Dynamics of skeleton formation in the Lake Baikal sponge Lubomirskia baicalensis. Part II. Molecular biological studies

In a preceding study it has been reported that the freshwater sponge Lubomirskia baicalensis, living in Lake Baikal (East Siberia), is composed of spicules forming a characteristic pattern which follows radiate accretive growth. Here we report that the spicules are synthesized by the enzyme silicatein, a protein which is related to cathepsin L. The cDNAs for silicatein and the related cathepsin L were isolated and used as probes to show that the mRNA levels of silicatein in the bases of the spicule skeleton of the animals are low, while the mRNA level of cathepsin L in this region exceeds that of the growing zone. This is the first comprehensive study on the importance of the axial filament/silicatein as an essential structural and functional component determining the growth and stability of demosponge spicules.Note: Sequences from Lubomirskia baicalensis have been deposited in the EMBL/GenBank; cDNAs for the putative silicatein (LBSILICA) are deposited under the accession no. AJ786771 and for cathepsin L (LBCATL) under the accession no. AJ786770.     

Development of the lateral line mechanoreceptors in the catfish Silurus glanis

In fish the neuromasts of the lateral line develop as follows: a “migrating primordium” (MP) migrates from the postotic placode along the future posterior lateral line canal to the tail fin. Its placodal cells are assumed to be the basis for the development of the neuromasts. However, an MP was not found in all fish, e.g., in catfish. In the present study, a search was made for the MP in the larvae of the catfish Silurus glanis. Using light and electron microscopy, an MP was found to migrate along the ventral rim of the tail. It precedes the formation of a ventral row of free neuromasts. An MP preceding the main lateral row of the future canal neuromasts was not found. The necessity of the MP for the ventral-free neuromast development is shown by making incisions which block its migration. The result: caudal to the incision site neuromasts do not develop. On the other hand, the same incision procedure applied to the assumed migration route of a—hypothetical—lateral MP does not block the development of the lateral neuromasts. It is concluded that in this case an MP is not necessary for the development of the canal neuromasts.     

海绵城市生物滞留带重金属污染特征及风险评价

生物滞留带作为海绵城市重要的净水和渗水措施,在全国海绵城市建设中得到了广泛的应用.为了探明生物滞留带重金属累积、污染和可能存在的环境风险,以全国首批海绵城市建设示范区重庆市悦来新城生物滞留带为研究对象,探讨其重金属含量与空间分布特征,利用污染系数、地质累积指数和潜在生态风险指数进行污染水平和生态环境风险评价.结果表明,悦来新城生物滞留带中除Mn外,Cu、Zn、Pb、Ni和Cd的含量平均值均超出重庆市土壤背景值的4.14、1.77、4.98、1.23和6.51倍.空间分布上,不同功能区域道路旁的生物滞留带重金属含量呈现出较大差异性,工业区道路生物滞留带中Cu、Zn、Mn、Pb、Ni和Cd的含量均显著高于其他区域生物滞留带中的同种类重金属含量（P<0.05）.污染系数和地质累积指数显示重金属的污染水平排序为：Mn相似文献   

Sugar receptor response of the food-canal taste sensilla in a nectar-feeding swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus

The feeding behavior in nectar-feeding insects is triggered by a sugar-receptor response in contact chemosensilla. The contact chemosensilla are distributed not only on tarsi and the outside of the proboscis but also on the inside of the food canal in Lepidoptera. Although the chemosensilla inside the food canal are assumed to detect sweet taste during the passage of nectar through the food canal, their electrophysiological function has received little attention. In the nectar-feeding Asian swallowtail butterfly, Papilio xuthus (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae), we found 15- to 30-μm-long sensilla neatly lined up along the inside galea wall, which forms the food canal in the proboscis. The receptor neurons of these sensilla responded to sucrose. We hypothesized that starch and sucrose compete with each other for a taste receptor site on the sensilla. When we added starch and sucrose to the food-canal sensilla, the electrophysiological responses of food-canal sensilla were inhibited in parallel with the food-sucking behavior of the butterflies. These results suggest that the food-canal sensilla are involved in the behavioral control of nectar-sucking in this butterfly species.     

Management of process performance at low water temperatures in respect of filamentous organisms

The management of sludge-settling properties in Nordic conditions is of importance during the low temperature (spring) season because of the peak settler load. A survey was made in 10 Finnish waste water treatment plants(WWTP‘ s) and the total extended filament length and DSVI in haft of the plants exceeded the limits, which indicates sludge bulking( 15 km/g SS and 150 ml/g respectively). The dominant organism was Microthrix parvicella, the abundance of which was 59.22% of total extended filament length on average.Chemicals were tested to control the filaments, and it was found that special attention has to be paid to maintaining the nitrification at low temperature. A dosage of(H2O2-besed) oxidants controlled the growth of Microthrix parvicella effectively and rapidly, whereas with the use of aluminium hydroxidechloride a 2 to 5-week period was needed to decrease the filament length.     

