Invertebrate facultative anaerobiosis

The unique pattern of anaerobic carbohydrate metabolism in invertebrate facultative anaerobes serves to couple other substrate-level phosphorylations to the glycolytic reactions, thus increasing the potential yield of high-energy phosphate compounds. Currently, two important coupling sites can be identified:     

贡嘎山冷杉纯林地被物及土壤持水特性

为了研究贡嘎山冷杉(Abies fabri)纯林林下地被物及林地土壤在水土保持、水源涵养方面的作用,该文通过对贡嘎山4种林龄的冷杉纯林(幼龄林、中龄林、成熟林和过熟林)林下地被物持水特性及林地土壤物理实验,得到不同林龄林下地被物最大持水量、吸水速度等水文特征参数及林地土壤总孔隙度、毛管孔隙度等物理特性参数.结果表明,成熟林林下苔藓层持水量最大,为其风干重的343.5%,过熟林林下的为284.5%,中龄林林下的为282.5%,幼龄林林下的为250%.成熟林林下枯落物最大持水量为其风干重的301.8%,过熟林林下的为226.4%,中龄林林下的为209.4%,幼龄林林下的为205.4%.经分析拟合,得到林下苔藓层、林下枯落物吸水速度与浸泡时间之间关系式S=ktn.贡嘎山冷杉纯林林地土壤容重为0.851～1.136 g/cm3,土壤饱和含水量为55.29%～83.96%,毛管持水量为44.48%～75.41%,田间持水量为39.50%～65.86%.     

Renal T-cell lymphoma with cerebral metastasis in a dog with chronic canine ehrlichiosis

A renal T-cell lymphoma with exclusive cerebral metastasis was diagnosed in a 5-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier bitch euthanased for aggression. This is the first recorded case of primary renal lymphoma in a dog. Immune suppression, due to chronic canine monocytic ehrlichiosis, may account for the unusual primary site and metastatic pattern of the tumour.     

Agroforestry techniques for the rehabilitation of degraded salt-affected lands in India

The development of appropriate technologies for the judicious use of India's 8.11 million ha of salt-affected lands would give increased food, fodder and fuelwood production. A sizeable portion of the salt-affected lands of the Indo-Gangetic plain have been reclaimed through chemical amendments and are being commercially used for arable farming. However, large areas of salt-affected common lands, village and government lands and waste lands near cities, along railway tracks and roads do not have any productive use. Owing to their sparse vegetative cover such lands are vulnerable to further degradation and can be a source of runoff causing floods, especially where cows congregate. Research at the Central Soil Salinity Research Institute, Karnal has generated agroforestry techniques which could enable the economic exploitation of such marginal lands. This paper deals with various aspects of these techniques, which have been applied to over 50 000 ha by 1994. Based on eight to ten years of growth and biomass figures, the most salt-tolerant woody species identified were: Prosopis juliflora, Acacia nilotica, Casuarina equisetifolia, Tamarix articulata, Leptochloa fusca (a palatable forage grass which was found to be a promising primary colonizer of salt lands). Agronomic practices for the successful establishment of trees such as planting methods, amendment use, irrigation, spacing and lopping schedules are discussed. A Prosopis juliflora-leptochloa fusca silvipastoral model was found to be excellent for fuelwood and forage production and for the amelioration of high pH soils. This system, when followed for little more than four years, reclaims alkali soils to such an extent that normal agriculture crops such as Trifolium alexandrinum and T. resupinatum can be grown successfully. A ridge-trench system of tree planting was found to be helpful in alkali soils, the in situ rainwater conservation it led to assisting biomass production. Eucalyptus tereticornis, Populus deltoides and Tectona grandis based agroforestry were promising for reclaimed salt-affected lands. The short- and long-term effects of various tree plantations on the physicochemical properties of the soil and on soil-water relations are also discussed. Agroforestry options for the development of salt-affected lands found in various agroclimatic zones of India are explored.     

