Rhodobacteraceae on the marine brown alga Fucus spiralis are abundant and show physiological adaptation to an epiphytic lifestyle

Macroalgae harbour specific microbial communities on their surface that have functions related to host health and defence. In this study, the bacterial biofilm of the marine brown alga Fucus spiralis was investigated using 16S rRNA gene amplicon-based analysis and isolation of bacteria. Rhodobacteraceae (Alphaproteobacteria) were the predominant family constituting 23% of the epibacterial community. At the genus level, Sulfitobacter, Loktanella, Octadecabacter and a previously undescribed cluster were most abundant, and together they comprised 89% of the Rhodobacteraceae. Supported by a specific PCR approach, 23 different Rhodobacteraceae-affiliated strains were isolated from the surface of F. spiralis, which belonged to 12 established and three new genera. For seven strains, closely related sequences were detected in the 16S rRNA gene dataset. Growth experiments with substrates known to be produced by Fucus spp. showed that all of them were consumed by at least three strains, and vitamin B₁₂ was produced by 70% of the isolates. Since growth of F. spiralis depends on B₁₂ supplementation, bacteria may provide the alga with this vitamin. Most strains produced siderophores, which can enhance algal growth under iron-deficient conditions. Inhibiting properties against other bacteria were only observed when F. spiralis material was present in the medium. Thus, the physiological properties of the isolates indicated adaption to an epiphytic lifestyle.     

Optical Feedback Loop Involving Dinoflagellate Symbiont and Scleractinian Host Drives Colorful Coral Bleaching

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Combination of dual-energy computed tomography and iterative metal artefact reduction to increase general quality of imaging for radiotherapy patients with high dense materials. Phantom study

PurposeTo evaluate the use of pseudo-monoenergetic reconstructions (PMR) from dual-energy computed tomography, combined with the iterative metal artefact reduction (iMAR) method.MethodsPseudo-monoenergetic CT images were obtained using the dual-energy mode on the Siemens Somatom Definition AS scanner. A range of PMR combinations (70–130 keV) were used with and without iMAR. A Virtual Water™ phantom was used for quantitative assessment of error in the presence of high density materials: titanium, alloys 330 and 600. The absolute values of CT number differences (AD) and normalised standard deviations (NSD) were calculated for different phantom positions. Image quality was assessed using an anthropomorphic pelvic phantom with an embedded hip prosthesis. Image quality was scored blindly by five observers.ResultsAD and NSD values revealed differences in CT number errors between tested sets. AD and NSD were reduced in the vicinity of metal for images with iMAR (p < 0.001 for AD/NSD). For ROIs away from metal, with and without iMAR, 70 keV PMR and pCT AD values were lower than for the other reconstructions (p = 0.039). Similarly, iMAR NSD values measured away from metal were lower for 130 keV and 70 keV PMR (p = 0.002). Image quality scores were higher for 70 keV and 130 keV PMR with iMAR (p = 0.034).ConclusionThe use of 70 keV PMR with iMAR allows for significant metal artefact reduction and low CT number errors observed in the vicinity of dense materials. It is therefore an attractive alternative to high keV imaging when imaging patients with metallic implants, especially in the context of radiotherapy planning.     

粳稻龙锦1号/香软米1578杂交组合F_5家系群糙米总花色苷含量变异及相关性分析

随着环境污染加剧和人们对自身健康关注度的提高,功能性食品在全球范围内蓬勃发展。彩色稻米作为稻米家族中的一员,由于富含微量元素、花色苷、生物碱等功能性成分,已成为当前功能性食品研究开发的热点之一。本研究利用粳稻品种龙锦1号/香软米1578杂交组合214个F_5家系,对水稻糙米总花色苷含量、粒色等级和千粒重的变异及其相关性进行了分析。糙米粒色等级变异范围为1~9,平均值为4.98,变异系数为57.87%;糙米总花色苷含量变异范围为0~5459.34 mg/kg,平均值为834.47 mg/kg,变异系数为191.96%;糙米千粒重变异范围为11.96~26.24 g,平均值为17.75 g,变异系数为12.89%。糙米总花色苷含量、粒色等级和千粒重在F5家系中不符合正态分布,表现为右偏态,其中糙米总花色苷含量的偏斜程度最大。糙米总花色苷含量和千粒重的峰度系数为正值,表明为尖顶峰;而糙米粒色等级的峰度系数为负值,表明为平顶峰。糙米总花色苷含量与粒色等级呈极显著正相关,相关系数为0.69;糙米总花色苷含量、粒色等级均与千粒重呈极显著负相关,相关系数分别为-0.20和-0.34。与高亲龙锦1号相比,27个家系的糙米总花色苷含量极显著提高,占214个F_5家系的12.62%,为高花色苷水稻种质创新奠定了基础。     

Succession of mycorrhizal fungi in stands of Pinus sylvestris in the Netherlands

The mycorrhizal mycoflora was investigated in 35 stands of Pinus sylvestris in three types of young (4-13 yr) and three of old (50-80 yr) stands in the Netherlands, differing in number of rotations and soil type. A plot of 1050 m² (30 m x 35 m) within each stand was searched for carpophores during the autumns of 1986 and 1987. 10 soil samples per plot were taken in October 1987 in order to assess the mycorrhizal status of the tree roots. The composition of mycorrhizal mycoflora in the different plots was subjected to TWINSPAN cluster analysis and Detrended Correspondence Analysis. Plot groupings generated by these analyses largely parallelled the stand types, indicating that each stand type has its own mycoflora. Differences in myco-floristic composition between stand types were parallelled by differences in the composition of green vegetation. The young stand types had 3.5–27 x more carpophores and 1.4–6.8 x more species than two of the old stand types One old stand type was intermediate. Considerable differences in species composition between the young stand types were observed. It is concluded that the succession of mycorrhizal fungi is not primarily influenced by ageing of the trees, but rather by changes in the soil. The results were compared with data on changes in the occurrence of fruiting species of mycorrhizal fungi in the Netherlands during this century. It appeared that species which have declined according to these data were more frequent in the young plots than in the old plots. However, these species are reported to be frequent in old stands of P. sylvestris in Estonia and Finland. It is argued that this difference is related to the high nitrogen deposition in the Netherlands.