Starvation metabolism of two common species of chironomids in Biandantang Lake

1 INTRODUCTION Chironomid larvae are main groups in most aquatic ecosystems, playing a crucial ecological role in decomposition of detritus and material ex- changes between water column and the sediment (Liang et al., 1995a, b; Chen, et al., 1982). They a…     

Effect of Nitrogen and Phosphorus on Tissue Nutrition and Biomass of Freshwater Wetland Plant in Sanjiang Plain, Northeast China

1 Introduction It has been reported that habitat nutrient availability frequently limited plant growth and determined species dominance and abundance in natural communities (Miao et al., 2000). Nutrient availability is also a main regulator of aquatic primary production. Human-induced nutrient enrichment results in die-back of native vegetation and alteration of species dominance in various aquatic eco- systems (Miao et al., 2000; Green and Galatowitsch, 2002). Particularly, nutrient enrichm…     

Amylase Production by the Marine Yeast Aureobasidium pullulans N13d

1 Introduction Amylases are enzymes which hydrolyze starch molecules to give diverse products including dextrin and pro-gressively smaller polymers composed of glucose units(Windish et al., 1965; Pandey et al., 2000; Chi et al.2001). Amylase is a kind of very important enzyme andconstitutes a class of industrial enzymes sharing approximately 25% of the enzyme market (Sindhu et al.1997; Rao et al., 1998). Amylases are universally distributed throughout the animal, plant and microbial kingdoms…     

Winter Phytoplankton Assemblages of Coastal Yellow Sea Connected to Jiaozhou Bay,China

I Introduction Phytoplankton play an important role in the primary production of ocean (Ning et al., 1995). They are impor-tant biological mediators of carbon turnover in seawater ecosystems (Zhu et al., 1993). Phytoplankton in Jiaozhou Bay have been preliminarily studied on the subjects of community structure, primary productivity and carbon budget (Qian et al., 1983; Guo et al., 1992; Jiao et al., 1994). It has been found that seasonal variation of phytoplankton cell abundance presents w…     

High-resolution Surface Relative Humidity Computation Using MODIS Image in Peninsular Malaysia

1 Introduction The Canadian Fire Weather Index (FWI) System can be used in applied forestry as a tool to investigate and manage all types of fire management (Chrosciewicz, 1978; McRae, 1980; Fyles et al., 1991; McRae et al., 1994). The development of the FWI system (Van Wag- ner, 1987; 1990) over the last two decades allows the routine prediction of fire behavior from weather data (Fyles et al., 1991). The FWI is calculated from point measurements of air temperature, relative humidity…     

Multi-agent Blind Model and Its Application to Regional Eco-environmental Quality Assessment

1 Introduction Eco-environmental quality assessment is an activity that is affected by man-made factors. As other environmental systems, regional eco-environment is also a complicated and uncertain system (Wu et al., 2005). Owing to these reasons, people may produce a style of subjective un- certainty in mind in evaluating such system (Liu et al. 1999a; Wu et al., 2004). According to unascertained mathematics (Liu et al., 1997; Liu et al., 1999b), we know that this kind of subjective uncerta…     

Silicon limitation on primary production and its destiny in Jiaozhou Bay, China——Ⅶ： The complementary mechanism of the earth ecosystem

1 INTRODUCTION In marine waters, water temperature and nutrient Si control the temporal and spatial variation of the phytoplankton growth (Yang et al., 2006). The effect of nutrient Si and water temperature on the mecha- nism of phytoplankton growth has p…     

Acute Toxicity of Formalin to the Red-tide Dinoflagellate Prorocentrum minimum Schiller (Protozoa, Mastigophora)

1Introduction Red tides occur in recorded history,but in recentyears there is a global increase in the number of theseevents due to coastal pollution and other unclear fac-tors.Some kinds of red tides cause mass deaths of cul-tured animals and thus cause heavy economic losses forcoastwise mariculture(Nakanishi et al.,1996;Changet al.,1998;Zhu et al.,1998;Tada et al.,2001).The investigation on red tide control,however,rem-ains insufficient(Burkholder,1998;Edwards and Clark,1999).Although man…     

Magnetic susceptibility variations of the Edicaran cap carbonates in the Yangtze platform and their implications for paleoclimate

1 INTRODUCTION One of the most intriguing phenomena in the late Neoproterozoic (~750 to 543 Ma) is the globa occurrence of thin carbonates that directly overlie glacial deposits in almost every continent (Kennedy 1996; Hoffman et al., 1998; Hoffman and Schrag 2002; Brasier and Shields, 2000; James et al., 2001 Jiang et al., 2003; Nogueira et al., 2003). These “cap carbonates”, commonly several to tens of meters thick, have attracted enormous interests because o their unusually negati…     

Photochemical degradation of crude oil in seawater

1 INTRODUCTION Marine photochemistry is a newly developed subject in marine sciences. Photochemical degrada- tion is important in decomposing and removing various organic contaminants in oceans (Ali et al., 1995a, b; Yang, 2000; Yang and Qi, 2002; 2003). …     

Energy Balance of Irrigated Intercropping Field in the Middle Reaches of Heihe River Basin

1 Introduction Most of the solar radiation that ecosystem seizes is con- sumed on latent, sensible and soil heat flux. Among them, latent heat flux shares the biggest part (Gutierrez and Meizer, 1994; Ham et al., 1991; Rachidi et al., 1993). The radiation budget and the energy balance are crucial to water conversion and effective water utilization. Also, they are important parts of research of water-saving ag- riculture (Mo et al., 1997). At present, the researches on radiation budget and e…     

