Bacterial Diversity in Linglong Gold Mine,China

Bacteria have been actively regulating cycles of various elements in the environment. To explore the potential bacterial role in gold biogeochemical cycling, this study analyzed the bacterial diversity of mine rock (MR) and surface soil (SS) samples from Linglong gold mine using 16S rRNA gene clone library analysis and cultivation method. From MR, 24 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were identified from MR, covering 3 phyla and 18 genera. Meanwhile, 24 OTUs were identified from SS, including 4 phyla and 18 genera. Compared with 16S rRNA gene clone library analysis, 28 aerobic and 34 anaerobic isolates were obtained, whereas 26 aerobic and 71 anaerobic strains were isolated from SS. The cultivable bacteria were affiliated with Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria phyla, and dominated by Firmicutes. These results underscore the high level of bacterial diversity in the gold mine. Our study provides information on the microbial diversity in Linglong gold mine and sheds light on the existence and potential function of bacteria in the gold biogeochemical cycling.     

Effects of phosphate-solubilizing bacteria application on soil phosphorus availability in coal mining subsidence area in Shanxi

The effect of phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) application on phosphorus (P) availability in reclaimed soil in coal mining subsidence region was investigated. Seven treatments were carried out including control, chicken manure (CM), PSB, PSB + tricalcium phosphate (TCP), CM?+?TCP, PSB?+?ground phosphate rock (GPR) and CM?+?GPR. The results showed soil Olsen-P concentration and phosphatase level as well as the yield of pakchoi (Brassica chinensis L.) were significantly higher in PSB application treatments compared to the corresponding CM application treatments. Soil phosphatase, invertase and urease contents were increased most significantly in PSB treatment, 1.18-, 1.31- and 2.32-fold higher than those in the control, respectively. Soil Ca₂-P, Ca₈-P, Fe-P and Al-P concentrations exhibited the greatest increases in PSB?+?TCP treatment, while occluded-P showed minor changes in different treatments. Application of PSB fertilizer reduced the transformation of Olsen-P to Ca₁₀-P, thus increasing P availability in reclaimed soil of coal mining subsidence area.     

Microdynamics and seasonal changes in manganese oxide epiprecipitation in Pinal Creek, Arizona

In Pinal Creek, Arizona, Mn oxyhydroxides (MnO_x) collect as thick precipitates on surface sediment, within the streambed, beneath algal mats, and on submerged and emergent plants and mosses. The proximate source of Mn is a thick, alluvial alkaline aquifer that was contaminated by past acid mine waste disposal practices associated with copper mines located upstream in the Globe–Miami area. Almost every organism in Pinal Creek is coated with MnO_x. Some are actively precipitating manganese, and others are doing it passively. The variety and seasonality of epilithic biological processes resulting in Mn oxidation (epiprecipitation) was studied for more than a year by analyzing artificial substrates placed in surface water having different flows and different vegetation types and densities. Most epiprecipitation took place on the holdfasts of the green alga, Ulothrix sp., and the iron bacterium, Leptothrix discophora. Extensive patches of MnO_x also coated extracellular polymeric substances of fungal hyphae and bacterial filaments. The dominant macroscopic precipitation was in the form of MnO_x clumps on mosses, green algae, and cyanobacterial mats, consistent with precipitation by pH elevation during photosynthesis. Most oxidation occurred in the spring and summer, in agreement with thermal, biological, and chemical activity models. More biological oxidation occurred in swifter water, consistent with oxygen elevation models. The efficiency of this naturally occurring, diverse ecosystem suggests that remediation efforts to remove metal contaminants such as Mn should focus on creation of habitats that raise biodiversity.US Geological Survey, retired     

Spontaneous Vegetation on Overburden Piles in the Coal Basin of Santa Catarina,Brazil

The objective of this work was to select indigenous vegetal species for restoration programs aiming at the regeneration of ombrophilous dense forest. Thirty‐five spoil piles located in the county of Sideropolis, Santa Catarina, that received overburden disposal for 39 years (1950–1989) were selected for study because they exhibited remarkable spontaneous regrowth of trees compared to surrounding spoil piles. Floristic inventory covered the whole area of the 35 piles, whereas survey on phytosociology and natural regeneration studies were conducted in 70 plots distributed along the 35 piles. Floristic inventory recorded 83 species from 28 botanical families. Herbaceous terricolous plants constituted the predominant species (47.0%), followed by shrubs (26.5%), trees (19.3%), and vines (7.2%). Results from surveys on phytosociology and natural regeneration, focused on shrubs and trees, recorded incipient ecological succession. In addition, the most adapted species recorded on the overburden piles, as ranked by index of natural regeneration (RNT) plus importance value index (IVI), were as follows: Clethra scabra (RNT = 23.93%; IVI = 17.28%), Myrsine coriacea (RNT = 20.93%, IVI = 11.26%), Eupatorium intermedium (RNT = 7.56%, IVI = 0.40%), Miconia ligustroides (RNT = 5.84%, IVI = 2.37%), Ossaea amygdaloides (RNT = 3.84%, IVI = 1.30%), Tibouchina sellowiana (RNT = 3.29%, IVI = 1.94%), Eup. inulaefolium (RNT = 2.65%, IVI = 0.80%), and Baccharis dracunculifolia (RNT = 2.28%; IVI = 0.56%). High values of IVI and RNT exhibited by the exotic species Eucalyptus saligna (IVI = 21.73%, RNT = 51.41%) indicated strong competition between exotic and indigenous species. Severe chemical (acidic pH and lack of nutrients) and physical (coarse substrate and slope angle of 40–50°) characteristics displayed by the overburden piles constituted limitations to floristic diversity and size of indigenous trees, indicating the need for substrate reclamation prior to forest restoration.     

