Effects of polystyrene nanoplastics on the physiological and biochemical characteristics of microalga Scenedesmusquadricauda.

The contamination of the aquatic environment with microplastics has become a global environmental concern. Microplastic particles can be shredded to form smaller nanoplastics, and knowledge on their impacts on phytoplankton, especially freshwater microalgae, is still limited. To investigate this issue, the microalga Scenedesmus quadricauda was exposed to polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NPs) of five concentrations (10, 25, 50, 100, and 200 mg/L). The growth; the contents of antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POD); the chlorophyll content; and concentrations of soluble protein and soluble polysaccharide were accordingly measured. The results showed that the microalgal density increased with the increase of the polystyrene nanoplastic concentrations, and the physiological features of alga were enhanced after the stimulation of nanoplastics. Furthermore, a high concentration (200 mg/L) of nanoplastics increased the contents of chlorophyll, soluble protein, and polysaccharide (P < 0.05). The antioxidant enzyme activities of Scenedesmus quadricauda were significantly activated by nanoplastics. Lastly, we propose three possible algal recovery mechanisms in response to nanoplastics in which Scenedesmus quadricauda was tolerant with PS-NPs by cell wall thickening, internalization, and aggregation. The results of this study contribute to understanding of the ecological risks of nanoplastics on freshwater microalgae.

The complete mitochondrial genome of an oil-rich microalga Parachlorella kessleri TY (Chlorophyta).

Parachlorella kessleri TY isolated from the lawn soil belongs to Trebouxiophyceae, Chlorophyta. The complete mitogenome of P. kessleri sequenced and described. It is a circular duplex molecule 64,744 bp in length consisting of 28 protein-coding genes, 23 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, four ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, and one putative open reading frames (ORFs). Phylogenetic analysis places P. kessleri mitogenome in a branch sister to Picochlorum sp., Lobosphaera incisa, and Chloroparvula sp., clade in which Picochlorum as P. kessleri also reported as oil-rich green microalgae.

Comparison of the transcriptomes of different life history stages of the freshwater Rhodophyte Thorea hispida.

Thorea hispida exclusively inhabits freshwater environments and is characterized by a triphasic life history. In this study, the organelle genomes and transcriptomes of different life history stages of T. hispida were examined using next generation sequencing. The chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes of the chantransia stage were 175,747 and 25,411 bp in length, respectively. The chantransia stage was highly similar to the gametophyte stage based on comparisons of organelle genomes and phylogenetic reconstruction. Transcriptomic comparisons of two stages found that ribosome-related genes were the most up-regulated in the gametophyte stage of T. hispida. Seven meiosis-specific genes, including SPO11 initiator of meiotic double-stranded breaks(spo11), meiotic nuclear divisions 1(mnd1), RAD51 recombinase(rad51), mutS homolog 4(msh4), mutS homolog 5(msh5), REC8 meiotic recombination protein(rec8), and DNA helicase Mer3(mer3), were differentially regulated between the two life history stages. The organelle genomes and transcriptomes from T. hispida provided in this study will be valuable for future studies of freshwater red algae.

Long term spatial-temporal dynamics of fluoride in sources of drinking water and associated health risks in a semiarid region of Northern China.

There is a concern about the increasing prevalence of health problems related to the ingestion of fluoride (F-) in the developing world. Drinking water is one important source of F-, and the concentration of F- needs to be known to ensure the safety of drinking water. In this study, F- levels in drinking water were investigated across Taiyuan in Shanxi Province, China. Spatial-temporal distribution characteristics and potential associated health risks were analyzed using GIS. We collected 485 samples from shallow wells without any defluoridation treatments between 2008 and 2016. After analyzing the samples of F- content we found that mean F- levels of urban areas (0.61 ±â€¯0.39 mg L-1), suburban areas (0.70 ±â€¯0.87 mg L-1) and for all of Taiyuan city (0.63 ±â€¯0.56 mg L-1) were in optimum range based on the recommendation by USEPA. However, individual locations within industrial areas (e.g. Gujiao District) had higher F- levels (1.06 mg L-1). A concerning result showed that 12.37% of tested locations had F- concentrations larger than 1.0 mg L-1. We calculated F- Health Risk Indices (HRIsF) and found that highest were associated with suburban areas, especially in the year 2009 and 2010. However, from 2008 to 2016, overall F- levels and HRIsF of the sampled groundwater in Taiyuan City showed a decreasing trend. HRIsF in suburban areas was higher than urban areas, possible due to the heavily prevalent coal mining industry in those areas. Specific policies should be formulated to address HRIsF.

