Resistance of the generalist moth Trichoplusia ni (Noctuidae) to a novel chemical defense in the invasive plant Conium maculatum

Summary. Conium maculatum is an apiaceous species native to Eurasia that is highly toxic to vertebrates due to the presence of piperidine alkaloids, including coniine and γ-coniceine. More than 200 years after invading the United States this species remains mostly free from generalist insect herbivores. The presence of novel chemical defenses in the introduced range could provide invasive species with a competitive advantage relative to native plants. The cabbage looper (Trichoplusia ni) is a generalist lepidopteran found throughout the US that occasionally feeds on C. maculatum. We evaluated the toxicity of piperidine alkaloids to T. ni and determined putative resistance mechanisms, both behavioral and physiological, that allows this insect to develop successfully on C. maculatum foliage. T. ni larvae raised on diets enriched with coniine and γ-coniceine showed a decrease in consumption and longer development time, but no effects on growth were found at any alkaloid concentration. In a diet choice experiment T. ni larvae showed no avoidance of alkaloid-enriched diets, suggesting that the deterrence produced by alkaloids was related to a post-ingestive metabolic response. The ability of T. ni to consume diets high in alkaloid content could be due to at least three different mechanisms: 1) a decreased consumption rate, 2) efficient excretion of at least 1/3 of ingested alkaloids unmetabolized in frass, and 3) partial detoxification of alkaloids by cytochrome P450 s, as shown by the decreased larval growth in the presence of piperonyl butoxide, a P450 inhibitor. Even though T. ni tolerates C. maculatum alkaloids, the use of this species as a host plant could be ecologically disadvantageous due to prolonged larval growth and thus increased exposure to predators. Novel plant secondary compounds do not guarantee increased resistance to generalist herbivores.     

植物耐受和解除重金属毒性研究进展

总结了植物细胞及分子水平对重金属耐性和解除其毒性的途径.植物通过避免增加细胞内敏感位点毒物浓度来解除重金属毒性.其途径主要有:一方面通过菌根化、细胞壁吸收及根系分泌物的螯合作用减少根系吸收重金属进入细胞质;另一方面通过体内调节机制解除重金属毒性和提高耐性,主要通过一系列膜蛋白对进入细胞质内的重金属排出细胞质外、隔离于液泡中,或将重金属转变为无毒性形态挥发入大气,或通过细胞质内的植物螯合素、金属硫蛋白、有机酸、氨基酸、多胺等对重金属螯合,解除重金属毒性;同时植物还可以在重金属胁迫下产生热休克蛋白修复胁迫伤害的蛋白质.本文提供了涉及植物重金属解毒和耐性广泛的观点和证据.     

Aqueous high‐temperature chemistry of arsenic‐containing compounds in water at 300°C

Arsenic compounds, and especially organo‐arsenic derivatives, are highly toxic and many have been manufactured as chemical warfare agents. This study was designed to provide background information relevant to the potential application of aquathermolysis techniques for the detoxification of such potent military warfare agents. Six arsenic‐containing compounds with structural features which mimic known agents were studied in neutral superheated water: 4‐aminophenylarsine oxide, 4‐arsanilic acid, 4‐nitrophenylarsonic acid, 5, 10‐dihydro‐10‐ethylphenarsazine, tetraphenylarsonium chloride hydrate, and (3‐cyanopropyl)dimethyl(2‐phenethyl)arsonium bromide. Most of these compounds were moderately susceptible to hydrolysis for 1h at 300°C. o‐ and p‐Aminosubsituted arsenic compounds were more reactive than compounds with an electron‐withdrawing group substituent. Aromatic C—As bonds were more resistant to cleavage than aliphatic C—As bonds.     

铬渣的湿法解毒研究现状及发展前景

铬渣是铬盐生产过程中产生的有毒废渣,其中含有水溶性致癌毒物六价铬,严重污染环境.铬渣解毒是全球环保的重大课题.在总结国内外铬渣治理现状的基础上,全面概述了硫化钠湿法还原、硫酸亚铁湿法还原、浸提交换法等湿法解毒铬渣的机理、工艺过程、特点以及实际效果,最后展望了铬渣的微生物解毒新技术的发展前景.     

还原剂添加的矿物聚合物对Cr(Ⅵ)的解毒/固化

在对现有Cr(Ⅵ)污染控制方法分析的基础上,提出用还原剂添加的矿物聚合物对Cr(Ⅵ)进行解毒/固化的研究思路。以煤矸石为原料,以水玻璃和NaOH为碱性激发剂,合成矿物聚合物;以FeCl2·4H2O为还原剂,用还原剂添加的矿物聚合物对Cr(Ⅵ)进行解毒/固化实验,并采用XRD、TEM/EDS、XPS对固化体进行检测。当添加的Fe(Ⅱ)与Cr(Ⅵ)的摩尔比≥3:1时,矿物聚合物中总铬的浸出浓度小于1 mg/L,铬固化率大于99%。还原剂添加的矿物聚合物对Cr(Ⅵ)最大固化量为0.8%。在合成过程中,Fe(Ⅱ)和Cr(Ⅵ)添加的矿物聚合物发生了氧化还原反应,Fe(Ⅱ)被氧化成了Fe(Ⅲ),Cr(Ⅵ)被还原成了Cr(Ⅲ),随后Fe(Ⅲ)和Cr(Ⅲ)同时被矿物聚合物中的—OAl(-)(OH)3吸引,并固化在非晶质结构中。     

