Comparison of Statistical Designs and Experimental Protocols Used to Evaluate Rain Acidity Effects on Field-Grown Soybeans

Published results of four field experiments testing effects of acidic precipitation in field-grown soybeans have led to contradictory conclusions. This paper examines the experimental procedures and protocols of the four experiments which could have contributed to differences in both the reported crop yields and the interpretations or conclusions drawn from the experiments.

The most important difference among the experiments is in their statistical designs. Two of the field layouts used only one plot per treatment, providing replication only for plants, rows or sectors within plots, but not among plots. By using real data from a highly replicated experiment it is shown that with such deficient statistical designs treatment effects cannot be separated from other microenvironmental variables peculiar to a specific plot location.

The other two experiments were highly replicated. They were designed to detect differences of approximately 10% among treatment means. Type 1 error, a, was predetermined, and replication was sufficient to keep type 2 error low. This design was made possible because a preliminary experiment was available to estimate the expected components of variance. Despite differences in the procedures and protocols among the four experiments, it is primarily the quality of the experimental design which has determined their validity and relative utility for crop loss assessment.     

黄海北部真核微藻粒级结构及环境关联

采用高通量测序-分子鉴定分级技术于2019年对黄海北部海域真核微藻粒级结构进行了研究.结果发现,春季以中、小粒级为主,夏季以小、大粒级为主,秋季以大粒级为主,春、夏、秋季小、中、大粒级微藻比例为39:51:11、40:24:36、26:13:62.小粒级微藻优势种为细小微胞藻和金牛微球藻,中粒级微藻优势种为剧毒卡尔藻,...     

Constitutional tolerance to heavy metals of a fiber crop, ramie (Boehmeria nivea), and its potential usage

It is observed that ramie (Boehmeria nivea), an economic fiber crop, can establish and colonize metal-contaminated sites in China. Metal tolerance and accumulation by ramie originating from 13 metal-contaminated and 4 “clean” sites in China were compared under field and hydroponic conditions. All selected populations and germplasms displayed good growth performance under diverse metal-contaminated habitats; while growth responses, metal accumulation and tolerance were similar among the 8 populations and 2 germplasms when exposed to solutions containing elevated As, Cd, Pb, or Zn in the laboratory. These revealed that ramie possesses a certain degree of constitutional metal tolerance. To our knowledge, this is the first report of constitutional metal tolerance possessed by a fiber crop. Ramie can be considered as a good candidate for both fiber production and phytoremediation of sites contaminated by multi-metals, as it accumulates relative low metal concentrations, but possesses both high biomass and high economic value.     

Habitat monitoring and genotoxicity in Ucides cordatus (Crustacea: Ucididae), as tools to manage a mangrove reserve in southeastern Brazil

In Brazil, the state of São Paulo contains both preserved areas (Juréia-Itatins Ecological Station) and extremely impacted ones (Cubatão Municipality). This study evaluated the concentrations of five metals (Cu, Cd, Cr, Pb, and Hg) in two mangroves with different levels of anthropogenic impact and the apparent genotoxicity to Ucides cordatus. Water and sediment samples were obtained, and metal concentrations were determined with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The genotoxic impact was quantified based on the number of micronucleated cells per 1,000 analyzed (MN‰), using hemolymph slides stained with Giemsa. Metal concentrations in water were below the detection limit, except for lead, although no significant difference was observed between the areas (P?>?0.05). Sediment from Cubatão had higher concentrations of Cd, Pb, Cr, and Cu than sediment from Juréia-Itatins (P?<?0.05), but no significant differences in metal concentrations were detected among depth strata of the sediment (P?>?0.05). Crabs from Cubatão had a 2.6 times higher mean frequency of micronucleated cells (5.2?±?1.8 MN‰) than those from Juréia-Itatins (2.0?±?1.0 MN‰; P?<?0.0001). The more-polluted conditions found in the mangrove sediments of Cubatão were reflected in the micronucleus assay, demonstrating their genotoxic effect; however, genetic damage should be attributed to a synergistic effect with other kinds of pollutants previously recorded in different environments of Cubatão. U. cordatus proved to be an excellent bioindicator of mangrove pollution. This study established, for the first time, the normal frequency of MN‰ in a population of this species within an ecological station.     

