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Based on the situation and progress of marine oil/gas exploration in the Sichuan Basin, SW China, the whole petroleum system is divided for marine carbonate rocks of the basin according to the combinations of hydrocarbon accumulation elements, especially the source rock. The hydrocarbon accumulation characteristics of each whole petroleum system are analyzed, the patterns of integrated conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon accumulation are summarized, and the favorable exploration targets are proposed. Under the control of multiple extensional-convergent tectonic cycles, the marine carbonate rocks of the Sichuan Basin contain three sets of regional source rocks and three sets of regional cap rocks, and can be divided into the Cambrian, Silurian and Permian whole petroleum systems. These whole petroleum systems present mainly independent hydrocarbon accumulation, containing natural gas of affinity individually. Locally, large fault zones run through multiple whole petroleum systems, forming a fault-controlled complex whole petroleum system. The hydrocarbon accumulation sequence of continental shelf facies shale gas accumulation, marginal platform facies-controlled gas reservoirs, and intra-platform fault- and facies-controlled gas reservoirs is common in the whole petroleum system, with a stereoscopic accumulation and orderly distribution pattern. High-quality source rock is fundamental to the formation of large gas fields, and natural gas in a whole petroleum system is generally enriched near and within the source rocks. The development and maintenance of large-scale reservoirs are essential for natural gas enrichment, multiple sources, oil and gas transformation, and dynamic adjustment are the characteristics of marine petroleum accumulation, and good preservation conditions are critical to natural gas accumulation. Large-scale marginal-platform reef-bank facies zones, deep shale gas, and large-scale lithological complexes related to source-connected faults are future marine hydrocarbon exploration targets in the Sichuan Basin.

Abstract Gene editing is a growing gene engineering technique that allows accurate editing of a broad spectrum of gene‐regulated diseases to achieve curative treatment and also has the potential to be used as an adjunct to the conventional treatment of diseases. Gene editing technology, mainly based on clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats (CRISPR)–CRISPR‐associated protein systems, which is capable of generating genetic modifications in somatic cells, provides a promising new strategy for gene therapy for a wide range of human diseases. Currently, gene editing technology shows great application prospects in a variety of human diseases, not only in therapeutic potential but also in the construction of animal models of human diseases. This paper describes the application of gene editing technology in hematological diseases, solid tumors, immune disorders, ophthalmological diseases, and metabolic diseases; focuses on the therapeutic strategies of gene editing technology in sickle cell disease; provides an overview of the role of gene editing technology in the construction of animal models of human diseases; and discusses the limitations of gene editing technology in the treatment of diseases, which is intended to provide an important reference for the applications of gene editing technology in the human disease.

Abstract Indonesia faces significant air quality issues due to multiple emissions sources, including rapid urbanization and peatland fires associated with agricultural land management. Limited prior research has estimated the episodic shock of intense fires on morbidity and mortality in Indonesia but has largely ignored the impact of poor air quality throughout the year on biomarkers of cardiovascular disease risk. We conducted a cross‐sectional study of the association between particulate matter less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5) and blood pressure. Blood pressure measurements were obtained from the fifth wave of the Indonesian Family Life Survey (IFLS5), an ongoing population‐based socioeconomic and health survey. We used the GEOS‐Chem chemical transport model to simulate daily PM2.5 concentrations at 0.5° × 0.625° resolution across the IFLS domain. We assessed the association between PM2.5 and diastolic and systolic blood pressure, using mixed effects models with random intercepts for regency/municipality and household and adjusted for individual covariates. An interquartile range increase in monthly PM2.5 exposure was associated with a 0.234 (95% CI: 0.003, 0.464) higher diastolic blood pressure, with a greater association seen in participants age 65 and over (1.16 [95% CI: 0.24, 2.08]). For the same exposure metric, there was a 1.90 (95% CI: 0.43, 3.37) higher systolic blood pressure in participants 65 and older. Our assessment of fire‐specific PM2.5 yielded null results, potentially due to the timing and locations of health data collection. To our knowledge, this is the first study to provide evidence for an association between PM2.5 and blood pressure in Indonesia.

