Oxidative stress related enzymes in response to chromium (Ⅵ) toxicity in Oxya chinensis ( Orthoptera : Acridoidae)

The toxic effects of Cr(Ⅵ) on antioxidant enzymes of Oxya chinensis(Orthoptera: Acridoidae) were determined. Changes in the activities of the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase(SOD), catalase(CAT), and guaiacol peroxidase(GPx) were measured in O. chinensis insects injected with Cr(Ⅵ). Fifth-nymphs of O. chinensis insects were injected with Cr(Ⅵ) with different concentrations (0, 75, 150, 225, 300, 375, 450 mg/kg of body weight). The results showed that Cr(Ⅵ) led to the change of SOD, CAT, and GPx activities at different concentrations, which revealed that: (1) The oxidative stress of SOD increased with the increase of Cr (Ⅵ)concentration. (2) With the increase of Cr (Ⅵ) concentrations, CAT activities for females increased at lower concentrations, but decreased at higher concentration range, which indicated that antioxidant system of O. chinensis was not influenced by the presence of Cr (Ⅵ). A very similar response to Cr(Ⅵ) effect for males indicated that Cr(Ⅵ) concentrations were not high enough to damage O. chinensis in terms of CAT. (3) The GPx activity for females increased in all treatments, which revealed that the damage power of Cr(Ⅵ)was increased with the increase of Cr(Ⅵ) concentrations in terms of GPx, but the effect was not so remarkable. There was not a consistent trend of GPx activities for males in all treatments of Cr(Ⅵ). Cr(Ⅵ)-induced changes in antioxidant enzymes were different for SOD, CAT and GPx, of which the tendency was that activities generally changed with increase of concentrations of Cr(Ⅵ) suggesting SOD, CAT, and GPx could serve as indices of oxidative stress to some extent.     

Oxidative stress related enzymes in response to chromium (Ⅵ) toxicity in Oxya chinensis ( Orthoptera : Acridoidae)

The toxic effects of Cr（Vl） on antioxidant enzymes of Oxya chinensis（Orthoptera： Acridoidae） were determined. Changes in the activities of the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase（SOD）, catalase（CAT）, and guaiacol peroxidase（GPx） were measured in O. chinensis insects injected with Cr（VI）. Fifth-nymphs of O. chinensis insects were injected with Cr（VI） with different concentrations （0, 75, 150, 225, 300, 375, 450 mg/kg of body weight）. The results showed that Cr（VI） led to the change of SOD, CAT, and GPx activities at different concentrations, which revealed that： （1） The oxidative stress of SOD increased with the increase of Cr （VI） concentration. （2） With the increase of Cr （VI） concentrations, CAT activities for females increased at lower concentrations, but decreased at higher concentration range, which indicated that antioxidant system of O. chinensis was not influenced by the presence of Cr （VI）. A very similar response to Cr（VI） effect for males indicated that Cr（VI） concentrations were not high enough to damage O. chinensis in terms of CAT. （3） The GPx activity for females increased in all treatments, which revealed that the damage power of Cr（VI） was increased with the increase of Cr（Vi） concentrations in terms of GPx, but the effect was not so remarkable. There was not a consistent trend of GPx activities for males in all treatments of Cr（VI）. Cr（VI）-induced changes in antioxidant enzymes were different for SOD, CAT and GPx, of which the tendency was that activities generally changed with increase of concentrations of Cr（VI） suggesting SOD, CAT, and GPx could serve as indices of oxidative stress to some extent.     

