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Slope microtopography redistribution caused by the process of surface–subsurface hydrology results in the randomness and nonlinearity of erosion behavior. However, the erosion effects of various microtopographic features under the rainfall-seepage coupled impact remain inadequately explored. In this work, a specialized parameterization framework was employed, coupling numerical attribute, shape, and structure with the spatial pattern of microtopography, specifically to quantify changes in microtopography and to clarify their response mechanisms to rainfall-seepage erosion on purple soil slopes. The continuous rainfall-seepage simulation experiments were conducted on a 15° tilled-slopes differing in microreliefs (conventional tillage, CT; artificial digging, AD; ridge tillage, RT) with constant rainfall intensity of 1.0 mm min−1 coupling three seepage rates of 2, 4 and 8 L/min, respectively. Results revealed that the elevation decay occurred in the stage of transition from sheet erosion to rill erosion for CT, AD and RT slopes, representing a “erosion > deposition” feature. The numeric roughness and multifractal pattern of microtopography showed RT > AD > CT slope during the rainfall-seepage erosion. The spatial change of microtopography was attributed to structural-oriented factors because the nugget ratio with less than 25 % accounted for 73.33 %. Synchronously, the runoff, sediment yields and concentrations increased with the increase of rainfall-seepage intensity. It was found that the response of roughness index on soil erosion was more obvious for smooth surface with relatively contribution rate of 81 %, while the change of microstructure (H) and multifractal shape (ΔD) were more sensitive to erosion process on AD and RT slopes respectively. The results reported in this study have important implications for an in-depth apprehending of microtopography erosion effects in saturation-excess dominated slope cropland.

Coastal peatlands have been frequently blocked from the sea and artificially drained for agriculture. With an increasing awareness of ecosystem functions, several of these coastal peatlands have been rewetted through dike removal, allowing seawater flooding. In this study, we investigated a recently rewetted peatland on the Baltic Sea coast with the aim to characterize the prevailing soils/sediments with respect to organic matter accumulation and the potential release of nutrients upon seawater flooding. Eighty disturbed soil samples were collected from two depths at different elevations (–0.90 to 0.97 m compared to sea level) and analyzed for soil organic matter (SOM) content and carbon:nitrogen (C:N) ratio. Additionally, nine undisturbed soil cores were collected from three distinct elevation groups and used in leaching experiments with alternating freshwater and Baltic Sea water. The results demonstrated a moderate to strong spatial dependence of surface elevation, SOM content, and C:N ratio. SOM content and C:N ratio were strongly negatively correlated with elevation, indicating that organic matter mineralization was restricted in low-lying areas. The results also showed that the soils at low elevations release more dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and ammonium (NH4+) than soils at high elevations. For soils at low elevations, higher DOC concentrations were observed when flushing with freshwater, whereas higher NH4+ concentrations were found when flushing with brackish water. Recorded NH4+ concentrations in organic-rich peat reached 14.82 ± 9.25 mg L–1, exceeding Baltic seawater (e.g., 0.03 mg L–1) by two orders of magnitude. A potential sea level rise may increase the export of NH4+ from low-lying and rewetted peat soils to the sea, impacting adjacent marine ecosystems. Overall, in coastal peatlands, geochemical processes (e.g., C and N cycling and release) are closely linked to microtopography and related patterns of organic matter content of the soil and sediments.

