The effect of a new process on the environment of soil in ion adsorption rare earth ores

Rare earths are a kind of mineral resource with important strategic value, playing an irreplaceable key role in modern high-tech development and other fields. However, how to realize the efficient and green mining of rare earth resources has been a key issue that the rare earth industry has been trying to break through, because the rare earth mining process is prone to pollute ecological environments such as soil and water. Ion adsorption rare earth ore, mainly distributed in the south of China, is one of the rare earths, for which rare earth researchers have developed a new process leaching system with magnesium salt. In this study, the soil environmental problems as well as the microbial community structure underneath this new process heap-leaching demonstration site are evaluated. The results of the study showed that under the new process, there was a significant accumulation of sulfate content in the soil of the heap-leaching site and an imbalance in the soil calcium-magnesium ratio, which may disrupt the soil structure and reduce soil fertility. Meanwhile, the microbial community structure before and after the leaching site showed large differences at different points and depths, but didn't cause ecological risks. This study helps us to understand the environmental problems and impacts that may be caused by the new process of magnesium salt, and also helps to promote the application of the new process of magnesium salt leaching of ion adsorption rare earth ore, which lays the foundation for the exploitation of rare earth resources

Co-expression of interleukin (IL)-17RA and IL-36γ in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus of the stress-induced hypertension rats

Objectives: The up-regulation of proinflammatory cytokines in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) is well demonstrated to be involved in the development of neurogenic hypertension, including stress-induced hypertension (SIH). IL-17A has been found to be increased in the PVN of several hypertensive animal models and has been shown to play a key role in the development of hypertension. Although IL-36γ was found to be expressed in spinal neurons, its role in hypertension remains elusive. Here, we investigated the co-expression of IL-17 receptor A (IL-17RA) and IL-36γ in the PVN cells of SIH rats. Methods: The electric foot shock combined with buzzer noise stressors were used to make hypertensive rat model. The immunochemical staining or immunofluorescence staining was used to reveal cells as requested. The Western blot was used to detect the related protein levels. Results and Conclusion: In the PVN of the SIH rats, the number of CD3 + CD4 + T cells was significantly increased by the immunochemical staining. Additionally, the protein levels of RORγt and IL-17A were significantly upregulated by Western blot, confirming the infiltration of CD4 + T cells and differentiation into Th17 cells in the PVN of SIH rats. Immunofluorescence staining revealed abundant expression of IL-17RA in PVN neurons, with relatively less expression in astrocytes or microglia. Furthermore, IL-36γ positive cells and protein expression of IL-36R were significantly increased. Notably, this study demonstrates for the first time that most IL-36γ cells were strongly colocalized with IL-17RA positive cells in the PVN of SIH rats, and the colocalized cells were significantly higher in SIH rats. This suggests that IL-17A secreted by infiltrated Th17 cells may stimulate PVN neurons to produce IL-36γ via IL-17RA, indicating that the combination of IL-17 and IL-36γ might produce strong pro-inflammatory effects in the PVN of SIH rats

Effect of hydrostatic pressure on thermal transport properties of Tl3XSe4 (X = V, Ta, Nb): A First-Principles study

Recently, Tl3XSe4 (Abbreviated as TlXSe; X  = V, Ta, Nb) crystals have been found to exhibit ultra low lattice thermal conductivities κl (∼0.15 W/mK at 300 K), ultra high figure of merit ZT (3 ∼ 4 at 300 K) and thus show great potentials in the fields of thermoelectric and engineering thermal management. Generally, thermal insulation devices and thermoelectric devices are used in harsh working environment, such high/low temperature, high pressure and so on. In order to further evaluate the industrial application values of TlXSe crystals, in this work, we explored their thermal transport behaviors under high pressures based on first-principles calculations method. The results show that TlXSe materials can maintain structural stability under high pressure up to 8 GPa, and their κl values increase about 2 ∼ 4 times under the high pressure of 0 ∼ 8 GPa. The increases of κl values are mainly due to the co-coupling effects of the increased phonon harmonicity and decreased phonon anharmonicity caused by high pressures. For all that, the κl values of TlXSe compounds are still below 0.5 W/mK at 300 K under the high pressure of 0 ∼ 8 GPa, which are also lower than those of most thermal insulation and thermoelectric materials. This work highlights the future potential applications of TlXSe crystals in thermal management, thermoelectric and many other fields, and thus provides useful information for further experimental and theoretical studies

Field-Based Estimation of Net Primary Productivity and Its Above- and Belowground Partitioning in Global Grasslands

Net primary productivity (NPP) in global grasslands is a critical component of terrestrial carbon cycling and the primary source of food for herbivores. However, the size and spatial distribution of NPP across global grasslands remain unclear, especially for belowground NPP (BNPP), which limits our understanding of above- and belowground carbon cycling and the assessments of herbivore food security. Here, we compiled a comprehensive grassland NPP database with 1,467 field measurements to estimate the spatial distributions of aboveground NPP (ANPP), BNPP, total NPP (TNPP), and the fraction of BNPP (f(BNPP)) using the random forest (RF) model. The global mean grassland ANPP, BNPP, TNPP, and f(BNPP) were 433 +/- 31 g m(-2) yr(-1), 593 +/- 47 g m(-2) yr(-1), 979 +/- 78 g m(-2) yr(-1), and 0.54 +/- 0.02, respectively. The total ANPP, BNPP, and TNPP over global grasslands were 6.84 +/- 0.49, 9.36 +/- 0.74, and 15.46 +/- 1.23 Pg C yr(-1), respectively. ANPP, BNPP, and TNPP exhibited decreasing trends from low latitudes toward the poles. The spatial pattern of f(BNPP) was almost opposite to that of ANPP. Climate was a major determinant in shaping the spatial distribution of ANPP and TNPP, while soil and vegetation had significant impacts on that of BNPP and f(BNPP). Our findings suggest that field data-driven estimation of NPP using the RF model could be a useful approach for obtaining spatially explicit NPP of grasslands, particularly BNPP products, and that more attention should be paid on belowground and non-climatic factors to better assess the carbon cycle in global grasslands

GhCYS2 governs the tolerance against cadmium stress by regulating cell viability and photosynthesis in cotton

Cysteine, an early sulfur-containing compound in plants, is of significant importance in sulfur metabolism. CYS encodes cysteine synthetase that further catalyzes cysteine synthesis. In this investigation, CYS genes, identified from genome-wide analysis of Gossypium hirsutum bioinformatically, led to the discovery of GhCYS2 as the pivotal gene responsible for Cd2+ response. The silencing of GhCYS2 through virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) rendered plants highly susceptible to Cd2+ stress. Silencing GhCYS2 in plants resulted in diminished levels of cysteine and glutathione while leading to the accumulation of MDA and ROS within cells, thereby impeding the regular process of photosynthesis. Consequently, the stomatal aperture of leaves decreased, epidermal cells underwent distortion and deformation, intercellular connections are dramatically disrupted, and fissures manifested between cells. Ultimately, these detrimental effected culminating in plant wilting and a substantial reduction in biomass. The association established between Cd2+ and cysteine in this investigation offered a valuable reference point for further inquiry into the functional and regulatory mechanisms of cysteine synthesis genes