不同土壤质地和淤积深度对大米草生长繁殖的影响

盐沼湿地生态系统中的土壤质地和淤积深度由于受到潮汐和生物的协同作用会发生相应的变化, 将对植物个体生长与湿地植被分布产生影响。本文通过智能温室人工模拟控制土壤质地和淤积深度实验, 分析了不同土壤质地(粘土和混合土)及淤积深度(无淤积、淤积植株高度1/4、淤积植株高度1/2及淤积植株高度3/4)对外来克隆植物大米草(Spartina anglica)种群的生长繁殖特征及生物量积累的影响。结果表明: 粘土促进叶面积、叶片数及根状茎数的增加, 并增加根状茎总长、根状茎生物量及地上生物量的积累; 而混合土(粘土与沙土体积比为1:1)增加了克隆分株数、总生物量、地下生物量及根生物量。除叶面积在淤积株高3/4处理下达到最大值外, 其他指标均在淤积株高1/2处理下达到最大值。由此推断, 大米草种群较适宜的土壤质地及淤积深度为粘土淤积株高的1/2处。据此推测, 可通过相应的生物及工程措施来改良土壤质地及通过改变淤积深度来有效管理我国海岸带大米草的分布, 为控制大米草在海岸带盐沼中的入侵与种群扩张提供了理论依据。     

Effects of Sediment Fertilization and Burial on Cymodocea nodosa Transplants; Implications for Seagrass Restoration Under a Changing Climate

Sediment fertilization is recommended for improving seagrass restoration efforts, but few studies have evaluated the efficacy of such practice. Increasing storm frequency due to global change could lead to greater sediment mobilization. Understanding how this alteration will interact with fertilization to affect transplants is essential for future restoration planning. We examined the individual and combined effects of nutrients (ambient vs. repeated addition) and burial (control vs. increased frequency and intensity) on the performance and biomass partitioning of transplants of the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa at two sites within a north‐western Mediterranean meadow. Fertilization stimulated the production of shoots, total biomass, and branching. Burial increased leaf sheath length in one site while reduced shoot number, leaf number, leaf sheath length, total biomass, net shoot gain, and root‐to‐shoot ratio in the other site. Regardless of the site, fertilization and burial interaction reduced the length of vertical internodes and horizontal rhizomes, and the net shoot gain. Our research demonstrates that sediment fertilization ensures rapid colonization of restoration sites, providing C. nodosa plants up to eight times larger than controls in one growing season. However, it also indicates that interaction of increased burial and nutrients reduced the gain in terms of vegetative expansion and depressed vertical growth, making plants more vulnerable to subsequent disturbances. Therefore, seagrass restoration practitioners should account for changes in sediment elevation at transplanting sites when planning restoration programs and carefully evaluate the opportunity of applying fertilizers in sites subjected to greater sediment accumulation to avoid failure.     

Behavioral effects of low dissolved oxygen on the bivalve Macoma balthica

Hypoxia, a dissolved oxygen concentration (DO) below 2 mg l^– 1, is a significant stressor in many estuarine ecosystems. Many sedentary organisms, unable to move to avoid hypoxic areas, have metabolic and behavioral adaptations to hypoxic stress. We tested the effects of hypoxia on the behavior and mortality of the clam Macoma balthica, using four levels of dissolved oxygen in flow-through tanks. We used five replicates of each of four treatments: (1) Hypoxic (DO mean ± SE = 1.1 ± 0.06 mg O₂ l^– 1), (2) Moderately hypoxic (DO 2.6 ± 0.05 mg O₂ l^– 1), (3) Nearly normoxic (DO 3.2 ± 0.04 mg O₂ l^– 1), (4) Normoxic (DO = 4.9 ± 0.13 mg O₂ l^– 1). We lowered the dissolved oxygen with a novel fluidized mud-bed, designed to mimic field conditions more closely than the common practice of solely bubbling nitrogen or other gasses. This method for lowering the DO concentrations for a laboratory setup was effective, producing 1.4 l min^–1 of water with a DO of 0.8 mg O₂ l^– 1 throughout the experiment. The setup greatly reduced the use of compressed nitrogen and could easily be scaled up to produce more low-DO water if necessary. The lethal concentration for 50% of the M. balthica population (LC₅₀) was 1.7 mg O₂ l^– 1 for the 28-day experimental period. M. balthica decreased its burial depth under hypoxic and moderately hypoxic (~2.5 mg O₂ l^– 1) conditions within 72 hours of the onset of hypoxia. By the sixth day of hypoxia the burial depth had been reduced by 26 mm in the hypoxic tanks and 10 mm in the moderately hypoxic tanks. Because reduced burial depth makes the clams more vulnerable to predators, these results indicate that the sub-lethal effects of hypoxia could change the rate of predation on M. balthica in the field.     

