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Oxygen isotope ratios of pedogenic carbonates were analyzed along a climatic gradient in the Palouse region of eastern Washington State to evaluate changes in their isotopic composition with changing climate. A modern analog approach was used to assess the relationship between the istotope ratios in the pedogenic carbonates with those in soil water (measured in June when we anticipated carbonate formation might occur because of low soil water content), and meteoric water from two National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) sites adjacent to our sequence. Mean annual meteoric water δ18O values (wrt VSMOW) from the two NADP sites varied slightly with elevation, -13.9‰ at the Starkey site (elevation 1253 m) and -13.0‰ at the Palouse site, (elevation 766 m) but showed distinct seasonal trends with weighted means ranging from -11.9‰ during autumn to -15.0‰ during the winter. Carbonate δ18O (wrt VPDB) varied significantly with MAP, ranging from -14.1‰ at the most arid site to -11.4‰ at the wettest site but displayed a trend opposite to that of soil water δ18O (-4 to -12‰ VSMOW for the 70 cm depth). Neither measured soil water δ18O values nor mean meteoric water δ18O values generated realistic temperatures of formation for the observed trend in carbonate δ18O values. When mean annual temperatures across the gradient were used for temperature of formation, calculated soil water δ18O in equilibrium with carbonate δ18O was similar to winter precipitation δ18O at the most arid sites but became increasingly similar to mean annual meteoric δ18O as MAP increased. We suggest that the unexpected trend in carbonate δ18O is largely due to the diminishing influence of winter precipitation/snowmelt on soil moisture as MAP increases across the climatic gradient and that seasonal effects of meteoric water may need to be considered in pedogenic mineral isotopic equilibrium in temperate regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate-driven variations in lake-groundwater exchange are recorded by sediments in groundwaterdominated lakes. A groundwater flow-through lake in west-central Montana (USA) registers latest Pleistocene and Holocene hydroclimatic variation in fluid and solute balance, as controlled by rates and timing of groundwater recharge. Early Holocene warming occurred under conditions of relative aridity and low groundwater throughflow, punctuated by a c. 450-yr episode of lake dilution centered on 11 000 cal. yr BP. Maximum evaporative concentration of lake waters, registered in both δ18O values and mineralogy of endogenic carbonates, coincided with the early-Holocene peak in insolation seasonality at about 9750 cal. yr BP. Subsequently, progressively decreasing lake residence time drove a sustained long-term decline in salinity while having a very subdued effect on mean δ18O values. We explain this decoupling by (1) limits placed on oxygen isotope sensitivity by groundwater throughflow, and (2) a shift toward greater summer rain contribution to lake inflow after mid-Holocene time. Superimposed multidecadal- and century-scale variation in lake-groundwater exchange generated high-frequency but low-amplitude isotopic oscillations throughout the record. High rates of groundwater throughflow maintaining low lake salinity similar to that observed today were established around 1400 cal. yr BP. We infer reduced regional stream baseflow, decrease in permanent wetlands (relative increase in ephemeral wetlands) and enhanced lake and wetland salinity prior to this time, relative to the late Holocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collard greens, mustard greens, kale, okra, green onion, butter beans, butter peas, purple hull peas, rutabagas, and eggplant are frequently consumed by African Americans in the southeast United States. Sweet potato greens and purslane are two novel vegetables in this region. The objective of this study was to analyze total phenolics and antioxidant capacity in these indigenous vegetables. The total phenolic content was analyzed using the Folin-Ciocalteu method and ranged from 7.4 to 53.5 mg gallic acid equivalents per gram of dried sample. The antioxidant capacity was analyzed using the radical DPPH• scavenging capacity assay and oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay (ORAC). At a concentration of 10.0 mg dried vegetable equivalent/ml, the extract of these vegetables was able to quench 13.2-88.5% DPPH• radical in 30 min. The ORAC value ranged from 2.5 to 100.7 µmoles of trolox equivalents per gram of dried sample. The antioxidant capacity of the vegetable samples was highly related to their total phenolic content. The results suggest that these indigenous vegetables consumed by African Americans in the southeastern United States are good sources of the phenolic compounds, which might provide anti-oxidative protection against free radicals in the human