Simulating the effects of management practices on cropland soilorganic carbon changes in the Temperate Prairies Ecoregion of theUnited States from 1980 to 2012

Understanding the effects of management practices on soil organic carbon (SOC) is important for design-ing effective policies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture. In the Midwest United States,management practices in the croplands have been improved to increase crop production and reduce SOCloss since the 1980s. Many studies of SOC dynamics in croplands have been performed to understandthe effects of management, but the results are still not conclusive. This study quantified SOC dynam-ics in the Midwest croplands from 1980 to 2012 with the General Ensemble Biogeochemical ModellingSystem (GEMS) and available management data. Our results showed that the total SOC in the croplandsdecreased from 1190 Tg C in 1980 to 1107 TgC in 1995, and then increased to 1176 TgC in 2012. Contin-uous cropping and intensive tillage may have driven SOC loss in the early period. The increase of cropproduction and adoption of conservation tillage increased the total SOC so that the decrease in the totalSOC stock after 32 years was only 1%. The small change in average SOC did not reflect the large spatialvariations of SOC change in the region. Major SOC losses occurred in the north and south of the region,where SOC baseline values were high and cropland production was low. The SOC gains took place in thecentral part of the region where SOC baseline values were moderate and cropland production was higherthan the other areas. We simulated multiple land-use land-cover (LULC) change scenarios and analyzedthe results. The analysis showed that among all the LULC changes, agricultural technology that increasedcropland production had the greatest impact on SOC changes, followed by the tillage practices, changesin crop species, and the conversions of cropland to other land use. Information on management practiceinduced spatial variation in SOC can be useful for policy makers and farm managers to develop long-termmanagement strategies for increasing SOC sequestration in different areas

Genome Wide Identification and Expression Profiling of Ethylene Receptor Genes during Soybean Nodulation

It has long been known that the gaseous plant hormone ethylene plays a key role in nodulation in legumes. The perception of ethylene by a family of five membrane-localized receptors is necessary to trigger the ethylene signaling pathway, which regulates various biological responses in Arabidopsis. However, a systematic analysis of the ethylene receptors in leguminous plants and their roles in nodule development is lacking. In this study, we performed a characterization of ethylene receptor genes based on the latest Glycine max genome sequence and a public microarray database. Eleven ethylene receptor family genes were identified in soybean through homology searches, and they were divided into two subgroups. Exon–intron analysis showed that the gene structures are highly conserved within each group. Further analysis of their expression patterns showed that these ethylene receptor genes are differentially expressed in various soybean tissues and organs, including functional nodules. Notably, the ethylene receptor genes showed different responses to rhizobial infection and Nod factors, suggesting a possible role for ethylene receptors and ethylene signaling in rhizobia–host cell interactions and nodulation in soybean. Together, these data indicate the functional divergence of ethylene receptor genes in soybean, and that some of these receptors mediate nodulation, including rhizobial infection, nodule development, and nodule functionality. These findings provide a foundation for further elucidation of the molecular mechanism by which the ethylene signaling pathway regulates nodulation in soybean, as well as other legumes

Simulating the effects of management practices on cropland soilorganic carbon changes in the Temperate Prairies Ecoregion of theUnited States from 1980 to 2012

Understanding the effects of management practices on soil organic carbon (SOC) is important for design-ing effective policies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture. In the Midwest United States,management practices in the croplands have been improved to increase crop production and reduce SOCloss since the 1980s. Many studies of SOC dynamics in croplands have been performed to understandthe effects of management, but the results are still not conclusive. This study quantified SOC dynam-ics in the Midwest croplands from 1980 to 2012 with the General Ensemble Biogeochemical ModellingSystem (GEMS) and available management data. Our results showed that the total SOC in the croplandsdecreased from 1190 Tg C in 1980 to 1107 TgC in 1995, and then increased to 1176 TgC in 2012. Contin-uous cropping and intensive tillage may have driven SOC loss in the early period. The increase of cropproduction and adoption of conservation tillage increased the total SOC so that the decrease in the totalSOC stock after 32 years was only 1%. The small change in average SOC did not reflect the large spatialvariations of SOC change in the region. Major SOC losses occurred in the north and south of the region,where SOC baseline values were high and cropland production was low. The SOC gains took place in thecentral part of the region where SOC baseline values were moderate and cropland production was higherthan the other areas. We simulated multiple land-use land-cover (LULC) change scenarios and analyzedthe results. The analysis showed that among all the LULC changes, agricultural technology that increasedcropland production had the greatest impact on SOC changes, followed by the tillage practices, changesin crop species, and the conversions of cropland to other land use. Information on management practiceinduced spatial variation in SOC can be useful for policy makers and farm managers to develop long-termmanagement strategies for increasing SOC sequestration in different areas

