Pueraria lobata, an edible food and medicinal plant, is a rich source of bioactive components. In this study, a polyphenol-rich extract was isolated from P. lobata. Puerarin was identified, and the high antioxidant bioactivity of the P. lobata extract was evaluated using the methods of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2′-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonate) (ABTS), and hydroxyl free radical scavenging ratio. Additionally, the IC50 values of DPPH, ABTS, and hydroxyl radical scavenging activities were 50.8, 13.9, and 100.4 μg/ml, respectively. Then, the P. lobata extract was administered to C57Bl/6J mice and confirmed to have a superior effect on enhancing the antioxidant status including improving superoxide dismutase activity, glutathione peroxidase peroxide activity, total antioxidant capacity activity, and malondialdehyde contents in vivo. Furthermore, the P. lobata extract had beneficial and prebiotic effects on the composition and structure of gut microbiota. Results showed that the P. lobata extract significantly increased the abundance of beneficial bacteria, involving Lactobacillaceae and Bacteroidetes, and decreased the abundance of Ruminococcaceae, Prevotellaceae, and Burkholderiaceae. Overall, our results provided a basis for using the P. lobata extract as a promising and potential functional ingredient for the food industry.

In the survey of mycobiota of mudflats in China, two new sexually reproducing Talaromyces sect. Talaromyces species were discovered and studied using a polyphasic approach. These species are named here Talaromyces haitouensis (ex-type AS3.160101T) and Talaromyces zhenhaiensis (ex-type AS3.16102T). Morphologically, T. haitouensis is distinguished by moderate growth, green-yellow gymnothecia, orange-brown mycelium, and echinulate ellipsoidal ascospores. T. zhenhaiensis is characterized by fast growth, absence of sporulation, cream yellow to naphthalene yellow gymnothecia and mycelium, and smooth-walled ellipsoidal ascospores with one equatorial ridge. The two novelties are further confirmed by phylogenetic analyses based on either individual sequences of BenA, CaM, Rpb2, and ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 or the concatenated BenA-CaM-Rpb2 sequences.

In order to lower carbon emission at a national scale, coal resource tax reform from quantity-based collection to ad valorem collection has been taken by Chinese government in December 2014. To research the economic and environmental impacts from the policy reform, this paper extends a multi-sectoral computable general equilibrium (CGE) model and GAMS are used to solve for the equilibrium. Two scenarios are designed, quantity-based collection and ad valorem collection with different tax rate, within the CGE model. By comparing results from the resource tax reform, some conclusions could be captured. The first conclusion is that there is a negative relationship existing between gross domestic product of China and the higher tax rate due to the decreasing of output and the total output for each industry would decline obviously. The second conclusion is from the environmental aspect. With the higher resource tax burden, the total resource demand would decrease, as a result, the structure of energy would be improved largely. The total carbon emissions, as well as other air pollutants would be decreased. In conclusion, the benefits brought by the tax reform would reach the China's goal for carbon emission reduction.

Specimens of Coccomyces collected from Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve in Guizhou Province of China were identified as a new species and named as Coccomyces fanjingshanensis. Phylogenetic analyses of the ITS gene and combined LSU and mtSSU genes indicate that this new taxon has a close relationship with Coccomyces huangshanensis, Coccomyces cupressinus and Coccomyces radiatus.The type collection was deposited in the Herbarium of the College of Life Science, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China (BJTC).