Aims: The Yarlung Tsangpo River, one of the ten longest rivers in China, spans two major zoogeographic regions of the world: The Palearctic and the Oriental realms. While previous papers have focused on small portions of the river, a basin-wide-scale study to catalog its fish composition, diversity patterns, and species fluctuation is lacking. This study synthesized empirical data from field studies over the past two decades on fish diversity in the Yarlung Tsangpo River, compiled a list of fish diversity in the Yarlung Tsangpo River Basin in China, and analyzed the status of the fish diversity and the main threats to its diversity. The findings provide a scientific foundation for management and conservation of fish diversity in the Yarlung Tsangpo River Basin.

Methods: In total, 66 sections were included in this study. Of them, 58 were actually surveyed in the field, and 8 were collected from literatures; two in the upper reaches, 40 in the middle reaches, and 24 in the lower reaches; 24 in the main stream, 33 in the tributaries, 2 in the lakes, 3 in the tributary reservoirs, and 4 wetlands. These sampling sections (locations) were selected according to their geomorphological characteristics, as well as the accessibility of each location for sampling. The fish investgations were conducted from 2004 to 2023. Methods for collecting fishes included gillnets, shrimp coops, and battery-powered backpack electrofisher. After compiling the data from all of the sites, the degree of endemicity was calculated using the corrected weighted endemism index.

Results: There are 155 native species in 10 orders, 25 families, and 70 genera in the Yarlung Tsangpo River Basin. Out of all of the detected species, 29 species and one genus are endemic to the river. Five species were on China’s Key Protected Species List (Grade II); and 26 species were categorised as threatened (i.e. endangered, vulnerable, or near threatened) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and China’s Biodiversity Red List. The sections with high species richness are located in the middle and lower reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo River, while the lowest species richness is found in the Great Canyon sections. Fish fauna of the river is dominated by Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, and South Asian fishes. The Jiaresa-Bangxin section of the Yarlung Tsangpo River Grand Canyon may be the boundary between the two major zoogeographical regions of freshwater fish. By the end of 2023, 30 species of non-native fish in 8 orders, 16 families, and 24 genera had been recorded in the natural water bodies of the Yarlung Tsangpo River Basin. Of these non-native fish species, three species were introduced to different regions within the Yarlung Tsangpo River Basin. In recent years, there has been a rapid increase in the introduction of both native fishes and non-native cold-adapted fishes through the plateau’s drainage systems.

Conclusion: Through cataloging the fish diversity in the Yarlung Tsangpo River Basin, we found that invasion of non-native fishes is the main threat to fish diversity. In the future, we should focus on fish surveys of lakes and tributaries in the lower reaches of the river, strengthen the resources for data integration, and establish a basin-level data management platform. Further, taxonomic research should be strengthened through international cooperation. Additionally, long-term monitoring of fish resources should be implemented as soon as possible to monitor fish diversity and promote conservation in the Yarlung Tsangpo River.

Plants inevitably face a multitude of abiotic stresses during their growth and development stages. Drought stress significantly hampers crop growth and reduces yield. The plant HVA22 protein is characterized by the TB2/DP1 structural domain and is implicated in the modulation of plant growth, development, and responses to abiotic stress. However, its precise function in the context of drought stress response in tomato remains to be elucidated. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the functional role of the tomato SlHVA22l gene in drought tolerance. The results showed that the amino acid sequence of SlHVA22l exhibits a higher degree of sequence similarity to that of homologous HVA22l proteins found in other dicotyledonous plants. Furthermore, the expression pattern analysis revealed a significant upregulation of the SlHVA22l gene in response to drought stress and phytohormones (ABA and MeJA). Moreover, the function of the SlHVA22l gene in drought tolerance was subsequently verified by yeast heterologous expression and silencing of the endogenous SlHVA22l gene in tomato via virus-induced gene silencing. The silenced plants exhibited higher H₂O₂ and malondialdehyde contents, as well as lower O₂^-. scavenging after drought treatment. Moreover, the activities of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase were significantly decreased in the silenced plants compared to those in the control plants. Collectively, these results indicate that the SlHVA22l gene plays an important role in tomato resistance to drought stress.

