Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Rui-Zhe Wang, Xia Hu
Summary: Soils in alpine ecosystems are significant carbon sinks, with soil aggregates and their pore structure playing a crucial role in carbon sequestration. This study examined the soil pore structure, carbon content, and their relationships in three typical alpine ecosystems in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The results revealed the dominance of small macroaggregates and microspores in the soil aggregates, as well as the correlation between carbon content and pore characteristics. Additionally, the study highlighted the impact of soil water content and particle compositions on soil organic carbon in different alpine ecosystems.
Article
Agronomy
Yazhuan Sang, Shangzhao Yu, Fengshuai Lu, Yi Sun, Shulin Wang, Luji Ade, Fujiang Hou
Summary: This study explores the potential of using UAV technology for monitoring soil moisture in grasslands and demonstrates the correlation between visible-light brightness, vegetation coverage, rainfall reduction, aboveground biomass, and topsoil moisture.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jianliang Liu, Wei Zhan, Xinya Huang, Di Tang, Shaofei Jin, Dan Zhu, Huai Chen
Summary: Soil carbon sequestration is important for mitigating climate change. Nitrogen deposition affects soil carbon dynamics by altering carbon input and output. This study investigated the impact of nitrogen addition on soil carbon stocks and identified the mechanisms in an alpine meadow. After six years of nitrogen addition, the total carbon stocks in the topsoil significantly increased, with microbial biomass carbon content playing a key role. Nitrogen addition also affected aboveground biomass and organic matter decomposition.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Likun Liu, Guangju Zhao, Zhengfeng An, Xingmin Mu, Juying Jiao, Shaoshan An, Peng Tian
Summary: Grazing plays a critical role in the sustainable development of grassland. However, there is inadequate research on the relationship between grazing intensity and grassland soil quality in the alpine environment. This study compared different grazing intensities and found that heavy grazing had a stronger negative effect on soil quality in alpine meadows. It suggests that reasonable grazing intensity management is important for maintaining the sustainable development of alpine meadow productivity.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Hongwei Zhang, Lihui Tian, Eerdun Hasi, Dengshan Zhang, Wangyang Wu
Summary: Different types of dunes affect vegetation growth and soil moisture distribution in the alpine desert. Plant community characteristics and soil properties show differences in different sand-binding communities. This study provides valuable insights into plant-soil-water relationships and sand-fixation effectiveness.
FRONTIERS IN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Ying Chen, Mengguang Han, Xia Yuan, Yanhui Hou, Wenkuan Qin, Huakun Zhou, Xinquan Zhao, Julia A. Klein, Biao Zhu
Summary: In alpine meadow ecosystems on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, surface soil SOC content shows resistance to climate warming, while plant respiration is accelerated. The warming effect on SOC is not correlated with experimental and environmental variables.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Yanwen Qi, Xinhang Sun, Sichen Peng, Xiaodan Tan, Shurong Zhou
Summary: This study investigated the response mechanism of soil nematode communities to nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer. The results showed that nitrogen fertilizer increased the abundance and richness of bacterivorous nematodes, while phosphorus fertilizer decreased the total abundance of bacterivorous nematodes. Additionally, the diversity of the nematode community was significantly affected by soil physicochemical properties and plant root functional traits.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Zeyong Gao, Fujun Niu, Yibo Wang, Zhanju Lin, Wei Wang
Summary: The dynamics of suprapermafrost groundwater play a crucial role in regulating hydrological processes in Arctic, boreal, and high-altitude regions. However, there have been limited studies focusing on these dynamics on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP). This study observed soil hydraulic conductivities, saturated thicknesses, and related hydrological processes around a typical thermokarst lake on the QTP, revealing fluctuations in water table depths and contributions to lake water by suprapermafrost groundwater.
JOURNAL OF HYDROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Chuntao Yang, James Peter Millner, Yi Sun, Hang Yuan, Yang Liu, Yan Zhang, Zhaofeng Wang, Shenghua Chang, Fujiang Hou
Summary: Supplemental feeding with oat hay increased forage biomass by 12.8% and enhanced N return from litter and dung to soil by 8.0% and 6.2%, respectively, compared to non-supplemented systems. However, it did not have a significant effect on soil N stock. Forage biomass and N return from litter to soil increased significantly over time in the supplementation systems. The increased forage biomass led to increased N uptake, balancing out the supplement-induced soil N input and resulting in minimal changes in soil N levels.
AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Wensi Ma, Tonghua Wu, Xiaodong Wu, Sizhong Yang, Ren Li, Shiqiao Zhou, Xiangfei Li, Xiaofan Zhu, Junming Hao, Jie Ni, Dong Wang
Summary: This study investigated the carbon budgets of four ecosystems (alpine meadow, steppe, forest, and cropland) on the Tibetan Plateau from 2004 to 2017. The results showed that forest, cropland, and alpine meadow ecosystems acted as carbon sinks, while alpine steppe and overmature forest ecosystems served as carbon sources. The temperature sensitivity of carbon emissions was higher in the forest and alpine steppe ecosystems compared to the alpine meadow ecosystems. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that water forcing was the main predictor for carbon fluxes in alpine steppe and alpine meadow ecosystems, while temperature forcing was the main predictor in forest and cropland ecosystems.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Licong Dai, Ruiyu Fu, Xiaowei Guo, Yangong Du, Li Lin, Fawei Zhang, Yikang Li, Guangmin Cao
Summary: This study examined the effects of long-term grazing management on plant and soil properties in alpine meadows. Results showed that grazing exclusion significantly increased aboveground vegetation biomass and improved soil conditions, such as soil carbon and nitrogen content. Long-term grazing exclusions can lead to positive changes in plant community structure and soil properties.
