STUDIES OF HAWAIIAN FRESHWATER AND SOIL ALGAE II. ALGAL COLONIZATION AND SUCCESSION ON A DATED VOLCANIC SUBSTRATE1,2

Spatial studies of colonization and succession of soil algae and chemical analyses of the various soils on the cinde cone of Kilauea Iki in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii are outlined. There is a positive correlation between the diversity and quantity of soil algae with nutrient levels and organic matter accumulation in each locale. Three distinct edaphic-biotic zones existing in this area are differentially revealed by the soil chemical composition, quantity and diversity of soil algae, and as evident variations in higher plant growth and colonization. Varying colonization and successional phases of higher plant growth around standing and fallen tree snags killed by volcanic activity also reflect variations in the soil algal flora. These variations appear largely as a function of differential water interception, absorption, and retention as well as differential accumulation of organic matter, and the initiation of various biogeochemical cycles.     

Fermented foods, feeds and beverages

There has been a proliferation of books and papers dealing with the indigenous fermented foods/beverages of the world. It is anticipated that these foods/beverages will play an ever-increasingly important role in feeding both the developing and the developed world as population increases from approximately 4.5 billion to 6 billion by the year 2000 and to 8 to 12 billion people in the 21st century. The indigenous fermented foods consist of microbial protein grown on edible substrates. Microbial or single cell protein (SCP) per se continues to receive research and development attention. It is likely to play an important role in feeding animals in the future when it becomes competitive with soy protein. It may play a direct role in feeding humans in the future after its safety for feeding animals has been adequately demonstrated and it has been shown that it can be processed into foods acceptable to humans. At the present time, mushrooms, a form of microbial protein highly acceptable to humans, which can be grown readily on ligno-cellulosic and other agricultural and food processing wastes, offer considerable opportunity for expanding man's food supply.     

Relative contributions of biological and chemical reactions to the overall rate of pyrite oxidation at temperatures between 30 degrees C and 70 degrees C

The stoichiometry and kinetics of the spontaneous, chemical reaction between pyrite and ferric iron was studied at 30, 45, and 70 degrees C in shake flasks at pH 1.5 by monitoring the ferrous iron, total iron, elemental sulfur, and sulfate concentration profiles in time. It was found that the sulfur moiety of pyrite was oxidized completely to sulfate. Elemental sulfur was not produced in detectable amounts. The iron moiety of pyrite was released as ferrous iron. All observed initial reaction rates could be fitted into an empirical equation. This equation includes the concentrations of ferric iron and pyrite, and a constant which is dependent on the temperature and the nature of the main anion present. It was observed that ferrous iron formed during the reaction slowed down the oxidation of pyrite by ferric iron. The extent of this effect decreased with increasing temperature. With the aid of the empirical equation, the contribution of the chemical oxidation of pyrite by ferric iron to the overall oxidation in a hypothetical plug-flow reactor, in which biologically mediated oxdidation of pyrite and ferrous iron by oxygen also takes place, can be assessed. At 30, 45, and 70 degrees C, respectively, 2, 8-17, and 43% of the pyrite was oxidized chemically by ferric iron. Therefore, it is expected that only in reactors operating at high temperatures with extremely thermophilic bacteria, will chemical oxidation cause a significant deviation from the apparent first order overall kinetics of biological pyrite oxidation.     

Soil restoration under pasture after lignite mining: Management effects on soil biochemical properties and their relationships with herbage yields

The recovery of soil biochemical properties under grazed, grass-clover pasture, after simulated lignite mining, was studied over a 5-year period in a mesic Typic Dystrochrept soil at Waimumu, Southland, New Zealand. The restoration procedures involved four replacement treatments, after A, B, and C horizon materials had been separately removed, from all except the control, and stockpiled for 2–3 weeks. In each replacement treatment, the effects of ripping to 1.8 m depth, mole drainage, and the use of fertilizer nitrogen were also investigated.Replacement treatment markedly influenced the recovery of herbage production and soil organic C and total N contents, N mineralization, microbial biomass (as indicated by mineral-N flush) and invertase and sulphatase activities. The effectiveness of replacement treatments decreased in the order: 1. control (no stripping or replacement). 2 A, B, and C horizon materials replaced in the same order. 3. A, B, and C horizon materials each mixed with an equal amount of siltstone overburden and replaced in order, 4. A and B horizon materials mixed before replacing over C horizon material.Ripping increased herbage production, net N mineralization, and to some extent microbial biomass. Drainage had little, if any, effect.Fertilizer N also stimulated herbage production, but depressed clover growth. Over 2.5 years, it had little detectable effect on the soil properties.Increases in soil invertase and, to a lesser extent, sulphatase activity during the trial were closely related to changes in herbage production. Microbial biomass increased more rapidly than did soil organic C in the early stages of the trial.Rates of net N mineralization strongly suggest that N availability would have limited pasture growth, especially in the treatments with mixed soil materials.     