Agricultural adaptation to climate change in China

ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＡｄａｐｔａｔｉｏｎｒｅｆｅｒｓｔｏｅｆｆｏｒｔｓｔｏｒｅｄｕｃｅｓｙｓｔｅｍ’ｓｖｕｌｎｅｒａｂｉｌｉｔｉｅｓｔｏｃｌｉｍａｔｅ.Ａｍｏｎｇｔｈｅｍｏｓｔｆｒｅｑｕｅｎｔｌｙｃｉｔｅｄｈｕｍａｎｓｙｓｔｅｍｓｌｉｋｅｌｙｔｏｂｅａｆｆｅｃｔｅｄｂｙｃｌｉｍａｔｉｃｃｈａｎｇｅｉｓａｇｒｉｃｕｌｔｕｒｅ.Ｉｔｉｓｅｓｐｅｃｉａｌｌｙｓｅｎｓｉｔｉｖｅｔｏｔｈｅｃｏｎｓｅｑｕｅｎｃｅｓｏｆｇｌｏｂａｌｗａｒｍｉｎｇａｓｉｔｒｅｌｉｅｓｈｅａｖｉｌｙｏｎｔｈｅｗｅａｔｈｅｒａｎ…     

Do females pay attention to secondary sexual coloration in vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiops)?

Several primate species show sexual dichromatism with males displaying conspicuous coloration of the pelage or skin. Studies of scrotal coloration in male vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiops) suggest that it is an important intrasexual signal, with relatively dark, colourful males dominating paler males. To date, no studies have examined the influence of male colour on intersexual social interactions in vervet monkeys. The primary goal of the present study was to evaluate whether female vervet monkeys attend to male coloration. We experimentally introduced females, housed with either “pale” or “dark” males, to stimulus males whose scrota were pale, dark, or pale but painted to look dark. Overall, during introductions, females did not differ in time spent directing affiliative behaviour toward pale, dark, and painted males; however, females, permanently housed with dark males, spent significantly more time directing affiliative behaviour toward pale than painted males. When the stimulus male was pale, affiliative exchanges between males and females were longer than when the stimulus male was painted. Home male colour was not related to female-initiated aggression. Home male colour was also not related to male-initiated aggression, although painted stimulus males were more likely to initiate aggression than pale stimulus males. These findings lead us to conclude that females pay attention to male coloration, but do not bias their interactions toward males solely on the basis of natural male coloration.     

Sensitivity of soils to acid rain in South China

This paper deals with the sensitivity of soils to acid rain in 5 provinces, South China. Based on field work and literature, and taking soil pH, CEC, and the types of residua into account, the authors classified the sensitivity into 4 categories: highly sensitive, sensitive, slightly sensitive, and non-sensitive. By overlapping the maps of soil pH, CEC, and types of residua, the map of soil sensitivity in South China has finally resulted.The authors try to summarize the regularity of soil sensitivity to acid rain in this area. The sensitivity of different soil types in the studied area has also discussed.The seriousness and its prospects of acid rain in this area have been pointed out in order to draw the attention of relevant authorities.     

Exposure of aboriginal people to methylmercury due to gold mining in the Amazon, Brazil

ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＳｉｎｃｅｔｈｅｅａｒｌｙ 1980’ｓ,ｒａｐｉｄｉｎｃｒｅａｓｅｓｉｎｇｏｌｄｍｉｎｉｎｇａｃｔｉｖｉｔｉｅｓｕｓｉｎｇｍｅｒｃｕｒｙａｍａｌｇａｍａｔｉｏｎｔｅｃｈｎｉｑｕｅｉｎｍａｎｙｄｅｖｅｌｏｐｉｎｇｃｏｕｎｔｒｉｅｓｈａｓｂｅｅｎｏｎｅｏｆｔｈｅｍａｉｎｓｏｕｒｃｅｓｏｆｍｅｒｃｕｒｙｐｏｌｌｕｔｉｏｎ ,ｐａｒｔｉｃｕｌａｒｌｙｉｎｔｈｅＡｍａｚｏｎａｎｄｏｔｈｅｒｔｒｏｐｉｃａｌｒｅｇｉｏｎｓ(Ｍａｌｍ ,1990 ;Ｒａｍｅｌ,1996;Ｉｋｉｎｇｕｒａ,1996;Ｌａｃｅｒｄａ,…     

How to uncoil your partner—“mating songs” in giant pill-millipedes (Diplopoda: Sphaerotheriida)