Abstract In this study, detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology, trace element and Hf isotopic compositional data from the Early-Middle Triassic clastic rocks in the eastern Sichuan Basin were obtained to distinguish the sediment provenance and constrain the timing of the initial collision between the South China and North China blocks. Detrital zircons from the Early Triassic Feixianguan Formation clastic rocks yield one major age peak at 2476 Ma and three minor age peaks at 1886, 802 and 304 Ma. These detrital zircons may be derived from the South China Block. Detrital zircons from the Early Triassic Jialingjiang Formation clastic rocks yield multiple age peaks at 979, 856, 392 and 269 Ma, indicating a mixed sediment provenance from the South China Block and Qinling Orogenic Belt. This is the first appearance of the detritus with the Qinling Orogenic Belt affinity in the eastern Sichuan Basin. Detrital zircons from the Middle Triassic Leikoupo Formation clastic rocks yield two centralized age peaks at 447 and ca. 245 Ma. These zircons may mainly be derived from the Qinling Orogenic Belt. The results indicate an abrupt change in the detrital zircon U–Pb provenance from the South China Block to the Qinling Orogenic Belt during the Early-Middle Triassic. Integrating the provenance change and other geological characteristics, we suggest that the initial collision in the eastern Qinling Orogenic Belt occurred in the Early Triassic.

The hydrothermal dolomitization, facilitated by basement fault activities, had an important impact on the Permian Maokou Formation dolomite in the Sichuan Basin, which experienced complex diagenesis and presented strong reservoir heterogeneity. The source and age of diagenetic fluids in this succession remain controversial. In this study, various analyses were implemented on samples collected from outcrops and wells near the No. 15 fault in the eastern Sichuan Basin to reconstruct the multi-stage fluid activity and analyze the impact on reservoir development, including petrology, micro-domain isotopes, rare earth elements, homogenization temperature of fluid inclusions, and Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) U-Pb dating. The homogenization temperature of primary brine inclusions in fine-grained matrix dolomite and saddle dolomite is concentrated between 100 and 150 °C, which indicates that the impacts of abnormally high temperatures of other geological bodies. The δ13C and δ18O value and low 87Sr/86Sr value indicate that the diagenetic fluid of fine-grained matrix dolomite is mainly Permian seawater. The U-Pb ages of fine-grained matrix dolomite are ~260 Ma, which coincides with the age of the main magmatism of Emeishan Large Igneous Province (ELIP), and hydrothermal fluid provided a favorable high-temperature environment in the penecontemporaneous stage. While highly radiogenic 87Sr/86Sr compositions suggests those of saddle dolomite, the high-temperature Sr-rich formation fluid. The U-Pb ages of saddle dolomite are 245–250 Ma, which coincides with the age of the 255~251 Ma magmatism of ELIP. This indicates that those should be the diagenetic products of the ELIP hydrothermal fluid in the shallow burial stage. The U-Pb age of coarse-grained calcite is 190–220 Ma, and it should be the diagenetic product of the deep burial stage. Brine inclusions associated with primary methane inclusions were developed in coarse-grained calcite, with a homogenization temperature range of 140.8–199.8 °C, which indicates that the formation fluid activities were related to hydrocarbon charging. The Permian Maokou Formation dolomite was firstly formed in the penecontemporaneous shallow burial stage, and then it was subjected to further hydrothermal dolomitization due to the basement faulting and the abnormally high heat flow during the active period of ELIP. Hydrothermal dolomitization contributed to the formation and maintenance of intercrystalline and dissolution pores, whereas it also formed saddle dolomite to fill the pores, and reduce the pore space. The influence of deep fluid activities on reservoir evolution is further distinguished.

