Biological and granulometric controls on sedimentary organic matter of an intertidal mudflat

A variety of measures of organic matter concentration and quality were made on samples collected from the top few mm of intertidal mudflat sediment over the course of a year, in order to assess the relative importance of biological and sedimentological influences on sedimentary organic matter. Winter and summer were times of relatively fine-grained sediment accumulation, caused by biological deposition or stabilization processes and resulting in higher organic matter concentrations. Stable carbon isotope and Br:C ratios indicated a planktonic source of bulk organic matter. Ratios of organic carbon to specific surface area of the sediments were consistent with an organic monolayer coverage of sediment grains. Correction for changing grain size during the year showed no change in the organic concentration per unit surface area, in spite of organic matter inputs by in situ primary production, buildup of heterotroph biomass and mucus coatings, and biodeposition of organic-rich seston. There were also no indications of changes in bulk organic quality, measured as hydrolyzable carbohydrates and amino acids, in response to these biological processes. It is concluded that biological processes on a seasonal time scale affect the bulk organic matter of these sediments via a modulation of grain size rather than creation or decay of organic matter.     

Sugar and Lipid Components in Sea Foam near Kelp Beds

Abstract. A component analysis of the sugar and lipid fraction in foam layers around kelp beds on the South African west coast showed the following trends: In the residue of foam drainage of both 12 h and 120 h old foam the sugar fraction is represented by mannose (33–41 %), galactose (4–30%), fucose (3–29%) and glucose (19–26%). With the exception of fucose, the same components could be found in foam filtration. In the lipid fraction the main fatty acids are palmitic (23.3–27.3%), oleic (14.0–5.5%) and timnodonic acid (11.2–9.1%). Selacholeinic acid was only found in 12 h old foam while lignoceric acid could not be located in foam filtration. Against expectation mannitol was not identified in quantifiable amounts in foam samples although it is the dominant component of kelp mucilage, whose presence is of major importance for foam formation. Hypotheses explaining the lack of mannitol are forwarded. Component sugar and lipid content for 11 of foam was calculated and estimation of sugar and lipid content in an average foam patch (volume of 30001) is given. The importance of foam formation as a mechanism for binding and transfer of energy in the marine environment is emphasized.     

Study of Adsorption Isotherm Curves of Amino Acids on the Kaolinite

This paper studies the adsorption isotherm curves of four amino acids (glyucine,aspartic acid,glutamic acid and lysine)and the effects of existences of different concentrations of Cu(Ⅱ) on them.Both the adsorption isotherm of the amino acids on the kaolinite and that when the copper ion Cu(Ⅱ） exists belong to the Langmuir type.The slopes of these adsorption isotherm increase with the increasing concentrations of Cu(Ⅱ） added.It can be explained in terms of formation of the type(Ⅰ） ternary surface complexes in these systems.The regular pattern of the effects of copper ion Cu(Ⅱ) on the adsorption isotherm of amino acids on the kaolinite is identical with that of its effects on the exchange and adsorption percentage E(%)-pH on the kaolinite in the same system.     

Transformation of arsenic compounds in modern intertidal sediments of Iriomote Island, Japan

The arsenic accumulation process in intertidal sediments of Iriomote Island, Japan, is analyzed as a naturally balanced arsenic-fixation system. Major and minor element chemistry is analyzed by X-ray fluorescence photometry, mineralogy is investigated by X-ray diffractometry, and four arsenic compounds are characterized by hydrogen-generated atomic absorption photometry. It is found that arsenic is accumulated by iron hydroxides/oxides precipitated following the decomposition of humic acids in the shallower sediment, and is subsequently incorporated into iron sulfide minerals at depth. The arsenic is immobile during incorporation into arsenic-bearing phases, suggesting that arsenic is unlikely to be released into the porewater under natural conditions in early diagenesis. The formation and decomposition of arsenic-bearing organic compounds appear to be associated with the formation and decomposition of arsenic in oxyhydroxides/oxides, suggesting that microbial activity may play an important role in controlling the behavior of arsenic and arsenic-bearing phases in the sediment column.     

Amino acid nitrogen in atmospheric aerosols: Occurrence,sources and photochemical modification

The presence of amino acids in atmospheric precipitation and aerosols has been noted for many years, yet relatively little is known about these or other nitrogen containing organic compounds in the atmosphere. Marine and continental rainwater analyses indicate that atmospheric aerosols, and subsequently atmospheric precipitation, may contain substantial levels of free and combined amino acids. The most likely source of amino N in the remote marine atmosphere appears to be the injection of proteinaceous material through the action of bursting bubbles at the sea-air interface or the long range transport from terrestrial sources. The capacity of these substrates to undergo photooxidation and photodegradation in the atmosphere to simpler species, such as ammonium ions, carboxylic acids, and for the S containing amino acids, oxidized forms of sulfur, has received little attention from atmospheric chemists. The photochemistry of covalently bound amino groups, particularly as found in peptides and amino acids, is discussed here with the purpose of summarizing what is known of their occurrence and their possible importance to atmospheric chemistry.     