Predominance of picoplankton and nanoplankton in eutrophic Calder Lake

A study was conducted to examine factors regulating the biomass of algal picoplankton in Calder Lake, a small eutrophic lake in southern New York state. A particular focus was a current paradigm which suggests that larger cells may dominate in nutrient-rich waters, while smaller cells may predominate only in oligotrophic waters. Over two years, phytoplankton biomass consisted predominantly (74% on average) of very small organisms; nanoplankton (<20 to 2 µm: 39%) and picoplankton (<2 µm to 0.2 µm: 35%), despite the presence of surface blooms of colonial cyanobacteria (Microcystis aeruginosa, Anabaena limnetica), and dense metalimnetic populations of the dinoflagellate Ceratium hirundinella. This dimictic system is characterized by relatively high levels of total P (max = 85, % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafiart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGabmiEayaara% aaaa!3702!\[\bar x\] = 9.7 µg P/L), inorganic P (max = 26, % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafiart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGabmiEayaara% aaaa!3702!\[\bar x\] = 4.5 µg P/L), and total inorganic N (max = 285, % MathType!MTEF!2!1!+-% feaafiart1ev1aaatCvAUfeBSjuyZL2yd9gzLbvyNv2CaerbuLwBLn% hiov2DGi1BTfMBaeXatLxBI9gBaerbd9wDYLwzYbItLDharqqtubsr% 4rNCHbGeaGqiVu0Je9sqqrpepC0xbbL8F4rqqrFfpeea0xe9Lq-Jc9% vqaqpepm0xbba9pwe9Q8fs0-yqaqpepae9pg0FirpepeKkFr0xfr-x% fr-xb9adbaqaaeGaciGaaiaabeqaamaabaabaaGcbaGabmiEayaara% aaaa!3702!\[\bar x\] = 85 µg P/L), but larger forms were rarely the most abundant. Unlike some marine systems, greater abundance of algal picoplankton was not associated with deeper strata (low light), or warmer temperatures. Data suggest that midsummer nutrient limitation, especially P-limitation, favors the development of pico- and nanoplankton in the limnetic zone of eutrophic lakes.     

Litter processing in diffuse and conduit springs

We used bedrock geology and prior water chemistry data to classify and choose 4 conduit and 4 diffuse flow springs in a karst region of southeast Minnesota. Decomposition processes and chemical/physical conditions were compared between spring classes during two seasons (May and September, 1987).Although large storms and conduit run-in events did not occur during our sampling, baseline water chemistry supported our a priori spring classification. Baseline nitrate and atrazine levels were significantly higher in conduit than in diffuse springs. During a minor run-in event, atrazine levels increased significantly to at least 1.2 µg L^–1 in all conduit systems, but remained unchanged in diffuse systems.Decay rates of the two predominant litter sources in the springs (watercress [Nasturtium officinale R.Br.] in May and box elder [Acer negundo L.] in September) were used to assess differences in biological activity between the spring classes. During May, watercress decayed (1 mm coarse mesh bags) at approximately the same rate in conduit and diffuse systems, k = 0.094 and 0.099 respectively. This result was unexpected since shredder colonization was much greater on litter bags in diffuse systems. In September, boxelder decay rate was significantly higher in diffuse (k = 0.018) than in conduit (k = 0.013) springs; and decay rates seemed to reflect significantly higher shredder colonization on bags in diffuse systems. Microbial activity on watercress and boxelder litter, measured as electron transport system (ETS) activity, was seldom significantly different between spring classes. Also, both watercress and boxelder litter decay rates for fine mesh bags (240µm) were similar between conduit and diffuse springs, suggesting that microbial processing did not differ greatly between spring classes.In conduit springs, low shredder colonization was apparently the result of low benthic shredder densities. Shredders and other macroinvertebrates may be adversely affected by discharge fluctuations from conduit run-in events. We suspect that, during times of low flow, watercress standing stock was also an important influence on shredder abundance.     

