The Siberian crane (Leucogeranus leucogeranus) is classified as Critically Endangered by the IUCN. Its current estimated population is over 6,900 individuals in East Asia, whereas the Western/Central Asian population is nearly extinct, with no recent records of its presence in the wild. Here, we present a high-quality, chromosome-level genome assembly of the Siberian crane generated by integrating Nanopore long-read data, MGISEQ-2000 short-read data, and Hi-C technology data. The assembled genome spans 1.31 Gb, with a scaffold N50 of 83.45 Mb, comprising 33 chromosomes and additional unplaced scaffolds. BUSCO assessment indicated that 97.3 percent of genes in the genome assembly are complete. We identified 10.9 percent repetitive sequences and 21,678 protein-coding genes, of which 88 percent were successfully assigned functional annotations. This high-quality genome assembly and annotation provide a valuable genomic resource for comparative genomic research aimed at understanding the ecology, evolutionary adaptations, and development of Gruidae birds.

Wetlands play essential roles in sustaining biodiversity, maintaining hydrological stability, and regulating the climate. Subalpine wetlands are particularly rare in Northeast China, yet their floristic composition and diversity patterns remain poorly studied. To fill this knowledge gap and address the lack of baseline plant data for this region, this study conducted systematic field surveys in the subalpine wetlands of Fenghuangshan, Heilongjiang Province, with the aim of assessing plant diversity, dominant floristic types, and community differentiation. The result showed a total of 100 vascular plant species were recorded, belonging to 38 families and 69 genera. Four nationally protected Class II species were also identified, underscoring the region’s conservation importance. Across the three representative plant associations, the Carex limosa-Carex lasiocarpa association exhibited markedly higher species richness, Simpson diversity, and Shannon diversity than both the Salix sericeo-cinerea and Pinus pumila-Rhododendron aureum associations, reflecting pronounced community-level variation in biodiversity. The floristic characteristics at the species level also pointed to a predominantly temperate distribution and showed a pronounced vascular plant flora, which is characterized by the ecotone between temperate and boreal biogeographical zones, directly underpinning the different composition of the communities. This study presents a detailed baseline assessment of plant diversity and floristic composition in the Fenghuangshan subalpine wetland ecosystem. In response to the limited understanding of such ecosystems in East Asia, this research provides crucial foundational data. Furthermore, by contextualizing these results with ecological patterns observed in Northern European wetlands, the study places the local findings into a broader, global perspective. The results offer essential scientific support for biodiversity monitoring, ecological conservation planning, and the future restoration of subalpine wetlands in Northeast China.

Hymenoscyphus fraxineus is the causal agent of ash dieback, a devastating disease of European ash (Fraxinus excelsior). Although the pathogen is believed to have originated in East Asia and has been confirmed in Japan, European ash trees cultivated in the Sapporo Experimental Forest of Hokkaido University remain asymptomatic despite the presence of H. fraxineus. In this study, we investigated the early infection behavior of H. fraxineus and associated host defense responses by comparing asymptomatic F. excelsior with the susceptible control species F. angustifolia. Leaflets were inoculated with ascospores, and fungal development as well as host responses were examined microscopically during early infection stages. In addition, we analyzed the accumulation of selected coumarins, which have been proposed as candidate compounds associated with ash dieback tolerance, and assessed their effects on ascospore germination. We found that fungal growth was consistently restricted on F. excelsior at 7 days post inoculation, particularly at the stage of invasion into adjacent epidermal cells. Fraxetin was detected in F. excelsior leaflets but not in F. angustifolia, and fraxetin treatment significantly reduced ascospore germination in vitro. While typical markers of induced resistance were not clearly detected at the examined time points, these results indicate that constitutive chemical traits, including fraxetin accumulation, may contribute to early-stage suppression of H. fraxineus growth in F. excelsior. Together, our findings provide insight into early host–pathogen interactions associated with ash dieback tolerance and highlight the potential role of constitutive defenses during initial infection.

