Microbial ecology and geochemistry of soils containing iron pans

Soils in New Zealand, and elsewhere, often contain substantial zones of ferro-manganese concretions and pans (laterally continuous layers) that can affect soil quality and management. Soils containing concretions and pans from Southland, New Zealand, were investigated to determine links between microbial ecology and geochemistry. Three soil profiles were sampled at 100-mm intervals to a depth of 1 m and then assayed for nine different populations of bacteria using selective media. Geochemical analysis was performed on the soils at the same intervals, and on shallow groundwater from nearby wells. The largest concentrations of iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) coincide with concretions. Nitrogen (N) and carbon (C) are not correlated with Fe and Mn but may be depleted due to bacterial metabolism. Fe and Mn concentrations in groundwater are low, suggesting that the source of these elements in the concretions and pans is in situ weathering rather than groundwater. Numbers of iron oxidising organisms increase where concretions and pans are encountered, but manganese-oxidising organisms decrease. Heterotrophic, sulphur-oxidising, and anaerobic populations have relatively consistent numbers at all depths within the profiles. Fifty organisms were selected for phylogenetic characterisation, of which only Pseudomonas sp. is known to have significant interactions with Fe and Mn. These results suggest a link between concretion development and iron-oxidising microbial populations.     

Mechanism of cadmium resistance and adsorption of a yeast strain Rhodotorula sp. Y11

The mechanism of cadmium resistance of a yeast strain Rhodotorula sp. Y11 isolated from mine soil was investigated. We found that the yeast cells treated with different methods showed different cadmium-adsorption models. Grown in medium supplied with 100 mg/L of cadmium, 3.29% of the cell-absorbed cadmium was accounted in the cytoplasm. However, only 1% was taken into the cytoplasm and 99% was bound to the cell wall using the lyophilized biomass to adsorb cadmium in double distilled water. Treatments with alkali, ethanol-chloroform and proteinase showed different influences on the biosorption of whole cells and isolated cell walls. FT-IR analysis showed that acetyl of chitin was the active compound in the cells to absorb cadmium. The production of Metallothioneins, proteins related to the resistance to heavy metal in yeast, was evidently induced by cadmium, achieving 638.8 μg/g wet weight, which was about 85 folds higher than that in the uninduced biomass and was also much higher than that reported previously. The molecular weight of Metallothioneins was 6500 Da estimated by SDS-PAGE.     

A New Genus of Psittacosauridae (Dinosauria: Ornithopoda) and the Origin and Early Evolution of Marginocephalian Dinosaurs

An almost complete juvenile dinosaur skull with lower jaw was discovered from the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation in Beipiao, Liaoning Province, China. Here, the specimen is described and a cladistic analysis is performed in order to find its phylogenetic relationships. The result shows that this specimen represents a new genus of Psittacosauridae, Hongshanosaurus houi, gen. et sp. nov., and confirms the monophyletic status for Ceratopsia and Marginocephalia. However, Heterodontosaurus is found to be the sister taxon to Marginocephalia, rather than a basal Omithopoda.     

环境因子对Synechocystis sp.钙化动力学的影响

蓝藻钙化普遍发生于淡水和盐水环境,对叠层石的形成和碳循环有重要意义。本文模拟研究了pH值、光照强度、水动力、温度等环境因子对Synechocystis sp．藻类钙化动力学的影响。实验表明,pH值为7．5的弱碱环境和一定强度的水动力条件有利于Synechocystis sp．的钙化,过低或过高的水动力都不利于钙化;在5、15和25℃三个梯度范围内,温度为25℃时有利于钙化,且钙化速率与生物量密切相关;3000 lux的光照强度下,Synechocystis sp．钙化速率最大,更高的强度下钙化速率反而急剧下降,低浓度钙离子发生的钙化作用以生物钙化为主,高浓度下以生物引发的物理化学钙化为主。     

Metabolic and physiological regulation of Chlorella sp.(Trebouxiophyceae,Chlorophyta) under nitrogen deprivation

A freshwater green microalgae Chlorella sp., UMACC344 was shown to produce high lipid content and has the potential to be used as feedstock for biofuel production. In this study, photosynthetic effciency, biochemical pro?les and non-targeted metabolic pro?ling were studied to compare between the nitrogen-replete and deplete conditions. Slowed growth, change in photosynthetic pigments and lowered photosynthetic effciency were observed in response to nitrogen deprivation. Biochemical pro?les of the cultures showed an increased level of carbohydrate, lipids and total fatty acids, while the total soluble protein content was lowered. A trend of fatty acid saturation was observed in the nitrogen-deplete culture with an increase in the level of saturated fatty acids especially C16:0 and C18:0, accompanied by a decrease in proportions of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Fifty-nine metabolites, including amino acids, lipids, phytochemical compounds, vitamins and cofactors were signi?cantly dysregulated and annotated in this study. Pathway mapping analysis revealed a rewiring of metabolic pathways in the cells, particularly purine, carotenoid, nicotinate and nicotinamide, and amino acid metabolisms. Within the treatment period of nitrogen deprivation, the key processes involved were reshu ? ing of nitrogen from proteins and photosynthetic machinery, together with carbon repartitioning in carbohydrates and lipids.     

