Quantitative Assessment for the Spatiotemporal Changes of Ecosystem Services, Tradeoff–Synergy Relationships and Drivers in the Semi-Arid Regions of China

Ecosystem services in arid inland regions are significantly affected by climate change and land use/land cover change associated with agricultural activity. However, the dynamics and relationships of ecosystem services affected by natural and anthropogenic drivers in inland regions are still less understood. In this study, the spatiotemporal patterns of ecosystem services in the Hexi Region were quantified based on multiple high-resolution datasets, the InVEST model and the Revised Wind Erosion Equation (RWEQ) model. In addition, the trade-offs and synergistic relationships among multiple ecosystem services were also explored by Pearson correlation analysis and bivariate spatial autocorrelation, and redundancy analysis (RDA) was also employed to determine the environmental drivers of these services and interactions. The results showed that most ecosystem services had a similar spatial distribution pattern with an increasing trend from northwest to southeast. Over the past 40 years, ecosystem services in the Hexi Region have improved significantly, with the water retention and soil retention increasing by 87.17 × 108 m3 and 287.84 × 108 t, respectively, and the sand fixation decreasing by 369.17 × 104 t. Among these ecosystem services, strong synergistic relationships were detected, while the trade-offs were found to be weak, and showed significant spatial heterogeneity in the Hexi Region. The spatial synergies and trade-offs in the Qilian Mountains were 1.02 and 1.37 times higher than those in the Hexi Corridor, respectively. Human activities were found to exacerbate the trade-offs between ecosystem services by increasing water consumption in the Hexi Corridor, with the exception of carbon storage. In particular, there were significant tradeoffs between food production and water retention, and between soil retention and habitat quality in the oases of the Hexi Corridor, which is affected by rapid population growth and cropland expansion. Additionally, precipitation, temperature and vegetation cover in the Qilian Mountains have increased significantly over the past four decades, and these increases significantly contributed to the enhancements in water retention, carbon storage, habitat quality, soil retention and food production. Nevertheless, the amount of sand fixation significantly decreased, and this was probably associated with the reduction in wind speed over the past four decades. Our results highlighted the importance of climate wetting and water resource management in the enhancement of ecosystem services and the mitigation of food production trade-offs for arid inland regions.

Accumulation of Selected Metal Elements in Fruiting Bodies of Oyster Mushroom

The species Pleurotus ostreatus is a commercially, gastronomically, and biotechnologically important fungus. Its strain variability has been little researched. The study provides an evaluation of 59 oyster mushroom production strains in terms of the ability to accumulate selected metals in the cap and stipe. The fruiting bodies were grown under identical model conditions on straw substrate. Metal concentrations (ET-AAS) in dry fruiting bodies ranged in values 1.7–22.4 mg kg−1 for Al, 2.6–9.7 mg kg−1 Ba, 199–4560 mg kg−1 Ca, 1.7–12.0 mg kg−1 Cu, 12–120 mg kg−1 Fe, 16,000–49,500 mg kg−1 K, 876–2400 mg kg−1 Mg, 0.39–11.0 mg kg−1 Mn, 46–920 mg kg−1 Na and 11–920 mg kg−1 for Zn. More Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Zn accumulated in the cap, while in the stipe Ba was amassed. No significant difference was found between Al, Ca and Na between the accumulation in the cap and the stipe. Furthermore, the dependence of metal uptake from the substrate depending on the fortification of the substrate was confirmed. Statistically significant (p < 0.05) synergistic relationships were shown in pairs Al and Ba, Al and Fe, Ba and Na, Ba and Ca, Ca and Na, Cu and Fe, Fe and Mn, Fe and Zn, K and Mg, K and Mn, K and Zn, Mg and Mn, Mg and Na, Mg and Zn and Mn and Zn in the substrate without the addition of sodium selenate to the substrate. Altered relationships were observed after the application of sodium selenate to the substrate, synergism of Se and Ni, Se and Co and Se and Hg, Cu and Mn, Cu and Fe, Zn and Co, Zn and Ni, Zn and Hg, Mn and Fe, Mn and Cr, Co and Ni, Co and Hg, Ni and Hg, Pb and Cd. The findings of the study may help in the selection of production strains with hypercumulative properties for a particular metal and subsequent use in the addition of fortified fruiting bodies (e.g., with Zn). Based on the study the strains less sensitive to the accumulation of hazardous metals is possible to select for large-scale production, which is important from the perspective of food safety.

