β-Glucuronidase activity in mouse oocytes,mouse preimplantation embryos,and human gametes

A microfluorimetric assay was designed to monitor β-glucuronidase (β-gluc) activity during the early development of mouse embryos and was also applied to measure β-gluc activity in human sperm cells and single human oocytes. Mouse oocytes and preimplantation embryos at different stages of development, failed fertilized human oocytes, and human sperm cells were collected, and β-gluc activity was analysed. In the mouse, β-gluc activity could be measured starting from the morula stage on in a pooled sample of 15 embryos and at blasto-cyst formation in one single embryo. β-Gluc activity was low in human sperm cells. The enzyme could be readily demonstrated in 87 per cent of non-fertilized human oocytes. Considerable variation in β-gluc activity was noticed between individual oocytes.     

Exploring future agricultural development and biodiversity in Uganda,Rwanda and Burundi: a spatially explicit scenario-based assessment

Regional Environmental Change - Competition for land is increasing as a consequence of the growing demands for food and other commodities and the need to conserve biodiversity and ecosystem...     

The history of formation of recent small mammal communities in the Nether-Polar Urals

The results of studies on small mammal bone assemblages from seven cave-type sites on the Shchugor and Kozhim rivers are presented. Four stages in the development of small mammal fauna in the Nether-Polar Urals are described, which correspond to the Aller?d, Younger Dryas, Early Holocene, and Subatlantic periods. The moderately cryohydrophilic fauna of the Aller?d was replaced by an atypically ??mild?? xerophylic community in the Younger Dryas. In the Early Holocene, its structure still included considerable proportions of tundra species, which, along with forest species, were also found in the subfossil assemblage from the Subatlantic. It is shown that the transformation of the small mammal fauna in the above sites had a specific pattern, compared to that in other regions of northeastern Europe and to the dynamics of the natural environment and climate.     

Framing climate uncertainty: socio-economic and climate scenarios in vulnerability and adaptation assessments

Scenarios have become a powerful tool in integrated assessment and policy analysis for climate change. Socio-economic and climate scenarios are often combined to assess climate change impacts and vulnerabilities across different sectors and to inform risk management strategies. Such combinations of scenarios can also play an important role in enabling the interaction between experts and other stakeholders, framing issues and providing a means for making explicit and dealing with uncertainties. Drawing on experience with the application of scenarios to climate change assessments in recent Dutch research, the paper argues that scenario approaches need to be matched to the frames of stakeholders who are situated in specific decision contexts. Differentiated approaches (top-down, bottom-up and interactive) are needed to address the different frames and decision-making contexts of stakeholders. A framework is proposed to map scenarios and decision contexts onto two dimensions: the spatial scale of the context and the starting point of approach used in scenario development (top-down, bottom-up or incident-driven). Future climate and socio-economic scenario development will be shaped by the need to become better aligned with multiple interacting uncertainties salient to stakeholders.     

Where can cone penetrometer technology be applied? Development of a map of Europe regarding the soil penetrability

Over the past decades, significant efforts have been invested in the development of push-in technology for site characterization and monitoring for geotechnical and environmental purposes and have especially been undertaken in the Netherlands and Germany. These technologies provide the opportunity for faster, cheaper, and collection of more reliable subsurface data. However, to maximize the technology both from a development and implementation point of view, it is necessary to have an overview of the areas suitable for the application of this type of technology. Such an overview is missing and cannot simply be read from existing maps and material. This paper describes the development of a map showing the feasibility or applicability of Direct Push/Cone Penetrometer Technology (DPT/CPT) in Europe which depends on the subsurface and its extremely varying properties throughout Europe. Subsurface penetrability is dependent on a range of factors that have not been mapped directly or can easily be inferred from existing databases, especially the maximum depth reachable would be of interest. Among others, it mainly depends on the geology, the soil mechanical properties, the type of equipment used as well as soil-forming processes. This study starts by looking at different geological databases available at the European scale. Next, a scheme has been developed linking geological properties mapped to geotechnical properties to determine basic penetrability categories. From this, a map of soil penetrability is developed and presented. Validating the output by performing field tests was beyond the scope of this study, but for the country of the Netherlands, this map has been compared against a database containing actual cone penetrometer depth data to look for possible contradictory results that would negate the approach. The map for the largest part of Europe clearly shows that there is a much wider potential for the application of Direct Push Technology than is currently seen. The study also shows that there is a lack of large-scale databases that contain depth-resolved data as well as soil mechanical and physical properties that can be used for engineering purposes in relation to the subsurface.     

