An Investigation of the Saccharides Profile and Metabolic Gene Expression in Muskrat Scented Glands in Different Secretion Seasons.

The adult male muskrat has a pair of scented glands, which show clear seasonal changes in their developmental status between the secretion season and non-secretion season. During the secretion season, the scented glands are much larger than in the non-secretion season, with the metabolism of glandular cells increasing and a large amount of musk being produced. In this work, the blood, musk, and scented gland tissue were collected from three healthy adult male muskrats during secretion season (September).

Short-term warming supports mineral-associated carbon accrual in abandoned croplands.

Effective soil organic carbon (SOC) management can mitigate the impact of climate warming. However, the response of different SOC fractions to warming in abandoned croplands remains unclear. Here, categorizing SOC into particulate and mineral-associated organic carbon (POC and MAOC) with physical fractionation, we investigate the responses of POC and MAOC content and temperature sensitivity (Q) to warming through a 3-year in situ warming experiment (+1.

Comparative chloroplast genome analyses provide new insights into molecular markers for distinguishing Arnebiae Radix and its substitutes (tribe Lithospermeae, Boraginaceae).

Background: Arnebiae Radix has long been used in traditional medicine for its pleiotropic properties. However, distinguishing Arnebiae Radix from its substitutes or closely related species has been challenging due to limited phenotypic characteristics.

Purpose: We aimed to identify the molecular markers for distinguishing Arnebiae Radix from its confusion species.

Stable nutrient utilization of trees promotes community biomass accumulation in Korean pine and broad-leaved mixed forests after logging.

The recovery of community productivity in disturbed temperate forests is affected by fluctuating nutrient environments. How plant growth achieves high biomass accumulation in a limited nutrient environment remains unclear but may be attributed to the flexibility of plant nutrient utilization. Nutrient homeostasis (H) reflects the ability of plant tissues to maintain a relatively constant N and P content under nutrient fluctuations and represents flexible or stable plant nutrient utilization.

Understanding the Past to Preserve the Future: Genomic Insights Into the Conservation Management of a Critically Endangered Waterbird.

To ensure the success of genetic rescue, we must minimise the potential negative effects of outbreeding depression that may arise from selecting source populations. The difficulty in assessing the likelihood of outbreeding depression has hindered its consideration in endangered species conservation. However, genomic research offers feasible indications.

Habitat Occupancy of the Critically Endangered Chinese Pangolin () Under Human Disturbance in an Urban Environment: Implications for Conservation.

Globally, urban expansion has led to habitat fragmentation and altered resource availability, thus posing significant challenges for wildlife. The Chinese pangolin () is a critically endangered species experiencing population decline due to illegal trade and habitat degradation. This study analyzed variables affecting habitat occupancy of Chinese pangolins using a single-season occupancy model across 134 study grids (600 m × 600 m) in peri-urban areas of Dharan Sub-Metropolitan City, eastern Nepal.

Increasing plant diversity enhances soil organic carbon storage in typical wetlands of northern China.

Soil organic carbon plays an important role in climate change mitigation, and can be strongly affected by plant diversity. Although a positive effect of plant diversity on soil organic carbon storage has been confirmed in grasslands and forests, it remains unclear whether this effect exists in wetlands. In this study, we investigated plant diversity, soil properties and soil organic carbon across five typical wetlands of northern China, to test the effect of plant diversity on soil organic carbon and clarified the regulators.

Four new species of (Polyporales, Basidiomycota) from China.

Four new wood-inhabiting fungi viz. , , , and - are proposed based on a combination of morphological features and molecular evidence. is characterized by soft coriaceous basidiomata detachable from the substrate, becoming reddish brown in KOH, subulate cystidia with an obtuse apex.

Degradation of High Concentrations of Anthracene Using White-Rot Wood-Inhabiting Fungi and Investigation of Enzyme Activities.

Owing to the production of lignin-modifying enzymes (LMEs), white-rot fungi (WRF) such as polypores are potent organisms in the biodegradation of xenobiotic pollutants. The nonspecific function of LMEs including laccase and manganese peroxidase (MnP), has enabled the use of WRF in biotechnological applications, particularly in bioremediation. In this study, 12 strains from nine white-rot basidiomycete genera viz.

Simulating the multi-media fate of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and its precursors in the Bohai coastal region of China.

PFOS and its precursors are of great concern due to their persistence and widespread presence in the environment. However, few studies have been conducted on their transformation and fate at a regional scale. We aim to address this gap by investigating their fate in the Bohai coastal region of China.

Unveiling species diversity within early-diverging fungi from China II: Three new species of (Cunninghamellaceae, Mucoromycota) from Hainan Province.

is distributed worldwide and primarily isolated from soil, feces, and decaying plants. The genus was initially classified into Absidiaceae and then Mucoraceae, and currently belongs to Cunninghamellaceae and is further divided into s.s.

