Coastal Management of Failaka Island, Kuwait

Failaka Island is one of the most important islands belonging to the State of Kuwait. With the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait on 2 August 1990, most of the activies on Failaka Island were destroyed. After the liberation of Kuwait, the Kuwaiti government decided to reconstruct the island for touristic and recreational purposes. Thus, a coastal development plan was needed. The presented study is an attempt to address the coastal zone management of the island. Based on the overall geomorphological features of the island, the coast was classified into four coastal zones. The wave and tidal conditions were identified around the island. The major items controlling the coastal development were specified. Accordingly, a detailed coastal zone management map for future development was developed. The overall goal was to provide decision-makers with guidelines for the future development of the island.     

Droplet digital PCR is a cost-effective method for analyzing long cell-free DNA in maternal plasma: Application in preeclampsia

Objective

Long cell-free DNA (cfDNA) can be found in the plasma of pregnant women and cancer patients. We investigated if droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) can analyze such molecules for diagnostic purposes using preeclampsia as a model.

Method

Plasma samples from ten preeclamptic and sixteen normal pregnancies were analyzed. Two ddPCR assays targeting a single-copy gene, VCP, and one ddPCR assay targeting LINE-1 repetitive regions were used to measure the percentages of long cfDNA >533, 1001, and 170 bp, respectively. The LINE-1 assay was developed as guided by in silico PCR analyses to better differentiate preeclamptic and normal pregnancies.

Results

Preeclamptic patients had a significantly lower median percentage of long cfDNA than healthy pregnant controls, as determined by the LINE-1 170 bp assay (28.9% vs. 35.1%, p < 0.0001) and the VCP 533 bp assay (6.6% vs. 8.7%, p = 0.014). The LINE-1 assay provided a better differentiation than the VCP 533 bp assay (area under ROC curves, 0.94 vs. 0.79).

Conclusion

ddPCR is a cost-effective approach for unlocking diagnostic information carried by long cfDNA in plasma and may have applications for the detection of preeclampsia. Further longitudinal studies with larger cohorts are required to assess the clinical utility of this test.     

Assessment of heavy metal cations in sediments of Shing Mun River, Hong Kong

The extent of heavy metal cation contamination in the Shing Mun River has been assessed. Sediment samples were taken at eight strategic locations along the river system. The highest concentrations of copper (Cu, 1.66 mg/g), lead (Pb, 0.354 mg/g), zinc (Zn, 2.2 mg/g) and chromium (Cr, 0.047 mg/g) were found in the Fo Tan Nullah, a major tributary of the Shing Mun River. The highest concentrations of aluminum (114 mg/g) and cadmium (Cd, 0.047 mg/g) were found in the Shing Mun Main River Channel. These contaminated sediments, accumulated over the years on the river bed, could act as secondary sources of pollution to the overlying water column in the river.     

Use of environmental DNA in assessment of fish functional and phylogenetic diversity

Assessing the impact of global changes and protection effectiveness is a key step in monitoring marine fishes. Most traditional census methods are demanding or destructive. Nondisturbing and nonlethal approaches based on video and environmental DNA are alternatives to underwater visual census or fishing. However, their ability to detect multiple biodiversity factors beyond traditional taxonomic diversity is still unknown. For bony fishes and elasmobranchs, we compared the performance of eDNA metabarcoding and long-term remote video to assess species’ phylogenetic and functional diversity. We used 10 eDNA samples from 30 L of water each and 25 hr of underwater videos over 4 days on Malpelo Island (pacific coast of Colombia), a remote marine protected area. Metabarcoding of eDNA detected 66% more molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs) than species on video. We found 66 and 43 functional entities with a single eDNA marker and videos, respectively, and higher functional richness for eDNA than videos. Despite gaps in genetic reference databases, eDNA also detected a higher fish phylogenetic diversity than videos; accumulation curves showed how 1 eDNA transect detected as much phylogenetic diversity as 25 hr of video. Environmental DNA metabarcoding can be used to affordably, efficiently, and accurately census biodiversity factors in marine systems. Although taxonomic assignments are still limited by species coverage in genetic reference databases, use of MOTUs highlights the potential of eDNA metabarcoding once reference databases have expanded.     

