The hot summer of 2010: redrawing the temperature record map of Europe

The summer of 2010 was exceptionally warm in eastern Europe and large parts of Russia. We provide evidence that the anomalous 2010 warmth that caused adverse impacts exceeded the amplitude and spatial extent of the previous hottest summer of 2003. "Mega-heatwaves" such as the 2003 and 2010 events likely broke the 500-year-long seasonal temperature records over approximately 50% of Europe. According to regional multi-model experiments, the probability of a summer experiencing mega-heatwaves will increase by a factor of 5 to 10 within the next 40 years. However, the magnitude of the 2010 event was so extreme that despite this increase, the likelihood of an analog over the same region remains fairly low until the second half of the 21st century.     

Geospatial genetics: Integrating genetics into marine protection and spatial planning

1. The protection of evolutionary processes and maintenance of genetic diversity is necessary for the persistence of biodiversity and ecosystem resilience. The importance of genetic diversity has been reflected in a range of marine policy mechanisms, and the genetic ‘toolbox’ has great potential to support marine protection and marine spatial planning (MSP) at multiple scales. Despite scientific advances in the application of genetics in marine protection and management, systematic integration of genetic information has been generally lacking, primarily due to a knowledge and communication disconnect between geneticists and the marine policy and management community.
2. To meet these outstanding needs, a ‘geospatial genetics’ approach to spatially map species-specific genetic data and associated information in a way that can be readily integrated by practitioners into marine protection and MSP decisions was developed. Techniques to derive geospatial genetic data layers, which can be viewed and mapped alongside other kinds of spatial data commonly used by conservation practitioners, hold promise for increasing the accessibility of genetic data to support policy decisions more fully.
3. While applicable to many mobile and sessile taxa, an initial focus was placed on marine mammals, and the approach was developed and refined through a series of international meetings and published papers, as well as the development of interactive, expert-reviewed case studies hosted on the MSP tool SeaSketch.
4. Outcomes of the work to date are currently serving in the policy arena by informing the identification of Important Marine Mammal Areas, an initiative led by the IUCN Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force to apply criteria to identify marine mammal habitats across the world's ocean, seas and relevant inland waters through a standardized process.
5. It has become clear that geospatial genetics has great potential to foster increased collaboration among an intersectional community of geneticists, spatial ecologists, and practitioners. This increased opportunity for dialogue and cooperation will help ensure that evolutionary processes are factored into marine protection and MSP processes, and potentially for freshwater and terrestrial systems.

     

Release of trace elements from wood ash by nitric acid

Currently wood ash is being used as a soil amendment. Its use is regulated based on trace element content. However, no published information exists on solubilities of trace elements in wood ash. We investigated the release of environmentally-significant trace elements (Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn) from wood ash as a function of pH and of particle size. Wood ash was sampled from three sources in Maine and sieved into <0.5 mm, 0.5–1 mm, and 1–2 mm fractions. Elemental compositions were determined using a HNO₃/H₂O₂ digestion. Sub-samples (1 g) from each of the nine samples (three sources and three size fractions) were reacted with 50 mLs of standardized HNO₃ for a week using a range of acid concentrations (0.01–0.25 M) to achieve a range in final pH values. The resulting solutions were filtered and analyzed. The compositions of the three wood ashes varied widely. The dominant elements were Si (9.7–34%), Ca (5.8–21%), K (0.8–5.7%), Al (0.8–4.9%), and Mg (0.5–3.0%). Trace elements were present in the following concentrations ranges: Cd (1.9–12 mg kg^?1), Cr (24–92 mg kg^?1), Cu (33–75 mg kg^?1), and Zn (130–1400 mg kg^?1). Both Cd and Zn were released readily from the ashes at final pH values of approximately 6.5 and below. In the final pH range of 3–4, 80–100% of the total Cd and 70–90% of the total Zn was released by the ashes. All three wood ashes showed somewhat different patterns of Cr release. Level of Cr(VI) in a water extract of the ash fractions was found to be a much better predictor of relative Cr solubility than total Cr. Solubility of Cu was low, and Pb was very insoluble. There was little influence of particle size on release of trace elements. The relatively high Cd concentration of wood ash compared with soil, and its relative solubility in wood ash, should be considered in evaluating the potential environmental impact of spreading wood ash on land.     