Determination of microcontaminants in sediments by on-line solid-phase extraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

Two simple and straightforward analytical procedures for the screening of sediment samples are reported. They involve extraction with ethyl acetate or methanol and subsequent analysis by means of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) using large-volume injection (LVI) or solid-phase extraction (SPE). The latter, which was originally developed for the analysis of aqueous samples, can be used without any modification. In general, 10 ml of organic solvent were added to 2 g of sediment, and the mixture was shaken and allowed to stand overnight. The methanolic extracts were then diluted in water and subjected to preconcentration and analysis using on-line SPE-GC-MS. The ethyl acetate extracts were injected directly into the GC using LVI. Both methods were used for the detection and identification of microcontaminants during a monitoring study of the river Nitra (Slovak Republic). They included polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), chlorofluorohydrocarbons, alkoxylated and alkylated phenols and benzothiazole derivatives. Semi-quantitative profiles of the contaminants were constructed and provisionally interpreted. The results indicate that SPE-GC-MS, and also LVI-GC-MS, have good potential for a rapid screening of sediment samples and the identification of microcontaminants. The analytical procedures pose no problems, and the on-line set-up is user-friendly.     

Strategies of heavy metal uptake by three plant species growing near a metal smelter

Some higher plant species have developed heavy metal tolerance strategies which enable them to survive and reproduce in highly metal-contaminated soils. We have investigated such heavy metal uptake and accumulation strategies of two absolute metallophyte species (Armeria maritima ssp. halleri and Cardaminopsis halleri) and one pseudometallophyte (Agrostis tenuis) growing near a former metal smelter. Samples of plant parts and soil were analysed for Zn, Cd, Pb, and Cu. In soil, there were two dominant types of metal concentration gradients with depth. Under the absolute metallophytes, extremely high metal contents were measured in the surficial Ah horizon, followed by a strong decrease in the underlying soil horizons (L(11) and L(12)). Under the pseudometallophyte, metal concentrations in the Ah horizon were much lower and fewer differences were observed in metal concentrations among the Ah, L(11), and L(12) horizons. The concentrations of Zn, Cd, Pb, and Cu in Agrostis tenuis roots were greater than concentrations in leaves, indicating significant metal immobilisation by the roots. For C. halleri, Zn and Cd concentrations in leaves were >20,000 and >100 mg kg(-1), respectively, indicating hyperaccumulation of these elements. Armeria maritima ssp. halleri exhibited root concentrations of Pb and Cu that were 20 and 88 times greater, respectively, than those in green leaves, suggesting an exclusion strategy by metal immobilisation in roots. However, Zn, Cd, Pb, and Cu concentrations in brown leaves of Armeria maritima ssp. halleri were 3-8 times greater than in green leaves, suggesting a second strategy, i.e. detoxification mechanism by leaf fall.     

Spiking of performance reference compounds in low density polyethylene and silicone passive water samplers

A method for spiking performance reference compounds (PRCs) into low density polyethylene (LDPE) and silicone polymers is described. This method is based on equilibration of the polymers in aqueous/methanolic solutions of PRCs. Equilibration times range from minutes to hours for perdeuterated polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) with a hydrophobicity in the range 3.9 < logKow < 7.7. Best results were obtained for methanol-water ratios of 80/20 (v/v). The method allows for the use of PRCs for in situ calibration of the uptake kinetics of these solvent-free sampling phases in a similar way as for semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs).     

A model to assess the rate of evaporation of chemical compounds from surface waters

A model has been developed to assess the rate of evaporation of chemical compounds from surface waters. It is based on the two-boundary-layer model of Lewis and Whitman, on critically evaluated literature data and on specific experiments. The rate of evaporation is assessed as a function of the diffusion coefficient in air and water and of Henry's coefficient in water, being the physico-chemical parameters, and as a function of the wind speed, the water temperature and the water depth, being the environmental parameters.