Search

Landscape fragmentation affected the structure and function of the ecosystem, resulting in an impact on ecosystem service value (ESV). This paper analyzed the correlation between landscape fragmentation and ESV using land-use data from northern Shaanxi covering three periods from 2000 to 2020. The paper employed the granularity deduction method, spatial autocorrelation analysis, and value equivalent method to study the fragmentation characteristics of the regional landscape and the spatial-temporal evolution of ESV. The research findings indicated that the optimal granularity was 150 m, and the amplitude was 5 km × 5 km. The study found that the degree of landscape fragmentation was positively correlated with patch density (PD), division index (DIVISION), and Shannon's diversity index (SHDI), while negatively correlated with the largest patch index (LPI), patch cohesion index (COHESION), and effective mesh size (MESH). Moreover, the total ESV in the study area showed a decreasing trend, with grass, forest, and cultivated land being the three land-use types that contributed the most value. The analysis indicated that there was a negative correlation between the degree of landscape fragmentation and ESV. As the degree of landscape fragmentation increased, ESV decreased. The correlation between landscape fragmentation and ESV discussed in this paper provided valuable insights into the optimal utilization and sustainable development of regional land resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Tumor heterogeneity plays essential roles in developing cancer therapies, including therapies for breast cancer (BC). In addition, it is also very important to understand the relationships between tumor microenvironments and the systematic immune environment. Methods: Here, we performed single-cell, VDJ sequencing and spatial transcriptome analyses on tumor and adjacent normal tissue as well as axillar lymph nodes (LNs) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 8 BC patients. Results: We found that myeloid cells exhibited environment-dependent plasticity, where a group of macrophages with both M1 and M2 signatures possessed high tumor specificity spatially and was associated with worse patient survival. Cytotoxic T cells in tumor sites evolved in a separate path from those in the circulatory system. T cell receptor (TCR) repertoires in metastatic LNs showed significant higher consistency with TCRs in tumor than those in nonmetastatic LNs and PBMCs, suggesting the existence of common neo-antigens across metastatic LNs and primary tumor cites. In addition, the immune environment in metastatic LNs had transformed into a tumor-like status, where pro-inflammatory macrophages and exhausted T cells were upregulated, accompanied by a decrease in B cells and neutrophils. Finally, cell interactions showed that cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) contributed most to shaping the immune-suppressive microenvironment, while CD8+ cells were the most signal-responsive cells. Conclusions: This study revealed the cell structures of both micro- and macroenvironments, revealed how different cells diverged in related contexts as well as their prognostic capacities, and displayed a landscape of cell interactions with spatial information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Vegetation restoration practices play an important role in environmental management and could mitigate soil and water losses in the Chinese Loess Plateau. The main objective of this study was to ascertain the influence of vegetation durations on soil infiltration rate and other related soil properties. Undisturbed soil columns in triplicate from the same plot, with different locations, were collected to estimate the accumulated soil infiltration over different vegetation periods (9, 15, and 25 years) of grassland and forestland at different time intervals. The highest cumulative infiltration and wet front movement speed was recorded after 25 years of grassland and increased with the vegetation restoration duration. Low root biomass density (g cm−3) and soil organic matter (g kg−1) were recorded in the 9-year plantation of forestland and grassland; however, maximum root biomass densities of 1.614 ± 0.95 mg cm−3 and 0.938 ± 0.03 mg cm−3 were recorded after 25 years of forestland and grassland. Furthermore, root images scanner analysis showed that the 25 years of grassland has higher root length density and root surface area density of 5.917 ± 0.86 cm cm−3 and 2.058 ± 0.95 cm2 cm−3 at surface and subsurface soil layers. We therefore suggest that for revegetation periods of less than 25 years, grassland would be better for soil infiltration and related soil properties particularly in areas of the Chinese Loess Plateau.Graphical abstract: [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]