Estimation of grassland aboveground biomass and its response to climate changes based on remote sensing inversion in Three-River-Source National Park, Tibet Plateau, China

Three-River-Source (TRS) National Park stands as one of China’s earliest established national parks, dedicated to significant ecological responsibilities that include conserving soil and water resources in the Tibetan Plateau region. Research on climate change’s influence on the TRS region’s grasslands is of great significance in our efforts to comprehend and conserve the grassland ecosystem. The most effective random forest (RF) model was chosen to invert the aboveground biomass (AGB) of grassland in the previous 6 years (2015−2020) and predict the grassland AGB in the following 20 years (2021−2040) by comparing linear regression and multivariate nonlinear regression models such as RF, support vector machine, decision tree, and artificial neural network. A Theil–Sen median trend analysis and a Mann–Kendal test were then used to examine the trends of grassland AGB. The results showed that (1) RF outperformed other models in estimating grassland AGB, with a test set decision coefficient of multiple determination (R2) of 0.722, a root mean square error of 42.596 g/m2, and a mean absolute error of 35.619 g/m2; (2) over 6 years, the grassland AGB in TRS National Park had a spatial trend of a steady rise from the northwest to the southeast. The average annual grassland AGB was 247.333 g/m2, with averages of 44.836 g/m2, 92.601 g/m2, and 120.217 g/m2 in the Yangtze River, Yellow River, and Lancang River source parks respectively. The trend of the grassland AGB was primarily stabilized and slightly recovered, with a small portion of the slightly deteriorated areas; (3) climate change significantly affected grassland AGB, and when temperature and precipitation conditions were adequate, grassland AGB values increased with temperature and precipitation. In the scenarios of ssp119, ssp245, and ssp585, grassland AGB is projected to exhibit a dynamic upward trend over the next 20 years. Global warming is expected to boost grassland AGB. Comprehensive measures are essential to maintain grassland health and ensure a positive impact on global carbon and ecological balance. The study’s findings hold great importance for the ecological security of the TRS region and contribute to our global understanding of sustainable grassland development

Function annotation of hepatic retinoid x receptor α based on genome-wide DNA binding and transcriptome profiling.

BackgroundRetinoid x receptor α (RXRα) is abundantly expressed in the liver and is essential for the function of other nuclear receptors. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing and mRNA profiling data generated from wild type and RXRα-null mouse livers, the current study identifies the bona-fide hepatic RXRα targets and biological pathways. In addition, based on binding and motif analysis, the molecular mechanism by which RXRα regulates hepatic genes is elucidated in a high-throughput manner.Principal findingsClose to 80% of hepatic expressed genes were bound by RXRα, while 16% were expressed in an RXRα-dependent manner. Motif analysis predicted direct repeat with a spacer of one nucleotide as the most prevalent RXRα binding site. Many of the 500 strongest binding motifs overlapped with the binding motif of specific protein 1. Biological functional analysis of RXRα-dependent genes revealed that hepatic RXRα deficiency mainly resulted in up-regulation of steroid and cholesterol biosynthesis-related genes and down-regulation of translation- as well as anti-apoptosis-related genes. Furthermore, RXRα bound to many genes that encode nuclear receptors and their cofactors suggesting the central role of RXRα in regulating nuclear receptor-mediated pathways.ConclusionsThis study establishes the relationship between RXRα DNA binding and hepatic gene expression. RXRα binds extensively to the mouse genome. However, DNA binding does not necessarily affect the basal mRNA level. In addition to metabolism, RXRα dictates the expression of genes that regulate RNA processing, translation, and protein folding illustrating the novel roles of hepatic RXRα in post-transcriptional regulation

Poly[bis­(μ4-benzene-1,4-dicarboxyl­ato)(μ4-succinato)diterbium(III)]

In the title compound, [Tb2(C4H4O4)(C8H4O4)2]n, the coord­in­ation around each Tb atom is distorted square-anti­prismatic. The benzene-1,4-dicarboxyl­ate and succinate anions bridge the anti­prisms, forming a three-dimensional network. The succinate anion is located on a centre of inversion. The structure is isomorphous with the Dy, Gd, Er and Nd complexes

The Trapping and Characterization of a Single Hydrogen Molecule in a Continuously Tunable Nanocavity

Using inelastic electron tunneling spectroscopy with the scanning tunneling microscope (STM-IETS) and density functional theory calculations (DFT), we investigated properties of a single H2 molecule trapped in nanocavities with controlled shape and separation between the STM tip and the Au (110) surface. The STM tip not only serves for the purpose of characterization, but also is directly involved in modification of chemical environment of molecule. The bond length of H2 expands in the atop cavity, with a tendency of dissociation when the gap closes, whereas it remains unchanged in the trough cavity. The availability of two substantially different cavities in the same setup allows understanding of H2 adsorption on noble metal surfaces and sets a path for manipulating a single chemical bond by design.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure