Drylands constitute the most extensive terrestrial biome, covering more than one-third of the
Earth's continental surface. In these environments, stress limits animal and plant life, so life�…

A significant proportion of the Earth's surface is desert or in the process of desertification.
The extreme environmental conditions that characterize these areas result in a surface that�…

The prevalence of multidrug‐resistant microbial pathogens due to the continued misuse and
overuse of antibiotics in agriculture and medicine is raising the prospect of a return to the�…

Floods represent catastrophic environmental hazards that have a significant impact on the
environment and human life and their activities. Environmental and water management in�…

Drylands are fragile environments that should be carefully managed to improve their quality
and functions to achieve sustainable development. Their major problems involve low�…

Background The rhizosheath-root system is an adaptive trait of sandy-desert speargrasses
in response to unfavourable moisture and nutritional conditions. Under the deserts'�…

Arid ecosystems cover∼ 40% of the Earth's terrestrial surface and store a high proportion of
the global nitrogen (N) pool. They are low-productivity, low-biomass, and polyextreme�…

As the largest ecosystem of China, the desert ecosystem and the desertification-prone
region (DPR) occupies 44% of China's land area. The past, present, and the future of�…

Arid and semi-arid regions comprise nearly one-fifth of the earth's terrestrial surface.
However, the diversities and functions of their soil microbial communities are not well�…

Fresh water sustains human life and is vital for human health. It is estimated that about 800
million people worldwide lack basic access to drinking water. About 2.2 billion people�…