Potential dietary effects on the fatty acid composition of the common jellyfish Aurelia aurita

Fatty acid composition of the natural and aquarium-reared common jellyfish Aurelia aurita was investigated. Fatty acid composition of the aquarium-reared A. aurita clearly reflected that of the diet, brine shrimp (Artemia). In the same way, fatty acid composition of the natural A. aurita was assumed to reflect those of natural diets. Samples of natural A. aurita were collected from April 1995 to September 1995 in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan, and their fatty acids were analyzed by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Variation of fatty acid compositions was seasonal rather than dependent on body size. Two major seasonal groups were divided by the cluster analysis of the A. aurita fatty acid composition: the April–June and the August–September clusters. The April–June cluster was characterized by high contents of the (n − 3)-fatty acids of diatom origin, accumulated via the grazing food chain. By contrast, the August–September cluster was characterized by an increase in (n − 6)-fatty acids of macroalgal origin, probably transferred via the detritus food chain. These results suggest that the diet of natural A. aurita may shift between the diatom-based food chain and the detritus-based food chain. Received: 12 April 2000 / Accepted: 1 December 2000     

Possible involvement of the glycocalyx in the ichthyotoxicity of Chattonella marina (Raphidophyceae): immunological approach using antiserum against cell surface structures of the flagellate

Although the ichthyotoxic mechanism of Chattonella marina is still unknown, several lines of evidence suggest that the reactive oxygen species (ROS), such as superoxide anion (O₂^-), hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂)_, and hydroxyl radical (·OH), produced by C. marina are involved in the mortality of fish exposed to this flagellate. Recently, we found that the cell-free supernatant prepared from C. marina, which is considered to contain the glycocalyx, showed NADPH-dependent O₂^- generation. In this study, we prepared antiserum against the crude glycocalyx of C. marina. Using indirect immunofluorescence, it was confirmed that the antiserum specifically reacted with C. marina cells. In addition to C. marina, the antiserum also reacted with other raphidophycean flagellates such as Heterosigma akashiwo, Olisthodiscus luteus, and Fibrocapsa japonica, whereas no reactivity was observed against six other flagellate species tested. These results suggest that raphidophycean flagellates have common epitopes recognized by the antiserum. Interestingly, immunohistochemical analysis of paraformaldehyde-fixed gill lamellae from yellowtail exposed to C. marina revealed that the antiserum stained the surface of gill lamellae, while no such staining pattern was observed in control gill lamellae. These results suggest that the glycocalyx may be discharged when C. marina cells are inhaled into the fishes' mouths and then come into contact with the gill surface. Based on the present results, together with our previous findings, we propose that continuous accumulation of the discharged glycocalyx on the gill surface occurs during C. marina exposure, which may be responsible for the ROS-mediated severe gill tissue damage leading to fish death.     

Reproduction in Anthelia glauca (Octocorallia: Xeniidae). I. Gametogenesis and larval brooding

Anthelia glauca Lamarck, 1816 is a gonochoric, external-brooding soft coral found in KwaZulu-Natal. It is reproductively active in the summer months. The development of gametes produced in late summer is arrested in winter. Several stages of gametes are found at the base of the polyps, and female polyps produce several cycles of larvae over an extended breeding period of 4 to 5 months. Larvae are brooded in a unique pharyngeal brooding pouch not yet described in other coral species. The brood pouch consists of an expansion of the pharynx with constrictions proximal and distal to the embryos and larvae. Our data suggest that egg transfer and fertilization occur at full moon and the mature larvae are released after new moon. Zooxanthellae are absent in A. glauca oocytes, but zooxanthella infestation commences at the immature larval stage. Received: 15 July 1997 / Accepted: 12 March 1998     

Statistical Analysis of Air Pollutants and Meteorological Parameters in Afyon, Turkey

In this study, the relation between sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and particulate matter (PM) concentrations periodically measured in the city of Afyon’s atmosphere with meteorological factors such as precipitation, humidity, temperature, wind velocity, and inversion were investigated. The mean values of SO₂ and PM concentrations measured during the winter months of October–March 1990–1999 were correlated with the meteorological parameters of the same period. Simple and multiple linear regression analysis were utilized to evaluate the contribution of meteorological variables. The statistical results show that the pollutants, i.e., SO₂ and PM are dependent upon humidity, temperature, and inversion at the 1% significance level; while the dependence of both pollutants with temperature is negative when those of humidity and inversion are positive. Two models in which temperature and inversion are dependent with multiple variables are recommended for predicting the contribution of meteorological parameters on SO₂ and PM. In addition, the relationship between humidity, temperature, and inversion with pollutants is also determined using nonlinear (polynomial) models.     

IFTCIP: An Integrated Optimization Model for Environmental Management under Uncertainty

In this study, an interval-fuzzy two-stage chance-constrained integer programming (IFTCIP) method is developed for supporting environmental management under uncertainty. The IFTCIP improves upon the existing interval, fuzzy, and two-stage programming approaches by allowing uncertainties expressed as probability distributions, fuzzy sets, and discrete intervals to be directly incorporated within a general mixed integer linear programming framework. It has advantages in uncertainty reflection, policy investigation, risk assessment, and capacity-expansion analysis in comparison to the other optimization methods. Moreover, it can help examine the risk of violating system constraints and the associated consequences. The developed method is applied to the planning for facility expansion and waste-flow allocation within a municipal solid waste management system. Violations of capacity constraints are allowed under a range of significance levels, which reflects tradeoffs between the system cost and the constraint-violation risk. The results indicate that reasonable solutions for both binary and continuous variables have been generated under different risk levels. They are useful for generating desired decision alternatives with minimized system cost and constraint-violation risk under various environmental, economic, and system-reliability conditions. Generally, willingness to take a higher risk of constraint violation will guarantee a lower system cost; a strong desire to acquire a lower risk will run into a higher system cost.     