As a major invasive species in coastal China, Spartina alterniflora (S. alterniflora) has seriously threatened the ecological functions of coastal wetlands. Based on multisource high-precision geospatial data obtained by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the shape and distribution of S. alterniflora patches were extracted and analysed by using object-oriented classification and the landscape pattern index in this study. Considering microtopographic variations, the trend-surface subregions were delimited. In this way, we examined the relationship between S. alterniflora distribution and expansion and the variation in microtopography and tidal hydrology in the early invasion stage. The results showed that the microtopography silted up acceleration from land to sea, and the inundation time was reduced significantly in the study area for 2020–2022. In 2020, the average area of S. alterniflora patches showed a decreasing trend from land to sea. The distribution of patches on both sides of the sea and land was relatively concentrated and dispersed in the middle. By 2022, S. alterniflora presented a rapid expansion, with the total area expanding from 8488.57 m2 to 18470.72 m2. With the variation in microtopography, the characteristics of S. alterniflora patch expansion presented regional differences: Due to the small microtopographic and tidal hydrological variations, the patches fluctuated outwards slightly (average variation distance was 0.93 m) near the dike. The patches in the seaside front area had an annular expansion, and the expansion speed positively correlated with the area of the original patch. In the central region, the small patches merged and filled to form an S. alterniflora belt, while a large number of new small patches appeared. In general, the heterogeneous environment formed by microtopographic variations was conducive to the colonization and growth of S. alterniflora, but the excessive slope could inhibit expansion. This study will provide a theoretical basis for coastal ecological management and rapid control of S. alterniflora expansion.

The dataset presented contains microtopographies of various materials and processing methods. These microtopographies were measured using a Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope, which provides RGB-D data. This means the dataset comprises accurate height maps for each measurement and microscopic RGB images. The height maps can be used to quantify and characterize small-scale surface features such as pits and grooves, surface roughness, texture direction, and surface anisotropy. These features can significantly impact a material's properties and behavior, making them essential in many fields, such as biomaterials and tribology. Additionally, the dataset contains metadata about the specimens and the measurement conditions, such as material, surface processing method, roughness, and optical magnification. Therefore, this dataset provides an opportunity to develop and test surface classification and characterization algorithms.

Rapid surface and subsurface changes in the Arctic polygonal tundra landscapes due to the melting of ice wedges, known as thermokarst processes, have significant implications for Arctic ecosystems. However, the integration of thermokarst processes into widely used global climate models for projections poses an important question. Here we use an integrated permafrost thermal hydrology model to explore the decoupled nature of two thermokarst processes - microtopography evolution and ground subsidence - in six Arctic locations. Our study specifically investigates this decoupled nature during the transformation of poorly drained low-centered polygons to well-drained high-centered polygons. Spanning diverse climates in polygonal tundra landscapes under the RCP8.5 climate scenario, our findings reveal small variations in permafrost thaw and ground subsidence rates - 2-10 % and 2-4 %, respectively - with and without the representation of microtopography evolution. This suggests that neglecting surface microtopography and its evolution is unlikely to have significant impacts on permafrost projections, regardless of the climate and location. As a result, we suggest the representation of microtopography in Earth System Models may not be imperative. Disclaimer: Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Annual glacier melting alters hydrothermal conditions of the foreland alpine meadows, and causes significant fluctuations in methane (CH 4 ) flux. Previously we found that Tibetan glacier foreland alpine meadow shifts to CH 4 source from sink during the melting season, but the potential mechanisms remain unclear. This study, via combination of in-situ measurement of seasonal CH 4 flux and survey of microbial species that may involve in CH 4 metabolism, explores the causes of glacier melting on CH 4 flux in a glacier foreland alpine meadow on Tibetan Plateau. We determined a pronounced CH 4 emission (13.95 μg·m -2 ·h -1 ) in August (melting season) but CH 4 uptake in June (-3.76 μg·m -2 ·h -1 ) and October (-17.77 μg·m -2 ·h -1 ), and 1.4-fold higher soil moisture in August than the other two months. This showed a direct correlation of CH 