Niche separation in two species of hare. Metabolic costs of plant phenolics

Summary The distributions of mountain hare (Lepus timidus) and European hare (L. europaeus) overlap in central Sweden, but they occupy separate food niches in winter. In Scandinavia, the European hare is mainly a grazer while mountain hare is a predominant browser. Browse contain high amounts of secondary metabolites, such as phenols, compared to grass. This raises the question if the two hare species differ in their metabolic tolerance of plant phenols and that these differences influence their food choice.Phenolic excretion in urine increased significantly with phenolic intake in both species. Excretion of glucuronic acid conjugates, one of the major pathways of elimination of phenols in both hare species, is positively correlated to phenolic intake and excretion. However, the extent of excretion of phenolics by this route was different in the two species of hare. European hares excreted substantially more glucuronic acid per amount of phenolics than mountain hare. The phenols were metabolized to a larger extent in the mountain hare, indicating a higher detoxification capacity. From these results it is likely that European hare have a higher cost for the detoxification of plant phenols compared to mountain hare. This cost and negative effect on sodium balance when feeding on browse may prevent exploitation of forest habitats by European hares, whereas mountain hare are better able to do so.     

Alkylation of metals and the activity of metal‐alkyls†

The biochemical basis for resistance to metal ion toxicity is emerging though it is complicated by the different resistance mechanisms. Several strategies for resistance to toxic metal ions have been identified:

1. The development of energy driven efflux pumps which keep toxic element levels low in the interior of the cell. Such mechanisms have been described for Cd(II) and As(V).

2. Oxidation (e.g. AsO^2‐ to AsO₄ ^3‐) or reduction (e.g. Hg²⁺ to Hg⁰) can enzymatically and intracellularly convert a more toxic form of an element to a less toxic form.

3. The biosynthesis of intracellular polymers which serve as traps for the removal of metal ions from solution such as traps have been described for cadmium, calcium, nickel and copper.

4. The binding of metal ions to cell surfaces.

5. The precipitation of insoluble metal complexes (e.g. metal sulfides and metal oxides) at cell surfaces.

6. Biomethylation and transport through cell‐membranes by diffusion controlled processes.

In this short review I shall discuss the implications of biomethylation as a detoxification mechanism for microorganisms as well as for certain higher organisms.     

滨海化工区废水预处理去毒技术耦合工艺研究

化工产业是天津滨海新区重要的支柱产业,该行业废水是滨海污染物控制的主要威胁。针对常规单一方法存在的问题,试验选取滨海某化工区实际废水从内电解-Fenton、内电解-混凝、内电解-超声及微波强化氧化-光催化4种耦合去毒预处理工艺进行了研究。试验表明,与传统方法相比,内电解-Fenton法中H2O2的加入增加了污染物的降解途径,提高了对污染物的去除效率;内电解-混凝法对于制药废水的生物毒性有比较好的去除作用,不加PAM或Ca(OH)2的效果更佳;内电解-超声法对制药废水的生物毒性去除率可达92%,其可生化性提高45%;微波强化氧化-光催化法对大多数难降解物质有效,而对酚类物质降解效果不佳。     

表面展示技术在污染环境生物修复中的应用

革兰氏阴性细菌、革兰氏阳性细菌和酵母中已建立多个表面展示短肽和蛋白质的系统.在微生物细胞表面展示外源蛋白对污染环境的生物修复有着重要的意义.展示金属结合蛋白(肽)的微生物可用于污染土壤和工业废水的净化,展示有机磷水解酶的微生物将用于有机磷污染物的脱毒.微生物表面展示技术将成为污染环境生物修复的有效策略.这一技术的研究还是一个新领域,要使其得到应用还有许多问题需要解决. 参38     

Sequestration of phorbol esters by aposematic larvae of Hyles euphorbiae (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae)?

Summary. The larvae of the hawkmoth species Hyles euphorbiae have a conspicuous aposematic colouration and show gregarious behaviour. It has thus been suggested that they sequester phorbol esters from their food plants which include different species of the genus Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae) for chemical protection against predators. To test this hypothesis in more detail, we fed larvae an artificial diet with three doses of 12-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA), then examined the faeces and the larval tissues, such as integument, haemolymph and gut of the caterpillars for the presence of TPA. In order to determine the ability of the larvae to detoxify phorbol esters, other larvae were directly injected with a TPA solution and analysed in the same manner. Our study indicates that the larvae of Hyles euphorbiae do not sequester phorbol esters. Upon oral application TPA was not found in the larval integument or the haemolymph. Instead, it was mostly metabolised (about 70–90%). Nevertheless, about 10-30% were retained and recovered in the faeces. The larvae were also able to metabolise and thus detoxify the phorbol ester when TPA was injected directly into the body. These hawkmoth caterpillars are relatively large and have a gut full of plant material, which they regurgitate into the direction of the predator when attacked in nature. Since phorbol esters are very potent toxins and irritants, we postulate that the gut content (and especially the plant slurry disgorged as regurgitant from the anterior gut) alone could be aversive for a potential predator, even if some metabolism has taken place. Thus, although H. euphorbiae caterpillars do not actively sequester phorbol esters, their aposematic colouration appears to be based on chemical defence through phorbol esters retained in the gut.