Determination of total Cr in wastewaters of Cr electroplating factories in the I.organize industry region (Kayseri, Turkey) by ICP-AES

The wastewater pollution in industrial areas is one of the most important environmental problems. Heavy metal pollution, especially chromium pollution in the wastewater sources from electroplating, dyeing, and tannery, has affected the life on earth. This pollution can affect on all ecosystems and human health directly or by food chain. Therefore, the determination of total chromium in this study is of great importance. In this study, accurate, rapid, sensitive, selective, simple, and low-cost technique for the direct determination of total Cr in wastewater samples collected from the some Cr electroplating factories in March 2008 by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry has been developed. The analysis of a given sample is completed in about 15 min by this technique applied. As the result of the chromium analysis, the limit of quantification for the total Cr were founded to be over the limit value (0.05 mg L^???1; WHO, EPA, TSE 266, and inland water quality classification) as 1,898.78 ± 0.34 mg/L at station 1 and 3,189.02 ± 0.56 mg/L at station 2. The found concentration of total Cr has been determined to be IV class quality water according to the inland water classification. In order to validate the applied method, recovery studies were performed.     

Determination of toxic elements in waters and sediments from River Subin in the Ashanti Region of Ghana

Waters and sediments of Subin River, which flows through the industrial and commercial areas of Kumasi in the Ashanti region of Ghana, were geochemically investigated to ascertain heavy metal pollution levels due to anthropogenic activities. The study shows preoccupying pollution levels that constitute a threat to public and ecological systems. The waters of Subin River are neutral to slightly basic, inferred from pH values of 6.89–7.65). Electric conductivity (EC) of the waters ranges from 822 to 1,821 μs/cm and the range of total dissolved solids (TDS) is from 409 to 913 mg/l. Toxic elements contents of sediments and waters from 10 sites along the river were analysed by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA), and Al, As, Cd, Cr, Cu and Zn were determined. The concentrations of Al, As, Cd, Cr, Cu and Zn in the waters range between 4.02–15.18, 0.007–0.16, 0.002–0.05, 0.001–0.019, 1.32–7.04 and 4.28–10.2 mg/l, respectively. The contamination factors (CF) computed for the elements indicate that with the exception of sampling site S10, the sediments are polluted with Cd. Chromium contamination in the sediments is observed at S6 and S7, where the CF values were 1.39 and 1.52, respectively. The pollution load indices (PLI) were low (<1) and ranged from 0.14 to 0.75, suggesting that the overall sediment column of the river is not polluted.     

Micromorphology and chemistry of airborne particles in Brussels during agriculture working periods in surrounding region

The main objective of our research was to compare the airborne particle micromorphology and chemistry in the Brussels environment during agriculture working periods in the surrounding farming region. We used specific methods and instrumentation that are adapted to the climate peculiarities of the Brussels region, the period of investigations (12 months) and the proposed objectives. For the agricultural works we defined the following six periods: before sowing, sowing, after sowing, before harvest, harvest and after harvest. The results indicate a possible temporal correlation between agricultural work periods and airborne particle concentration, micromorphology and chemistry in the Brabant-Brussels region. For wheat and corn plant-growth periods, the average particle size, defined as the area obtained by a planar projection of the particulate, showed important variations in time. For sugar beet and endive, the average area size variations are less important. The roughness and sphericity parameters for the growth periods of the four different plants also showed significant differences. Many of the larger particulates (> 10 microm) are aggregates of even finer particles coated with many still finer ones. The airborne particle chemistry averages (atomic percentage At%), showed that three constituents (Si, S and Fe) dominate all the samples (except for particles 3-10 microm in size, which contain a relatively large percentage of Al). Applying similar investigation methods to study the correlations between airborne particle dynamics in urban zones and the agriculture working periods in their surrounding regions could be of interest to better understand the complexity of the PM problematic.     

Inexact Fuzzy-Stochastic Programming for Water Resources Management Under Multiple Uncertainties

In this study, an interval-parameter fuzzy-stochastic two-stage programming (IFSTP) approach is developed for irrigation planning within an agriculture system under multiple uncertainties. A concept of the distribution with fuzzy-interval probability (DFIP) is defined to address multiple uncertainties expressed as integration of intervals, fuzzy sets, and probability distributions. IFSTP integrates the interval programming, two-stage stochastic programming, and fuzzy-stochastic programming within a general optimization framework. IFSTP incorporates the pre-regulated water resources management policies directly into its optimization process to analyze various policy scenarios; each scenario has different economic penalty when the promised amounts are not delivered. IFSTP is applied to an irrigation planning in a water resources management system. Solutions from IFSTP provide desired water allocation patterns, which maximize both the system’s benefits and feasibility. The results indicate that reasonable solutions are generated for objective function values and decision variables; thus, a number of decision alternatives can be generated under different levels of stream flows.