Conceptual model of seagrass die-off in Florida Bay: Links to biogeochemical processes

Seagrasses are recognized as important plant communities in coastal estuaries and lagoons across both tropical and temperate climes; thus, large-scale seagrass die-off events worldwide are of general concern. In Florida Bay, at the southern terminus of the Florida peninsula, seagrass die-off events up to 4000 ha have been reported and smaller scale mortality events are noted annually. In the present study, we examined several hypothesized causative factors (high temperature, hypersalinity, sulfide toxicity) of seagrass (Thalassia testudinum) mortality in Florida Bay. To test sulfide effects, in situ sulfide production was stimulated by applying a labile carbon source (glucose) to sulfate reducers in the sediment at five sites across the bay (northeastern, northcentral, and southwestern basins). During the one year study, high temperature (32–36 °C) and salinity (> 50 psu) were recorded in the bay associated with a regional drought. We also experienced major seagrass die-off events at two of our southwestern bay sites. These field conditions provided an excellent opportunity to closely examine cause–effect relationships among stressors and die-off events in the field, and verify results of our previous mesocosm experiments. Even though glucose amendments stimulated porewater sulfides in bay sediments (4–8 mmol L^− 1), no significant differences in biomass, short shoot density or final growth rates were found between control and glucose plots. In addition, the highest growth rates and shoot densities were concomitant with maximum water column salinity (> 50 psu) and temperature (32–36 °C), when porewater sulfides were also in the millimolar range. Large-scale seagrass mortality events, encompassing  50% of the entire meadow at one site, occurred at southwestern bay sites when plants were down regulating (slower growth and shoot density), probably in response to shorter day length and lower temperature (30–34 to 23–26 °C) from October, 2004 to January, 2005. Sulfate reduction rates (SRR) were also 2-fold higher in the southwestern (214–488 nmol cm^− 3 d^− 1) versus northcentral and northeastern (97–240 nmol cm^− 3 d^− 1) bay sites, possibly limited by labile carbon, which we found to stimulate SRR 3-fold in northeastern and northcentral bay sites (461–708 nmol cm^− 3 d^− 1) and 4-fold at southwestern bay sites (1211–2036 nmol cm^− 3 d^− 1). Based on a synthesis of the field data reported herein, our mesocosm experiments to date, and contributions by others, we present a conceptual model of seagrass die-off in Florida Bay outlining a cascade of stressors, stimulated by P enrichment, which leads to high O₂ consumption in the system triggering a seagrass die-off event.     

Addition of dissolved nitrogen and dissolved organic carbon from wild fish faeces and food around Mediterranean fish farms: Implications for waste-dispersal models

Leaching of ammonium (NH₄⁺) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from food pellets used at three fish farms in the Mediterranean Sea and the faeces of four different species of farm-associated wild fish (Trachurus mediterraneus, Mugil cephalus, Trachinotus ovatus and Boops boops) were determined. They were placed in seawater and agitated slowly (5 cm s^− 1) to reflect natural conditions during their fall to the sediment. Two temperatures were tested, 25 °C and 15 °C, to assess the influence of seasons on leaching rates. Leaching from fish faeces was generally higher compared to food pellets. T. mediterraneus faeces leached more NH₄⁺ and DOC than M. cephalus, T. ovatus and B. boops. The results showed that there is an important addition of NH₄⁺ and DOC to the water column during sinking of the faeces and that this is species-dependent. Water turbulence and faeces composition seemed to have a higher influence than temperature on the leaching process. Due to the high abundance and biomass of farm-associated fish in the Mediterranean and their capacity to remove waste, they appear to be an important component for models that predict the impact of aquaculture. Large biomasses of wild fish at fish farms may reduce the impact on benthic systems but increase the nitrogen and carbon loads into the water column, affecting the pelagic system and modifying the spatial dispersion of wastes.     

