Soil temperature and fungal diversity jointly modulate soil heterotrophic respiration under short-term warming in the Zoige alpine peatland.

Global warming has changed carbon cycling in terrestrial ecosystems, but it remains unclear how climate warming affects soil heterotrophic respiration (R). We conducted a field experiment in the Zoige alpine peatland to investigate the mechanism of how short-term warming affects R by examining the relationships between plant biomass, soil properties, soil microbial diversity, and functional groups and R. Our results showed that warming increased R after one growing season of warming.

Non-flooding conditions caused by water table drawdown alter microbial network complexity and decrease multifunctionality in alpine wetland soils.

Several soil functions of alpine wetland depend on microbial communities, including carbon storage and nutrient cycling, and soil microbes are highly sensitive to hydrological conditions. Wetland degradation is often accompanied by a decline in water table. With the water table drawdown, the effects of microbial network complexity on various soil functions remain insufficiently understood.

Changes in soil oxidase activity induced by microbial life history strategies mediate the soil heterotrophic respiration response to drought and nitrogen enrichment.

Drought and nitrogen deposition are two major climate challenges, which can change the soil microbial community composition and ecological strategy and affect soil heterotrophic respiration (Rh). However, the combined effects of microbial community composition, microbial life strategies, and extracellular enzymes on the dynamics of Rh under drought and nitrogen deposition conditions remain unclear. Here, we experimented with an alpine swamp meadow to simulate drought (50% reduction in precipitation) and multilevel addition of nitrogen to determine the interactive effects of microbial community composition, microbial life strategy, and extracellular enzymes on Rh.

Asynchronous responses of microbial CAZymes genes and the net CO exchange in alpine peatland following 5 years of continuous extreme drought events.

Peatlands act as an important sink of carbon dioxide (CO). Yet, they are highly sensitive to climate change, especially to extreme drought. The changes in the net ecosystem CO exchange (NEE) under extreme drought events, and the driving function of microbial enzymatic genes involved in soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition, are still unclear.

The driving effects of nitrogen deposition on nitrous oxide and associated gene abundances at two water table levels in an alpine peatland.

Alpine peatlands are recognized as a weak or negligible source of nitrous oxide (NO). Anthropogenic activities and climate change resulted in the altered water table (WT) levels and increased nitrogen (N) deposition, which could potentially transition this habitat into a NO emission hotspot. However, the underlying mechanism related with the effects is still uncertain.

Different grassland managements significantly change carbon fluxes in an alpine meadow.

Alpine meadow plays vital roles in regional animal husbandry and the ecological environment. However, different grassland managements affect the structure and function of the alpine meadow. In this study, we selected three typical grassland managements including free grazing, enclosure, and artificial grass planting and conducted a field survey to study the effects of grassland managements on carbon fluxes in an alpine meadow.

The divergent vertical pattern and assembly of soil bacterial and fungal communities in response to short-term warming in an alpine peatland.

Soil microbial communities are crucial in ecosystem-level decomposition and nutrient cycling processes and are sensitive to climate change in peatlands. However, the response of the vertical distribution of microbial communities to warming remains unclear in the alpine peatland. In this study, we examined the effects of warming on the vertical pattern and assembly of soil bacterial and fungal communities across three soil layers (0-10, 10-20, and 20-30 cm) in the Zoige alpine peatland under a warming treatment.

Soil Water Content Shapes Microbial Community Along Gradients of Wetland Degradation on the Tibetan Plateau.

Soil microbes are important components in element cycling and nutrient supply for the development of alpine ecosystems. However, the development of microbial community compositions and networks in the context of alpine wetland degradation is unclear. We applied high-throughput 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to track changes in microbial communities along degradation gradients from typical alpine wetland (W), to wet meadow (WM), to typical meadow (M), to grassland (G), and to desert (D) in the Zoige alpine wetland region on the Tibetan Plateau.

Changes in precipitation regime lead to acceleration of the N cycle and dramatic NO emission.

Alpine meadows on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau are sensitive to climate change. The precipitation regime in this region has undergone major changes, "repackaging" precipitation from more frequent, smaller events to less frequent, larger events. Nitrous oxide (NO) is an important indicator of responses to global change in alpine meadow ecosystems.

Plant and Soil Enzyme Activities Regulate CO Efflux in Alpine Peatlands After 5 Years of Simulated Extreme Drought.

Increasing attention has been given to the impact of extreme drought stress on ecosystem ecological processes. Ecosystem respiration (Re) and soil respiration (Rs) play a significant role in the regulation of the carbon (C) balance because they are two of the largest terrestrial C fluxes in the atmosphere. However, the responses of Re and Rs to extreme drought in alpine regions are still unclear, particularly with respect to the driver mechanism in plant and soil extracellular enzyme activities.

Divergent responses of CO and CH fluxes to changes in the precipitation regime on the Tibetan Plateau: Evidence from soil enzyme activities and microbial communities.

Carbon fluxes (CO and CH) are important indicators of the response of alpine meadow ecosystems to global climate change. Alpine meadows on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau are sensitive to climate change. Although the temporal allocation of precipitation can vary, its intensity is expected to increase, and its frequency is expected to decrease in the future.

Drought-induced reduction in methane fluxes and its hydrothermal sensitivity in alpine peatland.

Accurate estimation of CH fluxes in alpine peatland of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau under extreme drought is vital for understanding the global carbon cycle and predicting future climate change. However, studies on the impacts of extreme drought on peatland CH fluxes are limited. To study the effects of extreme drought on CH fluxes of the Zoige alpine peatland ecosystem, the CH fluxes during both extreme drought treatment (D) and control treatment (CK) were monitored using a static enclosed chamber in a control platform of extreme drought.

