Prediction of heavy-metal concentrations in mature plants by chemical analysis of seedlings

Five plant species were cultivated on a soil from the Neckar alluvial fan near Heidelberg (FRG) polluted by the emissions of a cement plant. Thallium, cadmium and lead concentrations in seedlings and mature plants were determined by atomic absorption analysis. AdditionallyBrassica napus L.napus was grown on soils containing 5 different concentrations of heavy metals, achieved by mixing two similar soils, from the same area but with different metal concentrations. Thallium and cadmium were shown to be taken up by roots whilst lead which was also absorbed, was deposited mainly on the plant surface. However during cultivation in the winter months, a remarkable deposit of lead via the roots was found. Thallium in the soil from a anthrorogen source was more available to plants than thallium of geological origin. During the lifetime of a plant concentrations of thallium and cadmium were always highest in the seedling. The decrease in metal concentration with maturity depended on the plant species and the element, but was not a function of the metal concentration in the soil.     

A comparative study of ammonium toxicity at different constatn pH of the nutrient solution

Seedlings of 14 species were grown for 14–28 days on nutrient solution with 6 mmol.l⁻¹ NH₄ as the sole nitrogen source. Solutions acidity was were kept constant at pH 4.0, 5.0, 6.0 and 7.0 by continuous titration with diluted KOH. The following species were used: barley, maize, oats sorghum, yellow and white lupin, pea, soybean, carrot, flax, castor-oil, spinach, sugarbeet and sunflower. Most plant species grew optimally at pH 6.0 with slight reductions at pH 5.0. Growth of many species was severely inhibited at pH 4.0, but this inhibition was not observed with the legume and cereal species. Yield depressions at pH 4.0 relative to pH 6.0 were well correlated with the respective relative decreases of the K concentration in their roots (P<0.002). In the roots of two species (sunflower and flax) total N concentrations were also strongly reduced at pH 4.0. apparently, the interactions between uptake of K, NH₄ and H ions become the prevalent problem at suboptimal pH. At pH 7.0, yields were also considerably decreased, with the exception of the lupines. At this pH, the roots of the growth inhibited plants were characterized by increased levels of total N and free NH₄. It is thought that the binding capacity of the roots for NH₄ is an important factor in preventing NH₄/NH₃ toxicity at supraoptimal pH.     

Induction and floral determination in the terminal bud of Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Maryland Mammoth,a short-day plant

Floral determination in the terminal bud of the short-day plant Nicotiana tabacum cv. Maryland Mammoth has been investigated. Plants grown continuously in short days flowered after producing 31.4±1.6 (SD) nodes while plants grown continuously in long days did not flower and produced 172.5±9.5 nodes after one year. At various ages, expressed as number of leaves that were at least 1.0 cm in length above the most basal 10-cm leaf, one of three treatments was performed on plants grown from seed in short days: 1) whole plants were shifted from short days to long days, 2) the terminal bud was removed and then rooted and grown in long days, and 3) the terminal bud was removed and then rooted and grown in short days. Whole plants flowered only when shifted from short days to long days at age 15 or later. Only rooted terminal buds from plants at age 15 or older produced plants that flowered when grown in long days. Only terminal buds from plants at age 15 or older that were rooted and grown in short days produced the same number of nodes as they would have produced in their original locations while buds from younger plants produced more nodes than they would have in their original locations. Thus, determination for floral development in the terminal bud, as assayed by rooting, is simultaneous with the commitment to flowering as assayed by shifting whole plants to non-inductive conditions.Abbreviations LD long day(s) - SD short day(s) - DN dayneutral     

Competition between Dunaliella species at high salinity

Information on the distribution of more than 225 species of planktonic, periphytic, and benthic rotifers from diverse waters in south and central Sweden was analyzed for pH preference. No particularly strong correlation was found between pH and any other environmental factor, with regards to rotifer distribution. However, species indicating oligotrophy generally have their pH optima at or below 7.0, while those indicating eutrophy occur at or above this level. Rotifers found in acidic waters are often non-planktonic or semiplanktonic.     

Succession in zooplankton and hydrophytes of a seasonal water on the west coast of South Africa

Paramesochra mielkei sp.n. is described and figured from the interstices of subtidal sandy sediments off the SW Dutch coast. Kunz' (1981) phylogenetic scheme of the Paramesochridae Lang, 1948 is re-examined and it is suggested that the family comprises two phyletic lines which originated early in paramesochrid evolution. Translation into Linnean hierarchies implies the establishment of two new sub-families. Within the primitive Diarthrodellinae subfam. n., Tisbisoma Bozic, 1964 is ancestral to Diarthrodella Klie, 1949 s.l. and Rossopsyllus Soyer, 1975. Remanea Klie, 1929 is transferred to the Paramesochrinae subfam. n. which comprises the genera of both the Scottopsyllus- and the Paramesochra-group. The aberrant genus Caligopsyllus Kunz, 1975, standing close to Apodopsyllus, is removed from the Paramesochra-group. P. brevifurca Galhano, 1970 is splitted into two subspecies and replaced in the genus Paramesochra. An attempt is made to assess the phyletic interrelationships of the Paramesochra-species and the resulting cladogram splits the genus into four species-groups. P. mielkei sp.n. is referred to the dubia-group and seems to be closely related to P. borealis Geddes, 1981. Finally, an amended diagnosis and a revised key to the species of the genus Paramesochra are presented.     