The plant hormone auxin regulates many processes of plant growth and development, including embryonic development, organogenesis, and tropism, as well as environmental adaptation. To perform these functions, auxin mainly depends on the typical TIR1/AFB-auxin-Aux/IAA-ARF signaling pathway. In this pathway, the canonical Aux/IAA proteins composed of four conserved domains play a key role in auxin signaling as co-receptor with TIR1/AFB. Recently, some non-canonical Aux/IAA proteins lacking conserved domain(s) were also found to be involved in the auxin response. This review focuses on the research advances of non-canonical Aux/IAA proteins on their structure, biological function and roles in auxin signal transduction, and discusses the future research directions of these proteins.

Background & Aim: There are more than 140 species of bats in China, accounting for about 10 percent of the world’s bat species. China is one of the countries with the richest bat species diversity in the world. With the development of urbanization, the species diversity of bats in China has been seriously threatened. This paper aims to discuss the current state of research on bats in China under the background of urbanization, and then, based on the threats of urbanization factors faced by bats in China, to propose targeted conservation recommendations.

Progresses: The review preliminarily defines urban bats as those whose life history is not directly controlled by humans, but whose stages such as foraging, roosting, and migration are completed in urban and surrounding areas affected by urbanization. Thus, their morphological, physiological, behavioral, and genetic adaptive characteristics are influenced by the urbanization In the process of urbanization, bats face a range of threats, including human hunting, human buildings, roads, light pollution, noise pollution, and chemical pollution; this is mainly manifested in three aspects in China: loss of habitat, utilization of biological resources, and disturbance of habitat. Despite this, preliminary bibliometric analysis indicates that research on the impacts of urbanization on bats in China is relatively lacking, and this field needs more attention.

Conservation Measures: In view of the significant impact of urbanization threats on the existence of bats in China and the scarcity of related research, it is necessary to strengthen the protection of bats in the process of urbanization in China. We suggest that research in the fields of taxonomy and conservation genomics should be intensified, special surveys for urban bats should be conducted, and the protection of bat habitats should be valued. As a result, the management of light and noise pollution should be strengthened, legislative protection should be carried out for bats that are unique to China and have a higher level of threat, and science popularization education related to bats should be carried out for the public, i to better protect bats in the process of urbanization.

Mitochondria and chloroplasts are semi-autonomous organelles harboring their own genomes. RNA editing is essential for the correct expression of organelle genes. The mostly identified RNA editing is cytidine (C)-to-uridine (U). Multiple editing factors have been reported to be involved in RNA C→U editing. The PPR-motifs array in PPR proteins specifically target editing sites, and the DYW domains in PPR-DYW proteins catalyze the deaminase in the C→U editing. This paper aims to review the recent advance of PPR proteins involved in RNA C→U editing, and to discuss the potential application value of synthetic PPR editing factors.

Background: Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) technology has become increasingly significant in wildlife research due to its non-invasive nature and capacity for continuous monitoring. A key taxonomic group for biodiversity and environmental monitoring using PAM are the order Chiroptera, commonly known as bats, with their unique echolocation abilities, nocturnality, and high sensitivity to environmental changes.

Progress: This review aims to comprehensively explore the applications of PAM in Chiropteran research and note the scientific and ecological breakthroughs that this new tool facilitates. We analyze the advantages and limitations of PAM, and summarize methods for effectively collecting and processing acoustic data to estimate and monitor bat diversity, activity patterns, population dynamics, habitat selection, and distribution. The review concludes with case studies from the literature that compare the impact of different environmental factors on bat diversity and activity, and that discuss how these variables affect data collection.

Prospects: This review concludes its assessment by noting the challenges that PAM faces in practical applications; by exploring the future prospects of the technology and its potential contributions to biodiversity conservation; and by proposing future research directions including technological innovation, citizen science involvement, and monitoring strategy optimization. These suggestions will help further advance the application of PAM technology in bat conservation and management by contributing to the protection of biodiversity.