Effect of Organic Residues and Liming Materials on Metal Extraction from a Mining-Contaminated Soil

Incubation tests were used to assess the effectiveness of three different organic residues and three different liming materials, alone or in combination, in the remediation of a mine contaminated soil. The organic residues tested were sewage sludge from a municipal wastewater treatment plant (SS), compost from the organic fraction of unsorted municipal solid waste (MSWC), and garden waste compost (GWC), applied at 100 and 200 Mg ha^{? 1}. The liming materials tested were agriculture limestone (6.4 Mg ha^{? 1}), calcium oxide (3.7 Mg ha^{? 1}), and sugar beet sludge (12.2 Mg ha^{? 1}) from the sugar manufacturing process. The soil and mixtures of soil and amendments were adjusted to 70% of the maximum water holding capacity and incubated for 28 days in a controlled-temperature room at 20°C ± 1°C. At the end of the incubation, samples were analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter content, CaCl₂-extractable, and' NH4Ac/HAc+ EDTA–extractable metal fractions (Cu, Zn, and Pb). Correlations among the variables and/or similarities among the treatments were identified by principal component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis. The amendments tested decreased the CaCl₂-extractable Cu and Zn fractions, considered as mobile metal fractions, to below analytical detectable limits, providing organic matter to the soil with levels between 1% and 2% at the end of the experiment, significantly different relatively to the original soil. pH and electrical conductivity reached high values when using 200 Mg ha^{? 1} SS or 200 Mg ha^{? 1} MSWC, with any of the liming materials tested, making these application rates excessive for this particular situation. Furthermore, the treatments using MSWC increased the NH4Ac/HAc+ EDTA–extractable Cu, Pb, and Zn fractions, considered as mobilizable metal fractions, as did the 200 Mg ha^{? 1} SS for Pb and Zn. Considering the overall results, the compost made from garden waste decreased metal solubility in the soil and increased soil pH and organic matter content, without the addition of large amounts of soluble salts, and without increasing the mobilizable metal content. Of the organic materials tested, this was the only one that can be considered adequate for remediation of the contaminated soil under study, at the application rates tested.     

Screening of Australian Native Grasses for Rhizoremediation of Aliphatic Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Soil

Rhizoremediation involves the breakdown of contaminants in soil resulting from microbial activity that is enhanced in the plant root zone. The objective of this study was to identify Australian native grass species as suitable candidates for rhizoremediation application. Seeds of nine perennial Australian native grasses were sown in soil from a mine site and artificially contaminated with a 60:40 diesel/oil mixture at concentrations of 1% (w/w), 0.5% (w/w), and 0% (control). Seedling emergence was not adversely affected by the presence of hydrocarbon contamination for all but one grass species. Three promising species (Brachiaria decumbens, Cymbopogon ambiguus, and Microlaena stipoides var. Griffin) were assessed for growth characterization in contaminated and uncontaminated soils. The evaluated species survived for 120 days in the contaminated soil and, in some instances, produced considerably more root biomass in the presence of contamination. C. ambiguus showed growth stimulation in the presence of contamination (1% and 0.5% w/w) with significantly increased root biomass production compared with the control (p = 0.0001). B. decumbens and M. stipoides showed tolerance, without adverse growth effects in the presence of diesel/oil at the exposed concentrations. Stimulation of the rhizosphere microbial population that is capable of degrading diesel/oil was found for all of the species tested, using a most probable number method for enumeration. This investigation has identified suitable candidates for further investigation of their rhizoremediation potential.     

