Search Results (96)

Soil microbial carbon use efficiency (CUE) and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) are fundamental parameters governing organic matter turnover in terrestrial ecosystems, yet how forest type-driven variation in litter quality propagates through the litter–soil–microbe continuum to regulate these efficiencies remains poorly resolved. Across three forest types in the Funiu Mountains, central China—a Larix gmelinii (LG) plantation, a Quercus aliena var. acuteserrata (QA) secondary forest, and a mixed Quercus aliena var. acutiserrata and Pinus armandii (QP) forest—we quantified litter chemistry, soil physicochemical properties, microbial biomass, extracellular enzyme activities, and microbial nutrient use efficiencies (MUE: NUE, and phosphorus use efficiency, PUE) derived from a modified saturation kinetics model. Principal coordinate analysis revealed significant multivariate differentiation among forest types across litter, soil, microbial biomass, and enzyme modules (Adonis R² = 0.198–0.427; all p < 0.05). Compared with LG and QA, QP exhibited a pronounced stoichiometric imbalance: it supported the highest litter organic carbon and total nitrogen, the lowest lignin-to-cellulose ratio, the largest soil C and N pools (SOC and STN), and the greatest microbial biomass carbon (MBC). However, despite this resource-rich environment, microbial biomass C:N:P ratios exhibited constrained variation, while soil C:P (SCP) and N:P ratios (SNP) in QP reached extreme values (112.3 and 7.25, respectively), generating severe stoichiometric imbalance. Vector analysis indicated that all forests were under relative nitrogen limitation (vector angle < 45°), with QP showing the strongest limitation (41.6 ± 0.4°). Critically, QP exhibited the highest NUE (0.47 ± 0.03) but the lowest CUE (0.95 ± 0.01), and CUE and NUE were nearly perfectly negatively correlated across all sites (R = −0.98, p < 0.001). Random forest analysis identified extracellular enzyme stoichiometry as the dominant proximate predictor of MUE. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (GOF = 0.673–0.674; R² = 0.592–0.603) revealed that litter and soil properties had no significant direct effects on CUE or NUE; instead, soil nutrients exerted strong indirect association through a cascade—soil → microbial biomass → enzyme activity—with opposite total effects on CUE (−0.731, p < 0.001) versus NUE (+0.755, p < 0.001). These findings reveal that the same soil nutrient enrichment that accompanies mixed-species afforestation drives divergent microbial metabolic responses—suppressing CUE while promoting NUE—through a shared cascading structure, with implications for predicting soil carbon and nutrient retention under shifting forest compositions. Full article

Against the background of carbon neutrality and the global energy transition, biomass-derived nanocellulose has attracted increasing attention because of its renewability, biodegradability, low density, high mechanical strength, and tunable surface chemistry. This study reviews the global development of biomass-derived nanocellulose from the perspectives of research trends, hotspot themes, technological frontiers, patent deployment, and industrial applications. The results show that research output has grown rapidly in recent years, with China leading in publication volume, while the United States and several European countries perform more strongly in highly cited studies and international collaboration. Current research focuses mainly on green preparation technologies, chemical functionalization, multifunctional composites, adsorption and environmental remediation, and energy-related applications. Patent analysis reveals clear international differentiation: China leads in patent quantity and large-scale production technologies, whereas the United States and Japan show stronger advantages in patent quality, overseas patent layout, and high-end applications. Overall, biomass-derived nanocellulose is accelerating from laboratory research to industrial application, but further progress still depends on achieving breakthroughs in cost reduction, continuous manufacturing, functional modification, and standardization. Full article

Beneficial and pathogenic fungal inoculation can substantially influence plant growth by reshaping rhizosphere microbial communities. However, how different fungal inoculants differentially affect microbial community assembly processes, co-occurrence network stability, keystone taxa distribution, and their potential associations with plant growth remains poorly understood. Cucumber was used as the model plant, and Fusarium oxysporum (pathogenic, Foc) and Trichoderma guizhouense (beneficial, Tri) were selected as inoculants. 16S rRNA and ITS2 amplicon sequencing were used to investigate the diversity, composition, assembly processes, and co-occurrence network structure of rhizosphere bacterial and fungal communities, respectively. In addition, we used Zi–Pi topological role analysis, functional prediction, Mantel tests and random forest to characterize keystone taxa and link microbial assembly, network stability to plant nutrient and biomass traits. Foc decreased bacterial diversity while Tri increased it. Tri was associated with greater microbial network connectivity and complexity, as well as network characteristics consistent with higher inferred stability, with more connector keystone taxa enriched in glycan and terpenoid metabolic functions; by contrast, Foc simplified network structure and enriched saprotrophic fungal keystones. Bacterial assembly shifted toward deterministic processes under Foc, whereas stochastic processes remained predominant in Tri and control treatments. Random forest further confirmed divergent drivers: bacterial assembly depended mostly on community composition, while fungal assembly was regulated by plant nutrients and fungal diversity. All microbial properties were tightly linked to plant biomass and nutrient accumulation. Collectively, beneficial and pathogenic fungi exert opposing influences on rhizosphere microbial organization: Tri was associated with more connected microbial communities and a greater diversity of predicted functional traits, whereas Foc strengthened environmental filtering and simplified community structure, with plant–microbe–nutrient feedbacks likely contributing to rhizosphere assembly and ecosystem functionality. Full article

