[Effect of Water Management on Rice Growth and Rhizosphere Priming Effect in Paddy Soils].

The rhizosphere priming effect (RPE) caused by carbon inputs from crop rhizodeposits plays a key role in regulating the carbon emission flux and carbon balance of farmland soils. Due to frequent alternations between dry and wet conditions, CO2 and CH4 emissions and the RPE in paddy field ecosystems are significantly different to those of other ecosystems. Therefore, it is of great significance to determine the direction and intensity of the rice RPE under alternations of dry and wet to limit greenhouse gas emissions. In this study, using a 13C-CO2 continuous labeling method combined with a pot-based experiment, the response of rice growth and the RPE under alternating dry and wet and continuous flooding conditions was examined. The results showed that, compared with the continuous flooding treatment, the alternating dry and wet treatments significantly increased aboveground and root biomass and the root-to-root ratio, and also increased soil microbial biomass. Under continuous flooding conditions, fluxes of 13CO2 and 13CH4 increased with rice growth from 10.2 µg·(kg·h)-1 and 2.8 µg·(kg·h)-1 (63 d) to 16.0 µg·(kg·h)-1 and 3.2 µg·(kg·h)-1 (75 d), respectively. During the 12-day drying process, the emissions of 13CO2 and 13CH4 derived from rhizosphere deposited C decreased by 57.5% and 88.1%. Under continuous flooding conditions, the RPE for CO2 and CH4 were positive and increased with the growth of rice. Under the alternating dry and wet treatment, after 12 days of drying, the RPE for CO2 and CH4 was reduced from 0.29 mg·(kg·h)-1 and 12.3 µg·(kg·h)-1 (63 d) to -0.39 mg·(kg·h)-1 and 0.07 µg·(kg·h)-1 (75 d). Thus, alternating wet and dry treatment can effectively promote rice growth and reduce the cumulative emissions of CH4. Therefore, adopting appropriate field water management is of great significance for increasing rice yields and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.

Fluorescent gold nanocluster-based sensor for detection of alkaline phosphatase in human osteosarcoma cells.

Gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) have attracted much attention as signal transducers in photoluminescence chemical/biological sensors. Herein, we employ bovine serum albumin/3-mercaptopropionic acid co-modified AuNCs as a fluorescence probe, Fe3+ as a quencher, and pyrophosphate as an alkaline phosphatase (ALP) substrate and Fe3+ chelator to design a novel biosensor for ALP detection, achieving a detection linear range of 0.8-16 U/L and a detection limit of 0.78 U/L. The developed method is successfully applied to the detection of ALP in human osteosarcoma cells and is shown to be suited for ALP inhibitor screening.

Characterization and mechanism of lead and zinc biosorption by growing Verticillium insectorum J3.

Verticillium insectorum J3 was isolated from a local lead-zinc deposit tailing, and its biosorption characteristics and reaction to the toxicities of different Pb(II) and Zn(II) concentrations were investigated. SEM, FTIR, a pH test and a desorption experiment were carried out to identify a possible mechanism. The biosorption of J3 presented an inhibition trend at low concentrations (25-75 mg L-1) and promotion at high concentrations (100-300 mg L-1). J3 absorbed Pb(II) prior to Zn(II) and produced alkaline substances, while mycelial and pellet morphology modifications were important for the removal of Pb(II) and Zn(II) under different stressful conditions (SEM results). Both intracellular accumulation and extracellular absorption may contribute to the removal of Pb(II) at lower concentrations (25-50 mg L-1), although mainly extracellular biosorption occurred at higher concentrations (75-300 mg L-1). However, Zn(II) bioaccumulation occurred at all concentrations assayed. Verticillium insectorum J3 may have evolved active defenses to alleviate the toxicity of heavy metals and proved to be a highly efficient biosorbent, especially for Pb(II) at high concentrations. This study is a useful reference for the development of biotreatment technologies to mitigate heavy metal waste.

An ammonia-based etchant for attaining copper nanoclusters with green fluorescence emission.