body. Consumption of these vegetables might reduce the risk of chronic diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The aim of this work was to investigate changes in molecular form and surface charge of black carbon (BC) due to long-term natural oxidation and to examine how climatic and soil factors affect BC oxidation. Black C was collected from 11 historical charcoal blast furnace sites with a geographic distribution from Quebec, Canada, to Georgia, USA, and compared to BC that was newly produced (new BC) using rebuilt historical kilns. The results showed that the historical BC samples were substantially oxidized after 130 years in soils as compared to new BC or BC incubated for one year. The major alterations by natural oxidation of BC included: (1) changes in elemental composition with increases in oxygen (O) from 7.2% in new BC to 24.8% in historical BC and decreases in C from 90.8% to 70.5%; (2) formation of oxygen-containing functional groups, particularly carboxylic and phenolic functional groups, and (3) disappearance of surface positive charge and evolution of surface negative charge after 12 months of incubation. Although time of exposure significantly increased natural oxidation of BC, a significant positive relationship between mean annual temperature (MAT) and BC oxidation (O/C ratio with r =0.83; P <0.01) explained that BC oxidation was increased by 87mmolekgC−1 per unit Celsius increase in MAT. This long-term oxidation was more pronounced on BC surfaces than for entire particles, and responded 7-fold stronger to increases in MAT. Our results also indicated that oxidation of BC was more important than adsorption of non-BC. Thus, natural oxidation of BC may play an important role in the effects of BC on soil biogeochemistry. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Stripe rust [caused by Puccinia striiformis Westend. f. sp. tritici Eriks. ( Pst)] is a destructive disease of wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) worldwide. Genetic resistance is the preferred method for control and the Yr5 gene, originally identified in Triticum spelta var. album, represents a major resistance ( R) gene that confers all-stage resistance to all currently known races of Pst in the United States. To identify transcripts associated with the Yr5-mediated incompatible interaction and the yr5-compatible interaction, the Wheat GeneChip was used to profile the changes occurring in wheat isolines that differed for the presence of the Yr5 gene after inoculation with Pst. This time-course study (6, 12, 24 and 48 h post-inoculation) identified 115 transcripts that were induced during the R-gene-mediated incompatible interaction, and 73 induced during the compatible interaction. Fifty-four transcripts were induced in both interactions and were considered as basal defence transcripts, whilst 61 transcripts were specific to the incompatible interaction [hypersensitive response (HR)-specific transcripts] and 19 were specific to the compatible interaction (biotrophic interaction-specific transcripts). The temporal pattern of transcript accumulation showed a peak at 24 h after infection that may reflect haustorial penetration by Pst at ~16 h. An additional 12 constitutive transcript differences were attributed to the presence of Yr5 after eliminating those considered as incomplete isogenicity. Annotation of the induced transcripts revealed that the presence of Yr5 resulted in a rapid and amplified resistance response involving signalling pathways and defence-related transcripts known to occur during R-gene-mediated responses, including protein kinase signalling and the production of reactive oxygen species leading to a hypersensitive response. Basal defence also involved substantial induction of many defence-related transcripts but the lack of R-gene signalling resulted in weaker response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Migrations of summer flounder, Paralichthys dentatus, to and from estuaries to the continental shelf in the Mid-Atlantic Bight (MAB) occur seasonally but their dynamics are poorly understood. Ultrasonic telemetry, both passive and active, was used during 2003–2005 to determine timing and rate of juvenile and adult summer flounder (268–535mm TL) migrating to and from the Mullica River–Great Bay estuary in southern New Jersey. Additionally, 7 years of inner continental shelf surveys off New Jersey were used to assess complementary seasonal movements. Most tagged fish emigrated from the estuary between July and September, though emigration lasted into December and appeared to be influenced by a number of factors. In July 2004, more tagged fish emigrated, at increased rates of movement, at low barometric pressure during a storm event. Trawl collections on the inner shelf demonstrated the same approximate immigration times as seen with telemetry. Later in the fall, increased numbers of tagged summer flounder emigrated from the