This manuscript will present an advancement of transformative research that has been conducted at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) over a 25-year period (2000–2025) on a variety of environmental and biological matrices. These investigations derived a fundamental understanding of how elemental detection and analysis of these matrices led to the knowledge and discovery of natural processes in plants and the environment. Each project led to the initiation of a new research area which unearthed awesome and novel breakthroughs. Highlights are listed below: 1. The preliminary research at ORNL centered on the detection of aerosols utilizing Laser-induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) technology. The Clean Air Act Amendment (CAAA) of 1990 highlighted the importance of identifying hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) due to their impact on environmental and human health, thereby underscoring the need to detect various toxic elements. Research in aerosol chemistry aimed to identify these harmful elements released by factories during periods of increased emissions in their manufacturing processes. LIBS emerged as the most effective method for real-time, in situ measurements of metal species in both gaseous and aerosol phases. 2. An understanding of the presence of total carbon in soils gives perspective on how to develop carbon sequestration strategies. The recognition that carbon sinks can evolve back to carbon sources to emit back to the atmosphere was an important consideration. Also, the concentration of carbon in soil indicates the health of land areas for growing crops successfully. 3. The direct detection of most of the elements in a wood sample in a single emission spectrum, without sample preparation, encouraged the research to use the LIBS technique for preservative treated wood coupled with use of multivariate statistical methodology. Additionally, it encouraged the researchers to try to differentiate natural woods from different parts of the country, and it was successfully demonstrated that LIBS coupled with MVA analysis could differentiate wood of different species from each other and of similar species grown in different environments based on their elemental spectra. This was a breakthrough since it revealed a systematic approach to connect elemental scarcity and abundance to either drought or typical rainfall conditions for the hardwood trees grown in specific areas. 4. Furthermore, the research progressed to reveal physiological and developmental processes contributing to biomass production such that the variation in leaf elemental composition increases our understanding of terrestrial nutrient cycles, as well as tracking the transfer of toxic elements from soils to living organisms. 5. Recently another breakthrough viz., ionomics initiated the correlation of elements to specific genes, uncovering the function that the element performed in the plant. More recently, this has been extended from plants to fungi as well as fungi growing in symbiotic relations with plants. Full article

Contemporary post-war cities increasingly require adaptive urban systems capable of addressing climate vulnerability, infrastructural instability, environmental degradation, and human well-being simultaneously. This study develops an interdisciplinary framework for adaptive biophilic infrastructure and resource governance within the context of sustainable post-war reconstruction in Ukraine. The research combines literature analysis, comparative urban assessment, and experimental evaluation of eco-modified construction materials. Particular attention is given to vertical greening systems, adaptive underground infrastructure, daylight-integrated public environments, multifunctional urban systems, and environmentally responsive concrete composites incorporating porous minerals and plant-based biomass. Comparative examples from Montreal, New York, Seoul, and Singapore are examined alongside differentiated Ukrainian urban contexts, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Odesa, Kherson, Lviv, and Uzhhorod. The findings demonstrate that adaptive biophilic infrastructure may improve urban microclimates, strengthen thermal and acoustic regulation, enhance infrastructural adaptability, and support psycho-emotional comfort within dense and post-conflict urban environments. The study further indicates that underground and layered urban systems increasingly function as multifunctional socio-ecological infrastructures integrating mobility continuity, environmental regulation, public accessibility, emergency protection, and human-centered spatial resilience. The experimental assessment demonstrates that eco-modified materials contribute to moisture stabilization, thermal buffering, acoustic moderation, and passive environmental regulation within adaptive urban systems. The incorporation of porous mineral additives and plant biomass improved the environmental responsiveness of the investigated composites while supporting more resource-efficient construction approaches. The study concludes that sustainable post-war reconstruction requires a transition from fragmented technological interventions toward integrated socio-ecological urban frameworks capable of combining environmental regulation, infrastructural resilience, resource efficiency, adaptive governance, and human-centered spatial design within long-term urban sustainability strategies. Full article