风蚀和沙埋对塔克拉玛干沙漠南缘骆驼刺水分和光合作用的影响

塔克拉玛干沙漠南缘风沙活动十分频繁, 风蚀和沙埋是该地区自然植被生长发育的重要影响因子。该文以塔克拉玛干沙漠南缘策勒绿洲-沙漠过渡带为研究区, 以该区域主要建群种植物骆驼刺(Alhagi sparsifolia)为研究对象, 对一次强沙尘天气过后沙丘表面5种不同风蚀沙埋状况的骆驼刺植物进行标定(包括10 cm风蚀、5 cm风蚀、不蚀不积、10 cm沙埋、30 cm沙埋), 天晴后测定其叶水势、叶片含水量、光合参数和叶绿素荧光等参数, 分析研究自然环境条件下风蚀和沙埋对骆驼刺水分和光合作用的影响。结果表明: (1)风蚀显著降低了骆驼刺叶水势和叶片含水量, 进而导致植物气孔导度降低, 并引起植物光合速率和蒸腾速率的下降。风蚀的植物水分利用效率低于沙埋, 特别是在10 cm风蚀深度明显降低。 (2)沙埋增加了骆驼刺的叶水势、叶片含水量和气孔导度, 并引起植物光合速率和蒸腾速率的上升, 水分利用效率也得到提升。(3)风蚀条件下骆驼刺所受胁迫增加, 但可以通过增加活性反应中心的数量和光化学效率来抵消胁迫造成的不利影响。沙埋条件下骆驼刺受胁迫减轻, 反应中心吸收的光能和用于光化学反应的能量随着沙埋程度增加而减小, 这是骆驼刺适应风沙环境的一种生存策略。(4)与5 cm风蚀以及10 cm沙埋相比, 10 cm风蚀显著抑制骆驼刺的生长, 30 cm沙埋则会显著促进骆驼刺的生长。     

Carbon and nutrient dynamics in relation to growth rhythm in the giant bamboo Phyllostachys pubescens

The carbon and nutrient dynamics in relation to growth rhythm in the giant bamboo Phyllostachys pubescens on Mount Jinyun, Chongqing, China, was studied during 1993–1996. Concentrations of TNC (total non-structural carbohydrates), N, P, and K all showed the same distribution pattern among organs: leaves > branches rhizomes stems roots. The rapid spring growth of new shoots noticeably reduced the concentration of TNC in the rhizomes, in which a large amount of carbohydrates was stored. The N concentration of the rhizomes did not decrease, however. Nutrient concentration of new (1st-year) leaves was significantly higher than that of old (2nd-year) leaves. Although the density of adult shoots was almost the same during 1994–1996, the low ratio of the number of adult shoots with new to that with old leaves from June 1994 to April 1995 resulted in a low TNC concentration in the rhizomes in early spring (April) 1995. This led to a low production of new shoots in the spring of 1995, their number being only ca. 10% of that in 1994 and 1996. Before old leaves were shed, a large amount of nutrients was remobilized and translocated to other plant parts to support further growth. Fertilization with NPK significantly increased the concentrations of N and P in leaves and subsequently increased the number of emerging new shoots.     

Effects of wind erosion and sand burial on water relations and photosynthesis in Alhagi sparsifolia in the southern edge of the Taklimakan Desert

塔克拉玛干沙漠南缘风沙活动十分频繁, 风蚀和沙埋是该地区自然植被生长发育的重要影响因子。该文以塔克拉玛干沙漠南缘策勒绿洲-沙漠过渡带为研究区, 以该区域主要建群种植物骆驼刺(Alhagi sparsifolia)为研究对象, 对一次强沙尘天气过后沙丘表面5种不同风蚀沙埋状况的骆驼刺植物进行标定(包括10 cm风蚀、5 cm风蚀、不蚀不积、10 cm沙埋、30 cm沙埋), 天晴后测定其叶水势、叶片含水量、光合参数和叶绿素荧光等参数, 分析研究自然环境条件下风蚀和沙埋对骆驼刺水分和光合作用的影响。结果表明: (1)风蚀显著降低了骆驼刺叶水势和叶片含水量, 进而导致植物气孔导度降低, 并引起植物光合速率和蒸腾速率的下降。风蚀的植物水分利用效率低于沙埋, 特别是在10 cm风蚀深度明显降低。 (2)沙埋增加了骆驼刺的叶水势、叶片含水量和气孔导度, 并引起植物光合速率和蒸腾速率的上升, 水分利用效率也得到提升。(3)风蚀条件下骆驼刺所受胁迫增加, 但可以通过增加活性反应中心的数量和光化学效率来抵消胁迫造成的不利影响。沙埋条件下骆驼刺受胁迫减轻, 反应中心吸收的光能和用于光化学反应的能量随着沙埋程度增加而减小, 这是骆驼刺适应风沙环境的一种生存策略。(4)与5 cm风蚀以及10 cm沙埋相比, 10 cm风蚀显著抑制骆驼刺的生长, 30 cm沙埋则会显著促进骆驼刺的生长。     

