Biomarkers and trace metals in the digestive gland of indigenous and transplanted mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis, in Venice Lagoon, Italy.

The aim of this study was to investigate the cellular and biochemical response of mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis, transplanted from a relatively pristine site to a polluted one and vice versa in the Lagoon of Venice (northeast of Italy) and to apply auto-metallography, a rapid and sensitive histochemical technique, to determine the bio-available fraction of heavy metals accumulated in the body tissues of organisms. Animal digestive glands have been used for morphological analyses (lysosomal volume, surface and numerical density, mean epithelial thickness, mean diverticular and luminar radius), autometallographical black silver deposits quantification and biochemical assays (superoxide dismutase and catalase activity). Furthermore, heavy metal content was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) using standard procedures. The overall results indicate a direct influence of the environment in the thinning of the digestive cells and in the increasing number of lysosomes in mussels from the more polluted site. These data are in agreement with the metal content in digestive cell lysosomes as determined by autometallography, whereas AAS measurements show less significant differences.     

杂色鲍裂壳病球状病毒的初步观察

1999年以来 ,广东汕尾地区养殖杂色鲍Haliotisdiversicolor出现了“裂壳病” ,经电镜观察 ,发现感染了一种球状病毒 ,大小为 1 5 0— 2 2 0nm ,皆存在于细胞的细胞质中 ,细胞核内没有发现病毒。主要侵染鲍的腹足、外套膜、性腺、肝、鳃等部位。病鲍表现为头端壳缘外翻 ,呼吸孔融合成一条线 ,活力减弱 ,身体消瘦 ,逐渐死亡。     

Coordinated monitoring of the eccentric O-star binary Iota Orionis: optical spectroscopy and photometry

With the objective of investigating the windwind collision phenomenon and supporting contemporaneous X-ray observations, we have organized a large-scale, coordinated optical monitoring campaign of the massive, highly eccentric O9 III+B1 III binary Iota Orionis. Successfully separating the spectra of the components, we refine the orbital elements and confirm the rapid apsidal motion in the system. We also see strong interaction between the components during periastron passage and detect phase-locked variability in the spectrum of the secondary star. However, we find no unambiguous signs of the bow shock crashing on the surface of the secondary, despite the predictions of hydrodynamic simulations. Combining all available photometric data, we find rapid, phase-locked variations and model them numerically, thus restricting the orbital inclination to 50° i 70°.     

南四湖底泥污染及其变化过程

In order to research the changing process of the pollution from the formation of Nansihu Lake, this study determined the isotope age and depositional rate and analyzed the organic geo-chemical quotas and heavy metal quotas of two sedimentary profiles of Weishan and Dushan lakes. Research results showed that from the formation of Nansihu Lake, the change of the pollution could be divided into four phrases. At the early phrase of the formation, the organic matters of the lake mainly derived from the exotic matters and had a close relation to the effect on the water and sands from the Huanghe (Yellow) River. At the middle and late phrases of the development, the endogenous matters of the lake became the main and stable source of the organic matters. The overflow of the Huanghe River, the excavation of the Grand Canal and the cut of trees caused the changes of the historic pollution. In recent 20 years, the modem industrial pollution from the organic matters and heavy metals has an increasingly heavy tendency.     

近600年来北极与中国气候变化的对比

A compilation of paleoclimate records from lake sediments, trees, ice cores, and historical documents provide a view of China and Arctic environmental changes in the last 600 years. Many of these changes have also been identified in sedimentary and geochemical signatures in deep-sea sediment cores from the North Atlantic Ocean, Arctic and Greenland and ice cores from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, confirming the linkage of environmental changes of different time scales between the Arctic and China. It is shown that the changes of precipitation, temperature and sea ice cover in Arctic were correlated with climate changes in China. This paper also developed a comparative research on the climate changes between Arctic and China both during the Little Ice Age (LIA) and the instrumental observation period. Cycles and trend of temperature variations during LIA and temperature and precipitation during the instrumental observation period are performed. We found some similarities and differences of environmental changes between Arctic and China.     

