Nitrogen fertility and abiotic stresses management in cotton crop: a review

This review outlines nitrogen (N) responses in crop production and potential management decisions to ameliorate abiotic stresses for better crop production. N is a primary constituent of the nucleotides and proteins that are essential for life. Production and application of N fertilizers consume huge amounts of energy, and excess is detrimental to the environment. Therefore, increasing plant N use efficiency (NUE) is important for the development of sustainable agriculture. NUE has a key role in crop yield and can be enhanced by controlling loss of fertilizers by application of humic acid and natural polymers (hydrogels), having high water-holding capacity which can improve plant performance under field conditions. Abiotic stresses such as waterlogging, drought, heat, and salinity are the major limitations for successful crop production. Therefore, integrated management approaches such as addition of aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG), the film antitranspirant (di-1-p-menthene and pinolene) nutrients, hydrogels, and phytohormones may provide novel approaches to improve plant tolerance against abiotic stress-induced damage. Moreover, for plant breeders and molecular biologists, it is a challenge to develop cotton cultivars that can tolerate plant abiotic stresses while having high potential NUE for the future.     

北京地区菜田土壤抗生素抗性基因的分布特征

为研究北京地区菜田土壤抗生素抗性基因(antibiotic resistance genes,ARGs)的污染状况和分布特征,采集了11个长期施用粪肥蔬菜基地的温室土壤和大田土壤,进行了抗生素以及ARGs种类和丰度的检测.结果表明,菜田土壤中四环素类抗生素残留量最高,其次为磺胺类抗生素,温室土壤抗生素残留普遍高于大田土壤.温室和大田土壤磺胺类抗性基因sul1、sul2和四环素类抗性基因tet L的检出率均为100%.温室土壤的Ⅰ类整合子(int I1)检出率比大田土壤高1.5倍.定量PCR的检测结果表明,菜田土壤中sul2和tet L的相对丰度介于10-4~10-2之间,温室土壤sul2和tet L的相对丰度普遍高于大田土壤.sul2的相对丰度与磺胺二甲嘧啶和强力霉素的含量显著正相关(P0.05),tet L相对丰度与抗生素含量无明显相关性(P0.05).本研究结果对于掌握北京地区农田土壤ARGs的污染现状,以及从ARGs角度评估农艺措施具有重要的指导意义.     

Leachate characterization in semi-aerobic and anaerobic sanitary landfills: A comparative study

This study analyzes and compares the results of leachate composition at the semi-aerobic Pulau Burung Landfill Site (PBLS) (unaerated pond and intermittently aerated pond) and the anaerobic Kulim Sanitary Landfill in the northern region of Malaysia. The raw samples were collected and analyzed for twenty parameters. The average values of the parameters such as phenols (1.2, 6.7, and 2.6 mg/L), total nitrogen (448, 1200, and 300 mg/L N-TN), ammonia-N (542, 1568, and 538 mg/L NH₃-N), nitrite (91, 49, and 52 mg/L NO₂^?-N), total phosphorus (21, 17, and 19 mg/L), BOD₅ (83, 243, and 326 mg/L), COD (935, 2345, and 1892 mg/L), BOD₅/COD (0.096,0.1124,0.205%), pH (8.20, 8.28, and 7.76), turbidity (1546, 180, and 1936 Formazin attenuation units (FAU)), and color (3334, 3347, and 4041 Pt Co) for leachate at the semi-aerobic PBLS (unaerated and intermittently aerated) and the anaerobic Kulim Sanitary Landfill were recorded, respectively. The obtained results were compared with previously published data and data from the Malaysia Environmental Quality Act 1974. The results indicated that Pulau Burung leachate was more stabilized compared with Kulim leachate. Furthermore, the aeration process in PBLS has a considerable effect on reducing the concentration of several pollutants. The studied leachate requires treatment to minimize the pollutants to an acceptable level prior to discharge into water courses.     

