Aim The elemental composition of plants is of fundamental importance for plant physiology and biogeochemical cycling. Knowledge about how the pattern of multi-element variability is coordinated between above-and below-ground organs remains limited. Here, we quantify multi-element variability in the leaves and roots of terrestrial plants, in addition to trying to understand its taxonomic and environmental regulation at large scales. Location China.Methods Sixteen elements in the leaves and fine roots of 792 plant species across nine forests located along the north-south transect of eastern China were measured. General linear mixed models were used to partition taxonomic and environmental variation. Canonical discriminant analyses were conducted to identify elements with the highest discriminatory power for different plant orders.Results Elemental composition differed significantly between the leaves and roots, with the roots containing higher concentrations of trace metal elements (aluminium, iron, sodium, zinc, copper, lead, nickel and cobalt). A coordinated pattern of multi-element variability and similar taxonomic regulation was observed between the leaves and roots of terrestrial plants. That is, elements with higher internal concentrations were less variable, with most of the variability being attributed to taxonomic effects rather than the environment.Main conclusions Taxonomic and environmental regulation differed for different elements. Compared with microelements, macroelements exhibited a narrow range of internal concentrations, less environmental control and stronger taxonomic conservatism. The coordinated pattern of multi-element variability and similar taxonomic effects in the leaves and roots implies that above-and belowground ecological processes are tightly linked.

a b s t r a c tNon-structural carbohydrates (NSCs), e.g., glucose and starch, play important roles in metabolic processes of plants and represent important functional traits in plant's adaptation to external environment. To explore the variations in leaf NSCs among species and communities at a large scale and their influencing factors, we investigated the contents of leaf NSCs among 890 plant species in nine typical forests along the north-south transect of eastern China. The results showed that the contents of leaf soluble sugars, starch, and NSCs (sugars + starch) were highly variable among different plant species on the site scale, and their mean values for the 890 plant species were 45.7 mg g −1 , 47.5 mg g −1 , and 93.2 mg g −1 , respectively. All three metrics varied markedly across plant functional groups in the order of trees < shrubs < herbs. Weak latitudinal patterns of leaf soluble sugars, starch, and NSCs were observed from tropical to coldtemperate forests at the levels of species and plant functional groups. The contents of leaf soluble sugars, starch, and NSCs decreased with increasing temperature and precipitation which supports the growth limitation hypothesis at a large scale. In trees, leaf soluble sugars, starch, and NSCs increased with increasing photosynthetic active radiation (PAR); and were positively correlated with specific leaf area (SLA). The spatial patterns of leaf NSCs in forests along the north-south transect of eastern China and their relationships with temperature, precipitation, PAR, and SLA illustrate an important adaptation of plant communities to environmental changes at the continental scale.

The efficacy and side effects of a single subcutaneous injection of PEG-rhG-CSF were similar to that of rhG-CSF multiple administrations. PEG-rhG-CSF may have the effect of promoting immune function repairing.