Late Holocene lake-level fluctuations in Walker Lake, Nevada, USA

Walker Lake, a hydrologically closed, saline, and alkaline lake, is situated along the western margin of the Great Basin in Nevada of the western United States. Analyses of the magnetic susceptibility (χ), total inorganic carbon (TIC), and oxygen isotopic composition (δ¹⁸O) of carbonate sediments including ostracode shells (Limnocythere ceriotuberosa) from Walker Lake allow us to extend the sediment record of lake-level fluctuations back to 2700 years B.P. There are approximately five major stages over the course of the late Holocene hydrologic evolution in Walker Lake: an early lowstand (> 2400 years B.P.), a lake-filling period ( 2400 to  1000 years B.P.), a lake-level lowering period during the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) ( 1000 to  600 years B.P.), a relatively wet period ( 600 to  100 years B.P.), and the anthropogenically induced lake-level lowering period (< 100 years B.P.). The most pronounced lowstand of Walker Lake occurred at  2400 years B.P., as indicated by the relatively high values of δ¹⁸O. This is generally in agreement with the previous lower resolution paleoclimate results from Walker Lake, but contrasts with the sediment records from adjacent Pyramid Lake and Siesta Lake. The pronounced lowstand suggests that the Walker River that fills Walker Lake may have partially diverted into the Carson Sink through the Adrian paleochannel between 2700 to 1400 years B.P.     

水沙条件及氮输入对黄河口滨岸潮滩湿地碱蓬和土壤15N吸收特征的影响

受自然及人为活动的影响,黄河三角洲水沙条件存在较大变化,由此带来的外源营养物质增加对潮滩湿地植被生长及元素吸收利用具有重要的影响。为此采用3因素4水平的正交试验,以黄河口滨岸潮滩湿地先锋物种碱蓬（Suaeda salsa）为研究对象,利用¹⁵N示踪技术,研究了水沙条件及氮输入对碱蓬和土壤¹⁵N吸收特征的影响。结果表明：淹水深度、泥沙沉积及氮输入对土壤全氮含量的影响不显著,但外源氮输入对土壤¹⁵N固持量（N_dff）和比例（N_dff%）的影响达到显著水平,且最大值（10.44 mg/kg和3.83%）均出现在W₄S₂N₃（30 cm淹水+3 cm泥沙沉积+6 g/m²氮输入）处理;碱蓬叶和茎中全氮含量、¹⁵N吸收量（N_dff）及比例（N_dff%）在深淹水和泥沙沉积处理时较大,而根中全氮含量、N_dff及N_dff%在高氮输入较大。且根N_dff和N_dff%最大值（1.10 mg/kg和18.21%）在W₁S₄N₄（2 cm淹水+12 cm泥沙沉积+9 g/m²氮输入）处理时取得,此时碱蓬的生长情况最好,表明适当的淹水和泥沙埋深以及高氮输入（9 g/m²）有利于根系对外源氮的吸收,从而促进植株的生长。由此可见,在黄河三角洲水沙变化大的背景下,淹水、泥沙沉积和外源氮输入的适当把控,可促进碱蓬对外源氮的吸收利用而有助于其生长,从而对维护黄河三角洲潮滩湿地的健康具有重要作用。     

