Cutting frequency effect on barium phytoextraction by macrophytes in flooded environment: A field trial.

In anoxic environmental conditions and with a drastic reduction of the redox potential, the barium sulphate used in petroleum drilling fluids becomes a hazard to the ecosystem. A field study was conducted in Brazil in an area with a history of accidental Barium (Ba) contamination to evaluate the role of frequent plant cutting on phytoremediation. The plant species Typha domingensis and Eleocharis acutangula, cultivated in a combined plantation, were subjected to four different cut frequencies: every 90 days (four cuts), 120 days (three cuts), 180 days (two cuts), or 360 days (one cut). The total amount of Ba extracted from the soil by the plants was evaluated for each treatment and at different soil depths Overall, total Ba in the soil decreased the most dramatically for cut frequencies of 120 (37.83%) and 180 (47.73%) days at 0-0.2 m below the surface, and with cut frequencies of 120 (51.98%) and 360 (31.79%) at 0.2-0.4 m depth. Further, total Ba in the plant biomass was greatest in the 120 and 360-days frequency groups. Thus, cuts at intervals of 120 days or more are associated with high levels of Ba in the plant tissue and a decrease of soil Ba.

Leaf transcriptome analysis and development of SSR markers in water chestnut (Eleocharis dulcis).

Water chestnut (Eleocharis dulcis) is an important aquatic crop in China; however, transcriptomic and genomic data in public databases are limited. To identify genes and development molecular markers, high-throughput transcriptome sequencing was applied to generate transcript sequences from water chestnut leaf. More than 24 million reads were obtained, trimmed, and assembled into 40,796 contigs with an average length of 616.6 bp. Sequence similarity analyses against 4 public databases (NR, GO, KEGG, KOG) revealed 17,628 contigs that could be annotated with gene descriptions, conserved protein domains, or gene ontology terms. Among the important metabolic pathways, 27 genes were related to starch synthesis and 13 genes were in the steroid synthetic pathway. In addition, 2570 cDNA simple sequence repeats were identified as potential molecular markers in our contigs. One hundred pairs of polymerase chain reaction primers were designed and used for validation of the amplification. The results revealed that 87 primer pairs were successfully amplified in initial screening tests. Overall, this transcriptome dataset and these markers can serve as a platform for further gene expression studies, functional genomic studies, and marker-assisted selection in E. dulcis.

Isolation, purification and identification of etiolation substrate from fresh-cut Chinese water-chestnut (Eleocharis tuberosa).

Fresh cut Chinese water-chestnut is a popular ready-to-eat fresh-cut fruit in China. However, it is prone to etiolation and the chemicals responsible for this process are not known yet. To address this problem, we extracted phytochemicals from etiolated Chinese water-chestnut and separated them using MPLC and column chromatography. Four compounds were obtained and their structures were determined by interpretation of UV, TLC, HPLC and NMR spectral data and by comparison with reported data. We identified these compounds as eriodictyol, naringenin, sucrose and ethyl D-glucoside. Among those, eriodictyol and naringenin were both isolated for the first time in fresh-cut Chinese water-chestnut and are responsible for the yellowing of this fruit cutting.

Performance of Eleocharis macrostachya and its importance for arsenic retention in constructed wetlands.

INTRODUCTION: Arsenic (As) can be removed from water via rhizofiltration using phytostabilizing plants. The aim of this study was to investigate the performance of Eleocharis macrostachya in constructed wetland prototypes, as well as the plant's arsenic mass retention and the distribution of As along the wetland flow gradient and the soil in the wetland mesocosmos. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Experiments were carried out in laboratory-scale wetland prototypes, two planted with E. macrostachya and one without plants. Samples of water were taken at the inlet and outlet of the wetlands during the 33-week test period. At the end of the experiment, plants and soil (silty-sand) from each prototype were divided in three equal segments (entrance, middle and exit) and analyzed for their arsenic content. Results revealed that the planted wetlands have a higher As-mass retention capacity (87-90% of the total As inflow) than prototypes without plants (27%). RESULTS: As mass balance in the planted wetlands revealed that 78% of the total inflowing As was retained in the soil bed. Nearly 2% was absorbed in the plant roots, 11% was flushed as outflow, and the fate of the remaining 9% is unknown. In the prototype without plants, the soil retained 16% of As mass, 72% of the arsenic was accounted for in the outflow, and 12% was considered unknown. Although E. macrostachya retained only 2% of the total arsenic mass in their roots, its presence was a determining factor for arsenic retention in the wetland soil medium. CONCLUSION: Hence, planted wetlands might be a suitable option for treating As-contaminated water.

Do tropical wetland plants possess convective gas flow mechanisms?