Correction to: The Association Between Phosphorylated Neurofilament Heavy Chain (pNF-H) and Small Fiber Neuropathy (SFN) in Patients with Impaired Glucose Tolerance.

In the original article, there was some error in Table 2. The correct table is given below.

The Association Between Phosphorylated Neurofilament Heavy Chain (pNF-H) and Small Fiber Neuropathy (SFN) in Patients with Impaired Glucose Tolerance.

Introduction: Small fiber neuropathy (SFN)-the early stage of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN)-progresses gradually and is difficult to diagnose using neurophysiological tests. To facilitate the early diagnosis of SFN, biomarkers for SFN must be identified. The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of SFN in prediabetic patients and the relationship between pNF-H and SFN.

Plant biomass and soil organic carbon are main factors influencing dry-season ecosystem carbon rates in the coastal zone of the Yellow River Delta.

Coastal wetlands are considered as a significant sink of global carbon due to their tremendous organic carbon storage. Coastal CO2 and CH4 flux rates play an important role in regulating atmospheric CO2 and CH4 concentrations. However, the relative contributions of vegetation, soil properties, and spatial structure on dry-season ecosystem carbon (C) rates (net ecosystem CO2 exchange, NEE; ecosystem respiration, ER; gross ecosystem productivity, GEP; and CH4) remain unclear at a regional scale.

[Effects of Short-term Exogenous Nitrogen and Carbon Input on Soil Respiration Under Changing Precipitation Pattern].

The responses of soil respiration to exogenous carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) inputs under changing precipitation patterns were explored via in-situ field experiments. In 2014, a typical temperate grassland on the Xilin River of Inner Mongolia was taken as the research site, and soil respiration was measured in the following treatments:addition of water alone (CK), addition of water + N fertilizer[CN, 2.5 g·(m·a)], addition of water + labile C[CG, 24 g·(m·a)], and addition of water + N fertilizer+ labile C[CNG, 2.

[Effect of Irrigation Patterns on Soil CO₂ and N₂O Emissions from Winter Wheat Field in North China Plain].

The water-saving irrigation is the trend of modernized agriculture. This paper aimed to study the effect of water-saving irrigation on soil CO₂ and N₂O emissions. The field experiments were conducted under micro sprinkler irrigation of integrated water and fertilizer (MSI) and conventional flooding irrigation (FI) in winter wheat growth season in the west of North China Plain during 2013- 2014 using the static chamber method.

[Effects and mechanism of freeze-thawing cycles on key processes of nitrogen cycle in terrestrial ecosystem].

As a widespread natural phenomenon in the soil of middle and high latitude as well as high altitude, freeze-thawing cycles have a great influence on the nitrogen cycle of terrestrial ecosystem in non-growing season. Freeze-thawing cycles can alter the physicochemical and biological properties of the soil, which thereby affect the migration and transformation of soil nitrogen. The impacts of freeze-thawing cycles on key processes of nitrogen cycle in terrestrial ecosystem found in available studies remain inconsistent, the mechanism is still not clear, and the research methods also need to be further explored and innovated.

[Responses of ecosystem carbon budget to increasing nitrogen deposition in differently degraded Leymus chinensis steppes in Inner Mongolia, China].

Based on a field manipulative nitrogen (N) addition experiment, the effects of atmospheric N deposition level change on the plant biomass and net primary productivity (NPP), soil respiration (Rs) and net ecosystem exchange (NEE) were investigated respectively in 2009 and 2010 in two differently degraded Leymus chinensis steppes in Inner Mongolia of China, and the difference in the response of NEE to equal amount of N addition [10 g x (M2 x a)(-1), MN] between the two steppes was also discussed. The results indicated that for the light degraded Leymus chinensis steppe (site A) , the average plant aboveground biomass (AGB) in MN treatment were 21.5% and 46.

[Microbial response mechanism for drying and rewetting effect on soil respiration in grassland ecosystem: a review].

As one of the most important and wide distribution community type among terrestrial ecosystems, grassland ecosystem plays a critical role in the global carbon cycles and climate regulation. China has extremely rich grassland resources, which have a huge carbon sequestration potential and are an important part of the global carbon cycle. Drying and rewetting is a common natural phenomenon in soil, which might accelerate soil carbon mineralization process, increase soil respiration and exert profound influence on microbial activity and community structure.

[Effects of berberine on expression of hepatocyte nuclear factor 4alpha and glucokinase activity in mouse primary hepatocytes].

Objective: To observe the expression of hepatocyte nuclear factor 4alpha (HNF4alpha) and the activity of key enzyme glucokinase (GK) in glucose metabolism, and further to investigate the possible mechanism of berberine in treating type 2 diabetes.

Method: Mouse primary hepatocytes were isolated by an improved single two-step perfusion method. The murine hepatocytes were cultured and incubated with berberine (0, 1, 3, 10, 30, 100 micromol x L(-1)) and 1 mmol x L(-1) metformin for 24 h respectively.

Facilitating effects of berberine on rat pancreatic islets through modulating hepatic nuclear factor 4 alpha expression and glucokinase activity.

Aim: To observe the effect of berberine on insulin secretion in rat pancreatic islets and to explore its possible molecular mechanism.

Methods: Primary rat islets were isolated from male Sprague-Dawley rats by collagenase digestion and treated with different concentrations (1, 3, 10 and 30 micromol/L) of berberine or 1 micromol/L Glibenclamide (GB) for 24 h. Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) assay was conducted and insulin was determined by radioimmunoassay.