Statistical thermodynamics and magnetic moments of Landau quantized group VI dichalcogenides.

This work is focused on the determination of the Helmholtz free energy and the magnetic moments of the 'Dirac-like' group VI dichalcogenides subject to Landau quantization. We employ a technique described by Wilson to relate the free energy to the Green's function for the dichalcogenides in a high magnetic field, which was recently evaluated explicitly in terms of elementary functions. In the course of this analysis, the partition function is determined as a function of the magnetic field as well. The results exhibit the role of the quantizing magnetic field in the Helmholtz free energy at arbitrary temperature, and they are also employed to obtain the magnetic moments of the dichalcogenides. Explicit analytic formulas characteristic of de Haas-van Alphen oscillatory phenomenology are presented in the degenerate limit, and nondegenerate Landau quantization effects are also presented for the dichalcogenide magnetic moments.

Electromagnetic wave transmission through a subwavelength nano-hole in a two-dimensional plasmonic layer.

An integral equation is formulated to describe electromagnetic wave transmission through a subwavelength nano-hole in a thin plasmonic sheet in terms of the dyadic Green's function for the associated Helmholtz problem. Taking the subwavelength radius of the nano-hole to be the smallest length of the system, we have obtained an exact solution of the integral equation for the dyadic Green's function analytically and in closed form. This dyadic Green's function is then employed in the numerical analysis of electromagnetic wave transmission through the nano-hole for normal incidence of the incoming wave train. The electromagnetic transmission involves two distinct contributions; one emanates from the nano-hole, and the other is directly transmitted through the thin plasmonic layer itself (which would not occur in the case of a perfect metal screen). The transmitted radiation exhibits interference fringes in the vicinity of the nano-hole, and they tend to flatten as a function of increasing lateral separation from the hole, reaching the uniform value of transmission through the sheet alone at large separations.

Green cheese: partial life cycle assessment of greenhouse gas emissions and energy intensity of integrated dairy production and bioenergy systems.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of integrating dairy and bioenergy systems on land use, net energy intensity (NEI), and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A reference dairy farm system representative of Wisconsin was compared with a system that produces dairy and bioenergy products. This integrated system investigates the effects at the farm level when the cow diet and manure management practices are varied. The diets evaluated were supplemented with varying amounts of dry distillers grains with solubles and soybean meal and were balanced with different types of forages. The manure-management scenarios included manure land application, which is the most common manure disposal method in Wisconsin, and manure anaerobic digestion (AD) to produce biogas. A partial life cycle assessment from cradle to farm gate was conducted, where the system boundaries were expanded to include the production of biofuels in the analysis and the environmental burdens between milk and bioenergy products were partitioned by system expansion. Milk was considered the primary product and the functional unit, with ethanol, biodiesel, and biogas considered co-products. The production of the co-products was scaled according to milk production to meet the dietary requirements of each selected dairy ration. Results indicated that land use was 1.6 m2, NEI was 3.86 MJ, and GHG emissions were 1.02 kg of CO2-equivalents per kilogram of fat- and protein-corrected milk (FPCM) for the reference system. Within the integrated dairy and bioenergy system, diet scenarios that maximize dry distillers grains with solubles and implement AD had the largest reduction of GHG emissions and NEI, but the greatest increase in land use compared with the reference system. Average land use ranged from 1.68 to 2.01 m2/kg of FPCM; NEI ranged from -5.62 to -0.73 MJ/kg of FPCM; and GHG emissions ranged from 0.63 to 0.77 kg of CO2-equivalents/kg of FPCM. The AD contributed 65% of the NEI and 77% of the GHG emission reductions.

Spatiotemporal regulation of cell-cycle genes by SHORTROOT links patterning and growth.

The development of multicellular organisms relies on the coordinated control of cell divisions leading to proper patterning and growth. The molecular mechanisms underlying pattern formation, particularly the regulation of formative cell divisions, remain poorly understood. In Arabidopsis, formative divisions generating the root ground tissue are controlled by SHORTROOT (SHR) and SCARECROW (SCR). Here we show, using cell-type-specific transcriptional effects of SHR and SCR combined with data from chromatin immunoprecipitation-based microarray experiments, that SHR regulates the spatiotemporal activation of specific genes involved in cell division. Coincident with the onset of a specific formative division, SHR and SCR directly activate a D-type cyclin; furthermore, altering the expression of this cyclin resulted in formative division defects. Our results indicate that proper pattern formation is achieved through transcriptional regulation of specific cell-cycle genes in a cell-type- and developmental-stage-specific context. Taken together, we provide evidence for a direct link between developmental regulators, specific components of the cell-cycle machinery and organ patterning.

Phosphorus leaching under a restored tallgrass prairie and corn agroecosystems.

