Growth factors, kinetics and biodegradation mechanism associated with Pseudomonas nitroreducens TX1 grown on octylphenol polyethoxylates

The growth properties and biodegradation mechanism of a Gram-negative bacterium, Pseudomonas nitroreducens TX1 that was able to grow on branched octylphenol polyethoxylates (OPEO(n), average n=9.5) as the sole carbon source over a wide concentration range (1-100,000 mgl(-1)) were studied. Analysis of growth factors indicated the highest specific growth rate (micro) of 0.53 h(-1) was obtained at an initial concentration of 5,000 mgl(-1) OPEO(n). An optimal C/N ratio of 12 was obtained for (NH(4))(2)SO(4) as the nitrogen source in a cultivated medium at pH 7. The kinetic analysis demonstrated that bacterial growth and OPEO(n) degradation followed the Monod equation and were based on a substrate concentration inhibition model and pseudo-first-order reaction, respectively. The substrate inhibition coefficient was over 18,000 mgl(-1) and this indicates that the strain has an ability to sustain growth at high concentrations of OPEO(n) and use it as the sole carbon source under such a stress condition. Furthermore, LC-MS analysis showed that the biodegradation mechanism of dodecyl octaethoxylate (AEO8) by P. nitroreducens TX1 was the sequential cleavage of the ethoxylate chain.     

Does begging affect growth in nestling tree swallows,<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Tachycineta bicolor</Emphasis>?

Much of the theoretical work on the evolution of begging assumes this elaborate display is costly. The evidence for an energetic cost to begging has, however, been equivocal. Metabolic studies on nestling birds suggest that begging requires minimal energy, but some growth studies have shown that excess begging reduces growth rates. One difficulty in interpreting these results is that metabolic and growth studies have each been performed on different species. Here, we test whether high begging frequencies depress growth in nestling tree swallows, Tachycineta bicolor, a species in which the metabolic cost of begging has been measured. When we compared the growth of nestlings stimulated to beg at either high or low frequencies, we found no significant differences in their mass gained, wing growth or portion of ingested energy devoted to begging either during the experimental period or in the 24 h following the end of the experiment. We also found no significant relationship between begging intensity and growth measurements. The results of our study are consistent with previous metabolic studies on this species suggesting that the energetic cost of begging is relatively low. More generally, evidence for a fitness cost of begging via decreased growth is equivocal.Communicated by J. Dickinson     

Fitness benefits of multiple mating versus female mate choice in the cellar spider (Pholcus phalangioides)

Recent studies have demonstrated that mating with multiple males can be beneficial for females and her offspring even if males contribute nothing but sperm. This was mainly established for species in which sperm from several males mix in the reproductive tract of the female, thus allowing sperm competition and/or female sperm choice. However, in species with last male sperm precedence, female re-mating decides against the previous male by strongly limiting his reproductive success. We tested the effect of female re-mating behaviour using the cellar spider Pholcus phalangioides, which shows strong last males sperm precedence and moderate levels of polyandry under natural situations. We predicted that females prevented from remating even though they are receptive would show reduced reproductive success compared to females that accept two copulations and females that reject a second male, since the latter two treatments were allowed to behave according to their decisions. However, if the number of matings per se had an effect on oviposition or on offspring performance, double-mated females should perform better compared to both treatments of once-mated females. We measured female fecundity and fertility over a period of 140 days, comparable to the species' natural reproductive peak season. Two thousand one hundred and fifty-two offspring from 67 first egg sacs were reared under two feeding levels. We registered development time and survival, and measured offspring adult size and mass. We found a positive effect of double mating, as in this treatment, oviposition probability was higher compared to the other treatments. Interestingly, adult female offspring of the DM treatment that were raised under low food level had a higher condition index compared to those from FS and RM, but development time, size and mass at adulthood were not affected by mating treatment. Female choice only seemed to affect hatching latency of the offspring. Overall, the main predictor of female reproductive output and success was female body size.     