Construction of Hierarchical MoSe2 Hollow Structures and Its Effecton Electrochemical Energy Storage and Conversion

Metal selenides have attracted increased attentionas promising electrode materials for electrochemical energy storageand conversion systems including metal-ion batteries and watersplitting. However, their practical application is greatly hindered bycollapse of the microstructure, thus leading to performance fading.Tuning the structure at nanoscale of these materials is an effectivestrategy to address the issue. Herein, we craft MoSe2withhierarchical hollow structures via a facile bubble-assistedsolvothermal method. The temperature-related variations of thehollow interiors are studied, which can be presented as solid, yolk−shell, and hollow spheres, respectively. Under the simultaneousaction of the distinctive hollow structures and interconnectionsamong the nanosheets, more intimate contacts between MoSe2and electrolyte can be achieved, thereby leading to superior electrochemical properties. Consequently, the MoSe2hollownanospheres prepared under optimum conditions exhibit optimal electrochemical activities, which hold an initial specificcapacity of 1287 mA h g−1and maintain great capacity even after 100 cycles as anode for Li-ion battery. Moreover, the Tafelslope of 58.9 mV dec−1for hydrogen evolution reaction is also attained

Linking Multi-Omics to Wheat Resistance Types to Fusarium Head Blight to Reveal the Underlying Mechanisms

Fusarium head blight (FHB) caused by Fusarium graminearum is a worldwide disease which has destructive effects on wheat production, resulting in severe yield reduction and quality deterioration, while FHB-infected wheat grains are toxic to people and animals due to accumulation of fungal toxins. Although impressive progress towards understanding host resistance has been achieved, our knowledge of the mechanism underlying host resistance is still quite limited due to the complexity of wheat–pathogen interactions. In recent years, disease epidemics, the resistance germplasms and components, the genetic mechanism of FHB, and disease management and control, etc., have been well reviewed. However, the resistance mechanism of FHB is quite complex with Type I, II to V resistances. In this review, we focus on the potential resistance mechanisms by linking different resistance types to multi-omics and emphasize the pathways or genes that may play significant roles in the different types of resistance. Deciphering the complicated mechanism of FHB resistance types in wheat at the integral levels based on multi-omics may help discover the genes or pathways that are critical for different FHB resistance, which could then be utilized and manipulated to improve FHB resistance in wheat breeding programs by using transgenic approaches, gene editing, or marker assisted selection strategies

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 To determine the relative contribution rate of environmental variables to shallow landslide risk for forestland, and clarify the key vegetation factors affecting the shallow landslide risk and their disaster reduction range, seventeen environmental variables were selected, and the Maximum entropy (MaxEnt) model was used to determine the relative contribution rate of these environmental variables to the prediction of shallow landslide risk for forestland.  </p

Biomimetic structure design and construction of cactus-like MoS2/Bi19Cl3S27 photocatalysts for efficient hydrogen evolution

Cacti grown in arid areas have developed intrinsic water management systems, inspired by the cactus which has survived cruel natural selection, uncommon cactus-like MoS2/Bi19Cl3S27 heterostructures have been successfully constructed in this work. Resembling the trichome and epidermis of a cactus stem, vertically aligned MoS2 along with a carbon species hydrolyzed from glucose on Bi19Cl3S27 comprised the unique biomimetic structure. During the photocatalytic process of MoS2/Bi19Cl3S27 heterostructures, the characteristic biomimetic structure endows the heterostructures with greatly enhanced light adsorption and charge separation capabilities, the whole hydrogen evolution reaction was boosted by the combination of optimized charge and mass transfer paths, like the plant morphogenesis of a cactus which plays a significant role in mucilage-based energy-transmission. As a consequence, the improved photocatalytic H2 evolution rate reaches up to 876.6 μmol g−1 h−1 with an optimal loading of 5 wt% MoS2. The successful preparation of biomimetic structured MoS2/Bi19Cl3S27 samples with good stability shows that bismuth-based materials have great potential for applications in energy conversion systems, while providing enlightenment for the design of other biomimetic structured nanomaterials

Localised corrosion in AA 2099-T83 aluminium-lithium alloy:the role of grain orientation

AbstractThe mechanism for localised corrosion in AA 2099-T83 alloy during immersion in 3.5% NaCl solution is investigated. It is found that localised corrosion tends to occur in the grain with relatively large Schmid factor. The localised corrosion is related to selective dissolution of T1 (Al2CuLi) phase that preferentially precipitates at grain/subgrain boundaries and dislocations within grain interiors. A model is proposed to explain the development of the localised corrosion in the alloy by taking into account heterogeneous plastic deformation during cold working and preferential precipitation of T1 phase at crystallographic defects within deformed grains