Leaf litter breakdown in a Mediterranean stream characterised by travertine precipitation

1. Breakdown of four leaf species ( Platanus orientalis , Populus nigra , Salix atrocinerea , Rubus ulmifolius ) was studied in a Mediterranean second-order stream characterised by abundant travertine precipitation, a history of fire in its catchment, and a recently revegetated alluvial corridor.
2. Compared to breakdown rates reported in the literature for congeneric species, breakdown of the four species was slow (k = 0.0024–0.0069 day⁻¹ for the tree species, and 0.0103 and 0.0111 day⁻¹ for Rubus ), in spite of high water temperatures, indicating that the travertine layer that quickly covered submerged leaves impeded decomposer activity and physical fragmentation losses.
3. Breakdown rates nevertheless differed between leaf species in a predictable manner, suggesting that the observed mass loss was largely due to biological processes.
4. The observed tendency towards increasing leaf nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations during breakdown suggests that microorganisms were actively involved in leaf breakdown; however, this interpretation must be viewed with caution because of potentially confounding effects by nutrients contained in the travertine layer.
5. Leaf breakdown of the three indigenous species was faster than that of the exotic species P. orientalis . Due to the recalcitrance of its leaves, the frequent use of Platanus in revegetation schemes following the destruction of indigenous vegetation by fire, exacerbates the negative effect of travertine precipitation on leaf breakdown and, by extension, energy flow in Mediterranean karst streams.     

Chemical composition of SÃo paulo atmospheric wet precipitation

Rainwater samples of the city of SÃo Paulo collected from December 1993 to April 1995 were analyzed for sulfate, nitrate, chloride, and amonium ions by ion chromatography, for Al, As, Cr, Fe, K, La, Mn, Na, Sm, and Zn by instrumental neutron activation analysis, and pH. Correlation and regression analysis indicated that H⁺ is more closely associated with nitrate than with sulfate ions. Sulfate ions are associated with ammonium, probably as (NH₄)₂SO₄ Statistical analysis suggest that Al, Fe, and Mn in precipitation are soil derivated and nitrate and sulfate ions are associated with anthropogenic sources.

     

应用经典热乙醇法从组分IV沉淀中制备白蛋白

将Ｃｏｈｎ氏６法低温乙醇分离人血浆中的组分ＩＶ（ＦＩＶ）沉淀,溶解于注射用水中,加入９５％乙醇后使乙醇浓度为９％,经加温、过滤及超滤制得白蛋白。每公斤ＦＩＶ沉淀可制得白蛋白５７．８ｇ。     

Effect of Precipitation Variability on Pollutant Concentrations in Soil: Implications for Exposure and Risk Assessments

Concentrations of toxic pollutants in surface soils must be predicted in order to assess exposures and risks that may arise from emissions at incinerators and other air pollution sources. At present, concentrations are predicted using deterministic models and time-averaged values of input parameters. This steady-state equilibrium approach does not address variability in the underlying transport and fate processes. This paper explores the variability of pollutant concentrations in surface soils that arises from precipitation, an intermittent process that governs wet deposition and leaching processes. Using long-term (45 to 50 years) historical records at 6 climato-logically diverse sites, concentrations predicted using the steady-state approach are compared to those predicted using a dynamic numerical model that simulates dry and wet deposition, leaching, and pollutant accumulation in the surface layer of soil using a daily time step. The models are compared for pollutants of low, medium, and high water solubility. Both models show that predictions depend strongly on the pollutant solubility and the precipitation pattern at the location. Average concentrations differed between locations by a factor of up to 4 due to precipitation patterns; the solubility of the pollutant had a much more pronounced effect. Both models produced similar long-term trends, for example, the duration of the period needed to achieve a quasi-steady-state pollutant concentration. However, for soluble pollutants, the dynamic model produced maximum 24-hr average concentrations that exceeded long-term averages by 4 to 8 times, and long-term predictions of the dynamic model exceeded predictions of the steady-state model by 1.9 to 3.6 times (depending on the site). These differences are caused by the steady-state assumption that deposition and leaching occur continuously. While the steady-state model can be used to estimate long-term trends of moderately to highly insoluble pollutants, the dynamic model should be used to predict short-term, maximum concentrations and both short- and long-term averages of soluble pollutants. Site-specific exposure and risk assessments should consider temporal variation and the use of a dynamic model if concentrations of soluble pollutants approach risk-based target levels.     