The escalation of maritime realism in East Asia has driven coastal states to manipulate the characteristics of geographical features using advanced technology to expand jurisdiction, a phenomenon that has manifested in its most extreme form in the Okinotorishima dispute. This research aims to analyze the legal validity of Japan’s technological interventions to maintain Okinotorishima’s status as an island under the UNCLOS regime. Utilizing a normative legal research method within an interdisciplinary framework, this study conducts a juridical examination of Ocean City’s planning research and the mass coral propagation project (coral pegs). These technical facts are then tested dialectically using the natural condition doctrine and the jurisprudence of the 2016 PCA Award. The results show that although the concrete infrastructure and bio-engineering successfully prevent physical erosion, this success lacks legal equivalence. Such artificial modifications are considered installations that fail to meet the natural capacity requirements to sustain life, rendering the feature’s status as a “rock” not entitled to an Exclusive Economic Zone. This research identifies this practice as an Islandization strategy, a form of lawfare that uses technology to create material hegemony atop a legal legitimacy void. As a strategic implication, the research recommends that Indonesia reject such an artificial expansion model and adopt the Eco-Technological Defense paradigm. This strategy focuses on restoring the ecological functions of basepoints on outermost small islands threatened by abrasion, such as in Bengkalis and Natuna, to secure sovereignty without violating the integrity of the international law of the sea.

Platelet indices (PIs) - including platelet count (PC), plateletcrit (PCT), mean platelet volume, and platelet distribution width (PDW) - are routinely assessed in clinical practice. Although observational studies have reported associations between PIs and lung cancer outcomes, the dose-response relationship and causality remain unestablished. This study aims to determine prognostic thresholds of PIs and elucidate their causal roles in lung cancer. We systematically reviewed PubMed, Medline, and Web of Science (through December 2024) for studies on PIs and lung cancer prognosis. Hazard ratios (HRs) were pooled via random-effects models. Dose-response thresholds were identified using restricted cubic splines and generalized least squares. Two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses with inverse variance weighting assessed causality, complemented by sensitivity analyses (MR-Egger, weighted median). In the meta-analysis of 62 studies (N = 38,562 patients), elevated PC (HR = 1.016, 95% CI: 1.009 to 1.024) and PCT (HR = 1.704, 95% CI: 1.040-2.790) independently predicted poorer overall survival. A nonlinear dose-response relationship revealed that each 109/L increase in PC conferred a 4.2% higher risk of adverse prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer (HR = 1.042, 95% CI: 1.029 to 1.056), with a critical threshold at 177.5 × 109/mL. MR analyses demonstrated population-specific causality: a 1-SD increase in PC elevated lung cancer risk by 33% in East Asians (OR = 1.33, P < .001), while in Europeans, equivalent increments in PC and PCT increased small cell lung cancer (SCLC) risk by 17% (OR = 1.17, P = .01) and 19% (OR = 1.19, P < .001), respectively. Additionally, higher PDW was causally linked to a 6% increased lung cancer risk (OR = 1.06, P = .02). This first study integrating dose-response meta-analysis and MR evidence identifies PC and PCT as robust prognostic biomarkers for lung cancer, with population-specific causal effects. The identified PC threshold (177.5 × 109/mL) provides a clinically actionable tool for NSCLC risk stratification, highlighting the translational potential of routine PIs monitoring in oncology practice.

The Nidirana Dubois, 1992 is widely distributed in East and Southeast Asia. In recent years, the species of this genus have been continuously updated, with 22 species recognised globally to date and 21 species recorded in China. Nidirana chongqingensis is a species described in 2023, previously only recorded from Qianjiang, Chongqing, China. With the deepening of surveys, this species has also been discovered in Zheng'an County, Guizhou Province, China, and its females and tadpoles have been first recorded herein. During herpetological surveys in 2024–2025, we collected six adult specimens (3 males, 3 females) and five tadpoles of Nidirana from Zheng'an County, Guizhou Province, China. Molecular analyses of 16S and COI genes confirmed their identity as N. chongqingensis . We provide the first detailed description of the female morphology and tadpole characteristics of this species, revise its diagnostic features, extend its known distribution range from Chongqing to Guizhou, and offer foundational data for future conservation assessments.