The stridulation of the giant pill-millipede genus Sphaerotherium from South Africa, one of only three groups of millipedes that produce sounds, was studied. One hundred one stridulation series of a total of nine different species (Sphaerotherium dorsaloide, Sphaerotherium hanstroemi, Sphaerotherium mahaium, Sphaerotherium similare, Sphaerotherium punctulatum, Sphaerotherium convexitarsum, Sphaerotherium dorsale, Sphaerotherium rotundatum, and Sphaerotherium perbrincki) were analyzed. Stridulation sounds are produced only with a special field of ribs on the posterior surface of the posterior telopod, which is actively moved over a field of sclerotized nubs on the inner margin of the anal shield. The Sphaerotherium male usually stridulates only when in contact with a female to initiate mating. This seems to prevent the female from volvating into a ball or stimulate the female to uncoil when already rolled in. The sound analyzes revealed a broad frequency spectrum in all stridulation sounds produced, without obvious differences in frequency distribution among species. However, the temporal pattern of the stridulation varies greatly between species and seems to be species-specific, arguing for a species recognition function of the stridulation during courtship behavior. A single species (S. punctulatum) was found to stridulate during mating while three species also show postcopulatory stridulation. Apparently, pill-millipedes are not capable of acoustic perception, as no hearing organs are known, indicating that the communication is mainly based on perception of temporal vibration patterns, and not of the acoustic signal itself. The need to overcome the rolling-in reflex of the female is developed as a hypothesis why stridulation exists only in millipedes able to coil into a ball, and apparently evolved four times independently in the superorder Oniscomorpha.     

New approaches to characterizing urban air particles in central London

１　ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＯｎａｎｉｎｔｅｒｎａｔｉｏｎａｌｓｃａｌｅ，ｔｈｅｎａｔｕｒｅｏｆｕｒｂａｎａｉｒｐｏｌｌｕｔｉｏｎｈａｓｃｈａｎｇｅｄｓｉｇｎｉｆｉｃａｎｔｌｙｏｖｅｒｔｈｅｌａｓｔ５０ｙｅａｒｓ．Ｉｎｔｈｅ１９５０ｓａｎｄ１９６０ｓ，ｔｈｅｍｏｓｔｉｍｐｏｒｔａｎｔｅｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔａｌｈｅａｌｔｈｉｓｓｕｅｓｓｔｅｍｍｅｄｆｒｏｍｔｈｅｏｃｃｕｒｒｅｎｃｅｏｆｕｒｂａｎｓｍｏｇｓ，ａｎａｔｍｏｓｐｈｅｒｉｃｃｏｃｋｔａｉｌｃｈａｒａｃｔｅｒｉｚｅｄｂｙｈｉｇｈｃｏｎｃｅｎ…     

Correction to: Identification of structural breaks in the forest product markets: how sensitive are to changes in the Nordic region?

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change - This paper was published on March 2017, Volume 22, Issue 3, 469–483pp, titled “Identification of structural breaks in the forest...     

Resourcefulization approaches to pollution control of chromate residues in China

Over 2 million tons of chromate residues as hazardous wastes have been accumulated from chromate production processes during the past more than 30 years in China. Some serious pollution problems have been caused due to no appropriate technology and management. Approaches are reviewed to pollution control of chromate residues by utilizing them as secondary resources in this paper. In addition to legislation for pollution control, chromate residues can be used as raw materials to produce a great diversity of useful industrial products. Strategies are also recommanded for the resourcefulization of chromate residues.     