Nuclear factor Ys (NF-Ys) are heterotrimeric transcription factors that specifically bind to CCAAT boxes present in numerous eukaryotic promoters. In plants, NF-Y proteins consist of the following three subunits: NF-YA, NF-YB, and NF-YC, each encoded by a gene family. Accumulating evidence underscores the crucial roles of NF-Y proteins in various plant development processes and stress responses, such as embryogenesis, flowering time control, drought tolerance, and heat tolerance. Despite this, a comprehensive genome-wide overview of the NF-Y gene family in strawberries is lacking. To bridge this gap, this study was conducted to identify and characterize the NF-Ys in Fragaria vesca. The investigation revealed the presence of six NF-YA, twelve NF-YB, and five NF-YC members in F. vesca. Furthermore, a comprehensive analysis of the FveNF-Ys was performed, including their phylogenetic relationships, gene structures, chromosomal locations, and conserved domains. MiRNA target site prediction found that there were 30 miRNA target sites in 12 (52.2%) FveNF-Y genes. Additionally, the expression profiles of different tissues and developmental stages demonstrated tissue-specific expression patterns among certain members of each NF-Y subfamily. This observation suggests that specific NF-Y subfamily members may play unique roles in different tissues or stages of development. Furthermore, the transient expression assay demonstrated that three selected FveNF-Ys were localized in the nucleus. Our study represents a pioneering effort in the systemic analyses of FveNF-Y genes and will be useful in understanding the functional characterization of NF-Y genes in Fragaria species.

Abstract The COVID lockdown presented an interesting opportunity to study the anthropogenic emissions from different sectors under relatively cleaner conditions in India. The complex interplays of power production, industry, and transport could be dissected due to the significantly reduced influence of the latter two emission sources. Here, based on measurements of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) activity and chemical composition of atmospheric aerosols during the lockdown, we report an episodic event resulting from distinct meteorological conditions. This event was marked by rapid growth and high hygroscopicity of new aerosol particles formed in the SO2 plume from a large coal-fired power plant in Southern India. These sulfate-rich particles had high CCN activity and number concentration, indicating high cloud-forming potential. Examining the sensitivity of CCN properties under relatively clean conditions provides important new clues to delineate the contributions of different anthropogenic emission sectors and further to understand their perturbations of past and future climate forcing.

There are many gynecological diseases, among which breast cancer (BC), cervical cancer (CC), endometriosis (EMs), and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are common and difficult to cure. Stem cells (SCs) are a focus of regenerative medicine. They are commonly used to treat organ damage and difficult diseases because of their potential for self-renewal and multidirectional differentiation. SCs are also commonly used for difficult-to-treat gynecological diseases because of their strong directional differentiation ability with unlimited possibilities, their tendency to adhere to the diseased tissue site, and their use as carriers for drug delivery. SCs can produce exosomes in a paracrine manner. Exosomes can be produced in large quantities and have the advantage of easy storage. Their safety and efficacy are superior to those of SCs, which have considerable potential in gynecological treatment, such as inhibiting endometrial senescence, promoting vascular reconstruction, and improving anti-inflammatory and immune functions. In this paper, we review the mechanisms of the regenerative and anti-inflammatory capacity of SCs and exosomes in incurable gynecological diseases and the current progress in their application in genetic engineering to provide a foundation for further research.

Abstract In the United States, citizens and policymakers heavily rely upon Environmental Protection Agency mandated regulatory networks to monitor air pollution; increasingly they also depend on low‐cost sensor networks to supplement spatial gaps in regulatory monitor networks coverage. Although these regulatory and low‐cost networks in tandem provide enhanced spatiotemporal coverage in urban areas, low‐cost sensors are located often in higher income, predominantly White areas. Such disparity in coverage may exacerbate existing inequalities and impact the ability of different communities to respond to the threat of air pollution. Here we present a study using cost‐constrained multiresolution dynamic mode decomposition (mrDMDcc) to identify the optimal and equitable placement of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) sensors in four U.S. cities with histories of racial or income segregation: St. Louis, Houston, Boston, and Buffalo. This novel approach incorporates the variation of PM2.5 on timescales ranging from 1 day to over a decade to capture air pollution variability. We also introduce a cost function into the sensor placement optimization that represents the balance between our objectives of capturing PM2.5 extremes and increasing pollution monitoring in low‐income and nonwhite areas. We find that the mrDMDcc algorithm places a greater number of sensors in historically low‐income and nonwhite neighborhoods with known environmental pollution problems compared to networks using PM2.5 information alone. Our work provides a roadmap for the creation of equitable sensor networks in U.S. cities and offers a guide for democratizing air pollution data through increasing spatial coverage of low‐cost sensors in less privileged communities.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the primary cause of death in humans. Atherosclerosis (AS) is the most common CVD and a major cause of many CVD-related fatalities. AS has numerous risk factors and complex pathogenesis, and while it has long been a research focus, most mechanisms underlying its progression remain unknown. Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) represent an important focus in epigenetics studies and are critical biological regulators that form a complex network of gene regulation. Abnormal ncRNA expression disrupts the normal function of tissues or cells, leading to disease development. A large body of evidence suggests that ncRNAs are involved in all stages of atherosclerosis, from initiation to progression, and that some are significantly differentially expressed during AS development, suggesting that they may be powerful markers for screening AS or potential treatment targets. Here, we review the role of ncRNAs in AS development and recent developments in the use of ncRNAs for AS-targeted therapy, providing evidence for ncRNAs as diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets.

