Structures and antiviral activities of butyrolactone derivatives isolated from Aspergillus terreus MXH-23

A new butyrolactone derivative, namely butyrolactone VIII(1), and six known butyrolactones(2-7) were separated from the ethyl acetate(Et OAc) extract of the fermentation broth of a fungus, Aspergillus terreus MXH-23. The chemical structures of these metabolites were identified by analyzing their nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR) and mass spectrometry(MS). Known butyrolactone derivatives contain an α,β-unsaturated γ-lactone ring with α-hydroxyl and γ-benzyl, and butyrolactone VIII(1) was the first butyrolactones contains α-benzyl and γ-hydroxyl on α,β-unsaturated lactone ring. All of the butyrolactone derivatives were tested for their anti-influenza(H1N1) effects. Derivatives 4 and 7 showed moderate antiviral activities while the newly-identified, derivative 1, did not.     

Structural geology and tectonics in marine science: Perspectives in the research of deep sea and deep interior

The fields of structural geology and tectonics have witnessed great progress over the last decade and are poised for further expansion in the future. One of the significant breakthroughs is the establishment of the ’Beyond Plate Tectonics Theory’ where a combination of conceptual models and numerical modeling on plume tectonics and plate tectonics has enabled new insights into the structural and tectonic architecture and processes in the deep interior and deep sea. This paper synthesizes developments of structural geology and tectonics from a macroscopic perspective in deep interior and deep sea. Four key techniques are also reviewed: satellite altimetry for surface structures in deep-sea multi-beam sea-floor mapping; tomography for tectonics of the deep interior; diverse modeling approaches and software for unfolding dynamic evolution; and techniques for HT/HP experiments on material rheology and in situ component measurements.     

Chemical profile of the secondary metabolites produced by a deep-sea sediment-derived fungus Penicillium commune SD-118

Bioassay-guided fractionation of the crude extract from Penicillium commune SD-118, a fungus obtained from a deep-sea sediment sample, resulted in the isolation of a known antibacterial compound, xanthocillin X (1), and 14 other known compounds comprising three steroids (2-4), two ceramides (5 and 6), six aromatic compounds (7-12), and three alkaloids (13-15). Xanthocillin X (1) was isolated for the first time from a marine fungus. In the bioassay, xanthocillin X (1) displayed remarkable antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, and significant cytotoxicity against MCF-7, HepG2, H460, Hela, Du145, and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. Meleagrin (15) exhibited cytotoxicity against HepG2, Hela, Du145, and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. This is the first report of the cytotoxicity of xanthocillin X (1).     

Identification and characterization of 43 microsatellite markers derived from expressed sequence tags of the sea cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus)

The sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus is a commercially and ecologically important species in China. A total of 3056 potential unigenes were generated after assembling 7597 A. japonicus expressed sequence tags (ESTs) downloaded from Gen-Bank. Two hundred and fifty microsatellite-containing ESTs (8.18%) and 299 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were detected. The average density of SSRs was 1 per 7.403 kb of EST after redundancy elimination. Di-nucleotide repeat motifs appeared to be the most abundant type with a percentage of 69.90%. Of the 126 primer pairs designed, 90 amplified the expected products and 43 showed polymorphism in 30 individuals tested. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 26 with an average of 7.0 alleles, and the observed and expected heterozygosities varied from 0.067 to 1.000 and from 0.066 to 0.959, respectively. These new EST-derived microsatellite markers would provide sufficient polymorphism for population genetic studies and genome mapping of this sea cucumber species.     

The concentration variation features of sea salt ions and non sea salt ions in a firn core recovered from Princess Elizabeth Land, East Antarctica

1　Introduction Thestudyonthefeaturesofatmosphericenvironmentbyglaciochemistryisthemajor contentofsnow iceandglobalchangeresearch.Antarcticicesheetisfarfromtheregions pollutedbyhumanactivities,andsurroundedbyocean,andtheAntarcticCircumpolarCur rentisthewideseawaterandatmospherebarrierbetweenAntarcticaandtheoutsideworld. AlloftheuniquegeographicalfeaturesmaketheimpuritiesinsnowandiceinAntarcticice sheetissimple.Therefore,itissignificanttostudytheorigins,transmissionpathsanddep ositionalst…     

Screening of marine fungus from Nanji Island and activity of their metabolites against pathogenic Vibrio from Pseudosciaena crocea

Seventy-eight marine fungal strains were isolated from sediment samples collected off the coast of Nanji Island,Wenzhou,Zhejiang Province,China.Antibacterial screening using the agar disc method showed that 19 of the isolated strains could inhibit at least one pathogenic Vibrio from Pseudosciaena crocea.Subsequent screening confirmed that nine strains produced antibacterial metabolites that had activity against one or several types of pathogenic Vibrio.Strain NJ0104 had the widest antimicrobial spectrum and strong activity,particularly against Vibrio parahaemolyticus-MM0810072.A preliminary study of NJ0104 antibacterial metabolites demonstrated that they had thermal stability up to 80°C,ultraviolet stability up to 40 min and pH stability between 4.0-7.0.In addition,the antibacterial metabolites were readily soluble in butanol.To identify the specific strain,the ITS-5.8S rDNA regions of NJ0104 were PCR amplified and sequenced.Based on the combination of phenotypic and genotypic data,the strain was identified as Arthrinium sp.     

