Detection of antibiotic resistance and tetracycline resistance genes in Enterobacteriaceae isolated from the Pearl rivers in South China

This study investigated antibiotic resistance profiles and tetracycline resistance genes in Enterobacteriaceae family isolates from the Pearl rivers. The Enterobacteriaceae isolates were tested for susceptibility to seven antibiotics ampicillin, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, sulphamethoxazole/trimethoprim, tetracycline and trimethoprim. In Liuxi reservoir, with an exception to ampicillin resistant strains (11%) no other antibiotic resistance bacterial strains were detected. However, multiple drug resistance in bacterial isolates from the other sites of Pearl rivers was observed which is possibly due to sewage discharge and input from other anthropogenic sources along the rivers. Four tetracycline resistance genes tet A, tet B, tet C and tet D were detected in the isolates from the rivers. The genes tet A and tet B were widely detected with the detection frequencies of 43% and 40% respectively. Ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin resistant enteric bacteria were also isolated from the pig and duck manures which suggest a wider distribution of human specific drugs in the environment. This investigation provided a baseline data on antibiotic resistance profiles and tetracycline resistance genes in the Pearl rivers delta.     

Supervised neural computing solutions for fluorescence identification of benzimidazole fungicides. Data and decision fusion strategies

Benzimidazole fungicides (BFs) are a type of pesticide of high environmental interest characterized by a heavy fluorescence spectral overlap which complicates its detection in mixtures. In this paper, we present a computational study based on supervised neural networks for a multi-label classification problem. Specifically, backpropagation networks (BPNs) with data fusion and ensemble schemes are used for the simultaneous resolution of difficult multi-fungicide mixtures. We designed, optimized and compared simple BPNs, BPNs with data fusion and BPNs ensembles. The information environment used is made up of synchronous and conventional BF fluorescence spectra. The mixture spectra are not used in the training nor the validation stage. This study allows us to determine the convenience of fusioning the labels of carbendazim and benomyl for the identification of BFs in complex multi-fungicide mixtures.     

EGSB反应器处理产氢发酵液

以厌氧颗粒污泥为接种污泥,对厌氧颗粒污泥膨胀床（EGSB）反应器处理产氢发酵液的启动性能进行了研究。结果表明,在温度为（35±1）℃,水力停留时间（HRT）为6h的条件下,逐渐提高进水COD,经过40d连续运行,EGSB反应器启动成功。容积负荷达到14kgCOD／（m3·d）时,COD去除率约为80％,产气量为26．84L／d,甲烷含量为57．9％。     

Carbon dioxide adsorption on amine-impregnated mesoporous materials prepared from spent quartz sand

Mesoporous MCM-41 was synthesized using cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) as a cationic surfactant and spent quartz sand as the silica source. Modification of the mesoporous structure to create an absorbent was then completed using 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane. Amine-Quartz-MCM (The A-Q-MCM) adsorbents were then characterized by N₂ adsorption/desorption, elemental analysis (EA), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), as well as the carbon dioxide (CO₂) adsorption/desorption performance. In this study, spent quartz sand was utilized to synthesize Quartz-MCM (Q-MCM) and the amine functionalized material, A-Q-MCM, which exhibited a higher uptake of CO₂ at room temperature compared with the nongrafted material. The results showed that Q-MCM is similar to MCM-41 synthesized using commercial methods. The surface area, pore volume, and pore diameter were found to be as high as 1028 m²/g, 0.907 cm³/g, and 3.04 nm, respectively. Under the condition of CO₂ concentration of 5000 ppm, retention time of 50 cc/min, and the dosage of 1 g/cm³, the mean adsorption capacity of CO₂ onto A-Q-MCM was about 89 mg/g, and the nitrogen content of A-Q-MCM was 2.74%. The adsorption equilibrium was modeled well using a Freundlich isotherm.

Implications:In this study, spent quartz sand was utilized to synthesize Q-MCM. The amine functionalized material exhibited a higher uptake of CO₂ at room temperature compared with the nongrafted material. The results showed that Q-MCM is similar to MCM-41 synthesized using commercial methods. The adsorption equilibrium was modeled well using a Freundlich isotherm.     

Quantitative Identification of Disturbance Thresholds in Support of Aquatic Resource Management