We quantify the air quality and health impacts of Indian crop residue burning and trace these impacts back to individual burning events by hour and district. We find that small interventions, such as burning one hour earlier in the day, may provide broad public health benefits

Abstract Extreme smog in India widely impacts air quality in late autumn and winter months. While the links between emissions, air quality and health impacts are well‐recognized, the association of smog and its intensification with climatic trends in the lower troposphere, where aerosol pollution and its radiative effects manifest, are not understood well. Here we use long‐term satellite data to show a significant increase in aerosol exceedances over northern India, resulting in sustained atmospheric warming and surface cooling trends over the last two decades. We find several lines of evidence suggesting these aerosol radiative effects have induced a multidecadal (1980–2019) strengthening of lower tropospheric stability and increase in relative humidity, leading to over fivefold increase in poor visibility days. Given this crucial aerosol‐radiation‐meteorological feedback driving the smog intensification, results from this study would help inform mitigation strategies supporting stronger region‐wide measures, which are critical for solving the smog challenge in India.

Abstract Smoke from wildfires presents one of the greatest threats to air quality, public health, and ecosystems in the United States, especially in the West. Here we quantify the efficacy of prescribed burning as an intervention for mitigating smoke exposure downwind of wildfires across the West during the 2018 and 2020 fire seasons. Using the adjoint of the GEOS‐Chem chemical transport model, we calculate the sensitivities of population‐weighted smoke concentrations in receptor regions, including states and rural environmental justice communities, to fire emissions upwind of the receptors. We find that the population‐weighted smoke exposure across the West during the September 2020 fires was 44 μg/m3 but would have been 20%–30% greater had these wildfires occurred in October or November. We further simulate a set of prescribed burn scenarios and find that controlled burning interventions in northern California and the Pacific Northwest could have reduced the population‐weighted smoke exposure across the western United States by 21 μg/m3 in September 2020, while doing so in all other states would have reduced smoke exposure by only 1.5 μg/m3. Satellite records of large, prescribed burns (>1,000 acres, or 4 km2) reveal that northern California and western Oregon conducted only seven such prescribed fires over a 6‐year period (2015–2020), even though these regions have a disproportionate impact on smoke exposure for rural environmental justice communities and population centers across the West. Our analysis suggests that prioritizing northern California and the Pacific Northwest for prescribed burns might mitigate future smoke exposure.

