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Stylo (Stylosanthes spp.) is an important pasture legume with strong aluminum (Al) resistance. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying its Al tolerance remain fragmentary. Due to the incomplete genome sequence information of stylo, we first conducted full-length transcriptome sequencing for stylo root tips treated with and without Al and identified three Snakin/GASA genes, namely, SgSnakin1, SgSnakin2, and SgSnakin3. Through quantitative RT-PCR, we found that only SgSnakin1 was significantly upregulated by Al treatments in stylo root tips. Histochemical localization assays further verified the Al-enhanced expression of SgSnakin1 in stylo root tips. Subcellular localization in both tobacco and onion epidermis cells showed that SgSnakin1 localized to the cell wall. Overexpression of SgSnakin1 conferred Al tolerance in transgenic Arabidopsis, as reflected by higher relative root growth and cell vitality, as well as lower Al concentration in the roots of transgenic plants. Additionally, overexpression of SgSnakin1 increased the activities of SOD and POD and decreased the levels of O2·− and H2O2 in transgenic Arabidopsis in response to Al stress. These findings indicate that SgSnakin1 may function in Al resistance by enhancing the scavenging of reactive oxygen species through the regulation of antioxidant enzyme activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate and punctual precipitation data are fundamental to understanding regional hydrology and are a critical reference point for regional flood control. The aims of this study are to evaluate the performance of three widely used precipitation datasets—CRU TS, ERA5, and NCEP—as potential alternatives for hydrological applications in the Bahr el Ghazal River Basin in South Sudan, Africa. This includes examining the spatial and temporal evolution of regional precipitation using relatively accurate precipitation datasets. The findings indicate that CRU TS is the best precipitation dataset in the Bahr el Ghazal Basin. The spatial and temporal distributions of precipitation from CRU TS reveal that precipitation in the Bahr el Ghazal Basin has a clear wet season, with June–August accounting for half of the annual precipitation and peaking in July and August. The long-term annual total precipitation exhibits a gradual increasing trend from the north to the south, with the southwestern part of the Basin having the largest percentage of wet season precipitation. Notably, the Bahr el Ghazal Basin witnessed a significant precipitation shift in 1967, followed by an increasing trend. Moreover, the spatial and temporal precipitation evolutions reveal an ongoing risk of flooding in the lower part of the Basin; therefore, increased engineering counter-measures might be needed for effective flood prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among the current pollutants in our water bodies, the one that has the greatest degree of pollution and impact on the water environment is heavy metal wastewater. Various heavy metal ions in water bodies can seriously disrupt the ecological balance of water bodies and spread throughout the biosphere through the natural material cycle and other means. Excess heavy metal ions not only seriously endanger the health of aquatic organisms, but can also enrich in animals and even humans, posing a serious threat to human health and causing failure or damage to vital organs such as the human internal organs and brain. The common heavy metal ions in existing water bodies are Cu2+, Hg2+, Pb2+ etc. Due to their inherent difficulty in degradation, enrichment and persistence, heavy metal ions make heavy metal wastewater treatment different from other traditional pollutant treatment methods. This paper examines the two main techniques currently used to remove heavy metals from water bodies: physical, chemical and biological techniques, and summarises the advantages and disadvantages of both methods. It is proposed that future treatment methods for heavy metal wastewater should develop an environmentally friendly and efficient systematic approach based on biotechnology and synergistic multi-technologies.