Spatiotemporal changes, trade-offs, and synergistic relationships in ecosystem services provided by the Aral Sea Basin

Intense human activities in the Aral Sea Basin have changed its natural distribution of land use. Although they provide certain economic benefits, these anthropogenic influences have led to the rapid shrinkage of the Aral Sea, severely affecting the region’s ecosystem. However, the spatiotemporal variability of the Aral Sea Basin’s Ecosystem Service Values (ESVs) is not well understood. In this study, we used 300-meter resolution land use maps from 1995, 2005, and 2015 and the Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model to predict the future land use patterns of the Aral Sea Basin in 2025. Simultaneously, we divided the Aral Sea Basin into three regions (upstream, midstream, and downstream) and evaluated the dynamic responses of their ESVs to Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) changes. The changes in the types of ecosystem services provided by the Aral Sea Basin, their trade-off, and synergistic relationships were analyzed by weighting their associations. The results showed that from 1995 to 2025, the grassland, urban, and cropland areas in the Aral Sea Basin will expand rapidly, while the areas covered by water bodies will shrink rapidly, causing a total loss of 31.97 billion USD. The downstream loss of 27.79 billion USD of the total amount is mainly caused by the conversion of water bodies to bare land. The ESVs of the middle region will increase by 6.81 billion USD, mainly due to the large amount of water extracted from the Amu Darya and Syr Darya Rivers in the middle regions of the Aral Sea Basin that are used to reclaim cultivated land and expand urban areas. The ESVs and areas experiencing land use changes in the upper regions are relatively small. At the same time, our results show that biodiversity, food production, and water regulation are the major ecosystem service functions, and account for 79.46% of the total ESVs. Of the ecosystem service relationships in the Aral Sea Basin, synergy accounts for 55.56% of the interactions, with a fewer amount of trade-off exchanges. This synergy mainly exists in the relationships involving water regulation, waste treatment and recreation, and culture and tourism. We propose protection measures that will coordinate eco-environmental protection efforts with socioeconomic development in the region in order to achieve the United Nations’ sustainable development goals.

Developing Synergistic Relationships between Age-Friendly Universities and Age-Friendly Communities

The Age-Friendly University (AFU) initiative was designed to support the Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities (WHO, 2018) and offers a range of opportunities for institutions of higher education to help communities adapt to their new age-diverse social structures as a result of shifting age demographics. In turn, age-friendly community partnerships are helping to fuel campus efforts to advance age-inclusivity through education, research, and community engagement. At present over 70 institutions have joined the AFU global network, as more campuses prepare to become age-friendly partners. In this collaborative symposium (Directors of Aging Centers and AFU Interest Groups), campus leaders will describe synergistic relationships between their age-friendly campus efforts and the age-friendly efforts of their neighboring communities. Montepare (Lasell University) will provide an overview of the AFU initiative and its set of 10 principles, and make the case that campuses and communities are necessary partners for creating and developing age-friendly efforts. Demonstrating this assertion, Pastor and Rogers (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign) will describe linkages between their community and campus initiatives, including developing a Panel of Elders, television programming for older adults, and hosting joint events. Black and Andel (University of South Florida) will discuss the intersection between the AFU principles and the processes undertaken by age-friendly communities. Revell and Viveiros (University of Massachusetts Dartmouth) will show how campus collaborations with nearby communities are instrumental in sustaining age-friendly efforts, especially during a pandemic.