Protozoan colonization on artificial substrates in relation to water quality in a tropical Indian harbour

ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＩｎａｑｕａｔｉｃｅｃｏｓｙｓｔｅｍｓｂｉｏｌｏｇｉｃａｌｃｏｍｍｕｎｉｔｉｅｓａｒｅｒｅｍａｒｋａｂｌｙｃｏｍｐｌｅｘｉｎｂｏｔｈｔｈｅｉｒｏｐｅｒａｔｉｏｎａｎｄｒｅｓｐｏｎｓｅｔｏａｎｔｈｒｏｐｏｇｅｎｉｃａｃｔｉｖｉｔｉｅｓ.Ｔｈｉｓｈａｓｌｅｄｍａｎｙｉｎｖｅｓｔｉｇａｔｏｒｓｔｏｃｏｎｄｕｃｔｌａｂｏｒａｔｏｒｙａｎｄｆｉｅｌｄｓｔｕｄｉｅｓｆｏｒｅｖａｌｕａｔｉｎｇｔｈｅｅｃｏｌｏｇｉｃａｌｒｉｓｋｐｏｓｅｄｂｙｈｕｍａｎｓｔｏｅｃｏｓｙｓｔｅｍ(Ｃａｉｒｎｓ…     

A methodological proposal for the evaluation of farmer’s adaptation to climate variability, mainly due to drought in watersheds in Central America

The current study shows the process and the results of a methodology proposed to contribute with the issue of how to evaluate the adaptation to climate variability and future climate change. The proposed methodology consists of a standard to evaluate farmer’s adaptation to climate variability, mainly due to drought in watersheds in Central America; and was created with contributions from experts and professionals around this region. The phases for this process were: (1) literature review about the topic, (2) development of a preliminary standard, (3) expert interviews for the evaluation of this preliminary standard, (4) construction of a standard to evaluate the issue of adaptation to climate variability emphasizing drought through contributions from experts and their preliminary evaluations, (5) applicability test of this standard for the evaluation of climate variability under real conditions and (6) application of this standard through a case study in the Aguas Calientes river sub-watershed in Nicaragua, which permanently undergoes drought problems and climate variability. This standard has five main principles that go from the general, considering regional and national policies and institutionalism, to the specifics at the level of watersheds. In addition to those principles, the standard contains ten criteria, 26 indicators and 51 verifiers distributed among the main five principles. In the process for testing this standard in the Aguas Calientes river watershed in Nicaragua, the score for the general applicability to this standard was middle-level (score of 3 in a scale of 1 to 5), although, for the main principles of this standard, the score was four (high).     

Carbon dioxide release due to change in land usein China mainland

ＣａｒｂｏｎｄｉｏｘｉｄｅｒｅｌｅａｓｅｄｕｅｔｏｃｈａｎｇｅｉｎｌａｎｄｕｓｅｉｎＣｈｉｎａｍａｉｎｌａｎｄＷａｎｇＸｉａｏｋｅ；ＺｈｕａｎｇＹａｈｕｉ；ＦｅｎｇＺｏｎｇｗｅｉ（ＲｅｓｅａｒｃｈＣｅｎｔｅｒｆｏｒＥｃｏ－ＥｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔａｌＳ...     

Hiding in Plain Sight? It’s Time to Investigate Other Possible Transmission Routes for Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) in Developed Countries

Historically in developed countries, reported hepatitis E cases were typically travellers returning from countries where hepatitis E virus (HEV) is endemic, but now there are increasing numbers of non-travel-related (“autochthonous”) cases being reported. Data for HEV in New Zealand remain limited and the transmission routes unproven. We critically reviewed the scientific evidence supporting HEV transmission routes in other developed countries to inform how people in New Zealand may be exposed to this virus. A substantial body of indirect evidence shows domesticated pigs are a source of zoonotic human HEV infection, but there is an information bias towards this established reservoir. The increasing range of animals in which HEV has been detected makes it important to consider other possible animal reservoirs of HEV genotypes that can or could infect humans. Foodborne transmission of HEV from swine and deer products has been proven, and a large body of indirect evidence (e.g. food surveys, epidemiological studies and phylogenetic analyses) support pig products as vehicles of HEV infection. Scarce data from other foods suggest we are neglecting other potential sources of foodborne HEV infection. Moreover, other transmission routes are scarcely investigated in developed countries; the role of infected food handlers, person-to-person transmission via the faecal–oral route, and waterborne transmission from recreational contact or drinking untreated or inadequately treated water. People have become symptomatic after receiving transfusions of HEV-contaminated blood, but it is unclear how important this is in the overall hepatitis E disease burden. There is need for broader research efforts to support establishing risk-based controls.     