Environmental heterogeneity determines beta diversity and species turnover for woody plants along an elevation gradient in subtropical forests of China.

To understand how diversity change with environmental gradients is a fundamental aim for clarifying biodiversity pattern and underlying mechanisms. Here, we studied the characteristics of beta diversity and its partitioning components for woody plant communities along an elevation gradient in subtropical forests of China, and thus explored the effects of environment and space on beta diversity. By using the Classification Method, we divided the species of Daiyun Mountain into four groups, namely generalists, high-elevation specialists, low-elevation specialists and rare species.

Evolution of Sex-linked Genes and the Role of Pericentromeric Regions in Sex Chromosomes: Insights from Diploid Willows.

The evolution of sex chromosomes can involve recombination suppression sometimes involving structural changes, such as inversions, allowing subsequent rearrangements, including inversions and gene transpositions. In the two major genus Salix clades, Salix and Vetrix, almost all species are dioecious, and sex-linked regions have evolved on chromosome 7 and 15, with either male or female heterogamety. We used chromosome conformation capture (Hi-C) and PacBio HiFi (high-fidelity) reads to assemble chromosome-level, gap-free X and Y chromosomes from both clades, S.

Integrated Assessment of Survival, Movement, and Reproduction in Migratory Birds: A Study on Evaluating Reinforcement Success.

Conservation managers increasingly employ reinforcement techniques to bolster declining populations by reintroducing non-wild individuals born in captivity into natural habitats, but success rates remain modest. In this study, the success is evaluated of reinforcement efforts using satellite tracking and field observation data collected between 2010 and 2021. It focuses on 13 non-wild individuals, as follows: seven red-crowned cranes , two white-naped cranes , and four demoiselle cranes , as well as five wild individuals including two red-crowned cranes and three white-naped cranes.

Identifying key monitoring areas for tree insect pest risks in China under climate change.

Climate change can exacerbate pest population growth, posing significant threats to ecosystem functions and services, social development, and food security. Risk assessment is a valuable tool for effective pest management that identifies potential pest expansion and ecosystem dispersal patterns. We applied a habitat suitability model coupled with priority protection planning software to determine key monitoring areas (KMA) for tree insect pest risks under climate change and used forest ecoregions and nature reserves to assess the ecological risk of insect pest invasion.

gen. et sp. nov. and sp. nov. (, ) from East Asia.

, a small and under-studied family of , includes mostly saprophytic taxa with varied basidiomes. In this study, we focus on wood-decay species with corticioid or stereoid basidiomes. Phylogenetic analyses of concatenated - sequences uncovered seven generic lineages of corticioid or stereoid fungi-, , , , , , and gen.

Plant conservation in the age of genome editing: opportunities and challenges.

Numerous plant taxa are threatened by habitat destruction or overexploitation. To overcome these threats, new methods are urgently needed for rescuing threatened and endangered plant species. Here, we review the genetic consequences of threats to species populations.

Research advance in the effects of litter input on forest soil organic carbon transformation and stability.

The turnover and stabilization of soil organic carbon are tightly associated with the properties of litter input. Due to the complexity of litter decomposition and the high heterogeneity of forest soils, there are considerable uncertainties about how soil minerals, microorganisms, and environmental factors jointly regulate the transformation and stability of litter-derived soil organic carbon. Here, we present an overview of the "microbial efficiency-matrix stabilization" framework centered on microbial metabolism and organic carbon transformation, as well as the new "microbial carbon pump" and "mineral carbon pump" theories in forest soil organic carbon transformation and stabilization.

Effects of and mixture on morphological characteristics of ectomycorrhizae.

The mycorrhizal diversity and morphological plasticity determine the adaptability of host plants to habitat changes. To understand the effects of mixture between coniferous and broadleaf trees on the morphological characteri-stics of ectomyzorrhizal (EcM) associations, we examined the influences of environmental factors on changes in morphological characteristics based on a systematic investigation of the EcM morphological traits in Carr. and Koidz.

An Invasion Risk Assessment of Alien Woody Species in Potential National Park Sites in Xinjiang, China, Under Climate Change.

The invasion of alien woody species may have broad ecological, economic, and health impacts on ecosystems and biodiversity under climate change. Previous studies showed that disrupting the biodiversity conservation mechanisms in protected areas can seriously threaten natural ecosystems and the protection of rare and endangered species in such protected areas. However, there is currently no standard for evaluating the invasion risk of woody plants under climate change when establishing national parks in China.

Differential spatial responses and assembly mechanisms of soil microbial communities across region-scale Taiga ecosystems.

Different soil microbial communities play distinct key roles in regulating forest ecosystem processes and functions. However, the differences in spatial variability and assembly mechanisms of various taiga forest soil microbial taxa remain poorly understood. Here, we assessed the spatial patterns of bacterial and fungal communities, their assembly processes, and the influencing factors in taiga forest ecosystems in Xinjiang, China.