Effects of ellagic acid on arylamine N‐acetyltransferase activity in human colon tumor cells

The inhibition of arylamine N‐acetyltransferase (NAT) activity by ellagic acid was determined in a human colon tumor (adenocarcinoma) cell line. Two assay systems were performed, one with cellular cytosols (9000g supernatant), the other with intact colon tumor cell suspensions. The NAT activity in a human colon tumor cell line was inhibited by ellagic acid in a dose‐dependent manner in both types of examined systems: i.e. the greater the concentration of ellagic acid in the reaction, the greater the inhibition of NAT activities in both systems. The data also indicated that ellagic acid decreased the apparent K _m and V _max of NAT enzymes from human colon tumor cells in both the systems examined. This report is the first demonstration which showed ellagic acid affect human colon tumor cell NAT activity.     

鲨鱼皮微复制技术在抗菌防护领域中的应用研究

生物制造工程是在生命科学和仿生学基础上建立起来的前沿科技,通过基因复制、生物去除、生物生长、生物约束等方法将生物体特质直接复制到模具上,从而赋予产品特定的使用功能。本文通过对鲨鱼皮肤的分析论述了其抗菌机理以及利用生物约束成型技术将新鲜鲨鱼皮微结构复制到模具上的工艺流程。     

EROD activity and stable isotopes in seabirds to disentangle marine food web contamination after the Prestige oil spill

In this study, we measured via surgical sampling hepatic EROD activity in yellow-legged gulls from oiled and unoiled colonies, 17 months after the Prestige oil spill. We also analyzed stable isotope composition in feathers of the biopsied gulls, in an attempt to monitor oil incorporation into marine food web. We found that yellow-legged gulls in oiled colonies were being exposed to remnant oil as shown by hepatic EROD activity levels. EROD activity was related to feeding habits of individual gulls with apparent consequences on delayed lethality. Capture-recapture analysis of biopsied gulls suggests that the surgery technique did not affect gull survival, giving support to this technique as a monitoring tool for oil exposure assessment. Our study highlights the combination of different veterinary, toxicological and ecological methodologies as a useful approach for the monitoring of exposure to remnant oil after a large oil spill.     

铁基合金脱除磷化氢中的砷化氢

为了脱除磷化氢中的砷化氢,合成了Fe-B非晶态合金和Fe(Cu)P合金,实验了它们对磷化氢中砷化氢的脱除作用,并与锌粉和Co-B非晶态合金进行了比较。结果表明,Fe(Cu)P效果最佳,脱砷温度低、脱砷容量大,而且合成原料价廉易得;而Fe-B非晶态合金优于Co-B非晶态合金以及锌粉。     

富营养水体中浮游植物生长的营养限制研究

选取位于武汉城郊汤逊湖畔的30个养殖池塘作为研究对象,运用营养盐加富试验评价了浮游植物生长的氮磷限制类型。研究发现这些池塘的氮磷含量均较高,尤其是TP,绝大部分都在0.4 mg/L以上,TN/TP(原子比)变化范围为1.7~20.3。相关分析显示,浮游植物的生物量与氮素(TN,TDN,NO3-,NH4+,NO2-)显著正相关(r=0.402~0.677,P<0.05);但与磷素(TP,TDP,PO43-)无显著相关性(P>0.05)。营养盐加富试验显示浮游植物群落对加N的响应程度要显著大于加P;受N限制的池塘数量占50%;P限制的占13.3%;N、P共同限制的占23.3%;而不受N、P影响的仅占13.3%。这些结果表明:在富营养的水体中,当TP浓度>0.4 mg/L且TN/TP<20时,N是限制浮游植物生长的主要因子,P处于第二位。     

Microbial growth with vapor-phase substrate

Limited information exists on influences of the diffusive transport of volatile organic contaminants (VOC) on bacterial activity in the unsaturated zone of the terrestrial subsurface. Diffusion of VOC in the vapor-phase is much more efficient than in water and results in effective VOC transport and high bioavailability despite restricted mobility of bacteria in the vadose zone. Since many bacteria tend to accumulate at solid-water, solid-air and air-water interfaces, such phase boundaries are of a special interest for VOC-biodegradation. In an attempt to evaluate microbial activity toward air-borne substrates, this study investigated the spatio-temporal interplay between growth of Pseudomonas putida (NAH7) on vapor-phase naphthalene (NAPH) and its repercussion on vapor-phase NAPH concentrations. Our data demonstrate that growth rates of strain PpG7 were inversely correlated to the distance from the source of vapor-phase NAPH. Despite the high gas phase diffusivity of NAPH, microbial growth was absent at distances above 5 cm from the source when sufficient biomass was located in between. This indicates a high efficiency of suspended bacteria to acquire vapor-phase compounds and influence headspace concentration gradients at the centimeter-scale. It further suggests a crucial role of microorganisms as biofilters for gas-phase VOC emanating from contaminated groundwater or soil.     

Household-level preferences for mitigation of Prosopis juliflora invasion in the Afar region of Ethiopia: a contingent valuation

Prosopis juliflora, which is an alien tree species in Ethiopia, has invaded over 360,500 ha of land in the Afar region of the country and is threatening pastoral livelihoods. We conducted a contingent valuation study to assess rural households’ willingness to contribute in cash and labor to mitigate P. juliflora invasion in three districts of Afar. Results show that about 84% of the respondents prefer an intervention involving complete eradication of P. juliflora. The lower and upper bound median willingness to contribute to this intervention were 9.97 and 13.42 USD/household/year in cash and 30 and 43 days/household/year in labor. Off-farm income and P. juliflora invasion levels on pasturelands are among the factors affecting willingness to contribute to the mitigation of P. juliflora invasion. Incentives to local people and having a proper institutional setup that involves local culture and institutions are important for mobilizing people on a voluntary basis for mitigation of P. juliflora invasion.     

A dangerous bet: The challenges of formalizing artisanal mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Among policy-makers and governments, there is a broad consensus that artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) needs to be ‘formalized’ – embodied in a standardized legal framework that is registered in and governed by a central state system-, the basic condition being that artisanal miners are given formal property rights. This article aims to contribute to this discussion, drawing on a case study from the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where it is estimated that up to 90 percent of mineral production and export is ‘informal’. After having pointed out some of the theoretical assumptions behind the formalization canon, we study the challenges of formalizing the mining sector in the DRC. Next, we provide an in-depth analysis of one concrete policy measure of the Congolese government, the temporary ban on all artisanal activities. We argue that the mining ban was not only a radical example of a top-down formalization policy, but also an illustration of a bureaucratic and technical measure that compounds but does not address different problems associated with ASM: conflict, informality, poverty, illegality, state control. Looking at the empirical evidence from the DRC, we argue that these kinds of technical solutions can never address the broader socio-economic and political issues at stake.     

Effects of Atmospheric Nitrogen Deposition on Remote Freshwater Ecosystems

We review known and hypothesized effects of nitrogen (N) deposition owing to human activities on the chemistry, organisms, and ecosystem processes of remote oligotrophic freshwaters. Acidification is the best-known effect of N deposition on water chemistry, but additional effects include increased nutrient availability and alteration of the balance between N and other nutrients. Our synthesis of the literature, framed in a comprehensive model for the effects of N deposition on natural ecosystems, shows that all these effects can reduce biological diversity and alter ecosystem processes in remote freshwaters. N deposition is projected to grow worldwide in the near future and will interact with other global changes. Present effects on these fragile ecosystems may be only early signs of more radical impacts ahead.