黄河三角洲滨岸潮滩湿地碱蓬对水沙条件及氮输入的适应性

调水调沙工程的实施为黄河三角洲带来大量淡水恢复退化湿地的同时,也改变了湿地的水沙状况并带来大量的外源物质。本研究采用3因素4水平的正交试验,以黄河口滨岸潮滩湿地典型的先锋物种碱蓬为研究对象,探讨了其对淹水深度、泥沙埋深及外源氮输入的适应机制。结果表明: 泥沙埋深对碱蓬叶片蛋白含量及超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)活性的影响较大;氮输入对过氧化物酶(POD)活性的影响较大,而3种处理对过氧化氢酶(CAT)活性的影响无显著差异。淹水深度对叶、茎及总干重具有显著影响,且随淹水深度的增加呈现减小趋势,最大值(25.70、40.86、69.73 g)均出现在2 cm淹水处理;而氮输入及泥沙埋深对碱蓬干重的影响不显著。极差分析表明,淹水深度对碱蓬叶、茎、根及总干重的影响最为显著,其次为氮输入和泥沙埋深,2 cm淹水深度+12 cm埋深深度+9 g·m^-2氮输入量最有利于碱蓬的生长。可见,淹水深度的变化对碱蓬的生长起到决定性的作用,在调水调沙等工程的实施过程中应注重淹水深度的把控。     

不同泥沙埋深对几种一年生草本枯落物分解及养分动态特征的影响

为探究三峡消落带泥沙淤积条件下一年生草本枯落物的分解及养分变化特征,通过模拟实验,采用分解袋法,研究不同泥沙埋深对4种一年生草本分解及养分动态的影响。所选择的三峡消落带4种一年生优势草本植物包括马唐（Digitaria sanguinalis）、稗（Echinochloa crusgali）、狼杷草（Bidens tripartita）、苍耳（Xanthium sibiricum）,设置了无掩埋（0 cm）、中度掩埋（5 cm）和深度掩埋（10 cm）3个泥沙掩埋深度,试验周期为180 d。结果表明：（1）在整个实验期间,4种一年生草本枯落物的分解速率均呈现先快后慢的特点,与0 cm泥沙埋深处理相比,5、10 cm埋深下4种一年生草本枯落物的分解速率均显著降低;（2）在分解结束时,4种一年生草本枯落物C含量变化不大,P元素处于释放状态,而在泥沙掩埋下N元素处于富集状态;（3）除马唐和稗枯落物的P含量变化外,4种一年生草本枯落物C、N、P含量均表现为0 cm掩埋处理显著低于5、10 cm处理组;相反,4种一年生草本枯落物K含量则表现为0 cm掩埋处理显著高于5、10 cm处理组。研究表明消落带大量泥沙淤积抑制枯落物的分解和C、N、P元素释放,有利于降低对三峡库区水体富营养化及营养物质悬浮的贡献率,一定程度上,对库区水质保护有正面效应。     

模拟氮沉降对夏蜡梅幼苗生长及非结构性碳水化合物的影响

以一年生夏蜡梅（Sinocalycanthus chinensis）幼苗为研究对象,设置4种氮水平：对照（CK,0 gN·m^-2·a^-1）、低氮（N1,2 gN·m^-2·a^-1）、中氮（N2,8 gN·m^-2·a^-1）、高氮（N3,32 gN·m^-2·a^-1）,处理1年后,测定不同氮沉降水平下夏蜡梅幼苗生长指标、生物量分配以及非结构性碳水化合物的差异,探讨夏蜡梅幼苗对氮沉降的响应机制。结果表明：随着氮浓度的增大,夏蜡梅幼苗的株高、基径呈现先升高后降低的趋势,它们均以中氮处理最高。随着氮浓度的升高,夏蜡梅幼苗的叶、冠层生物量呈现出逐渐升高的趋势,而茎、根、总生物量、根生物量比和根冠比则表现出先升高后降低的趋势。叶生物量比随着氮浓度的升高呈现先降低后升高的趋势。叶平均周长、叶平均长度、叶平均面积均以中氮处理最大;叶宽长比以高氮处理最高;中氮、高氮处理的比叶面积明显低于对照。叶中的淀粉、非结构性碳水化合物（NSC）含量均以中氮处理最高;茎中的淀粉、NSC含量以高氮处理最低。总之,不同浓度氮沉降均促进了夏蜡梅的生长,中氮处理促进作用最明显,对其他生长和生理指标也产生了一定的影响。     

The sediment burial depth and salinity control the early developments of Suaeda salsa in the Yellow River Delta