Fractional precipitation of plasmid DNA from lysate by CTAB

Preparative-scale purification of plasmid DNA has been attempted by diverse methods, including precipitation with solvents, salts, and detergents and chromatography with ion-exchange, reversed-phase, and size-exclusion columns. Chromatographic methods such as hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC), reversed phase chromatography (RPC), and size exclusion chromatography (SEC) are the only effective means of eliminating the closely related relaxed and denatured forms of plasmid as well as endotoxin to acceptable levels. However, the anticipated costs of manufacturing-scale chromatography are high due to (a) large projected volumes of the high-dosage therapeutic molecule and (b) restricted loading of the large plasmid molecule in the pores of expensive resins. As an alternative to chromatography, we show herein that precipitation with the cationic detergent, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), is effective for selective precipitation of plasmid DNA from proteins, RNA, and endotoxin. Moreover, CTAB affords novel selectivity by removal of host genomic DNA and even the more closely related relaxed and denatured forms of plasmid as earlier, separate fractions. Finally, plasmid that has been precipitated by CTAB can be purified by selectively dissolving under conditions of controlled salt concentration. The selectivity mechanism is most likely based upon conformational differences among the several forms of DNA. As such, CTAB precipitation provides an ideal nonchromatographic capture step for the manufacture of plasmid DNA.     

黄土地区小流域植被覆盖和降水对侵蚀产沙过程的影响

以1982~2000年吕二沟地区的水文气象观测资料与遥感资料为数据源,进行流域产沙强度与径流指标、降水指标、植被覆盖指标之间的相关与多元回归分析,结果表明,流域产沙强度随径流指标、降雨指标的增加而增大,随植被覆盖指标的增加而减小。为了区分人为因素与自然因素对侵蚀产沙的影响,采用对数据进行标准化处理之后再进行多元回归分析的方法,来确定相对贡献率。结果表明,植被盖度和降水变化对吕二沟流域土壤侵蚀量变化的贡献率分别为45·7%和54·3%,可见土壤侵蚀量受降水的影响要略大于受植被覆盖的影响。     

Unexpected role of winter precipitation in determining heat requirement for spring vegetation green‐up at northern middle and high latitudes

Heat requirement, expressed in growing degree days (GDD), is a widely used method to assess and predict the effect of temperature on plant development. Until recently, the analysis of spatial patterns of GDD requirement for spring vegetation green‐up onset was limited to local and regional scales, mainly because of the sparse and aggregated spatial availability of ground phenology data. Taking advantage of the large temporal and spatial scales of remote sensing‐based green‐up onset data, we studied the spatial patterns of GDD requirement for vegetation green‐up at northern middle and high latitudes. We further explored the correlations between GDD requirement for vegetation green‐up and previous winter season chilling temperatures and precipitation, using spatial partial correlations. We showed that GDD requirement for vegetation green‐up onset declines towards the north at a mean rate of 18.8 °C‐days per degree latitude between 35°N and 70°N, and vary significantly among different vegetation types. Our results confirmed that the GDD requirement for vegetation green‐up is negatively correlated with previous winter chilling, which was defined as the number of chilling days from the day when the land surface froze in the previous autumn to the day of green‐up onset. This negative correlation is a well‐known phenomenon from local studies. Interestingly, irrespective of the vegetation type, we also found a positive correlation between the GDD requirement and previous winter season precipitation, which was defined as the sum of the precipitation of the month when green‐up onset occur and the precipitation that occurred during the previous 2 months. Our study suggests that GDD requirement, chilling and precipitation may have complex interactions in their effects on spring vegetation green‐up phenology. These findings have important implications for improving phenology models and could therefore advance our understanding of the interplay between spring phenology and carbon fluxes.     