牛粪好氧堆肥发酵微生物群落结构演替与环境因子和腐熟度的相关性

为了解好氧堆肥发酵过程中微生物群落结构变化规律和腐熟度生物学指标研究,以自然发酵牛粪为研究材料,利用高通量测序技术分析细菌群落结构在发酵不同阶段、层次上的动态变化与环境因子和腐熟度的相互关系。结果显示:堆体上层温度、碳氮比和种子发芽指数指标优于下层;整个堆肥发酵过程中,细菌丰度和多样性指数呈先升高后降低的趋势;在门水平上,厚壁菌门(Firmicutes)在整个堆肥过程占据主导地位;在属水平上,升温期优势菌属为未鉴定的根瘤菌属(unidentified_Rhizobiaceae),高温期为芽孢杆菌属(Bacillus),降温腐熟期为诺卡氏菌属(Nocardiopsis);Spearman相关性分析显示Bacillus与有机质、碳氮比、含水率和温度间呈极显著正相关(P<0.01);CCA分析表明Nocardiopsis可作为腐熟期指示微生物,OM是堆肥第1影响因子;拟合回归方程分析得出,Chao1指数与腐熟度指标存在较强的相关性(R²=0.986)。     

Effects of the dinoflagellates Karlodinium veneficum and Prorocentrum minimum on early life history stages of the eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica)

The bloom-forming dinoflagellates Prorocentrum minimum and Karlodinium veneficum can have detrimental effects on some marine life, including shellfish, but little is known about their effects on early life history stages of bivalves. In the Chesapeake Bay region, blooms of these dinoflagellates overlap with the spawning season of the eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica. In laboratory experiments, we compared the effects of P. minimum and K. veneficum on the survival and development of embryos and larvae of the eastern oyster. At 10⁴ cells ml⁻¹, P. minimum did not have a negative effect on embryos and larvae in 2-day exposures. The yield of D-hinge larvae was equal to or greater than in control treatments. At 2 × 10⁴ cells ml⁻¹ (approximately equal biomass to the P. minimum treatment) K. veneficum caused significant mortality to oyster embryos within 1 day and almost no embryos developed into D-hinge larvae. This effect was not alleviated by the provision of an alternate food source (Isochrysis sp.). Significant mortality was observed when larvae were exposed to K. veneficum at concentrations of 10⁴ cells ml⁻¹ (approximately 5 ng ml⁻¹ of karlotoxin). The K. veneficum cultures used in these experiments were relatively low in toxin content, more toxic strains could be expected to cause mortality at lower cell concentrations. Survival and maturation of embryos and larvae may be reduced when spawns of the eastern oyster coincide with high bloom densities of K. veneficum.     

聚糖菌颗粒污泥的有机物吸收及胞内储存特性

采用特殊运行方式的厌氧-好氧SBR系统(厌氧后排水),在乙酸钠、葡萄糖及葡萄糖-乙酸钠混合基质条件下均培养出了稳定的聚糖菌颗粒污泥.通过对典型周期有机物、磷酸盐、胞内糖原及聚β-羟基丁酸(PHB)变化的测定分析,证明有机基质的种类对于聚糖菌能量利用模式、有机物吸收速率及胞内储存物质种类具有显著的影响.污泥初始胞内糖原水平是有机物吸收数量及吸收速率的关键影响因素,当糖原水平低于0.05g/gSS时,厌氧有机物去除率与糖原水平直接相关:而糖原水平高于0.05g/gSS时,厌氧有机物去除率趋于稳定.不同糖原水平污泥厌氧吸收有机物的速率具有明显差异,在厌氧初期有机物快速吸收阶段,有机物厌氧吸收速率随胞内糖原水平升高而增加.     

暴雨径流对非常规水源补给城市河流水质冲击研究

选择北运河流域典型非常规水源补给城市河流(凉水河)为研究对象,阐述暴雨径流对非常规水源补给城市河流水体物理化学特征的影响.结果表明,非暴雨期间,凉水河水体pH和DO平均值分别为7.67和3.88 mg·L-1;耗氧物质COD和氨氮(NH4+-N)平均质量浓度分别为47.41 mg·L-1和8.39 mg·L-1;富营养化元素总氮(TN)和总磷(TP)平均质量浓度分别为16.34 mg·L-1和1.45 mg·L-1.暴雨期间,雨水径流汇入收纳水体后,COD、NH4+-N、TP平均质量浓度明显上升,最高值分别达到108、14.24、3.02 mg·L-1.在空间分布上,COD、NH4+-N、TN和TP质量浓度变化趋势随土地利用类型变化特征趋于一致,从城镇区至农村区,均呈逐渐上升趋势.