Sediment deposition is a common phenomenon in the estuary area. Pot control experiments were conducted to evaluate the interaction effects of sediment burial depth and salt stress on the seed germination and early seedling growth of Suaeda salsa (L.) Pall., an pioneer species of tidal wetland near the Yellow River Delta. The results showed that the percentage of seedling emergence, seedling emergence rate, seedling height, branch number, shoot biomass and root biomass were all significantly affected by salt stress and sediment burial depth. While the interaction of salt and burial depth significantly influenced the branch number, leaf biomass, shoot biomass and total plant biomass. Only 5 cm burial depth without salt stress should 6.25 ± 3.61% seedlings emergence. With the increasing of sediment burial depth and salt stress, percentage of seedling emergence, seedling emergence rate and plant height decreased significantly. However, under the salt treatment of 0 and 1%, the branch number increased dramatically with the increasing of sediment burial depth from 0 to 3 cm. The ratio of leaf to total biomass increased with increasing of burial depth, on the contrary, the ratio of root to total biomass decreased. 0–1 cm sediment burial depth was proved the suitable depths for seed germination of S. salsa in the coastal wetland of the Yellow River Delta. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of how to improve the seedling establishment of S. salsa under the dynamic changes of sediment deposition and salinity in the coastal wetland of the Yellow River Delta.     

Biophysical characterization of double-stranded oligonucleotides using ETBR and isothermal fluorescence spectroscopy: implication for SNP genotyping

The UV-absorption, fluorescence and CD spectra of aps 23 bp oligoduplexes were performed for potential diagnostic purpose. These oligonucleotide sequences were mimicked from natural mutations (mitochondrial genome) of human population (unpublished). This work was designed on the basis of hybridization of non-self complementary oligoduplexes (aps) containing no mismatch, one-mismatch and two-mismatches. Since melting temperature™ is dependent on concentration of the oligoduplex, various concentrations were used in this study protocol. The thermal spectra profiles (UV absorbance and fluorescence) of these oligoduplexes (aps) are different for a particular concentration, and can be implicated for mutations. − dF/dT (or dA/dT) vs T, lnK (or RlnK) vs T_M, ΔG vs T_M, ΔS vs T_M and ΔH vs T_M are also variable for those sequences. All these thermodynamic data were calculated from absorbance (at 260 nm) data. On the contrary to the 23 bp oligoduplexes (aps), the PCR products of 97 bp and 256 bp length were genotyped with ETBR (excitation 530 nm, emission 600 nm) fluorimetrically. But our attempts to genotype these PCR sequences with isothermal UV absorbance spectroscopy were unsuccessful. Isothermal UV absorbance spectra has a limitation of sequence length. However, the structural conformation (all B-type) of the oligoduplexes (aps) was determined using CD. The minor discrepancy in CD spectra of these oligoduplexes are not significant for mutational analysis. 97 bp nested PCR product was an amplicon having either GcT or AcC mutation of mitochondria of normal human population, whereas 256 bp PCR product was an amplicon of human BRCA2 gene (NCBI Accession No. AY151039) of chromosome 13 having either A or G mutation at position − 26.     

Decomposition and nitrogen dynamics of turtle grass (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Thalassia testudinum</Emphasis>) in a subtropical estuarine system

Seagrass beds are pivotal in the functioning of coastal ecosystems in terms of productivity, organic matter turnover and nutrient cycling. Aiming to document decay and nitrogen (N) dynamics of turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum) in a subtropical estuarine system, decomposition patterns of leaves and rhizomes were characterized and compared. Nitrogen usage during decomposition of tissues, and of live tissues and epiphytes growing on live leaves, was also quantified and compared. Stable isotope ratios allowed tracing N within the seagrass bed, following N incorporation into seagrass tissues from the surrounding media (water, sediment). Leaves had a higher N content and decomposed at a faster rate (~6.4 times) compared to rhizomes. Leaching of soluble materials explain the rapid (0–3 days) initial mass loss of leaves (20%) and rhizomes (18%); with a loss of 85 and 56%, respectively, by the end of the study (77 days). Overall, leaves released N while rhizomes immobilized it. Nitrogen concentration was significantly different among live tissues. The main source of N for both seagrass tissues was the sediment, and water column for epiphytes. Differences in decomposition rates among seagrass tissues can be explained by the quality of the substrate and its susceptibility to microbial use. Seagrass leaves and rhizomes are equally important in taking up nutrients from either the water column or the sediments. This study provides a platform to study energy and matter transfers through detrital foodwebs linked to seagrass meadows.     

