Mass balance of saline lakes considering inflow loads of rivers and groundwater: the case of Lake Issyk- Kul,Central Asia

This study aimed to elucidate the influence of inflow water on the salinity concentration process of a saline lake and the mass balance of Lake Issyk-Kul, a tectonic saltwater lake in Kyrgyzstan. Based on the survey results and meteorological data from 2012 to 2015, we analyzed the dissolved chemical composition loads due to water inflow. Then, we discussed the relationship between the increase in salinity and water inflow into the lake. Through the water quality analysis data, we used the tank model to estimate the river inflow and analyze the loads by the L-Q curve. The groundwater loads were then estimated from the average annual increase in salinity of the lake over a period of 30 a. The results suggest that Lake Issyk-Kul was temporarily freshened between about AD 1500 and 1800 when an outflowing river existed, and thereafter, it became a closed lake in AD 1800 and continued to remain a saline lake until present. The chemical components that cause salinization are supplied from the rivers and groundwater in the catchment area, and when they flow into the lake, Ca²⁺, HCO₃^- and Mg²⁺ precipitate as CaCO₃ and MgCO₃. These compounds were confirmed to have been left on the lakeshore as evaporite. The model analysis showed that 1.67 mg/L of Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ supplied from rivers and groundwater are precipitated as evaporite and in other forms per year. On the other hand, salinity continues to remain in the lake water at a rate of 27.5 mg/L per year. These are the main causes of increased salinity in Lake Issyk-Kul. Since Na⁺ and Cl^- are considered to be derived from geothermal water, they will continue to flow in regardless of the effects of human activities. Therefore, as long as these components are accumulated in Lake Issyk-Kul as a closed lake, the salinity will continue to increase in the future.     

Detection of Japanese flounder-specific DNA from gut contents of potential predators in the field

ABSTRACT:   Predation by invertebrates may be one of the major factors influencing the mortality of released flounder juveniles in the field. We developed a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based technique for the detection of Japanese flounder material from the gut contents of potential predators in the field. The PCR primers used here are flounder specific and encompass a 153 bp region from the right domain of the mitochondrial control region. With these oligonucleotide primers, PCR reactions yielded specific amplification products from the gut contents of some putative predators, including Matuta lunaris , Portunus gladiator , Sepioteuthis lessoniana , Suggrundus meerdervoorti , Platycephalus sp. and Rhyncopelates oxyrhynchus . Many animals with gut contents of unidentified fish material showed indication of predation on the flounder after release of hatchery reared flounder juveniles. The technique developed in the present study is useful not only for the survey of predation on the flounder by known species, but also for the search for novel potential predatory species in the field.     

A numerical study on the transport of eggs and larvae of Sergia lucens in Suruga Bay,Japan

Numerical experiments were performed to investigate the transport processes of eggs and larvae of Sergia lucens in Suruga Bay, Japan, focusing on the physical effects of the river water spreading. In the experiments, labeled particles, which were regarded as the eggs or early larvae of S. lucens with no (or weak) swimming ability, were passively transported in flow fields that were calculated by an ocean general circulation model. In the innermost region of the bay (off the Fuji River mouth) where there is no continental shelf, a retention area where the eggs and larvae could stay in a nutrient‐rich environment for a long time was formed, especially in the upper part of their habitation layers, by the large bulge with anticyclonic (clockwise) circulation. No retention area was formed in the western region of the bay (off the Oi and Abe River mouths) or in an additional experiment in which a continental shelf was artificially created in the innermost region. It was estimated that in the retention area, the residence time of the eggs and early larvae is prolonged by about a month. The formation of the retention area is controlled by the dynamics of the river water spreading, affected by the bottom topography and the Earth’s rotation. Moreover, the reason why S. lucens are only caught in abundance in Suruga Bay was discussed.     