高体革鯻幼鱼肌肉营养成分分析

检测了高体革鯻(Scortum bacoo)幼鱼肌肉营养组成,结果表明:高体革鯻粗蛋白质量分数为17.77%,粗脂肪质量分数为3.42%,水解氨基酸总质量分数为15.71%,其中必需氨基酸质量分数为7.50%,占氨基酸总量的47.74%,鲜味氨基酸总质量分数为5.46%,占氨基酸总量的34.75%,必需氨基酸指数为88.60。说明高体革鯻具有较高的营养价值和养殖价值。     

超声波对湛江等鞭金藻生长和脂肪酸组成的影响

设计了一个超声频率、超声功率和处理时间三因素四水平的正交实验,研究了超声波对湛江等鞭金藻的生物学效应.实验结果表明,超声频率对湛江等鞭金藻的生物学效应显著,而超声功率和处理时间的影响相对较小.对于提高湛江等鞭金藻生长速率常数,最佳超声条件为20kHz,6W,10s3次;对于提高其脂肪酸不饱和度和主要不饱和脂肪酸百分比,最佳超声条件为20kHz,4～6W,30s.在最佳超声条件下,湛江等鞭金藻生长速率常数最高可达0.630d,是对照组的2.02倍,其脂肪酸不饱和度最高可达79.6%,比对照组提高7.8%,其中主要不饱和脂肪酸的百分含量均得到不同程度的提高.     

LMWOA (low molecular weight organic acid) exudation by salt marsh plants: Natural variation and response to Cu contamination

This work aimed to evaluate, in vitro, the capability of roots of two salt marsh plants to release low molecular weight organic acids (LMWOAs) and to ascertain whether Cu contamination would stimulate or not organic acids exudation. The sea rush Juncus maritimus and the sea-club rush Scirpus maritimus, both from the lower Douro river estuary (NW Portugal), were used. Plants were collected seasonally, four times a year in 2004, during low tide. After sampling, plant roots were washed for removal of adherent particles and immersed for 2 h in a solution that matched salinity (3) and pH (7.5) of the pore water from the same location to obtain plant exudates. In one of the seasons, similar experiments were carried out but spiking the solution with different amounts of Cu in order to embrace the range between 0 and 1600 nM. In the final solutions as well as in sediment pore water LMWOAs were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Plants were able to release, in a short period of time, relatively high amounts of LMWOAs (oxalate, citrate, malate, malonate, and succinate). In the sediment pore water oxalate, succinate and acetate were also detected. Therefore, plant roots probably contributed to the presence of some of these organic compounds in pore water. Exudation differed between the plant species and also showed some seasonally variation, particularly for S. maritimus. The release of oxalate by J. maritimus increased with Cu increase in the media. However, exudation of the other LMWOAs did not seem to be stimulated by Cu contamination in the media. This fact is compatible with the existence of alternative internal mechanisms for Cu detoxification, as denoted by the fact that in media contaminated with Cu both plant species accumulated relatively high amounts (29–83%) of the initially dissolved Cu. This study expands our knowledge on the contribution of globally dominant salt marsh plants to the release of LMWOAs into the environment.     

冷冻牡蛎贮存过程中脂溶性有毒物质的变化研究

牡蛎是我国出口量较大的水产品之一,由于产品本身的特殊性,在生长过程中易产生腹泻性贝毒(DSP).本实验中原料牡蛎DSP生物法检测结果为阴性,冷冻贮存4个月后检测结果即为阳性.本研究以分析这一变化原因为目的,采用LC-MS法对DSP生物检测的阳性样品进行确认,结果表明,生物法DSP检测的结果为假阳性,造成生物法DSP检测中小白鼠死亡的是牡蛎在贮藏过程中产生的脂溶性有毒物质.进一步分析确定该有毒物质为牡蛎脂肪水解物--游离脂肪酸.同时本研究对牡蛎在不同贮存温度和贮存时间下产生的游离脂肪酸含量进行了测定,在-10 ℃贮存温度下,贮存0,2,4,6,8,10个月,游离脂肪酸的变化范围为5.2～788.6 mg/kg;在-10 ℃,-18 ℃,-25 ℃贮存温度下,贮存4个月,游离脂肪酸的变化范围为92.5～389 mg/kg.