The Fusarium species is an important plant pathogen that can cause plant diseases in grassland, leading to the degradation of grassland quality. However, the morphology of Fusarium is greatly affected by environmental factors, which makes it difficult to identify its species. In addition, the pathogenic ability of different Fusarium species in plants has not been fully studied. In this study, Fusarium isolates were obtained from grassland herbaceous plants via tissue separation. Through morphological means and based on ITS, RPB2, and TEF-1 gene sequences, we compared and constructed polygenic phylogenetic trees to classify and identify the Fusarium species. In addition, the pathogenicity of different Fusarium species was also analyzed. The results showed that a total of 24 Fusarium strains were successfully isolated from grassland, from which ten species were identified: F. flagelliforme, F. longifundum, F. clavum, F. scirpi, F. ipomoeae, F. oxysporum, etc. and were included in four complexes: Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti species complex (FIESC), Fusarium oxysporum species complex (FOSC), Fusarium tricinctum species complex (FTSC), and Fusarium sambucinum species complex (FSAMSC). Pathogenicity tests demonstrated that except for F. ipomoeae QJ5211, F. sambucinum QJ203, and F. acuminatum QJ1662, other Fusarium species had different degrees of pathogenic ability. This is the first study that discusses the effect of Fusarium on grassland disease control in this area. This study further provides clear pathogen information for the prevention and control of grassland diseases.

In this study, using a multigenerational heat selection design, we investigated the possible pattern of thermal acclimation and the background mechanism in Spodoptera frugiperda. Results show that heat selection significantly shortened the larval and pupal developmental duration, which was maintained in the four tested generations. Significant costs to reproduction were found in the first two generations, but they recovered in the following generations. Heat-selected adults exhibited significantly higher survival rates under extremely high temperatures, and the survival rate increased with subsequent generations. Transcriptomic analysis between heat-selected and non-selected male adults from the first generation showed that heat stress did not induce the upregulation of any heat shock protein (Hsp) genes; in the fourth generation, however, heat stress resulted in the upregulation of a great number of Hsps, indicating a positive correlation between Hsp expression and heat tolerance. Further analysis also found differential expression in other genes associated with heat resistance, such as cuticle-, antioxidant-, and detoxification-related genes. Moreover, quite a number of stress response GO terms were enriched, such as response to heat and other abiotic stimuli. GO enrichment also showed that DEGs were enriched to many more terms related to metabolism. KEGG enrichment revealed that relatively more disease-, metabolism-, and immunity-associated pathways were enriched. The number of disease pathways increased with the selection temperature in the first generation, whereas it decreased with subsequent generations. This study offers new information for the understanding of the thermal acclimation process and mechanism of moth species, and facilitates the prediction and management of this major pest.

The study of cold stress and adaptability can provide a theoretical basis for predicting and controlling pests. Temperature shapes gut microbiota composition, and gut microbiota may affect insect temperature tolerance. However, the underlying mechanisms and bacteria species involved in insect temperature tolerance through gut microbiota are still poorly known. In this study, using a multigenerational cold-acclimation design and 16S rDNA sequencing, we investigated the possible pattern of cold acclimation and the contribution of gut bacteria in Spodoptera frugiperda. Results show that during cold acclimation, larval mortality decreased and pupation rate increased with the increase of treating generations, exhibiting some sort of cold adaptation. Cold tolerance tests showed that cold-acclimated adults exhibited significantly higher survival rates under extreme cold stress than those of controls. Cold acclimation also leads to the cost of reproductive fitness, indicating some trade-offs between survival and reproduction. Antibiotic treatment significantly decreased fitness and cold tolerance not only in the un-acclimated lines but also in cold-acclimated lines. Biodiversity studies through 16S RNA sequencing suggested that antibiotic ingestion disrupted the homeostasis of gut microbes. Differential analysis at the genus and species levels further showed that there were nine genera and eight species that had remarkably higher abundance in cold-acclimated lines compared with controls. References-based functional annotation revealed that most of these bacteria may play essential roles in the cold adaptation of hosts. These results provide valuable insights into the contribution of microbiota to insect fitness and will be valuable for guiding the future development of sustainable pest management approaches.

Star anise, an economically and medicinally important crop, is highly susceptible to infestation by Oides leucomelaena Weise, leading to significant yield losses. This study employed transcriptome sequencing and bioinformatic analysis to systematically identify detoxification genes (CYP, GST, and CarE) in O. leucomelaena and evaluated their binding potential with star anise volatiles via molecular docking. A total of 64 CYP, 21 GST, and 44 CarE genes were identified, with several genes showing high expression across multiple tissues. Molecular docking revealed strong binding affinity between seven CYP proteins and star anise volatiles, notably the antennae-specific CYP, which exhibited robust binding with multiple volatiles. Detoxification genes in O. leucomelaena may mediate host adaptation by metabolizing star anise volatiles, providing potential targets for eco-friendly pest control.

Araucaria angustifolia (Bertol.) Kuntze, a critically endangered tree species, plays an irreplaceable ecological role in its native habitats. Under global climate change, identifying the drivers governing its geographic distribution and assessing climate-related threats can provide scientific guidance for the long-term conservation and habitat restoration of this species. In this study, a total of 287 valid occurrence records from 27 countries were compiled. Combined with 14 screened environmental variables, an optimized Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) model was used to predict the potential suitable habitats of A. angustifolia under historical climate conditions (1970–2000), as well as under low-emission (SSP126) and high-emission (SSP585) scenarios for the future periods of 2050, 2070, and 2090. Under historical climatic conditions, the average training AUC value from 10 replicate model runs was 0.979, indicating excellent and reliable model performance. Globally, the species has 1.91 × 10⁶ km² of moderately suitable habitat and 0.95 × 10⁶ km² of highly suitable habitat, with a total suitable habitat area of 2.86 × 10⁶ km², accounting for only 1.92% of the global terrestrial area. Mean annual temperature (bio1), mean temperature of the coldest quarter (bio11), and annual temperature range (bio7) are the dominant environmental variables shaping the distribution of A. angustifolia, followed by annual precipitation (bio12). Under future climate scenarios, the overall suitable habitats of A. angustifolia exhibit a slight contracting trend, whereas their spatial distribution patterns remain relatively stable.