贵州泥堡卡林型金矿区与非金矿区苔藓植物比较研究

首次报道了贵州普安县泥堡村韭菜烂滩的卡林型金矿区和非金矿区的苔藓。记录了泥堡韭菜烂滩卡林型金矿生苔藓3科8属15种,非金矿生苔藓9科15属20种。通过比较我们得到韭菜烂滩卡林型金矿区和泥堡非金矿区苔藓的相似性系数为11.4%。这表明这两个生境下的苔藓组成差异极大。在这个地区有13种苔藓植物(包括异芽丝瓜藓Pohlia leucostoma、卵蒴丝瓜藓P.proligera、长蒴藓Trematodon longicollis等)只生长在卡林型金矿上,这表明有一些苔藓植物适应卡林型金矿这种基质。也许,在泥堡地区某些苔藓植物的分布与卡林型金矿存在一定的关系。     

Comparison of Organic and Chemical Soil Amendments Used in the Reforestation of a Harsh Sierra Nevada Site

Abstract A comparison of a composted organic amendment, a controlled‐release fertilizer, and induced mycorrhizal inoculation as affecting the establishment and nutrition of bareroot Jeffrey pine (Pinus jeffreyi Grev. & Balf.) was conducted on a Sierra Nevada surface mine. The soil amendments were applied at outplanting to the backfill of augered planting holes, with a low rate of 8 g and a high rate of 16 g per seedling for the fertilizer, Gromax 21‐6‐2 + Minors, whereas a single rate of 2.0 L was used for organic matter. Colonization by Pisolithus tinctorius (Pers.) Coker & Couch was induced by coating the root systems with basidiospores suspended in a gel carrier. The organic amendment especially, but also mycorrhizal inoculation, caused substantial seedling mortality, whereas survival was unaffected by controlled‐release fertilization. Gromax applied at the high rate produced a 74% increase in shoot volume after three growing seasons, whereas the organic amendment reduced volume by 28%. Growth was unaffected by mycorrhizal treatment. The growth response to the 16‐g Gromax application probably reflected enhanced N, P, and K nutrition and decreased concentrations of potentially toxic metallic elements, including Mn and Al among others, as revealed through foliar analysis. Because they were accompanied by growth reduction, nutritional responses to the organic amendment, which involved both macronutrients and trace elements, were of little consequence. Impaired water relations may account for the poor response to this amendment. Likewise, nutritional responses to mycorrhizal inoculation produced no discernible benefit in terms of seedling performance. An inoculation procedure that failed to induce substantially greater P. tinctorius colonization in inoculated than uninoculated seedlings, and that may have also impaired water relations, likely explains this result. Overall, these findings indicate that further research is needed before either the organic amendment or the mycorrhizal inoculation procedure used here can be used in forest restoration efforts on dry sites.     

Diversity and activity of methanotrophs in alkaline soil from a Chinese coal mine

Culture-independent molecular biological techniques, including 16S rRNA gene and functional gene clone libraries and microarray analyses using pmoA (encoding a key subunit of particulate methane monooxygenase), were applied to investigate the methanotroph community structure in alkaline soil from a Chinese coal mine. This environment contained a high diversity of methanotrophs, including the type II methanotrophs Methylosinus / Methylocystis , type I methanotrophs related to Methylobacter / Methylosoma and Methylococcus , and a number of as yet uncultivated methanotrophs. In order to identify the metabolically active methane-oxidizing bacteria from this alkaline environment, DNA stable isotope probing (DNA-SIP) experiments using ¹³CH₄ were carried out. This showed that both type I and type II methanotrophs were active, together with methanotrophs related to Methylocella , which had previously been found only in acidic environments. Methylotrophs, including Methylopila and Hyphomicrobium , were also detected in soil DNA and after DNA-SIP experiments. DNA sequence information on the most abundant, active methanotrophs in this alkaline soil will facilitate the design of oligonucleotide probes to monitor enrichment cultures when isolating key alkaliphilic methanotrophs from such environments.     

南京小龙山钾矿区植物根际可培养细菌的遗传多样性分析

摘要:【目的】矿区优势植物可培养细菌生物多样性研究将有助于了解植物根际细菌与矿物,植物根系相互作用及对矿物风化和土壤形成的重要影响。【方法】采用纯培养法分离南京小龙山废钾矿区野生植物野塘蒿,千金子和栽培植物甘薯根内与根周围土壤的可培养细菌, 通过16S rDNA限制性酶切多态性分析(amplified rDNA restriction analysis, ARDRA)和16S rDNA序列分析研究了可培养细菌的多样性。【结果】分离纯化到60株具不同菌落形态的可培养细菌, 在60%相似水平上可分为18个OTU. 19株代表菌株分别属于3个门, 10个科, 11个属。多数菌株属于变形菌门(α-proteobacteria, 4株, 21.1%; β-proteobacteria, 2株, 10.5%; γ-proteobacteria, 6株, 31.6%)。假单胞菌属(Pseudomonas), 泛菌属(Pantoea)和根瘤菌属(Rhizobium)为优势种群。【结论】小龙山废矿区优势植物根围具有丰富的微生物种群多样性。