Earthquake source fault beneath Tokyo

Devastating earthquakes occur on a megathrust fault that underlies the Tokyo metropolitan region. We identify this fault with use of deep seismic reflection profiling to be the upper surface of the Philippine Sea plate. The depth to the top of this plate, 4 to 26 kilometers, is much shallower than previous estimates based on the distribution of seismicity. This shallower plate geometry changes the location of maximum finite slip of the 1923 Kanto earthquake and will affect estimations of strong ground motion for seismic hazards analysis within the Tokyo region.     

Melanin synthesis inhibitors from Balanophora fungosa

Tyrosinase, trypsin, and tryptase are known to play important roles in melanin production of human skin. This paper describes the study of the inhibitory effect of Balanophora fungosa on melanin. The 50% EtOH extract obtained from B. fungosa indicated an inhibitory effect on mushroom tyrosinase activity with an IC(50) value of 15 μg/mL. Bioassay-guided fractionation of the active extract resulted in the isolation of four known compounds. Their structures were identified as 1-O-(E)-caffeoyl-3-O-galloyl-4,6-(S)-HHDP-β-d-glucopyranose (1), 1-O-(E)-caffeoyl-3,4,6-tri-O-galloyl-β-d-glucopyranose (2), caffeoyl-β-d-glucopyranose (3), and abietin (4) on the basis of spectroscopic analyses and comparison of their spectral data with those in the literature. Compounds 1 and 2 prevented pigmentation of melanin in a three-dimensional cultured human skin model. Furthermore, compounds 1 and 2 indicated inhibitory activities against trypsin and tryptase.     

Carbon and nitrogen contents and greenhouse gas fluxes of the Eurasian steppe soils with different land-use histories located in the Arkaim museum reserve of South Ural,Russia

The effects of different land-use histories on contents of soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) and fluxes of greenhouse gases [carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), and nitrous oxide (N₂O)] measured using the closed chamber method were investigated in the Arkaim museum reserve located in the South Ural of Russia. A natural forest site (NF) and two grassland sites that had different land-use histories (CL: cropland until 1991; PST: pasture until 1991; both sites have been fallow for 18 years) were selected for soil sampling and gas flux measurements. The vegetation in NF was mainly Betula pendula Roth. with steppe cherry and grassy cover. Perennial grasses (Stipa spp., Festuca spp. and others) have been planted in CL and PST since 1991 to establish reserve mode, and the projective cover of these plants were?>?90% in both sites in 2009. Soil samples were taken from the A horizon in the three sites, and additionally samples of the O horizon were taken from NF. The contents of soil C and N [total C, total N, soluble organic C, soluble N and microbial biomass C (MBC)] in the O horizon of NF were the largest among all investigated soils (p?p?2 fluxes (i.e., CO₂ efflux) in all three investigated sites were observed. The CO₂ efflux in NF was significantly larger than in CL and PST (129, 30 and 25?mg C m^?2 hour^?1, respectively, p?2 efflux between CL and PST. There were no significant differences in the fluxes of CH₄ and N₂O among NF, CL and PST (p?>?0.05). Our current research indicated that, in soils of the Eurasian steppe zone of Russia, total C, total N and MBC were affected not only by current land-use (i.e., fallow grassland vs. natural forest) but also by past (until 18 years ago) land-use.     

Estimation of microbial biomass potassium in paddy field soil

Abstract

Potassium (K) in microbial cells, microbial biomass K, in soil has been recently recognized as a K pool for plant growth. We determined soil microbial biomass K in paddy fields to reveal its importance as a K pool in paddy field soil for the first time. Microbial biomass K ranged from 5 to 21 mg K kg^?1 in the soil samples periodically collected from a paddy field and the value corresponded to 41% of the exchangeable K on average. Both microbial biomass K and exchangeable K increased conspicuously due to the long-term application of livestock manure compost or rice straw compost. Biomass K was higher than exchangeable K under K-deficient conditions in the long-term experimental plots without K application. The present study revealed that the microbial biomass contained considerable amounts of K in paddy field soil, indicating the need for evaluation of the microbial biomass K as a source and a stock of K in soil that has been overlooked.     

Activity of protease extracted from rice-rhizosphere soils under double cropping of rice and wheat

Abstract

Protease-active extracts were prepared from 2 rice-rhizosphere and non-rhizosphere soil samples 3 proteolytic isolates from the soil samples which were taken from water logged paddy fields (Gray Lowland Soils) under double cropping of rice and wheat that had been treated with chemical fertilizer (CF) or organic manure (OM). The activities were assayed and characterized using an artificial substrate, benzyloxycarbonyl-L-phenylalanyl-L-tyrosyl-L-leucine (ZFTL). The protease-active extracts from the rhizosphere and non-rhizosphere of the CF and OM soils (abbreviated as CFR, CFN, OMR, and OMN) showed an optimum pH between 7 and 8. The extracts hydrolyzed ZFTL to Tyr-Leu and Leu; generally, Tyr-Leu was the main reaction product. Activities of all the samples were inhibited by EDTA and p-chloromercuribenzoic acid (PCMB) but not by pepstatin and phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride (PMSF). These results indicate that the main components of the ZFTL-hydrolases in CFR, CFN, 0MR, and OMN were essentially similar.

