Defining honeybee subspecies in an evolutionary context warrants strategized conservation

Despite the urgent need for conservation consideration,strategic action plans for the preservation of the Asian honeybee,Apis cerana Fabricius,1793,remain lacking.Both the convergent and divergent adaptations of this widespread insect have led to confusing phenotypical traits and inconsistent infraspecific taxonomy.Unclear subspecies boundaries pose a significant challenge to honeybee conservation efforts,as it is difficult to effectively prioritize conservation targets without a clear understanding of subspecies identities.Here,we investigated genome variations in 362 worker bees representing almost all populations of mainland A.cerana to understand how evolution has shaped its population structure.Whole-genome single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNPs)based on nuclear sequences revealed eight putative subspecies,with all seven peripheral subspecies exhibiting mutually exclusive monophyly and distinct genetic divergence from the widespread central subspecies.Our results demonstrated that most classic morphological traits,including body size,were related to the climatic variables of the local habitats and did not reflect the true evolutionary history of the organism.Thus,such morphological traits were not suitable for subspecific delineation.Conversely,wing vein characters showed relative independence to the environment and supported the subspecies boundaries inferred from nuclear genomes.Mitochondrial phylogeny further indicated that the present subspecies structure was a result of multiple waves of population divergence from a common ancestor.Based on our findings,we propose that criteria for subspecies delineation should be based on evolutionary independence,trait distinction,and geographic isolation.We formally defined and described eight subspecies of mainland A.cerana.Elucidation of the evolutionary history and subspecies boundaries enables a customized conservation strategy for both widespread and endemic honeybee conservation units,guiding colony introduction and breeding.

Single-Atom Lithiophilic Sites Confined within Ordered Porous Carbon for Ultrastable Lithium Metal Anodes

Attributing to the high specific capacity and low electrochemical reduction potential,lithium(Li)metal is regarded as the most promising anode for high-energy Li batteries.However,the growth of lithium dendrites and huge volume change seriously limit the development of lithium metal batteries.To overcome these challenges,an ordered mesoporous N-doped carbon with lithiophilic single atoms is proposed to induce uniform nucleation and deposition of Li metal.Benefiting from the synergistic effects of interconnected three-dimensional ordered mesoporous structures and abundant lithiophilic single-atom sites,regulated local current density and rapid mass transfer can be achieved,leading to the uniform Li deposition with inhibition of dendrites and buffered volume expansion.As a result,the as-fabricated anode exhibits a high CE of 99.8%for 200 cycles.A stable voltage hysteresis of 14 mV at 5 mA cm^(−2)could be maintained for more than 1330 h in the symmetric cell.Furthermore,the full cell coupled with commercial LiFePO_(4)exhibits high reversible capacity of 108 mAh g^(−1)and average Coulombic efficiency of 99.8%from 5th to 350th cycles at 1 C.The ordered mesoporous carbon host with abundant lithiophilic single-atom sites delivers new inspirations into rational design of high-performance Li metal anodes.

硅基负极材料空心结构构筑与储锂性能

硅基负极材料具有比容量高和嵌锂电势低等优点,已成为提高锂离子电池能量密度的关键材料之一,但其在循环过程中巨大的体积变化严重影响了电池的循环稳定性.通过构筑具有特殊微纳结构的硅基负极可以有效缓释体积变化.本文将硅基空心结构分为四大类:空心球/笼、蛋黄-蛋壳结构、空心纳米管以及其他特殊空心结构,从构筑硅基空心结构的必要性出发,对具有空心结构的单质硅基负极材料的合成方法及储锂性能进行了综述.最后,对硅基空心结构负极材料研究当前存在的问题及未来发展方向进行了讨论与展望.

基因组学技术在生物多样性保护研究中的应用

在分子生物学、细胞生物学、微生物学、遗传学等学科的推动下,生物多样性研究从仅关注宏观表型的博物学,迅速演化为涵盖生态系统、物种和遗传多样性等多个维度的综合性生命科学。组学技术,尤其是DNA测序技术的更新和发展,使获取DNA序列所需的成本大幅下降,促进了近年来其在生物多样性研究中取得的一系列令人瞩目成就。本文将从物种水平的遗传多样性和群落水平的物种多样性两个层面总结和介绍与DNA相关的组学技术在生物多样性研究中的一些创新和应用。其中,物种水平主要是总结单一个体的基因组和单物种多个体在时空多个维度上的群体遗传研究;而群落水平的物种多样性层面主要总结现有的分子鉴定技术(metabarcoding,eDNA,iDNA等),以及上述新技术在群落多样性评估、旗舰保护物种监测以及物种间相互作用关系等研究中的应用。