Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - Recycling possibilities were evaluated for a composite waste composed of glass fiber reinforced polyester bound to a layer of crosslinked... 相似文献
Based on questionnaires from horse breeders, we found that bringing a pregnant mare which had been mated away from home into
a vicinity of a familiar male who was not the father of her foetus increased probability of pregnancy disruption. These mares
aborted in 31% of cases, while none of those mated within the home stable aborted. Repeated sexual activity either by a stallion
or dominant gelding from the normal home group was observed shortly after the mare came from away-mating. Pregnant mares isolated
from home males by a fence were even seen soliciting them over the fence. We speculate that, once returned to the home “herd”,
and introduced to familiar males, mares were more likely to terminate their pregnancy to save energy and avoid likely future
infanticidal loss of their progeny by dominant male(s) of the home social group. This is a newly discovered phenomenon where
a mare manipulates the male’s paternity assessment by promiscuous mating. It may explain a common increased incidence of foetal
loss in domestic horses occurring in nearly 40% of pregnancies. We conclude that the common practice of transporting the mare
for mating and then bringing her back to an environment with males, stallions or geldings, which did not sire the foetus,
is the main cause of high percentages of pregnancy disruption in domestic horses. 相似文献
Dredging water reservoirs is necessary to maintain accumulation capacity and to prevent floodings. As a first step, the quality of the bed sediments in water reservoirs must be determined before dredging operations. In this study, sediment samples from 34 stations of three selected water reservoirs (Zemplinska Sirava, Velke Kozmalovce, and Ruzin) were collected to investigate concentrations, distributions, and hazards of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and to predict their possible sources. Total PCB concentrations were in the range of 20.4 to 2,325?ng/g. The maximum concentrations of PCBs were found in sediments from Zemplinska Sirava, which is in the vicinity of a former manufacturer of PCBs. The composition of PCBs was characterized by tri- and hexa-CB congeners, indicating the influence of contamination from the use of specific Delor mixtures, formerly produced and massively used on the territory of Slovakia. The data showed that the highest total PAH concentrations were associated with the sediments from the Velke Kozmalovce, ranging from 7,910 to 29,538?ng/g. On the other hand, the lowest total PAH concentrations (84?C631?ng/g of dry weight) were found in the sediments of Zemplinska Sirava, an important recreational area in eastern Slovakia. The distribution of individual PAHs was similar among the three water reservoirs, and this, together with principal component analysis and diagnostic PAH ratios, suggests mainly pyrolytic contamination of the sediments. However, petrogenic inputs appear to be important in the Zemplinska Sirava sediments. 相似文献
The study illustrates the response of epiphytic lichens to changing atmospheric conditions in Central Europe, where the emission of air pollutants has significantly decreased from 1990, in the area in and around Bratislava City. Variation in concentrations of seven metal elements (Cu, Cd, Cr, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) in the thalli of Evernia prunastri, Hypogymnia physodes and Parmelia sulcata is assessed. Samples of these species were exposed in lichen bags in 39 sites throughout the territory of the city (more than 300 km(2)) during the period December 2006-February 2007. The samples were analyzed by AAS for metal element contents prior to and after exposure. The decrease in air pollution (for all studied elements by more than 90%) corresponded to a decrease in the accumulation of elements in lichen thalli, e.g. the contents of Pb decreased by 69% and of Cd by 34% on average. The results show also variations in accumulation between with different lichen species. The background values of metal element contents in thalli of H. physodes growing in situ were measured in semi-natural sites in Slovakia. It is suggested that these can be used as a reference in large-scale monitoring studies in Central Europe. Analysis of compatible data from the current study, and the study performed at the end of 1990s shows a significant decrease of metal elements in the air pollution load. 相似文献
The distribution of air-filled structures in the craniofacial and neurocranial bones of the oviraptorid ZPAL MgD-I/95, discovered
at the Hermiin Tsav locality, Mongolia, is restored. Based on the complete obliteration of most of the cranial sutures, the
specimen is identified as an adult individual of Conchoraptor gracilis Barsbold 1986. Except for the orbitosphenoids and epipterygoids, the preserved bones of the neurocranium are hollow. Three
types of tympanic recess are present in Conchoraptor, a characteristic shared with troodontids, dromaeosaurids, and avian theropods. The contralateral middle ear cavities are
interconnected by the supraencephalic pathway that passes through the dorsal tympanic recesses, the posterodorsal prootic
sinuses and the parietal sinus. The spatial arrangements of the middle ear cavity and a derived neurocranial pneumatic system
in Conchoraptor indicate enhancements of acoustic perception in the lower-frequency registers and of auditory directionality. We further
speculate that this improvement of binaural hearing could be explained as an adaptation required for accurate detection of
prey and/or predators under conditions of low illumination. The other potentially pneumatic structures of the Conchoraptor cranium include (1) recessus-like irregularities on the dorsal surface of the nasal and frontal bones (a putative oviraptorid
synapomorphy; pos); (2) a subotic recess; (3) a sub-condylar recess; and (4) a posterior condylar recess (pos).