Luminescent copper nanoclusters (CuNCs) constitute a very active research topic due to their unique properties and lower cost than gold and silver NCs. In this study, we report a new, facile, and rapid top-down etching method for synthesizing luminescent CuNCs, using Cu nanoparticles (CuNPs) as the precursor and ammonia (NH3) as the etchant. The etching mechanism is systematically investigated and the optical and structural properties of the obtained CuNCs are carefully studied. The NH3-triggered etching process is very fast and the newly generated CuNCs can emit strong green fluorescence with a high quantum yield. Moreover, by coupling the urease-catalyzed hydrolysis of urea with the NH3-induced etching of CuNPs, we developed a novel fluorescence turn-on assay for urea. The linear range for urea detection is from 0.25 to 5 mM, and the limit of detection is 0.01 mM. This novel sensing approach, with good sensitivity and excellent selectivity, is then successfully utilized to detect urea in human serum samples, demonstrating its great potential in clinical diagnosis. In addition, the proposed coupling method can be extended to monitor other analytes that influence the size-focusing etching process, allowing metal NCs to be used to construct diverse chemosensors and biosensors.

[Effect of Phosphorus Addition on the Abundance of Autotrophic CO2-Fixation Microorganisms in Rhizospheric Soil from a Phosphorus-Limited Paddy Field].

A rice pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of phosphorus addition on the abundance of autotrophic CO2-fixation microorganisms using phosphorus-limited paddy soil from the Changsha Observation and Research Station for the Agricultural Environment. Rice seedlings were transplanted in the paddy soil with or without phosphorus addition, corresponding to P-treated-pot (P) or control pot (CK), respectively. Rhizosphere soils were collected from the P and CK treatments during the tillering and shooting stages. The physical and chemical soil properties were measured and the abundance of autotrophic CO2-fixation microorganisms was quantified with a real-time PCR technique based on four functional genes (cbbL, cbbM, accA, and aclB) involved in three CO2-fixation pathways (CBB cycle, rTCA cycle, and 3-hydroxypropionate/4-hydroxybutyrate cycle). The results show that phosphorus addition improves the concentrations of DOC and Olsen-P and the pH value, whereas negative effects on the MBC and NH4+-N concentrations are revealed during the tillering stage. The effect of phosphorus addition on the NO3--N concentration in the tillering and shooting stages differs. Phosphorus addition significantly increases the abundances of the cbbL, cbbM, accA, and aclB genes, which are 156%, 99%, 110%, and 193% higher than those of the CK treatment in the tillering stage. However, this positive effect is not notable for the cbbL, accA, and aclB genes during the shooting stage. Redundancy analysis (RDA) shows that Olsen-P is the environmental factor that most significantly affects the abundance of autotrophic CO2-fixation microorganisms.

Chitosan-stabilized platinum nanoparticles as effective oxidase mimics for colorimetric detection of acid phosphatase.

Capping molecules on the surface of nanomaterials not only enhance the dispersion and stability of nanomaterials but also greatly facilitate their surface modification and biological applications. However, most capping molecules can severely block the active sites of the catalytic core, thereby decreasing the enzymatic activity of nanomaterial-based enzyme mimics. This work demonstrates the superiority of chitosan (Ch) as a capping molecule for synthesizing catalytic platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs). The experimental results show that Ch simultaneously exhibits an excellent stabilizing effect and enhances the oxidase-like activity of PtNPs. Kinetic studies indicate that Ch-PtNPs have a higher affinity for 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) than other kinds of oxidase mimics. Furthermore, the TMB chromogenic reaction catalyzed by Ch-PtNPs is found to be much faster in an acidic medium, thus adapting well to the optimal pH for acid phosphatase (ACP). Therefore, a novel colorimetric approach for ACP determination is developed for the first time, which is based on the Ch-PtNP-catalyzed oxidation of TMB, the inhibitory effect of ascorbic acid (AA) on the oxidase-like activity of Ch-PtNPs, and the ACP-catalyzed hydrolysis of AA 2-phosphate (AAP) into AA. The linear range for ACP is 0.25-2.5 U L-1 and the limit of detection is measured to be 0.016 U L-1. This new colorimetric method is utilized to detect ACP in real biological samples and to screen ACP inhibitors. We believe that these new PtNPs, which exhibit high colloidal stability, excellent catalytic performance, good biocompatibility, simple preparation, and easy modification, can be promising candidates for a broad range of applications in optical sensing, environmental monitoring, clinical diagnosis, and drug discovery.

[Effects of long-term fertilization on bacterial and archaeal diversity and community structure within subtropical red paddy soils].

