Are Seafood PCB Data Sufficient to Assess Health Risk for High Seafood Consumption Groups?

Some populations in Washington's Puget Sound area consume much more seafood than the general population. Mean consumption rates are 61?g/person/day for the Tulalip and Squaxin Island Tribes and 117.2?g/person/day for Asian and Pacific Islanders (API). There is concern about possible health risks from seafood PCB exposure for these groups, but exposure evaluation is difficult due to inadequacies of environmental data. Available seafood PCB data were matched to results from recent seafood consumption surveys. To rate quality of matches and identify data gaps, a ranking system based on species specificity, data quality, and location compatibility was developed. Sensitivity of total PCB and congenerspecific PCB testing (for use in TCDD toxic equivalency approaches) necessary for cancer risk assessment was explored and included in the ranking scheme. For the Squaxin Tribe, appropriate total PCB data for risk assessment were available for 58% of seafood consumed, which is dominated by local salmon. For API, appropriate total PCB data were identified for only 4% of seafood consumed, which is dominated by commercial shellfish. Insufficient sensitivity of commercial seafood PCB analysis and overall lack of sufficiently sensitive PCB congener analysis are major gaps in ability to characterize PCB exposure and risk for these groups.     

A Site-Specific Approach for the Evaluation of Natural Attenuation at Metals-Impacted Sites

Consideration of monitored natural attenuation (MNA) as a remedy component for metals-contaminated sites can be achieved using a site-specific screening approach, followed by application of one or a series of sequential extraction measurements. Hazardous waste sites contaminated with metals can be screened for the implementation of monitored natural attenuation on the basis of contaminant-specific soil chemical characteristics (i.e., K_d's, solubilities, and nonexchangeable sorbed fraction). Field cases are used to demonstrate the screening approach and to outline the primary considerations involved in accurately applying sequential extraction procedures to support the of MNA for site remediation. The results of these case studies provide strong evidence that site-specific screening and the use of sequential extraction procedures are effective methods for evaluating natural attenuation for metals impacted sites.     

Parameter oscillation attenuation and mechanism exploration for continuous VHG ethanol fermentation

A bioreactor system composed of a stirred tank and three tubular bioreactors in series was established, and continuous ethanol fermentation was carried out using a general Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain and a very high gravity medium containing 280 g L(-1) glucose, supplemented with 5 g L(-1) yeast extract and 3 g L(-1) peptone. Sustainable oscillations of glucose, ethanol, and biomass were observed when the tank was operated at the dilution rate of 0.027 h(-1), which significantly affected ethanol fermentation performance of the system. After the tubular bioreactors were packed with 1/2' Intalox ceramic saddles, the oscillations were attenuated and quasi-steady states were achieved. Residence time distributions were studied for the packed bioreactors by the step input response technique using xylose as a tracer, which was added into the medium at a concentration of 20 g L(-1), indicating that the backmixing alleviation assumed for the packed tubular bioreactors could not be established, and its contribution to the oscillation attenuation could not be verified. Furthermore, the role of the packing's yeast cell immobilization in the oscillation attenuation was investigated by packing the tubular bioreactors with packings with significant difference in yeast cell immobilization effects, and the experimental results revealed that only the Intalox ceramic saddles and wood chips with moderate yeast cell immobilization effects could attenuate the oscillations, and correspondingly, improved the ethanol fermentation performance of the system, while the porous polyurethane particles with good yeast cell immobilization effect could not. And the viability analysis for the immobilized yeast cells illustrated that the extremely lower yeast cell viability within the tubular bioreactors packed with the porous polyurethane particles could be the reason for their inefficiency, while the yeast cells loosely immobilized onto the surfaces of the Intalox ceramic saddles and wood chips could be renewed during the fermentation, guaranteeing their viability and making them more efficient in attenuating the oscillations. The packing Raschig rings without yeast cell immobilization effect did not affect the oscillatory behavior of the tubular bioreactors, further supporting the role of the yeast cell immobilization in the oscillation attenuation.     

A型流感病毒NS1基因密码子去优化改造引起病毒毒力减弱

根据A型流感病毒密码子使用偏嗜性,选取稀有密码子对A/Puerto Rico/8/34(H1N1)病毒NS1基因内部110个氨基酸区域进行密码子同义突变改造,并全基因合成NS基因,利用反向遗传操作技术拯救出含有密码子去优化NS1基因的重组病毒(deoNS)。体外细胞噬斑形成实验和病毒生长曲线证明该病毒在MDCK细胞内的感染和复制能力比野生型病毒低约1000倍;BALB/c小鼠体内致病力实验证明deoNS病毒不能引起小鼠发病和死亡,该病毒在小鼠肺内的复制滴度比野生型病毒低100～1000倍。本研究探索了通过基因组密码子去优化改造途径降低A型流感病毒毒力的可行性,首次证明流感病毒NS1基因密码子去优化同义突变可以降低病毒毒力,为流感减毒活疫苗的研究提供了新的思路。     