The symbiotic lifestyle and its evolutionary consequences: social monogamy and sex allocation in the hermaphroditic shrimp Lysmata pederseni

Sex allocation theory predicts female-biased sex allocation for simultaneous hermaphrodites with a monogamous mating system. Mating systems theory predicts that monogamy is advantageous in environments where refuges are discrete, scarce, relatively small, and when predation risk is high outside of these refuges. These predictions were tested with the Caribbean shrimp Lysmata pederseni, a simultaneous hermaphrodite which has an early male phase and lives inside tubes of the sponge Callyspongia vaginalis. This host sponge is a scarce resource that, together with the high predation risk typical of tropical environments, should favor monogamy in the shrimp. Field observations demonstrated that shrimps were frequently encountered as pairs within these tube sponges. Pairs were equally likely to comprise two hermaphrodites or one hermaphrodite and one male. Several of these pairs were observed for long periods of time in the field. Experiments demonstrated that hermaphrodites tolerated other hermaphrodites but not males in their host sponge. These results suggest that pairs of hermaphroditic L. pederseni are socially monogamous; they share the same host individual and might reproduce exclusively with their host partners for long periods of time. Nevertheless, males appeared less likely to establish long-term associations with hermaphrodites as indicated by the rate of their disappearance from their hosts (greater than that of hermaphrodites). Sex allocation was female biased in monogamous hermaphrodites. On average, hermaphrodites invested 34 times more to female than to male reproductive structures. Monogamy and female-biased sex allocation seem to be evolutionary consequences of adopting a symbiotic lifestyle in simultaneous hermaphrodites.     

First report of fossil “keratose” demosponges in Phanerozoic carbonates: preservation and 3-D reconstruction

Fossil record of Phanerozoic non-spicular sponges, beside of being important with respect to the lineage evolution per se, could provide valuable references for the investigation of Precambrian ancestral animal fossils. However, although modern phylogenomic studies resolve non-spicular demosponges as the sister group of the remaining spiculate demosponges, the fossil record of the former is extremely sparse or unexplored compared to that of the latter; the Middle Cambrian Vauxiidae Walcott 1920, is the only confirmed fossil taxon of non-spicular demosponges. Here, we describe carbonate materials from Devonian (Upper Givetian to Lower Frasnian) bioherms of northern France and Triassic (Anisian) microbialites of Poland that most likely represent fossil remnants of keratose demosponges. These putative fossils of keratose demosponges are preserved as automicritic clumps. They are morphologically distinguishable from microbial fabrics but similar to other spiculate sponge fossils, except that the skeletal elements consist of fibrous networks instead of assembled spicules. Consistent with the immunological behavior of sponges, these fibrous skeletons often form a rim at the edge of the automicritic aggregate, separating the inner part of the aggregate from foreign objects. To confirm the architecture of these fibrous networks, two fossil specimens and a modern thorectid sponge for comparison were processed for three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction using serial grinding tomography. The resulting fossil reconstructions are three-dimensionally anastomosing, like modern keratose demosponges, but their irregular and nonhierarchical meshes indicate a likely verongid affinity, although a precise taxonomic conclusion cannot be made based on the skeletal architecture alone. This study is a preliminary effort, but an important start to identify fossil non-spicular demosponges in carbonates and to re-evaluate their fossilization potential.     

Uptake and transformation of arsenic during the reproductive life stage of Agaricus bisporus and Agaricus campestris

Fruiting bodies from the Agaricus genus have been found to contain non-toxic arsenobetaine (AB) as a major compound. It is unknown whether AB is formed during the vegetative or reproductive life stages of the fungus, or by the surrounding microbial community, but AB''s structural similarity to glycine betaine has led to the hypothesis that AB may be adventitiously accumulated as an osmolyte. To investigate the potential formation of AB during the reproductive life stage of Agaricus species, growth substrate and fungi were collected during the commercial growth of Agaricus bisporus and analyzed for arsenic speciation using HPLC-ICP-MS. AB was found to be the major arsenic compound in the fungus at the earliest growth stage of fruiting (the primordium). The growth substrate mainly contained arsenate (As(V)). The distribution of arsenic in an A. bisporus primordium grown on As(V) treated substrate, and in a mature Agaricus campestris fruiting body collected from arsenic contaminated mine tailings, was mapped using two dimensional XAS imaging. The primordium and stalk of the mature fruiting body were both found to be growing around pockets of substrate material containing higher As concentrations, and AB was found exclusively in the fungal tissues. In the mature A. campestris the highest proportion of AB was found in the cap, supporting the AB as an osmolyte hypothesis. The results have allowed us to pinpoint the fungus life stage at which AB formation takes place, namely reproduction, which provides a direction for further research.     

