Effects of dietary dandelion (Taraxacum mongolicum Hand.-Mazz.) polysaccharides on the performance and gut microbiota of laying hens.

This experiment was designed to evaluate the influences of dietary dandelion polysaccharides (DP) on the performance and cecum microbiota of laying hens. Three hundred laying hens were assigned to five treatment groups: the basal diet group (CK group), three DP groups (basal diets supplemented with 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 % DP), and the inulin group (IN group, basal diet supplemented with 1.5 % inulin). Increased daily egg weight and a decreased feed conversion rate were observed when the diets were supplemented with inulin or DP. The calcium metabolism rate in the 0.5 % and 1.0 % DP groups was greater than that in the CK group. The DP groups increased the short-chain fatty acid concentration, decreased pH, and enhanced the relative abundances of Parabacteroides, Alloprevotella, and Romboutsia in the cecum. These results showed that DP supplementation in the diets of laying hens can improve their performance, which might be associated with the regulation of the cecal microbiota.

Effect of Boron Doping on the Interlayer Spacing of Graphite.

Boron-doped graphite was prepared by the heat treatment of coke using B4C powder as a graphitization catalyst to investigate the effects of the substitutional boron atoms on the interlayer spacing of graphite. Boron atoms can be successfully incorporated into the lattice of graphite by heat treatment, resulting in a reduction in the interlayer spacing of graphite to a value close to that of ideal graphite (0.3354 nm). With an increase in the catalyst mass ratio, the content of substituted boron in the samples increased significantly, causing a decrease in the interlayer spacing of the boron-doped graphite. Density functional theory calculations suggested that the effects of the substitutional boron atoms on the interlayer spacing of the graphite may be attributed to the transfer of Π electrons between layers, the increase in the electrostatic surface potential of the carbon layer due to the electron-deficient nature of boron atoms, and Poisson contraction along the c-axis.

Temporal trends of heavy metals in the sediments of Bohai Bay in China.

The status and trend of mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), zinc (Zn), and arsenic (As) in the sediment of Bohai Bay from 1978 to 2017 were evaluated. The results indicated that the sediment status in 2017 was good. The contents of Hg, Cd, Pb, Cu, Cr, Zn, and As in all the monitoring stations were lower than category I. But, it is worth noting that the contents of Cu, Cr, and As in some stations were between threshold effects levels (TEL) and probable effects levels (PEL) guidelines, which were occasionally correlated to negative ecological effects. Since the reform and opening up of China, only the average content of Cd in 1996 was between category II and category III, but that in other years did not exceed category I. The average contents of Hg, Pb, Cu, Cr, Zn, and As were lower than category I. The Chinese Government should continue to pay high attention to the total quantity control measures of major risk factors Cd, Cu, Cr, and As.

Marine oil spill risk mapping for accidental pollution and its application in a coastal city.

Accidental marine oil spill pollution can result in severe environmental, ecological, economic and other consequences. This paper discussed the model of Marine Oil Spill Risk Mapping (MOSRM), which was constructed as follows: (1) proposing a marine oil spill risk system based on the typical marine oil spill pollution accidents and prevailing risk theories; (2) identifying suitable indexes that are supported by quantitative sub-indexes; (3) constructing the risk measuring models according to the actual interactions between the factors in the risk system; and (4) assessing marine oil spill risk on coastal city scale with GIS to map the overall risk. The case study of accidental marine oil spill pollution in the coastal area of Dalian, China was used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the model. The coastal areas of Dalian were divided into three zones with risk degrees of high, medium, and low. And detailed countermeasures were proposed for specific risk zones.

Fate of sulfonamide resistance genes in estuary environment and effect of anthropogenic activities.

