This study sampled five plant species and adjoining sediments from the Qi’ao (Zhuhai) and Nansha (Guangzhou) coastal wetlands located in the Pearl River estuary, South China. The compositions of stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes as well as the content of carbon and nitrogen in the samples were analysed. Differences in carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio, and habitat feature were compared between exotic plants (Spartina alterniflora, Sonneratia apetala, and Laguncularia racemosa) and native mangroves (Aegiceras corniculatum and Acrostichum aureum). The results showed that for Qi’ao, which is nearer the sea, the conductivity of the sediments at this location was approximately two times higher than that at Nansha (more inland). The composition of both δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N in sediments was also higher at Qi’ao (−26.52‰ to −23.83‰ and 6.25‰ to 11.53‰, respectively) as compared to Nansha (−29.30‰ to −27.43‰ and 3.34‰ to 4.73‰, respectively). Overall, the exotic plants S. alterniflora and S. apetala at Qi’ao and S. apetala and L. racemosa at Nansha had an average δ¹⁵N composition significantly higher than that of the native plants A. corniculatum and A. aureum. This suggests that the three exotic plants employ a different mechanism of δ¹⁵N storage and utilisation as compared to the two native mangrove species, which may result in changes in ecological and biogeochemical processes in these coast wetlands.

Salinity levels and drought status of coastal wetlands may be strongly affected by climate change, and changes in the nitrogen cycle of mangrove wetlands may also be affected. We established combinations of three salinity and water levels with applied stable isotope ¹⁵N to study the δ¹⁵N distributions in the sediment and plants of a greenhouse-based simulated mangrove Aegiceras corniculatum wetland system. The stable isotope ¹³C and ¹⁵N, C and N contents and the C:N ratio were determined. Results showed that increasing in salinity significantly increased the δ¹³C value in plant organs. The δ¹⁵N value of plant organs increased with increasing water level in low salinity (10‰) and medium salinity (20‰) treatment groups but not in the high salinity (30‰) treatment group. This may attributed to A. corniculatum adjusting the δ¹⁵N distribution in different organs in response to high salinity stress. Compared to the δ¹³C, the δ¹⁵N values of plant were strongly affected by salinity and water level treatments, indicating that the behavior of N cycle was somewhat different than the C cycle, and affected by the combined effects of both salinity and water level. Most of ¹⁵N absorbed by plant tissues were in leaves except for the highest salinity and high water level treatment, showing at increasing water level, the proportion of ¹⁵N increased in root. Overall, the measured indicators exhibited different responses to salinity level and water level, suggesting that the changes in salinity and water levels have an impact on N cycling processes of wetland systems.

Gynochthodes cochinchinensis previously known as Morinda cochinchinensis is considered as potential medicinal plant in family Rubiaceae. In this paper, the complete chloroplast genome of G. cochinchinensis was sequenced and characterized for the first time. The cp genome of G. cochinchinensis was 153,022 bp in length containing a large single copy region (83,799 bp), a small single copy region (17,591 bp), and a pair of inverted repeat regions (25,816 bp). It has a total of 131 genes, comprising of 86 protein-coding genes, eight rRNA genes, and 37 tRNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that Gynochthodes cochinchinensis together with Gynochthodes officinalis were closely related to genus Morinda.