Determinations of dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSP) lyase activity using headspace analysis of dimethylsulphide (DMS)

The osmolyte dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSP) can be enzymatically cleaved to dimethylsulphide (DMS), acrylate and a proton. The enzyme involved in this reaction is dimethylpropiothetin dethiomethylase (DMSP lyase; enzyme classification number 4.4.1.3.). Although the importance of this reaction for the global sulphur cycle, the influence of DMS on atmospheric acidity and the possible effect on climate regulation have been widely recognised, our knowledge of DMSP lyases is limited to just a few studies. Activity measurements of DMSP lyases offer an important step towards a better understanding of the conditions under which DMS is produced. In the available published data somewhat similar methods have been used before, but a critical examination of the method limitations has not been reported. To encourage further research on this enzyme, we suggest and detail two protocols for measurements of DMSP lyase activity: An in vitro assay for crude cell extracts or purified enzyme and an in vivo method for whole cells, which we recently started to use. After addition of DMSP, samples incubated in a gas tight vial may produce DMS from enzymatic cleavage under suitable conditions, and a DMS production rate can be estimated from time-series measurements of DMS in the headspace of the vial. Headspace analysis of DMS is a useful and rapid technique to estimate and compare DMSP lyase activities from different sources. The relative rates of DMS production in the liquid and of the gas transfer between liquid and headspace, determine the rate of DMS production measured via headspace analysis. If DMS production in the liquid is higher than the rate of transfer, headspace measurements will not reflect the actual amount of DMS produced in the liquid. In this case, extracts have to be diluted to a level that ensures linearity between dilution factor and reduction of enzyme activity. Additionally, incubation volumes and vials should be selected to provide a high surface-to-volume ratio to ensure maximum flux of DMS from the aqueous phase into the headspace. The methods can be adapted to further investigate species- and strain-specific activities, biogeographical distribution, cellular location and biochemical properties of various DMSP lyases.     

Assessment of regional geomagnetic field modelling methods using a standard data set: spherical cap harmonic analysis

Various methods that take account of the potential nature of the field have been proposed for modelling geomagnetic data on a regional scale. Several of these have been applied to a standard data set based on annual mean values from observatories in Europe. Here, we examine some of the properties of spherical cap harmonic analysis when applied to this data set, and compare the quality of fit with that of the other models. It is found that, for this data set, rectangular polynomial analysis provides a compact fit to main field data, but that in most other cases, for both main field and anomaly data, spherical cap harmonic analysis provides the better fit. Although relatively insensitive to chosen cap size, spherical cap harmonic analysis deteriorates more rapidly than the other methods when the number of coefficients is reduced.     

Palaeoenvironmental record of glacial lake evolution during the early Holocene at Sokli,NE Finland

The development of a glacial lake impounded along the retreating, northeastern ice margin of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet during the last deglaciation and environmental conditions directly following the early Holocene deglaciation have been studied in NE Finland. This so‐called Sokli Ice Lake has been reconstructed previously using topographic and geomorphologic evidence. In this paper a multiproxy approach is employed to study a 3‐m‐thick sediment succession consisting of laminated silts grading into gyttja cored in Lake Loitsana, a remnant of the Sokli Ice Lake. Variations in the sediment and siliceous microfossil records indicate distinct changes in water depth and lake size in the Loitsana basin as the Sokli Ice Lake was drained through various spillways opening up along the retreating ice front. Geochemical data (XRF core‐scanning) show changes in the influence of regional catchment geochemistry (Precambrian crystalline rocks) in the glacial lake drainage area versus local catchment geochemistry (Sokli Carbonatite Massif) within the Lake Loitsana drainage area during the lake evolution. Principal component analysis on the geochemical data further suggests that grain‐size is an additional factor responsible for the variability of the sediment geochemistry record. The trophic state of the lake changed drastically as a result of morphometric eutrophication once the glacial lake developed into Lake Loitsana. The AMS radiocarbon dating on tree birch seeds found in the glaciolacustrine sediment indicates that Lake Loitsana was deglaciated sometime prior to 10 700 cal. a BP showing that tree Betula was present on the deglaciated land surrounding the glacial lake. Although glacial lakes covered large areas of northern Finland during the last deglaciation, only few glaciolacustrine sediment successions have been studied in any detail. Our study shows the potential of these sediments for multiproxy analysis and contributes to the reconstruction of environmental conditions in NE Finland directly following deglaciation in the early Holocene.     

Some challenges of monitoring a potentially active volcanic field in a large urban area: Auckland volcanic field,New Zealand

Natural Hazards - The city of Auckland (population 1.3 million) is built on and around a potentially active basaltic intraplate volcanic system, the Auckland volcanic field. This...     

Multiple ruptures for Long Valley microearthquakes: a link to volcanic tremor?

Despite several episodes of ground deformation and intense seismic activity starting in 1978, the Long Valley, California, volcanic area has not produced clearly recognized volcanic tremor. Instead, a variety of atypical microearthquakes have been recorded during these episodes, including events dominated by low-frequency (long-period) or mixed high and low-frequency (hybrid) signals. During a 1997 episode, a number of unusual microearthquakes occurred within a temporary 40-station seismic network surrounding the Casa Diablo area, allowing the events to be precisely located and analyzed as a function of azimuth, offset, and source characteristics. Eight prime examples lie within two, 7 km-deep clusters of seismicity separated by about 1 km, with four events in each cluster. Empirical Green's function deconvolution shows that these events are composed of two to three sub-events, the sub-events consisting of ordinary (single rupture, double-couple) microearthquakes. The delay times between the sub-events are constant within each cluster, equaling 0.092 s in one and 0.06 s in the other. Events from other clusters show similar delays. The signal interference produced by the closely spaced sub-events gives rise to modulated, delay-dependent source spectra. The regularity of the delays suggests that the sub-events are being triggered by a fixed length and/or time scale process, an example being the length/inflation rate of a magmatic or hydrothermal flow structure. With continued action of the triggering process, the sub-events could proliferate and evolve into observable volcanic tremors at Mammoth.     

Rectangular polynomial analysis of the regional geomagnetic field

The method of rectangular polynomial analysis (RPA) is developed and refined to represent a curl-free potential field of internal origin. It is applied to annual mean values of the geomagnetic field from 42 European observatories. RPA is found to be an efficient means of representing the regional field, though less suitable for modelling the anomaly field.