Ongoing research is gradually broadening the idea of cancer treatment, with attention being focused on nanoparticles to improve the stability, therapeutic efficacy, targeting, and other important metrics of conventional drugs and traditional drug delivery methods. Studies have demonstrated that drug delivery carriers based on biomaterials (e.g., protein nanoparticles and lipids) and inorganic materials (e.g., metal nanoparticles) have potential anticancer effects. Among these carriers, self-assembled proteins and peptides, which are highly biocompatible and easy to standardize and produce, are strong candidates for the preparation of anticancer drugs. Breast cancer (BC) and cervical cancer (CC) are two of the most common and deadly cancers in women. These cancers not only threaten lives globally but also put a heavy burden on the healthcare system. Despite advances in medical care, the incidence of these two cancers, particularly CC, which is almost entirely preventable, continues to rise, and the mortality rate remains steady. Therefore, there is still a need for in-depth research on these two cancers to develop more targeted, efficacious, and safe therapies. This paper reviews the types of self-assembling proteins and peptides (e.g., ferritin, albumin, and virus-like particles) and natural products (e.g., soy and paclitaxel) commonly used in the treatment of BC and CC and describes the types of drugs that can be delivered using self-assembling proteins and peptides as carriers (e.g., siRNAs, DNA, plasmids, and mRNAs). The mechanisms (including self-assembly) by which the natural products act on CC and BC are discussed. The mechanism of action of natural products on CC and BC and the mechanism of action of self-assembled proteins and peptides have many similarities (e.g., NF-KB and Wnt). Thus, natural products using self-assembled proteins and peptides as carriers show potential for the treatment of BC and CC.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a serious public health issue but few drugs are currently available for the disease, and these only target the symptoms. It is well established that oxidative stress plays a crucial role in AD, and there is compelling evidence linking oxidative stress to β-amyloid (Aβ). An exciting source of potential new AD therapeutic medication possibilities is medicinal plants. Ginsenoside Rd (GS-Rd) is one of the main bioactive substances in ginseng extracts. In our study, we used a network pharmacology analysis to identify overlapping GS-Rd (therapeutic) and AD (disease)-relevant protein targets, gene ontology (GO) and bio-process annotation, and the KEGG pathway analysis data predicted that GS-Rd impacts multiple targets and pathways, such as the MAPK signal pathway and the JAT-STAT3 signaling pathway. We then assessed the role of GS-Rd in C. elegans and found that GS-Rd prolongs lifespan, improves resistance to heat stress, delays physical paralysis and increases oxidative stress responses. Overall, these results suggest that GS-Rd protects against the toxicity of Aβ. The RNA-seq analysis revealed that GS-Rd achieves its effects by regulating gene expressions like daf-16 and skn-1, as well as by participating in many AD-related pathways like the MAPK signaling pathway. In addition, in CL4176 worms, GS-Rd decreased reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and increased SOD activity. Additional research with transgenic worms showed that GS-Rd aided in the movement of DAF-16 from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. Taken together, the results indicate that GS-Rd significantly reduces Aβ aggregation by targeting the MAPK signal pathway, induces nuclear translocation of DAF-16 to activate downstream signaling pathways and increases resistance to oxidative stress in C. elegans to protect against Aβ-induced toxicity.

Detrital zircons in the matrix of an accretionary complex play an important role in providing evidence to reconstruct oceanic plate subduction and accretion processes. The Nadanhada accretionary complex (NAC) dominated by the Yuejinshan, Raohe and Tongjiang accretionary complexes provides significant geological evidence to better understand the Paleo-Pacific subduction–accretion process. Most previous studies have focused on the Yuejinshan and Raohe accretionary complexes, while those of the Tongjiang accretionary complex on the north side have focused on blocks. In this study, we present zircon U–Pb dating and Hf isotopic data for the matrix of metasedimentary rock in the Tongjiang accretionary complex. The analysis results show that the zircons in the fine silty mudstone, phyllonite and fine argillaceous siltstone define the youngest weighted mean ages (youngest detrital zircon ages) of 261.4 ± 2.9 Ma (247 Ma), 175.2 ± 4.9 Ma (169 Ma) and 168.6 ± 2.1 Ma (162 Ma), respectively, and yield a younging trend of the accretion materials from west to east. Provenance analysis indicates that the matrix was mainly sourced from the neighboring Jiamusi and Xingkai blocks. Based on previous results of the Permian and Late Triassic blocks in the Yuejinshan region, the Permian and Early Jurassic blocks in the Tongjiang region, and the Late Triassic and Early–Middle Jurassic blocks in the Raohe region, as well as the lower limit of the depositional age of the Late Triassic matrix in the Yuejinshan region and the Middle Jurassic and Early Cretaceous matrices in the Raohe region, we propose that the NAC may record the Late Permian–Triassic, Jurassic and Early Cretaceous oceanic accretion events, representing the westward subduction and accretion process of the Paleo–Pacific Ocean Plate.

Context features are mostly used to determine the boundary of a target, which allows one to better locate an object. In this paper, we propose the fusion of the spatial attention mechanism and contextual features to simulate the recognition of objects based on the human eye, thereby improving the detection accuracy of detectors. We chose the PASCAL VOC2007+2012 general dataset to test the generality of our method and examined the improved accuracy of our proposed detector on various targets. Our method showed improved accuracy for small targets and partially overlapping targets. Our proposed model improved the detector’s accuracy by 3.34%.