Understanding phenotypic variation in traits associated with drought and heat tolerance is essential for developing climate-resilient spring wheat cultivars under increasingly variable environmental conditions. To evaluate phenotypic and physiological variation in water-use efficiency (WUE), carbon isotope discrimination (δ¹³C), and heat tolerance, 198 Canadian spring wheat cultivars representing diverse breeding backgrounds were assessed under controlled drought and high-temperature conditions. Traits measured included whole-plant water-use efficiency (WUE_WP), carbon isotope composition (δ¹³C), biomass accumulation, water use per plant, and chlorophyll fluorescence across six developmental stages. Whole-plant WUE ranged from 3.07 to 7.81 g L⁻¹, while δ¹³C values ranged from −24.06‰ to −29.33‰. Biomass accumulation and water use were strongly positively correlated (r = 0.94, p < 0.001), indicating that greater biomass production was associated with increased water consumption. In contrast, the relationship between WUE_WP and δ¹³C was weak (r = −0.09), suggesting that δ¹³C alone may not be a reliable proxy for WUE_WP under combined drought and heat stress conditions. Phenotypic diversity across the cultivar panel was relatively low to moderate (Shannon diversity index, H^′ = 1.88–2.62), indicating limited adaptive capacity within the evaluated germplasm. Principal component analysis explained 76.6% of the total variation and effectively differentiated cultivar responses to stress. Chlorophyll fluorescence, particularly the maximum quantum efficiency of PSII photochemistry (F_V/F_M), was highly sensitive to stress-induced reductions in photosynthetic performance. Measurements obtained during reproductive drought and heat stress stages showed stronger associations with biomass, water use, WUE_WP, and δ¹³C than measurements collected during non-stress periods, indicating that F_V/F_M can be a reliable physiological indicator for screening drought and heat tolerance. Overall, the results revealed detectable phenotypic variation but relatively modest diversity and generally weak to moderate trait associations, highlighting the potential value of incorporating diverse germplasm and integrated phenotyping approaches to improve climate resilience in Canadian spring wheat. Full article

Background/Objectives: Chronic pain is increasingly conceptualized as a systemic condition characterized by central sensitization, autonomic dysregulation, and persistent neuroimmune and neuroendocrine alterations. These systemic changes have been linked to microbial dysbiosis, most prominently within the gut microbiome. In contrast, the relevance of the urinary microbiome outside primary urological disease remains poorly understood, particularly in non-urological chronic pain conditions. The objective of this study was to determine whether patients with chronic low back pain exhibit differences in urinary microbial diversity, community composition, or taxon-specific abundance compared with pain-free controls. Methods: In this age- and sex-matched case–control study, midstream urine samples were collected from ten patients with chronic low back pain and ten pain-free controls and analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing (V4 region). Sequence data were processed using nf-core/ampliseq and DADA2. Alpha diversity, beta diversity, and differential abundance were assessed using depth-adjusted models, compositional and phylogenetically informed distance metrics, and ANCOM-BC2, with multiple sensitivity analyses to account for the low-biomass nature of urinary microbiome data. Results: After accounting for sequencing depth, no significant differences in alpha diversity were observed between patients and controls for any metric. Beta diversity analyses revealed no significant differences in overall community composition between groups across all distance measures, and dispersion was comparable between groups. Differential abundance analysis did not identify any bacterial taxa that differed significantly between patients and controls after correction for multiple testing. Conclusions: In this cohort, chronic low back pain was not associated with detectable alterations in the urinary microbiome. These findings suggest that, unlike the gut microbiome, urinary microbial communities may be relatively stable in the context of non-urological chronic pain, highlighting the importance of phenotype specificity and multidimensional approaches in microbiome-based pain research. Full article