Most studies of phosphorus (P) movement in soil have based their conclusions on patterns of extractable soil P as a function of depth, which has led to the assumption that no substantial leaching loss occurs because of high P-fixation capacity in mineral soils. Few studies have involved high-quality leachate samples collected below the root zone; rather, most have involved tile drainage systems. Equilibrium-tension lysimeters installed at a depth of 1.4 m were used to evaluate and compare P leaching from a restored tallgrass prairie and corn (Zea mays L.) agroecosystems on Plano silt loam soil (fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Argiudoll) in southcentral Wisconsin during a 5-yr period. The corn agroecosystem treatments included nitrogen (N)-fertilized (f) or N-unfertilized (nf) and no-tillage (NT) or chisel-plowed (CP). Mean volume-weighted molybdate-reactive phosphorus (MRP) and total dissolved phosphorus (TDP) concentrations were similar within replicate samples, but always higher in NTf corn than in the prairie or CPf corn systems, though drainage from the CPf corn was always higher than from the NTf corn system. Water-extractable soil P concentrations at any given depth were not positively correlated with leachate concentrations, suggesting that macropore flow causes infiltrating runoff to preferentially bypass the bulk of the soil matrix. Leachate-P concentrations from the natural and managed agroecosystems exceeded 0.01 mg P L(-1) and leaching losses were significantly higher from N-fertilized corn, regardless of tillage, than from the prairie or N-unfertilized corn systems, from which leachate-P concentrations and loads were similar. Increased root growth from N fertilization could cause more macropore formation, preferential flow, and P mineralization from decaying roots compared with N-unfertilized systems, which could contribute to a N-fertilization effect on P leaching.

Nitrogen and carbon leaching in agroecosystems and their role in denitrification potential.

The drainage of water and leaching of dissolved constituents represent major components of agroecosystem mass budgets that have been exceedingly difficult to measure. Equilibrium-tension lysimeters (ETLs) were used to monitor drainage, nitrogen (N), and carbon (C) leaching through Plano silt loam (fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Typic Argiudoll) for a 4-yr period in a restored prairie and N-fertilized no-tillage and chisel-plowed maize (Zea mays L.) agroecosystems. Mean drainage recorded during 4 yr for the prairie, no-tillage, and chisel-plowed ecosystems totaled 461, 1,116, and 1,575 mm and represented 16, 33, and 47% of precipitation plus melting of drifted snow received, respectively. Total inorganic N leaching losses during the 4-yr period for the prairie, no-tillage, and chisel-plowed ecosystems were 0.6, 201, and 179 kg N ha(-1), respectively. Inorganic N leaching represented 26 and 24% of applied fertilizer N additions to the no-tillage and chisel-plowed agroecosystems. Total dissolved C leaching losses were 119, 435, and 502 kg C ha(-1) for the prairie, no-tillage, and chisel-plowed ecosystems, respectively. Sufficient dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and nitrate N (NO3- -N) existed in the prairie and agroecosystems to support subsoil denitrification. Potential denitrification, however, was limited by insufficient lengths of saturated soil conditions in all three ecosystems, the supply of DOC in the agroecosystems, and the supply of nitrate N in the prairie. Based on available DOC and nitrate N, the maximum contribution of denitrification below the root zone in the agroecosystems was less than 25% of the total amount of leached nitrate N and the probable contribution of denitrification was much less.

Canopy Wetness and Humidity Prediction Using Satellite and Synoptic-Scale Meteorological Observations.

A method for predicting canopy wetness and humidity from remotely-acquired meteorological and radiation data is described. This method employs a surface energy balance model to scale from the above-canopy macroclimate to in-canopy microclimate conditions. Above-canopy temperature, vapor pressure, and wind speed inputs were obtained from objective analyses of hourly measurements from the synoptic weather network, while downwelling long- and shortwave radiation forcings were estimated from standard satellite observations. Precipitation (irrigation + rainfall) was the only input acquired in-field. Model predictions compared well with measurements of nighttime dew accumulation and relative humidity made in irrigated potato crops grown in central Wisconsin. Maximum dew amount measured in full canopies over four nights was reproduced to within 0.05 to 0.1 mm. The practical utility of this method to disease management was assessed by processing modeled and measured canopy microclimate data from two weather stations over three growing seasons through the BLITECAST disease forecasting system. Given the uncertainties inherent in the measurement of humidity, the model reasonably reproduced disease severity values generated from in-situ measurements in all but one case, where the canopy had suffered partial defoliation. Because the model simulates the microclimate within a healthy, uniform canopy, it may in many cases produce more reliable regional forecasts for plant disease than would a single set of in-situ measurements.

Use of electrical conductivity to predict water-holding capacity in post-rigor pork.