Upslope development of a tidal marsh as a function of upland land use

To thrive in a time of rapid sea‐level rise, tidal marshes will need to migrate upslope into adjacent uplands. Yet little is known about the mechanics of this process, especially in urbanized estuaries, where the adjacent upland is likely to be a mowed lawn rather than a wooded natural area. We studied marsh migration in a Long Island Sound salt marsh using detailed hydrologic, edaphic, and biotic sampling along marsh‐to‐upland transects in both wooded and lawn environments. We found that the overall pace of marsh development was largely unaffected by whether the upland being invaded was lawn or wooded, but the marsh‐edge plant communities that developed in these two environments were quite different, and some indicators (soil salinity, foraminifera) appeared to migrate more easily into lawns. In addition, we found that different aspects of marsh structure and function migrated at different rates: Wetland vegetation appeared to be a leading indicator of marsh migration, while soil characteristics such as redox potential and surface salinity developed later in the process. We defined a ‘hydrologic migration zone’, consisting of elevations that experience tidal inundation with frequencies ranging from 20% to 0.5% of high tides. This hydrologically defined zone – which extended to an elevation higher than the highest astronomical tide datum – captured the biotic and edaphic marsh‐upland ecotone. Tidal inundation at the upper border of this migration zone is highly variable over time and may be rising more rapidly than mean sea level. Our results indicate that land management practices at the upland periphery of tidal marshes can facilitate or impede ecosystem migration in response to rising sea level. These findings are applicable to large areas of tidal marsh along the U.S. Atlantic coast and in other urbanized coastal settings.     

厦门市交通主干道绿化带结构及其减噪效果研究

通过对厦门市主干道绿化带种类结构调查以及噪声测定等,分析了厦门市主干道绿化带结构及其减噪效果。结果表明,厦门市主干道绿化带可分为4种结构:单一乔木型、乔木+疏灌木/绿篱型、乔木+密灌木型以及乔木+小乔木+灌木/绿篱型,带宽多在4~10 m。厦门市主干道绿化带总体减噪能力为0.93~12.96 dB,绿化带对交通噪声超标治理率达70%。绿化带减噪能力y(dB)与带宽x(m)呈显著的线性关系:y=1.2251x+0.2416(R²=0.8603);绿化带的附加衰减与总衰减亦呈显著正相关:y=0.4535x+0.2698 (R²=0.9242),噪声的附加衰减主要受绿化带结构的影响,上述四种结构对噪声附加衰减平均值分别达0.93、2.25、4.43和6.72 dB。绿化带的宽度和结构均是影响其减噪效果的关键因素。     

不同风浪条件下太湖梅梁湾光合有效辐射的衰减

基于2003年7月12～17日在太湖梅梁湾进行的连续6d原位水下光场观测资料,分析了不同风浪条件下光合有效辐射(PAR)的衰减和真光层深度,探讨了影响水下光合有效辐射的主导因子.结果表明,整个观测期间向下PAR衰减系数为2.63～4.71·m^-1(均值为3.63±0.47·m^-1),对应的真光层深度为0.98～1.75m(均值为1.29±0.18m),显示1.5m以下深度浮游植物、沉水植物基本上无法获取足够的太阳光能进行光合作用.从小风浪到中风浪、大风浪向下PAR衰减系数分别是2.63、3.72和4.37·m^-1,衰减系数分别增加了41%、66%.透明度、PAR衰减系数、真光层深度与悬浮物浓度存在显著性线性相关,并且与悬浮物中无机颗粒物相关性最好,而与叶绿素a、脱镁叶绿素及溶解性有机碳相关性很低.多元逐步线性回归表明,叶绿素a和溶解性有机碳最先被剔除方程,说明在梅梁湾由于风浪扰动引起悬浮物浓度的改变是影响水下光场的主导因素.     

SURVIVAL RATES OF SEA OTTER PUPS IN ALASKA AND CALIFORNIA

Adult female sea otters ( Enhydra lutris ) were instrumented with implanted radio-transmitters in Prince William Sound (PWS), Alaska, and survival rates were estimated for their dependent pups. Overall, 94 of 141 (67%) of the pups studied survived to a minimum age of 120 d and were assumed to have successfully weaned. Survival of pups in six cohorts ranged from 53% to 88%. The mean interval between successive visual observations was 12.5 d. For these calculations, the assumption was made that pups were successfully weaned if they accompanied mothers for at least 120 d. Estimated survival rates were different when this assumption was changed to either 90 d or 150 d (73% and 52%, respectively).
Females were palpated for pregnancy when instrumented. Of 19 believed to be pregnant, 17 were subsequently seen with young pups giving a detection rate for births of 89.5%. When the above observed survival rate of pups was adjusted for undetected births, the estimated overall survival rate for the study population was 60% (120 d minimum dependency).
Survival rates of pups in PWS and a population at Kodiak Archipelago (KOD) (Monson and DeGange 1995) were compared with that of pups in the population in California (CA, four studies). These data did not support the hypothesis that survival rates were lower in California (CA: 103/160, P_surv. 0.64; PWS: 94/141, P_surv. = 0.67; KOD: 19/23, P_surv. = 0.83; pairwise comparisons, X², P > 0.05). Comparison of pup survival rates among studies was hindered by small sample sizes, methodological differences, and lack of detail about assumptions underlying estimates.