Plant-soil feedback (PSF), as an important driving force for plant distribution, community composition, and succession, has received extensive attention in recent years. The spatial-temporal variation are important factors driving PSF; however, there is currently a lack of review on its research progress. We summarized the research progress on the spatial-temporal variation of PSF and proposed research directions that could be pursued in the future. At the temporal scale of PSF, the relationships among plant developmental stages, experimental cycles, and feedback effects were emphasized. At the spatial scale of PSF, we focused on the spatial distribution and transfer of plants, the spatial differentiation of soil microbial communities and physicochemical factors, as well as the influence of above- and below-ground systems on PSF. Based on the research progress, we proposed to focus on the long-term, multi-point dynamic feedback to improve the temporal resolution of the feedback process. The buffering time of microbial communities on domesticated and tested plants needed to be considered, and reasonable domestication and feedback periods should be set to make the results more objective. At the spatial scale, the effects of plant spatial distribution, spatial heterogeneity of soil factors, and above- and below-ground systems on feedback effects should be paid attention. Efforts should be made to achieve similarity in the physical structure of the inoculated soil, in order to obtain more realistic feedback effects.

Background & Aims: The continuous loss of biodiversity has become one of the most serious environmental challenges in the world, the next 7 years will be the key to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. The achievement of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) mechanism has brought new hope for global biodiversity governance, and provided a pathway to halt and reverse biodiversity loss trends. As the core element of the GBF, the 30 by 30 target successfully adopted with the support of extensive actions of the international community and a large number of scientific researches. This paper reviews the origin and development process of the 30 by 30 target based on its global development trends and international policy promotion, and analyzes the change and development of its key elements such as area proportion, spatial extension, protection effectiveness of the protected area (PA) system, and inclusive management methods in PA. Combined with the successful experience of existing international processes, this paper explores the path to achieve the 30 by 30 target through a large number of scientific research as well.
Results: The gradual increase in the 30 by 30 target from 10% to 30% has not yet met the expectations of the scientific community, but has contributed to the efforts of countries and the expansion of the global network of PA. Other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs), improving the quality of PA, and the involvement of stakeholders, such as indigenous peoples and local communities, can significantly strength the protection of land and sea. The pathway to achieve the 30 by 30 target including strong international policy guidance, firm and effective financial security, in-depth and rigorous scientific research, responsible national action and broad inclusive participation and collaboration of stakeholders. At the same time, we recognize that it has been less than seven years since it was expected to be achieved. To achieve the ambitious 30 by 30 target and truly halt and reverse the biodiversity loss and decline, there are several challenges, including expand the PA system while improving quality; overcome the gap of PA survey data and the limited monitoring measures; the limitations of understanding the marine PA; the exploration of inclusive management methods and the integration of national goals at the global scale. We recommend that the quality of PA should be paid more attention than quantitative targets, strengthen PA monitoring to address data gaps, raise awareness of the importance of marine PA, and explore inclusive management approaches for PA, and strengthen the integration and implementation of the global target at the national scale.
Conclusion & Recommendation: The 30 by 30 target is not only a politically driven goal, but its research, consultation and implementation process also reflect new perspectives on the integration of science, traditional knowledge and international policy systems, reflecting emerging scientific insights, social values and global challenges, prompting a phased change in the relationship between people and nature, and between people, and contributing to a new understanding of PA networks and other protected regions.

Background & Aims: Rapid urbanization has proved the importance of effectively monitoring and evaluating urban bird diversity, making it a crucial area of technique inquiry within urban ecology and biodiversity conservation. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM), a technique that utilizes the environment to assess biodiversity, provides long-term and continuous data on urban avian population dynamics. This approach offers valuable insights into the influence of human activities on natural habitats. Although PAM technology has been adopted globally for urban biodiversity monitoring and has resulted in extensive acoustic datasets, variations in monitoring and assessment methodologies show significant challenges in effectively evaluating urban avian diversity.

Review Results: We synthesize representative cases of urban avian diversity research conducted using PAM technology, focusing on aspects such as spatio-temporal experimental design, recording device parameters, and quantification techniques of acoustic signals. The results indicate that current case studies exhibit general routines in experimental frameworks, parameter selection, and quantification methods. However, variability in monitoring and evaluation technologies, along with their effects on factors such as signal-to-noise ratio and representativeness of sound signals, remains a significant challenge that hinders the application of PAM in urban bird diversity research, yet this issue has not received adequate attention. Therefore, this paper advocates for a comprehensive examination of passive acoustic monitoring and evaluation techniques for urban bird sounds, which would facilitate the creation of eco-acoustic big data and address broader ecological questions.

