Nitrogen budget in the euphotic zone of Lake Biwa from spring to summer, 1986

The production rate of participate nitrogen (PN) in Lake Biwafrom March to June 1986 was calculated by monthly measurementsof the proteinaceous nitrogen production rates. The ‘new’production rate was estimated from the decrease in nitrate inthe euphotic zone; during this period (91 days) it was estimatedas 93 mg atoms m^–2, and accounted for 20% of the ‘total’PN production (460 mg atoms m^–2). This implies that {smalltilde}80% of the PN produced might be recycled in the euphoticzone. The increase in PN in the euphotic zone during this period(27 mg atoms m^–2) accounted for 5.9% of the ‘total’PN production. This indicates that the remaining 14% of PN producedin the euphotic zone was vertically transported. Sediment trapexperiments at 30 m depth indicate that 8.1% of the PN producedin the euphotic zone was measured as downward flux at 30 m depthduring the stagnation period. Decompositional loss of PN between12.5 (bottom of the euphotic zone) and 30 m depth was estimatedas 17 mg atoms m^–2. This was calculated on the basis ofaccumulation of ammonium, which accounted for 3.7% of the ‘total’PN production. The flux from the euphotic zone thus accountedfor 12% of the ‘total’ PN production, suggestingthe validity of the production model.     

The impaired expression of glycine decarboxylase in patients with hyperglycinemias

Glycine decarboxylase, a constituent of the glycine cleavage system, in patients with either nonketotic or ketotic hyperglycinemia (NKH and KH) was examined using an anti-chicken glycine decarboxylase antibody. Patients with NKH who have lesion in glycine decarboxylase are differentiated by its expressed level in the liver. One group is cases of the neonatal onset type who have neither activity of the enzyme nor protein reactive to the antibody. The other is a case of the late onset type who shows low but detectable activity of the enzyme and the desirable amount of the immunoreactive material. In the liver of a patient with KH not showing the appreciable activity of H-protein, ubiquitous amount of protein reactive to anti-H-protein IgG is detected and amount of glycine decarboxylase has also been lowered. It is suggested that several mechanisms may be involved in determining the expressed level of glycine decarboxylase in patients with hyperglycinemias.     

Evaluating the reduction in green house gas emissions achieved by the implementation of the household appliance recycling in Japan

Background, Aim and Scope The Home Appliance Recycling Law (hereunder referred to as the Law) for used cathode ray tube (CRT) TVs, air conditioners, refrigerators and washing machines was enacted in April 2001 in Japan. The Law requires that retailers reclaim, and manufacturers and importers recycle such home appliances. Consumers are required to pay collection and recycling fees incurred in disposing of any of the four home appliances. Home appliances must, as a general rule, be managed in accordance with the Law. In reality, other routes exist, such as via local authorities, scrap processors, illegal dumping and exporting. At about the time the Law was enacted, the refrigerant used for air conditioners and refrigerators was replaced by more environmentally friendly substances such as isobutene. Local authorities had the responsibility of disposing of the appliances of households before the enactment of the Law. It was general practice for local authorities to dispose of home appliances in landfills after breaking them up and recovering valuable resources such as iron, copper and aluminum. Although they made efforts to recover refrigerant fluorocarbons, there were not required to do so. Materials and Methods This study analyzed the material flow resulting from the Law and other processing flows to quantify the global warming effect caused by home appliance recycling using the life cycle assessment (LCA) method. To evaluate the Law and to develop policy planning, the challenges of future efforts will be considered using time series data. For these reasons, we have assessed the Project Scenario, which corresponded to the present reality; the Baseline Scenario, which assumed that measures such as the Law were not implemented after 2000, and the Ideal Scenario, where all used products were recycled as prescribed by the Law. The environmental impacts for each scenario were estimated using value, which was obtained from multiplying the amount of reproduction and waste treatment by each inventory data. Results It is estimated that emission reductions of 4.7E+4 t CO₂e, subtracted the Project Scenario from the Baseline Scenario, were reduced for TVs in 2001 through recycling. The impact from recycling glass from cathode ray tube (CRT) televisions is significant. An improvement of 2.3E+4 t CO₂e could be anticipated by upgrading to the Ideal Scenario in 2001. It was estimated that there was a reduction of 9.2E+5 t CO₂e in 2001 for air conditioners. Although the effect of the recovery for refrigerants contributed greatly, some fluorocarbons that are still discharged have had a considerable impact on greenhouse gas emissions. Hypothetically, a reduction of 3.2E+6 t CO₂e could be anticipated with the Ideal Scenario in 2001. A reduction of 2.6E+6 t CO₂e was achieved for refrigerators in 2001. Although a further reduction can be anticipated through the Ideal Scenario, there will not be much difference with the Project Scenario by 2010. It was estimated that 3.8E+4 t CO₂e were reduced for washing machines in 2001. Only a small improvement can be expected through the Ideal Scenario. Discussion Since many assumptions were used in this study, a sensitivity analysis was carried out in order to grasp their impact. The findings of the sensitivity analysis are that the uncertainties are large, but the number of the greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions is still clear except for the difference between the Project Scenario and the Ideal Scenario for TVs. This analysis gives authenticity to the findings. Conclusions Establishing a system for liquid crystal display and plasma display panel TVs is desirable because the absolute amount of used LCD/PDP TVs will rapidly increase as the usage of CRT TVs rapidly decreases from 2007. With regard to refrigerant recovery from air conditioners, a significant decrease in GHG emissions has been recorded. There is, however, still ample room for improvement. It will be necessary to switch to refrigerants with low global warming potentials (GWPs) or work more on improving the recovery rate in the future. Alternatives and recovery of fluorocarbons from refrigerators contributed greatly to GHG reductions. The GHG emissions from refrigerator recycling will be minimal whether used refrigerator will be processed legally or not because most used refrigerators will contain natural refrigerants in the near future. The improvement for washing machines was low because it was assumed that their main constituent steel has been previously recycled, and that the plastic recycling rate will not change significantly in the future. An improvement in the recycling technology itself is required. This study was carried out on four home appliance products, and it was found that the Home Appliance Recycling Law has brought significant reductions in GHG emissions. There is also room to make GHG reductions through improving the processing methods further. Recommendations and Perspectives The impact on GHG emissions by fluorocarbons of air conditioners and refrigerators is the greatest. Adequate measures are particularly required for air conditioners that may continue to discharge GHGs in the future. ESS-Submission Editor: Dr. Lindita Bushi (lindita.bushi@ghgm.com)     