Angeloylcumambrin-B,an antimicrobial sesquiterpene lactone from Chrysanthemum ornatum var. Spontaneum

Angeloylcumambrin-B, a new antimicrobial guaianolide sesquiterpene lactone, was isolated from Chrysanthemum ornatum and the structure was determined by a combination of chemical and physical methods.     

Critical problems with extraction of ATP for bioluminescence assay of plankton biomass

Recovery of ATP by boiling tris extraction was 90–95 percent greater in 1 liter grab samples than in concentrated net samples. ATP losses were attributed to insulating effects promoted by accumulation of detritus on filters. A series of extractions over a concentration range of whole or size-segregated plankters and cultured algae was made to determine volume of water to be filtered for optimum extraction efficiency. Accuracy of ATP assays was optimized by: (i) using large diameter (i.e. 47 mm) acetate filters; (2) limiting sample volume filtered to 50 ml when particulate organic carbon (POC) exceeded 0.4 mg l^–1; and (3) performing extractions in boiling tris maintained initially on a laboratory hot plate at 400°C as opposed to hot water bath at 100°C.Additional problems were encountered in using published cellular carbon: ATP ratios for conversion of ATP data to biomass as carbon. Ratios of POC: ATP in cultures of sheathed blue-green algae reached 550 : i, while non-sheathed forms yielded ratios near values previously reported for plankton communities. Difficulties in applying a uniform conversion factor may be expected in plankton communities containing significant volumes of sheathed blue-greens.     

植被类型变化对土壤微生物碳利用效率的影响研究进展

植被类型变化强烈影响着土壤碳循环。土壤微生物碳利用效率（CUE）是微生物将从环境中获取的碳分配给自身生长的比例,是土壤碳循环的综合指标。研究植被类型变化对CUE的影响有助于从微生物视角理解该过程中的土壤碳动态,可以为评估植被类型变化对土壤质量及生态系统碳循环的影响提供基础,具有重要的理论及实际价值。通过系统查阅相关文献,综述了植被类型变化导致的CUE变化情况,以及该过程中影响CUE的因子与机制。目前,相关研究主要涉及以林地、草地和农业用地为起点或终点的植被变化类型。天然林（原生林、次生林）变化为人工林、林地变化为草地后CUE普遍下降,随终点植被的发展CUE可能恢复至起点水平。植被成熟度越高,发生转变时CUE变化越剧烈。植被类型变化以农业用地为起点或终点时,CUE变化方向的不确定性及幅度的变异性均增加。植被类型变化导致的CUE变化主要受到植被、土壤、微生物因子及其交互作用的驱动,指示CUE的指标、采样季节和土层也会一定程度上影响CUE的变化。今后相关研究应采用直接的CUE测定方法,拓宽研究气候区及植被变化类型,关注植被变化过程中CUE变化的土层差异及动态监测,深入对植被类型变化导致的生态环境因子变化与CUE的关系及作用机制的研究。     

应用定量微生物风险评估海水浴场人体健康风险

【背景】定量微生物风险评估作为定量评估游泳人群暴露于病原微生物后健康风险的方法,在国外已得到广泛应用,但目前国内的应用处于起步阶段且缺乏所需的游泳人群暴露数据。【目的】收集游泳人群暴露数据,并在海水浴场中进行应用,评估粪大肠菌群作为风险评估指标的可行性。【方法】通过对6个典型海水浴场的水质状况、粪大肠菌群浓度与环境因子的相关性进行分析,并发放调查问卷收集国内游泳人群的暴露数据,进而应用定量微生物风险评估方法,得出各个海水浴场的胃肠道疾病患病风险。【结果】6个海水浴场中粪大肠菌群浓度均与水温、气温及总云量具有显著相关性(P<0.01)。位于南方的海水浴场粪便污染情况较北方严重,粪大肠菌群浓度第95百分位数远高于国内“差”类水质标准的阈值。儿童、成年男性、成年女性单次沐浴事件吞下海水的体积分别为35.1 mL (95%置信区间为32.4-37.8,α=0.578,β=0.016),45.0 mL (95%置信区间为31.1-59.3,α=0.532,β=0.012),35.7 mL (95%置信区间为29.7-41.8,α=0.753,β=0.032)。6个海水浴场患胃肠道疾病的风险...