Celastrol (Cel) shows potent antitumor activity in various experimental models. This study examined the relationship between Cel's antivascular and antitumor effects and sphingolipids. CCK-8 assay, transwell assay, Matrigel, PCR-array/RT-PCR/western blotting/immunohistochemistry assay, ELISA and HE staining were used to detect cell proliferation, migration and invasion, adhesion and angiogenesis, mRNA and protein expression, S1P production and tumor morphology. The results showed that Cel could inhibit proliferation, migration or invasion, adhesion and angiogenesis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and MDA-MB-231 cells by downregulating the expression of degenerative spermatocyte homolog 1 (DEGS1). Transfection experiments showed that downregulation of DEGS1 inhibited the above processes and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) production of HUVECs and MDA-MB-231 cells, while upregulation of DEGS1 had the opposite effects. Coculture experiments showed that HUVECs could promote proliferation, migration and invasion of MDA-MB-231 cells through S1P/sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor (S1PR) signaling pathway, while Cel inhibited these processes in MDA-MB-231 cells induced by HUVECs. Animal experiments showed that Cel could inhibit tumor growth in nude mice. Western blotting, immunohistochemistry and ELISA assay showed that Cel downregulated the expression of DEGS1, CD146, S1PR1-3 and S1P production. These data confirm that DEGS1/S1P signaling pathway may be related to the antivascular and antitumor effects of cel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To probe into the community structure of macro-invertebrates of the reservoir water bodies of the Shanxi Hydro-project in Wenzhou City of southeast China, and its responsive relationship with the environmental factors, water quality monitoring and macro-invertebrates sampling survey were carried out in the dry season of January 2022 and the wet season of July 2022, and 18 sampling sites were selected covering the entire water bodies of Shanxi Reservoir and Zhaoshandu Reservoir. During the survey a total of 26 species of macro-invertebrates were collected in the reservoir area, which belonged to 3 phyla, 6 classes, 7 orders and 8 families, the dominant species throughout the year being mainly Branchiura sowerbyi, Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri and Procladius sp., and the macro-invertebrates did not show notable difference about abundance and diversity in the period of dry season-wet season, but the PCoA the Adonis paired test analyses suggested that their community structure varied significantly; the SIMPER analysis showed that the major contributors to the differences in community structure among the regions of Shanxi Hydroproject reservoirs in dry season were four species of Tubificidae, Chironomidae and Viviparidae, and in wet season are five species of Tubificidae and Chironomidae. The results of redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that the environmental factors affecting the macro-invertebrates community structure of the Shanxi Hydroproject reservoirs in dry season were water depth (H), total nitrogen (TN) and orthophosphate (PO43-), and in wet season being transparency (SD) and ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N). Consequently, Shanxi Reservoir is a typical deep-water reservoir, and the dominant populations are dominated by Tubificidae and Chironomidae, being under the influences of water depth and reservoir scheduling; Zhaoshandu Reservoir being affected by the pollutant confluence from the inflowing tributeries, is characterized with a relatively high trophic state and rather good species diversity. The spatial differences of macro-invertebrates community structure in the reservoirs are remarkable, and are affected by environmental factors considerably. Summarily, the achievements of this research will not only enrich the study on typical valley-type reservoirs particularly in southeastern China, but also assist the further investigation of macro-invertebrates in Shanxi Hydroproject, providing the scientific basis for the ecological protection of the reservoirs and the construction of beautiful rivers and lakes in Wenzhou. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient, but easily fixed in soils. Therefore, most of soil P exists in the form of inaccessible organic phosphorus (Po), particularly phytate‐P. Root‐associated purple acid phosphatases (PAPs) are considered to play a crucial role in phosphate (Pi) scavenging in soils. However, evidence for regulating root‐associated PAPs in utilization of extracellular phytate‐P remain largely unknown in plants at both transcriptional and posttranslational levels. In this study, a Pi‐starvation responsive GmPAP15a was identified in soybean (Glycine max). Overexpressing GmPAP15a led to significant increases in root‐associated phytase activities, as well as total P content when phytate‐P was supplied as the sole P resource in soybean hairy roots. Meanwhile, mass spectrometry (MS) analysis showed GmPAP15a was glycosylated at Asn144 and Asn502, and its glycan structures of N‐linked oligosaccharide chains exhibited microheterogeneity. Moreover, two homologues of AtPHR1, GmPHR9 and GmPHR32 were found to activate GmPAP15a transcription through luciferase activity analysis. Taken together, it is strongly suggested that GmPAP15a plays a vital role in phytate‐P utilization in soybean, which might be regulated at both transcriptional and glycosylation modification levels. Our results highlight the GmPHR9/GmPHR32‐GmPAP15a signalling pathway might present, and control phytate‐P utilization in soybean. Summary statement: Our results highlight that root‐associated GmPAP15a plays a vital role in phytate‐Putilization in soybean, which might be regulated at both transcriptional andglycosylation modification levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]