Dysregulation of the epigenetic enzyme-mediated transcription of oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes is closely associated with the occurrence, progression, and prognosis of tumors. Based on the reversibility of epigenetic mechanisms, small-molecule compounds that target epigenetic regulation have become promising therapeutics. These compounds target epigenetic regulatory enzymes, including DNA methylases, histone modifiers (methylation and acetylation), enzymes that specifically recognize post-translational modifications, chromatin-remodeling enzymes, and post-transcriptional regulators. Few compounds have been used in clinical trials and exhibit certain therapeutic effects. Herein, we summarize the classification and therapeutic roles of compounds that target epigenetic regulatory enzymes in cancer treatment. Finally, we highlight how the natural compounds berberine and ginsenosides can target epigenetic regulatory enzymes to treat cancer.

Abstract Emissions of particulate matter from fires associated with land management practices in Indonesia contribute to regional air pollution and mortality. We assess the public health benefits in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore from policies to reduce fires by integrating information on fire emissions, atmospheric transport patterns, and population exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5). We use adjoint sensitivities to relate fire emissions to PM2.5 for a range of meteorological conditions and find that a Business‐As‐Usual scenario of land use change leads, on average, to 36,000 excess deaths per year into the foreseeable future (the next several decades) across the region. These deaths are largely preventable with fire reduction strategies, such as blocking fires in peatlands, industrial concessions, or protected areas, which reduce the health burden by 66, 45, and 14%, respectively. The effectiveness of these different strategies in mitigating human health impacts depends on the location of fires relative to the population distribution. For example, protecting peatlands through eliminating all fires on such lands would prevent on average 24,000 excess deaths per year into the foreseeable future across the region because, in addition to storing large amounts of fuel, many peatlands are located directly upwind of densely populated areas. We also demonstrate how this framework can be used to prioritize restoration locations for the Indonesian Peatland Restoration Agency based on their ability to reduce pollution exposure and health burden. This scientific framework is publicly available through an online decision support tool that allows stakeholders to readily determine the public health benefits of different land management strategies.

In north India, agricultural burning adversely affects local and regional air quality during the post-monsoon season (October to November), when the prevailing meteorology is favorable for smog and haze formation. Quantifying the contribution of smoke to air pollution in this region, however, is challenging. While the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), aboard NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites, provides a nearly 20-year record of global fire activity, the sensor cannot adequately capture small, short-lasting agricultural fires due to its moderate spatial resolution (500 m–1 km) and limited overpasses (twice daily for each satellite), as well as the hazy conditions that typically obscure the north India land surface at this time of year. Moreover, current global fire emissions inventories based on MODIS observations can differ by up to an order of magnitude in this region. Here we incorporate household survey data to bridge gaps in MODIS observations and improve estimates of fire emissions over the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar during the 2003–2018 post-monsoon burning seasons. We develop a novel method that adjusts MODIS Fire Radiative Power (FRP) for: (1) small fires detected by the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) at 375-m spatial resolution, (2) cloud/haze gaps in satellite observations, (3) partial-field burning practices, and (4) the diurnal cycle of fire activity. Adjusting FRP for the fire diurnal cycle yields the largest boost to emissions due to the short lifetime of the fires (~1/2 h) and the brief windows of satellite detection. Using adjusted FRP, we estimate on average 10.4 ± 3 Tg dry matter (DM) burned each year, yielding emissions of 65 ± 18 Gg organic carbon (OC), 5.6 ± 1.6 Gg black carbon (BC), 791 ± 225 Gg CO, and 14.9 ± 4.2 Tg CO2. On average, our OC + BC emissions are 3.4 times (min: 0.6, max: 6.6) the estimates from five widely used global fire emissions inventories. Our estimate for Punjab, which contributes more than two-thirds of emissions in the region, is consistent with our bottom-up validation, which uses burn rates from the household survey and government crop production statistics in 2016 and 2017. We spatially disaggregate the state-level emissions to construct a gridded inventory at daily, 0.25 ° × 0.25 ° resolution over north India from 2003 to 2018. The inventory, SAGE-IGP (Survey Constraints on FRP-based Agricultural Fire Emissions in the Indo-Gangetic Plain), improves modeling assessments of air quality impacts from agricultural burning, thus supporting effective policy development.