Objective To assess global, regional, and national trends in the burden of elderly male breast cancer (EMBC) from 1990 to 2021 and to evaluate projected patterns to 2040. Methods Estimates were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease 2021 study. Age-standardised incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life year rates (ASIR, ASMR, ASDR) were analysed across all countries and Sociodemographic Index (SDI) strata. Long-term changes were quantified using the average annual percent change derived from log-linear models. Joinpoint regression identified temporal inflection points. Age–period–cohort (APC) models characterise independent temporal effects. Mortality changes were decomposed into components attributable to population growth, ageing, and epidemiological change. Inequality was assessed using slope and concentration indexes. Attributable mortality and DALYs were evaluated for alcohol use, dietary risks, and tobacco. Future rates to 2040 were estimated using a Bayesian age–period–cohort (BAPC) model. Results Globally, EMBC incidence, mortality, and DALYs increased from 1990 to 2021, with average annual percent changes(AAPC) of 1.8 (95% CI, confidence interval, 1.63 to 1.98), 0.58 (95% CI 0.38 to 0.77), and 0.68 (95% CI 0.43 to 0.92). East Asia recorded the steepest rise in incidence, increasing from 1.65 (95% UI, uncertainty interval, 1.16 to 2.42) to 6.65 per 100000 population (95% UI 2.77 to 9.78). The middle SDI quintile showed the largest increases in all three metrics, rising from 1.62 (95% UI 1.18 to 2.09) to 4.92 per 100000 population (95% UI 2.26 to 6.81). APC analysis indicated pronounced period and cohort effects in middle and low-middle SDI settings. Decomposition identified population growth as the dominant driver of rising burden. Alcohol use and dietary risks accounted for most increases in mortality and DALYs, while tobacco contributed minimally. Cross-country inequality was modest for incidence but more marked for mortality and DALYs. Projections suggest that age-standardised rates will decline gradually by 2040, although absolute case numbers may continue to rise in rapidly ageing regions. Conclusion The global burden of EMBC continues to increase, with substantial regional and socioeconomic disparities. Although age-standardised rates are projected to decline, population ageing is expected to sustain or expand absolute numbers of cases and deaths.

Acute myocardial infarction caused by thrombosis is a major cause of mortality. A polymorphism in aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (Aldh2) rs671 is found in approximately 30% to 50% of East Asians, and it is a risk factor for acute myocardial infarction. This mutation impairs ALDH2 function, but the effect of ALDH2 on platelet activation and thrombosis is unknown. Platelets were isolated from platelet-specific Aldh2-/- mice and ALDH2E506K knockin mice (which correspond to the human Aldh2 rs671 gene mutation) as well as from healthy human donors with Aldh2 rs671. Arterial thrombosis was measured in a ferric chloride (FeCl3)-induced thrombosis mouse model. The efficacy of Alda-1, an ALDH2 activator, in mitigating thrombogenesis was measured in ALDH2E506K mice. Using a murine model of myocardial infarction, we analyzed the effects of platelet Aldh2 on microthrombosis and infarct expansion post myocardial infarction. In addition, we enrolled 118 patients of different Aldh2 rs671 genotypes (GG, GA, and AA) diagnosed with ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction to analyze the association between rs671 genotype and platelet activation and thrombosis. Platelets from Aldh2-/- and ALDH2E506K mice showed enhanced agonist-induced aggregation, ATP release, integrin αIIbβ3 activation, P-selectin release, spreading, and clot retraction. Human platelets with the Aldh2 rs671 variant also exhibited increased activation. Mutation of Aldh2 or platelet-specific knockout of Aldh2 exacerbated thrombus formation in a mouse model of thrombosis. The ALDH2 activator Alda-1 reduced thrombosis in ALDH2E506K mice. We explored pathways mediating the effect of Aldh2 on platelet activation. We found that platelets lacking Aldh2 produced more reactive oxygen species and less nitric oxide than wild-type (WT) platelets. Furthermore, platelets lacking Aldh2 were also more susceptible to activation by aldehydes. Additionally, platelets from mice lacking Aldh2 had increased elevated mitophagy and hyperactivity. ACAD10 mediated some of the effects of ALDH2 on mitophagy. Mice lacking Aldh2 had increased microthrombosis and myocardial infarct expansion. Finally, elevated platelet activation and thrombus markers were also observed in plasma from patients with ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction who had the rs671 variant. The Aldh2 rs671 variant, which impairs ALDH2 function, increases platelet activation and thrombus formation in vivo through aldehyde accumulation and reactive oxygen species buildup. Abnormal ACAD10 homeostasis might also contribute to this hyperactivity by enhancing platelet mitophagy. Our findings suggest potential of ALDH2 as a novel antiplatelet target. Future studies are needed to explore the effects of more aggressive antiplatelet therapy for patients at risk of myocardial infarction who carry the Aldh2 rs671 mutation.

