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1. The release of permafrost-derived nitrogen (N) has the potential to fertilize tundra vegetation, which in turn may stimulate productivity and thus offset carbon (C) losses from thawing permafrost. Below-ground plant traits may mediate ecosystem response to permafrost thaw and associated feedbacks to the atmosphere by differentially conferring access to deep, newly thawed permafrost N. Yet, identifying roots and quantifying root N uptake from deep, cold soils in complex plant communities has proved challenging to date. 2. We investigated plant acquisition of experimentally added ¹⁵N isotope tracer applied at the permafrost boundary in graminoid- and shrub-dominated tundra at Eight Mile Lake, Alaska, when the thaw front was close to its maximum depth, simulating the release of newly thawed permafrost N. We used molecular tools to verify species and estimate biomass, nitrogen, and isotope pools. 3. Root biomass depth distributions follow an asymptotic relationship with depth, typical of other ecosystems. Few species had roots occurring close to the thaw front. Rubus chamaemorus, a short-statured non-mycorrhizal forb, and Carex bigelowii, a sedge, consistently had the deepest roots. Twenty-four hours after isotope addition, we observed that deep-rooted, non-mycorrhizal species had the highest ¹⁵N enrichment values in their fine root tissue indicating that they access deep N late in the growing season when the thaw front is deepest. Deep-rooted plants are therefore able to immediately take up newly thawed permafrost-derived N. During the following growing season, herbaceous, non-mycorrhizal plants allocated tracer above-ground before woody, mycorrhizal plants. Ectomycorrhizal deciduous and ericoid mycorrhizal evergreen shrubs, by contrast, did not have immediate access to the deep N tracer and assimilated it into new foliar tissue gradually over the following growing season. 4. Synthesis. Graminoids and forbs that have immediate access to deep N represent a modest C sink compared to C emissions from thawing permafrost. However, the effwcts of deep N fertilization on shrubs over longer time-scales may stimulate productivity and account for a more considerable N and C sink, constraining the permafrost C-climate feedback.

Context Climate change is altering suitable habitat distributions of many species at high latitudes. Fleshy fruit-producing plants (hereafter, “berry plants”) are important in arctic food webs and as subsistence resources for human communities, but their response to a warming and increasingly variable climate at a landscape scale has not yet been examined. Objectives We aimed to identify environmental determinants of berry plant distribution and predict how climate change might shift these distributions. Methods We used species distribution models to identify characteristics and predict the distribution of suitable habitat under current (2006–2013) and future climate conditions (2081–2100; representative concentration pathways 4.5, 6.0, & 8.5) for five berry plant species: Vaccinium uliginosum L., Empetrum nigrum L., Rubus chamaemorus L., Vaccinium vitis-idaea L., and Viburnum edule (Michx.) Raf.. Results Elevation, soil characteristics, and January and July temperatures were important drivers of habitat distributions. Future suitable habitat predictions showed net declines in suitable habitat area for all species modeled under almost all future climate scenarios tested. Conclusions Our work contributes to understanding potential geographic shifts in suitable berry plant habitat with climate change at a landscape scale. Shifting and retracting distributions may alter where communities can harvest, suggesting that access to these resources may become restricted in the future. Our prediction maps may help inform climate adaptation planning as communities anticipate shifting access to harvesting locations.

The subject of the study were carotenoids, especially xantophylls in the fruits of various species/cultivars of raspberries, including those cultivated in Poland and those originating from other regions of the world (China, Finland): Rubus occidentalis (5 cultivars); Rubus idaeus (2 cultivars red fruited and 3 cultivars yellow fruited); Rubus chamaemorus; and Rubus chingii and hybrids: R. occidentalis/R.idaeus (2) and R.idaeus/R. occidentalis (1). Based on spectrophotometric analysis, the highest carotenoid content was found in cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus) fruits, while the lowest was recorded for black raspberry cultivars. Similar carotenoid content results were obtained using thin-layer chromatography (TLC). The xantophyll profiles in the plant material studied were characterized—depending on the species/cultivar or hybrid—by the presence of β-apo-10′-luteinal, trans-lutein, and zeaxanthin. In addition, the antioxidant activity of the obtained hexane–acetone extracts were evaluated using DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP assays, as well as using the TLC-DB with DPPH radical. bioautography test.

