Sulfur speciation and bioaccumulation in camphor tree leaves as atmospheric sulfur indicator analyzed by synchrotron radiation XRF and XANES

Analyzing and understanding the effects of ambient pollution on plants is getting more and more attention as a topic of environmental biology.A method based on synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence and X-ray absorption near edge structure spectroscopy was established to analyze the sulfur concentration and speciation in mature camphor tree leaves (CTLs),which were sampled from 5 local fields in Shanghai,China.Annual SO2 concentration,SO42-concentration in atmospheric particulate,SO42-and sulfur concentration in soil were also analyzed to explore the relationship between ambient sulfur sources and the sulfur nutrient cycling in CTLs.Total sulfur concentration in mature camphor tree leaves was 766-1704 mg/kg.The mainly detected sulfur states and their corresponding compounds were +6 (sulfate,include inorganic sulfate and organic sulfate),+5.2 (sulfonate),+2.2 (suloxides),+0.6 (thiols and thiothers),+0.2 (organic sulfides).Total sulfur concentration was strongly correlated with sulfate proportion with a linear correlation coefficient up to 0.977,which suggested that sulfur accumulated in CTLs as sulfate form.Reduced sulfur compounds (organic sulfides,thiols,thioethers,sulfoxide and sulfonate) assimilation was sufficed to meet the nutrient requirement for growth at a balanced level around 526 mg/kg.The sulfate accumulation mainly caused by atmospheric sulfur pollution such as SO2 and airborne sulfate particulate instead of soil contamination.From urban to suburb place,sulfate in mature CTLs decreased as the atmospheric sulfur pollution reduced,but a dramatic increase presented near the seashore,where the marine sulfate emission and maritime activity pollution were significant.The sulfur concentration and speciation in mature CTLs effectively represented the long-term biological accumulation of atmospheric sulfur pollution in local environment.     

自然土壤中苯酚降解菌的分离和系统发育分析

采用富集培养的方法,从未受苯酚污染的自然土壤中分离得到5株能以苯酚为唯一碳源生长的细菌.根据生理生化特性和系统发育分析对它们进行了初步鉴定,菌株PHD-2为Ralstonia sp.,菌株 PHD-4为Acinetobacter sp.,菌株PHD-5 为Microbacterium sp.,菌株PHD-1和PHD-3均为Pseudomonas sp.,16S rRNA基因序列的同源性比较和系统发育分析表明自然土壤中的苯酚降解菌具有丰富的多样性.     

PCR-DGGE研究处理垃圾渗滤液序批式生物膜反应器(SBBR)中的细菌多样性

为了研究序批式生物膜反应器中的细菌多样性及其脱氮的微生物学机理,为工艺改进提供依据,从同步高效去除垃圾渗滤液中高氨氮和高COD的SBBR生物膜和渗滤液原水中采集微生物样品并提取微生物总DNA,使用细菌通用引物对（GC341F/907R）从总DNA中成功扩增出目标16S rDNA片段,然后对扩增的16S rDNA进行DGGE,对凝胶染色并进行条带统计分析和切胶测序,使用序列数据进行同源性分析并建立了系统发育树.结果表明,该驯化后的SBBR生物膜和渗滤液原水中都有比较丰富的细菌多样性,驯化的生物膜细菌主要来自渗滤液原水,而且生物膜细菌在反应器正常运行时不会出现明显的群落结构变化;在该SBBR中有多种硝化细菌与反硝化细菌、好氧反硝化细菌和厌氧氨氧化细菌共存,说明该反应器中可能同时存在全程硝化反硝化、同步硝化反硝化和厌氧氨氧化3种脱氮方式.研究结果为SBBR脱氮微生物机理研究提供了一些有价值的参考依据.     

土壤pH、Eh对土壤-苦丁茶树系统中铅分布的影响

以苫丁茶冬青(Ilex kudingcha C.J.Tseng)扦插苗(15个月生)进行盆栽实验,通过土施H2SO4、Ca(OH)2和复合肥,改变土壤pH和氧化还原电位(Eh),研究土壤pH、Eh条件对土壤-苦丁茶树系统中铅分布的影响.结果表明:在所研究的土壤pH范围内,从酸性到碱性变化,铅在土壤中含量分布趋于减少,在...     