Perspectives: Given the increasing prevalence of PAM applications, there is an urgent need for the development of technical standards for passive acoustic monitoring and evaluation of urban birdsong. Establishing these standards would promote the standardization of sound data collection and analysis, leading to the creation of a comprehensive urban bird sound database. Such advancements would enable the utilization of big data to elucidate the impacts of urbanization on birdsong diversity and response mechanisms, thereby enriching urban avian studies and supporting biodiversity conservation efforts in urban environments. This paper summarizes current monitoring schemes and technological applications, providing a foundation for future theoretical frameworks. Methodological approaches and technological implementations are proposed for future passive acoustic monitoring and evaluation of urban bird diversity in China.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is an important carbon (C) pool in terrestrial ecosystems. Pant diversity can enhance SOC content in forests, grasslands, and agricultural ecosystems, and its potential effects on the composition and stability of SOC have aroused increasing interest. However, there is no systematic review of their underlying mechanisms. The present study therefore summarizes advances in research on the effects of plant diversity on the content, composition and stability of SOC and the underlying mechanism with the aim of providing a scientific basis for maximizing soil carbon and nitrogen (N) sequestration and mitigating global climate change through the promotion of plant diversity. Increasing plant diversity can increase the inputs of plant litter biomass into soils, enhance the quality of mixed litter (e.g., lower C:N), and promote the turnover and accumulation of SOC. It can also increase plant-derived C via root and litter inputs to soils, or increase microbe-derived C via enhanced microbial turnover. These processes can also increase soil particulate organic carbon (POC) and mineral associated organic carbon (MAOC) contents. In addition, increasing plant diversity can increase the stability of soil organic carbon by enhancing aggregate protection, changing mineral ion concentrations, and changing microbial community structure. Future studies are needed to investigate (1) how soil organic carbon content may be increased through integrated plant diversity and management options; (2) how the effects of plant diversity on soil organic carbon content and composition can be explored through long-term plant diversity field experiments in different ecosystems; (3) how the effects of plant diversity on soil organic carbon composition and stability can be examined using new experimental methods(e.g., isotope labeling); and (4) how the mechanisms underlying plant diversity effects on soil carbon content, composition and stability can be studied at different soil depths.

Aims: Pollination plays a crucial role within ecosystems. Accurate identification and analysis of the pollen loads carried by pollinators are essential for understanding the plant‒pollinator interactions and assessing pollination activity. Traditional pollen identification methods, which are often reliant on microscopic observation, are time-consuming and require specialized expertise, limiting their utility in large-scale applications and in the assessment of pollination efficiency and rare plant‒pollinator interactions. To address this issue, we developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) pollen identification model using a public platform.
Method: The AI model was based on pollen from 14 co-flowering plant species from Tianchi Mountain National Forest Park in Luoyang, China. We identified the pollen composition of 142 pollinators using both the traditional microscopic observation method and the AI model to explore and compare for the first time the structural differences in the plant‒pollinator interaction networks constructed by the two identification methods.
Results: The results demonstrated that the AI model achieved an overall accuracy rate of 96%. While there were differences between human recognition and the AI model in the number of identified links, quantity of pollen, and consistency rate of photo identification, both methods showed a high degree of consistency. The AI model slightly outperformed human methods in link identification (6.5%) and pollen quantity (0.8%). Moreover, in third-party consistency checks, the majority of the cases favored the results from the AI model. Despite some differences regarding unique links, the quantitative networks constructed by human recognition and the AI model showed a high degree of structural similarity.
Conclusion: This study reveals the potential of AI image recognition technology to enhance the efficiency and accuracy of pollen analysis, and its relevance to plant‒pollinator interaction research. This advancement could facilitate a more efficient advancement of large-scale studies of pollination networks, providing new tools and perspectives for pollination ecology research.

Background: China boasts abundant biodiversity, positioning it among the world’s most biologically diverse nations. Despite notable strides in biodiversity conservation at both national and international levels, evidenced by China’s leadership in advancing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, domestic biodiversity legislation has conspicuously lagged behind these advancements over the past decade.

