Study on the Free Radical Scavenging Activity of Sea Cucumber(Paracaudina chinens var.) Gelatin Hydrolysate

Gelatin from the sea cucumber(Paracaudina chinens var.) was hydrolyzed by bromelain and the hydrolysate was found to have a high free radical scavenging activity. The hydrolysate was fractionated through an ultrafiltration membrane with 5 kDa molecular weight cutoff(MWCO). The portion(less than 5 kDa) was further separated by Sephadex G-25. The active peak was col-lected and assayed for free radical scavenging activity. The scavenging rates for superoxide anion radicals(O2·-) and hydroxyl radi-cals(·OH) of the fraction with the highest activity were 29.02% and 75.41%,respectively. A rabbit liver mitochondrial free radical damage model was adopted to study the free radical scavenging activity of the fraction. The results showed that the sea cucumber gelatin hydrolysate can prevent the damage of rabbit liver and mitochondria.     

Simulations of seasonal variations of sulfur compounds in the remote marine atmosphere

A photochemical box model is used to simulate seasonal variations in concentrations of sulfur compounds at latitude 40° S. It is assumed that the hydroxyl radical (OH) addition reaction to sulfur in the dimethyl sulfide (DMS) molecule is the predominant pathway for methanesulfonic acid (MSA) production, and that the rate constant increases as the air temperature decreases. Concentration of the nitrate radical (NO₃) is a function of the DMS flux, because the reaction of DMS with NO₃ is the most important loss mechanism of NO₃. While the diurnally averaged concentration of OH in winter is a factor of about 8 smaller than in summer, due to the weak photolysis process, the diurnally averaged concentration of NO₃ in winter is a factor of about 4–5 larger than in summer, due to the decrease of DMS flux. Therefore, at middle and high latitudes in winter, atmospheric DMS is mainly oxidized by the reaction with NO₃. The calculated ratio of the MSA to SO₂ production rates is smaller in winter than in summer, and the MSA to non-sea-salt sulfate (nssSO₄ ^2-) molar ratio varies seasonally. This result agrees with data on the seasonal variation of the MSA/nssSO₄ ^2- molar ratio obtained at middle and high latitudes. The calculations indicate that during winter the reaction of DMS with NO₃ is likely to be a more important sink of NO_x (NO+NO₂) than the reaction of NO₂ with OH, and to serve as a significant pathway of the HNO₃ production. If dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is produced through the OH addition reaction and is heterogeneously oxidized in aqueous solutions, half of the nssSO₄ ^2- produced in summer may be through the oxidation process of DMSO. It is necessary to further investigate the oxidation products by the reaction of DMS with OH, and the possibility of the reaction of DMS with NO₃ during winter.     

An Assessment of HOx Chemistry in the Tropical Pacific Boundary Layer: Comparison of Model Simulations with Observations Recorded during PEM Tropics A

Reported are the results from a comparison of OH,H₂O₂CH₃OOH, and O₃ observationswithmodel predictions based on current HO_x–CH₄reaction mechanisms. The field observations are thoserecorded during the NASA GTE field program, PEM-Tropics A. The major focus ofthis paper is on thosedata generated on the NASA P-3B aircraft during a mission flown in the marineboundary layer (MBL) nearChristmas Island, a site located in the central equatorial Pacific (i.e.,2° N, 157° W). Taking advantage of thestability of the southeastern trade-winds, an air parcel was sampled in aLagrangian mode over a significantfraction of a solar day. Analyses of these data revealed excellent agreementbetween model simulated andobserved OH. In addition, the model simulations reproduced the major featuresin the observed diurnalprofiles of H₂O₂ and CH₃OOH. In the case ofO₃, the model captured the key observational feature whichinvolved an early morning maximum. An examination of the MBL HO_xbudget indicated that the O(¹D) + H₂Oreaction is the major source of HO_x while the major sinks involveboth physical and chemical processes involving the peroxide species,H₂O₂ and CH₃OOH. Overall, the generally goodagreement between modeland observations suggests that our current understanding ofHO_x–CH₄ chemistry in the tropical MBL isquite good; however, there remains a need to critically examine this chemistrywhen both CH₂O and HO₂are added to the species measured.     

Simultaneous Measurement of Hydrogen Peroxide and Fe Species (Fe(II) and Fe<Subscript>(tot)</Subscript>) in Okinawa Island Seawater: Impacts of Red Soil Pollution

The northern part of Okinawa Island suffers from red soil pollution—runoff of red soil into coastal seawater—which damages coastal ecosystems and scenery. To elucidate the impacts of red soil pollution on the oxidizing power of seawater, hydrogen peroxide (HOOH) and iron species including Fe(II) and total iron (Fe_(tot), defined as the sum of Fe(II) and Fe(III)) were measured simultaneously in seawater from Taira Bay (red-soil-polluted sea) and Sesoko Island (unpolluted sea), off the northern part of Okinawa Island, Japan. We performed simultaneous measurements of HOOH and Fe(II) because the reaction between HOOH and Fe(II) forms hydroxyl radical (•OH), the most potent environmental oxidant. Gas-phase HOOH concentrations were also measured to better understand the sources of HOOH in seawater. Both HOOH and Fe(II) in seawater showed a clear diurnal variation, i.e. higher in the daytime and lower at night, while Fe_(tot) concentrations were relatively constant throughout the sampling period. Fe(II) and Fe_(tot) concentrations were approximately 58% and 19% higher in red-soil-polluted seawater than in unpolluted seawater. Gas-phase HOOH and seawater HOOH concentrations were comparable at both sampling sites, ranging from 1.4 to 5.4 ppbv in air and 30 to 160 nM in seawater. Since Fe(II) concentrations were higher in red-soil-polluted seawater while concentrations of HOOH were similar, •OH would form faster in red-soil-polluted seawater than in unpolluted seawater. Since the major scavenger of •OH, Br⁻, is expected to have similar concentrations at both sites, red-soil-polluted seawater is expected to have higher steady-state •OH concentrations.     