4 flux with glacier melting increased soil water. Additionally, glacier melting caused more CH 4 fluxes increase in hollows than in hummocks. Amplicon sequencing determined 126-fold higher abundance of mcrA, the methanogenic marker gene, in August than in June and October, and a higher relative abundance of a fungal phylum Mortierellomycota and syntrophic bacteria that convert the fatty acids, the degradation intermediates of organic complexes to CO 2 and acetate, the methanogenic substrates like in August. However, no seasonal variation of pmoA, the marker gene of aerobic methanotrophs, was observed. It appears that glacier melting promotes the CH 4 producing but not the consuming microorganisms, thus leading to increased CH 4 emission. The findings of this work indicate that global warming resulted glacier melting would increase global CH 4 emissions, and in turn worsens global warming, so an alarming positive feedback loop., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Microtopography plays a critical role in road inundation during urban flood events. The microtopography in this paper was defined as terrain-scale features that encompass surface roughness, slope, road network and urban building layout. This paper aims to explore the mechanism of depression storage and road inundation under different microtopography. Simulations under 4 rainfall intensities (144.0- 182.88 mm/h) and 14 slope combinations (four transverse slope and five longitudinal slope) were implemented in an 800 by 70 cm local model. The correlation heat map directly reflected that longitudinal slope had higher influence on drainage than other factors. Then real topographical and hydrological data was applied to predict road inundation with five different extreme rainfall events in Jiangning District (Nanjing City, China). The microtopography characteristics of frequent inundation road were extracted, which further verified the conclusions of the local model. Results show that: the microtopography depressions drainage process could be divided into six main stages: filling stage, interaction stage, unstable drainage stage, stable flow stage, drainage stage and stage of drainage end. Water was stored on depressions of road, and the storage volume and discharge efficiency were affected by the surface relief and slope. The emergence of slope provided an altered path and power for water drainage. Only 0.3 % slope could contribute a 28.4 % to discharge efficiency. Upon comparation, the best combination for drainage was 2.0 % transverse slope with 3.0 % longitudinal slope. These findings provided meaningful insights and perspectives for urban flood hazard mitigation and were a more detailed reference for road design., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Hydrology and microtopography are important factors affecting the structure and function of wetland ecosystems and controlling plant community distribution and succession. This study aims to identify the effects of hydrology and microtopography on the structure and function of a wetland plant community. A field survey was conducted in Carex schmidtii tussock wetland. Vegetation was sampled in different microtopographic regions (hummock and interspaces) in three types of tussock wetlands with different hydrological conditions (i.e., droughty, seasonally flooded and long-term flooded). Relative importance value (RIV), species richness, diversity, dominance, as well as community similarity and productivity were calculated. We recorded a total of 52 species of plants, belonging to 21 families and 39 genera, in sample plots. Community ecological characteristics significantly differed under varying hydrological conditions and microtopographic regions. Drought decreased the dominance of the C. schmidtii community but increased the frequency of mesophytes. Species richness and diversity in seasonally and long-term flooded sites were significantly lower than droughty sites, while community dominance and productivity in these areas were significantly higher than in droughty sites. Biodiversity in hummocks was significantly lower than in interspaces, but with higher community dominance and productivity. In droughty sites, C. schmidtii on hummocks lost its dominance, resulting in higher community similarity between hummocks and interspaces. Conversely, in seasonally and long-term flooded sites, C. schmidtii on hummocks was absolutely dominant with RIV of 77.0 ± 2.78% and low community similarity between hummocks and interspaces. Moreover, hummock community structure was more similar to that of the overall community, and C. schmidtii biomass in hummocks was the main source of community productivity, indicating the supporting effects of hummocks on community structure. In conclusion, hydrology and microtopography jointly affect the plant community. Attention should be paid to the protection and maintenance of hummock structure and the dominance of C. schmidtii communities in tussock wetland conservation and management., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