Post-fire rehabilitation structures are widely used in Mediterranean burned landscapes to reduce runoff and sediment transfer, yet their ecological associations with early vegetation recovery remain insufficiently documented. This observational study assessed vascular plant composition, species richness, vegetation cover, plant density, aboveground biomass, and soil properties across log barriers, wattles, and log dams in the burned landscape of Ancient Olympia, western Greece. The study area belongs to the humid climatic class of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) aridity framework based on the Thornthwaite aridity index, providing a comparatively wetter Mediterranean post-fire context. Paired depositional and eroded microsites in operationally restored post-fire areas were monitored in 2022 and 2023. The sampling design comprised nine plots and 18 microsites (n = 9 plots, 18 microsites). Generalized estimating equations (GEE), change-score models, principal component analysis (PCA) and permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) were performed to examine associations of monitoring year, microsite condition and rehabilitation structure type with soil and vegetation patterns. A total of 27 vascular plant species belonging to 16 families were recorded. The average vegetation cover increased from 39.17 ± 21.44% in 2022 to 75.11 ± 12.90% in 2023. Model-based marginal estimates with 95% confidence intervals indicated a large positive increase in vegetation cover over this period. Further, rapid early recovery was indicated by large increases in species richness, plant density and biomass. Depositional microsites were associated with stronger recovery signals than eroded ones, characterized by a larger increase in vegetation cover, density, biomass and species richness. Among rehabilitation structures, log dams showed the highest cumulative floristic richness and a broader observed floristic spectrum, although the species-level contingency analysis provided only marginal evidence for structure-associated differences in floristic composition. Changes in selected soil properties including total nitrogen (total N), ammonium nitrogen (NH4-N), nitrate nitrogen (NO3-N), pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and exchangeable calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), and potassium (K), were detected between 2022 and 2023; the multivariate soil pattern was driven primarily by mineral nitrogen, pH, and EC. These findings suggest that, under operational post-fire restoration conditions, rehabilitation structures are associated not only with erosion-control functions but also with microsite differentiation that may shape early plant establishment and biodiversity recovery in Mediterranean burned landscapes. Full article

The evaluation of biomass boilers using partial approaches limits system understanding, because energy, exergy, dynamic, and emergy analyses describe complementary, but not equivalent, dimensions of thermo-industrial performance. In response to this gap, an integrated methodological framework is proposed to analyze two representative steam generator technologies in the sugar industry, fueled with ternary mixtures of sugarcane bagasse, Agricultural Crop Residues (ACR), and Dichrostachys cinerea, with the aim of identifying robust operating windows from a simultaneously thermal, exergetic, transient, and sustainability perspective. The methodology combines: (i) a direct and indirect steady-state model to quantify thermal losses and efficiency; (ii) an exergy model to assess conversion quality; (iii) a two-node coupled transient dynamic model capable of representing the differentiated response of the combustion zone and the water/steam system to moisture perturbations; and (iv) an emergy model to estimate the overall sustainability of the process. The results show that the effective moisture content of the mixture is the dominant control variable, since it determines the lower heating value on a wet basis, the specific fuel consumption, the main thermal loss, and the dynamic stability of the system. In the transient domain, a +5% step perturbation in moisture generates drops of 11.14–12.20 °C and 17.76–19.39 °C in furnace temperature for G1 and G2, respectively, while the steam response is damped to 1.03–1.14 °C and 2.39–2.65 °C. Likewise, moisture explains the magnitude of the response with coefficients of determination above 0.99, and the sensitivity analysis identifies the controller time constant, the thermal mass of the water/steam system, and the emissivity as the most influential parameters. Overall, the proposed framework makes it possible to go beyond isolated efficiency assessment and move toward a holistic characterization of biomass boiler performance under technically plausible ternary mixtures. Although the proposed methodological framework is transferable to other biomass combustion contexts, the numerical results—including optimal compositional zones, emergy indicators, and dynamic sensitivity coefficients—are specific to the Cuban sugar industry conditions, adopted transformities, and the biomass types evaluated herein. Full article

Understanding dietary patterns and trophic (food) resources partitioning among sympatric mesocarnivores is important for explaining species coexistence through niche differentiation and their roles in ecosystem functioning. We analyzed the feeding ecology and dietary overlap of the golden jackal (Canis aureus) and jungle cat (Felis chaus) using scat analysis in the Kuno–Chambal ravine landscape of central India. We collected a total of 117 scat samples (96 golden jackal, 21 jungle cat) between February 2024 and April 2025 and analyzed them using micro-histological methods to quantify prey composition, frequency of occurrence, and relative biomass. We identified twenty-three prey items from the golden jackal diet. The golden jackal exhibited a generalist feeding strategy characterized by extensive use of livestock carrion (FO > 90%), contributing ~80% of prey biomass, and supplemented by plant resources (FO > 60%) and small prey (FO ~ 40%). The jungle cat consumed sixteen prey items and showed a strong dietary association with small mammals, particularly rodents (FO > 95%) and black-naped hare, which together contributed ~80% of its biomass. Standardized niche breadth was higher for the jungle cat (0.60 ± 0.07) than the golden jackal (0.37 ± 0.03), with a non-significant dietary overlap (Pianka index = 0.45). The high diversity of rodents (n = 11) in the diet of both mesocarnivores suggested their ecological importance in regulating rodent populations and golden jackals, enhancing ecosystem cleaning through their scavenging activity. Full article

