Vetch （Vicia） forage species possess significant forage value and ecological functions. In the context of global climate change， abiotic stresses such as low temperature， drought， salinity， and heavy metal contamination pose severe challenges to their growth， development， yield formation， and safe utilization. Considerable research progresses on the stress resistance physiology and molecular regulatory mechanisms of vetch forage have been reported in recent years. Notable advances have been made in understanding their adaptive responses to stresses through osmotic regulation， antioxidant defense， hormonal signaling， ion homeostasis， and related gene regulatory networks. However， most existing studies have focused on single stress conditions and are limited to a few species such as common vetch （Vicia sativa）. Knowledge regarding the responses of vetch plants to combined stresses， the genetic basis of stress-resistant traits， and systematic regulatory mechanisms remains insufficient. This review systematically summarized research progress on vetch forage under abiotic stresses， including low temperature， drought， salinity， and heavy metal stress. It highlighted key physiological adaptive features and molecular regulatory patterns， and discussed future directions for stress resistance improvement and molecular breeding in light of emerging research trends such as multi-omics integration， combined stress analysis， and rhizosphere microbial interactions. The aim is to provides insights for the development of stress-resistant germplasm and the efficient utilization of vetch forage resources.

In order to investigate the genetic structure and historical dynamics of natural populations of Xanthopappus subacaulis， we sequenced the DNAs of 147 individuals from 49 populations based on ten single-copy nuclear genes. Multiple methods， including STRUCTURE clustering and molecular variance analysis， were employed for analysis. The results indicated that the polymorphic loci of X. subacaulis ranged from 3 to 11， with haplotype diversity index （H_d） ranging from 0.558 to 0.883， nucleotide diversity index （π） from 0.001 32 to 0.006 03， and mean nucleotide differences （K） from 0.738 to 3.325， indicating rich genetic diversity. The tested populations of X. subacaulis could be divided into two major genealogical branches in the north and south， with 83.04% of the genetic variation among populations and only 16.96% within populations. The degree of genetic differentiation was high （F_ST=0.830， P<0.01）， and gene flow was extremely low （Nm=0.112）. The genetic distance was significantly positively correlated with the geographical distance （r=0.537，P<0.01）. The divergence time of the two major genealogical branches was approximately 3.33 million years ago， which was related to the uplift of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and the climate change during the Quaternary glacial period. Moreover， there was no recent population expansion. This study revealed the influence of geographical isolation， climate differences， and historical events on the genetic structure of X. subacaulis， which provided important data for its conservation of germplasm resources and adaptive evolution research.

This study investigated the effects of inoculation with feruloyl esterase-producing lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus reuteri A4-2 on the fermentation quality， antioxidant status， and in vitro digestibility of baled alfalfa silage. Chopped fresh alfalfa （Medicago sativa L.） at the early to full-blossom flowering stage was randomly divided into three groups： CON （without inoculant）， YM13 （inoculated with non-feruloyl esterase-producing L. reuteri YM13）， and A4-2 （inoculated with L. reuteri A4-2）. Samples were collected after 20， 40， and 60 d of ensiling to determine fermentation characteristics， free ferulic acid content， antioxidant enzyme activities， chemical composition， and in vitro dry matter digestibility. Compared with the CON and YM13， inoculation with L. reuteri A4-2 significantly reduced pH but increased lactic and acetic acid contents （P<0.05）. Both inoculating L. reuteri YM13 and L. reuteri A4-2 in silage showed a higher dry matter content and lower ammonia nitrogen/total nitrogen than CON （P<0.05）. Inoculation with L. reuteri A4-2 in alfalfa silage markedly enhanced the levels of free ferulic acid， superoxide dismutase （SOD）， catalase （CAT）， glutathione peroxidase （GPX） activities， and total antioxidant capacity （T-AOC） （P<0.05） relative to CON and YM13 during ensiling. In addition， inoculation with L. reuteri A4-2 effectively decreased neutral detergent fiber （NDF） and acid detergent fiber （ADF） contents， thereby improving in vitro DM digestibility compared with the other treatments （P<0.05）. Overall， inoculation with L. reuteri A4-2 not only improved the fermentation quality of silage， but also enhanced the antioxidant capacity， reduced its fiber content， and improved its in vitro DM digestibility compared with the CON and YM13 groups， demonstrating significant application advantages.