After cardiovascular injury, numerous pathological processes adversely impact the homeostatic function of cardiomyocyte, macrophage, fibroblast, endothelial cell, and vascular smooth muscle cell populations. Subsequent malfunctioning of these cells may further contribute to cardiovascular disease onset and progression. By modulating cellular responses after injury, it is possible to create local environments that promote wound healing and tissue repair mechanisms. The extracellular matrix continuously provides these mechanosensitive cell types with physical cues spanning the micro- and nanoscale to influence behaviors such as adhesion, morphology, and phenotype. It is therefore becoming increasingly compelling to harness these cell-substrate interactions to elicit more native cell behaviors that impede cardiovascular disease progression and enhance regenerative potential. This review discusses recent in vitro and preclinical work that have demonstrated the therapeutic implications of micro- and nanoscale biophysical cues on cell types adversely affected in cardiovascular diseases - cardiomyocytes, macrophages, fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and vascular smooth muscle cells., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as important nano-cargo carriers for cell-cell communication, yet how biophysical factors regulate EV-mediated signaling is not well understood. Here we show that microgrooves can modulate the morphology of endothelial cells (ECs), and regulate the phenotype of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) through EVs in co-culture. Elongated ECs, in comparison with polygonal ECs, increased the expression of contractile markers in SMCs. Depletion of EVs in the culture medium abolished this effect. Further analysis demonstrated that elongated ECs significantly upregulated miR-143/miR-145, leading to the increase of these microRNAs in EC-secreted EVs that were transferred to SMCs under a co-culture condition. Inhibition of EV secretion from ECs abolished the EC-SMC communication and the increased expression of SMC contractile markers. Moreover, electrospun nano-fibrous scaffolds with aligned fibers had the same effects as microgrooves to induce EC secretion of EVs to regulate SMC phenotypic marker expression. These results demonstrate that micro and nano materials can be used to engineer cell morphology and regulate EV secretion for cell-cell communication, which will have significant implications in the engineering of blood vessels and other tissues. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: By manipulating EC morphology with micro/nano materials, we show that EV-mediated signaling can regulate SMC phenotypic marker expression. This is a very thorough and unique study to demonstrate the function of extracellular vesicles (EVs) as important nano-carriers in cell-cell communication. The originality of this study is to demonstrate that EC morphology modulates the phenotype of smooth muscle cells via extracellular vesicles enclosing miR143/miR145. These findings underscore the important role of biophysical changes in cell-cell communications, and provide a rational basis for engineering micro/nano materials to control cell-cell communications for cell and tissue engineering., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors report no commercial or proprietary interest in any product or concept discussed in this article., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Biogeomorphological processes and structures (BPS) can affect plant growth and community structure and promote landscape complexity in ecosystems. However, there is a lack of understanding of how BPS facilitates seedling establishment and distribution of annual plants and promotes the success of coastal restoration. We studied the relationships between seedling establishment of a native annual plant species (Suaeda salsa) and BPS resulting from crabs and plants in a middle elevation salt marsh with moderate tides (where inhabited generally high density of plants and crabs) in the Yellow River Delta of China. While there were many crabs but fewer plants in lower elevation areas with more frequent and stronger tides; and in higher elevation areas with weaker tides there were both fewer crabs and plants. Investigations and field manipulation experiments of microtopography, crabs and plants were conducted to determine if and how these BPS influenced seedling establishment and distribution under tidal influence in the middle elevation salt marshes. Results demonstrated that biogeomorphological structures, mainly concave hollows generated by crab burrowing and concave hollows around plant roots and stems under tidal influence, were associated with the trapping of seeds and influenced the establishment and distribution of seedlings. Additionally, upon senescence, maternal plants with unreleased seeds lodged on the ground and influenced seed retention and seedling establishment. The artificial concave hollows that were created experimentally also trapped many seeds and facilitated seedling establishment. Experimental plantings and creation of artificial hollow microtopography attracted crabs that created burrows, resulting in a positive feedback on seedling establishment. We used information obtained from the experimental component of the study to conduct a hollow