Induction of Chitinase and Phenylalanine Ammonia-Lyase in Cultured Carrot Cells Treated with Fungal Mycelial Walls

Addition of insoluble mycelial walls of a fungus, Chaetomiumglobosum, stimulated the induction of chitinase and phenylalanineammonia-lyase (PAL), as well as the accumulation of phenolicacids in cultured carrot cells. Mycelial wall fragments solubilizedby chitinase treatment also elicited accumulation of phenolicacids. The induction of chitinase and PAL were highly dependenton the age of the carrot cell cultures, as are other defenseresponses, including phytoalexin production. (Received April 2, 1986; Accepted August 22, 1986)     

Three‐dimensional visualization of mixed species biofilm formation together with its substratum

Biofilms, such as dental plaque, are aggregates of microorganisms attached to a surface. Thus, visualization of biofilms together with their attached substrata is important in order to understand details of the interaction between them. However, so far there is limited availability of such techniques. Here, non‐invasive visualization of biofilm formation with its attached substratum by applying the previously reported technique of continuous‐optimizing confocal reflection microscopy (COCRM) is reported. The process of development of oral biofilm together with its substratum was sequentially visualized with COCRM. This study describes a convenient method for visualizing biofilm and its attached surface.     

Autoregulation of the partition genes of the mini-F plasmid and the intracellular localization of their products in Escherichia coli

The sopAB operon and the sopC sequence, which acts as a centromere, are essential for stable maintenance of the mini-F plasmid. Immunoprecipitation experiments with purified SopA and SopB proteins have demonstrated that these proteins interact in vitro. Expression studies using the lacZ gene as a reporter revealed that the sopAB operon is repressed by the cooperative action of SopA and SopB. Using immunofluorescence microscopy, we found discrete fluorescent foci of SopA and SopB in cells that produce both SopA and SopB in the presence of the sopC DNA segment, but not in the absence of sopC, suggesting the SopA-SopB complex binds to sopC segments. SopA was exclusively found to colocalize with nucleoids in cells that produced only SopA, while, in the absence of SopA, SopB was distributed in the cytosolic spaces.     

Studies of the mouse Ly-6 alloantigen system

The discovery of several monoclonal antibodies provided the impetus to revisit the Ly-6 group of antigens. Our serological data point to the existence of at least five separate Ly-6 antigens. They are distinguished by the patterns of their tissue expression as (1) the classical Ly-6 alloantigen of peripheral lymphocytes (Ly-m6.2A), (2) a bone marrow cell-restricted antigen (Ly-m6.2B), (3) an antigen shared by bone marrow cells and peripheral lymphocytes (Lym6.2C, possibly identical with H9/25),(4) an antigen expressed on bone marrow cells, thymocytes, and peripheral lymphocytes (Ly-m6.2D), and (5) an antigen occurring exclusively on lymphoblasts (Ly-m6.IE, similar to Ala-1). ThB is a sixth distinct antigen of the group. The assumption that separate antigens exist is supported by distinctive distribution patterns in normal and neoplastic tissues. The genes controlling Ly-6 antigens are closely linked, as they are transmitted as two haplotypes only. One incidence of a crossover within the Ly-6 region was observed: the Ly-6B.2 alloantigen was expressed in NZB mice, which type Ly-6.1 for other Ly-6 specificities.