Abstract Long-term (1998–2024) satellite-derived precipitation and spaceborne precipitation radar data with high spatiotemporal resolution indicate that the region from the eastern East China Sea (ECS) to Kyushu during the Meiyu/Baiu season (June–July) is one of the areas in East Asia where the diurnal precipitation cycle is most apparent. This area experiences higher rainfall intensity and higher rainfall frequency with exceptionally high convective-type rainfall within the Meiyu/Baiu rainband, leading to the highest rainfall totals over East Asia during the season. The maximum (minimum) rainfall in the rainband north of ~ 30°N, extending from the ECS/Kyushu to the Pacific Ocean, occurs during dawn to noon (evening–midnight). The diurnal cycle and convergence of water vapor flux are the main factors driving the diurnal cycle of precipitation. From midnight to dawn, the anomalous southwesterly water vapor flux with clockwise rotation enhances the total southwesterly water vapor flux, which reaches its maximum around the ECS/Kyushu. Subsequently, water vapor flux convergence increases, resulting in the rainfall peak during the morning. We discussed possible mechanisms for the diurnal cycle in water vapor flux around the ECS/Kyushu, focusing on inertial oscillation driven by terrestrial atmospheric boundary layer processes and land–sea thermal contrast.

Standardized alkali-treated Euglena gracilis β-glucan mitigates PM2.5-induced pulmonary and cerebral injury through NF-κB, NRF2, and CREB-BDNF-TrkB pathways.

Upper blepharoplasty is the most common cosmetic procedure in East Asia. A natural Asian double eyelid features specific crease characteristics. AI advancements, such as UNet and PointRend, enhance medical image segmentation, aiding in post-blepharoplasty evaluation. This study applies deep neural networks to analyze facial images, providing morphological parameters to assist surgeons in assessing outcomes and planning revisions. This study included 102 eyes from 51 patients seeking for revisional blepharoplasty and 100 eyes from 50 volunteers with inborn double eyelid. Standardized images and videos were collected. The deep learning-based image analysis automatically evaluated four eyelid morphological parameters, including pre-tarsal show, corneal visibility ratio, dynamic value, and crease depth. Analysis was done on the agreement between the automated measures and the manual measurements. The parameters of the patients' and volunteers' eyelids were compared. FACE-Q surveys were used to measure patient-reported esthetic outcomes. The intraclass correlation coefficients between manual measures and automated measurements of pre-tarsal show, corneal visibility ratio, and dynamic value were 0.973, 0.975, and 0.965. At the long-term follow-up, the pre-tarsal show and crease depth decreased significantly, whereas the corneal visibility ratio and dynamic value increased significantly. FACE-Q scores demonstrated a high level of patient satisfaction for facial appearance (87.6) and were negatively correlated with pre-tarsal show (r = - 0.814, p = 0.000). The deep neural network technique automatically measured the eyelid morphology with excellent precision and reproducibility, enabling an objective evaluation of the surgical outcomes for blepharoplasty. This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

ABSTRACT Rapid urbanisation in China has reshaped historic urban cores, placing modern heritage fabric under increasing redevelopment pressure. Focusing on Zhongshan District in Dalian, a historic port city shaped by layered Russian and Japanese planning legacies, this study develops an integrated GIS and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) framework to assess cultural heritage value at the district scale. Archival research and systematic field surveys are used to translate qualitative heritage significance into spatially explicit, value-based evidence. The results reveal a clear spatial gradient of heritage value, with high-value clusters concentrated around Zhongshan Square and lower values extending toward peripheral redevelopment zones. While officially listed buildings remain relatively well protected, many unlisted yet socially meaningful structures are shown to be particularly vulnerable, highlighting limitations in existing top-down governance approaches. By operationalising the UNESCO Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) approach through a value-based GIS – AHP framework, this study demonstrates how heritage assessment can be integrated into everyday planning practice and offers transferable insights for rapidly transforming port cities in East Asia.

Study Profile of the Iwate PGS Assessment and Risk Communication (PARC) Study

Illegal wildlife trade is an important branch of global environmental crime. It relies heavily on transit countries to promote the cross-border movement of illegal wildlife products by boosting markets, laundering services, processing and packaging products, and concealing routes. However, transit countries' strategic role is not well understood. We constructed a dataset of 15years of illegal wildlife seizure cases from the Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS) air seizure database and Wildlife Trade Portal database. From the dataset, we determined transnational illegal wildlife trade routes with complete supply chain information. There were 84 transit countries, and the organisms involved in trade included mammals, birds, reptiles, marine species, amphibians, and arthropods. We identified that about 40% of illegal wildlife trade routes crossed one or multiple countries. Species being moved along these routes originated mainly from Africa and were transported through African, European, or Asian countries to East Asia or Southeast Asia. Transit countries for illegal wildlife products tended to be geographically close to and have a high trade volume of legal biological products with both the origin and destination countries and had advanced airport infrastructure. Transit countries were associated with 39.7% more individual animal products being illegally traded, particularly ivory, pangolin products, and rhinoceros horn, and served as key bridges among economically underdeveloped and geographically distant countries with weak trade links in legal biological products. These findings highlight the importance of monitoring and enforcement in transit countries and suggest that transit hubs be targeted based on location, trade in legal biological products, and transport infrastructure.