Review results: The State has issued a series of laws and regulations, including the Forest Law, the Wild Animal Protection Law, and the Seed Law, addressing various aspects of biodiversity, encompassing ecosystems, species, and genetic diversity. These laws primarily aim at conservation while considering the rational utilization of resources, thereby laying the groundwork for a preliminary legal framework for biodiversity management. However, despite these efforts, the existing biodiversity-related legislation remains significantly inadequate in meeting the requirements of modernization for fostering harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. This inadequacy is attributed to outdated legislative concepts, insufficient systematic legislation, and the incomplete composition of key legal systems.

Recommendations: In light of the forthcoming Ecological Environment Code, the State should endeavor to establish a comprehensive legal framework for biodiversity in this forthcoming Code that encompasses all three levels of biodiversity: ecosystems, species, and genetic diversity. This legal system should fully ensure the achievement of all the objectives of biodiversity conservation, sustainable use of its components, and equitable benefit-sharing in a balanced manner. To achieve this, a scientifically grounded and logically structured legislative framework with comprehensive and systematic institutional components is imperative. Embracing the concept of the earth’s life community and the harmonious coexistence between humans and nature, China must strive to lead global biodiversity governance.

INTRODUCTION Trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (TPS) is a key enzyme involved in the synthesis of trehalose and has been reported to participate in regulating photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, growth and development, and stress responses in various species. Currently, reports on TPS genes in soybean are scarce.

RATIONALE TPS is a stable non-reducing disaccharide, whose synthesis, decomposition and regulation not only provide energy for plant, but also play an important role in plant growth and development and stress tolerance. The in-depth study of soybean TPS genes and its relationships with salt stress is of great significance in elucidating the molecular mechanism of soybean salt tolerance and improving soybean yield.

RESULTS This study identified 20 soybean TPS genes and their associated 10 conserved protein motifs in the soybean genome. Molecular analysis of the promoter elements revealed that the TPS gene promoters are rich in stress-responsive elements. After salt stress treatment, the expression of 17 TPS genes changed, with 12 genes up-regulated and 5 genes down-regulated. Haplotype and selection analyses revealed two major allelic variations in TPS8, TPS13, TPS15, TPS17, and TPS18. Notably, variants carrying TPS15^H2, TPS13^H2, TPS17^H2, and TPS18^H2 were significantly enriched in improved cultivars that underwent strong artificial selection.

CONCLUSION This study reveals the molecular characteristics of the soybean TPS gene family, their expression patterns under salt stress, and their evolutionary history, providing a theoretical basis and genetic material for further elucidating the functions of soybean TPS genes and breeding salt-tolerant soybean varieties.

TPS genes were subjected to intense artificial selection. The natural variations of TPS8, TPS13, TPS15, TPS17, and TPS18 have been subjected to strong artificial selection during soybean domestication and improvement, with the variants carrying TPS15^H2, TPS13^H2, TPS17^H2, and TPS18^H2 being heavily enriched in improved cultivars.

In 2024, the numbers of original research articles published by Chinese plant scientists in mainstream plant science journals increased significantly compared with that in 2023, and important advances have been made in the fields of plant hormone regulation, pathology, synthetic biology, stress resistance mechanism, phylogenetics and genomics. Among them, “Characterization and Heterologous Reconstitution of Taxus Biosynthetic Enzymes Leading to Baccatin III”, and “Reciprocal Conversion Between Annual and Polycarpic Perennial Flowering Behavior in the Brassicaceae” were selected as two of the “Top Ten Advances in Life Sciences in China” in 2024. Here we summarize the achievements of plant science research in China in 2024, by briefly introducing 50 representative important research advances, so as to help readers understand the trend of plant science development in China, and evaluate future research direction to meet major national strategic needs.

Aims The increases in drought intensity and frequency severely threaten structure and functioning of terrestrial ecosystems. To ensure the normal functioning of ecosystems under such scenarios, it is critically needed to understand the spatial-temporal characteristics of ecosystem productivity response and resilience under meteorological droughts.

Methods The intensity and frequency of meteorological droughts were quantified by standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) of the Hai River Basin (HRB). Net primary productivity (NPP) of natural ecosystems was estimated based on Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach (CASA). We quantitatively analyzed the relationship between NPP and SPEI, evaluated the drought risk of natural vegetation and the resilience of vegetation after drought.

