Polycaprolactone (PCL) is one of the promising linear aliphatic polyesters which can be used as mulching film. Although it has suitable glass transition temperature and good biodegradability, further practical applications are restricted by the limited temperature-increasing and moisturizing properties. The rational design of the PCL structure is a good strategy to enhance the related properties. In this study, thermally-induced phase separation (TIPS) was introduced to fabricate a PCL nanoporous thin film. The introduction of a nanoporous structure on the PCL surface (np-PCL) exhibited enhanced temperature-increasing and moisturizing properties when used as mulch film. In detail, the average soil temperature of np-PCL was increased to 17.81 °C, when compared with common PCL of 17.42 °C and PBAT of 17.50 °C, and approaches to PE of 18.02 °C. In terms of water vapor transmission rate, the value for np-PCL is 637 gm⁻²day⁻¹, which was much less than the common PCL of 786 and PBAT of 890 gm⁻²day⁻¹. As a result, the weed biomass under the np-PCL was suppressed to be 0.35 kg m⁻², almost half of the common PCL and PBAT. In addition, the np-PCL shows good thermal stability with an onset decomposition temperature of 295 °C. The degradation mechanism and rate of the np-PCL in different pH environments were also studied to explore the influence of nanoporous structure. This work highlights the importance of the nanoporous structure in PCL to enhance the temperature-increasing and moisturizing properties of PCL-based biodegradable mulching film.

The use of biodegradable plastic film mulching as a replacement for polyethylene plastic film has gained recognition due to its reduced environmental pollution. However, its impact on soil environment is not yet fully understood. Here, we compared the effects of different plastic film mulching on the accumulation of microbial necromass carbon (C) and its contribution to soil total C in 2020 and 2021. Results showed that biodegradable plastic film mulching decreased the accumulation of fungal necromass C compared to no plastic film mulching and polyethylene film mulching. However, the bacterial necromass C and soil total C were not affected by the plastic film mulching. Biodegradable plastic film mulching decreased the soil dissolved organic carbon content after maize harvest. Random forest models suggested that soil dissolved organic C, soil pH and the ratio of soil dissolved organic C to microbial biomass C were important factors in regulating the accumulation of fungal necromass C. The abundance of the fungal genus Mortierella was also found to have a significant positive contribution to the accumulation of fungal necromass C. These findings suggest that biodegradable plastic film mulching may decrease the accumulation of fungal necromass C by changing substrate availability, soil pH, and fungal community composition, with potential implications for soil C storage.

Maize/peanut intercropping may improve soil health through reducing nitrogen (N) fertilization. However, the effects of maize/peanut intercropping combined with reduced N fertilization on the soil fungal community structure have not been well reported. Using a long-term localized micro-zone experiment, we investigated the combined effects of intercropping and N fertilizer application on soil fungal community diversity and composition. Three cropping patterns (maize/peanut intercropping, maize monoculture, and peanut monoculture) and three N application levels (0 kg·hm⁻², 150 kg·hm^−2, and 300 kg·hm⁻²) were assessed. The results showed that the total numbers of fungal species and unique species (operational taxonomic units, OTUs) in both maize and peanut soils tended to first increase and then decrease with increasing N application. Compared with monoculture, the numbers of total OTUs and unique OTUs in intercropped maize soil decreased by 4.14% and 12.79%, respectively, but the total numbers of OTUs and unique OTUs in peanut soil increased by 1.08% and 3.78%, respectively. With increasing N application, the soil fungal Ace and Chao indices of maize soil first increased and then decreased, while the fungal Shannon, Ace, and Chao indices of peanut soil decreased. Compared with the monoculture system, intercropping significantly reduced the maize soil fungal Ace and Chao indices but increased the peanut soil fungal Shannon, Ace, and Chao indices. Nitrogen application and intercropping significantly altered the fungal community structure of maize soil, while N application had no significant effect on the fungal community structure of peanut soil, though intercropping significantly changed the fungal community structure of peanut soil. At the phylum level, Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, Mortierellomycota, unclassified_k_Fungi, and Chytridiomycota were the dominant taxa. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that soil nitrate (NO₃⁻) content was the main environmental factor shaping the soil fungal community. In conclusion, excessive N fertilization (300 kg·hm⁻²) can reduce soil fungal community diversity; maize/peanut intercropping reversed the negative effect of N application on fungal community of peanut soil, but not that of maize soil. Soil NO₃⁻ content is the primary environmental driver of soil fungal communities.