• Internal pressurization and convective gas flow, which can aerate wetland plants more efficiently than diffusion, are common in temperate species. Here, we present the first survey of convective flow in a range of tropical plants. • The occurrence of pressurization and convective flow was determined in 20 common wetland plants from the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. The diel variation in pressurization in culms and the convective flow and gas composition from stubbles were examined for Eleocharis dulcis, Phragmites vallatoria and Hymenachne acutigluma, and related to light, humidity and air temperature. • Nine of the 20 species studied were able to build up a static pressure of > 50 Pa, and eight species had convective flow rates higher than 1 ml min(-1). There was a clear diel variation, with higher pressures and flows during the day than during the night, when pressures and flows were close to zero. • It is concluded that convective flow through shoots and rhizomes is a common mechanism for below-ground aeration of tropical wetland plants and that plants with convective flow might have a competitive advantage for growth in deep water.

Growth response and tissue accumulation trends of herbaceous wetland plant species exposed to elevated aqueous mercury levels.

The impacts of elevated aqueous mercury levels (0, 2, and 4 ppm) on the growth status and mercury tissue concentrations of Eleocharis parvula, Saururus cernuus, Juncus effuses, Typha latifolia, and Panicum hemitomon were determined. Both short-term (net CO2 assimilation) and long-term (biomass) indicators of plant growth status suggest that Eleocharis parvula, Saururus cernuus, and Juncus effuses were relatively unimpacted by elevated mercury levels, whereas Typha latifolia and Panicum hemitomon were somewhat impacted at elevated mercury levels. Eleocharis parvula, Panicum hemitomon, and Typha latifolia generally had the greatest overall belowground tissue concentrations of mercury (2 ppm treatment: 7.21, 7.32, and 9.64 ppm respectively; 4 ppm treatment: 16.23, 18.23, and 13.98 ppm, respectively) and aboveground tissue concentrations of mercury (2 ppm treatment: 0.01, 0.04, 0.02; 4 ppm treatment: 0.26; 0.11; 0.17 ppm, respectively). However, the species investigated in this study demonstrated lower levels of mercury accumulation into tissues when compared with similar investigations of other aquatic plants, suggesting that the above species are not optimal for phytoremediation efforts.

Burkholderia heleia sp. nov., a nitrogen-fixing bacterium isolated from an aquatic plant, Eleocharis dulcis, that grows in highly acidic swamps in actual acid sulfate soil areas of Vietnam.

Nitrogen-fixing bacteria, strains SA41(T), SA42 and SA53, were isolated from an aquatic plant, Eleocharis dulcis, that grows in highly acidic swamps (pH 2-4) in actual acid sulfate soil areas of Vietnam. The isolates were Gram-negative, aerobic, non-spore-forming, rod-shaped bacteria, having a cell width of 0.6-0.7 microm and a length of 1.5-1.7 microm. They showed good growth between pH 3.0 and 7.0, and between 17 and 37 degrees C. The organisms contained ubiquinone Q-8 as the predominant isoprenoid quinone, and C(16 : 0), C(17 : 0) cyclo, C(18 : 1) omega7c and summed feature 3 (C(16 : 1) omega7c and/or iso-C(15 : 0) 2-OH) as major fatty acids. Their fatty acid profiles are similar to those reported for other Burkholderia species. The DNA G+C content of these strains was 64 mol%. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, these strains were shown to belong to the genus Burkholderia. Although their calculated 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values to Burkholderia silvatlantica, Burkholderia mimosarum, Burkholderia ferrariae and Burkholderia tropica were 98.5, 98.2, 98.0 and 97.0 %, respectively, the isolates formed a distinct group in phylogenetic trees, and the DNA-DNA relatedness values of strain SA41(T) to these species were 39, 41, 39 and 33 %, respectively. The results of physiological and biochemical tests, including whole-cell protein pattern analysis, allowed phenotypic differentiation of these strains from the published Burkholderia species. Therefore, strains SA41(T), SA42 and SA53 represent a novel species for which the name Burkholderia heleia sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SA41(T) (=NBRC 101817(T)=VTCC-D6-7(T)).

Burkholderia acidipaludis sp. nov., aluminum-tolerant bacteria isolated from Chinese water chestnut (Eleocharis dulcis) growing in highly acidic swamps in South-East Asia.