Habitat characteristics of skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) in the western North Pacific: a remote sensing perspective

Skipjack tuna habitat in the western North Pacific was studied from satellite remotely sensed environment and catch data, using generalized additive models and geographic information systems. Weekly resolved remotely sensed sea surface temperature, surface chlorophyll, sea surface height anomalies and eddy kinetic energy data were used for the year 2004. Fifteen generalized additive models were constructed with skipjack catch per unit effort as a response variable, and sea surface temperature, sea surface height anomalies and eddy kinetic energy as model covariates to assess the effect of environment on catch per unit effort (skipjack tuna abundance). Model selection was based on significance of model terms, reduction in Akaike’s Information Criterion, and increase in cumulative deviance explained. The model selected was used to predict skipjack tuna catch per unit effort using monthly resolved environmental data for assessing model performance and to visualize the basin scale distribution of skipjack tuna habitat. Predicted values were validated using a linear model. Based on the four‐parameter model, skipjack tuna habitat selection was significantly (P < 0.01) influenced by sea surface temperatures ranging from 20.5 to 26°C, relatively oligotrophic waters (surface chlorophyll 0.08–0.18, 0.22–0.27 and 0.3–0.37 mg m^?3), zero to positive anomalies (surface height anomalies 0–50 cm), and low to moderate eddy kinetic energy (0–200 and 700–2500 cm² s^–2). Predicted catch per unit effort showed a trend consistent with the north–south migration of skipjack tuna. Validation of predicted catch per unit effort with that observed, pooled monthly, was significant (P < 0.01, r² = 0.64). Sea surface temperature explained the highest deviance in generalized additive models and was therefore considered the best habitat predictor.     

Morphology of placentome in Korean water deer Hydropotes inermis argropus

The placenta of the Korean water deer was anatomically examined to accumulate basic information regarding its reproductive system. The convex placentomes with five to nine well-developed pedicles were observed in the whole uterine horns, and therefore, the placenta was classified as oligocotyledonary. The evidence indicating the migration of binucleate cells (BNCs) from trophectoderm to the uterine epithelium led to the histological classification of the placenta as synepitheliochorial. The number of fetuses was markedly higher than that in other ruminant species. However, the number of placentomes was found to be similar to the other Cervidae species. Therefore, these results suggest that the Korean water deer may possess special mechanisms or structures at the fetus attachment site to maintain this unusally high number of fetuses.     

Albacore (Thunnus alalunga) fishing ground in relation to oceanographic conditions in the western North Pacific Ocean using remotely sensed satellite data

Satellite‐based oceanographic data of sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface chlorophyll‐a concentration (SSC), and sea surface height anomaly (SSHA) together with catch data were used to investigate the relationship between albacore fishing ground and oceanographic conditions and also to predict potential habitats for albacore in the western North Pacific Ocean. Empirical cumulative distribution function and high catch data analyses were used to calculate preferred ranges of the three oceanographic conditions. Results indicate that highest catch per unit efforts (CPUEs) corresponded with areas of SST 18.5–21.5°C, SSC 0.2–0.4 mg m^?3, and SSHA ?5.0 to 32.2 cm during the winter in the period 1998–2000. We used these ranges to generate a simple prediction map for detecting potential fishing grounds. Statistically, to predict spatial patterns of potential albacore habitats, we applied a combined generalized additive model (GAM) / generalized linear model (GLM). To build our model, we first constructed a GAM as an exploratory tool to identify the functional relationships between the environmental variables and CPUE; we then made parameters out of these relationships using the GLM to generate a robust prediction tool. The areas of highest CPUEs predicted by the models were consistent with the potential habitats on the simple prediction map and observation data, suggesting that the dynamics of ocean eddies (November 1998 and 2000) and fronts (November 1999) may account for the spatial patterns of highest albacore catch rates predicted in the study area. The results also suggest that multispectrum satellite data can provide useful information to characterize and predict potential tuna habitats.     

Heterologous expression of gassericin A,a bacteriocin produced by Lactobacillus gasseri LA39

Gassericin A, a bacteriocin produced by Lactobacillus gasseri LA39, has a cyclic structure linking N‐ and C‐terminal amino acids. Gassericin A was expressed in Escherichia coli JM109 as a biotinylated fusion protein on the basis of the DNA sequence of mature bacteriocin. A positive clone accumulated the bacteriocin, with no activity, as a soluble fusion protein in the cytoplasm. After release of an N‐terminal tag with factor Xa protease, gassericin A was converted into an active peptide having N‐ and C‐termini. The total amount of purified bacteriocins (expressed and native) was 480 µg/L and 370 µg/L, respectively. However, the specific activity of expressed gassericin A was 15 AU/mg lower than that of native bacteriocin (2600 AU/mg). Although the actual Mr (molecular weight) of the expressed bacteriocin should be 5666, the peptide showed the same mobility (Mr 3800) in sodium dodecylsulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS‐PAGE) as native cyclic gassericin A, suggesting that the expressed peptide retains compact folding of the molecule similar to that of native gassericin A.