Identification of a Long-Chain Fatty Acid Elongase from Nannochloropsis sp. Involved in the Biosynthesis of Fatty Acids by Heterologous Expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The marine microalga Nannochloropsis sp. contains various elongases and desaturases that are critical for biosynthesis of polyunsaturated fatty acids. A full-length cDNA encoding a long-chain fatty acid elongase, named Ns FAE, was cloned from Nannochloropsis sp.. The open reading frame of Ns FAE(GenBank accession no. MF680548) consisted of 1068 bp and encoded a predicted protein of 355 amino acids with molecular mass 38.8 k Da. The deduced polypeptide showed 43%–44% identity to fatty acyl elongases from other algae. RT-PCR experiments indicated that the Ns FAE gene exhibited the highest expression in Nannochloropsis sp. at 72 h(i.e., during the third growth stage) and the expression was significantly lower in the other four growth stages. Plasmid p Ns FAE-CRISPR and a recombinant DNA fragment(ADH1p-Ns FAE-CYCt) were transformed into Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain BY4742 using the CRISPR-Cas system. Yeast transformants containing Ns FAE produced three fatty acids not normally present in wild-type BY4742-linoleic acid, linolenic acid and eicosadienoic acid-indicating that Ns FAE encodes a functional elongase enzyme.     

Mechanism of toppling and deformation in hard rock slope: a case of bank slope of Hydropower Station,Qinghai Province,China

Recently, various toppling slopes have emerged with the development of hydropower projects in the western mountainous regions of China. The slope on the right bank of the Laxiwa Hydropower Station, located on the mainstream of the Yellow River in the Qinghai Province of Northwest China, is a typical hard rock slope. Further, its deformation characteristics are different from those of common natural hard rock toppling. Because this slope is located close to the dam of the hydropower station, its deformation mechanism has a practical significance. Based on detailed geological engineering surveys, four stages of deformation have been identified using discrete element numerical software and geological engineering analysis methods, including toppling creep, initial toppling deformation, intensified toppling deformation, and current slope formation. The spatial and time-related deformation of this site also exhibited four stages, including initial toppling, toppling development, intensification of toppling, and disintegration and collapse. Subsequently, the mechanism of toppling and deformation of the bank slope were studied. The results of this study exhibit important reference value for developing the prevention–control design of toppling and for ensuring operational safety in the hydropower reservoir area.     

Modelling the flexural buckling failure of stratified rock slopes based on the multilayer beam model

The buckling failure of stratified rock slopes intersected by a set of steep discontinuities that are approximately parallel to the slope surface is frequently encountered while constructing railways and roadways in mountainous areas. In this study, an analytical approach based on the energy equilibrium principle is presented to solve the flexural buckling stability of stratified rock slopes within the framework of multilayer beam theory. The generalized HoekBrown failure criterion is introduced to reflect the influences of slope size(scale effects) on the buckling stability. Subsequently, numerical and physical modellings from previous literatures are employed to validate the proposed approach. Furthermore, a practical case of Bawang Mountain landslide is also used for the comparative analysis. The study shows that the present analytical approach is capable to provide a more reasonable assessment for the buckling failure of stratified rock slopes, compared with several existing analytical approaches. Finally, a detailed parametric study is implemented, and the results indicate that the effects of rock strength, rock deformation modulus, geological strength index, layer thickness and disturbance degree of rock mass on the buckling failure of stratified rock slopes are more significant than that of rock type and slope angle.     

Origin of the Mushroom Stone Forest at the southeastern foot of the Little Sangpu Mountain in eastern Guangdong,China: A palaeo-sea-level indicator or not?