Decadal trends in fire activity can reveal important human and climate-driven influences across a multitude of landscapes from croplands to savannas. We use 16 years of daily satellite observations from 2003 to 2018 to search globally for stationary temporal shifts in fire activity during the primary burning season. We focus on southwest Russia and north Australia as case study regions; both regions experienced nearly 40 d shifts over a 16 year period but in opposite directions. In southwest Russia, a major wheat-growing region, we trace the delay in post-harvest fires to several potential drivers: modernization in the agricultural system and recent droughts, followed by government restrictions on wheat exports. In north Australia, prescribed burns in the early dry season are a key practice in Aboriginal fire management of savannas, and the increasing trend of such fires has limited the size and extent of fast-spreading late dry season fires, thereby shifting overall fire activity earlier. In both regions, human action, through controlling fire ignition and extent, is an important driver of the temporal shifts in fire activity with climate as both a harbinger and an amplifier of human-induced changes.

Since the Green Revolution in the mid-1960s, a widespread transition to a rice–wheat rotation in the Indian state of Punjab has led to steady increases in crop yield and production. After harvest of the summer monsoon rice crop, the burning of excess crop residue in Punjab from October to November allows for rapid preparation of fields for sowing of the winter wheat crop. Here we use daily satellite remote sensing data to show that the timing of peak post-monsoon fire activity in Punjab and regional aerosol optical depth (AOD) has shifted later by approximately two weeks in Punjab from 2003 to 2016. This shift is consistent with delays of 11–15 d in the timing of maximum greenness of the monsoon crop and smaller delays of 4–6 d in the timing of minimum greenness during the monsoon-to-winter crop transition period. The resulting compression of the harvest-to-sowing period coincides with a 42% increase in total burning and 55% increase in regional AOD. Potential drivers of these trends include agricultural intensification and a recent groundwater policy that delays sowing of the monsoon crop. The delay and amplification of burning into the late post-monsoon season suggest greater air quality degradation and public health consequences across the densely populated Indo-Gangetic Plain.

Since at least the 1980s, many farmers in northwest India have switched to mechanized combine harvesting to boost efficiency. This harvesting technique leaves abundant crop residue on the fields, which farmers typically burn to prepare their fields for subsequent planting. A key question is to what extent the large quantity of smoke emitted by these fires contributes to the already severe pollution in Delhi and across other parts of the heavily populated Indo-Gangetic Plain located downwind of the fires. Using a combination of observed and modeled variables, including surface measurements of PM _2.5 , we quantify the magnitude of the influence of agricultural fire emissions on surface air pollution in Delhi. With surface measurements, we first derive the signal of regional PM _2.5 enhancements (i.e. the pollution above an anthropogenic baseline) during each post-monsoon burning season for 2012–2016. We next use the Stochastic Time-Inverted Lagrangian Transport model (STILT) to simulate surface PM _2.5 using five fire emission inventories. We reproduce up to 25% of the weekly variability in total observed PM _2.5 using STILT. Depending on year and emission inventory, our method attributes 7.0%–78% of the maximum observed PM _2.5 enhancements in Delhi to fires. The large range in these attribution estimates points to the uncertainties in fire emission parameterizations, especially in regions where thick smoke may interfere with hotspots of fire radiative power. Although our model can generally reproduce the largest PM _2.5 enhancements in Delhi air quality for 1–3 consecutive days each fire season, it fails to capture many smaller daily enhancements, which we attribute to the challenge of detecting small fires in the satellite retrieval. By quantifying the influence of upwind agricultural fire emissions on Delhi air pollution, our work underscores the potential health benefits of changes in farming practices to reduce fires.