Do trace metal(loid)s in road soils pose health risks to tourists? A case of a highly-visited national park in China

Nowadays, more people tend to spend their recreational time in large national parks, and trace metal(loid)s in soils have attracted long-term attention due to their possible harm to human health. To investigate the pollution levels, potential sources and health risks of trace metal(loid)s in road soils, a total of eight trace metal(loid)s (including As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn and Hg) from 47 soil samples along roads were studied in the Huangshan National Park in Southeast China. The results showed that the concentrations of As, Cd, Pb, Zn and Hg appeared different degrees of pollution compared with their corresponding background values. According to the pollution indices, Hg and Cd were recognized as significant pollutants presenting moderate to high ecological risk. Combining principal component analysis and positive matrix factorization model, the results showed that traffic, industrial, agricultural and natural sources were the potential origins of trace metal(loid)s in this area, with contribution rates of 39.93%, 25.92%, 10.53% and 23.62%, respectively. Non-carcinogenic risks were all negligible, while the carcinogenic risk of As was higher than the limit (1 $\times$ 10⁻⁶). Moreover, children were more susceptible to trace metal(loid)s by ingestion which appeared to be a more important exposure pathway than dermal contact and inhalation. The contribution rates of different sources to non-carcinogenic risks and carcinogenic risks were similar among children and adults, while traffic and industrial sources have a significant impact on health risks. This study will give more insights to control the environmental risks of trace metal(loid)s in national parks.     

Changes in soil carbon storage due to over-grazing in Leymus chinensis steppe in the Xilin River Basin of Inner Mongolia

ＣｈａｎｇｅｓｉｎｓｏｉｌｃａｒｂｏｎｓｔｏｒａｇｅｄｕｅｔｏｏｖｅｒｇｒａｚｉｎｇｉｎＬｅｙｍｕｓｃｈｉｎｅｎｓｉｓｓｔｅｐｐｅｉｎｔｈｅＸｉｌｉｎＲｉｖｅｒＢａｓｉｎｏｆＩｎｎｅｒＭｏｎｇｏｌｉａＬｉＬｉｎｇｈａｏ，ＣｈｅｎＺｕｏｚｈｏｎｇ，Ｗ...     

Study on the toxicity of acid rain to microbiota in soils

With simulated acid rain and acidification, the soils from both Nanning and Liuzhou municipalities, Guangxi Zhuang Nationality Autonomous Region have been studied to determine the counts of azotobacter, bacteria, actinomyces and the activity of urease in soils, and the changes in respiratory intensity of soil so as to identify the toxicity of acidic substances to microbiota and enzyme in such soils. The concept of the critical pH of toxicity has been developed and used to discuss the representation of the concept, the basis on which the soil treated with simulated acid rain can be taken as an object of study, and the criteria for the identification of toxicity. Based on that as mentioned above, it was found that acid rain behaved to have toxicity to the microbiota in soils from Liuzhou other than from Nanning. The findings may be regarded as an objective basis to study the toxicity of acidic substances to microbiota and enzyme in soils in this region.     

Game theory approach to optimal capital cost allocation in pollution control

ＧａｍｅｔｈｅｏｒｙａｐｐｒｏａｃｈｔｏｏｐｔｉｍａｌｃａｐｉｔａｌｃｏｓｔａｌｏｃａｔｉｏｎｉｎｐｏｌｕｔｉｏｎｃｏｎｔｒｏｌＣｈｅｎＷｅｎｙｉｎｇＩｎｓｔｉｔｕｔｅｏｆＮｕｃｌｅａｒＥｎｅｒｇｙＴｅｃｈｎｏｌｏｇｙ，ＴｓｉｎｇｈｕａＵｎｉｖｅｒ...