Determination of the thermodynamics of carbonic anhydrase acid-unfolding by titration calorimetry

The enthalpy of unfolding (Δ_uH) of carbonic anhydrase II was determined by titrating the protein with acid and measuring the heat using isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) in the temperature range of 5 to 59 °C. By combining the ITC results with our previous findings by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) in the temperature range of 39 to 72 °C, the Δ_uH dependence over a wide temperature range was obtained. The temperature dependence of the enthalpy displays significant curvature indicating that the heat capacity of unfolding (Δ_uC_p) is dependent on temperature. The T-derivative of Δ_uC_p was equal to 100 ± 30 J/(mol × K²), with the result that the Δ_uC_p is equal to 15.8 kJ/(mol × K) at 5 °C, 19.0 kJ/(mol × K) at 37 °C and 21.8 kJ/(mol × K) at 64 °C. The enthalpy of unfolding is zero at 17 °C. At lower temperatures, the Δ_uH becomes exothermic.

This method of determining protein unfolding thermodynamics using acid-ITC, significantly widens the accessible T-range, provides direct estimate of the thermodynamic parameters at physiological temperature, and gives further insight into the third T-derivative of the Gibbs free energy of unfolding.     

Effects of food nitrogen content and concentration on the forms of nitrogen excreted by the calanoid copepod, Acartia tonsa

Nitrogen excreted as ammonium, urea, and dissolved primary amines (DPA), and nitrogen ingested by the planktonic calanoid copepod, Acartia tonsa, were measured while fed 4 foods with different N/C ratios in high (500 μg C l^− 1) and low (50 μg C l^− 1) concentrations. Adult copepods were fed the ciliate, Uronema marinum (N/C = 0.26), the diatom, Thalassiosira weissflogii, in log-phase growth (N/C = 0.20), and in senescent-phase growth (N/C = 0.12), and detritus derived from the saltmarsh grass, Spartina alterniflora, (N/C = 0.04). Total nitrogen excreted ranged from 0.06 to 0.18 μg N copepod^− 1 d^− 1 whereas nitrogen ingested exhibited considerably more variation (0.01 to 0.39 μg N copepod ^− 1d ^− 1). Ammonium was the dominant form of nitrogen excreted and was influenced by both food concentration and N/C ratio. Copepods fed foods with N/C ratios resembling their own body composition (log-phase diatoms and ciliates) excreted more ammonium when fed higher concentrations of food. In contrast, copepods fed foods with lower N/C ratios than their own body composition excreted more ammonium when fed lower concentrations of food, suggesting that they were catabolizing body protein for survival. Excretion of urea varied with food N/C ratio, with more urea excreted when the copepods were fed higher N/C foods. The excretion of DPA did not vary with either food concentration or food N/C ratio. Homeostasis serves to conserve the N/C ratio of copepods. Thus nitrogen excretion by healthy copepods should be expected to increase with ingestion only when copepods have high quantities of nitrogen-rich foods relative to the body composition of the copepods.     

Micropropagation and field evaluation of micropropagated plants of turmeric

A protocol was developed for in vitro propagation of turmeric cv `elite' using young vegetative buds from sprouting rhizomes. The shoot buds produced multiple shoots when cultured on MS solid medium supplemented with benzyladenine and 1-naphthalene acetic acid. The effect of various cytokinins on shoot multiplication was studied by culturing the shoot tips on MS liquid medium supplemented with benzyladenine, benzyladenine riboside, kinetin, kinetin riboside, zeatin, 6-,-dimethylallylaminopurine, adenine, adenine sulfate or metatopolin each at 10 M in combination with 1-naphthalene acetic acid (1 M). Significant differences were observed between the treatments. Liquid medium was more favourable than agar medium for shoot multiplication. Among the various concentrations of agar tested, 0.4% and 0.6% were the best and produced the highest number of shoots per explant. Among the different carbohydrates tested, sucrose, fructose, glucose, sugar cubes, maltose, levulose and market sugar were found to be equally effective for shoot multiplication and xylose, rhamnose, lactose and soluble starch were inhibitory. Ninety five percent of the micropropagated plants survived in sterilized soil in paper cups and all of them survived in the field. Among 48 plants, two plants showed variegated leaves on the tillers. The micropropagated plants showed a significant increase in shoot length, number of tillers, number and length of leaves, number of fingers and total fresh rhizome weight per plant when compared with conventionally propagated plants. RAPD analysis of 11 regenerated plants using sixteen 10-mer primers did not show any polymorphism.