Mediterranean phryganic ecosystems have been shaped for centuries by recurrent herbivory, yet the long-term ecological consequences of grazing cessation remain insufficiently resolved, particularly in protected island landscapes where conservation management often assumes that exclusion promotes recovery. In these drylands, the removal of grazing redirect assembly processes through shifts in dominance, heterogeneity, and functional strategy expression. Here, we use more than three decades-long grazing discontinuity within the Petrified Forest of Lesvos, an insular Mediterranean geopark, to examine how long-term herbivore exclusion reorganizes plant communities across taxonomic and functional dimensions. By integrating floristic inventories, multivariate community analysis, mixed-effects modeling, indicator species analysis, and community-weighted trait approaches, we reconstruct the ecological signature of grazing release in phryganic ecosystems. Long-term exclusion was associated with a broader species pool and a greater representation of protected taxa, while ungrazed communities exhibited lower Shannon and Simpson diversity, greater compositional dispersion, and a marked shift in dominance structure linked to the expansion of Sarcopoterium spinosum. Community differentiation was accompanied by directional reorganization of functional trait structure, with ungrazed plots characterized by taller vegetation and increased leaf and inflorescence length, indicating release from recurrent biomass removal and a transition toward more structurally expansive strategies. These results show that grazing exclusion does not simply enhance biodiversity, but reorganizes Mediterranean plant communities into an alternative ecological state shaped by altered competitive hierarchies, shrub-mediated filtering, and relaxed herbivory. In disturbance-structured island ecosystems, therefore, the ecological outcomes of protection depend not only on whether grazing is removed, but on how strongly community organization has historically depended on its continued presence. Full article

This study investigates the ternary co-pyrolysis of Soma lignite (SL), a low-rank Turkish coal with high ash content, with two agricultural residues: pectin-rich sugar beet pulp (SBP) and lignin-rich peanut shell (PS). The primary objective is to clarify how biomass structure and blend composition control synergistic interactions, and how co-pyrolysis can upgrade the fuel properties of a low-quality coal while valorizing agro-industrial waste. Four SL:SBP:PS blends (80:10:10, 60:20:20, 40:30:30, and 20:40:40 wt.%) were tested by non-isothermal thermogravimetric analysis at 10 °C min⁻¹ under nitrogen. Differential thermogravimetric curves were deconvolved into four pseudo-components representing pectin/hemicellulose, cellulose, lignin/early coal, and main coal/mineral fractions. Mass-based deviation indices ($\mathrm{\Delta }W$) and rate-based deviations ($\mathrm{\Psi }$) from the additive prediction were calculated in three temperature regions to detect synergy and antagonism. The results demonstrate that interactions are strongly composition-dependent. The 40:30:30 blend exhibits the most pronounced synergistic enhancement, with average $\mathrm{\Delta }W$ values of approximately −0.94 wt.% and −1.05 wt.% in the 350–500 °C and 500–650 °C ranges, respectively, while the 60:20:20 blend shows antagonistic behavior across all regions. For the 40:30:30 blend, the calculated higher heating value increases from 11.21 to 14.74 MJkg⁻¹, reflecting a gradual upgrading of the feed-mixture composition by biomass loading. Overall, the findings indicate that combining a pectin-rich, fast-devolatilising biomass with a lignin-rich, slower-decomposing biomass at an intermediate coal loading can shift mass loss to lower temperatures. This combination also produces measurable non-additive behaviour within the experimental noise level. In addition, it improves several feed-mixture indicators that are relevant to sustainable energy recovery from lignite-dominated regions. Full article