海洋芽孢杆菌Bacillus sp. CAMT22370所产葡萄糖氧化酶的分离纯化与表征

前期筛选获得一株海洋源Bacillussp.CAMT22370高产葡萄糖氧化酶菌株,本研究进一步通过离子交换及分子筛层析使Bacillus sp. CAMT22370葡萄糖氧化酶纯化了2.12倍,酶活得率32.37%,比活力达到8.47 U/mg,分子质量约为50 kDa。酶学特性研究表明,此酶在低温下有较好的催化活性,最适温度为30℃,超过30℃时酶活迅速下降, 45℃保温2 h活力降至75%左右;最适pH为6.0,在5.0以下和7.0以上时酶活迅速降低, 9.0时损失35%; Ca~(2+)和Mn~(2+)有明显激活作用, Na~+和Zn~(2+)有轻微激活作用, K~+和Mg~(2+)对酶活无显著影响,而Fe~(2+)、Fe~(3+)和Cu~(2+)对酶活有明显抑制作用,酶动力学参数Vmax及Km值分别为26.85 (μmol/(L·min))和109.26 (μmol/(L·min)),以上酶学特性与现有酶制剂存在明显不同,研究结果为该葡萄糖氧化酶的开发利用奠定了初步基础。     

栅藻全转录组测序与类胡萝卜素合成途径相关基因分析

栅藻(Desmodesmus sp.)是一种能产生重要次生代谢产物类胡萝卜素的海洋绿藻,为了深入了解栅藻类胡萝卜素代谢途径及关键酶基因,本研究通过Illumina高通量测序平台对栅藻进行转录组测序.利用Trinity软件对转录组数据进行从头组装,共获得37 634个Unigenes,经过与Nt、Nr、Swiss、Prot、KEGG、COG、GO数据库比对,共有23 235个Unigenes获得注释.GO分类中(level 2)注释最多的分别是代谢过程(metabolic process),细胞组分(cell part)和催化活性(catalytic activity),与KEGG数据库比对发现14 123个Unigenes与128条代谢途径相对应.根据组装和注释的转录组结果,鉴定了栅藻中与类胡萝卜素生物合成途径相关的基因,构建了栅藻类胡萝卜素代谢途径,获得的栅藻转录组数据有利于进一步研究类胡萝卜素代谢途径中相关基因的功能及调控.     

甲醛溶液对发头裸腹溞及其体表聚缩虫影响的试验

不同浓度的甲醛溶液对枝角类发头裸腹溲Ｍｏｄｉｎａｉｒｒａｓａ的致毒效应以及对其体表附着的聚缩虫Ｚｏｏｔｈａｍｉｕｍｓｐ．的杀灭效果的试验结果表明,１２ｈ、２４ｈ两俱和用时段中,甲醛浓度与发头裸腹溲相对存活率之间以及甲醛浓度与发头裸腹溲体表聚缩虫营养体脱落率之间存在一定的函数关系。     

Using stable isotopes to quantify water sources for trees and shrubs in a riparian cottonwood ecosystem in flood and drought years

Riparian cottonwood forests in dry regions of western North America do not typically receive sufficient growing season precipitation to completely support their relatively high transpiration requirements. Water used in transpiration by riparian ecosystems must include alluvial groundwater or water stored in the potentially large reservoir of the unsaturated soil zone. We used the stable oxygen and hydrogen isotope composition of stem xylem water to evaluate water sources used by the dominant riparian cottonwood (Populus spp.) trees and shrubs (Shepherdia argentea and Symphoricarpos occidentalis) in Lethbridge, Alberta, during 3 years of contrasting environmental conditions. Cottonwoods did not exclusively take up alluvial groundwater but made extensive use of water sourced from the unsaturated soil zone. The oxygen and hydrogen isotope compositions of cottonwood stem water did not strongly overlap with those of alluvial groundwater, which were closely associated with the local meteoric water line. Instead, cottonwood stem water δ¹⁸O and δ²H values were located below the local meteoric water line, forming a line with a low slope that was indicative of water exposed to evaporative enrichment of heavy isotopes. In addition, cottonwood xylem water isotope compositions had negative values of deuterium excess (d‐excess) and line‐conditioned (deuterium) excess (lc‐excess), both of which provided evidence that water taken up by the cottonwoods had been exposed to fractionation during evaporation. The shrub species had lower values of d‐excess and lc‐excess than had the cottonwood trees due to shallower rooting depths, and the d‐excess values declined during the growing season, as shallow soil water that was taken up by the plants was exposed to increasing, cumulative evaporative enrichment. The apparent differences in functional rooting pattern between cottonwoods and the shrub species, strongly influenced the ratio of net photosynthesis to stomatal conductance (intrinsic water‐use efficiency), as shown by variation among species in the δ¹³C values of leaf tissue.     

Pseudomonas sp.在杀菌剂耐受条件下对X70管线钢的腐蚀行为研究

本研究选用一株野生型Pseudomonas sp.为试验菌株,选用X70管线钢作为代表性金属材料,通过细菌生长曲线测定、腐蚀失重测量、扫描电镜（SEM）观察等方法,初步研究在杀菌剂四羟甲基硫酸磷（THPS）耐受条件下Pseudomonas sp.对X70管线钢腐蚀行为的影响。结果表明,75 μL/L的THPS浓度在Pseudomonas sp.的耐受范围内,而且能够轻微促进X70试片表面的腐蚀;不添加THPS的含菌体系中Pseudomonas sp.能抑制X70试片表面的腐蚀;而在添加了75 μL/L THPS的含菌体系中,Pseudomonas sp.显著促进X70试片的腐蚀,并且试片表面附着的细菌数量相比于无杀菌剂的对照体系有所增加。因此,该研究表明在特定浓度范围内,与没有添加杀菌剂的含菌体系相比,杀菌剂THPS使Pseudomonas sp.从抑制腐蚀改变为促进腐蚀。