microtopography manipulation to successfully restore degraded salt marshes. Understanding the associations between seedling establishment and biogeomorphological processes provides important insights for the utilization of natural or human ecosystem engineering to restore coastal vegetation ecosystems., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding publication of this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Extreme climatic conditions are major drivers of ecosystem function and dynamics and their frequency is increasing under climate change. Climatic conditions interact with local microtopography, which might either buffer or exacerbate the degree of climatic stress. Here we sought to understand how extremely dry growing seasons affected the composition and productivity of desert ephemeral communities growing in sand dunes from the Gurbantunggut desert in Central Asia, and to which extent did microtopography modulate the response. We set up a rainfall manipulation study on four sand dune microtopographies and, during two consecutive years, we measured soil moisture, nutrients and texture, ephemeral layer composition, plant phenology, biomass accumulation and biomass allocation patterns for the dominant species. We observed significant biomass reductions during the extreme drought but plant community richness and composition were not affected, indicating that the composition of the ephemeral layer in this desert ecosystem may resist under extreme conditions. Additionally, extreme drought increased biomass allocation to reproductive organs of the dominant species. There were also significant microtopographic effects as the sensitivity of biomass to drought in western aspects was larger than in eastern aspects. Our results indicate that previously overlooked microtopographical differences may mediate the impact of climate change on plant communities., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Despite microsurgical repair, recovery of function following peripheral nerve injury is slow and often incomplete. Outcomes could be improved by an increased understanding of the molecular biology of regeneration and by translation of experimental bioengineering strategies. Topographical cues have been shown to be powerful regulators of the rate and directionality of neurite regeneration, and in this study we investigated the downstream molecular effects of linear micropatterned structures in an organotypic explant model. Linear topographical cues enhanced neurite outgrowth and our results demonstrated that the mTOR pathway is important in regulating these responses. mTOR gene expression peaked between 48 and 72h, coincident with the onset of rapid neurite outgrowth and glial migration, and correlated with neurite length at 48h. mTOR protein was located to glia and in a punctate distribution along neurites. mTOR levels peaked at 72h and were significantly increased by patterned topography (p<0.05). Furthermore, the topographical cues could override pharmacological inhibition. Downstream phosphorylation assays and inhibition of mTORC1 using rapamycin highlighted mTORC2 as an important mediator, and more specific therapeutic target. Quantitative immunohistochemistry confirmed the presence of the mTORC2 component rictor at the regenerating front where it co-localised with F-actin and vinculin. Collectively, these results provide a deeper understanding of the mechanism of action of topography on neural regeneration, and support the incorporation of topographical patterning in combination with pharmacological mTORC2 potentiation within biomaterial constructs used to repair peripheral nerves., Statement of Significance: Peripheral nerve injury is common and functionally devastating. Despite microsurgical repair, healing is slow and incomplete, with lasting functional deficit. There is a clear need to translate bioengineering approaches and increase our knowledge of the molecular processes controlling nerve regeneration to improve the rate and success of healing. Topographical cues are powerful determinants of neurite outgrowth and represent a highly translatable engineering strategy. Here we demonstrate, for the first time, that microtopography potentiates neurite outgrowth via the mTOR pathway, with the mTORC2 subtype being of particular importance. These results give further evidence for the incorporation of microtopographical cues into peripheral nerve regeneration conduits and indicate that mTORC2 may be a suitable therapeutic target to potentiate nerve regeneration., (Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Micro- and nano-topographies of scaffold surfaces play a pivotal role in tissue engineering applications, influencing cell behavior such as adhesion, orientation, alignment, morphology and proliferation. In this study, a novel microfabrication method based on the combination of soft-lithography and electrospinning for the production of micro-patterned electrospun scaffolds was proposed. Subsequently, a 3D screening device for electrospun meshes with different micro-topographies was designed, fabricated and biologically validated. Results indicated that the use of defined patterns could induce specific morphological