The Mushroom Stone Forest, which consists of granite boulders looking like mushrooms with flared sidewalls, is located in eastern Guangdong China, and is a famous scenic spot that draws many tourists each year. The Mushroom Stone Forest has been traditionally recognized as a collection of wave erosion landforms and used for the reconstruction of palaeo-sea-level changes along the coastal areas of eastern Guangdong in previous coastal researches. By combining in situ measurements of the aspect,vertical profile and height of boulder sidewalls,palaeo-coastal wave direction estimation, rock density determination, major elemental analysis, and petrographic thin section analysis, this paper presents an alternative origin for the Mushroom Stone Forest.Our results suggest that wave or wind erosion cannot offer a satisfactory explanation for the formation of the Mushroom Stone Forest; The boulders that make up the Mushroom Stone Forest originated from the corestones in the granite weathering crusts of the Little Sangpu Mountain; When the debris of the weathering crust was removed, the corestones are perched on rocky outcrops or half-buried by weathering debris beneath the natural land surface;The flared sidewall (concave vertical profile) of the boulders is a particular form developed in the foot zone of a half-buried boulder through increased chemical weathering beneath the land surface. A recent exposed half-buried boulder found in the study area provides convincing evidence to support this argument. Sea water reached the foot of the Sangpu Mountain during the Holocene transgression, but it merely provided a mechanism to erode the weathering debris from the bottom of the mushroom rocks and enhanced salt weathering that created tafoni on the boulders. These findings demonstrate that the boulders of the Mushroom Stone Forest are not sea stacks and cannot be served as a palaeo-sea-level indicator.     

Dynamic hydraulic jump and retrograde sedimentation in an open channel induced by sediment supply: experimental study and SPH simulation

Mountainous torrents often carry large amounts of loose materials into the rivers, thus causing strong sediment transport. Experimentally it was found for the first time that when the intensive sediment motion occurs downstream over a gentle slope, the siltation of the riverbed is induced and the sediment particles can move upstream rapidly in the form of a retrograde sand wave, resulting in a higher water level along the river. To further study the complex mechanisms of this problem, a sediment mass model in the framework of the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics(SPH) method was presented to simulate the riverbed evolution, sediment particle motion, and the generation and development of dynamic hydraulic jump under the condition of sufficient sediment supply over a steep slope with varying angles. Because the sediment is not a continuous medium, the marker particle tracking approach was proposed to represent a piece of sediment with a marked sediment particle. The twophase SPH model realizes the interaction between the sediment and fluid by moving the bed boundary particles up and down, so it can reasonably treat the fluid-sediment interfaces with high CPU efficiency. The critical triggering condition of sediment motion, the propagation of the hydraulic jump and the initial siltation position were all systematically studied. The experimental and numerical results revealed the extra disastrous sediment effect in a mountainous flood. The findings will be useful references to the disaster prevention and mitigation in mountainous rivers.     

Effects of rainfall intensity and topography on rill development and rill characteristics on loessial hillslopes in China

Rill development is a major soil erosion process that causes severe soil degradation.This study examined the effects of representative rainfall intensities(50 and 75 mm h-1),slope gradients(10°and 150),and slope lengths(7.5 and 10.0 m)on rill development and rill characteristics on loessial hillslopes in China.Loessial soil was collected from the cropland of Ansai Town,Yan'an City,Shaanxi Province.The soil with 28.3%sand,58.1%silt,and13.6%clay was packed into a soil pan to conduct rainfall simulations in 2012.The results showed that the time of the knickpoint occurrence(5-16 min),the rill headcut extension(9-33 min),and the mean headward erosion rate(1.7-5.o cm min-1)were better representative indicators for reflecting the changes in the rill development than other indicators used in this study.For a quick evaluation of the rill erosion severity,the rill coverage ratio(1%-12%,generallyincreasing with an increase in the rainfall intensity)was better than the other indicators for treatments with different rainfall intensities,and the rill width-depth ratio(1.56-2.27,generally decreasing with an increase in the slope gradient)was better than the other indicators for treatments with different slope gradients.Furthermore,the rill inclination angle(8.2°-19.1°,significantly increasing with an increase in the slope length)and rill density(0.19-1.34 m·m-2,generally increasing with an increase in the slope length)were more suitable for evaluating the rill erosion severity on hillslopes with different slope lengths.Therefore,the representative indicators could reflect the differences in the rill development and rill characteristics under different rainfall and topographic situations.The study greatly improved the evaluation of rill erosion severity and the prediction of the development of rills for loessial hillslopes.     

