Time-dependent effects of chlordane on thyroid histological structure and function in rats

In order to study the time-dependent effects of chlordane on thyroid hormone levels and histological structure in rats, 120 healthy 4-week-old SD rats were divided randomly into 12 groups. Rats in treatment groups were treated orally by gavage with chlordane at a dose of 15 mg kg^?1 for 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, or 40 days, while rats in control group received an equal volume of corn oil. Serum levels of thyroxine (FT4), triiodothyronine (FT3), and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) were measured by radioimmunoassay. Sections of thyroids were dyed with hematoxylin–eosin to detect any pathological alterations. In chlordane treated groups, on day 5, changes in serum levels of FT4, FT3, and TSH were not found. On days 10 and 15, serum levels of FT4 and FT3 decreased, accompanied by increased levels of TSH. On days 20, 30 and 40, serum levels of these hormones returned to control values. As for alterations in histology, on day 10–15, follicular epithelium of the thyroid were found to proliferate into two layers in chlordane treated rats. On day 20, in focal areas the two-layer afollicular epithelia were observed to continuously proliferate into 3–4 layers of follicular epithelium, termed hyperplasia plaques. On days 30 and 40, solid buds and secondary follicles to solid buds were detected. The earliest alteration of thyroid hormones in treated SD rats occurred between 5 and 10 days with corresponding histopathologic changes. As the exposure time increased, the serum levels of hormones and histopathology altered in a time-dependent manner.     

Diversity and distribution of proteorhodopsin-containing microorganisms in marine environments

Proteorhodopsin (PR) is a recently discovered protein involved in the utilization of light energy. Several studies have shown that PR-containing microorganisms are widespread and compose a large proportion of the biomass in marine ecosystems. A better understanding of the ecological role of PR will help clarify the effect of the global flow of energy and the carbon cycle on marine communities. In this study, a bioinformatical database of PR codon sequences, the Global Distribution Database of Proteorhodopsin (GDDP), as a tool for analyzing the diversity and distribution of PR-containing microorganisms in marine environments throughout the world was designed. The community structure of PR microorganisms were also compared using PCR assays and UniFrac analyses of 12 samples collected from three water layers (0, 75, and 200 m) at four representative sites in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans. The results indicate that PRcontaining microorganisms can be grouped into two distribution types: widespread and location-specific. Representative cases of the former include SAR11-PR and HOT2C01-PR. Interestingly, PR communities cluster by geographic locale but not by water depth.     

转轮式洗轮机对车轮带泥的冲洗效果

施工车辆车轮带泥是我国道路扬尘污染控制面临的共性和突出问题。为在国内推广使用洗轮机提供技术依据，通过检测工地出口外道路积尘负荷来估算转轮式洗轮机对车轮带泥的冲洗效率，并以该洗轮机作为车轮带泥检测设备，检测和统计北京市车轮带泥量。结果表明，（1）转轮式洗轮机可以将工地出口外100m道路积尘负荷增量由64．4g／m2降至5．9g／m2，转轮式洗轮机对车轮带泥的冲洗效率大于90％；（2）渣土车和混凝土车车轮带泥量的平均值分别为5．1和2．2kg／车；（3）北京市未来车轮带泥量将超过8．8万t／a，施工车辆全部经过转轮式洗轮机冲洗后，车轮带泥量可削减7．9万t／a。建议在相关法律法规中以强制性条款落实施工车辆车轮带泥机械化冲洗要求。     

Modelling the Choice Between Multiple-Use vs. Specialised Forest Management and its Impact on Forest Management Costs

Forests provide ecosystem services, including timber production. In some cases, private forest owners perform management actions in order to enhance the provision of such services, or they may be encouraged by public policies and payments. This paper focuses specifically on the decision to set forest land aside for biodiversity conservation, as part of the more general question of the efficiency of multiple-use vs. specialised management of forest lands. We propose an econometric analysis to identify factors in the set-aside choice and measure the impact of this decision on forest management costs. The results show that the set-aside choice depends on the landowners’ income and motivations related to forest amenities. The choice of specialised management, as reflected in the set-aside decision, has a significant and positive impact on the intensity of management in the remainder of the forest and on management costs. From a policy implications point of view, these results suggest that instruments such as forest certification, subsidies and reverse auctions for conservation will be most likely to attract the interest of those forest owners with personal motivations and forest properties that offer both benefit and cost advantages in opting for such specialised management strategies.

     

Study on microstructure and extinction characteristics of particulate matter in diesel engine fueled with different biodiesels

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Biodiesel combustion particulate matter (PM) is different from diesel combustion PM in terms of microscopic morphology, which directly affects the...     

水下连接器试压帽结构动态仿真及密封性分析

为解决水下连接器现有力学模型过于简化，预紧力加载不够合理，密封性能分析结果不够准确的问题，基于ABAQUS有限元模拟提出了新的动态接触分析方法，针对水下连接器试压帽双头螺柱结构，探究了安装和试压工况中该结构形式的密封特性及其与等效拧紧力矩的非线性关联。研究结果表明:在塑性失效设计准则范围内，2种工况下密封环的Mises值最大为399.4 MPa；安装工况下，随预紧力的增加，密封环上、下锥面最大接触应力先增大后略微减小；1 145 Nm螺栓拧紧力矩可完成安装工况，并能在试压工况中保证各部件不被弹开；试压工况下，随试验内压的增加，密封环上锥面最大应力缓慢增加，下锥面最大接触应力几乎不变，最终2值近似相等约为850 MPa，密封宽度合理。     

Changes in biomass activity and characteristics of activated sludge exposed to low ozone dose

In this paper, the response mechanism of activated sludge exposed to low-dose ozone at less than 20 mg O₃ g⁻¹ total suspended solids (TSS) was studied by analyzing the changes in sludge activity and the evolution of C, N, P and metals from sludge following ozonation. The intracellular ATP concentration was not affected at less than 5 mg O₃ g⁻¹ TSS and thereafter decreased rapidly to around 60% when the ozone dose increased to 20 mg O₃ g⁻¹ TSS. Similarly, the efficiency of sludge solubilization initially changed a little and then increased rapidly to around 30% at an ozone dose of 20 mg O₃ g⁻¹ TSS. However, the activities of superoxide dismutase and protease decreased immediately upon exposure to ozone. These findings indicate that ozone firstly destroys the floc, leading to the disruption of the compact aggregates, which does not affect cells viability but induces a decrease in enzyme activities. Ozone then attacks the bacterial cells of the sludge, causing a decrease in cells viability. During ozonation, the content of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in the sludge matrix decreased, while the content of these elements in the micro-solids and supernatant gradually increased. Most of the released metals from the sludge matrix were found in the micro-solids.     

航空装备研制风险的综合赋权-双基点法评估

为实现对航空预研项目技术风险的定量评估,建立技术风险评价指标体系,建立基于综合赋权和双基点方法的综合评估模型,采用层次分析法(AHP)求得主观权重,熵值赋权法求得客观权重,运用线性规划方法求得对2类权重加权的权值,构造综合权重;使用正负理想点间的投影距离代替传统的相对欧式距离对TOPSIS方法进行改进;实例分析中,通过对某航空预研项目5种不同的方案进行风险评估,得出各方案的优劣度,选出了较为优化的技术方案,该方法可用于指导其他装备研制风险的评估。