基于增强回归树的城市PM2.5日均值变化分析:以常州为例

利用2014年12月至2015年11月常州市区6个国控监测站空气污染物浓度逐时数据,分析了PM_(2.5)浓度季节变化特征,采用增强回归树模拟分析了PM10、4种气态污染物和7个气象因子对ρ(PM_(2.5))日变化的贡献.结果表明,常州市区PM_(2.5)污染季节差异明显,冬季污染严重且持续时间长,夏季污染较轻.四季ρ(PM_(2.5))空间分布特征存在一定差异,但各季内不同监测站差异较小.增强回归树对ρ(PM_(2.5))日均值进行模拟和验证得到,训练数据的相关性为0.981,交叉验证的相关性为0.957.此外,模拟值与实测值的标准化平均偏差为1.80%,标准化平均误差为10.41%,可见模型拟合效果较好.PM10、气态污染物、气象因子和区域输送及扩散这4种影响类型对全年ρ(PM_(2.5))日均值差异的贡献率分别为23.4%、28%、36.2%和12.6%,表明在对ρ(PM_(2.5))日均值差异的影响上,气象因子二次形成一次源区域输送及扩散.在对ρ(PM_(2.5))日均值差异贡献率大于5%的因子中,ρ(PM_(2.5))日均值与PM10、相对湿度、CO和O3正相关,与温度、SO2和混合层高度负相关,与大气压和NO2关系较复杂.区域输送及扩散方面,东南风向、偏西风向和偏北风向等上风向周边城市的污染物输送对常州市区PM_(2.5)污染存在较大的负面影响.     

An analysis of assessment outcomes from eight years' operation of the Australian border weed risk assessment system

The majority of Australian weeds are exotic plant species that were intentionally introduced for a variety of horticultural and agricultural purposes. A border weed risk assessment system (WRA) was implemented in 1997 in order to reduce the high economic costs and massive environmental damage associated with introducing serious weeds. We review the behaviour of this system with regard to eight years of data collected from the assessment of species proposed for importation or held within genetic resource centres in Australia. From a taxonomic perspective, species from the Chenopodiaceae and Poaceae were most likely to be rejected and those from the Arecaceae and Flacourtiaceae were most likely to be accepted. Dendrogram analysis and classification and regression tree (TREE) models were also used to analyse the data. The latter revealed that a small subset of the 35 variables assessed was highly associated with the outcome of the original assessment. The TREE model examining all of the data contained just five variables: unintentional human dispersal, congeneric weed, weed elsewhere, tolerates or benefits from mutilation, cultivation or fire, and reproduction by vegetative propagation. It gave the same outcome as the full WRA model for 71% of species. Weed elsewhere was not the first splitting variable in this model, indicating that the WRA has a capacity for capturing species that have no history of weediness. A reduced TREE model (in which human-mediated variables had been removed) contained four variables: broad climate suitability, reproduction in less or than equal to 1year, self-fertilisation, and tolerates and benefits from mutilation, cultivation or fire. It yielded the same outcome as the full WRA model for 65% of species. Data inconsistencies and the relative importance of questions are discussed, with some recommendations made for improving the use of the system.     

Structural-functional organization of lower vegetation layers in tree communities of the upper timberline ecotone in the Polar Urals

Typologically identical (dwarf birch-herb-dwarf shrub-moss) open and closed larch forests growing on the same altitudinal transect have proved to differ in the structural-functional organization of lower vegetation layers. Coverage, general species composition, and species richness of the herb-dwarf shrub layer are higher in the open forest than in the closed forest. Correlations between individual species of vascular plants weaken upon transition from the open to the closed forest. Conversely, the coverage of the lichen-moss layer increases in the closed forest, which contributes to its role as a factor of selection of vascular plant species against the background of the prevailing influence of the tree layer.     