Article
Plant Sciences
Jianfeng Yang, Lucas Busta, Reinhard Jetter, Yingpeng Sun, Tianyu Wang, Wenlan Zhang, Yu Ni, Yanjun Guo
Summary: The chemical profiles of cuticular waxes in alpine meadow plants exhibit significant variations within and among genera, consisting of over 140 wax compounds belonging to 13 classes. The wax variation is influenced by both environmental and genetic factors. The comparison of species relationships between chemical and genetic data highlights the importance of inferring phylogenetic relationships from data sets containing variables that are not responsive to environmental stimuli.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Yu-Jun Ma, Ting Xie, Xiao-Yan Li
Summary: Soil organic carbon (SOC) on the Qinghai-Tibet plateau plays a significant role in global carbon dynamics. This study assessed the SOC stock and spatial patterns in the Qinghai Lake watershed. The results showed that SOC content decreased with depth and varied among different vegetation types. Soil profile depth, soil water content, and NDVI together explained a large portion of the variation in SOC density. The regression-kriging method was found to be the best approach for predicting SOC in the study area. The assessment revealed high storage and heterogeneity of SOC in the watershed, with implications for the sustainability of regional terrestrial ecosystems.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Lan Li, Xindi Zhang, Xuan Li, Shufang Zhao, Wankui Ni, Zhenzhen Yang
Summary: A thermokarst lake is formed in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau due to permafrost degradation and glacier retreat. The increase in thermokarst lakes has significant impacts on regional hydro-ecological equilibrium, permafrost temperature, and carbon cycle.
FRONTIERS IN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Environmental Studies
Yueju Zhang, Mingjun Ding, Hua Zhang, Nengyu Wang, Fan Xiao, Ziping Yu, Peng Huang, Fu Zou
Summary: The study found that degradation and cultivation significantly changed the characteristics of vegetation, soil, and soil bacterial community in the alpine meadow of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Artificial alpine grassland was found to be in an unstable state, not significantly improved from the degraded meadow, and lagging compared to intact alpine meadow. Physicochemical features of the soil were the most important factor correlating with the soil bacterial community along the degradation and cultivation.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Toshimi Nakajima, Mao Kuragano, Makoto Yamada, Ryo Sugimoto
Summary: This study compared the contribution of submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) to river nutrient budgets at nearshore and embayment scales, and found that SGD-derived nutrients become more important at larger spatial scales.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Fan Liu, Lei Zhang, Chongyang Zhang, Ziguang Chen, Jingguang Li
Summary: NO2 emissions from wall-mounted gas stoves used for household heating have become a significant source of indoor pollution in Chinese urban areas. The high indoor concentration of NO2 poses potential health risks to residents. It is urgently necessary to establish relevant regulations and implement emission reduction technologies to reduce NO2 emissions from wall-mounted gas stoves.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Letter
Environmental Sciences
Hans Peter H. Arp, Raoul Wolf, Sarah E. Hale, Sivani Baskaran, Juliane Gluege, Martin Scheringer, Xenia Trier, Ian T. Cousins, Harrie Timmer, Roberta Hofman-Caris, Anna Lennquist, Andre D. Bannink, Gerard J. Stroomberg, Rosa M. A. Sjerps, Rosa Montes, Rosario Rodil, Jose Benito Quintana, Daniel Zahn, Herve Gallard, Tobias Mohr, Ivo Schliebner, Michael Neumann
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Philomina Onyedikachi Peter, Binessi Edouard Ifon, Francois Nkinahamira, Kayode Hassan Lasisi, Jiangwei Li, Anyi Hu, Chang-Ping Yu
Summary: This study investigates the relationship between dissolved organic matter (DOM) and Rare Earth Elements (REEs) in sediments from Yundang Lagoon, China. The results show four distinct fluorescent components, with protein-like substances being the most prevalent. Additionally, the total fluorescence intensity and LREE concentrations exhibit a synchronized increase from Outer to Inner to Songbai Lake core sediments. The findings demonstrate a strong correlation between DOM content and pollution levels.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Surya Gupta, Pasquale Borrelli, Panos Panagos, Christine Alewell
Summary: The objective of this study is to incorporate soil hydraulic properties into the erodibility factor (K) of USLE-type models. By modifying and improving the existing equations for soil texture and permeability, the study successfully included information on saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat) into the calculation of K factor. Using the Random Forest machine learning algorithm, two independent K factor maps with different spatial resolutions were generated. The results show that the decrease in K factor values has a positive impact on the modeling of soil erosion rates.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jesmin Akter, Wendy J. M. Smith, Yawen Liu, Ilho Kim, Stuart L. Simpson, Phong Thai, Asja Korajkic, Warish Ahmed