基于北斗短报文的震源船跟踪系统设计与实现

通过在震源船上部署3套GPS接收机,并对3个点的位置信息进行汇总和压缩,利用北斗短报文将压缩后的位置信息推送到陆海联测指挥部,实现对震源船航速、航向的实时监控.根据3个点位信息计算的实时震源船航向,有助于准确把握震源船在进行固定点悬停激发时的航向,克服了以往使用前后两个时刻推算的平均航向代替实时航向等问题.使用我国自主知识产权的北斗短报文进行通讯,大大提高了系统的安全性、可靠性和稳定性;同时陆海联测指挥部可以实时查看震源船是否按事先设定的测线、事先设定的速度和航向进行作业,有效保障了监控平台对震源船的监控,进一步提升安全生产的风险控制能力.     

大亚湾西部海域沉积物中生物硅的含量及其分布特征

采用2. 0 mol/dm~3Na_2CO_3溶液5h单点化学提取-硅钼蓝连续分光光度分析法分别测定了大亚湾西部海域13个表层沉积物和1个沉积物岩芯中生物硅的含量.表层沉积物和沉积物岩芯中生物硅含量占比分别为0. 69%～2. 02%和1. 24%～2. 05%,平均值分别为1. 42%和1. 60%.结果证实西大亚湾沉积物中生物硅含量水平与我国南海近岸海域基本一致.在210Pbex测年的基础上,通过分析沉积物岩芯中生物硅、有机物、无机碳等多指标,揭示近百年来大亚湾周边环境变化对海洋环境的影响,证实了上世纪80年代以来西大亚湾周边农业、海水养殖业和工业发展等人类活动加剧了该海域生态环境变化,尤其90年代核电站运行对海洋生态变化造成一定的影响.     

珠江口枯水期和丰水期中小型浮游动物群落动态

根据珠江口枯水期(2013年11月)和丰水期(2014年8月) 24个站位调查资料,对中小型浮游动物种类组成、丰度分布、群落结构及其主要影响因子进行了研究.结果表明,枯水期和丰水期分别鉴定浮游动物成体91种和70种,以桡足类最为丰富.浮游动物种类从河口上游向外围逐渐增加.浮游动物丰度时空分布差异显著,丰水期平均值高达11 619. 78 ind/m~3,显著高于枯水期的1 707. 13 ind/m~3.桡足类在珠江口中小型浮游动物中占绝对优势,枯水期和丰水期分别占总丰度的80. 3%和93. 0%,对浮游动物的丰度分布起关键作用.强额孔雀哲水蚤(Parvocalanus crassirostris)、中华异水蚤(Acartiella sinensis)和刺尾纺锤水蚤(Acartia spinicauda)在两个水期均为主要优势种,小拟哲水蚤(Paracalanus parvus)和厦门矮隆哲水蚤(Bestiolina amoyensis)则分别在枯水期和丰水期具有较高的优势度.聚类分析的结果显示,枯水期和丰水期该水域浮游动物均可划分为3个群落.相关性分析表明,珠江口中小型浮游动物群落结构受多个环境因子的影响,但盐度是其中最为关键的非生物因子.     

紫金山天文台55 yr手绘黑子数据系统差分析

对紫金山天文台(简称紫台)自1954年至2011年共55 yr的手描黑子图进行了数字化.将紫台太阳黑子相对数(PRSN)和黑子群数(PGSN)与国际太阳影响数据分析中心(SIDC)中的对应数据(月平均太阳黑子相对数(IRSN)和月平均黑子群数(IGSN))进行对比研究,发现:(1)紫台黑子数据与SIDC黑子数据有很强的正相关性,说明紫台黑子数据的可靠性;(2) PRSN和IRSN、PGSN和IGSN的系统偏差分别处于7%左右、5%左右,紫台数据与SIDC数据在活动周的极小期的差异性显著大于极大期;(3)紫台的视宁度从1995年开始变差,直接导致了PRSN (PGSN)与IRSN (IGSN)的比值明显变大,表明视宁度的变化影响了紫台黑子的观测质量.