Large herbivores are important components of rewilding. However, populations can grow fast: we predict that, where top-down control is insufficient, herbivores could undermine long-term rewilding goals. To avoid this, nature-mimicking interventions are required to achieve the right amount of herbivory, in the right place, at the right time through the rewilding process.

Uranium pollution in aquatic ecosystems poses a threat to organisms. However, the metabolism and toxicity of uranium along aquatic food chains remain unknown. Here, we established an artificial aquatic ecosystem to investigate the fate of uranium along the food chain and reveal its potential toxicity. The results displayed a dose- and time-dependent toxicity of uranium on algae, leading to cell deformation and impeding cell proliferation. When uranium-exposed algae are ingested by fish, uranium tends to concentrate in the intestinal system and bones of fish. Comparatively, direct water uranium exposure resulted in a remarkable uranium accumulation in the head, skin, and muscles of fish, suggesting different toxicity depending on distinct exposure pathways. High-level uranium pollution (20 mg L-1) intensifies the toxicity to fish through food intake compared to direct water exposure. It has also revealed that approximately 25 % and 20 % of U(VI) were reduced to lower valence forms during its accumulation in algae and fish, respectively, and over 10 % of U(IV, VI) converted to U(0) ultimately, through which uranium toxicity was mitigated due to the lower solubility and bioavailability. Overall, this study provides new insights into the fate of uranium during its delivery along the aquatic food chain and highlights the risks associated with consuming uranium-contaminated aquatic products.

Rice (Oryza sativa) is an important nutritional grain for the majority of Asian countries, but it is also a major source of cadmium (Cd) accumulation. A pot experiment was carried out to investigate the Cd uptake and translocation of high Cd (IR-50) and low Cd (White Ponni) rice cultivars in Cd-contaminated soils. The findings revealed that Cd impacts on rice development and growth differed depending on rice cultivars. Soil Cd levels in the seedling stage exceeded the critical levels (3-6 mg kg-1) only 5.0 mg kg-1 Cd treatment for the IR-50 (7.47 mg kg-1). At higher Cd treatments (1.0 and 5.0 mg kg-1), morphometric characteristics and yield of grains showed a declining and increasing trend in both rice varieties, respectively. The accumulation of Cd was higher in soil and roots during seedling and tillering stages, whereas in booting and maturity stages increased in stems and leaves in IR-50 and WP rice varieties. Cd levels in rice grains above the maximum allowable limit (0.4 mg kg-1) only in IR-50 (0.51 mg kg-1) rice cultivar at maturity stage. The EF of Cd were classified as minor enrichment to \'moderate enrichment\' in both rice cultivars. TF values exhibited > 1 in booting and maturity stages in both rice cultivars at higher Cd treatments. The study concluded that the IR-50 rice variety exhibited increased Cd intake and transported to various parts of rice plants, particularly grains. The findings indicate that WP rice cultivar is more resistant to Cd toxicity, reducing health hazards for persons who preferred the staple food rice.

OBJECTIVE: Clonal growth is widespread among herbaceous plants, and helps them to cope with environmental heterogeneity through resource integration via connecting clonal organs. Such integration is considered to balance heterogeneity by translocation of resources from rich to poor patches. However, such an \'equalisation\' strategy is only one of several possible strategies. Under certain conditions, a strategy emphasising acropetal movement and exploration of new areas or a strategy of accumulating resources in older ramets may be preferred. The optimal strategy may be determined by environmental conditions, such as resource availability and level of light competition. We aimed to summarise possible translocation strategies in a conceptual analysis and to examine translocation in two species from different habitats.
METHODS: Resource translocation was compared between two closely related species from different habitats with contrasting productivity. The study examined the bidirectional translocation of carbon and nitrogen in pairs of mother and daughter ramets grown under light heterogeneity (one ramet shaded) at two developmental stages using stable-isotope labelling.
RESULTS: At the early developmental stage, both species translocated resources toward daughters and the translocation was modified by shading. Later, the species of low-productivity habitats, Fragaria viridis, translocated carbon to shaded ramets (both mother and daughter), according to the \'equalisation\' strategy. In contrast, the species of high-productivity habitats, Potentilla reptans, did not support shaded mother ramets. Nitrogen translocation remained mainly acropetal in both species.
CONCLUSIONS: The two studied species exhibited different translocation strategies, which may be linked to the habitat conditions experienced by each species. The results indicate that we need to consider different possible strategies. We emphasise the importance of bidirectional tracing in translocation studies and the need for further studies to investigate the translocation patterns in species from contrasting habitats using a comparative approach.