Summary: The choice of workflow in wastewater surveillance has a significant impact on SARS-CoV-2 concentrations, while having minimal effects on HF183 and no effect on HAdV 40/41 concentrations. Certain components in the workflow can be interchangeable, but factors such as buffer type, chloroform, and homogenization speed can affect the recovery of viruses and bacteria.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yu Luo, Xueting Yang, Diwei Wang, Hongmei Xu, Hongai Zhang, Shasha Huang, Qiyuan Wang, Ningning Zhang, Junji Cao, Zhenxing Shen
Summary: Atmospheric PM2.5, which can generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), is associated with cardiorespiratory morbidity and mortality. The study found that both the mass concentration of PM2.5 and the DTT activity were higher during the heating season than during the nonheating season. Combustion sources were the primary contributors to DTT activity during the heating season, while secondary formation dominated during the nonheating season. The study also revealed that biomass burning had the highest inherent oxidation potential among all sources investigated.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Erin L. Murphy, Leah R. Gerber, Chelsea M. Rochman, Beth Polidoro
Summary: Plastic pollution has devastating consequences for marine organisms. This study uses a trait-based framework to develop a vulnerability index for marine mammals, seabirds, and sea turtles in Hawai'i. The index ranks 63 study species based on their vulnerability to macroplastic pollution, providing valuable information for species monitoring and management priorities.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Kenji Maurice, Amelia Bourceret, Sami Youssef, Stephane Boivin, Liam Laurent-Webb, Coraline Damasio, Hassan Boukcim, Marc-Andre Selosse, Marc Ducousso
Summary: Growing pressure from climate change and agricultural land use is destabilizing soil microbial community interactions. Little is known about microbial community resistance and adaptation to disturbances, hindering our understanding of recovery latency and implications for ecosystem functioning. This study found that anthropic disturbance and natural disturbance have different effects on the topology and stability of soil microbial networks.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yunhao Li, Yali Feng, Haoran Li, Yisong Yao, Chenglong Xu, Jinrong Ju, Ruiyu Ma, Haoyu Wang, Shiwei Jiang
Summary: Deep-sea mining poses a serious threat to marine ecosystems and human health by disturbing sediment and transmitting metal ions through the food chain. This study developed a new regenerative adsorption material, OMN@SA, which effectively removes metal ions. The adsorption mechanism and performance of the material for metal ion fixation were investigated.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Antonio Medici, Margherita Lavorgna, Marina Isidori, Chiara Russo, Elena Orlo, Giovanni Luongo, Giovanni Di Fabio, Armando Zarrelli
Summary: Valsartan, a widely used antihypertensive drug, has been detected in high concentrations in surface waters due to its unchanged excretion and incomplete degradation in wastewater treatment plants. This study investigated the degradation of valsartan and identified 14 degradation byproducts. The acute and chronic toxicity of these byproducts were evaluated in key organisms in the freshwater trophic chain.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jiang Lin, Lianbao Chi, Qing Yuan, Busu Li, Mingbao Feng
Summary: This study investigated the photodegradation behavior and product formation of two representative pharmaceuticals in simulated estuary water. The study found that the formed transformation products of these pharmaceuticals have potential toxicity on marine organisms, including oxidative stress and damage to cellular components.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Hua Fang, Dongdong Jiang, Ye He, Siyi Wu, Yuehong Li, Ziqi Zhang, Haoting Chen, Zixin Zheng, Yan Sun, Wenxiang Wang
Summary: This study revealed that exposure to lower levels of air pollutants led to decreased pregnancy rates, with PM10, NO2, SO2, and CO emerging as the four most prominent pollutants. Individuals aged 35 and above exhibited heightened susceptibility to pollutants.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ali Shaan Manzoor Ghumman, Rashid Shamsuddin, Amin Abbasi, Mohaira Ahmad, Yoshiaki Yoshida, Abdul Sami, Hamad Almohamadi
Summary: In this study, inverse vulcanized polysulfides (IVP) were synthesized by reacting molten sulfur with 4-vinyl benzyl chloride, and then functionalized using N-methyl D-glucamine (NMDG). The functionalized IVP showed a high mercury adsorption capacity and a machine learning model was developed to predict the amount of mercury removed. Furthermore, the functionalized IVP can be regenerated and reused, providing a sustainable and cost-effective adsorbent.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Rita Bonfiglio, Renata Sisto, Stefano Casciardi, Valeria Palumbo, Maria Paola Scioli, Erica Giacobbi, Francesca Servadei, Gerry Melino, Alessandro Mauriello, Manuel Scimeca
Summary: This study investigated the presence of aluminum in human colon cancer samples and its potential association with biological processes involved in cancer progression. Aluminum was found in tumor areas of 24% of patients and was associated with epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) and cell death. Additional analyses revealed higher tumor mutational burden and mutations in genes related to EMT and apoptosis in aluminum-positive colon cancers. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of aluminum toxicity may improve strategies for the management of colon cancer patients.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2024)