Application of Phragmites australis to remove phenol from aqueous solutions by chemical activation in batch and fixed-bed columns.

The ability of the agricultural residue of Phragmites australis to serve as an absorbent material used to remove phenol from aqueous solutions in batch and continuous fixed-bed columns was investigated. Prepared adsorbents were characterized by SEM, FTIR, and pHpzc methods. The equilibrium adsorption (qe) of phenol was increased from 9.61 to 29.40 mg/g when the initial phenol concentrations increased from 50 to 150 mg/L. The max adsorption capacity of Phragmites australis was found to be 29.60 mg/g at 30 °C. In column studies, a higher flow rate, higher initial concentration of phenol, and shorter packing layer height increase the column adsorption capacity of phenol. In a batch and continuous fixed-bed column studies, the experiment data was evaluated by some classic models. Fitting degree between the experimental results shows that the pseudo-second-order adsorption kinetics and Langmuir model were the best. Thomas and Yoon-Nelson models were in good agreement with the experimental breakthrough curve data. Both batch and continuous investigation indicated that Phragmites australis could be used as a fine adsorbent to remove phenol and that the adsorption efficiency improved significantly in the column experiment.

Effect of high-doses pyrogallol on oxidative damage, transcriptional responses and microcystins synthesis in Microcystis aeruginosa TY001 (Cyanobacteria).

Severe eutrophication and harmful cyanobacterial blooms of freshwater ecosystems is a persistent environmental topic in recent decades. Pyrogallol (polyphenol) was confirmed to exhibit one of the most intensive inhibitory effects on the Microcystis aeruginosa. In this study, the expression of genes, release of microcystins (MCs) and antioxidant system of pyrogallol on Microcystis aeruginosa TY001 were investigated. The results revealed that the expression of stress response genes (prx, ftsH, grpE and fabZ) and DNA repair genes (recA and gyrB) were up-regulated. Meanwhile, the antioxidant enzymes, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD) activity, were increased, and the stress caused lipid peroxidation to occur and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels to change. Unexpectedly, the relative transcript abundance of microcystin synthesis genes (mcyB, mcyD and ntcA) and the contents of microcystins (MCs) significantly increased compared with the control in the culture medium. In conclusion, oxidative damage and DNA damage are the primary mechanisms for the allelopathic effect of pyrogallol on M. aeruginosa TY001.

[Relationship Between the Phytoplankton Distribution and Environmental Factors in Fenhe Scenic Spot of Taiyuan].