Millennial‐Length Records of Streamflow From Three Major Upper Colorado River Tributaries1

Gray, Stephen T., Jeffrey J. Lukas, and Connie A. Woodhouse, 2011. Millennial‐Length Records of Streamflow From Three Major Upper Colorado River Tributaries. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 47(4):702‐712. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2011.00535.x Abstract: Drought, climate change, and shifting consumptive use are prompting a widespread reassessment of water availability in the Upper Colorado River basin. Here, we present millennial‐length records of water year (October‐September) streamflow for key Upper Colorado tributaries: the White, Yampa, and Little Snake Rivers. Based on tree rings, these records represent the first paleohydrological reconstructions from these subbasins to overlap with a series of Medieval droughts (∼ad 800 to 1300). The reconstructions show marked interannual variability imbedded in nonstationary behavior over decadal to multidecadal time scales. These reconstructions suggest that, even in a millennial context, gaged flows from a handful of years (e.g., 1977 and 2002) were extremely dry. However, droughts of much greater duration and magnitude than any in the instrumental record were regular features prior to 1900. Likewise these reconstructions point to the unusual wetness of the gage period, and the potential for recent observations to paint an overly optimistic picture of regional water supplies. The future of the Upper Colorado River will be determined by a combination of inherent hydroclimatic variability and a broad range of human‐induced changes. It is then essential that regional water managers, water users, and policy makers alike consider a broader range of hydroclimatic scenarios than is offered by the gage record alone.     

Effects of an Exotic Plant Invasion on Native Understory Plants in a Tropical Dry Forest

Abstract: The dry forests of southern India, which are endangered tropical ecosystems and among the world's most important tiger (Panthera tigris) habitats, are extensively invaded by exotic plants. Yet, experimental studies exploring the impacts of these invasions on native plants in these forests are scarce. Consequently, little is known about associated implications for the long‐term conservation of tigers and other biodiversity in these habitats. I studied the impacts of the exotic plant Lantana camara on understory vegetation in a dry‐forest tiger habitat in southern India. I compared the richness, composition, and abundance of tree seedlings, herbs, and shrubs and the abundance of grass among plots in which Lantana was cleared or left standing. These plots were distributed across two blocks—livestock free and livestock grazed. Removal of Lantana had an immediate positive effect on herb–shrub richness in the livestock‐free block, but had no effect on that of tree seedlings in either livestock block. Tree‐seedling and herb–shrub composition differed significantly between Lantana treatment and livestock block, and Lantana removal significantly decreased survival of tree seedlings. Nevertheless, the absence of trees, in any stage between seedling and adult, indicates that Lantana may stall tree regeneration. Lantana removal decreased the abundance of all understory strata, probably because forage plants beneath Lantana are less accessible to herbivores, and plants in Lantana‐free open plots experienced greater herbivory. Reduced access to forage in invaded habitats could negatively affect ungulate populations and ultimately compromise the ability of these forests to sustain prey‐dependent large carnivores. Additional research focused on understanding and mitigating threats posed by exotic plants may be crucial to the long‐term protection of these forests as viable tiger habitats.     

Evolutionary Distinctiveness,Threat Status,and Ecological Oddity in Primates

Abstract: The EDGE (evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered) conservation program ( http://www.edgeofexistence.org ) uses a composite measure of threat and phylogenetic isolation to rank species for conservation attention. Using primates as a test case, we examined how species that rank highly with this metric represent the collective from which they are drawn. We considered the ecological and morphological traits, including body mass, diet, terrestriality, and home range size, of all 233 species of primates. Overall, EDGE score and the level of deviance from the mean of 20 different ecological, reproductive, and morphological variables were correlated (mean correlation r =0.14, combined p =1.7 × 10^?14). Although primates with a high EDGE score had characteristics that made them seem odd, they did not seem to express more ancestral characteristics than expected. Sets of primate species with high EDGE scores will, therefore, collectively capture a broader than expected range of the biology of the clade. If similar patterns hold in other groups, the EDGE metric may be useful for prioritizing biodiversity for conservation.