Important findings (1) Both NPP and normalized differential vegetation index (NDVI) in the HRB showed significantly increasing trend. (2) The lagging time of NPP response to droughts follow an order of grassland and savanna < deciduous broadleaf forest and woody savanna < deciduous-evergreen mixed forest and closed shrubland. (3) Drought risk followed an order of grassland > closed shrubland > woody savanna > deciduous broadleaf forest > savanna > deciduous-evergreen mixed forest. (4) More than 75% of the vegetation in the HRB showed no continuous distinctly low NPP status one month after the droughts, indicating relatively strong resilience. The resilience of forests was stronger than shrub or herbaceous vegetation, which showed opposite temporal pattern within each growing season but shared similar increasing trend interannually. Response and resilience characteristics of NPP varied with vegetation types and drought intensity. Ecosystem stability of the HRB could be improved by adjusting the afforestation and grass restoration measures based on vegetation drought risk and resilience, optimizing vegetation structure, and enhancing species diversity.

INTRODUCTION Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), a significant warm-season and water-dependent vegetable crop, is extensively cultivated worldwide. Whether grown in open fields or protected environments, tomatoes frequently encounter various environmental stresses, including drought and low temperatures, which significantly impact their yield and quality. Transcription factors play a pivotal role in plant stress responses by modulating the expression of specific target genes, thereby transmitting perceived stress signals downstream. WRKY transcription factors in tomatoes are known to regulate responses to multiple abiotic stresses. However, the specific role of the tomato SlWRKY45 in abiotic stress responses remains unclear.

RATIONALEStudies have demonstrated that WRKY transcription factors play a crucial regulatory role in plant responses to abiotic stress. As an important economic vegetable crop, tomato is susceptible to various environmental stresses during its growth and development. By genetically overexpressing SlWRKY45 in tomato and investigating its function under low-temperature and drought stress conditions, the findings can provide a theoretical foundation for understanding the complex regulatory mechanisms of WRKY transcription factors. Additionally, this research offers valuable candidate genes for breeding stress-resistant tomato varieties.

RESULTSExpression analysis revealed that low-temperature, drought, and abscisic acid (ABA) treatments significantly induced the expression of SlWRKY45. Overexpression of SlWRKY45 enhanced the resistance of tomato plants to drought and low-temperature stresses. Under drought and low-temperature conditions, the photosynthetic indices, antioxidant enzyme activities, and proline (Pro) contents in SlWRKY45 overexpression lines were significantly higher than those in wild-type (WT) plants. Conversely, the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in SlWRKY45-OE plants was significantly lower than in WT plants under the same stress conditions. Transcriptome data analysis indicated that SlWRKY45 regulates tomato's response to low-temperature stress primarily by influencing antioxidant enzyme activities and stress response pathways. Dual-luciferase assays demonstrated that SlWRKY45 could directly activate the expression of SlPOD1. Furthermore, the interaction between SlWRKY45 and SlWRKY46 was confirmed through yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) and bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC) assays.

CONCLUSIONOur findings demonstrate that SlWRKY45 positively regulates drought resistance and low-temperature tolerance in tomato. Additionally, SlWRKY45 can interact with SlWRKY46 and directly activate the expression of SlPOD1. These results offer valuable insights for further research into the regulatory mechanisms underlying abiotic stress responses and provide potential gene resources for genetic improvement through molecular breeding.

Phenotypes of SlWRKY45-overexpressing and wild-type plants under drought and low-temperature treatments

Background & Aim: Urbanization has caused widespread changes in species habitats, leading to changes in community composition and species traits. This process has notably transformed the interspecific interactions involving birds, but current research has limited knowledge about this change. In this paper, the modification patterns of predator-prey interactions, host-parasite interactions, competitive interactions, and mutualistic interactions involving birds in urban environments are reviewed, to provide suggestions for future research and conservation efforts on birds in urban environments.

