategies and landscape characteristics. Moreover, the response of different species to these local and landscape metrics may greatly differ. Therefore, identifying strategies...

The ecological impact of early human activity in Brownsberg Nature Park, Suriname

It is increasingly recognized that human legacies from the pre-contact (<1492 CE) and colonial (>1492 CE) periods have shaped the modern biodiversity of Amazonian forests. However, past human activities varied widely across the region and did not always produce lasting ecological...

Toward Nature-Positive Food Systems: Exploring Contextual and Societal Relevance in Diverse Landscapes

Urgent action is needed to address biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation, and climate change, with food systems playing a vital role. Becoming nature-positive requires integrating societal needs with environmental sustainability. This study employs an indicator-based approach...

Effects of microhabitat on population performance and genetic diversity in Primula elatior

Understanding what influences population performance is essential for effective conservation of species and populations. Plant populations are increasingly threatened by declining habitat quality, typically defined as a shift away from the species' environmental optimum. Common e...

Co-creating child-inclusive food group categories and illustrations for dietary assessment: a mixed methods study

Abstract Background Accurate dietary assessment is essential for capturing detailed information on food and nutrient consumption, with applications in nutrition research, public health, and clinical practice. However, developmental and cognitive factors, including limited food kn...

Genome-wide prediction and association mapping of potato common scab with historical data

Abstract Common scab, caused by Streptomyces spp., is worldwide an important skin disease of potato, capable of significant reductions in marketable value. Resistant varieties developed through phenotypic selection have been the most effective strategy thus far. Previous studies...

North Sea Storm Surges Amplified by Oscillations Triggered by Preceding Storms

Abstract Storm surges are often treated as independent extremes, yet extratropical cyclones and associated coastal water‐level extremes frequently occur in clustered sequences. Although clustering can increase flood hazard by shortening recovery time, it remains unclear whether p...

Conservation dilemmas: Xylella fastidiosa and the future(s) of olive farming

Abstract Over the past decade, the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa has profoundly transformed olive-growing landscapes in the southern Italian region of Apulia. Once characterized by ancient olive trees that sustained both rural livelihoods and cultural identities, the region is now...

Commodified Wildness and Multi-Species Precarity in China’s Amphibian and Reptile Economies

China’s post-COVID-19 exemption of economically significant amphibians and reptiles – herps – used for food from the wildlife consumption ban has created a critical governance juncture, as market demand for these species’ associated “wildness” persists. This article asks how herp...

Satiety responsiveness following dietary exposure to ultra-processed foods differing in texture-derived eating rate: a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled crossover diet intervention

Abstract Purpose Disrupted satiety signalling has been proposed as a possible mechanism driving high energy intakes associated with the consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs). We examined whether transitioning from a diet low in UPFs to a high-UPF diet affects satiety respon...

The anthropogenic fingerprint on emerging infectious diseases

Abstract Emerging infectious diseases are a hallmark of the Anthropocene 1,2 . Human-driven ecosystem changes and human–wildlife–livestock contact can drive the emergence of zoonotic and vector-borne diseases 3–5 , but how much these processes shape landscapes of outbreak risk is...

Visual–inertial integration enables bumblebees to land on rapidly moving flowers

Landing on a moving target is challenging for flying animals, particularly under dynamic outdoor conditions. For pollinators such as bumblebees, wind-induced flower motion adds substantial complexity to landing manoeuvres. Here, we investigate how bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) l...

The Accountability Gap in Multilateral Environmental Agreements: Challenges and Future Pathways

Abstract The institutional arrangements of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), notably those organized around conferences of the parties, have given rise to increasingly powerful and autonomous actors in global environmental governance. The expanding authority of these...

Vitamins and Chronic Wounds: How Altered Pharmacokinetics and Comorbidities Contribute to Vitamin Deficiencies

ABSTRACT Wound healing is complex and requires adequate amounts of macro‐ and micronutrients. When wound healing is delayed, a wound is considered chronic. Increasing evidence shows that vitamin deficiencies are prevalent in patients with chronic wounds, yet intervention studies...

Feminist Research Praxis in the Making: The Agroecological Logbooks in Bahia, Brazil

Science and Technology Studies has challenged the binary between scientific and nonscientific knowledge, exposing how epistemic practices are deeply entangled, including in fields like agriculture and development. This binary has historically underwritten colonial exclusion and b...

Comparative assessment of two evapotranspiration models from earth observation data in arid agricultural regions

Abstract Accurate estimation of evapotranspiration (ET) and its components is crucial for sustainable water management in agriculture, particularly in semi-arid regions. This study presents the first direct comparison of ET products from WaPOR version 3.0 Level 3 (WaPORv3), which...