MIS 5/4 transition in a mountain environment: herpetofaunal assemblages from Cueva del Camino,central Spain

The Cueva del Camino site (Pinilla del Valle, Madrid, Spain) is located in the upper valley of the Lozoya River in the Sierra de Guadarrama, a mountain range extending NE?SW within the Central Range System. Due to its location within a mountain range on the central Iberian Peninsula at an altitude of 1114 m a.s.l. and the numerical dating of its sediments, the palaeontological site of Cueva del Camino has proved a highly relevant location for studying the ecological changes linked to the climatic fluctuations at the end of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5 and the beginning of MIS 4. Environmental reconstructions suggest a rather open, patchy landscape throughout the succession, with abundant evidence of dry meadows, scrublands and rocky habitats. The climate can be considered as generally warm, reaching mean annual temperatures (MATs) of up to 13.8°C (i.e. higher than today's by up to 2.9°C). Three cooler events can be seen throughout the succession as reflected by the presence of Rana iberica, Anguis fragilis and Coronella austriaca. The first of these events may correlate with MIS 5b; the second in the Central sector may correlate with the Stadial I pollen event occurring at the end of MIS 5a; and the third event, corresponding to the coldest MAT of the entire succession with MATs 0.9°C lower than today's, may correspond to the transition from MIS 5a to MIS 4. The evolution of mean annual precipitation (MAP) is characterized by warm periods, drier and cold periods, as well as wetter periods (up to +356 mm compared to today's MAP values), similar to what occurs today in the high‐elevation areas of the neighbouring mountains. Our study gives new quantitative estimations for the climatic fluctuations in mountain environments of central Spain at the MIS 5/4 transition and their associated ecological changes.     

Late Holocene marine terraces of the Cartagena region,southern Caribbean: The product of neotectonism or a former high stand in sea-level?

The detailed stratigraphic survey and paleontological study (mollusks, corals, foraminifera and ostracods) of four low-level, ～3 m, marine terrace sections: Punta Canoas, Manzanillo del Mar, Playa de Oro, and Tierra Bomba Island, from the Cartagena region, southern Caribbean, supplemented with 22 radiocarbon dates, reveals that the northern terraces were deposited as parasequences in a clastic depositional system compared to the Tierra Bomba Island succession that was deposited in a carbonate depositional system between ～3600 and ～1700 cal yrs BP. Drier conditions and the southern location of the ITCZ at about 3 ka triggered stronger easterly Trades and more dynamic southwestward sediment drift fed by the Magdalena River mouth, thus promoting the formation of sand spits that ultimately isolated the Cienaga de Tesca coastal lagoon from the Caribbean Sea. Our estimates support the hypothesis that the present position of the terraces is the product of neotectonism rather than a higher 3 ka, sea-level. Upheaval of the terraces varies between ～3.8 mmyr^?1 at Punta Canoas and ～2.2 mmyr^?1 at Tierra Bomba to ～1.5 mmyr^?1 at Manzanillo del Mar and Playa de Oro terraces. Our study corroborates previous contentions on the role of mud diapirism and the dynamics of the Dique Fault as late Holocene upheaval mechanisms.     

Analysis of soil moisture dynamics beneath olive trees

Olive cultivation is a widespread land use in Mediterranean climates. The proper implementation of soil and water conservation practices in groves requires detailed knowledge of the governing hydrological processes. In this work topsoil moisture dynamics under wet and dry conditions and across a small catchment was investigated in the inter row (IR) and directly under the olive tree canopies (UC). We do this using a sensor network (11 stations) and a simple bucket model which was calibrated (June, 2011–2012) and validated (June, 2012–2013). During most of the year the normalized soil moisture contents (s) were greater in the IR than under UC, with an average normalized soil moisture difference of 0.12. The difference between UC and IR normalized soil moisture followed a seasonal pattern, reaching a maximum near 0.30 during spring. An analysis of the normalized soil moisture probability density functions (pdfs) was bimodal, showing characteristic dominant wet and dry soil moisture states, with the highest probability densities for the dry state. Overall the spatial variability of soil moisture was lower UC than in the IR. This was a result of the soil moisture buffering capacity of the canopy with respect to rainfall and evaporation, in addition to observed differences in soil properties. Hourly soil moisture data were successfully modelled (R² > 0.85), both UC and in the IR, yet with the inclusion of a simple formulation for canopy interception for the former. The results provide insight into how olive trees change hydrological processes in their neighbourhood. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.