Review Results: With increasing urbanization, the identity of species involved in various forms of interspecific interactions is directly affected by changes in species composition, leading to changes in the process, intensity, and outcomes of interspecific interactions. In predator-prey interactions, anthropogenic disturbances, enhanced resource availability, and habitat changes modify the community composition of both predators and prey. These changes affect the predation behavior of predators and the antipredator behavior of prey. In host-parasite interactions, pollution and zoonotic disease transmission change parasite taxa, while the spatial concentration and diminished diversity of urban bird communities heighten disease transmission risks. Additionally, factors such as dietary quality and environmental disturbances influence host immunophysiology. In competitive interactions, adaptation of birds to urban environment leads to intensification of competitive behavior, and stabilization of the environment and resource availability may increase competitive intensity and promote competitive exclusion. In mutualistic interactions between birds and plants, the loss of native species and the introduction of exotic species reduce the uniqueness of interactions. Landscape features such as habitat fragmentation affect spatial patterns of pollination and seed dispersal. Changes in the participants and processes of interspecific interactions can modify the nodes and edges in interaction networks and the structural characteristics of such networks, decrease in species diversity simplifies the network structure, while the loss of specialist species and rise of generalist species enhance evenness and reduce the specialization of the interactive networks.

Prospect: There are three important directions for future research on interspecific interactions in urban birds: (1) Development of methods for identifying and quantifying interspecific interactions; (2) Development of ecological network theories, including multilayer networks, in the study of interspecific interactions in urban birds; (3) Utilization of interspecific interactions to increase the effectiveness of conservation in urban bird conservation.

Aims: In recent years, with the development of molecular systematics research, there have been many changes in the names and taxonomic status of tribes, genera and species in the family Cyperaceae in China. Therefore it is necessary to review these changes in order to comprehensively understand the taxonomic status of Chinese Cyperaceae and provide a taxonomic basis for related scientific research.

Methods: By reviewing the taxonomic literature of Cyperaceae in China and abroad, combined with examining the specimen data from field surveys and online databases (Chinese Virtual Herbarium, Global Biodiversity Information Facility), we summarized and updated the species checklist and taxonomic synopsis of Cyperaceae in China.

Results: The statistical results indicated that there were 932 species of Cyperaceae in 2 subfamilies, comprising of 19 tribes and 32 genera in China (of the 5,719 species of 2 subfamilies, comprising of 24 tribes and 95 genera worldwide, excluding infraspecies). Compared with the Catalogue of Life China 2023 Annual Checklist, all species in Courtoisina, Kyllinga, Lipocarpha, Pycreus and Remirea were combined into Cyperus; some species in the genera Schoenoplectus, Fimbristylis and Tricostularia undulata were reclassified according to the results of the latest molecular phylogenetic analyses; and here we combined Fimbristylis longistipitata into Abildgaardia. The species diversity of Chinese Cyperaceae is relatively higher in the subtropical region of southern China, both at the genus and species levels; Carex and Cyperus had the largest number of species, accounting for 67.8% and 9.0% of Cyperaceae species in China, with 632 and 84 species, respectively; 8 genera had only one species distributed in China, accounting for 25.0% of Cyperaceae genera in China; 67 species had no specimen record in domestic or foreign specimen data platforms, and further research was needed to confirm their distribution status.

Conclusion: This paper integrates the latest taxonomic research results of Cyperaceae, gives a list and taxonomic outline of the existing sedge plants in China, and makes a preliminary analysis of the distribution of them, which will lay the data foundation for taxonomic, phylogenetic, and evolutionary research of the sedge family in China.

Single-cell transcriptomics has improved the spatiotemporal resolution from multi-cell to single-cell levels, and notable progress in this technique has facilitated the identification of new rare cell types, exploration of intercellular heterogeneity, and mapping of cell developmental trajectories. Single-cell transcriptomics is currently being widely used in various research fields such as plant growth and development, stress response, and environmental adaptability, which helps to more thoroughly and precisely uncover the molecular regulatory mechanisms underlying plant life processes. However, there are numerous challenges associated with the study and analysis of different plant species. In this review, we compare and evaluate various single-cell transcription techniques and processes, summarize plant single-cell studies in recent years, and explore new single-cell analysis tools to support researchers studying plant biology with high precision and dynamics. In addition, we propose future directions in using single-cell transcriptomics technologies to address some of the key challenges in plant research and breeding. Furthermore, some important methods for addressing plant research and breeding with single-cell transcriptomics are discussed, along with their difficulties and potential applications.