Conditional depletion of proteins is a potential strategy to elucidate protein function, especially in complex cellular processes like meiosis. Several methods are available to effectively deplete a protein in a conditional manner. Conditional loss of a protein function can be achieved by depleting it from its region of action by degrading it. A conditional loss of protein function can also be achieved by sequestering it to a functionally unavailable compartment inside the cell. This chapter describes anchor away, a conditional depletion tool that can deplete a protein both temporally and spatially by translocation. It utilizes the affinity of FRB to bind FKBP12 in the presence of rapamycin for a quick and efficient translocation of the protein to a designated location. Anchor away is a reliable tool for the study of meiotic proteins, as only small quantities of rapamycin are required to efficiently and rapidly translocate the protein of interest without compromising meiotic progression.

Systemic plant protection products, such as neonicotinoids (NIs), are capable of being translocated throughout a plant. Although NIs are less toxic to mammals, fish, and birds, their impact on microbial and non-target insects is of concern. This study investigates the uptake, translocation, and accumulation of the NI, imidacloprid (IMI), in romaine lettuce (Lactuca sativa L. var. longipolia). Exposing 15-day-old seedlings to \"10 mg/L\" of IMI, the effects on microbial communities in both cultivated (CS) and non-cultivated soil (NCS) were studied along with IMI translocation within plant tissues. The concentrations of IMI in soil varied temporally and between soil types after initial application, with a decrease from 2.0 and 7.7 mg/kg on the first day of sampling to 0.5 and 2.6 mg/kg on the final sampling day (day 35) for CS and NCS, respectively. The half-life of IMI soil was 10.7 and 72.5 days in CS and NCS, respectively, indicating that IMI degraded more quickly in CS, possibly due to smaller grain size, aeration, microbial degradation, and water flow. The accumulated concentrations of IMI in lettuce tissues ranged from 12.4 ± 0.2 and 18.7± 0.9 mg/kg in CS and NCS, respectively. The highest concentration of IMI was found in the shoots, followed by the roots, whereas the soil showed the lowest IMI residuals at the end of the trial. Soil bacteria and fungi were altered by the application of IMI, with a lower abundance index within the bacterial community, indicating a negative impact on the distribution of bacteria in the soil.

Micro-nanoplastic particulates (MNPs) have been identified in both indoor and outdoor environments. From these real-world exposures, MNPs have been identified in human fluids and organ tissues, including the placenta and breastmilk. Laboratory studies have identified MNPs are capable of crossing the placental barrier and depositing in fetal tissues; however, it remained unclear if MNPs persist in offspring tissues after birth. Six pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were divided equally into two groups: control and exposed to polyamide-12 (PA-12) MNP aerosols (11.46 ± 3.78 mg/m3) over an average of 4.35 h ± 0.39 for 10 non-consecutive days between gestational day (GD) 6 - GD 19, in our custom rodent exposure chamber, allowing for whole-body inhalation. Two-weeks after delivery in-house, offspring tissues (i.e. lung, liver, kidney, heart, brain) from 1 male and 1 female pup per litter were fixed in 4 % paraformaldehyde, sectioned, stained with hematoxylin and eosin, and assessed using hyperspectral dark-field microscopy. PA-12 MNPs were identified in all offspring tissues of the exposed dams. No MNPs were visualized in control tissues. These findings have important implications for human MNPs translocation, deposition, maternal/fetal health, and the developmental origins of health and disease. Further research is warranted to quantify MNPs mass deposition, biological accumulation, and systemic toxicity.