Background Cloudberry, Rubus chamaemorus L. (Rosaceae), is traditionally harvested as food in northern Scandinavia. It is rich in vitamins C, A and E, and antioxidants. This berry has gained much cultural, economic, nutritional, social and symbolic importance in Sweden during the past century. Cloudberries are an important part of culinary heritage. Methodology This qualitative diachronic study analyses historical data available in archives and published collections, fragmentary notes in literature and relevant modern data, using a historical ethnobiological approach. Results Cloudberry is the third most important wild berry species gathered for human consumption in Sweden. The berries were earlier preserved in wooden barrels during the long circumpolar winter; now they are usually frozen or made into jam and other processed products and sold throughout the country. Difficult access to growth areas, weather fluctuations, timing of harvest and lack of gatherers make harvesting challenging. Commercial harvesting has gone from being a sideline income source for the northern peasants to engaging imported seasonal workers mainly from Southeast Asia. Conclusion This historical overview reveals that local berry picking is decreasing in recent decades. Fluctuations in local weather and lack of foragers influence the availability of cloudberry on the market. In 2025, there were neither enough workers nor berries, and the prices of cloudberry products have risen steeply. The cloudberry, which has enjoyed several decades of popularity both in haute cuisine and among ordinary consumers, will perhaps return to a local wild food gathered only for household needs.

Historically, the picking of cloudberries (Rubus chamaemorus) for sale and subsistence has been of fundamental importance to Sámi livelihoods. Even today cloudberries are commonly described as the “gold” among berries. Based on anthropological fieldwork, participant observation and in-depth interviews with berry pickers in the Várjjat municipality of Unjárga-Nesseby, Northern Norway, this article investigates how relationships of humans, animals, plants and berries take part in the making and remaking of home place landscapes. I emphasise Sámi landscape research and theorizations to elevate their productive contributions to the ongoing, international landscape debates, by engaging with landscapes as homes.

This study aimed to reveal the evolutionary timescale and processes underlying the diversity of Rubus in the Japanese Archipelago. We conducted molecular phylogenetic analyses of most native species (35 species), along with previously published data from 116 foreign species, based on nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and chloroplast DNA sequences. Most of the northern species of Japan, that is, Rubus chamaemorus, R. pedatus, R. vernus, R. pseudojaponicus, and R. ikenoensis, were found to belong to anciently diverged lineages; in particular, R. ikenoensis formed a unique lineage distinct from other species. The other species diverged into two evolutionary groups. One included subg. Malachobatus, Chamaebatus, and sects. Pungentes, Idaeanthi, and Parvifolii (subg. Idaeobatus), which was further divided into two clades in the chloroplast phylogenies. Although the phylogenetic structures within this group were unresolved, R. sieboldii has been proven to be recently derived. The second group represented a well-supported clade, comprising sects. Microphylli, Corchorifolii, Peltati, and Rosifolii (subg. Idaeobatus) and suggested early Miocene diversification of this Asian lineage associated with character specialization in vegetative reproduction and leaf shape. This clade was further resolved into lower clades primarily representing the sectional classifications, although the placement of the earliest diverged species, R. sumatranus, R. peltatus, R. corchorifolius, and R. chingii, was incongruent among gene trees. At the lower taxonomic levels, R. illecebrosus, R. grayanus, and the thornless species of sect. Microphylli showed earlier divergence.