Abstract This article aims to construct a paradigm of Dhammic Humanism grounded in the ten pāramīs (perfections) as a philosophical and pedagogical strategy for integrating them into Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and global citizenship. The author identifies and responds to the psychological, fragmented, competitive, individualistic, morally unmoored, and ecologically collapsed state of crisis, arguing that sustainable transformation requires an extreme shift from mere knowledge transmission to the formation of character and consciousness. Utilizing the teachings of Buddhism throughout the ages, South East Asian Buddhist Ethics, and Global Humanistic Theory, the author describes the pāramīs as sustainable virtues that develop ethically resilient and socio-emotionally responsible relational intelligence. This contribution positions the pāramī model in a positive interaction with the eudaimonist approaches of Damien Keown and Martha Nussbaum, and with UNESCO's transformative agenda for SDG 4.7. The author suggests that incorporating wisdom (paññā), compassion (karuṇā), and interdependence (paṭiccasamuppāda) into the construction of whole-person competencies to be fully functioning persons, ethical agents, and planetary stewards, pāramīs implement transformative ESD. The article discusses how contemplative pedagogy, community-engaged learning, value-oriented curriculum reform, and peace-building education can be applied institutionally across school, university, monastic education, and public policy settings. It suggests that the pāramī path offers both pragmatically and philosophically a way to reframe and revitalise education as a transformative process of an individual’s self-centeredness to the compassionate global citizenship. The study believes that a sustainable civilization must be constructed with both structural and inner transformations. It posits that humanity’s reliance on technological advancements for its future will be eclipsed by the development of virtue, universal (as opposed to national) responsibility, a civilizational outlook of compassion, and interdependence.

Abstract. Chemical weathering of silicate rocks of low-latitude arc–continent collisions has been hypothesized as a driver of global cooling since the Neogene. In mid- to low-latitude regions, monsoon and tropical cyclone precipitation also drive intense physical erosion that contribute to terrestrial carbon export and nutrient-stimulated marine productivity. Despite this, the role of physical erosion on carbon sequestration has largely been overlooked. To address this gap, we analyse late Miocene–early Pleistocene sedimentary and geochemical records from the Taiwan Western Foreland Basin and time-equivalent records from the northern South China Sea. Along the continental slope, organic carbon accumulation is largely controlled by long-term sea-level fall and shoreline progradation. In contrast, on the continental rise, organic carbon burial is controlled by high sedimentation rates related to Taiwan's uplift and erosion (since ∼ 5.4 Ma). Despite increased terrestrial erosion of Taiwan, the organic material remains mainly marine in origin, suggesting that primary production was enhanced along the coast by nutrient exported from Taiwan. Marine organic matter along Taiwan's shore was subsequently remobilized by turbidity currents through submarine canyon systems and accumulating on the continental rise of Eurasia. The onset of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation (∼ 3 Ma) and subsequent intensification of the East Asian Summer Monsoon during interglacial periods, and persistent tropical cyclone activity all further amplified nutrient export across the basin, further stimulating marine primary production. Our findings demonstrate that arc–continent collision influences carbon sequestration through two pathways: (1) direct burial of terrestrial organic matter and (2) nutrient-fuelled marine productivity and burial. This work establishes a direct link between the erosion of an arc-continent collision and long-term carbon burial in adjacent ocean basins.