Mycorrhizal respiration （R_Myc） significantly affects the carbon cycling in terrestrial ecosystems， yet its contribution potential and main influencing factors remain unclear. In this study， a meta-analysis was conducted by using 105 datasets from 41 publications. By employing a mesh exclusion method to distinguish soil respiration components， we quantified the average contribution of R_Myc to soil autotrophic respiration （R_Auto） and total soil respiration （R_T）， and compared the differences between arbuscular mycorrhizal （AM） and ectomycorrhizal （ECM） contributions. The results showed that the average contribution rates of R_Myc to R_Auto and R_T were 38.55% and 16.87%， respectively. Specifically， the average contributions of AM and ECM to R_T were 16.78% （ranging from 2.48% to 32.00%） and 16.73% （ranging from 3.00% to 54.47%）， respectively. Correlation analysis indicated that the R_Myc rate was significantly negatively correlated with absolute longitude， mean annual precipitation， soil total nitrogen， and soil total phosphorus， while it was significantly positively correlated with soil pH and fine root biomass. Over all， R_Myc is an important component of soil respiration， and is affected by environmental factors， soil nutrient supply， and symbiotic relationships. This study revealed the contribution of mycorrhizal respiration to soil carbon fluxes at a global scale， providing a scientific basis for improving soil carbon cycle models.

To investigate the evolution pattern of ecological security in Qinghai Province， in this study we constructed an evaluation system based on the PSR （Pressure-State-Response） framework， integrated obstacle degree analysis with residual-corrected GM（1，1）-Verhulst modeling to identify constraining factors and conduct short-term forecasting. The results revealed that the comprehensive ecological security index in Qinghai Province increased from 0.54 to 0.66 during 2005-2023， with the security level upgrading from “Critical Security （Grade Ⅲ）” to “Relatively Secure （Grade Ⅳ）”. The evolution followed a trajectory of “response strengthening-state improvement-comprehensive enhancement”. Spatial distribution exhibited an “east-high west-stable” differentiation pattern， with eastern regions achieving the “Very Secure（Grade Ⅴ）” level ahead of others. The obstacle mechanism transitioned from early “pressure-dominated” to “state-response dual-constraint” type， indicating that ecosystem structural quality and environmental governance capacity have become critical limiting factors. Short-term prediction suggested that the ecological security index would approach 0.73 by 2028， stably maintaining a high-level “Relatively Secure（Grade Ⅳ）” status. Future efforts should shift from response enhancement to ecosystem resilience improvement， implementing differentiated zoning strategies to support national ecological security barrier construction.

Based on a long-term grazing experiment platform established in the Stipa breviflora desert steppe， this study analyzed the dynamic changes in the nutritional quality of two dominant plants Stipa breviflora and Cleistogenes songorica under different grazing intensities and duration. The results indicated that both moderate and heavy grazing significantly reduced the crude protein （CP） content of the both species. Heavy grazing significantly increased the neutral detergent fiber （NDF） content in the both species and significantly reduced the ether extract （EE） content of Cleistogenes songorica， while light grazing significantly reduced the crude ash content of Stipa breviflora. As the grazing season progressed， the CP content of the both species gradually decreased， whereas the ether extract and acid detergent fiber （ADF） contents exhibited an initial increase followed by a decrease. Specifically， the ether extract content of Stipa breviflora and Cleistogenes songorica peaked in August and July， respectively， while the ADF content for both species reached its maximum in July. Furthermore， CP significant negatively correlated with NDF， as well as between ether extract with crude ash. In contrast， NDF and ADF showed a significant positive correlation. These findings provide a scientific basis for improving the utilization efficiency of biological resources in the Stipa breviflora desert steppe of Inner Mongolia and contribute to the sustainable management of grassland ecosystems.

To elucidate the potential roles of the quinoa PHD-finger gene family in development and stress adaptation， this study was conducted based on the reference genome of quinoa （Chenopodium quinoa Willd.） and transcriptomic datasets from multiple sources. Genome-wide identification， chromosomal localization， phylogenetic analysis， gene structure characterization， conserved motif analysis， cis-acting element prediction， duplication event analysis， and expression profiling were performed， followed by validation using qRT-PCR. A total of 69 CqPHD-finger members were identified and found to be unevenly distributed across 18 chromosomes. The expansion of this gene family was mainly driven by segmental duplication. Phylogenetic analysis classified these members into 13 subgroups， and their promoters were enriched in cis-acting elements associated with light signaling， hormone responses， and stress responses. Members of group 9 clustered closely with proteins related to abiotic stress responses， whereas members of group 10 showed a close phylogenetic relationship with proteins involved in tapetum and pollen development. Expression analysis revealed that this gene family exhibited tissue-specific expression patterns in meristems， floral organs， and mature seeds， and showed pronounced responses to high temperature， drought， and long-day conditions. qRT-PCR analysis demonstrated that CqPHD-finger29， CqPHD-finger66， CqPHD-finger30， and CqPHD-finger23 exhibited significant photoperiod responsiveness， suggesting that they might participate in the regulation of photoperiod-dependent flowering in quinoa. This study provides a theoretical basis for further elucidating the functions of the PHD-finger gene family in quinoa reproductive development， stress responses， and photoperiodic regulation.