Responses of annual herb plant community characteristics to increased precipitation and reduced wind velocity in semiarid sandy grassland

Changes in precipitation regimes and wind velocity tend to alter structure and composition of the annual herb plant community, with consequent effects on ecological functioning and biodiversity maintenance. We examined the effects of increased precipitation and reduced wind velocity on annual herb plant community characteristics via a manipulative experiment from the middle of April to middle of August, 2016. There was significant increment in species richness with increased precipitation from June to August, and there were interactive effects between increased precipitation and reduced wind velocity especially in June and the end of July. From June to August, increased precipitation, reduced wind velocity as well as their interaction stimulated sandy plant community development. There was considerable elevation in plant coverage with increased precipitation, and also there was an interactive effect of increased precipitation with 20% reduced wind velocity. However, reduced wind velocity caused more significant stimulation (p < .01) in plant height. Moreover, dominant plants, Salsola collina, Bassia dasyphylla, and Setaria viridis, contributed equally to the elevated community coverage with increased precipitation, whereas S. collina occupied a much larger proportion on the augment of community height compared with the other two species under the increased precipitation and reduced wind velocity. Elevated Shannon–Wiener index was detected with increased precipitation in June and July. Furthermore, increased precipitation and reduced wind velocity enhanced aboveground and belowground biomass, respectively. These species traits‐in structuring and composing plant community were suggested to be conducive to deep understanding the plant functioning and dynamics under global changing precipitation regimes and atmospheric wind velocity scenarios.     

"蒸发悖论"在秦岭南北地区的探讨

潜在蒸散量(ET0)是大气蒸发的估计值,已经广泛应用于灌溉管理和无实测蒸发资料地区的估算.分析ET0的时空变化是研究水资源对气候变化响应的基础工作,同时对于农业水资源的优化利用也具有重要意义.根据秦岭南北47个气象站1960-2011年逐日数据,利用FAO Penman-Monteith公式计算出各站的潜在蒸散量(ET0),研究了气温、降水与ET0之间的长期变化趋势关系,对导致ET0下降的主要原因进行了讨论,着重对秦岭南北地区是否存在“蒸发悖论”进行验证.结果表明:(1)秦岭南北整体气温经历了先降后升的变化过程,1993年为突变年份,1960-1993年的降温速率和1994-2011年的升温速率均表现出由南向北递减的规律,1960-2011年整体升温速率由北向南递减.(2)1979年和1993年是ET0变化的转折点,以1979和1993为界ET0经历了“升—降—降”的变化阶段.1960-1979年仅汉水流域和巴巫谷地存在“蒸发悖论”现象,1980-1993、1994-2011和1960-2011年3个时段区域整体和各子区均发现了“蒸发悖论”现象.秋季后18a和52a整体以及冬季前34a和52a整体均存在“蒸发悖论”现象,冬季最为明显.(3)近52年整体降水表现出不显著的下降趋势,相较于年尺度,夏季降水与ET0逆向变化趋势更为明显.(4)年尺度上,太阳辐射(日照时数)下降引起的潜热通量减少是造成ET0下降即“蒸发悖论”现象的主要原因.季节尺度,春季ET0下降的主导因素为风速,其它季节均为太阳辐射(日照时数).     

盐胁迫下构树幼苗各器官中K+、Ca2+、Na+和Cl-含量分布及吸收特征

将当年生构树幼苗置于含有不同浓度（04、1、2、3、4 g·kg^-1）NaCl的土壤中,研究其生物量积累、叶片细胞质膜透性和K⁺、Ca²⁺、Na⁺、Cl^-等离子的吸收、分布及运输,并观察盐害症状.结果表明：构树幼苗的叶片质膜透性随着NaCl浓度的增加和胁迫时间的延长而升高,根冠比随NaCl浓度的升高而增加,大于3 g·kg^-1的土壤盐胁迫对构树叶片的质膜透性及植株的生物量积累影响显著.构树幼苗各器官中Na⁺和Cl^-含量随土壤NaCl浓度升高而显著增加,K⁺和Ca²⁺则随之降低,叶片各离子含量均明显高于根和茎.说明盐胁迫影响根系对K⁺和Ca²⁺的吸收,并抑制了它们向地上部分的选择性运输,使叶和茎的K⁺和Ca²⁺含量下降.构树通过吸收积累Na⁺和Cl^-抵御土壤盐分带来的渗透胁迫,但过量的Na⁺和Cl^-积累会造成单盐毒害.作为抗盐性较高的非盐生植物,构树地上部分的拒盐作用不显著.