Paddy soils not only function as an important sink for "missing carbon" but also play an important role in the production of greenhouse gases such as N2O and CH4. Dynamic changes in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are closely related to microbially mediated carbon and nitrogen transformation processes occurring in soil. Using soil samples collected from a long-term fertilization experimental site in Taojiang County, subtropical China (established in 1986), we determined the effects of long-term (>25 years) non-fertilization (CK), chemical fertilization (NPK), and NPK combined with rice straw residues (NPKS) on soil bacterial and archaeal community structures. The 16S rRNA genotypes from the three differently treated soils were divided into 9 bacterial phylotypes, mainly including Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Chloroflexi, and archaea of Crenarchaeota and Euryarchaeota. The relative abundance of Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria and Crenarchaeota increased in the soils under NPK and NPKS treatments, with the increase being greater in the latter treatment. LUBSHUFF statistical analyses also demonstrated that there was significant difference among the microbial community compositions in CK-, NPK- and NPKS-treated soils. The abundance of bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA genes ranged from 0.58 x 10(10) to 1.06 x 10(10) copies · g(-1) dry soil and from 1.16 x 10(6) to 1.72 x 10(6) copies · g(-1) dry soil, respectively. Application of fertilizers increased the bacterial and archaeal abundance and diversity in the treated soils, with NPKS > NPK. Long-term chemical and organic applications significantly affected the abundance, diversity and composition of bacterial and archaeal communities in paddy ecosystems.

[Input and distribution of rice photosynthesized carbon in the tillering stage under different nitrogen application following continuous 13C labeling].

The input of rice-photosynthesized carbon (C) into soil plays an important role in soil C cycling. A 13C-labelled microcosm experiment was carried out to quantify the input of photosynthesized C into soil C pools in a rice-soil system during the tillering stage. Growing rice (Oryza sativa L. ) was continuously fed with 13C-labeled CO, ( C-CO, ) in a closed chamber without nitrogen (NO), or at different rates of N supply (N10,N20, N30, N40 or N60). The results showed that there were significant differences in rice shoot (1.58 g plot-1 to 4.35 g plot-1) and root (1.05 g plot-1 to 2.44 g plot-1 ) biomass among the N treatments after labeling for 18 days. The amounts of 13C in shoots and roots ranged from 44.0 g plot-1 to 157.6 g.plot-1 and 8.3 g.plot-1 to 49.4 g.plot-1, respectively, and generally followed the order of N60 > N40 > N20 > N10 > NO. The contents of rice-planted 13C-SOC, 13C-DOC and 13C-MBC in soil carbon pool were much higher than those of CK (without rice and N supply). The amount of 13C-SOC ranged from 11.1 g plot - to 23.7 gplot-1 , depending on the rate of N addition, accounting for 10.2% -18. 1% of the net assimilation. The amounts of 13C-DOC and 13C-MBC ranged from 4. 82-14.51 microg kg-1 and 526. 1-1 478.8 microg kg-1 , both depending on the N application rate. In addition, at 18-day of labeling, the 13C-SOC, 13C-DOC and 13C-MBC concentration was positively correlated with the rice biomass. Therefore, our results suggest that paddy soils can probably sequester more C from the atmosphere if more photosynthesized C enters the soils and N application can stimulate C rhizodeposition during the tillering stage.

[Dynamics of the mineralization and transformation of rice photosynthesized carbon in paddy soils--a batch incubation experiment].

Photosynthesized carbon is an important part in C cycling of "atmosphere-plant-soil" and is the source of soil organic carbon (SOC), but its mineralization and transformation dynamics in paddy soils remains still unclear. Therefore, a batch incubation experiment was conducted to investigate the mineralization and transformation of rice photosynthesized carbon in paddy soils after rice harvest. The results showed that the mineralization rate of native SOC ranged from 4.44 to 17.8 microg x (g x d)(-1), while that of photosynthesized carbon (new carbon) was 0.15- 1.51 micro x (gx d)(-1) during the course of 100-day-incubation span. Rice photosynthesized carbon input significantly influenced the soil active carbon (DOC, MBC) transformation. During the incubation period (100 d), the amount of 14C-DOC transformation ranged from 1.89 to 5.32 mg x 8 kg(-1), and that of native DOC varied from 61.13 to 90.65 mg x kg(-2), with the transformation rates ranged from 0.18 to 0.34 mg x (kg x d)(-1) and from 4.10 to 5.48 mg. (kg x d)(-1), respectively. However, the 14C-MBC and native original MBC were 10.92-44.11 mg x kg(-1) and 463.31-1153.46 mg x kg(-1), respectively, and their transformation rates were 0.80-2.87, 41.60-74.46 mg x (kg-d)(-1), respectively. It suggested that the turnover of MBC was greater than that of DOC. Furthermore, "new carbon" was easier to be mineralized and decomposed than native SOC. The mineralized portion in "new carbon" was 13.5%-20.2%, whereas that in native SOC was only 2.2%-3.7%. Therefore, we concluded that the incorporation of rice photosynthesized carbon was vital to maintain the soil carbon sink for paddy soils.