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum as a necrotrophic fungus causes the devastating diseases in many important oilseed crops worldwide. The preferred strategy for controlling S. sclerotiorum is to develop resistant varieties, but the molecular mechanisms underlying S. sclerotiorum resistance remain poorly defined in sunflower (Helianthus annuus). Here, a comparative transcriptomic analysis was performed in leaves of two contrasting sunflower genotypes, disease susceptible (DS) B728 and disease resistant (DR) C6 after S. sclerotiorum inoculation. At 24 h post-inoculation, the DR genotype exhibited no visible growth of the hyphae as well as greater activity of superoxide dismutase activity (SOD), peroxidase (POD), catalase (CAT), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and monodehydroascorbate reductase (MDAR) than DS genotype. A total of 10151 and 7439 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected in DS and DR genotypes, respectively. Most of DEGs were enriched in cell wall organisation, protein kinase activity, hormone, transcription factor activities, redox homeostasis, immune response, and secondary metabolism. Differential expression of genes involved in expansins, pectate lyase activities, ethylene biosynthesis and signaling and antioxidant activity after S. sclerotiorum infection could potentially be responsible for the differential resistance among two genotypes. In summary, these finding provide additional insights into the potential molecular mechanisms of S. sclerotiorum’s defense response and facilitate the breeding of Sclerotinia-resistant sunflower varieties.

Returning corn stalks to the field is an important and widely used soil management practice which is conducive to the sustainable development of agriculture. In this study, the effects of corn stalks and urea on N₂O production in corn field soil were investigated through a 21-day incubation experiment. This study showed that increasing amounts of urea added to soil with a history of corn cultivation leads to increasing overall N₂O emissions, by increasing both the intensity and the duration of emissions. Although N₂O production was affected primarily by urea-derived NH₄⁺-N and NO₃⁻-N, its main source was native soil nitrogen, which accounted for 78.5 to 94.5% of N₂O. Returning corn stalk residue to the field reduced the production of N₂O, and the more urea was applied, the stronger the effect of corn residue on reducing N₂O emissions. Combining the application of corn stalks and urea could reduce the concentration of NH₄⁺-N and NO₃⁻-N derived from urea, and then reduce the substrate required for N₂O production in nitrification and denitrification processes. In addition, the combined application of corn stalks and urea could effectively inhibit the abundance of key N₂O-producing genes AOA amoA, nirS and nirK.

Nanoparticles (NPs) have attractive properties that have received impressive consideration in the last few decades. Polylactic acid nanoparticles (PLA-NPs) stand out as a biodegradable polyester with excellent biocompatibility. This investigation introduces PLA-NPs prepared by using the emulsification-solvent volatilization (O/W) method. The effects of ultrasonication time, organic-to-aqueous phase volume ratio, surfactant Tween-20, and PLA on particle size as well as the polydispersity index (PDI) were investigated using a one-factor combination with Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The result indicates that, on the one hand, PLA was the key factor affecting particle size, which gradually increased as the amount of PLA increased from 0.01 to 0.1 g. The particle size of NPs gradually decreased as the surfactant Tween-20 increased from 0.25 mL to 1 mL in the aqueous phase. The volume ratio of the organic phase to the aqueous phase increased from 1:10 to 1:1, with the particle size initially decreasing (from 1:10 to 1:5) and subsequently increasing (from 1:5 to 1:1). As the ultrasonication time increased from 20 min to 40 min, the particle size initially increased (from 25 to 30 min) and then decreased (from 30 to 40 min). On the other hand, Tween-20 was the main factor of PDI, and with the increase of Tween-20, PDI changed significantly and increased rapidly. The volume ratio of the organic phase to the aqueous phase increased from 1:10 to 1:1, resulting in the stabilization and subsequent gradual decrease of the PDI. With the increase of ultrasonication time (20–40 min), PDI tended to be stable after the increase. The effect of PLA on PDI was not significant, and the change of PLA concentration did not cause a significant change in the size of PDI.