With the exacerbating problem of antibiotic resistance, antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) as emerging contaminants are found at elevated levels in inland aquatic environments, especially in regions of intensive agricultural and urban activity. However, little quantitative data exist on the migration and attenuation of ARGs in estuary ecosystem, which is central to predicting their fate after release into marine environment. Moreover, the relevance of multiple chemical contaminants and water quality constituents should be understood to amplify and attenuate antibiotic resistance levels. To determine the prevalence and examine the fate of sulfonamide ARGs (sul-ARGs) in two estuaries under different effects of anthropogenic activities, we analyzed the sul-ARGs (sul1, sul2, and sul3), class 1 integrons (int1), and bacterial biomass in surface water samples from Daliaohe and Liaohe river estuaries. We also evaluated five types of antibiotics, heavy metals, and various bulk water quality constituents. Results showed that sul-ARGs were widespread in Daliaohe and Liaohe river estuaries, but the distribution did not correlate with the concentration of sulfonamides. Significant reduction in the abundance of sul-ARGs was also observed with increased salinity. Nevertheless, the trend in the change of concentrations of sul-ARGs was different in the two estuaries. Statistical analysis of the results indicated that several metals were significantly and positively correlated with sul-ARGs. Pearson's correlation coefficients were higher than those determined between antibiotic residues and sul-ARGs. Furthermore, the relative abundance of sul-ARGs was significantly and positively correlated with the relative abundance of int1 which suggested that the propagation of sul-ARGs was facilitated by class 1 integrons in estuaries.

Distribution characteristics and indicator significance of Dechloranes in multi-matrices at Ny-Ålesund in the Arctic.

In recent years, Dechloranes have been widely detected in the environment around the world. However, understanding and knowledge of Dechloranes in remote regions, such as the Arctic, remain lacking. Therefore, the concentrations of 5 Dechloranes in surface seawater, sediment, soil, moss, and dung collected from Ny-Ålesund in the Arctic were measured with the concentrations 93 pg/L, 342, 325, 1.4, and 258 pg/g, respectively, which were much lower than those in Asian and European regions. The mean ratios of anti-Dechlorane Plus (DP) to total DP (ƒanti) in seawater, sediment, soil, moss, dung, and atmospheric samples were 0.36, 0.21, 0.18, 0.27, 0.66, and 0.43, respectively. Results suggested that the main source of DP in seawater, sediment, soil, and moss was long-range atmospheric transport. However, the ratio identified in dung was different, for which the migration behavior of the organism is probably the main source of DP.

[Landscape pattern change and its simulation forecast in Zigui County of Three Gorges Reservoir Area].

Based on the TM images of 1987 and 2002, the landscape pattern change of Zigui County from 1987 to 2002 was analyzed by using landscape index method; and the simulation forecast of this change in next 50 years was conducted by using Markov model. The results showed that in 1987-2002, the landscape pattern of Zigui County changed dramatically. The area of sparse wood land increased greatly while that of upland and shrub land decreased obviously, and the distribution of the areas of different landscape types tended to balance. The average shape index of landscape had an overall decline, which was represented by the concentrated and connected distribution of different landscape types, simplification of landscape shape, and obvious human interference. As a whole, the landscape diversity and fragmentation in Zigui County were improved to some extent. In next 50 years, the area of sparse wood land in Zigui would have a rapid increase, followed by that of forestland, while the areas of upland and shrub land would be declining, and the other landscape types would have a less fluctuation in their areas. The main driving forces of the landscape pattern change in Zigui were the relocation of the County and the implementation of forestry policies.

[Effects of topographic correction on remote sensing estimation of forest biomass].

Based on four commonly used models (Cosine model, C model, C + SCS model, and Minnaert model), the topographic effects in Landsat-5 image of Maoershan region in Heilongjiang Province acquired on July 21, 2007 were calibrated on the platform of IDL language. The 4 models were validated from the aspects of visual differences and quantitative statistical features of the images. After the correlation analysis on the corrected remote sensing data and the forest biomass data, the biomass retrieving models were constructed. Furthermore, the effects of different topographic factors on the estimation of forest biomass were studied. The results showed that due to its liner presumption, the topographic correction combined with K-T transformation was not suitable for forest biomass estimation, and the correlations between the remote sensing data and the forest biomass fluctuated significantly. The parameters of the transformation needed to be adjusted in accordance with the information of land surface. The information content of vegetation index was significantly increased after topographic correction, and the correlation between vegetation index and forest biomass was enhanced greatly. Among the four models, Cosine model over-corrected the shaded areas in image, C model and C + SCS model had good correction performance by using semi-empirical parameters, while Minnaert model decreased the error of biomass estimation and improved the precision of remote sensing retrieving models effectively.