Using the kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) as a bioindicator of PCBs and PBDEs in the dinghushan biosphere reserve, China.

The Dinghushan Biosphere Reserve is a nature reserve and a site for the study of tropical and subtropical forest ecosystems. Rapid industrialization and intensive electronic waste-recycling activities around the biosphere reserve have resulted in elevated levels of industrial organic contaminants in the local environment that may cause adverse effects on wildlife that inhabits this area. In the present study, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and 2 alternative brominated flame retardants (BFRs)-decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE) and 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy) ethane (BTBPE)-were investigated in the biosphere reserve and a reference site by using the kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) as a bioindicator. Residue concentrations in kingfishers from the Dinghushan Biosphere Reserve ranged from 490 ng/g to 3000 ng/g, 51 ng/g to 420 ng/g, 0.44 ng/g to 90 ng/g, and 0.04 ng/g to 0.87 ng/g lipid weight for ∑PCBs, ∑PBDEs, DBDPE, and BTBPE, respectively. With the exception of the BTBPE, these levels were 2 to 5 times higher than those detected in kingfishers from the reference site. The contaminant patterns from the biosphere reserve were also different, with larger PCB contributions in comparison with the reference site. The estimated predator-prey biomagnification factors (BMFs) showed that most of the PCB and PBDE congeners and BTBPE were biomagnified in kingfishers from the biosphere reserve. The calculated toxic equivalent quantity (TEQ) concentrations of major coplanar PCB congeners in kingfishers from the biosphere reserve ranged from 18 pg/g to 66 pg/g wet weight, with some of these TEQ concentrations reaching or exceeding the levels known to impair bird reproduction and survival.

[Application of classical isothermal adsorption models in heavy metal ions/ diatomite system and related problems].

In order to fully understand adsorption nature of Cu2+, Zn2+, Pb2+, Cd2+, Mn2+, Fe3+ onto natural diatomite, and to find problems of classical isothermal adsorption models' application in liquid/solid system, a series of isothermal adsorption tests were conducted. As results indicate, the most suitable isotherm models for describing adsorption of Pb2+, Cd2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Mn2+, Fe3+ onto natural diatomite are Tenkin, Tenkin, Langmuir, Tenkin, Freundlich and Freundlich, respectively, the adsorption of each ion onto natural diatomite is mainly a physical process, and the adsorption reaction is favorable. It also can be found that, when using classical isothermal adsorption models to fit the experimental data in liquid/solid system, the equilibrium adsorption amount q(e) is not a single function of ion equilibrium concentration c(e), while is a function of two variables, namely c(e) and the adsorbent concentration W0, q(e) only depends on c(e)/W(0). Results also show that the classical isothermal adsorption models have a significant adsorbent effect, and their parameter values are unstable, the simulation values of parameter differ greatly from the measured values, which is unhelpful for practical use. The tests prove that four-adsorption-components model can be used for describing adsorption behavior of single ion in nature diatomite-liquid system, its parameters k and q(m) have constant values, which is favorable for practical quantitative calculation in a given system.

[Distribution characteristics and potential risks of phenols in the rainy season surface water from Three Gorges Reservoir].