锯缘青蟹不同器官组织中ROS与ASAFR含里的研究

采用生化测定的方法,对锯缘青蟹(Scyllaserrata)鳃、肝胰腺和肌肉等不同器官组织中活性氧(ROS)与抗超氧阴离子自由基(ASAFR)含量进行了测定。　结果表明,　不同器官组织中活性氧与抗超氧阴离子自由基含量各异。　各器官组织中活性氧含量由高到低依次为:肝胰腺>肌肉>鳃,　分别为195.04U/mg±33.46U/mg, 64.03 U/mg±12.77 U/mg和44.84U/mg±10.44U/mg。而抗超氧阴离子自由基含量则是鳃>肝胰腺>肌肉,大小分别为439.62 U/g±64.73U/g,297.89 U/g±39.75 U/g和84.24 U/g±18.03 U/g。统计分析显示,锯缘青蟹各器官组织间的活性氧与抗超氧阴离子自由基含量均存在极显著性差异(P<0.01)。这是由于不同器官组织所执行的生理功能不同造成的。     

2D-Cell Experiment on Methyl Tert-Butyl Ether Transport in Saturated Zone of Groundwater

As an additive of gasoline,methyl tert-butyl ether(MTBE)has a higher solubility in water,which is about 20 times as high as that of benzene.This characteristic results in MTBE dissolving out of the gasoline into the soil and groundwater.Due to relative unique physicochemical behavior of MTBE it would be an ideal candidate for use in environmental forensic investigations.In order to study the transport and distribution of MTBE in saturated zone of ground water,a two-dimensional experimental cell was setup to simulate the real environment of the groundwater flow.The effects of soil and groundwater flow velocity on the MTBE transport were investigated.The results show that the mobile distance of MTBE in vertical direction was smaller than that in horizontal direction paralleling with the groundwater flow.Because the main dynamics of groundwater flow direction was convection and dispersion,the movement of MTBE is also diffusion in the vertical direction.In addition,the transport of MTBE was more quick in high permeability porous media,and the increase of groundwater flow velocity can accelerate the MTBE plume de-velopment,but the irregularity and randomness of the plume are enhanced synchronously.These research results can give some helps for the investigation of MTBE movement in the groundwater,also can make some references for other petroleum contamination behavior.     

Teaching Social Justice: Reviving Geography's Neglected Tradition

Abstract

American students are encouraged to become globally competitive. I argue that in a world plagued by social inequality and environmental mismanagement, students should become globally cooperative. But this position is not new. Nineteenth century geographers such as Peter Kropotkin argued that geographic education should promote cooperation and tolerance of others. This article explores why geographers cast aside this progressive vision for geographic education. It hypothesizes that geography's pursuit of academic and scientific legitimacy prompted it to spurn “value-laden” methods. The article concludes by suggesting that geographers return to their social justice roots by adopting constructivist pedagogical methods of Paulo Freire.     

Methyl halide hydrolysis rates in natural waters

International regulations are under consideration for methyl bromide because of its high time dependent ozone depletion potential. Geocycling of the species is not well understood, and removal may occur in several types of natural water incuding the oceanic and those in soils. The hydrolysis reaction is a dominant loss pathway in environmental aqueous systems, but rate constants have generally been reported only in distilled water and at greater than room temperature. Here we present measurements in sodium chloride solutions and in seawater in addition to pure water, and at temperatures across the oceanographic range. The reaction could be followed even in solutions near the freezing point because product methanol was monitored in the method of initial rates. Time constants for methyl bromide hydrolysis fall between 10 and 1000 days over the temperatures of the sea, and are always within an order of magnitude of the fastest abiotic destruction mode, chlorination. Activation energies for the two processes are similar so that the ratio of their time scales does not vary with oceanic location. Hydrolysis rate constants are also listed for the closely related compounds methyls iodide and chloride. Solvolysis of the methyl halides in natural waters acts as a source of methanol to the ocean and atmosphere.     

The dependence of the concentration of OH on its precursors under moderately polluted conditions: A model study

Oxidation of trace gases emitted into the atmosphere is frequently promoted by free radicals. During daytime, the most important radical is the hydroxyl radical, since it reacts with almost all pollutants thereby initializing their ultimate removal from the atmosphere. Since the reaction with OH is in many cases the rate-determining step, the ambient OH concentration is a measure for the atmosphere's oxidation capacity. This paper investigates the influence of the chemical precursors and the photolysis frequencies on the atmospheric OH abundance under moderately polluted and rural conditions. The dominant controlling parameter are the photolysis of ozone and the concentrations of the nitrogen oxides.     

Reaction of OH Radicals with Acetone: Determination of the Branching Ratio for the Abstraction Pathway at 298 K and 1 Torr

We have determined the 2-oxo-propyl CH₃C(O)CH₂ (sometimes called 1-methylvinoxy or acetonyl) radical yield for the reaction of acetone with OH radical relative to the 2-oxo-propyl yields for the reactions of F- and Cl atoms with acetone using the Discharge Flow technique. The 2-oxo-propyl radical has been monitored by Laser Induced Fluorescence LIF at short reaction times in the systems: OH + acetone (R1), F + acetone (R2), and Cl + acetone (R3). From these measurements we have deduced the branching ratio for the 2-oxo-propyl radical formation in the title reaction to be in the range 0.8 R 1.