The Trade-offs and Synergistic Relationships between Grassland Ecosystem Functions in the Yellow River Basin

Grassland is the most important land use/cover type in the Yellow River basin. Studying its ecosystem services and the trade-off and synergistic relationships between its various functions is of great significance to high-quality development and the protection of the ecological environment in the Yellow River basin. This paper evaluates the five typical functions of grassland in the Yellow River basin quantitatively, including water yield, carbon storage, soil conservation, habitat quality, and NPP by adopting the InVEST model and the CASA model. It analyzes changes in the trade-offs and the synergistic relationships between the five ecosystem functions from 1990 to 2018 by adopting the correlation coefficient method. The paper also analyzes and explores the spatial heterogeneity of the trade-offs and synergistic relationships by adopting the bivariate spatial autocorrelation method. The results show that from 1990 to 2018, the average water yield depth, carbon storage, and NPP of the grassland in the Yellow River basin tended to increase; soil conservation and habitat quality showed a decreasing trend; and the spatial distribution of the five functions were clearly in line with zonal law. The five ecological functions were synergistic; the synergistic relationship between water yield and the other functions was relatively weak, and there was a strong synergistic relationship between the other four functions. The trade-offs and synergistic relationships between the five functions demonstrated significant spatial heterogeneity in space. This research provides a scientific basis for determining the optimal utilization and sustainable development of grassland resources.

A Review of Using Mathematical Modeling to Improve Our Understanding of Bacteriophage, Bacteria, and Eukaryotic Interactions

Phage therapy, the therapeutic usage of viruses to treat bacterial infections, has many theoretical benefits in the ‘post antibiotic era.’ Nevertheless, there are currently no approved mainstream phage therapies. One reason for this is a lack of understanding of the complex interactions between bacteriophage, bacteria and eukaryotic hosts. These three-component interactions are complex, with non-linear or synergistic relationships, anatomical barriers and genetic or phenotypic heterogeneity all leading to disparity between performance and efficacy in in vivo versus in vitro environments. Realistic computer or mathematical models of these complex environments are a potential route to improve the predictive power of in vitro studies for the in vivo environment, and to streamline lab work. Here, we introduce and review the current status of mathematical modeling and highlight that data on genetic heterogeneity and mutational stochasticity, time delays and population densities could be critical in the development of realistic phage therapy models in the future. With this in mind, we aim to inform and encourage the collaboration and sharing of knowledge and expertise between microbiologists and theoretical modelers, synergising skills and smoothing the road to regulatory approval and widespread use of phage therapy.

Study on the Comprehensive Improvement of Ecosystem Services in a China’s Bay City for Spatial Optimization

Ecosystem services are characterized by region and scale, and contribute to human welfare. Taking Yantai city, a typical bay city in China, as the example, its three representative ecosystem services: food supply (FS), carbon sequestration (CS) and water yield (WY) were chosen as study targets. Based on analyzation of six different aspects of the supply and variation characteristic of demand, this study tried to propose advices for comprehensive improvement of ecosystem services for spatial optimization. The results showed that: (1) ecosystem services supply was strong in central and southern areas of Yantai, while the northern coastal areas were relatively weak; (2) synergistic relationships were found of FS-CS, FS-WY and CS-WY both in 2009 and 2015, with the strongest one for FS-WY. Additionally, in the synergistic relationships, each pair of ecosystem services was dominated by one ecosystem service; (3) most of the three pairs of synergistic relationships had the tendency to strengthen with larger scales; (4) four ecosystem demands changing areas were observed and comprehensive improvement suggestions for them were proposed. This work provides a new attempt to improve ecosystem services based on its supply-demand relationship, which will give a baseline reference for related studies in Yantai city, as well as other similar bay cities.

Developmental Outcomes of University Female Basketball Athletes As Participants in Peer Mentoring Groups

Peer group mentoring can stimulate developmental outcomes for university basketball athletes. Seven female university basketball athletes from an NCAA Division III team participated in peer mentoring groups over the course of an academic year. By sharing about their lived experiences, the researchers were able to capture narratives that illuminated the impact of this developmental relationship. Thematic analysis was utilized to explore these descriptions and collate them into findings relevant for athletes, coaches, Athletics administrators, and others. Findings presented below indicate that these peer group mentoring experiences (a) nurtured synergistic relationships; (b) cultivated athletes’ resilience; and (c) developed athletes’ self-efficacy.