Metabolic diseases linked to obesity are an increasing problem globally. They are associated with systemic inflammation, which can be triggered by nutrients such as saturated fatty acids. Cloudberry is rich in ellagitannin and its derivatives, which are known to have anti-inflammatory properties. In the present study, a high-fat-diet-induced mouse model of obesity was used to study the effects of air-dried cloudberry powder on weight gain, systemic inflammation, lipid and glucose metabolism, and changes in gene expression in hepatic and adipose tissues. Cloudberry supplementation had no effect on weight gain, but it prevented the rise in the systemic inflammation marker serum amyloid A (SAA) and the hepatic inflammation/injury marker alanine aminotransferase (ALT), as well as the increase in the expression of many inflammation-related genes in the liver and adipose tissue, such as Mcp1, Cxcl14, Tnfa, and S100a8. In addition, cloudberry supplementation impeded the development of hypercholesterolemia and hyperglycemia. The results indicate that cloudberry supplementation helps to protect against the development of metabolic inflammation and provides partial protection against disturbed lipid and glucose metabolism. These results encourage further studies on the effects of cloudberry and cloudberry-derived ellagitannins and support the use of cloudberries as a part of a healthy diet to prevent obesity-associated metabolic morbidity.

High-fat diets are associated with neuronal and memory dysfunction. Berries may be useful in improving age-related memory deficits in humans, as well as in mice receiving high-fat diets. Emerging research has also demonstrated that brain health and cognitive function may be related to the dynamic changes in the gut microbiota. In this study, the impact of Nordic berries on the brain and the gut microbiota was investigated in middle-aged C57BL/6J mice. The mice were fed high-fat diets (60%E fat) supplemented with freeze-dried powder (6% dwb) of bilberry, lingonberry, cloudberry, blueberry, blackcurrant, and sea buckthorn for 4 months. The results suggest that supplementation with bilberry, blackcurrant, blueberry, lingonberry, and (to some extent) cloudberry has beneficial effects on spatial cognition, as seen by the enhanced performance following the T-maze alternation test, as well as a greater proportion of DCX-expressing cells with prolongation in hippocampus. Furthermore, the proportion of the mucosa-associated symbiotic bacteria Akkermansia muciniphila increased by 4–14 times in the cecal microbiota of mice fed diets supplemented with lingonberry, bilberry, sea buckthorn, and blueberry. These findings demonstrate the potential of Nordic berries to preserve memory and cognitive function, and to induce alterations of the gut microbiota composition.

Staphylococcus aureus is the most common cause of surgical site infections and its treatment is challenging due to the emergence of multi-drug resistant strains such as methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Natural berry-derived compounds have shown antimicrobial potential, e.g., ellagitannins such as sanguiin H-6 and lambertianin C, the main phenolic compounds in Rubus seeds, have shown antimicrobial activity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of sanguiin H-6 and lambertianin C fractionated from cloudberry seeds, on the MRSA growth, and as treatment of a MRSA biofilm development in different growth media in vitro and in vivo by using a murine wound infection model where sanguiin H-6 and lambertianin C were used to prevent the MRSA infection. Sanguiin H-6 and lambertianin C inhibited the in vitro biofilm development and growth of MRSA. Furthermore, sanguiin H-6 showed significant anti-MRSA effect in the in vivo wound model. Our study shows the possible use of sanguiin H-6 as a preventive measure in surgical sites to avoid postoperative infections, whilst lambertianin C showed no anti-MRSA activity.

The influence of supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and solvent extraction of oils from cloudberry, bilberry, and black currant seeds on the yield, chemical properties, and recovery of antioxidant compounds was investigated. SFE was performed for 1 h at 350 bar and at 50°C and 80°C. Fatty acids, vitamin E, carotenoids, and free radical-scavenging activity (DPPH) were assayed. SFE at 80°C resulted in higher oil yields for cloudberry and black currant seeds. The oils were rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) (66.8%–75.9% w/w), with high percentages of linoleic and α-linolenic acids. The black currant seed extracts had the highest concentrations of vitamin E (range, 113.0–241.8 mg/100 g oil) and carotenoids (range, 11.5–32.3 mg/100 g oil) and the highest antioxidant activity. The cloudberry seed oils also had high antioxidant content and activity. These findings indicate the potential of SFE for the recovery of PUFA and antioxidant compounds in berry by-products.