Optimum pH for the activity of the protease extracted from a Gram negative rod (MNB003)., two actinomycetous isolates (MNA014., MRA017) was about 8, 8, and 8.5, respectively. Extract from the culture of MNB003 hydrolyzed ZFTL to Tyr-Leu., Leu,., the protease activity was inhibited by EDTA., PCMB. Protease activities of the extracts from cultures of the two actinomycetes were inhibited by EDTA but not by PCMB. The extract from culture of MNA014 produced mainly Tyr-Leu from ZFTL while MRA017 produced Leu. Characteristics of the protease activity from cultures of MNB003., MNA014 were similar to those of the enzyme extracted from a paddy field soil under single cropping (Takeuchi., Hayano 1994: Soil Sci. Plant Nutr., 40, 691-695) and from an Andosol under tomato cultivation (Hayano et al. 1987: Biol. Fertil. Soils, 4, 179-183), respectively.     

Effect of temperature,hypoxia and disinfection with ozonated seawater during somitogenesis on muscular development of the trunk in larval seven‐band grouper,Epinephelus septemfasciatus (Thunberg)

The cause of abnormal musculature on both sides of the same myotome in artificially cultured seven‐band grouper Epinephelus septemfasciatus (Thunberg) larvae remains unclear. We evaluated the effect of three factors: changes in temperature (between 22 and 24°C), disinfection with ozonated seawater (0.3 mg TROs L^?1, 1 min), and hypoxia (22 or 14% saturation) during the early (20 h post‐fertilization, hpf) and mid‐ (24 hpf) somite stages on trunk muscular development in larval seven‐band grouper. The thermal regimes and disinfection with ozonated seawater had no effect on muscle development (P > 0.05, G‐test). In contrast, exposure to hypoxia during both the early and mid‐somite stages increased the incidence of abnormal musculature in the trunk (P < 0.01, G‐test). These larvae had abnormal musculature on both sides of the trunk. In addition, the number of abnormal myotomes differed among these larvae. Exposure in the early and mid‐somite stages resulted in the highest frequency of abnormalities in the 11th and 13th myotome respectively. Our results suggest that hypoxia during somitogenesis can lead to abnormal muscle development in the trunk of artificially cultured seven‐band grouper larva.     

Accumulation of free oxyhydroxides in termite (Macrotermes bellicosus (Smeathman)) mounds and the implications for their dynamics in an African savannah Ultisol

The present study aimed to assess the dynamics of oxyhydroxides via termite mounds in a tropical savannah of Central Nigeria, where the soils often contain oxyhydroxides as a major component of soil minerals. To this end, the quantities of oxyhydroxides stored in mounds built by Macrotermes bellicosus (Smeathman) were compared to those stored in surface (Ap1) soils, and their turnover rates were estimated. Both the mound wall and nest of M. bellicosus were enriched two- to 10-fold with acidified ammonium oxalate soluble iron (Fe_o) and aluminum (Al_o) and dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) soluble iron (Fe_d) and aluminum (Al_d) relative to the adjacent surface soil horizon. These oxyhydroxide contents were positively correlated with the clay content (P < 0.05), suggesting that M. bellicosus preferentially used silicate clay-associated oxyhydroxides for mound construction. The Fe_d, Al_d and DCB-soluble manganese (Mn_d) preserved in the M. bellicosus mounds ran up to 112 ± 25.6, 5.72 ± 1.41 and 2.17 ± 0.68 kg ha^?1, accounting for 1.91 ± 0.23%, 1.00 ± 0.60% and 0.35 ± 0.09% of the total amount stored in the surface soil horizon, respectively. Furthermore, the estimated turnover rates of Fe_d, Al_d and Mn_d were 6.6, 0.33 and 0.14 kg ha^?1 year^?1, respectively. These findings suggest that the mound-building termites significantly impacted the dynamics of free oxyhydroxides in an African savannah soil.     

Effects of anti-auxins on secondary aerenchyma formation in flooded soybean hypocotyls

In flooded hypocotyl of soybean (Glycine max), cell division in phellogen and the elongation of these cells are enhanced, and thereby a secondary aerenchyma with high porosity is produced. Auxin controls cell division and cell elongation in many plants, so we studied its role in secondary aerenchyma development. Soybean plants with fully expanded unifoliolate leaves were flooded for 6 d with solutions (100 μM each) of seven anti-auxins. TIBA, NPA, HFCA, 1-NOA, or CHPAA did not restrict the secondary aerenchyma formation, while MH moderately suppressed the aerenchyma development, and PCIB strongly inhibited the development of phellogen and secondary aerenchyma. However, the endogenous IAA concentrations in the flooded hypocotyls did not increase or decrease relative to the controls until 72 h, when a secondary aerenchyma was observed. From these results, it is unclear whether auxin plays an important role in the process of secondary aerenchyma formation under flooding.