estuary when dissolved oxygen was decreasing. Fall trawl surveys showed increased numbers of fish on the inner shelf when dissolved oxygen was decreasing in the Mullica River–Great Bay estuary, supporting the telemetry results. Fish emigrated from the estuary during the day and night but nighttime movements were in deeper water at slightly slower rates of movement. Exit and re-entry also occurred during the fall emigration. Ultrasonically tagged individuals demonstrated homing by returning to the same estuary, in March through June, in the second and third year of the study (39–6%, respectively). In summary, immigration may result from homing for a large proportion of summer flounder. Emigration may be associated with storms on an episodic scale, and dissolved oxygen and temperature on a seasonal scale. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The classification of fish species tolerance to environmental disturbance is often used as a means to assess ecosystem conditions. Its use, however, may be problematic because the approach to tolerance classification is based on subjective judgment. We analyzed fish and physicochemical data from 773 stream sites collected as part of the U.S. Geological Survey''s National Water-Quality Assessment Program to calculate tolerance indicator values for 10 physicochemical variables using weighted averaging. Tolerance indicator values (TIVs) for ammonia, chloride, dissolved oxygen, nitrite plus nitrate, pH, phosphorus, specific conductance, sulfate, suspended sediment, and water temperature were calculated for 105 common fish species of the United States. Tolerance indicator values for specific conductance and sulfate were correlated (rho=0.87), and thus, fish species may be co-tolerant to these water-quality variables. We integrated TIVs for each species into an overall tolerance classification for comparisons with judgment-based tolerance classifications. Principal components analysis indicated that the distinction between tolerant and intolerant classifications was determined largely by tolerance to suspended sediment, specific conductance, chloride, and total phosphorus. Factors such as water temperature, dissolved oxygen, and pH may not be as important in distinguishing between tolerant and intolerant classifications, but may help to segregate species classified as moderate. Empirically derived tolerance classifications were 58.8% in agreement with judgment-derived tolerance classifications. Canonical discriminant analysis revealed that few TIVs, primarily chloride, could discriminate among judgment-derived tolerance classifications of tolerant, moderate, and intolerant. To our knowledge, this is the first empirically based understanding of fish species tolerance for stream fishes in the United States. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: New subsurface data reveal a nearly continuous stratigraphic record of Middle to Late Pleistocene loess sedimentation preserved beneath upland summits in eastern Nebraska, USA. Thickness and grain size trends, as well as pedologic evidence, indicate significant changes in loess sources, accumulation rates, and depositional environments. The newly defined Kennard Formation accumulated in the Middle Pleistocene, and may represent multiple thin increments of distal loess from nonglacial sources on the Great Plains. The overlying Loveland Loess, up to 18m thick and deposited during Oxygen Isotope Stage 6 (OIS 6) (Illinoian glaciation), probably records the emergence of the Missouri River valley as a major glaciogenic loess source. The prominent Sangamon Geosol formed through long-term pedogenic alteration of the upper Loveland Loess during OIS 5 and 4. Thin loess of the Gilman Canyon Formation records slow loess accumulation and pedogenic alteration in OIS 3. The Peoria Loess (OIS 2) is similar in thickness to Loveland Loess, but may have accumulated more rapidly in an environment less favorable to bioturbation. More importantly, comparison of Peoria and Loveland loess thickness trends indicates much greater influx of nonglaciogenic loess from the Great Plains during OIS 2 than in OIS 6, suggesting colder and/or drier conditions in the Midcontinent during OIS 2 than in earlier glacial stages. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) and other environmental authorities regulate concentrations of dissolved oxygen (DO) as a measure of nutrient-related eutrophication in estuarine and coastal waters. However, in situ DO concentrations are extremely variable, and their characterization requires an extensive sampling program to provide data over meaningful scales of time and space. In contrast, benthic faunal communities integrate the impacts of low DO over time, and can be rapidly assessed using benthic imaging. The goal of this study was to quantify the relationships between near-bottom dissolved oxygen and measures derived from benthic imaging with a sediment profile camera. We monitored three stations in Narragansett Bay (Rhode Island, USA) for DO and other water quality parameters 15–20 cm above the sediment surface on 15-minute intervals between July and November 2002, and regularly sampled these stations with a sediment profile camera throughout this time period. These soft-sediment stations encompassed several DO environments. We tested for relationships between near-bottom DO and several camera measures, including Nilsson and Rosenberg''s Benthic Habitat Quality (BHQ) index, the apparent Redox Potential Discontinuity (aRPD) depth, and various faunal features that can be identified in sediment profile images. Camera measures were examined against a variety of methods of characterizing DO (including mean DO, and the percent of time under various DO thresholds), over a span of time scales from 1 day to 49 days. The best relationship (highest r 2) between near-bottom DO and BHQ was found when DO was evaluated as the percent of time under a hypoxic threshold of 2.6 mg l−1 over a 28-day time scale (by examining DO records over the 28 days preceding each camera deployment). We found that, over several benthic settings, the BHQ index was successful at identifying environments that had experienced relatively high or low DO over the preceding four weeks. Our sediment profile data showed more variability with DO in the intermediate values of BHQ. We conclude that sediment profile camera measures correlate to DO in areas where low DO is the primary stressor, integrate DO over ecologically relevant time scales, and enable sampling over spatial scales that are meaningful for mapping by virtue of rapid deployment and analysis. We submit that sediment profile camera imagery is a useful assessment and mapping tool for environmental managers interested in benthic condition and in first-order quantitative estimates of near-bottom DO regimes in areas where low DO is the primary benthic stressor. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been performed at the atomic level to study the ammonium/ammonia transport across the Escherichia coli AmtB membrane protein. Although ammonia primarily exists in the form of NH4+ in aqueous solution, the recent X-ray structure determination of AmtB reveals that the ammonium/ammonia transporter proteins are ammonia-conducting channels rather than ammonium ion transporters [Khademi, S.; et al. Science 2004, 305, 1587; Zheng, L.; et al. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2004, 101, 17090]. Our simulations showed that the entrance of NH4+ into the periplasmic recruitment vestibule requires only 3.1 kcal/mol of energy. This is consistent with the X-ray crystal structure, where one NH4+ is captured in the binding vestibule. In this vestibule, NH4+ loses one water of hydration, but the loss is compensated by a hydrogen bond, first with the backbone carbonyl oxygen of Phe161 then with the hydroxyl group of Ser219, as well as the stabilizing π-cation interactions with the aromatic rings of Trp148 and Phe107 in the AmtB protein. In the end of this recruitment vestibule, the phenyl ring of Phe107 dynamically switches to an open state. This is correlated with a slight rotation and shifting of the indole ring of Trp148, which eventually creates a slot for the initially buried carboxylate group of Asp160 to become exposed to the bulk solvent. A hydrogen bond wire between NH4+ and the carboxylate group of Asp160 via two water molecules was observed. Thus, Asp160 is most likely the proton acceptor from NH4+. This explains the high conservation of Asp160 in Amt proteins and why the D160A mutant would completely quench the activity of AmtB [Javelle, A.; et al. J. Biol. Chem. 2004, 279, 8530; Marini, A. M.; et al. Curr. Genet. 2006, 49, 364]. Once NH4+ deprotonates, the phenyl ring of Phe215 rotates to open, and the subsequent passage of NH3 through the channel is straightforward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper we describe the development and validation of a relatively simple biogeochemical model of Chesapeake Bay. This model consists of a 3-dimensional, prognostic hydrodynamic model that is coupled to an NPZD-type open ocean ecosystem model, which has been modified by adding additional compartments and parameterizations of biogeochemical processes that are important in estuarine systems. These modifications include an empirical optical model for predicting the diffuse attenuation coefficient K d, compartments for representing oxygen and suspended sediment concentrations, and parameterizations of phosphorus limitation, denitrification, and seasonal changes in ecosystem structure and temperature effects. To show the overall performance of the coupled physical–biological model, the modeled dissolved inorganic nitrogen, phytoplankton, dissolved oxygen, total suspended solids and light attenuation coefficient in 1995 (a dry year) and 1996 (a very wet year) are examined and compared with observations obtained from the Chesapeake Bay Program. We demonstrate that this relatively simple model is capable of producing the general distribution of each field (both the mean and variability) in the main stem of the Bay. And the model is robust enough to generate reasonable results under both wet and dry conditions. Some significant discrepancies are also observed, such as overestimation of phytoplankton concentrations in shoal regions and overestimation of oxygen concentrations in deep channels, which reveal some deficiencies in the model formulation. Some potential improvements and remedies are suggested. Sensitivity studies on selected parameters are also reported. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Stomatal characteristics of an extinct Cretaceous conifer, Pseudofrenelopsis parceramosa (Fontaine) Watson, are used to reconstruct atmospheric carbon dioxide (pCO2) over a time previously inferred to exhibit major fluctuations in this greenhouse gas. Samples are from nonmarine to marine strata of the Wealden and Lower Greensand Groups of England and the Potomac Group of the eastern United States, of Hauterivian to Albian age (136-100 Ma). Atmospheric pCO2 is estimated from the ratios between stomatal indices of fossil cuticles and those from four modern analogs (nearest living equivalent plants). Using this approach, and two calibration methods to explore ranges, results show rela tively low and only slightly varying pCO2 over the Hauterivian-Albian interval: a low of ∼560-960 ppm in the early Barremian and a high of ∼620-1200 ppm in the Albian. Data from the Barremian Wealden Group yield pCO2 values indistinguishable from a soil- carbonate-based estimate from the same beds. The new pCO2 estimates are compatible with sedimentological and oxygen-isotope evidence for relatively cool mid-Cretaceous climates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We assayed the amount and distribution of genetic variability in the clonal polyploid plant Carex scopulorum var. scopulorum. We used 5 polymorphic protein loci to sample 7 populations on the tundra in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, U.S.A. Carex has levels of variability comparable to those found in nonclonal species. In the loci studied, transmission is disomic, as in diploid species. Of 148 tillers tested, 59.5% had different 5-locus genotypes. The distributions of genotypes fit Hardy-Weinberg expectations at 4 loci in most populations. These results suggest that there is significant cross-pollination and establishment by seed in this tundra plant. There were significant differences in allele frequencies between adjacent populations occupying wet versus moist environments at alcohol dehydrogenase, an enzyme known to be relevant to metabolism under oxygen-limiting conditions. There was no relationship between geographic distance and genetic distance at the scale we studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the role of Clean Water Act (CWA) in regulating water pollution in waterways in the U.S. It describes the relationship of dissolved oxygen to water quality and explains how dams and hydroelectric power plants pollute the surrounding waters. It suggests that provisions of the CWA should be analyzed to have more accurate definition of pollution, point source and addition of a pollutant.

The article provides information on the study concerning the properties of synthetic copper-oxygen intermediates in the U.S. The author infers that the understanding the properties of synthetic copper-oxygen intermediates is significant for evaluating mechanisms of oxidations by enzymes and other catalysts.

The article reports on the study that investigates the efficacy of gold-catalyzed three-component coupling in the oxidative oxyarylation of alkenes in the U.S. Researchers used different modes of heteroarylation to study related intramolecular aminorylation and gold-catalyzed three-component coupling reaction in arylboronic acids, alkenes and oxygen nucleophiles. They found that the three-component coupling is more efficient because it effectively participates as a nucleophile.

The article provides information on the first EPR-based evidence for one water-exchangeable oxygen that is strongly coupled to Mn in the U.S. According to the author, the two substrate water molecules exchange with different rates and activation energies in the S3 state as demonstrated by the time-resolved H216O/H218O-exchange measurements. He added that both substrate waters are bound in the S2.

The article discusses the highly enantioselective insertion of carbenoids into Nitrogen-Hydrogen (N-H) bonds catalyzed Copper complexes of chiral spiro bisoxazolines in the U.S. The catalytic insertion of α-diazocarbonyl compounds into Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, or Sulfur-Hydrogen bonds is a very powerful organic transformation for the preparation of a highly versatile building blocks.