河岸芦苇、茭白和香蒲植物带处理受污染河水中试研究

利用中试规模的河岸植物带(芦苇、茭白、香蒲)及无植物空白带对受污染河水进行处理,并对它们处理结果进行比较.结果表明,3种植物均能强化污染物的去除.其中芦苇带效果最好,它在整个运行期间对COD、NH₄⁺-N和TP的去除效果分别为43.7%、79.5%和75.2%.对出水溶解氧与水温进行了考察,结果表明植物带水体的溶解氧变化比无植物带小,水温比无植物带低.其中,芦苇带水的溶解氧最高,香蒲带水温和溶解氧最低.芦苇、茭白、香蒲带对河水中污染物的去除和改善水环境条件等方面表现了不同的特点,在河岸带修复时应尽可能保证水生植物的多样性.     

Moss-associated methylobacteria as phytosymbionts: an experimental study

Methylotrophic bacteria inhabit the surface of plant organs, but the interaction between these microbes and their host cells is largely unknown. Protonemata (gametophytes) of the moss Funaria hygrometrica were cultivated in vitro under axenic conditions and the growth of the protonemal filaments recorded. In the presence of methylobacteria (different strains of Methylobacterium), average cell length and the number of cells per filament were both enhanced. We tested the hypothesis that auxin (indole-3-acetic acid, IAA), secreted by the epiphytic bacteria and taken up by the plant cells, may in part be responsible for this promotion of protonema development. The antiauxin parachlorophenoxyisobutyric acid (PCIB) was used as a tool to analyze the role of IAA and methylobacteria in the regulation of cell growth. In the presence of PCIB, cell elongation and protonema differentiation were both inhibited. This effect was compensated for by the addition of different Methylobacterium strains to the culture medium. Biosynthesis and secretion of IAA by methylobacteria maintained in liquid culture was documented via a colorimetric assay and thin layer chromatography. Our results support the hypothesis that the development of Funaria protonemata is promoted by beneficial phytohormone-producing methylobacteria, which can be classified as phytosymbionts.     

Walking on insect paths? Early ommatidial development in the compound eye of the ancestral crustacean, Triops cancriformis

 Ommatidia (the compound eye's functional units) in insects are formed by the recruitment of undifferentiated cells under the control of signalling factors. During this process, a sequence of "preclusters" composed of specifically arranged precursor cells is followed. In the growth zone of the eye of Triops, an ancestral crustacean, we observed a patterning process that corresponds well with that of insects. In both taxa, clusters with arc-like, five-cell and eight-cell patterns are found, and the sequence in which the photoreceptor or R-cells of each ommatidium become identifiable is basically the same. The first to appear are R8-like and R2/5-like cells, second are R3/4-like, and third are R1/6- and R7-like cells (if the fly's cell-numbering system is used). Thus, the morphogenetic steps during which the cell identities and the cellular architecture of the ommatidia develop appear to be conserved between these arthropod groups. Furthermore, the individual cells and cell pairs which build an insect ommatidium seem to have their homologues in crustaceans. In the evolution of developmental processes, intercellular recruitment seems to be a mechanism operating on the level of single cells even in distantly related species. Received: 12 May 2000 / Accepted in revised form: 17 May 2000     

氮肥使用对北方夏玉米季氨挥发的影响

氨挥发是农田作物生产中氮肥损失的主要途径之一,对空气质量有重要影响.为研究我国北方地区化肥类型、施用数量、施氮时期以及采样方法等因素对夏玉米季氨挥发的影响,本研究收集了1980~2018年发表的北方地区夏玉米生产中氨挥发的研究文献,并对数据进行统计分析.结果发现,随着化肥施氮量的增加,氨挥发总量呈指数型增长,净氨挥发量呈幂函数型增长.基肥/追肥施氮量为1/1时,追肥期氨挥发总量和净氨挥发量显著高于基肥期（P<0.05）,氨挥发总量分别约占总生育期的58.4%和41.6%.随着施氮量的增加,激发效应先表现为负效应后逐渐转变为正效应,转折点施氮量为297 kg ·hm^-2.采用抽气法与海绵法测定的氨挥发量存在显著差异（P<0.01）,且抽气法测定数据更为稳定.施用缓释尿素相较于普通尿素可降低氨挥发约20%~50%.我国北方夏玉米生产中,合理控制追肥期施氮量更有助于减少氨挥发,且高氮肥条件下抽气法比海绵法更适合于氨挥发的测定.     