This study was designed to re-examine the interrelationships among ultimate pH (pH(u)), electrical conductivity (EC) and water-holding capacity (WHC), and to test if EC, using one of two EC instruments, and pH(u) can be used to predict WHC. The % drip (PD) was used as measure of WHC. Forty-seven pork loins were classified either as PSE (pale, soft, exudative), RSE (reddish-pink, soft, exudative), RFN (reddish-pink, firm, non-exudative) or DFD (dark, firm, dry), based on L* values, PD and pH(u.) The measurement of EC, conducted using the instrument developed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-EC) was highly correlated to PD at 24 h post mortem (CD=66%), but the pH (NWK) measure of EC was not as highly related to WHC as UW-EC. The predictive value of pH(u) and EC for WHC were similar. When 47 samples were divided into three different groups, such as low (< 2% drip), medium (2-6% drip) and high (> 6% drip) drip loss, UW-EC alone grouped 80% of the samples correctly. Thus, EC seemed to be an accurate predictor of WHC in pork muscle when measured at 24 h post mortem. It is conceivable that EC can be used independently, or with even better success in combination with pH(u), to classify WHC of pork carcasses.

Biosorption of uranium by Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain CSU: characterization and comparison studies.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain CSU, a nongenetically engineered bacterial strain known to bind dissolved hexavalent uranium (as UO(2) (2+) and/or its cationic hydroxo complexes), was characterized with respect to its sorptive activity (equilibrium and dynamics). Living, heat-killed, permeabilized, and unreconstituted lyophilized cells were all capable of binding uranium. The uranium biosorption equilibrium could be described by the Langmuir isotherm. The rate of uranium adsorption increased following permeabilization of the outer and/or cytoplasmic membrane by organic solvents such as acetone. P. aeruginosa CSU biomass was significantly more sorptive toward uranium than certain novel, patented biosorbents derived from algal or fungal biomass sources. P. aeruginosa CSU biomass was also competitive with commercial cation-exchange resins, particularly in the presence of dissolved transition metals. Uranium binding by P. aeruginosa CSU was clearly pH dependent. Uranium loading capacity increased with increasing pH under acidic conditions, presumably as a function of uranium speciation and due to the H(+) competition at some binding sites. Nevertheless, preliminary evidence suggests that this microorganism is also capable of binding anionic hexavalent uranium complexes. Ferric iron was a strong inhibitor of uranium binding to P. aeruginosa CSU biomass, and the presence of uranium also decreased the Fe(3+) loading when the biomass was not saturated with Fe(3+), suggesting that Fe(3+) and uranium may share the same binding sites on biomass. Although the equilibrium loading capacity of uranium was greater than that of Fe(3+), this biomass showed preference of binding Fe(3+) over uranium. Thus, a two-stage process in which iron and uranium are removed in consecutive steps was proposed for efficient use of the biomass as a biosorbent in uranium removal from mine wastewater, especially acidic leachates.

Biochemical studies on LevJ, a fructanase from Actinomyces naeslundii T14V.

The Actinomyces naeslundii T14V gene levJ encodes a sucrase with fructanase activity and may be responsible for the fructanase activity observed bound to the surface of A. naeslundii T14V cells. A large proportion of LevJ expressed in Escherichia coli was translocated to the periplasm, and translocation and enzymatic activity were not affected by deletion of a putative cell-wall anchor sequence. The pH optimum of the enzyme was found to be between 5.5 and 6.5 whether the substrate was sucrose or inulin, although inulinase activity was more sensitive than sucrose activity to perturbation of the pH from the optimum. The relation between LevJ inulinase activity and pH was similar to that of A. naeslundii whole cells. LevJ exhibited standard saturation kinetics with sucrose, and the K(m) was calculated to be 89 mM, but it was not possible to calculate a K(m) for inulin. Evidence for inhibition of inulinase activity but not sucrase activity by high concentrations of inulin was obtained.

Characterization of levJ, a sucrase/fructanase-encoding gene from Actinomyces naeslundii T14V, and comparison of its product with other sucrose-cleaving enzymes.

A library of Actinomyces naeslundii T14V DNA was constructed in plasmid pUC18 and from this several sucrose-positive clones were isolated. Evidence was obtained that all these clones contained the same gene. One clone, which carried a plasmid that was named pPNG102, was chosen for further study. It was found that the enzyme specified by this plasmid hydrolyzed sucrose, raffinose, inulin and levan, but not dextran, and did not synthesize fructan or glucan from sucrose. The sequence of the insert in pPNG102 was determined and was found to contain a large ORF that specifies a polypeptide of 99,319 Da with similarity to other sucrases. This gene was named levJ. The deduced amino acid (aa) sequence contained both a potential signal sequence and potential C-terminal cell envelope attachment domain. Alignments revealed an internal 331-aa domain not present in other levanases and sucrases. A neighbour-joining tree showed that sucrases of eukaryotic origin form a cluster with eubacterial sucrase/fructanases, and this cluster does not include other eubacterial sucrases. It is postulated that certain eukaryotic sucrase-encoding genes are of eubacterial origin.

