Exogenous melatonin reduces water deficit-induced oxidative stress and improves growth performance of Althaea rosea grown on coal mine spoils

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Coal mining activities are responsible for significant land degradation and often long-term irreversible effects on ecosystem functioning. To better...     

Methane production and consumption in an active volcanic environment of Southern Italy

Methane fluxes were measured, using closed chambers, in the Crater of Solfatara volcano, Campi Flegrei (Southern Italy), along eight transects covering areas of the crater presenting different landscape physiognomies. These included open bare areas, presenting high geothermal fluxes, and areas covered by vegetation, which developed along a gradient from the central open area outwards, in the form of maquis, grassland and woodland. Methane fluxes decreased logarithmically (from 150 to -4.5 mg CH4 m(-2)day(-1)) going from the central part of the crater (fangaia) to the forested edges, similarly to the CO2 fluxes (from 1500 g CO2 m(-2)day(-1) in the centre of the crater to almost zero flux in the woodlands). In areas characterized by high emissions, soil presented elevated temperature (up to 70 degrees C at 0-10 cm depth) and extremely low pH (down to 1.8). Conversely, in woodland areas pH was higher (between 3.7 and 5.1) and soil temperature close to air values. Soil (0-10 cm) was sampled, in two different occasions, along the eight transects, and was tested for methane oxidation capacity in laboratory. Areas covered by vegetation mostly consumed CH4 in the following order woodland>macchia>grassland. Methanotrophic activity was also measured in soil from the open bare area. Oxidation rates were comparable to those measured in the plant covered areas and were significantly correlated with field CH4 emissions. The biological mechanism of uptake was demonstrated by the absence of activity in autoclaved replicates. Thus results suggest the existence of a population of micro-organisms adapted to this extreme environment, which are able to oxidize CH4 and whose activity could be stimulated and supported by elevated concentrations of CH4.     

Gas- and particle-phase distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in two-stroke, 50-cm3 moped emissions

Gas- and particle-phase polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) concentrations evaluated in the exhaust of 10 two-stroke, 50-cm³ mopeds belonging to three different levels of emission legislation (EURO-0, EURO-1 and EURO-2) were used to assess the prevalent mechanism driving the gas/particle partitioning of PAHs in moped exhaust. Sampling was performed on a dynamometer bench both during the “cold-start” and the “hot” phases of the ECE-47 driving cycle. Gas and particulate phase PAHs were collected on polyurethane foam (PUF) plugs and 47-mm Pallflex T60A20 filters, respectively, under isokinetic conditions by using sampling probes inserted into the dilution tunnel of a Constant Volume Sampling – Critical Flow Venturi (CVS–CFV) system.The results show that semi-volatile PAHs were predominantly partitioned to the particle phase. The soluble organic fraction (SOF) of the collected particulates ranged between 72 and 98%. Measured total suspended particulate matter normalized partition coefficients (K_p) were predicted within a factor of 3–5 by assuming absorption into the organic fraction according to a model developed by Harner and Bidleman [Harner, T., Bidleman, T.F., 1998. Octanol–air partition coefficient for describing particle/gas partitioning of aromatic compounds in urban air. Environmental Science & Technology 32, 1494–1502.]. This suggests that the gas/particle partitioning in moped exhaust is mainly driven by the high fraction of organic matter of the emitted particles and that absorption could be the main partitioning mechanism of PAHs.     

New remains of the enigmatic cetartiodactyl Bugtitherium grandincisivum Pilgrim, 1908, from the upper Oligocene of the Bugti Hills (Balochistan, Pakistan)

Newly discovered fossil material of the enigmatic cetartiodactyl Bugtitherium grandincisivum from the upper Oligocene of the Bugti Member of the Chitarwata Formation in the Bugti Hills (Balochistan, Pakistan) is reported. These new specimens consist of two fragmentary muzzles (one preserving the first incisors and belonging to a juvenile) and a fragmentary right mandible with m3. The morphologies of the anterior dentition and m3 provided by these new specimens confirm the validity of the genus Bugtitherium and advocate probable anthracotheriid affinity for the genus rather than entelodontid or suoid affinities, but do not definitively close the debate about Bugtitherium’s familial affinities within Cetartiodactyla. Although still poorly documented, this large-sized anthracotheriid-like cetartiodactyl is a possible key form for understanding the early evolution of hippos, and, in turn, the ancestry of whales, because of both its morphological similarities with hippos and primitive Paleogene whales and its Tethysian distribution.     

Sex attractant of an arctiid moth (Utetheisa ornatrix): A pulsed chemical signal

Summary The sex attractant pheromone produced by the female of the moth Utetheisa ornatrix was shown to contain Z, Z, Z-3, 6, 9-heneicosatriene. The compound, whose structure was confirmed by synthesis, proved active in electroantennogram and field bioassays. Pheromone emission occurs discontinuously, in the form of short pulses (pulse repetition rate=1.5±0.2 pulses/s). It is argued that such temporal patterning — which had not previously been demonstrated for an airborne chemical signal — can provide close-range orientation cues to the male moth as it seeks out the female.     

Sex differences in survival costs of reproduction in a promiscuous primate

In sexually promiscuous mammals, female reproductive effort is mainly expressed through gestation, lactation, and maternal care, whereas male reproductive effort is mainly manifested as mating effort. In this study, we investigated whether reproduction has significant survival costs for a seasonally breeding, sexually promiscuous species, the rhesus macaque, and whether these costs occur at different times of the year for females and males, namely in the birth and the mating season, respectively. The study was conducted with the rhesus macaque population on Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico. Data on 7,402 births and 922 deaths over a 45-year period were analyzed. Births were concentrated between November and April, while conceptions occurred between May and October. As predicted, female mortality probability peaked in the birth season whereas male mortality probability peaked in the mating season. Furthermore, as the onset of the birth season gradually shifted over the years in relation to climatic changes, there was a concomitant shift in the seasonal peaks of male and female mortality. Taken together, our findings provide the first evidence of sex differences in the survival costs of reproduction in nonhuman primates and suggest that reproduction has significant fitness costs even in environments with abundant food and absence of predation.