Pelletized Straw Incorporation in Sandy Soil Increases Soil Aggregate Stability, Soil Carbon, and Nitrogen Stocks

In China, increasing the quantity and quality of total carbon and nitrogen stocks in sandy soil used for crop production is an important research issue. Soil amendment with pelletized straw could improve both soil physical structure and fertility in sandy soils, but these aspects remain understudied. The present pot and field experiments examined the dynamic changes in sandy soil water holding capacity, soil bulk density, soil total carbon and nitrogen stocks, and the distribution of water-stable aggregates and soil total carbon stocks related to aggregates across the following treatments: no fertilization (i.e., study control (CK)), normal fertilizer rate (NM), soil amendment at 150 Mg ha−1 (S150), manure amendment at 150 Mg ha−1 (M150), pelletized straw amendment at 75 Mg ha−1 (PS75), and pelletized straw amendment at 150 Mg ha−1 (PS150). The results show that the pelletized straw incorporation significantly increased water holding capacity and decreased soil bulk density. PS150 notably increased the large macroaggregates (>2000 μm) proportion and decreased the ratio of <250 μm aggregate size fractions in comparison with CK, NM, S150, and M150 at 0–20 and 20–40 cm soil depths. Compared with the CK treatment, the bulk soil carbon and nitrogen stocks in the 0–20 cm layers under the PS150 treatment were significantly increased by 85.2% and 302.9%, and in the 20–40 cm layers those increased by 136.4% and 257.1%, respectively. The PS150 treatment resulted in higher soil organic carbon (SOC) and particulate organic carbon content than the CK and PS75 treatments, whereas the PS75 treatment achieved maximum soil inorganic carbon content. The pelletized straw treatment increased the large macroaggregate-associated soil total carbon content at 0–20 and 20–40 cm soil depths. The maximum soil total carbon stocks were in the small macroaggregates (250 < WSA < 2000 μm) rather than in the large macroaggregate and microaggregates under the PS75 and PS150 treatments. Additionally, the pelletized straw and manure amendments increased the yield of silage corn, which was dependent on the increase in soil total carbon and nitrogen content in the macroaggregates, whereas the soil and manure amendments did not facilitate sandy soil aggregation and soil total carbon stock increases. In conclusion, PS150 was found to be the optimal amendment for maintaining sandy soil profile physico-chemical properties through macroaggregate stabilization. These results will be beneficial for arid and semi-arid regions, thus contributing to soil carbon and nitrogen conservation

Reinforced soil salinization with distance along the river: A case study of the Yellow River Basin

Clarifying the relationship between salt-affected soils and their adjacent river systems is critical to address the challenges posed by soil salinization on agricultural production. Among the various biophysical and land management factors linked to soil salinization, few studies have investigated the importance of the distance along the river. Based on the Hetao Irrigation District of the Yellow River Basin, we collected 5314 soil samples and analyzed 17 soil parameters to explore the relationship between salt-affected soils and their distance along the river. Soil salinization was reinforced by the distance along the river, as a trade-off between soil ion accumulation and nutrient regulation. Soil total water-soluble salt content increased by 16.4 mg kg − 1 every kilometer, likely due to ions leaching from the soils upstream and partially accumulating in the soils downstream, especially for Cl-, SO 4 2-, and Na +. Greater input and less solubility of Ca 2+ based soil amendments, phosphorus fertilizers, and organic materials on the less salt-affected soils upstream may explain the declines in soil Ca 2+ , available phosphorus, and soil organic matter with distance along the river. With every kilometer along the river, soil exchangeable sodium and cation exchange capacity increased by 8.89 × 10 − 4 and 1.26 × 10 − 2 cmol kg − 1 , respectively, which led to an increase in soil exchangeable sodium percentage by 9.59 × 10 − 5. The increase in soil exchangeable sodium along the river was mainly due to Na + accumulation, while soil cation exchange capacity was regulated by soil organic matter and total nitrogen. Soil pH increased by 1.21 × 10 − 3 per kilometer along the river, associated with the decrease of soil organic matter. Future saline soil amelioration and reutilization initiatives at regional scales may be improved by accounting for the changes in soil physicochemical properties resulting from the distance along the river

Reinforced soil salinization with distance along the river: A case study of the Yellow River Basin

Clarifying the relationship between salt-affected soils and their adjacent river systems is critical to address the challenges posed by soil salinization on agricultural production. Among the various biophysical and land management factors linked to soil salinization, few studies have investigated the importance of the distance along the river. Based on the Hetao Irrigation District of the Yellow River Basin, we collected 5314 soil samples and analyzed 17 soil parameters to explore the relationship between salt-affected soils and their distance along the river. Soil salinization was reinforced by the distance along the river, as a trade-off between soil ion accumulation and nutrient regulation. Soil total water-soluble salt content increased by 16.4 mg kg − 1 every kilometer, likely due to ions leaching from the soils upstream and partially accumulating in the soils downstream, especially for Cl-, SO 4 2-, and Na +. Greater input and less solubility of Ca 2+ based soil amendments, phosphorus fertilizers, and organic materials on the less salt-affected soils upstream may explain the declines in soil Ca 2+ , available phosphorus, and soil organic matter with distance along the river. With every kilometer along the river, soil exchangeable sodium and cation exchange capacity increased by 8.89 × 10 − 4 and 1.26 × 10 − 2 cmol kg − 1 , respectively, which led to an increase in soil exchangeable sodium percentage by 9.59 × 10 − 5. The increase in soil exchangeable sodium along the river was mainly due to Na + accumulation, while soil cation exchange capacity was regulated by soil organic matter and total nitrogen. Soil pH increased by 1.21 × 10 − 3 per kilometer along the river, associated with the decrease of soil organic matter. Future saline soil amelioration and reutilization initiatives at regional scales may be improved by accounting for the changes in soil physicochemical properties resulting from the distance along the river

Genetically modified pigs are protected from classical swine fever virus.

Classical swine fever (CSF) caused by classical swine fever virus (CSFV) is one of the most detrimental diseases, and leads to significant economic losses in the swine industry. Despite efforts by many government authorities to stamp out the disease from national pig populations, the disease remains widespread. Here, antiviral small hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) were selected and then inserted at the porcine Rosa26 (pRosa26) locus via a CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knock-in strategy. Finally, anti-CSFV transgenic (TG) pigs were produced by somatic nuclear transfer (SCNT). Notably, in vitro and in vivo viral challenge assays further demonstrated that these TG pigs could effectively limit the replication of CSFV and reduce CSFV-associated clinical signs and mortality, and disease resistance could be stably transmitted to the F1-generation. Altogether, our work demonstrated that RNA interference (RNAi) technology combining CRISPR/Cas9 technology offered the possibility to produce TG animal with improved resistance to viral infection. The use of these TG pigs can reduce CSF-related economic losses and this antiviral strategy may be useful for future antiviral research