India, Jan. 13 -- Australian researchers have discovered a hidden climate superpower of trees. Their bark harbours trillions of microbes that help scrub the air of greenhouse and toxic gases.
It's long been known that trees fight global warming by consuming carbon dioxide (CO2) through photosynthesis. But a new study published inScienceshows their microbial partners take up vast amounts of other climate-active gases too.
The study, conducted primarily byDr Bob Leungat Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI), andDr Luke Jeffreyat Southern Cross University's Faculty of Science and Engineering, rewrites our understanding of how trees and their resident microbes shape the atmosphere.
"Each tree hosts trillions of microbial ...