Chemical composition, iron bioavailability, and antioxidant activity of Kappaphycus alvarezzi (Doty)

Kappaphycus alvarezzi, an edible seaweed from the west coast of India, was analyzed for its chemical composition. It was found that K. alvarezzi is rich in protein (16.24% w/w) and contains a high amount of fiber (29.40% w/w) and carbohydrates (27.4% w/w). K. alvarezzi showed vitamin A activity of 865 mug retinal equivalents/100 g of sample. It contained a higher quantity of unsaturated fatty acids (44.50% of the total), in which relative percentage of oleic acid was 11%, cis-heptadecanoic acid 13.50%, and linoleic acid 2.3% and 37.0% of saturated fatty acids (mainly heptadecanoic acid). K. alvarezziwas also found to be good source of minerals, viz 0.16% of calcium, 0.033% of iron, and 0.016% of zinc, which are essential for various vital biological activities. Bioavailability of iron by in vitro methods showed a higher efficiency in intestinal conditions than in stomach conditions. Ascorbic acid influenced higher bioavailability of iron. Successive extracts of n-hexane, acetone, ethyl acetate, ethanol, and direct extractables of chloroform/methanol (1:1 and 2:1) were screened for antioxidant activity using a beta-carotene linoleic acid model system (B-CLAMS), DPPH (alpha,alpha-diphenyl-beta-picrylhydrazyl) model system and hydroxyl radical scavenging activity. The chloroform/methanol (2:1) extract has shown 82.5% scavenging activity at 1000 ppm. Acetone fraction extracts at the 1000 ppm level showed 63.31% antioxidant activity in beta-carotene linoleic acid system. The acetone extract showed 46.04% scavenging activity at 1000 ppm concentration. In the case of hydroxyl radical scavenging activity, all the extracts showed better activity at the concentrations of 25 and 50 ppm, where at the 50 ppm level ethyl acetate extract showed 76.0%, acetone 75.12%, and hexane 71.15% activity, respectively. Results of this study suggest the utility of K. alvarezzi (Eucheuma) for various nutritional products, including antioxidant for use as health food or nutraceutical supplement.     

大熊猫在原始林和次生林中生境利用的比较研究

在四川省宝兴县大熊猫栖息地中调查了 12种生态因子的 5 8种生境类型 ,利用Forageratio指数对大熊猫在原始林和次生林中的生境选择进行了比较研究 .在原始林 2 0 82个样方中发现有大熊猫痕迹样方 4 31个 ,有大熊猫痕迹样方数占调查样方数的 2 0 7% ;在 15 82个次生林样方中有大熊猫痕迹样方 15 2个 ,有大熊猫痕迹样方数占调查样方数的 9 6 % .研究结果表明 :①原始林中大熊猫回避大于坡度 4 0°的生境类型 ,而在次生林生境中对坡度没有表现明显的偏好 .②坡向和乔木郁闭度对大熊猫的生境选择没有明显影响 .③原始林和次生林中的大熊猫都偏好针阔混交林 ,但在次生林中还把选择范围扩大到针叶林和阔叶林 .④原始林中大熊猫偏好乔木胸径 30～ 5 0cm的生境 ,次生林中降至 2 0cm以上 .⑤大熊猫在原始林中回避竹类植物盖度低于 5 0 %的生境 ,在次生林则随机选择这类生境 .⑥大熊猫明显偏好原始林 .在全部 12个生态因子中 ,大熊猫对 11个因子的选择发生了改变 ,改变程度各不相同 .大熊猫在原始林中要回避的 9个生境类型 ,在次生林中变得随机选择 ;在原始林中随机选择的 6个生境类型 ,在次生林中变得偏好 .上述结果说明 ,对于原始林中回避或随机选择的生境特征 ,次生林中的大熊猫变成随机选择或偏好 .因此 ,大?     

Interpretation of solute profile dynamics in irrigated soils

Summary Knowledge of the flux of water flowing through macropores in soils is required to devise management strategies for efficient fertiliser use and to prevent fast movement of solutes and pollutants to groundwaters. Water and solute balances in soil profiles were used to develop a simple model for assessing the magnitude of macropore flow. Fluxes of water bypassing the soil matrix were calculated at 35 sites to be between 0 and 415 mm y^–1, with the flux being < 200 mm y^–1 at most sites. The maximum flux was three times the flux flowing through the soil matrix but only one third of that infiltrating the soil. The flux of macropore flow was not simply related to soil types or soil properties, although the highest fluxes did occur in cracking soils. A qualitative method of using soil chloride profiles to indicate the occurrence (but not magnitude) of bypass flux was also demonstrated. Both these quantitative and qualitative assessments of bypass flow should assist in interpreting root-zone hydrology in soils.