Aims: Vascular epiphytes have a significant contribution to maintaining biodiversity, carbon storage, ecological hydrology and nutrient flux in a forest ecosystem. Assessing the diversity pattern of epiphytes thus can provide a basis for community assembly mechanism, conservation and resource utilization of epiphytes in the context of global change. In this context, we aimed to analyze the species and phylogenetic diversity including the phylogenetic structure of vascular epiphytes, and their correlations with host characteristics in the subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest in the Ailao Mountains, Southwest China.

Methods: Using a built-in canopy crane, we observed 311 individuals of dominant host trees in the 1.44 ha permanent plot and recorded the occurrence of vascular epiphytes including host tree identity, diameter at breast height (DBH) and tree height. Afterward, species richness (S), phylogenetic diversity (PD) and phylogenetic structure (net nearest taxa index (NTI) and net relatedness index (NRI)) of vascular epiphytes and their correlation with DBH, height and species of host trees were evaluated.

Results: A total of 62 species of vascular epiphytes belonging to 26 families and 44 genera were found. Remarkably, significant positive correlations were found between the epiphyte species richness and PD with the host DBH and height (P < 0.001). No significant correlations were detected between standard phylogenetic diversity (SES.PD) and species richness. The species richness and PD of epiphytes in Stewartia pteropetiolata were significantly lower than in other host species (P < 0.001). However, SES.PD significantly increased with the increase in host DBH (P < 0.05) and decreased with the increase in host height (P < 0.05). The phylogenetic structures of epiphytes on the Castanopsis wattii and Michelia floribunda were divergent, while epiphytes on the Lithocarpus xylocarpus and Stewartia pteropetiolata were clustered. Epiphytes on the other host trees did not show any phylogenetic structural pattern.

Conclusion: Host tree characteristics, including host size and host species differences, are the key factors that maintain the diversity pattern of vascular epiphytes. These results can provide a solid foundation for future analysis of the pattern and maintenance mechanism of epiphyte diversity from multiple dimensions and perspectives.

Heavy metal-associated isoprenylated plant proteins (HIPPs) are a class of proteins characterized by the presence of heavy metal-associated domains (HMA) and C-terminal isoprenylation motifs in plants. Here, we introduce the structural characteristics of the HIPPs, review their potential roles in plant development and response to environmental changes (including biotic and abiotic stresses) as well as discuss their working mechanisms underlying their participation in heavy-metal homeostasis and detoxification. This comprehensive overview aims to provide valuable insights for future research on the HIPP family across diverse plant species.

Background & Aims: Exotic plant invasions seriously threaten native biodiversity and ecological security. Although numerous studies have explored the mechanisms of exotic plant invasion, the critical role of soil organisms in this process has not been systematically reviewed.

Progress: In this review, we summarize five ways by which soil biota influence exotic plant invasions, including (1) the role of soil microorganisms (pathogenic microorganisms, symbiotic microorganisms, saprophytic microorganisms, microbial diversity); (2) the role of soil fauna (herbivorous insects, nematodes and protozoa, mites and collembolans, earthworms); (3) the role of soil food webs (micro-food webs, entire food webs); (4) the relationship between plant-soil feedback and plant invasions; and (5) the effect of plant above- and below-ground biotic interactions.

Prospectives: We propose four directions for future studies, including (1) biogeographic comparisons between native and invasive ranges; (2) the verification of the diversity-invasibility hypothesis; (3) the expansion at the plant community level; and (4) the application of multi-omics technology. By elucidating soil biological mechanisms for exotic plant invasion, this review provides important insights for the management of invasive exotic plants and biodiversity conservation.

Maize (Zea mays) is the major grain crop with the largest planting area and the highest total yield in China, and it is also a model of heterosis utilization. However, compared with developed countries, China is still facing several outstanding problems in maize production, such as low average yield, lack of breakthrough varieties and high cost of hybrid seed production. The main solution to these problems is the application of male-sterile lines with better heterosis utilization efficiency and thus increase the yield per unit area of maize. In this review, we summarize the latest advances of male sterility research in maize, including its classification, gene cloning and functional analysis, molecular regulatory network construction, and discuss the strategies of creating novel male-sterility systems and their potential/future application in maize breeding. This review provides guidelines for the male-sterility based/assisted hybrid breeding and seed production in maize.