Most studies on nanoplastics (NPs) focus on aquatic environments, overlooking their combined bioaccumulation with pollutants in terrestrial ecosystems. This study addresses a part of this gap by investigating how polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NPs) affect the bioaccumulation and translocation of lead (Pb) in Hordeum vulgare L. plants. Using the RHIZOtest device for precise soil contamination control, we quantified PS-NPs (50 nm) in plant shoots via pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GCMS) after plant KOH digestion. Our findings revealed that PS-NPs reduce Pb bioaccumulation and make adsorbed Pb onto PS-NPs less bioavailable to plants. For the highest Pb concentration, the Pb uptake index (PUI) followed the trend: Free Pb > NPs + Pb > Pb primary adsorbed by NPs, showing reduced Pb translocation to shoots in the presence of PS-NPs. Moreover, the presence of Pb decreased the bioavailability of PS-NPs probably in response to PS-NPs aggregation or modified charge. The PS-NPs concentrations in shoots range from 275.2 to 400 μg g-1, representing 3.9 to 5.75% of the total PS-NPs. This study highlights the intricate interactions between nanoplastics and metals in soil-plant systems and emphasizes the need for further research on their combined effects and potential risks to food safety.

Cholesterol and Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) are both risk factors for gastric cancer (GC). However, the relationship between cholesterol and H. pylori and their function in the progression of GC are controversial. In this study, we addressed that H. pylori could induce mitochondrial cholesterol accumulation and promote GC proliferation and protect GC cells against apoptosis via cholesterol. Metabolomic and transcriptomic sequencing were used to identify CYP11A1 responsible for H. pylori-induced cholesterol accumulation. In vitro and in vivo function experiments revealed that cholesterol could promote the proliferation of GC and inhibit apoptosis. Mechanically, the interaction of Cytotoxin-associated gene A (CagA) and CYP11A1 redistributed mitochondrial CYP11A1 outside the mitochondria and subsequently caused mitochondrial cholesterol accumulation. The CYP11A1-knockdown upregulated cholesterol accumulation and reproduced the effect of cholesterol on GC in a cholesterol-dependent manner. Moreover, CYP11A1-knockdown or H. pylori infection inhibited mitophagy and maintained the mitochondria homeostasis. H. pylori could contribute to the progression of GC through the CagA/CYP11A1-mitoCHO axis. This study demonstrates that H. pylori can contribute to the progression of GC via cholesterol, and eradicating H. pylori is still prognostically beneficial to GC patients.

Crop contamination of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) may threaten human health, with root and leaves representing the primary uptake pathways of PFASs in crops. Therefore, it is imperative to elucidate the uptake characteristics of PFASs by crop roots and leaves as well as the critical influencing factors. In this study, the uptake and translocation of PFASs by roots and leaves of pak choi and radish were systematically explored based on perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA), perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS). Additionally, the roles of root Casparian strips, leaf stomata, and PFAS structures in the aforementioned processes were elucidated. Compared with pak choi, PFASs are more easily transferred to leaves after root uptake in radish, resulting from the lack of root Casparian strips. In pak choi root, the bioaccumulation of C4-C8 perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) showed a U-shaped trend with the increase of their carbon chain lengths, and the translocation potentials of individual PFASs from root to leaves negatively correlated with their chain lengths. The leaf uptake of PFOA in pak choi and radish mainly depended on cuticle sorption, with the evidence of a slight decrease in the concentrations of PFOA in exposed leaves after stomatal closure induced by abscisic acid. The leaf bioaccumulation of C4-C8 PFCAs in pak choi exhibited an inverted U-shaped trend as their carbon chain lengths increased. PFASs in exposed leaves can be translocated to the root and then re-transferred to unexposed leaves in vegetables. The longer-chain PFASs showed higher translocation potentials from exposed leaves to root. PFOS demonstrated a higher bioaccumulation than PFOA in crop roots and leaves, mainly due to the greater hydrophobicity of PFOS. Planting root vegetables lacking Casparian strips is inadvisable in PFAS-contaminated environments, in view of their higher PFAS bioaccumulation and considerable human intake.