Li-Fraumeni syndrome (LFS) is a hereditary cancer-predisposing disorder caused by germline pathogenic variants in the TP53 gene. Attenuated LFS represents a clinically milder form characterized by lower penetrance and later tumor onset, evading standard diagnostic criteria. We report a case of a 36-year-old Japanese woman who presented with hematochezia and was diagnosed with metastatic rectal adenocarcinoma. After failure of the first- to third-line chemotherapies, plasma-based comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) was performed. The assay revealed a TP53 p.R181H variant (allele frequency: 0.512), KRAS p.G12D variant, PIK3CA p.E545K variant, and a CTNNB1 splicing variant. Family history included multiple gastrointestinal and hematological malignancies in first- and second-degree relatives. Germline testing confirmed heterozygosity of TP53 p.R181H, a temperature-sensitive variant suggested to have reduced penetrance. Notably, this variant is relatively common in European populations but rare in East Asian cohorts. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported East Asian case of attenuated LFS associated with the TP53 p.R181H variant. This case underscores the broader phenotypic spectrum of LFS. With the growing use of CGP, LFS may be identified more frequently in East Asia, potentially revealing attenuated LFS missed by traditional diagnostic criteria.

Bandavirus dabieense severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) is an emerging tick‐borne zoonotic virus that causes severe febrile illness and high fatality rates in people. SFTSV is endemic to East Asia, notably in the Republic of Korea (ROK), Japan, and China. Although several studies have reported SFTSV infections in domestic cats (Felis catus), reports of SFTSV in wild felids have been lacking. Previous serological analyses suggest exposure to SFTSV in various wildlife species. However, the clinical outcomes and the role of these animals in SFTSV transmission remain unclear. This study reports the first isolation and whole‐genome analysis of SFTSV from a wild leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis euptilura) in the ROK. SFTSV was first detected in spleen tissue using real‐time PCR, successfully isolated in Vero E6 cells, and confirmed with nested PCR and immunofluorescence assay (IFA). Phylogenetic analysis of whole‐genome sequencing, including the L, M, and S segments, revealed that SFTSV from the leopard cat strain, belonging to sub‐genotype B‐1, showed 99.81%–99.94% nucleotide and 99.65%–99.95% of amino acid identity to previously reported strains from domestic cat and humans in the ROK. Notably, three distinct amino acid mutations, C12Y and H518Q in the M segment and F118S in the S segment, were unique to the leopard cat strain. While no remarkable gross pathological lesions were observed, the absence of other apparent causes of death suggests that SFTSV infection may have contributed. This study provides the first confirmed case of natural SFTSV infection with successful virus isolation from a wild leopard cat in the ROK. Our findings underscore the value of wild felids as ecological indicators of SFTSV circulation across diverse host within tick‐borne transmission systems. These results highlight the importance of continued one health based surveillance to better understand the environmental and ecological contexts in which SFTSV persists.

Biological methods are being talked about more and more in the field of cultural heritage conservation, but I think their role is still not very clear. In many papers, these methods are described as "innovative" or "green" solutions, but in real life, how they work depends a lot on the local materials, the weather, and what people used to do in that place. From my reading of many recent studies, I feel that biological methods are not really a complete replacement for old treatments. Instead, they are more like extra tools that help us understand how things break and help us decide if we should touch the heritage or not. In this paper, I look at how biological diagnostics and treatments are used in different parts of the world, like Europe, East Asia, Egypt, and Latin America. I also try to see how these methods are actually limited when you use them in real situations. By comparing these cases and thinking about China's very long experience in conservation, this review shows that biological ways have both good potential and some scary uncertainties, especially for the long-term results and ethical questions.

During a taxonomic revision on Caridina of East and Southeast Asia, a group of amphidromous and anchialine Caridina species, i.e., Caridina serratirostris, C. celebensis, C. rubella, C. troglodytes, C. magnovis, C. rintelenorum, and C. henriettae, widely distributed in the Indo-Pacific region has been found to exhibit distinct and unique morphological characters, e.g., rostra moderately long and straight, armed with many dorsal teeth, at least six of them on the carapace; telson terminating in a posteromedian projection; stylocerite long, reaching to or beyond the end of the basal segment of the antennular peduncle; and preanal carina with a spine, and with slender walking legs. Genetically, the group forms a monophyletic clade, either alone or together with the genus Marosina. The clade is well-separated from other species/species groups of Caridina. By taking a conservative taxonomic approach, the genus Marosina is thus redefined to accommodate members of the C. serratirostris species group. The revised genus Marosina can be separated from the typical Caridina species (represented by Caridina typus species group) by the structure of the endopod of the male first pleopod, which does not have an appendix interna, and the long stylocerite, which reaches to or beyond the end of the basal segment of the antennular peduncle, and the high number of postorbital teeth on the carapace. The paper provides a revised diagnosis of Marosina, with a key to all species assigned to it. Diagnosis, taxonomic remarks, habitat, and distribution information for all species are provided. The ecology, biogeography, and conservation of the genus are briefly discussed.