Injury patterns in a large-scale ski resort in the host city of 2022 Winter Olympic Games: a retrospective cross-sectional study

Objectives The aims of the study are to describe the injury patterns among recreational skiers and snowboarders in China and to provide primary data to guide the reconstruction of regional healthcare facilities to deal with the increasing number of participants in snow sports.Design Retrospective cross-sectional study.Methods A retrospective study was performed in Wanlong Ski Resort in Chongli, China. Data of all injured skiers and snowboarders treated in the resort clinic during the 2018–2019 season were collected. Patients’ information, including sex, age, equipment, skill level and injured body part, was analysed.Results A total of 753 sports injuries were recorded. The estimated incidence of injury was 1.98 per 1000 skier days. 453 cases (60.2%) were associated with skiing. The mean age of skiers was older than snowboarders (35.1±14.5 vs 29.0±8.9, p<0.01). Injury not involving others constituted 67.9% of all injuries. The most common injured body part among skiers was lower extremity, contrary to injury in the upper extremity among snowboarders. Head and cervical injury was identified in 13.7% of skiers and 13.6% of snowboarders.Conclusion The incidence of skiing/snowboarding injury in China was similar to other countries. Injury pattern differed among different sports and causes of injury

[In Press] Molecular regulation and evolution of cytokinin signaling in plant abiotic stresses

The sustainable production of crops faces increasing challenges from global climate change and human activities, which leads to increasing instances of many abiotic stressors to plants. Among the abiotic stressors, drought, salinity and excessive levels of toxic metals cause reductions in global agricultural productivity and serious health risks for humans. Cytokinins (CKs) are key phytohormones functioning in both normal development and stress responses in plants. Here, we summarize the molecular mechanisms on the biosynthesis, metabolism, transport and signaling transduction pathways of CKs. CKs act as negative regulators of both root system architecture plasticity and root sodium exclusion in response to salt stress. The functions of CKs in mineral-toxicity tolerance and their detoxification in plants are reviewed. Comparative genomic analyses were performed to trace the origin, evolution and diversification of the critical regulatory networks linking CK signaling and abiotic stress. We found that the production of CKs and their derivatives, pathways of signal transduction and drought-response root growth regulation are evolutionarily conserved in land plants. In addition, the mechanisms of CK-mediated sodium exclusion under salt stress are suggested for further investigations. In summary, we propose that the manipulation of CK levels and their signaling pathways is important for plant abiotic stress and is, therefore, a potential strategy for meeting the increasing demand for global food production under changing climatic conditions

Global evidence of positive biodiversity effects on spatial ecosystem stability in natural grasslands

International audienceThe effect of biodiversity on primary productivity has been a hot topic in ecology for over 20 years. Biodiversity-productivity relationships in natural ecosystems are highly variable, although positive relationships are most common. Understanding the conditions under which different relationships emerge is still a major challenge. Here, by analyzing HerbDivNet data, a global survey of natural grasslands, we show that biodiversity stabilizes rather than increases plant productivity in natural grasslands at the global scale. Our results suggest that the effect of species richness on productivity shifts from strongly positive in low-productivity communities to strongly negative in high-productivity communities. Thus, plant richness maintains community productivity at intermediate levels. As a result, it stabilizes plant productivity against environmental heterogeneity across space. Unifying biodiversity-productivity and biodiversity-spatial stability relationships at the global scale provides a new perspective on the functioning of natural ecosystems