引入稀释因素后的废水处理效果估算方法讨论

讨论了经稀释后废水处理时几种常州的污染物去除率及削减量的估算方法，通过实例分析了各估算方法的区别与联系，并提出了在选用估算方法时的注意事项。     

污水在水体中的稀释扩散及稀释度的计算

结合长江白龙港水域水力模型试验对污水排海工程中污水稀释扩散的机理进行了描述，并对污水的两种稀释度（浓度释稀度和体积稀释度）进行了分析比较，得出了在污染物本底值存在时两种稀释度之间的关系。     

Sex differences in mass loss rate and growth efficiency in Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella) pups at Macquarie Island

We investigated the relationship between the mass gained by a pup during a period of maternal attendance (as an index of milk intake) and the duration of the preceding foraging trip in relation to the mass-specific rate of mass loss during fasting periods and the growth rate of Antarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus gazella) pups at Macquarie Island. We found that (1) serially weighed male pups grew significantly faster than females pups and that (2) fasting female pups lost mass at a significantly higher rate (2.55% day⁻¹) than male pups (2.12% day⁻¹) of the same mass; (3) during periods of maternal attendance, there were no intersexual differences in the amount of mass gained by pups of the same size, hence (4) female pups required a higher daily mass gain to grow at the same rate as male pups. Our results show that intersexual differences in growth rate may be accounted for by intersexual differences in mass-specific rate of mass loss, because females lost 0.42% more of their total mass per day (i.e. 4.2 g kg⁻¹ day⁻¹) compared with male pups of the same body mass. Despite intersexual differences in growth rates, our results indicate equality of maternal expenditure between the sexes. Intersexual differences in the rate of mass loss may be due to differences in the metabolic rate, activity level and/or body composition of male and female pups. Received: 19 August 1998 / Received in revised form: 19 April 1999 / Accepted: 19 April 1999     

Application of a temperature-dependent von Bertalanffy growth model to bullhead (Cottus gobio)

The most studied and commonly applied model of fish growth is the von Bertalanffy model. However, this model does not take water temperature into account, which is one of the most important environmental factors affecting the life cycle of fish, as many physiological processes that determine growth, e.g. metabolic rate and oxygen supply, are directly influenced by temperature. In the present study we propose a version of the von Bertalanffy growth model that includes mean annual water temperatures by correlating the growth coefficient, k, explicitly and the asymptotic length, L_∞, implicitly to water temperature. All relationships include parameters with an obvious biological relevance that makes them easier to identify. The model is used to fit growth data of bullhead (Cottus gobio) at different locations in the Bez River network (Drme, France). We show that temperature explains much of the growth variability at the different sampling sites of the network.     

长江沉积物中痕量氯代酚类化合物的测定

本文利用同位素稀释质谱法对长江南京段沉积物中１８种氯代酚进行了分离鉴定,结果表明,沉积物中ＣＰｓ的含量以五氯苯酚为主,     

常绿-半常绿杨树对磷素的利用特性

缺磷是限制农林业产量的一个重要因子,传统的农林业生产主要通过施肥和土壤改良来满足植物对磷的需求,近年来人们开始发掘磷高效利用植物来替代传统方法提高磷的利用效率.A-65/27、A-65/31及A-61/186是目前世界上仅有的3个常绿杨树无性系,共同特点是容易扦插繁殖,造林成活率高,生长快,材质好.3个无性系的推广将极大地丰富南方用材林树种资源.为揭示磷素胁迫条件下常绿杨无性系对土壤中磷素的利用特性,通过沙培试验,设计5个磷素处理水平(磷的质量浓度依次是0.00、0.0310、0.0619、0.1239、0.1858 g·L~(-1)),进行不同磷素处理水平下常绿杨生长及生理生态特性的研究.结果表明:当磷的质量浓度为0.0619 g·L~(-1)时已经能满足常绿杨生长对磷的基本需求;磷素不足会明显的影响到常绿杨的生长.低磷胁迫下常绿杨高度、地径及生物量明显降低;低磷胁迫下光合速率也明显下降,通过对气孔导度及胞间二氧化碳浓度的变化趋势分析,导致光合速率下降的主要原因是非气孔限制因素,同步叶绿素荧光的测定表明光系统Ⅱ受到了一定的影响,这是非气孔限制因素之一.     

哈尔滨市降水形势对大气污染物浓度稀释的影响

大量的观测事实和分析表明，随着季节的变化，降水对大气污染物浓度稀释的影响是比较复杂的。冬季，降雪越多，严重污染出现的概率越大；降雪时的天气往往风速小，湿度大，空气层结较稳定，扩散能力较弱。春季，降水对污染物浓度的影响就大一些，降水对PM10有较大的稀释作用，尤其对NO2稀释的影响更大一些，高湿的低温东风雨水对污染物浓度有降低的作用。夏季，降水大于等于10．0mm时高温高湿降水对污染物的稀释作用较大。秋季，高湿气压降低，降水10mm以下，对污染物浓度有降低的作用。