The identification of disturbance thresholds is important for many aspects of aquatic resource management, including the establishment of regulatory criteria and the identification of stream reference conditions. A number of quantitative or model-based approaches can be used to identify disturbance thresholds, including nonparametric deviance reduction (NDR), piecewise regression (PR), Bayesian changepoint (BCP), quantile piecewise constant (QPC), and quantile piecewise linear (QPL) approaches. These methods differ in their assumptions regarding the nature of the disturbance-response variable relationship, which can make selecting among the approaches difficult for those unfamiliar with the methods. We first provide an overview of each of the aforementioned approaches for identifying disturbance thresholds, including the types of data for which the approaches are intended. We then compare threshold estimates from each of these approaches to evaluate their robustness using both simulated and empirical datasets. We found that most of the approaches were accurate in estimating thresholds for datasets with drastic changes in responses variable at the disturbance threshold. Conversely, only the PR and QPL approaches performed well for datasets with conditional mean or upper boundary changes in response variables at the disturbance threshold. The most robust threshold identification approach appeared to be the QPL approach; this method provided relatively accurate threshold estimates for most of the evaluated datasets. Because accuracy of disturbance threshold estimates can be affected by a number of factors, we recommend that several steps be followed when attempting to identify disturbance thresholds. These steps include plotting and visually inspecting the disturbance-response data, hypothesizing what mechanisms likely generate the observed pattern in the disturbance-response data, and plotting the estimated threshold in relation to the disturbance-response data to ensure the appropriateness of the threshold estimate.     

Are motorway wildlife passages worth building? Vertebrate use of road-crossing structures on a Spanish motorway

Numerous road and railway construction projects include costly mitigation measures to offset the barrier effect produced on local fauna, despite the scarcity of data on the effectiveness of such mitigation measures. In this study, we evaluate the utility of different types of crossing structures. Vertebrate use of 43 transverse crossing structures along the A-52 motorway (north-western Spain) was studied during spring 2001. Research centered on wildlife passages (9), wildlife-adapted box culverts (7), functional passages (6 overpasses, 7 underpasses) and culverts (14), with marble dust being used to record animal tracks. A total of 424 track-days were recorded, with most of the larger vertebrate groups present in the area being detected. All crossing structure types were used by animals, although the intensity of use varied significantly among them (Kruskal-Wallis test, p<0.05); culverts were used less frequently than other structures. Crossing structure type and width were identified as the most important factors in their selection for use. Wildlife passages and adapted culverts allowed crossing by certain species (wild boar, roe deer, Eurasian badger), which do not tend to cross elsewhere. These results highlight the importance of using both mixed-type structures and wildlife passages in reducing the barrier effect of roads.     

湖南永吉高速公路建设的景观格局影响评价

利用遥感（RS）、全球定位系统（GPS）与地理信息系统技术（GIS）,对湖南省永吉高速公路沿线建设前后的景观进行分类和制图,结合景观结构分析软件Fragstats33和景观生态学方法,从斑块和景观两个层次上研究高速公路建设前后景观格局的变化。结果表明：（1）斑块层次指数中,沿线除公路用地外各景观类型的面积均有所减少,257%的土地转换为公路用地,其中旱地面积减少最多,但是公路建设前后没有改变该区域的优势斑块类型;（2）景观层次指数中,斑块数目和斑块密度的增加与最大斑块指数的减少,都表明景观异质性增加;（3）不同缓冲区分析结果表明：高速公路建设对景观格局的干扰突出表现在距公路较近的500 m缓冲区内。本研究方法在未来路网规划与环境影响评价中具有一定应用前景     

煤矿企业员工不安全行为影响因子分析研究

为探讨煤矿企业员工不安全行为影响因子的相互关系,基于行为安全模型,从管理者、班组长和一线员工3个角度进行分析,确定了对行为安全有关键影响的因子群。在此基础上,采用决策试验与评价实验室(DEMATEL)方法,研究构建行为影响因子之间的依赖关系矩阵,揭示安全投入程度、安全监管机构能力、安全处罚适当性等因子对员工行为方式的影响程度,并形成煤矿员工行为方式影响因子的四分图。结果表明:安全投入程度是煤矿员工行为方式的主要影响因子和原因因子,管理者行为影响因子均是其原因因子,管理者的行为方式对企业安全状况有较大影响。     

背角无齿蚌钙调蛋白基因的克隆及Ca2+和Cd2+对其表达的影响

钙调蛋白(CaM)是Ca2+结合蛋白,参与程序性细胞死亡、自噬、肌肉收缩、炎症和免疫应答等多种生物学过程.为探讨Ca2+和Cd2+对背角无齿蚌(Anodonta woodiana)的生理效应,克隆出AwCaM1全基因序列,分析Ca2+和Cd2+对AwCaM1表达的影响.结果显示,背角无齿蚌AwCAM1 cDNA全长由6...     

SERS detection of arsenic in water: A review

Arsenic (As) is one of the most toxic contaminants found in the environment. Development of novel detection methods for As species in water with the potential for field use has been an urgent need in recent years. In past decades, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has gained a reputation as one of the most sensitive spectroscopic methods for chemical and biomolecular sensing. The SERS technique has emerged as an extremely promising solution for in-situ detection of arsenic species in the field, particularly when coupled with portable/handheld Raman spectrometers. In this article, the recent advances in SERS analysis of arsenic species in water media are reviewed, and the potential of this technique for fast screening and field testing of arsenic-contaminated environmental water samples is discussed. The problems that remain in the field are also discussed and an outlook for the future is featured at the end of the article.