Forty-seven surface water samples were collected from the main stream and 22 tributaries in area of the Three Gorges Reservoir, 15 phenolic compounds in these samples were analyzed using GC/MS. The results showed that the concentrations of phenolic compounds in the samples from the main stream and tributaries were 52.47 ng x L(-1) and 87.99 ng x L(-1), respectively. The concentrations of non-chlorinated phenols were higher than those of chlorinated phenols in the main stream and tributaries, and so the non-chlorinated phenols were the predominant compounds in these surface water samples. Phenol, o-cresol and 2-nitrophenol were the predominant compounds accounted for 79.1%, 3.7% and 3.6% in the samples from the main stream, respectively. Phenol, o-cresol, 2,6-dichlorophenol and 2-nitrophenol were the main compounds accounted for 77.5%, 5.4%, 3.8% and 2.2% in the samples from the tributaries, respectively. As compared the concentrations of phenol and 2-nitrophenol with the standard limits in The National Environmental Health Risk List, the levels of phenol and 2-nitrophenol were much lower than the standard limits, suggesting negligible risk of phenol and 2-nitrophenol in these samples.

[Analysis of microorganism species diversity in plant intercropping models in a wetland system constructed for treatment of municipal sewage].

The selective culture method and PCR-DGGE technology were applied to analyze the number and the biodiversity of microorganism species in cells with plant intercropping models and without plants in different seasons in a wetland system constructed for treatment of municipal sewage. The results showed that the numbers of microorganisms were considerably larger in the cells with plant intercropping models than those without plants, while the number of microorganisms was apparently larger in summer than that in winter in all treatments. Along the three-sequenced treatment cells with plant intercropping models a "low-high-low" changing trend in the numbers of microorganisms in summer. The UPGMA cluster analysis showed that the treatments in the same season were clustered in the same branch except for a few samples in winter and the biodiversity index was consistently higher in summer than that in winter. Five different sequences (DF1-DF5) were obtained through BLAST analysis and retrieval. The closest known origin groups were located as Escherichia coli, Citrobacter sp., Proteus sp., Klebsiella oxytoca, and Burkholderia sp. respectively. The BLASTX comparison test showed that DF1 closely related to the activities of the Mycobacterium bacillus and the Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, DF2 functioned as a conservative potential ATP binding protein, DF3 related to the activities of the Bacillus cereus spore, DF4 was involved in catabolism metabolism of microorganism and DF5 played an important role in decomposition of organic matters.

[Selection of winter plant species for wetlands constructed as sewage treatment systems and evaluation of their wastewater purification potentials].

In order to establish an evaluation system for selection of winter wetland plants possessing high wastewater purification potentials in subtropics areas, designed sewage treatment experiments were carried out by introducing into the constructed wetlands 25 species of winter wetland plants. Cluster analysis was performed by including harmful environment-resistant enzyme and substrate enzyme activities into the commonly applied plant screening and assessment indexes system. The obtained results indicated that there were significant differences among the tested winter plants in their root length and vigor, leaf malonaldehyde (MDA), biomass, average nitrogen and phosphorus concentration and uptake, and urease and phosphoric acid enzyme activities in the root areas. Based on the established evaluation system, the tested plants were clustered into 3 groups. The plants in the 1st group possessing high purification potentials are Oenanthe javanica, Brassicacapestris, Juncus effusu, Saxifragaceae, Iris pseudoacorus, Osmanthus fragrans and Iris ensata; those in the 2nd group possessing moderate purification potentials are Brassica oleracea var acephala, Calendula officinalis, Aucuba japonica, Ligustrum lucidu, Beta vulgaris, Rhododendron simsii and Ilex latifolia; and those in the 3rd group with low purification potentials are Brassica oleracea var acephala, Calistephus chinensis, Rosa chinensis, Antirrhinums, Liriope palatyphylla, Zephyranthes candida, Fatshedera lizei, Petunia hybrida, Ilex quihoui, Dianthus caryophyllus and Loropetalum chinensis.

[Re-emergence of schistosomiasis in Dali City after the criteria of transmission control were met].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the epidemic situation on schistosomiasis in five years after reaching the criteria of transmission control in 1995 in Dali City. METHODS: Epidemiological data of schistosomiasis during 1995-2000 were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Stool positive rate in the population was increasing yearly, new cases of infection including cases under 14 years old were detected each year. Acute infection occurred during 1996-1998 consecutively. Stool positive rate in cattle was unstable. Snail-ridden area increased significantly in 1996 and spots with infected snails stayed at a higher level during 1997-2000. CONCLUSION: Schistosomiasis in Dali city has been re-emerging though it was once deemed under transmission control. Possible reasons include a low drug-taking rate though distributed, frequent movement of cattle population, and less activity on snail control.