曝气生态滤池中微生物群落组成及物种多样性

为研究曝气生态滤池滤料表面物种多样性及其净水机理,通过高通量测序和生物信息分析对曝气生态滤池（EAF）中2种填料的不同DO区域微生物丰度和多样性进行研究和分析.结果表明,在EAF运行过程中,变形菌门所占比例均在71%以上,具有绝对优势,优势菌群的大量增殖使装置具有较高的TN去除率（67%）,其中好氧区海绵铁表面样本优势菌群比例最高,达到77.49%,表明海绵铁在曝气条件下更适合优势菌群变形菌门的繁殖;Alpha多样性分析发现EAF内填料表面生物膜中微生物菌落丰度均高于空白样,表明EAF较自然环境更适合微生物生长;Beta多样性分析发现装置由于曝气使优势菌群变形菌门在填料表面大量繁殖,限制了其他菌种繁殖,虽然生物多样性略有降低,但随着优势菌群大量增殖从而提升了对TN的去除能力.     

改性海绵铁深度除磷及其再生磷回收方法

为了从污染水体中去除磷并有效回收磷资源,本文研究了海绵铁改性前后吸附除磷特性,并构建海绵铁除磷渗滤床,考察了其连续流除磷特性及再生活化方法,并探究再生废液中磷回收生成鸟粪石的工艺条件.结果表明:硫酸改性后的海绵铁对磷的最大理论吸附容量从改性前4.17 mg·g~(-1)提升至18.18 mg·g~(-1).吸附饱和的改性海绵铁,采用1 mol·L~(-1)氢氧化钠解吸和6%硫酸再活化后,能够达到98%的活化率.海绵铁除磷渗滤床在长达约200 d的连续流运行实验中表现出良好的除磷能力,在进水TP=10 mg·L~(-1),HRT=1 h条件下,磷综合去除率达30%～89%,累积单位容积磷吸附量达到6.95 kg·m~(-3).海绵铁碱再生后的废液可以用于回收鸟粪石,其最佳生成条件为:pH=10,n(Mg~(2+))∶n(PO_4~(3-))∶n(NH~+_4)=1.3∶1∶1.1.在最优条件下,磷回收率可以达到97.8%.本研究提供的方法对于污染水体中磷营养元素的去除及回收利用具有理论与实践意义.     

不同气候类型下植物物候的影响因素综述

植物物候对气候变化非常敏感,可作为环境变化对植物生理活动影响的指示。植物物候的变化不仅可反映和预测全球环境的变化,还对地球物质循环和能量流动过程有着重要的影响。因此,结合植物生长背景,全面分析植物物候影响因素,探究植物物候对气候变化的响应是十分必要的。本文基于不同的气候类型下植物物候的研究,介绍了不同气候类型本身存在的气象、地域差异,总结不同气候类型下植物物候地域性特征;总结了热带亚热带气候、温带气候、寒带气候、高原山地气候4大类气候类型下植物物候变化及影响因素;讨论了当前物候研究的主要问题,并对未来研究进行了展望。综述表明,植物物候响应随气候类型呈现出不一致性,不同气候类型下影响植物物候的关键因素也不同。植物物候研究需结合植物生长环境,综合讨论相关影响因素。     

Cardiac Contractility: How Calcium Activates the Myofilaments

2+   concentrations tropomyosin is located at the edge of the thin filament, thereby interfering with the formation of strong actin-myosin linkages (blocked state). An increase in Ca²⁺ activity causes an azimuthal shift of tropomyosin around the filament (by about 30°), thereby increasing the probability of low-force crossbridge interaction, a process which by cooperative effects induces further tropomyosin movement (by an additional 10°) which results in the open state of the filament characterized by forceful crossbridge interaction. (This mechanism may be analogous to that in ligand-gated ion channels, where ligand binding increases the open probability of the pore.) The extent of activation then depends on the free Ca²⁺ concentration and on the calcium sensitivity of the thin filament that may be affected by protein phosphorylation, crossbridge attachment, the troponin isoform composition of the filament, and novel calcium-sensitizing drugs that act on the contractile or regulatory proteins and thus increase the force of the heart.     