This study investigated the growth regulation mechanism of quercetin on seed germination and seedling growth of Apocynum venetum L. under salt stress， and determined its optimal application concentration. This study utilized A. venetum as the experimental material， and established eight treatments： HCKN： 200 mmol·L^-1 NaCl salt stress； Q₁+N-Q₆+N： 200 mmol·L^-1 NaCl +50， 100， 150， 200， 250， 300 μmol·L^-1 quercetin）. The study systematically measured seed germination traits （germination rate， germination vigor， germination index）， seedling growth indicators （plant height， root growth parameters， biomass， leaf growth parameters）， photosynthetic physiological traits （photosynthetic pigment content， chlorophyll fluorescence parameters）， and stress resistance physiological indicators （antioxidant enzyme activity， malondialdehyde content， proline content）. The alleviation effects were comprehensively evaluated using the membership function method. The results indicated that salt stress had a minor effect on the germination rate of A. venetum seeds but significantly reduced germination vigor and germination index. It severely inhibited the growth of A. venetum seedlings and impaired photosynthetic system function， characterized by significantly decreasing photosynthetic pigment content and PSII photochemical efficiency， along with increasing accumulation of malondialdehyde， a lipid peroxidation product.The salt stress-alleviating effect of quercetin exhibited a pronounced concentration-dependent response： Low quercetin concentrations （Q₁+N， Q₂+N） provided limited alleviation， while high concentrations （Q₅+N， Q₆+N） failed to effectively improve growth and even inhibited A. venetum seedling development. Compared to other quercetin concentration treatments， the 150 μmol·L^-1 quercetin （Q₃+N） treatment showed the best salt stress alleviation effect. Compared to the salt-stressed control （HCKN）， it increased seed germination potential and germination index by 2.1% and 3.5%， respectively. Seedling height increased by 97.2%， total chlorophyll content and carotenoid content increased by 17.1% and34.9% respectively， proline content increased by 20.6%， and malondialdehyde content decreased by 22.8% （P<0.05）. Concurrently， it significantly improved root morphology and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters， bringing seedling growth and physiological characteristics closer to the normal control level. Quercetin enhances salt tolerance in A. venetum seedlings by synergistically promoting photosynthetic pigment synthesis， strengthening antioxidant system function， regulating osmotic balance， and optimizing root structure， thereby effectively mitigating salt stress damage. This study identifies the optimal concentration and key physiological mechanisms by which quercetin regulates A. venetum’s salt tolerance， providing crucial technical guidance for large-scale cultivation and ecological restoration of A. venetum in saline-alkali soils.

Establishing an efficient genome editing system in forage oats has long been a crucial approach for oat germplasm innovation. However， due to the hexaploid nature of forage oats， genetic transformation efficiency is relatively low， posing significant challenges in creating new germplasms using genome editing technology. Here， the genetic transformation efficiency of forage oats was significantly improved through the exogenous addition of small peptides. Simultaneously， genome editing efficiency was enhanced by employing T5E fusion proteins， leading to the development of an independent intellectual property genome editing technology system for forage oats with an editing efficiency of 20%. Additionally， a multi-genome editing system for forage oats was established with an editing efficiency of 23%， and a single base editing system for forage oats was developed with an editing efficiency of 21.4%. The establishment of highly efficient genetic transformation and genome editing systems for oats holds significant importance for gene function research and germplasm innovation in forage oats.

To optimize the EMS-induced mutagenesis technology of forage oat （Avena sativa L.） and improve mutagenic efficiency， seeds of Oat cultivar ‘Qinghai 444’ and ‘Zhongtian No. 4’ were used as materials in this study. PEG osmotic priming was combined with EMS chemical mutagenesis to screen for optimum compound mutagenesis conditions for forage oat. Based on the germination characteristics and seedling traits of the M₁ generation in the two oat cultivars， the pretreatment conditions of 20% PEG for 3 h and 10% PEG for 6 h were found to promote seedling growth. The optimal EMS treatment conditions were 1% EMS for 16 h for ‘Zhongtian No.4’ and 0.75% EMS for 16 h for ‘Qinghai 444’. Through a comprehensive analysis of field agronomic traits at the milk stage in the M₂ generation after combined PEG and EMS treatments， it was found that 30% PEG for 3 h combined with the optimal EMS treatment produced the best results for developing germplasm with high-yield potential in both cultivars. Under these conditions， the mutagenesis efficiencies of the M₂ population were 2.40% for ‘Zhongtian No. 4’ and 1.26% for ‘Qinghai 444’， respectively， and a total of 22 germplasm lines with high-yield potential were obtained. These results provide a rich material basis for subsequent oat breeding.