Measuring water-holding capacity in pork musculature with a tensiometer.

The water-holding capacity (WHC) of post-mortem porcine musculature is an important quality trait, and it is desirable for the industry to assess its variations ,for purposes of evaluating and processing pork products. There are several procedures to accurately determine WHC, but most are either too slow, too expensive or are impractical for commercial application. Since WHC is also important when examining the characteristics of soil, scientists routinely use an instrument called a tensiometer for this measurement. Therefore, we explored the potential application of this technique for assessing WHC in post-rigor pork muscle. The cost, potential speed and invasive application of the tensiometer in muscle were attractive characteristics. A sample (29) of pork loins, representing considerable variation in WHC were used to test the applicability of a commercial tensiometer. When tensiometer measurements were compared to 48 h drip loss, the results indicated the tensiometer could accurately detect the variations in free fluids expressed in muscle and that the procedure could be applied quickly and invasively without altering the commercial value of the product. However, particles (primarily protein and fat) in the muscle fluid became imbedded in the pores of the tensiometer ceramic tip, thus impairing the repeated use of the instrument. A plastic filter was developed to prevent clogging, but it could not be molded adequately to permit rapid insertion and removal for on-line measurements of WHC. Therefore, despite the various desirable features of the tensiometer, it failed to meet some requirements considered essential for further testing as a potential commercial, on-line procedure. First, the clogging problem must be resolved The study also indicated that the filter paper test would be more appropriate than the tensiometer for use in field tests to predict WHC when limited numbers of samples were to be tested.

Fimbriae and determination of host species specificity of Bordetella bronchiseptica.

A monoclonal antibody, designated CF8 and prepared against fimbrial protein enrichments of Bordetella bronchiseptica 110H, was determined by immunogold electron microscopy to bind to some but not all fimbrial filaments on intact bacterial cells. Comparison of the reactivity of this antibody with that of monoclonal antibody BPF2, which is specific for Bordetella pertussis serotype 2 fimbriae, indicated that CF8 recognizes an epitope similar to that recognized by BPF2. By Western blot (immunoblot), it was determined that monoclonal antibody CF8 does not react with proteins denatured by treatment with sodium dodecyl sulfate and beta-mercaptoethanol and by boiling for 5 min but that it does recognize fimbrial proteins in their native, nondenatured state. This antibody was used to compare fimbriae between strains of B. bronchiseptica isolated from different species. Strains from pigs, dogs, guinea pigs, and four other species were compared by an enzyme immunoassay. Strains isolated from pigs were found to express significantly more CF8-reactive and B. pertussis serotype 2 cross-reactive fimbriae than strains isolated from guinea pigs. Strains from dogs were more variable in reactivity than those from pigs or guinea pigs. The reactivity with antifimbrial monoclonal antibody CF8 did not correlate with enzyme electromorphotype but did correlate with the host species, suggesting a role for fimbriae in the determination of host species specificity of B. bronchiseptica.

Rapid field measurement of the assimilation rate versus internal CO(2) concentration relationship in green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marsh.): the influence of light intensity.

Assimilation rate (A) versus intercellular CO(2) concentration (C(i)) relationships for leaflets of five-year-old green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marsh.) trees were computed from gas exchange measurements obtained in the field with a closed-circuit, portable photosynthesis measurement system comprising an LI-6200 gas analyzer and an LI-6000 computer, (Li-Cor, Inc., Lincoln, Nebraska, USA). Observations were made over a range of light intensities achieved by attenuating direct sunlight with neutral density filters, and over a range of ambient CO(2) concentrations achieved by breathing into the assimilation chamber and then lowering the CO(2) concentration to the desired level with the LI-6200's soda-lime scrubber. Boundary layer conductance was determined by use of a leaf replica made of moist filter paper. Typically, A-C(i) curves at four light intensities were obtained in three to four hours. The initial slope (when A = 0) of the A-C(i) curve obtained at a light intensity of 1750 micromol m(-2) s(-1) (full sunlight) was similar to that obtained at a light intensity of 840 micromol m(-2) s(-1). However, when light intensity was reduced further (to 370 and 160 micromol m(-2) s(-1)), the initial slope of the A-C(i) curve also decreased, indicating that at these light intensities, assimilation was limited by photochemical energy supply, as well as CO(2) concentration.