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. 相似文献
Bacteria from the genus Shewanella are inhabitants of marine and freshwater ecosystems, recognized fish spoilage bacteria, but less known as fish disease agents. Shewanella spp. isolated from fish living in waters close to effluents of a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) were not previously characterized. We have tested Shewanella isolates from WWTP-affected waters and related fish. Genotypic characterization identified most strains as S. baltica and S. oneidensis. In order to investigate the sensibility and accuracy of their MALDI-TOF MS identification, they were grown on two culture media enriched by various NaCl concentrations, incubated at different temperatures and duration. We analyzed their antimicrobial susceptibility on a panel of antimicrobial drugs and capacity for biofilm production. With a view to demonstrate their capacity to produce fatty acids, we assessed the impact of different culture media on their lipid profile. We performed zebrafish embryotoxicity tests to simulate the environmental infection of the earliest life stages in S. baltica-contaminated waters. The best MALDI-TOF MS identification scores were for strains cultivated on TSA for 24 h at 22 °C and with supplementation of 1.5% NaCl. Less than 17% of isolates demonstrated antimicrobial resistance. Most isolates were weak biofilm producers. Strain-to-strain variation of MIC and MBC was low. The major fatty acids were C15:0, C16:0, C16:1, C17:1, and iC15:0. Exposure of Danio rerio to different S. baltica concentrations induced severe effects on zebrafish development: decreased heartbeat rate, locomotor activity, and melanin pigmentation. S. baltica passed through chorionic pores of zebrafish.
Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - The European Union emphasises the need to sever the link between economic growth, resource consumption and waste production and has set targets to... 相似文献
Changes in soil pH, soil heavy metal forms, and the metabolic diversity of microbial communities were examined in soil samples collected in 1-mm increments from barley roots in soil contaminated with cadmium (Cd) and zinc (Zn) using a rhizobox system. Concentrations of exchangeable Cd and Zn increased near the roots owing to a decrease in soil pH. Conversely, the concentration of inorganically bound Cd and Zn decreased near the roots. Despite having the highest concentration of the most toxic exchangeable metals, the rhizosphere also had the highest bacterial and fungal metabolic activity and diversity when assessed using BIOLOG plates. Therefore, the promoting effects of root exudates on microbial activity could outweigh the adverse effects of Cd and Zn on microorganisms in the rhizosphere. 相似文献
There is a growing interest in analyzing the possibility for current nuclear power plants operation extension. In that sense, life management programs, considering safety components ageing, are being developed and employed. On the other side, the large uncertainties of the ageing parameters as well as the uncertainties associated with most of the reliability data collections are widely acknowledged.This paper deals with uncertainty analysis associated with specific ageing rates database. The analysis is conducted using an analytical unavailability model applied for a selected safety system in a nuclear power plant. The most important problem is the immense uncertainty associated to the component ageing data sets as well as the lack of the very data in general, which would correspond to the more detailed modelling of ageing.New probability distributions, encompassing the ageing rates available in the considered data set, are suggested. The obtained results indicate the extent to which the uncertainty of the considered ageing data set, given the inherently assigned probability distribution, influences the performed unavailability calculations. Additionally, comparative analysis regarding the insights gained out of the application of the suggested probability distributions is conducted. 相似文献