In order to explore the structural characteristics of phytoplankton community and the water quality and the water quality of the Fenhe scenic spot in Taiyuan, the species composition and the biomass of phytoplankton as well as their correlation with the environmental factors were monitored. The survey selected 9 sampling sites along the up and lower reaches in Fenhe scenic spot of Taiyuan, from Chaicun Bridge to Xiangyun Bridge. During the wet season (June-Octoher) in 2014, specimens were collected, qualitative and quantitative investigation on the algae and monitoring on physicochemical indexes of the water were studied. Meanwhile, the water quality was analyzed and evaluated combining all the physicochemical indexes and cell density. Correlation analysis and RDA were conducted to analyze the relationship of algal community structure and the environmental factors. The main results showed that the dominant phytoplanktons were Cyanophyta, Chlorophyta and Bacillariophyta. The algal biomass first increased and then reduced during the wet season, and the maximum value of hiomass occurred in July. There were many differences among different sampling points. The cell densities of phytoplankton were much higher in three central areas than the other sampling sites. Physical and chemical factors showed a variation tendency in time and space. Based on the results of RDA hetween phytoplankton cell densities and the physic-chemical parameters, the cell densities and the physic..chemical parameters had different correlations. The total cell density had significant positive correlation with dissolved oxygen, and negative correlation with COD. There were extremely significant positive correlations between diatom cell densities and water temperature, air temperature. But the diatom cell density was obviously negatively correlated with COD. It was distinct that the functions of the environment factors were different in temporal and spatial distrihution. The state index of comprehensive nutrition indicated that the total nitrogen content was beyond the standard in all sampling sites during the whole wet season. The water quality varied from oligotrophic to light eutrophic.

[Phytoplankton community structure and assessment of water quality in the middle and lower reaches of Fenhe River].

To understand the distribution of phytoplankton and the water quality in the middle and lower reaches of Fenhe River, 18 sampling sites were selected for specimen collection, species identification and data analysis. The results showed that: (1) There were 298 species of phytoplankton under the membership of 8 divisions and 96 genera, among which, Bacillariophyta was the dominant division, with a total of 127 species of 27 genera, followed by Chlorophyta, with 104 species of 41 genera, and Cyanophyta, with 45 species of 20 genera. Only 22 species of 8 genera belonged to Euglenophyta, Cryptophyta, Pyrrophyta, Chrysophyta and Xanthophyta. The number of species in wet season was higher than that in dry season at all sites. Dominant species included Cyclotella meneghiniana, Synedra acus, Navicula cryptocephala, Nitzschia palea of Bacillariophyta, Chlorella vulgaris of Chlorophyta, Oscillatoria tenuis, O. amphibia of Cyanophyta, most of which were indicator species of alpha- and beta-mesosaprobic type. Cell density was higher in wet season and lower in dry season. (2) Shannon-Wieaver species diversity index ranged from 1 to 3 basically. Margalef species richness index ranged from 0.5 to 2. Pielou evenness index ranged 0.3-0.8. (3) During the wet season, most dominant species of Chlorophyta and Euglenophyta had higher correlation with chemical oxygen demand (COD), conductivity and ammonia nitrogen. The dominant species of Cyanophyta were greatly influenced by the contents of water temperature and chromium (Cr). The distribution of dominant species of Bacillariophyta was complicatedly related with environmental factors. During the dry season, there was a higher correlation between the members of Cyanophyta and ammonia nitrogen, total phosphorus, COD. The species of Chlorophyta and Euglenophyta were mainly influenced by the dissolved oxygen and total phosphorus. The bacillariophytes were mainly related with total phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, pH and cadmium (Cd). In conclusion, the water was moderately to heavily contaminated in middle and lower reaches of Fenhe River and the water quality was eutrophic.

Effects of chloroform extract of Dryopteris crassirhizoma on the ultramicroscopic structures of Meloidogyne incognita.

In our early experiments, the chloroform extract of D. crassirhizoma was demonstrated to contain the highest concentrations of total phloroglucinols among several extract fractions and possessed the most effective nematicidal activity. This study aimed to ascertain the ultrastructural changes in M. incognita after treatment with a D. crassirhizoma chloroform extract at 1 mg·mL⁻¹ for 24 h. It was found that the extract exhibited significant destructive effects on the worm's ultrastructure and caused distinctive damage to body surfaces and internal structures. These results will contribute to a deeper understanding of the nematicidal mechanism of D. crassirhizoma, as well as in the design of efficient bionematicides.

[Analysis of Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Cu and Zn in algae].

In this paper, we used flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry to determine the contents of Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Cu and Zn in 7 species of algae. The results showed that there were relatively rich Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Cu and Zn in the algae. The useful data were provided for algae as resource to be utilized.