Two strains of aluminium-tolerant bacteria, SA33(T) and 7A078, were isolated from Chinese water chestnut (Eleocharis dulcis) growing in highly acidic swamps (pH 2-4) in actual acid sulfate soil areas of Vietnam (SA33(T)) and Thailand (7A078). The strains were Gram-negative, aerobic, non-spore-forming rods, 0.6-0.7 mum wide and 1.3-1.7 mum long. These strains showed good growth at pH 3.0-8.0 and 17-37 degrees C. The organisms contained ubiquinone Q-8 as the predominant isoprenoid quinone and C(16 : 0), C(18 : 1) ω 7c and C(17 : 0) cyclo as the major fatty acids. Their fatty acid profiles were similar to those reported for other Burkholderia species. The DNA G+C content of these strains was 64 mol%. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, the strains were shown to belong to the genus Burkholderia. Although the 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values calculated for strain SA33(T) to 7A078 and the type strains of Burkholderia kururiensis, B. sacchari and B. tuberum were 100, 97.3, 97.1 and 97.0 %, respectively, strains SA33(T) and 7A078 formed a group that was distinct in the phylogenetic trees; the DNA-DNA relatedness of strain SA33(T) to 7A078 and these three type strains were respectively 90, 47, 46 and 45 %. The results of physiological and biochemical tests, including whole-cell protein pattern analysis, allowed phenotypic differentiation of these strains from described Burkholderia species. Therefore, strains SA33(T) and 7A078 represent a novel species, for which the name Burkholderia acidipaludis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SA33(T) (=NBRC 101816(T) =VTCC-D6-6(T)). Strain 7A078 (=NBRC 103872 =BCC 36999) is a reference strain.

Methanol as the primary methanogenic and acetogenic precursor in the cold Zoige wetland at Tibetan plateau.

Previous studies suggested that methanol and acetate were the likely methanogenic precursors in the cold Zoige wetland. In this study, the contribution of the two substances to methanogenesis and the conversion in Zoige wetland were analyzed. It was determined that methanol supported the highest CH(4) formation rate in the enrichments of the soil grown with Eleocharis valleculosa, and even higher at 15 degrees C than at 30 degrees C; while hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis was higher at 30 degrees C. Both methanol- and acetate-using methanogens were counted at the highest (10(7) g(-1)) in the soil, whereas methanol-using acetogens (10(8) g(-1)) were ten times more abundant than either methanol- or acetate-using methanogens. Both methanol and acetate were detected in the methanogenesis-inhibited soil samples, so that both could be the primary methanogenic precursors in E. valleculosa soil. However, the levels of methanol and acetate accumulated in 2-bromoethane-sulfonate (BES)- and CHCl(3)-treated soils were in reverse, i.e., higher methanol in CHCl(3)- and higher acetate in BES-treated soil, so that methanol-derived methanogenesis could be underestimated due to the consumption by acetogens. Analysis of the soil 16S rRNA genes revealed Acetobacterum bakii and Trichococcus pasteurii to be the dominant methanol-using acetogens in the soil, and a strain of T. pasteurii was isolated, which showed the high conversion of methanol to acetate at 15 degrees C.

Chromosome reduction in Eleocharis maculosa (Cyperaceae).

Chromosome numbers in Cyperaceae lower than the typical basic number x = 5 have been described for only three species: Rhynchospora tenuis (n = 2), Fimbristylis umbellaris (n = 3) and Eleocharis subarticulata (n = 3). Eleocharis maculosa is recorded here as the fourth species of Cyperaceae that has a chromosome number lower than 2n = 10, with 2n = 8, 7 and 6. The karyotype differentiation in E. maculosa was studied using conventional staining (mitosis and meiosis), FISH with 45S and 5S rDNA and telomere probes. The results allow us to determine which chromosomes of the chromosome race with 2n = 10 fused to form the remaining reduced numbers, as well as to understand how the symploidy and translocation mechanisms were important in karyotype differentiation and the formation of chromosome races in Eleocharis.

Cellular expression of C3 and C4 photosynthetic enzymes in the amphibious sedge Eleocharis retroflexa ssp. chaetaria.

The amphibious leafless sedge Eleocharis retroflexa ssp. chaetaria expresses C(4)-like biochemical characteristics in both the terrestrial and submerged forms. Culms of the terrestrial form have Kranz anatomy, whereas those of the submerged form have Kranz-like anatomy combined with anatomical features of aquatic plant leaves. We examined the immunolocalization of C(3) and C(4) enzymes in culms of the two forms. In both forms, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase; pyruvate, Pi dikinase; and NAD-malic enzyme were compartmentalized between the mesophyll (M) and Kranz cells, but their levels were somewhat reduced in the submerged form. In the terrestrial form, ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (rubisco) occurred mainly in the Kranz cells, and weakly in the M chloroplasts. In the submerged form, the rubisco occurred at higher levels in the M cells than in the terrestrial form. In both forms, the C(4) pattern of enzyme expression was clearer in the M cells adjacent to Kranz cells than in distant M cells. During the transition from terrestrial to submerged conditions, the enzyme expression pattern changed in submerged mature culms that had been formed in air before submergence, and matched that in culms newly developed underwater. It seems that effects of both environmental and developmental factors overlap in the C(4) pattern expression in this plant.