海洋土曲霉C23-3与不同类型海洋微生物共培养对其次生代谢产物的影响

【目的】研究海洋土曲霉C23-3与不同类型海洋微生物共培养对其次生代谢产物的影响,挖掘土曲霉菌株C23-3的次生代谢潜力。【方法】将副溶血弧菌、枯草芽孢杆菌和胶红酵母的活菌或灭活菌体分别以不同时间与土曲霉C23-3共培养;采用DPPH自由基清除法和Ellman法分别评价各提取物的抗氧化和乙酰胆碱酯酶抑制活性,采用滤纸片法比较各提取物的抗菌活性,采用HPLC指纹图谱分析各提取物化学成分的差异。【结果与结论】发现不同类型的微生物与土曲霉共培养均可激活一些原本沉默的活性次级代谢产物;菌株及共培养物的化学拮抗能力、HPLC指纹图谱中的特征代谢产物变化揭示在活菌培养体系中土曲霉占竞争优势;而且灭活菌体中可能存在某些信号物质,在12 d时对土曲霉群体自感应信号分子丁内酯-I的产生具有比活菌更强的刺激作用。研究结果为深入挖掘海洋真菌代谢潜力及抗老年痴呆等活性先导化合物的发现提供基础。     

An analysis and modeling study of a sea fog event over the Yellow and Bohai Seas

In this study, a sea fog event which occurred on 27 March 2005 over the Yellow and Bohai Seas was investigated observationally and numerically. Almost all available observational data were used, including satellite imagery of Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-9, three data sets from station observations at Dandong, Dalian and Qingdao, objectively reanalyzed data of final run analysis (FNL) issued by the National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) and Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS) results. Synoptic conditions and fog characteristics were analyzed. The fog formed when warm,moist air was advected northwards over the cool water of the Yellow and Bohai Seas, and dissipated when a cold front brought northerly winds and cool, dry air. In order to better understand the fog formation mechanism, a high-resolution RAMS modeling with a 6km×6km grid, initialized and validated by FNL data, was designed. A 48h modeling that started from 12 UTC 26 March 2005reproduced the main characteristics of this sea fog event. The simulated lower visibility area agreed reasonably well with the sea fog region identified from the satellite imagery. Advection cooling effect seemed to play a significant role in the fog formation.     

Movements of the Western Pacific Warm Pool Centroid and Their Relationship to Sea Surface Temperature Changes in Nifio Regions

By using monthly historical sea surface temperature (SST) data for the years from 1950 to 2000, the Western Pacific Warm Pool (WPWP) climatology and anomalies are studied in this paper. The analysis of WPWP centroid (WPWPC) movement anomalies and the Niño-3 region SST anomalies(SSTA) seems to reveal a close, linear relation between the zonal WPWPC and Niño-3 region SSTA, which suggests that a 9° anomaly of the zonal displacement from the climatological position of the WPWPC corresponds to about a l°C anomaly in the Niño-3 region area-mean SST. This study connects the WPWPC zonal displacement with the Niño-3 SSTA, and it may be helpful in better understanding the fact that the WPWP eastward extension is conducive to the Niño-3 region SST increase during an El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event.     

Effect of culture methods on individual variation in the growth of sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus within a cohort and family

There is substantial individual variation in the growth rates of sea cucumber Apostiehopus japonicus individuals. This necessitates additional work to grade the seed stock and lengthens the production period. We evaluated the influence of three culture methods （free-mixed, isolated-mixed, isolated-alone） on individual variation in growth and assessed the relationship between feeding, energy conversion efficiency, and individual growth variation in individually cultured sea cucumbers. Of the different culture methods, animals grew best when reared in the isolated-mixed treatment （i.e., size classes were held separately）, though there was no difference in individual variation in growth between rearing treatment groups. The individual variation in growth was primarily attributed to genetic factors. The difference in food conversion efficiency caused by genetic differences among individuals was thought to be the origin of the variance. The level of individual growth variation may be altered by interactions among individuals and environmental heterogeneity. Our results suggest that, in addition to traditional seed grading, design of a new kind of substrate that changes the spatial distribution of sea cucumbers would effectively enhance growth and reduce individual variation in growth of sea cucumbers in culture.     

Stratigraphic Sequences and Their Implication in a Sea Area of the Western Yellow Sea Near Qingdao Coast During the Late Quaternary

1　Introduction　TheYellowSeahasaveragewaterdepthsbetween30and 90m (Liuetal.,1 987) .Liuindicatesthattworegressiveevents ,namedChengshantou (4 0 -75ka)andYellowSea (1 5 - 2 3ka) ,haveoccurredsincetheLatePleistocenebasedonthepeatbedsfoundincores (Liuetal.,…     

An investigation on tolerance and accumulation of a facultative marine fungus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aspergillus flavus</Emphasis> to pentavalent arsenic

Tolerance of a facultative marine fungus Aspergillus flavus towards As (V) was tested. Luxuriant growth of the test isolate was observed in culture media with As (V) concentrations of 25 mg L⁻¹ and 50 mg L⁻¹, indicating its tolerance to the metal. Accumulation rate of arsenic was always higher when exposed to As (V) at 50 mg L⁻¹ than at 25 mg L⁻¹. The study reveals Aspergillus flavus as a promising candidate for environmental bioremediation. Arsenic contents (mg g⁻¹) in the fungus when exposed to 50 mg L⁻¹ As (V) were measured as 11.1773, 4.0983, and 8.0000 mg g⁻¹ on day 3, 6 and 9, respectively. The highest content was observed initially, i.e. on day 3, followed by a decline and a rise again. These results provide baseline information for further explorations regarding the exploitation of the fungus for arsenic removal.