乌江梯级水库水陆交错区湿地植物群落分布格局及多样性初探

水库修建对湿地植物多样性和分布格局的影响是目前研究的热点。梯级水库由于开发时间的不同而成为理想的利用空间代替时间的研究平台,即可以通过不同开发时间水库植物群落结构的横向比较,从时间尺度上评估水电开发对水陆交错区湿地植物分布格局的影响。本研究选取乌江上游代表性的8座梯级水库,在其水陆交错区通过建立3条不同样带,比较分析不同水库间以及不同样带间湿地植物多样性和分布格局,探讨水库修建对湿地植物格局的影响。调查结果表明,乌江干流8个水库湿地植物共84科199属247种,其中物种最多的科为禾本科(Gramineae),共计24种,物种最多的属为蓼属(Polygonum)共计6种,优势物种分别为白茅(Imperata cylindrica)、盐肤木(Rhus chinensis)、金樱子(Rosa laevigata)、小白酒草(Conyza canadensis)和狗牙根(Cynodon dactylon)。就湿地植物分布格局而言,乌江梯级水库植物群落呈现出明显的带状分布格局,第一条样带即水库消落区植物多样性与非消落区(第二、第三条样带)差异明显,消落区不同样点间多样性与水库海拔、水库修建时间、水库坡度密切相关,后续湿地植物的研究将重点关注梯级水库的消落区。     

生物海绵铁体系降解硝基苯的特性及机理初探

采用硝基苯（NB）模拟废水对生物海绵铁体系进行驯化,考察了NB初始浓度、海绵铁投加量、初始pH值、温度等因素对生物海绵铁体系降解NB的影响,初步探讨了生物海绵铁体系高效降解NB的机理.结果表明：生物海绵铁体系较普通活性污泥系统对NB适应性及氧化作用更强,驯化至第28d对300mg/L NB废水去除率稳定在98%以上,驯化周期比普通活性污泥体系缩短28d;海绵铁的加入大大促进了微生物对NB的降解,NB初始浓度及pH值对生物海绵铁体系降解速率影响较大,该体系适宜的温度范围较广,10~40℃均能高效降解NB,生物海绵铁体系对NB的降解符合零级反应动力学规律;生物海绵铁体系中活性氧化物（ROS）含量明显高于海绵铁体系及污泥体系,尤其是介入铁泥的生物海绵铁体系ROS含量更高,为体系发生较强类Fenton效应提供了条件.在实验确定的最佳工况下,经NB驯化的铁泥与海绵铁形成的生物海绵铁体系,NB降解速率为31.49min^-1,6hNB降解率及TOC去除率分别高达92.0%和63.1%,较单独海绵铁体系与单独铁泥体系降解率的叠加值分别高出22.3%和11.4%.本研究为经济有效地处理NB废水提供了新思路.     

北京市低影响开发设施植物应用现状与评价优化

植物是多种雨水源头减排设施基本的构成要素,其生长情况与应用效果很大程度上影响着海绵城市的功能和效果。以北京市21个海绵城市项目中72个低影响开发（LID）设施的植物景观作为研究对象展开建成后评估。通过实地调查法,对LID设施内植物的应用种类与频度、配置模式、观赏特性等方面进行分析;采用层次分析法从植物生态习性、雨水功能性与观赏性3个方面构建LID设施植物景观评价体系,并对10组典型设施的植物群落综合效益进行评价。结合评价分析结果,提出综合效益高的植物配置模式及优化思路,以期为北京市和中国北方地区LID设施的植物景观优化提供参考。     

A macroeconomic analysis of adaptation to climate change impacts on forests in India

We examine the potential for adaptation to climate change in Indian forests, and derive the macroeconomic implications of forest impacts and adaptation in India. The study is conducted by integrating results from the dynamic global vegetation model IBIS and the computable general equilibrium model GRACE-IN, which estimates macroeconomic implications for six zones of India. By comparing a reference scenario without climate change with a climate impact scenario based on the IPCC A2-scenario, we find major variations in the pattern of change across zones. Biomass stock increases in all zones but the Central zone. The increase in biomass growth is smaller, and declines in one more zone, South zone, despite higher stock. In the four zones with increases in biomass growth, harvest increases by only approximately 1/3 of the change in biomass growth. This is due to two market effects of increased biomass growth. One is that an increase in biomass growth encourages more harvest given other things being equal. The other is that more harvest leads to higher supply of timber, which lowers market prices. As a result, also the rent on forested land decreases. The lower prices and rent discourage more harvest even though they may induce higher demand, which increases the pressure on harvest. In a less perfect world than the model describes these two effects may contribute to an increase in the risk of deforestation because of higher biomass growth. Furthermore, higher harvest demands more labor and capital input in the forestry sector. Given total supply of labor and capital, this increases the cost of production in all the other sectors, although very little indeed. Forestry dependent communities with declining biomass growth may, however, experience local unemployment as a result.