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[Objective] Regional carbon storage is closely related to land use. Under the goal of “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality”, researches about land use change calculations in significant regions play an important role on coordinating and optimizing regional land use patterns, improving the future carbon sequestration potential of regional ecosystems. [Methods] Taking Western Sichuan Plateau as the study area this paper predicts land use changes under different scenarios from 2020 to 2030, and estimates regional carbon storage changes by using revised land use carbon density data and land use data in 2000, 2010 and 2020. [Results] (1) From 2000 to 2020, grassland gradually decreased from 65.20% to 63.65%, forest continuously expanded from 31.73% to 32.92%, unused land firstly decreased and then increased and the net increase rate is 0.57%, water area and farmland firstly increased and then decreased and their net decrease rate is 0.11% and 0.11%, wetlands continued to increase by 0.07%; The carbon reserves of the study area in 2000, 2010 and 2020 were 24.26×108, 24.29×108, 24.27×108 t, showing a trend of first increasing and then decreasing.(2) Carbon storage reduced 3.19×105 t under natural development scenario. Under farmland protection scenario, ecological protection scenario, and farmland ecological joint protection scenario, their carbon sequestration will be respectively 4.29×106, 9.72×106, 9.60×106 t. [Conclusion] Reversing the increasing trend of unused land, continuing to steadily implement ecological protection policies with maintaining the cultivated land area, improving the carbon sequestration potential, and helping the Western Sichuan Plateau become an important “carbon sink” area should become the key points of land spatial planning and control on the Western Sichuan Plateau.

Since the 21st century, China’s urban construction land has been growing rapidly, piquing academic interest. However, mountainous counties account for the majority in China, previous studies have concentrated on the horizontal expansion characteristics of construction land, leaving a gap in the vertical expansion. This study used datasets for urban construction land and digital elevation model to analyze the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of construction land slope in 2670 China’s counties, by exploratory spatial data analysis. Furtherly, we explored the slope relationship between ground and construction land using regression analysis. The findings indicate what follows: (1) The average slope of construction land had a spatial pattern of “high in the south and low in the north,” with significant spatial agglomeration characteristics. And it had increased with the urban expansion, shifting the slope-weighted mean center toward the southeast while enhancing spatial agglomeration. (2) There was a significant and steadily rising linear association between the urban construction land slope and ground slope, due to spatial heterogeneity; the most affected counties were primarily located near the Sichuan basin. According to the results, we provided suggestions for the rational use and sustainable development of land in cities, especially for mountainous regions in a period of rapid urbanization.

Anthropogenic activities have raised cadmium (Cd) concentrations in agricultural soil, emerging as a primary catalyst for the decline in crop yield. Intercropping of two or several plants is one technique among many Cd phytoremediation techniques that has gained enormous attention recently. However, the impact of cultivation modes on Cd movement in rice plants when intercropped with heavy metal (HM) hyperaccumulator plants remains unclear. Thus, this study was designed to explore the effects of cultivation modes and the intercropping of rice with Solanum nigrum L. on rice growth and Cd uptake in Cd-contaminated soil. The experimental design encompassed five treatments: dry cultivation of monocultured rice, monocultured Solanum nigrum L., and intercropped rice–Solanum nigrum L.; flood cultivation of monocultured rice; and intercropped rice–Solanum nigrum L. in a high-bed and low-ditch planting system. The results revealed a significant increase in rice growth when intercropped with Solanum nigrum L., with a notable increase of 18.32 g∙plant−1 observed in rice biomass in dry cultivation under the intercropping system. In contrast, a more modest increase of 3.67 g∙plant−1 was observed in the high-bed and low-ditch intercropped rice–Solanum nigrum L. mode. The soil total Cd was higher in dry cultivation of monocultured rice and Solanum nigrum L. compared to intercropped rice/Solanum nigrum L.-cultivated soil, with lower values recorded for intercropped rice/Solanum nigrum L. under the high-bed and low-ditch planting system. In contrast, no significant effect was noted on soil exchangeable Cd content based on the planting pattern and cultivation mode. Intercropping with Solanum nigrum L. demonstrated a significant reduction of Cd content in various rice tissues, particularly in roots at the maturity stage, while Cd content was reduced across all rice tissues under the high-bed and low-ditch planting system. The Cd content in the stem, leaves, and bran of monocropped rice was higher compared to intercropped rice. This study suggests that the rice–Solanum nigrum L. intercropping system effectively reduces rice Cd uptake, particularly under the high-bed and low-ditch planting system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Sigma-1 receptor (Sig-1R), a chaperone that resides at the mitochondrion-associated endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane, is an ER stress biomarker. It is thought that ER stress plays a critical role in the progression of metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). The aim of this study was to evaluate a positron emission tomography (PET) tracer [18F]F-TZ3108 targeting Sig-1R for MAFLD. Procedures: The mouse model of MAFLD was established by feeding high-fat diet (HFD) for 12 weeks. Dynamic (0–60 min) PET/CT scans were performed after intravenous injection of 2-deoxy-2[18F]fluoro-D-glucose ([18F]-FDG) and [18F]F-TZ3108. Tracer kinetic modeling was performed for quantification of the PET/CT imaging of the liver. Post-PET biodistribution, the liver tissue western blotting (WB), and immunofluorescence (IF) were performed to compare the expression of Sig-1R levels in the organs harvested from both MAFLD and age-matched control mice. Results: The micro PET/CT imaging revealed a significantly decreased uptake of [18F]F-TZ3108 in the livers of the MAFLD group compared to the healthy controls, while the uptake of [18F]-FDG in the livers was not significantly different between the two groups. Based on the tracer kinetic modeling, the binding disassociate rate (k4) for [18F]F-TZ3108 was significantly increased in MAFLD group compared to healthy controls. The volume distribution (VT), and the non-displacement binding potential (BPND) revealed significantly decrease in MAFLD compared to healthy controls respectively. The post-PET biodistribution (%ID/g) of [18F]F-TZ3108 in the livers of MAFLD mice was significantly reduced nearly twofold than that in the livers of control mice. WB and IF experiments further confirmed the reduction of Sig-1R expression in the MAFLD group. Conclusions: The expression of Sig-1R in the liver, measured by the PET tracer, [18F]F-TZ3108, was significantly decreased in mouse model of MAFLD. The [18F]F-TZ3108 PET/CT imaging may provide a novel means of visualization for ER stress in MAFLD or other diseases in vivo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]