The potential of microdialysis to monitor organic and inorganic nitrogen compounds in soil

Plant nitrogen (N) acquisition is strongly controlled by the concentration of available inorganic and organic N in the soil solution and by biogeochemical processes in the rhizosphere. However, until now it was hardly possible to reliably estimate plant-available N in soil microsites. Here, a novel microdialysis approach based on passive diffusion sampling is presented and compared qualitatively and quantitatively with lysimeter and soil extraction techniques when analyzing two contrasting boreal soils. Further, preliminary dialysis membrane calibration issues for sampling plant-available N compounds are discussed. Due to its miniaturized design microdialysis was shown to be a suitable tool for continuous sampling of ammonium, nitrate and free amino acids from the soil solution with only minimal disturbance of the soil structure. Microdialysis proved to be outstanding regarding the possible spatial (<0.5 mm) and temporal (<30 min) resolution of soil solution N chemistry. The different methods for soil N sampling resulted in significantly different results. In lysimeter and soil extraction samples, nitrate and ammonium were found at the highest concentrations, while results from microdialysis revealed that the pool of plant-available amino acids was contributing most to the total N pool tested. Application of a standard N solution to the tested soils led to an immediate peak of recovery via the microdialysis probes followed by a rapid decrease due to the formation of a depletion zone at the probe surfaces. Therefore, this relatively new technique will not only provide essential data on diffusion rates of a variety of N compounds in the soil but might be used for monitoring quantitative and qualitative changes in plant-available N in soil microsites such as the rhizosphere.     

Evaluation of the influences of exercise, birth date, and osteochondrosis on plasma bone marker concentrations in Hanoverian Warmblood foals

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether plasma concentrations of bone turnover markers in growing Hanoverian foals are influenced by age, housing conditions, or osteochondrosis. ANIMALS: 165 healthy foals and 119 foals with osteochondrosis. PROCEDURES: Foals were allocated according to birth date and housing management into groups of early-born (born before March 31, 2001; n = 154 foals, 88 of which were healthy and 66 of which had osteochondrosis) and late-born (born after March 31, 2001; 130 foals, 77 of which were healthy and 53 of which had osteochondrosis) foals. Plasma osteocalcin and carboxyterminal propeptide of type I collagen concentrations were analyzed as markers of bone formation, and carboxyterminal telopeptide of type I collagen concentration was analyzed as a marker of bone resorption. Foals underwent radiographic evaluation to screen for osteochondrosis. RESULTS: Plasma concentrations of osteocalcin, carboxyterminal propeptide of type I collagen, and carboxyterminal telopeptide of type I collagen decreased with age, but these changes were more distinct in late-born foals than in early-born foals. Neither sex nor predisposition to develop osteochondrosis affected the pattern of bone marker changes in either group. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: An age-related decrease in concentrations of bone markers was seen during the first 200 days of life. Changes in bone marker concentrations were similar for foals with osteochondrosis and healthy foals. The correlation between the decrease in bone marker concentration and date of birth indicates that there are differences in skeletal development between early- and late-born foals.     

Establishment of optimal conditions for long-term culture of erythrocytic stages of Theileria uilenbergi

OBJECTIVE: To establish optimal conditions for long-term culture of the erythrocytic stage of Theileria uilenbergi. SAMPLE POPULATION: Red blood cells from 3 splenectomized sheep experimentally infected with a blood stabilate of T uilenbergi. PROCEDURES: Cultures of T uilenbergi were initiated by use of blood from experimentally infected sheep collected when parasites were detected in Giemsa-stained thin blood smears. Different culture conditions were tested to optimize in vitro growth of the organisms. Subcultures were performed at a ratio of 1:2, 1:4, and 1:8 when the percentage of parasitized erythrocytes (PPE) was at least 1% or when the initial PPE was doubled. RESULTS: The optimal culture medium was HL-1 medium (a complete chemically defined medium) supplemented with 20% sheep serum and 0.75% chemically defined lipids. Optimal culture conditions included incubation in a humidified 2% O(2), 5% CO(2), and 93% N(2) atmosphere at 37 degrees C. Cultures of the merozoite stage of the parasite were continuously propagated in vitro for > 1 year. The PPE reached values of up to 3%. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Optimization of culture conditions to reach a high PPE seems worthwhile. The continuous propagation of T uilenbergi in culture allows the production of parasite material without infecting animals and provides a continuous laboratory source of parasites for further studies.