Aiming to clarify the spatial distribution characteristics of soil microbial assemblages and the environmental factors shaping them across a narrow altitudinal transect, this investigation concentrated on the surface soil layer within naturally occurring mixed forests of Picea crassifolia and Betula platyphylla, situated in the elevation band from 2400 to 2800 m along the southern flank of the Qilian Mountains. Leveraging the Illumina NextSeq 2000 high-throughput sequencing platform, integrated with α- and β-diversity analyses and redundancy analysis (RDA), we systematically characterized the composition and diversity traits of soil bacterial and fungal communities, as well as their associations with environmental factors. Notably, the bacterial communities were dominated by Pseudomonadota, Actinomycetota, and Acidobacteria with the abundance of Pseudomonadota decreasing with increasing altitude and that of Acidobacteria increasing with increasing altitude. Furthermore, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were the dominant phyla in the fungal community. In contrast, bacterial α-diversity—as estimated by the Ace index—showed no significant variation across altitudes. Yet, the fungal alpha diversity metrics—namely Ace and Chao1—were markedly elevated at the 2800 m elevation relative to those observed at both intermediate and lower-altitude locations. Importantly, fungal diversity and community composition showed stronger altitudinal differentiation than bacterial communities in this dataset. Moreover, soil pH, total phosphorus, organic carbon, litter C:N:P stoichiometric ratios, and microbial biomass C:N:P stoichiometric ratios were strongly associated with soil microbial community variation along the altitude gradient, suggesting that they may act as important environmental filters. In conclusion, altitude-driven variations in litter characteristics and soil physicochemical properties jointly shape the assembly processes and spatial distribution patterns of soil microbial communities in this region. Full article

Yucca decipiens is a native species from arid and semi-arid regions with emerging nutritional and biotechnological potential. This study evaluated its proximate composition, elemental profile determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and growth performance under nursery conditions. Proximate analysis revealed a high dietary fiber content in leaves (58.93%) and higher carbohydrate levels in stems (28.83%). Free amino acid content was significantly higher in stems (2.75 g histidine equivalents kg⁻¹) than in leaves (1.76 g kg⁻¹). Multi-elemental profiling (63 elements) showed organ-specific accumulation patterns, with essential macro- and micronutrients predominantly concentrated in leaves, including potassium (28,334 ppm) and calcium (15,345 ppm), while iron was the most abundant trace element in stems (1253 ppm). Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed clear organ-specific mineral partitioning between leaves and stems, indicating differentiated physiological roles and potential selective biomass utilization. Growth assessment conducted over a two-year period demonstrated steady biomass accumulation and good adaptive performance under nursery conditions. Overall, the results highlight the emerging nutritional and agroindustrial relevance of Yucca decipiens for applications in semi-arid environments. Full article

Although plant restoration is essential for improving soil structure and stability, there are still few systematic assessments of its impacts across various restored vegetation species, especially in environmentally sensitive areas like the East Qinling Mountains. In order to provide a scientific foundation for optimizing restoration tactics and enhancing soil erosion control and ecosystem services in the area, this study attempts to assess the impacts of different recovered plant types on soil aggregate stability and to clarify the underlying mechanisms. The Pinus tabuliformis Carrière, Quercus variabilis Blume, Robinia pseudoacacia L., Pinus tabulaeformis-Quercus variabilis mixed forest, Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco and abandoned grassland were the six vegetation types represented by the sixteen plots. Farmland was used as a control. Soil samples were taken from three depths (0–5 cm, 5–20 cm, and 20–40 cm) and evaluated for root biomass, soil organic matter (SOM), and water-stable aggregate dispersion. Mean weight diameter (MWD), fractal dimension (D), macroaggregate content of diameter > 0.25 mm (R_0.25), and percentage of aggregate disruption (PAD) were used to evaluate aggregate stability. One-way ANOVA, LSD multiple comparisons, and Spearman correlation analysis were among the statistical analyses. In comparison to grassland and farming, forested regions, particularly mixed forests, showed considerably higher proportions of macroaggregates (>0.25 mm) and superior aggregate stability (higher MWD and R_0.25, lower D and PAD). Increased litter and coarse root inputs, which encouraged big water-stable aggregates (WSAs) and reinforced their positive connection with SOM, were the driving forces behind this development. Robinia pseudoacacia L. and Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco displayed the highest SOM concentration and root biomass (1201.45 and 679.66 g/m², respectively). At all depths, mixed forests showed the most stable soil structure. In contrast to agriculture, vegetation restoration dramatically changed the mechanical composition of the soil, increasing the differentiation of particle-size fractions across soil layers and decreasing the amount of surface clay. Soil aggregate stability is greatly enhanced by vegetation restoration, with mixed forests offering the greatest advantages because of their varied root systems and increased input of organic matter. These results emphasize how crucial it is to choose the right vegetation types for restoration efforts in order to improve soil structure, reduce erosion, and promote ecological sustainability in the East Qinling Mountains. Full article