variations in human mesenchymal stem cell cytoskeletal organization, which could be related to differential activity of signaling pathways., Statement of Significance: We introduce a novel and time saving method to fabricate 3D micropatterns with controlled micro-architectures on electrospun meshes using a custom made collector and a PDMS mold with the desired topography. A possible application of this fabrication technique is represented by a 3D screening system for patterned electrospun meshes that allows the screening of different scaffold/electrospun parameters on cell activity. In addition, what we have developed in this study could be modularly applied to existing platforms. Considering the different patterned geometries, the cell morphological data indicated a change in the cytoskeletal organization with a close correspondence to the patterns, as shown by phenoplot and boxplot analysis, and might hint at the differential activity of cell signaling. The 3D screening system proposed in this study could be used to evaluate topographies favoring cell alignment, proliferation and functional performance, and has the potential to be upscaled for high-throughput., (Copyright © 2017 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The ability to control the behavior of stem cells provides crucial benefits, for example, in tissue engineering and toxicity/drug screening, which utilize the stem cell's capacity to engineer new tissues for regenerative purposes and the testing of new drugs in vitro. Recently, surface topography has been shown to influence stem cell differentiation; however, general trends are often difficult to establish due to differences in length scales, surface chemistries and detailed surface topographies. Here we apply a highly versatile screening approach to analyze the interplay of surface topographical parameters on cell attachment, morphology, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal dental-pulp-derived stem cells (DPSCs) cultured with and without osteogenic differentiation factors in the medium (ODM). Increasing the inter-pillar gap size from 1 to 6 μm for surfaces with small pillar sizes of 1 and 2 μm resulted in decreased proliferation and in more elongated cells with long pseudopodial protrusions. The same alterations of pillar topography, up to an inter-pillar gap size of 4 μm, also resulted in enhanced mineralization of DPSCs cultured without ODM, while no significant trend was observed for DPSCs cultured with ODM. Generally, cells cultured without ODM had a larger deposition of osteogenic markers on structured surfaces relative to the unstructured surfaces than what was found when culturing with ODM. We conclude that the topographical design of biomaterials can be optimized for the regulation of DPSC differentiation and speculate that the inclusion of ODM alters the ability of the cells to sense surface topographical cues. These results are essential in order to transfer the use of this highly proliferative, easily accessible stem cell into the clinic for use in cell therapy and regenerative medicine., (Copyright © 2013 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Although tissue engineered skin substitutes have demonstrated some clinical success for the treatment of chronic wounds such as diabetic and venous ulcers, persistent graft take and stability remain concerns. Current bilayered skin substitutes lack the characteristic microtopography of the dermal-epidermal junction that gives skin enhanced mechanical stability and creates cellular microniches that differentially promote keratinocyte function to form skin appendages and enhance wound healing. We developed a novel micropatterned dermal-epidermal regeneration matrix (μDERM) which incorporates this complex topography and substantially enhances epidermal morphology. Here, we describe the use of this three-dimensional (3-D) in vitro culture model to systematically evaluate different topographical geometries and to determine their relationship to keratinocyte function. We identified three distinct keratinocyte functional niches: the proliferative niche (narrow geometries), the basement membrane protein synthesis niche (wide geometries) and the putative keratinocyte stem cell niche (narrow geometries and corners). Specifically, epidermal thickness and keratinocyte proliferation is significantly (p<0.05) increased in 50 and 100 μm channels while laminin-332 deposition is significantly (p<0.05) increased in 400 μm channels compared to flat controls. Additionally, β1(bri)p63(+) keratinocytes, putative keratinocyte stem cells, preferentially cluster in channel geometries (similar to clustering observed in native skin) compared to a random distribution on flats. This study identifies specific target geometries to enhance skin regeneration and graft performance. Furthermore, these results suggest the importance of μDERM microtopography in designing the next generation of skin substitutes. Finally, we anticipate that 3-D organotypic cultures on μDERMS will provide a novel tissue engineered skin substitute for in vitro investigations of skin morphogenesis, wound healing and pathology., (Copyright © 2013 Acta Materialia Inc. All rights reserved.)