Aquatic Oligochaeta in some tributaries of the Río de La Plata,Buenos Aires,Argentina

The Oligochaeta of some streams flowing into the Rio de La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina, were investigated. Twenty nine taxa (twenty four naidids, five tubificids) were identified. Most species are cosmopolitan, but Dero evelinae, Pristina leidyi, Slavina isochaeta and Bothrioneurum sp. are neotropical. Bratislavia unidentata, Haemonais waldvogeli and Nais pardalis are reported for the first time in Argentina. Variants occurr in the shape of the distal end of the penial sheaths of Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri. The dominant Naidid genera are Dero and Pristina. In the polluted El Gato stream only L. hoffmeisteri and L. claparedeianus were found.     

On species of genus Lepadella (Eurotatoria:Monogononta:Colurellidae) from North-Eastern India,with remarks on Indian taxa

Ten species of Lepadella Bory de St. Vincent, 1826, including one new species and one new form, are documented from North-Eastern India. Two of these species are new records from this country and six are new reports from N.E. region. Comments are also made on the status and distribution of various Indian taxa.     

Single potassium channels in membranes of isolated mesophyll barley vacuoles

Summary Voltage-dependent K channels could be identified in on-cell and excised patch-clamp records on membranes of isolated plant cell vacuoles. The current through a membrane patch is dominated by a channel population with a conductance of about 121 pS in symmetrical 250mm KCl solution. The single channel adopts at least two conducting levels the 121-pS state being most frequently observed. The channel shows outward rectification, representing a cation flux into the vacuoles. The rectification appears to be caused by a vanishing open probability and a short channel lifetime at hyperpolarizing voltages. A selectivity ratio of potassium over sodium of about 6 was derived as an estimate. Occasionally, an additional population of K channels with a single-channel conductance of approximately 18 pS is observed. This channel type exhibits outward rectification as well.     

Recruitment of lysozyme as a major enzyme in the mouse gut: Duplication,divergence, and regulatory evolution

Summary Two major types of lysozymec (M and P) occur in the mouse genus,Mus, and have been purified from an inbred laboratory strain (C58/J) ofM. domesticus. They differ in physical, catalytic, and antigenic properties as well as by amino acid replacements at 6 of 49 positions in the amino-terminal sequence. Comparisons with four other mammalian lysozymesc of known sequence suggest that M and P are related by a gene duplication that took place before the divergence of the rat and mouse lineages. M lysozyme is present in most tissues; achieves its highest concentration in the kidney, lung, and spleen; and corresponds to the lysozyme partially sequenced before from another strain ofM. domesticus. InM. domesticus and several related species, P lysozyme was detected chiefly in the small intestine, where it is probably produced mainly by Paneth cells. A survey of M and P levels in 22 species of muroid rodents (fromMus and six other genera) of known phylogenetic relationships suggests that a mutation that derepressed the P enzyme arose about 4 million years ago in the ancestor of the housemouse group of species. Additional regulatory shifts affecting M and P levels have taken place along lineages leading to other muroid species. Our survey of 187 individuals of wild house mice and their closest allies reveals a correlation between latitude of origin and level of intestinal lysozyme.     

Meloidogyne californiensis n. sp. (Nemata: Meloidogyninae), Parasitic On Bulrush,Scirpus robustus Pursh

Meloidogyne californiensis n. sp. is described and illustrated from bulrush Scirpus robustus in California. LM and SEM studies revealed that this species differs from other known species in the genus Meloidogyne especially by the prominent posterior cuticular protuberances in the female, the distinct shape of the perineal pattern which is marked by one prominent stria in the perineum, indistinct lateral lines, many broken discontinuous striae on both sides of the arch, and the excretory pore being located posterior to stylet base. Second-stage juveniles 448-628 μm long, stylet length 11-13 μm, styler delicate, with small knobs sloping posteriorly, cephalic region with 2 or 3 annuli, and inflated rectum. Males vary greatly in size (712-1,952 μm), stylet length 18-28 μm (mean 22 μm), cephalic region slightly set off the body with two or three annuli, spear heavy with massive rounded knobs, lateral field marked by four areolated incisures as seen by SEM.