Diversity and complexity in the acoustic behaviour of Dacyllus flavicaudus (Pomacentridae)

Synchronous underwater audio–video recordings and a passive acoustic detector were used to study the behaviour of Dascyllus flavicaudus. These damselfish produced sounds during six different behaviours and showed three different colour patterns while doing so. These sounds can be grouped into three classes: sounds associated with (1) fighting; (2) mating/visiting and (3) chasing and signal jumps. Moreover, the evolution of the different kinds of sound is discussed: the first calls could be a single pulse originating in teeth snapping. Modifications in the rhythm and number of pulses allowed the fish to build new messages. Daily recordings showed that sound production rates were higher at sunrise and sunset than during the day and that no sound was produced during the night. However, the kinds of call were different: sunrise sounds seemed mainly associated with mating/visiting, whereas the sounds associated with chasing and to signal jumps were mainly found at sunset.     

沉积物毒性鉴别评估技术在一个有着多重污染物输入地点的应用

沉积物毒性鉴别评估用于确定造成沉积物整体毒性测试中观察到有害效果的原因。然而在多污染物的情况下,将总体毒性划分为为不同个体污染物单独造成的毒性的方法存在很多问题。利用一个有着多重输入与相关污染物的站点数据,我们为毒性鉴别评估提出一种通过追踪毒性单位（TUs）来确定是否囊括全部毒性的方法。首先确定出沉积物整体的毒性水平,然后将毒性来源划分至几种污染物大类,例如氨类,金属,非极性有机物等。本文中毒性很大程度上来源于非极性有机物,所以在萃取沉积物之后,将萃取物重新加回稀释水中以检测毒性的复原。每一部分污染物的毒性占比由溶剂梯度测量,并进行毒性检测。目标占比由气相色谱-质谱分析得到,从而鉴定出与特定成分相关的毒性。之后对这些成分相关的毒性单位进行测定以确定可能的原因组合和是否已囊括全部毒性。数据表明毒性既与已有化合物相关,又与新兴污染物相关,而两种污染物对于总体毒性的具体贡献则随实验地点改变。
精选自Howard C. Bailey, Catherine A. Curran, Peter Arth, Bonnie P. Lo, Rich Gossett. Application of Sediment Toxicity Identification Evaluation Techniques to a Site with Multiple-Contaminants. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry: Volume 35, Issue 10, pages 2456–2465, October 2016. DOI: 10.1002/etc.3488
详情请见http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/etc.3488/full
     

The Contribution by the Study of the Algae Forms (Phytoplankton and Periphyton) as Integrators of Physicochemical and Microbiological Data in the Varenna Stream

Physico-chemical, microbiological, ichthyotoxicological conditions and microalgae of Varenna stream were studied in samples taken in 12 collecting stations. The data reported indicate a marked deterioration proceeding downstream e.g. an increase of bacterial population, concentration of suspended solids, COD and variations in the composition and abundance of phytoplankton and periphyton.     

Revisiting the flow regimes for urban street canyons using the numerical Green’s function

Vortex interactions within a two-dimensional street canyon are analysed using the numerical Green’s function. On account of the inhomogeneity of the domain, vortex interactions are asymmetric: the influence of a street-level vorticity source on the roof-level shear layer differs from that of the latter on the street level. Consequently the magnitudes of the induced vertical velocities are maximised at different aspect ratios. It is argued that the transition from isolated roughness to wake interference is related to the onset of strong long-range interactions while the transition from wake interference to skimming flow is related to the weakening of these interactions. The Green’s function analysis is verified using three-dimensional large-eddy simulations.