干旱区盐渍地景观危险度评价方法——以新疆渭干河-库车河流域为例

土壤的盐渍化是干旱区农业发展的主要障碍,也是影响绿洲生态环境稳定的重要因素。利用破碎度(C)、分离度(F)、优势度(D)等景观格局指数及景观脆弱度(S)建立了盐渍化景观危险度(SR)评价指数以研究渭干河-库车河流域盐渍化地的危险程度。选择新疆渭干河-库车河流域1989年和2001年Landsat-TM图像为本底数据,结合野外调查样本进行实例验证。研究表明,在12年期间,由于研究区内人类活动不断加强,景观结构变化导致盐渍化景观危险度指数明显增高,综合盐渍化危险度指数(SCR)由0.4832上升到0.5234,盐渍化危险度有扩大的趋势,评价结果与实际情况有较好的一致性。该方法对提高不同干旱区域土壤盐渍地危险度评价的准确性及定量化具有一定的参考意义。     

Efficiency of perchlorate consumption in road flares, propellants and explosives

When an explosive detonates or a propellant or flare burns, consumption of the energetic filler should be complete but rarely is, especially in the presence of large amounts of non-combustible materials. Herein we examine three types of perchlorate-containing devices to estimate their potential as sources of contamination in their normal mode of functioning. Road flares, rocket propellants and ammonium nitrate (AN) emulsion explosives are potentially significant anthropogenic sources of perchlorate contamination. This laboratory evaluated perchlorate residue from burning of flares and propellants as well as detonations of ammonium nitrate emulsion explosives. Residual perchlorate in commercial products ranged from 0.094 mg perchlorate per gram material (flares) to 0.012 mg perchlorate per gram material (AN emulsion explosives). The rocket propellant formulations, prepared in this laboratory, generated 0.014 mg of perchlorate residue per gram of material.     

Environmental copper: Behaviour when involved in physical adsorption at several interfaces

From a literature-based assessment of the current knowledge about both the toxic or salutary properties of copper, this study focused on the determination, at 25 °C, of the interfacial properties of CuCl_2, either alone or in mixture with carbofuran used, here, as a model of organics and/or pesticide. The interfaces under study were: i) the air/solution interface and ii) the silica/solution interface. The former is considered as a path for volatilization, whereas the latter permits a modelling of physical adsorption upon solids, which is the first and unavoidable step in any adsorption process. One should note that it can also mimic adsorption on some sandy soils. Coadsorption was clearly identified as implicated in an enhancement of the surface content of both solutes at both interfaces. However, at the two interfaces under study, the way the surface became structured led to opposite adsorption mechanisms for the organic compounds and the salt. A rough theory about ionic adsorption is also proposed.     

石油污染土壤物化修复前后生物毒性效应

采用作物种子的发芽率作为生态指标对石油污染土壤进行毒性分析,并以蚯蚓为实验生物,研究了石油污染物的生物效应及其对土壤生态系统的影响.结果表明,不同的作物种子对石油污染表现出不同的耐受性,对照清洁土壤,大多数作物种子的萌发都明显受到石油污染的抑制,其中受石油污染影响最严重的是黄豆、蚕豆、玉米.相比之下,在不同石油污染水平下绿豆具有较高的耐受性,且种子发芽率均在90%以上.蚯蚓在受到污染胁迫时,在生理水平上会发生明显的变化,进而影响其存活和生长能力,实验观测到随着石油污染加重蚯蚓存活时间显著下降.在高污染水平石油污染的土壤中(石油污染水平>30 000 mg.kg-1),蚯蚓的耐性降低,仅可以存活5 d左右,说明石油烃对蚯蚓的毒性较大,主要是因为蚯蚓直接与石油接触导致其中毒脱水而死亡.处理后油田污染土,即使在污染水平很低(≈30 mg.kg-1)的情况下,蚯蚓存活时间依然很短(3 d左右),是因为经过石油醚处理过的土壤,其营养物质也随着石油而被处理掉,而土壤中有机质等营养物对蚯蚓的生存具有很大影响.