THE SAND WEDGE AND MIRABILITE OFTHE LAST ICE AGE AND THEIR PALEOCLIMATICSIGNIFICANCE IN HEXI CORRIDOR

Sand wedge is formed under the conditions of coldclimate, and is an important basis for reconstructingpaleoenvironment (LI et al., 1990; WANG, 1991 ). Ithas been reported constantly over the last 20 years inthe Qinghai-Xizang (Tibet) Plateau (GUO, 1979; CUl,1983; XU et al., 1984; LIANG et al.,, 1984; PAN etal., 199 ) and North China (YANG et al., 1983; DONGet al., 1985) and Northeast China (GUO et al.,1981 ). We also found fossil sand wedge groups formedin the end of the Late P…     

Change of Cultivated Land and Its Implications on Food Security in China

1 Introduction FAO defined food security not only in terms of access to and availability of food, but also in terms of resources distribution to produce food and the purchasing power on food where it is not produced (Shi et al., 1996; Ning, 2004). Obviously, to guarantee everyone adequate food is the primary aim and most important content of food security (Xie et al., 1999). Thus, to increase food supply is a precondition for food security by domestic food production and international food t…     

Variation of alkaline phosphatase activity in sediments of shrimp culture ponds and its relationship with the contents of C,N and P

1Introduction Activities of extracellular enzymes can serve as theindicators of organic matter content.Enzyme assayinghas been used in the analyses of dissolved organic ma-terials in aquatic environments(Chrost,1991),massloss of plant litter in terrestrial systems(Sinsabaughet al.,1992;Sinsabaugh et al.,1994),processing ofpaniculate and dissolved organic carbon(POC,DOC)in streams(Sinsabaugh and Findlay,1995;Findlayet al.,1998),and processing of particulate organicmatter(POM)in wetlands(J…     

The isolation of prophyra-334 from marine algae and its UV-absorption behavior

1 INTRODUCTIONSolar ultraviolet radiation on the earth's surfaceincreases with the depletion of stratospheric ozone(Crutzen, 1992; Kerr and McElroy, 1993; Mad-ronich et al., 1998). Ultraviolet radiation is a highlyactive component of solar spectrum. The excessiveUV radiation has deleterious effects on all plant,animal and microbial groups exposed to solar radia-tion, including the destruction of DNA, proteins andother molecules (Harm, 1980), inhibition of photo-synthesis and growth (W…     

Purification and Refolding of a Novel β-Agarase from Inclusion Body of E. coli

1 Introduction Agarases produced by agar-degrading bacteria are classified into two groups based on their modes of action, namely, α-agarase and β-agarase. They hydrolyze α -1, 3 linkage and β-1, 4 linkage of agarose respectively (Duckworth and Turvey, 1969). Agarases are widely used in food, cosmetic and medical industries for the produc-tion of oligosaccharides from agar (Kobayashi et al., 1997; Yoshizawa et al., 1995). Neoagaro-oligo- saccharides produced by β-agarase inhibit the gro…     

THE HYDROLOGICAL EFFECT UNDER HUMAN ACTIVITIESIN THE INLAND WATERSHEDS OF XINJIANG, CHINA

I INTRODUCTIONNatllral environment and water transform in theworld have changed faster and faster under the effect ofhuman activities. The study on effect of human activities to hydrological processes, and its extent and tendency has been more and more important as one of theresearch projects of hydrology in the world (RAI et al.,1998, BASS et al., 1998, WANGet al.,, 1998; HILLet al., 1998; LIU, 1997). It became one of the mainresearch program of international Hydrological Decade(…     

AN INSIGHT ON DRIVERS OF LAND USE CHANGE AT REGIONAL SCALE

1INTRODUCTION Land use change (LUC) involves both changes to a dif- ferent function and shifts in intensity within a function. Today, researches on LUC are aiming at regional scale, andthestudiesofthetypicalregionalLUC drivingforces at meso- and small-scale become a key issue (VAN DIGGELEN et al., 2005; CHAPLOT et al., 2005). The studies of regional LUC driving forces are to reveal the realmotivationbehindtheLUCanditsinteractingmech- anism, so as to simulate and predict the p…     

Shrinking and Drying up of Baiyangdian Lake Wetland： A Natural or Human Cause？

1 Introduction The sensitivity of ecosystems to global climate change is one of important issues for research. Many studies have indicated that wetland ecosystem is one of the most vulnerable systems (Brock and Van, 1992; Vourltis and Oechel, 1997; Burkeet, 2000; Lahmer et al., 2001; Zhang et al., 2001; Deng et al., 2003). The shrinking and drying up of wetlands in arid and semiarid areas of China have been widely observed in the recent years (Wang, 1990; Wang and Zhang, 1991; Jin, 1993; …     

Impact of Land-use Patterns on Distributed Groundwater Recharge and Discharge——A Case Study of Western Jilin,China

1 Introduction Studying the impact of land-use on groundwater is a key issue in setting up a sound land-use planning project. Many studies have shown that land-use planning is fun- damental for the reliable protection of ecologically valuable wetlands. Thus special attention should be given to the effect of land-use on the hydrologic cycle and the protection of groundwater systems, especially recharge and discharge (Boeye and Verheyen, 1992; Bernàldez et al., 1993; Pucci and Pope, 1995; Bat…