News

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  Abrupt Permafrost Thaw Promotes Microbial Carbon Use Efficiency

  In a recent study published in PNAS, a research team led by Prof. YANG Yuanhe from the Institute of Botany of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, provides compelling evidence that microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE; the proportion of C uptake used for microbial growth) increases after abrupt permafrost thaw.

  Aug 11, 2025
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  Mapping Asia Plants Plus Initiative Selected as a UNESCO IDSSD First Set of Endorsed Projects

  Recently, the “Mapping Asia Plants Plus” (MAP+) initiative, led by the Biodiversity Committee, Chinese Academy of Sciences (BC-CAS), has been selected as a project of the United Nations' International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (2024-2033) (IDSSD) Project.

  Aug 08, 2025
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  IBCAS Partners with French Embassy to Develop a "Biodiversity Garden"

  On June 23, the French Embassy in China and the Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IBCAS), jointly inaugurated the "Biodiversity Garden" in a ceremony in Beijing. Mr. Bertrand Lortholary, French Ambassador to China welcomed Ms. WU Yan, Deputy Director of the Bureau of International Cooperation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and Prof. YANG Wenqiang, Deputy Director-General of IBCAS. Representatives from the CAS Headquarter, IBCAS, as well as other distinguished guests also attended the event. Ambassador Lortholary expressed his gratitude for the professionalism and craftsmanship demonstrated by IBCAS throughout the design and construction of the garden.

  Jun 29, 2025
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  New Study Reveals Episodic and Gradual Patterns in Plant Diploidization Process

  A recent study published in PNAS examines the diploidization process—the critical phase in the widespread "polyploidy-diploidization" evolutionary cycle of plants—which reveals that the tempo of diploidization in a single polyploid species can be both episodic and gradual.

  Jun 27, 2025
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  Scientists Reveal Timeline and Uneven Evolution of Endemic Flora on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

  A team from the Institute of Botany of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IBCAS) has revealed the evolutionary dynamics of floristic endemism on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) through a multi-taxon analysis. The study was published in PNAS. The QTP consists of three subregions, the Plateau Platform, the Himalaya, and the Hengduan Mountains. This region harbors two global biodiversity hotspots of great conservation value and is home to the world's most species-rich temperate flora with a high level of endemism.

  Jun 23, 2025
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  Winter's Gift to Nature: Snowfall Helps Grasslands Stay Strong

  A research team led by Prof. LIU Lingli has revealed the critical role of plants water use strategies in how winter snowfall stabilizes the productivity in semi-arid grasslands. The findings, published in Ecology, provides compelling evidence that plant communities can optimize water acquisition and utilization, thereby enhancing the stability of biomass production through coordinated changes in plant physiology, species reordering, and root distribution under altered snow regimes.

  Jun 04, 2025
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  【Xinhua News】China Releases Updated Biodiversity Catalogue

  The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) unveiled the 2025 catalogue of biological species in China, documenting a total of 162,717 species and infraspecies, including dragonflies and earthworms for the first time

  May 23, 2025
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  Prof. LI Shaohua Awarded Honorary Doctorate by France's University of Bordeaux

  Recently, the University of Bordeaux in France conferred Prof. LI Shaohua from Institute of Botany, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the honorary degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Docteur Honoris Causa) in recognition of his achievements in the field of grapevine scientific research and genetic breeding, as well as his contributions to the Sino-French scientific cooperation and academic exchanges in the field of grapevine and wine.

  Apr 16, 2025
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  Understory Shrub Diversity: Equally Vital as Overstory Tree Diversity to Promote Forest Productivity

  Biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationships have been extensively studied, particularly within the primary layers of producers in terrestrial ecosystems. In multi-layer ecosystems such as forests, the contribution of diversity in the secondary layer, i.e. shrubs, to ecosystem functioning is still largely unknown. This study used 11-year growth data from a forest biodiversity experiment with factorially crossed manipulations of tree and shrub species richness to assess their effects on forest productivity.

  Apr 03, 2025
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  Fungal Allies: The Hidden Key to Soil Carbon Storage in Grasslands

  The critical role of mycorrhizal symbiosis in enhancing soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in grassland ecosystems across China has highlighted in recent research published in PNAS. The finding reveals how a hidden partnership between plants and mycorrhizal fungi plays a vital role in helping grasslands store more carbon—a key factor in combating climate change.

  Feb 22, 2025