User:Ecoriam/sandbox

Botany
Notes
 * Article is part of bio wikipedia project.
 * This article has been given the grade GA (good article).
 * It has been peer reviewed.
 * Article has been a candidate for featured article.

(i.e. Plant ecology, Genetics, Plant hormones)
 * Noticed some of the topics covered could have been separate articles.
 * A few of the citations don't function.
 * Most of the sources citied for the article are 8-10 years old. Very few newer sources are used.


 * Overall the article does not seem to express bias towards any particular part of the information.
 * language remains neutral and to the point.
 * The talk page, really shows the collaboration and time that has been spent to make this a pretty good article.

Plant Physiology
Notes
 * Article is currently graded as a C - Class.
 * Article covers a lot of material, some irrelevant material.
 * Very few sources are listed for the literature in the article.
 * The article seems to veer away from the main subject by introducing other topics.


 * Some of the sources for the article material may not be sources with expertise.
 * Overall the article uses a neutral language throughout the length of the article, but there is much information that it is not cited.
 * The talk page has not had much activity in recent time. Questions by other uses of wikipedia have not been answered.
 * Much important information relating to plant physiology is still incomplete.

Ideas Draft
Possible Topics- Ideas Draft

Phytoremediation

 * Article has the current rating of Start-Class
 * Article needs a broader information regarding disadvantages of phytoremediation.
 * Possibly change the format of certain areas to maintain one theme throughout the article.
 * Provide new and up to date information with reliable sources.
 * Another idea for this article would be to add a methods section, with real results data.
 * Expand on how new genetic techniques are facilitating the process of phytoremediation.
 * Add a section on the most common plants used for this environmental approach, and what makes them a better candidate.

Sample sentence: Plants in the genus Populus are widely used for the process of phytoremediation because of their rapid uptake, and metabolizing ability of harmful pollutants in soil. Source: Doty, SharonL., et al. Enhanced Phytoremediation of Volatile Environmental Pollutants With Transgenic Trees. (2007) PNAS. 104(43) 16816-16821

Mycorrhiza

 * Article has the current rating of B-Class, mid importance.
 * By going through the talk page, I could see that the last entry to this article was done in 2016.


 * This topic provides many possible options for contribution.
 * Fungi in general
 * Reproduction mechanisms and stages
 * Spore types, and differences.
 * Symbiotic relationships
 * Parasitic relationships


 * Within this topic I could also talk about the role of mycorrhizae and soil development through:
 * mycelium, plant roots, and bacteria interactions.

Sample sentence: In newly exposed soil after a disturbance arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM), and ectomycorrhizae (EM) fungi aid in plant seedling establishment. These members of the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota respectively form symbiotic relationships with up to 80% of plants.

Source: Cortese, A.M. and R.A. Bunn. 2016. Availability and function of arbuscular mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal fungi during revegetation of dewatered reservoirs left after dam removal. Restoration Ecology. Doi 10.1111/rec.12406

Glomeromycota

 * Article currently rated as Start-Class, Mid-importance
 * Very few information found on the article at this moment which allows for a wide range of topics that can be added to the existing text.

Possible Topics


 * Pathogen defense, nutrient benefits to host
 * Soil aggregation
 * Microbial activity increase
 * Benefits to fungi
 * Pollution effect on Glomeromycota
 * Root colonization mechanism/steps on VAM/AM fungi

First Rough Draft
First Rough Draft:

Colonization
There are three factors necessary for the colonization of Glomeromycota, the host root system, intracellular arbuscular structures in a host cell, and a well-established mycelium. Colonization is accomplished by the interactions between Glomeromycota hyphae and the root hairs of the host or by development of appressoria  between host epidermal cells. Intracellular hyphae do not penetrate the cell membrane of vascular cells, and use a highly branched, short lived structure called an  arbuscule for the two-way movement of metabolites and nutrients.

Colonization
New colonization of AM fungi largely depends on the amount of inoculum present in the soil. Although pre-existing hyphae and infected root fragments have been shown to successfully colonize the roots of a host, germinating spores are considered to be the key players in new host establishment. Spores are commonly dispersed by fungal and plant burrowing herbivore partners, but some air dispersal capabilities are also known. Studies have shown that spore germination is specific to particular environmental conditions such as right amount of nutrients, temperature or host availability. It has also been observed that the rate of root system colonization is directly correlated to spore density in the soil. In addition, new data also suggests that AM fungi host plants also secrete chemical factors which attract and enhance the growth of developing spore hyphae towards the root system.

The necessary components for the colonization of Glomeromycota include, the host's fine root system, proper development of intracellular arbuscular structures, and a well-established external fungal mycelium. Colonization is accomplished by the interactions between germinating spore hyphae and the root hairs of the host or by development of appressoria between epidermal root cells. The process is regulated by specialized chemical signaling and by changes in gene expression of both the host and AM fungi. Intracellular hyphae extend up to the cortical cells of the root and penetrate the cell walls, but not the inner cellular membrane creating an internal invagination. The penetrating hyphae develop a highly branched structure called an arbuscule which have low functional periods before degradation and absorption by host's root cells. A fully developed arbuscular mycorrhizal structure facilitates the two-way movement of nutrients between the host and mutualistic fungal partner. The symbiotic association allows the host plant to respond better to environment stresses, and the non-photosynthetic fungi to obtain carbohydrates produced by photosynthesis.

References

Reflection
Reflecting on my Wikipedia project, the experience gave me the opportunity to use new and previously learned tools for evaluating data and text given by articles, journals, and research papers. As a beginner Wikipedian the scale I used for critiquing my chosen article was very simple. First was the article topic relevant, second evaluating the current rating of the article, and lastly figuring out the missing information within the article to make my contribution.

During my evaluating process, I came up on the Wikipedia article regarding the fungal phylum Glomeromycota. I chose to make my contribution on this article because Glomeromycota fungi are part of a large group of fungi that form arbuscular or vacuole structures within the root cells of plants also better known as AM fungi. These groups of fungi are amongst the most studied in recent years and are now known to form symbiotic relationships with up to 80 percent of all plants. I decide to add a section on the process of how AM fungi accomplish the task of colonizing a new or existing host because this development is the most important part in the life-cycle of the AM fungi.

During the peer review process the feedback I received regarding my intended contribution was very helpful. Implementing some of the suggestion was very easy and made my final contribution to the Wikipedia article much more meaningful. Reviewing my peers article ideas was also helpful because it allowed me to see how others were approaching the Wikipedia project. My suggestions to my peers were to keep the text simple, and easy to read. This can possibly facilitate for a broader range of audience to read and understand what is being portrayed by the article.

What I learned about Wikipedia through this entire process is the enormous amount of time that goes into producing an accurate, relevant, and reliable article. Compared to other assignments from the past contributing to Wikipedia felt satisfying, knowing that people around the world may get to read the article you helped create is exciting. In conclusion, Wikipedia can help to improve public understanding of advanced topics that usually only individuals in higher education institutions have access to, by providing them in a simplified and easy to understand format. This is important because it provides the opportunity to obtain a basic knowledge of something that otherwise may not be within immediate reach.