In September–October 2015, El Niño and positive Indian Ocean Dipole conditions set the stage for massive fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo), leading to persistently hazardous levels of smoke pollution across much of Equatorial Asia. Here we quantify the emission sources and health impacts of this haze episode and compare the sources and impacts to an event of similar magnitude occurring under similar meteorological conditions in September–October 2006. Using the adjoint of the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model, we first calculate the influence of potential fire emissions across the domain on smoke concentrations in three receptor areas downwind—Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore—during the 2006 event. This step maps the sensitivity of each receptor to fire emissions in each grid cell upwind. We then combine these sensitivities with 2006 and 2015 fire emission inventories from the Global Fire Assimilation System (GFAS) to estimate the resulting population-weighted smoke exposure. This method, which assumes similar smoke transport pathways in 2006 and 2015, allows near real-time assessment of smoke pollution exposure, and therefore the consequent morbidity and premature mortality, due to severe haze. Our approach also provides rapid assessment of the relative contribution of fire emissions generated in a specific province to smoke-related health impacts in the receptor areas. We estimate that haze in 2015 resulted in 100 300 excess deaths across Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, more than double those of the 2006 event, with much of the increase due to fires in Indonesia’s South Sumatra Province. The model framework we introduce in this study can rapidly identify those areas where land use management to reduce and/or avoid fires would yield the greatest benefit to human health, both nationally and regionally.

Sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) is a globally cultivated root crop of paramount significance. The hexaploid genome, known as 'Taizhong 6', has been sequenced and serves as a crucial reference genome for sweetpotato and related species within the Convolvulaceae family. However, the current annotation of the sweetpotato genome relies primarily on ab initio predictions and, to a lesser extent, transcriptome datasets, which only predict coding sequences. Therefore, an improved annotation is highly desirable. Here, we present a comprehensive reannotation of the sweetpotato genome, leveraging 12 Nanopore full-length RNA libraries and 190 Illumina RNA-seq libraries. The improved annotation, named v1.0.a2, includes 42,751 gene models, with 97.4% complete BUSCOs. Within this comprehensive set of gene models, we have modified or added 31,771 gene models and identified 8,736 genes with alternatively spliced isoforms. We have also introduced a new gene ID nomenclature (IbXXGXXXXX) as an improvement over the previous nomenclature (gene.gXXXXX). Additionally, we have annotated and provided expression levels of miRNAs and their targets at different storage roots stages. Overall, our study contributes to an updated genome annotation for the sweetpotato genome, which will significantly facilitate gene functional studies in sweetpotato and promote genomic analyses across the Convolvulaceae family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the western United States, prolonged drought, warming climate, and historical fuel build-up have contributed to larger and more intense wildfires, as well as longer fire seasons. As these costly wildfires become more common, new tools and methods are essential for improving our understanding of the evolution of fires and how extreme weather conditions, including heatwaves, windstorms, droughts, and varying levels of active fire suppression, influence fire spread. Here we develop the GOES-Observed Fire Event Representation (GOFER) algorithm to derive the hourly fire progression of large wildfires and create a dataset of hourly fire perimeters, active fire lines, and fire spread rates. Using GOES-East and GOES-West geostationary satellite detections of active fires, we test the GOFER algorithm on 28 large wildfires in California from 2019-2021. The GOFER algorithm includes parameter optimizations for defining the burned-to-unburned boundary and correcting for the parallax effect from elevated terrain. We evaluate GOFER perimeters with using 12-hourly data from the VIIRS-derived Fire Event Data Suite (FEDS) and final fire perimeters from California's Fire and Resource Assessment Program (FRAP). Although the GOES imagery used to derive GOFER has coarser resolution (2 km at the equator), the final fire perimeters from GOFER correspond reasonably well with those obtained from FRAP, with a mean Intersection-over-Union (IoU) of 0.77, in comparison to 0.83 between FEDS and FRAP. GOFER fills a key temporal gap present in other fire tracking products that rely on low-earth- orbit imagery, where perimeters are available at 12-hour intervals or longer, or at ad hoc intervals from aircraft overflights. This is particularly relevant when a fire spreads rapidly, such as at maximum hourly spread rates of over 5 km/h. Our GOFER algorithm for deriving the hourly fire progression using GOES can be applied to large wildfires across North and South America and reveals considerable variability in rates of fire spread on diurnal time scales. The resulting GOFER dataset has a broad set of applications, including the development of predictive models for fire spread and improvement of atmospheric transport models for surface smoke estimates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]