The role of cell-surface-bound phosphatases in species competition within natural phytoplankton assemblage: an in situ experiment

Despite it is widely acknowledged that the ability to hydrolyze dissolved organic matter using extracellular phosphatases is diverse in fresh water phytoplankton, the competition within single species related to presence and quantity of cell-surface-bound phosphatases has not been examined in natural conditions yet. Here, we studied phytoplankton species competition in a freshwater reservoir during an in situ experiment. A natural plankton community, with the exclusion of large zooplankton, was enclosed in permeable dialysis bags inside two large containers of different bioavailable phosphate concentrations. Phytoplankton species biomass and the abundance of bacteria were determined in purpose to compare the development of enclosed microbial communities. Total and cell-surface-bound phosphatase activities in the phytoplankton were investigated using the Fluorescently Labelled Enzyme Activity (FLEA) technique that allows for direct microscopic detection of phosphatase-positive cells and, with image cytometry, enables quantification of phosphatase hydrolytic capacity. Production of extracellular phosphatases was not completely inhibited or stopped in the phosphate-enriched environment, phytoplankton cells only showed the activity less often. Under the phosphate-nonenriched conditions, the production of phosphatases was enhanced, but active species did not proliferate amongst phytoplankton assemblage. Further, specific growth rates of the phosphatase-positive species in the non-enriched environment were lower than the same phosphatase-positive species in phosphate-enriched environment. Interestingly, the phosphatase-positive cells of Ankyra ancora increased their size in both treatments equally, although the population in phosphate-enriched environment grew much faster and the cell-specific phosphatase activity was lower. We hypothesize that brand new daughter cells had sufficient phosphorus reserves and therefore did not employ extracellular phosphatases until they matured and needed extra bioavailable phosphorus to support their metabolism before cell division. Based on presented in situ experiment, we propose that the ability to hydrolyze organic polymers and particles with cell-surface-hound phosphatases is advantageous for longer persistence of given population in a phosphate-scarce environment; although phosphatase-positive species cannot dominate the reservoir phytoplankton solely because of specific phosphorus-scavenging strategy.

Light and scanning electron microscopic study of Balantidium ctenopharyngodoni Chen, 1955 (Class : Litostomatea) from China

Redescription of Balantidium ctenopharyngodoni "Chen (Acta Hydrobiol Sin 1:123-164, 1955)", collected from the hindgut of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella), especially the segment of 6-10 cm upstream from the anus, from Honghu Lake, Hubei Province, central China in November 2005, is presented in this paper to complete Chen's description at both light and scanning electron microscopic levels. Some revisions were done: the vestibulum is fairly symmetrical, with compactly arranged cilia rather than assembled membrane bordering on the left vestibular side; four contractile vacuoles actually exist in the latter body, three of which surround the posterior portion of the macronucleus, whereas the fourth lies antero-left to it. Somatic monokinetids were compared among the species of genus Balantidium. The cysts were described, and possible infection routes of B. ctenopharyngodoni were also discussed.

Evaluation of soot particles of biomass fuels with endocrine-modulating activity in yeast-based bioassay

Exposure to indoor air pollution (IAP) from the combustion of biomass fuels is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries. In the work discussed in this paper we evaluated the endocrine activity of soot particles from biomass fuels by using yeast bioassay. These pollutants could have beta-galactosidase activity with a relative potency (RP) about 10(-7)-10(-9) that of estradiol. Soot particles from wood and straw combustion only partially induced beta-galactosidase activity whereas others produced fully inductive activity in the yeast assay system. These pollutants did not have estrogen antagonist and progesterone agonist activity within the defined concentration range. However, these pollutants require 2-4 orders of magnitude higher IC50 to inhibit the activity of progesterone in a similar dose-response manner to mifepristone. We therefore propose that the endocrine activity of some environmental pollutants may be because of inhibition of the progesterone receptor (hPR). GC-MS results showed that substituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds, substituted phenolic compounds and derivatives, aromatic carbonyl compounds, and phytosteroids in these soot particles may be mimicking endogenous hormones.

Infection and propagation of lymphocystis virus isolated from the cultured flounder Paralichthys olivaceus in grass carp cell lines

The causative agent of lymphocystis disease that frequently occurs in cultured flounder Paralichthys olivaceus in China is lymphocystis virus (LV). In this study, 13 fish cell lines were tested for their susceptibility to LV. Of these, 2 cell lines derived from the freshwater grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idellus proved susceptible to the LV, and 1 cell line, GCO (grass carp ovary), was therefore used to replicate and propagate the virus. An obvious cytopathic effect (CPE) was first observed in cell monolayers at 1 d post-inoculation, and at 3 d this had extended to about 75% of the cell monolayer. However, no further CPE extension was observed after 4 d. Cytopathic characteristics induced by the LV were detected by Giemsa staining and fluorescence microscopic observation with Hoechst 33258 staining. The propagated virus particles were also observed by electron microscopy. Ultrastructure analysis revealed several distinct cellular changes, such as chromatin compaction and margination, vesicle formation, cell-surface convolution, nuclear fragmentation and the occurrence of characteristic 'blebs' and cell fusion. This study provides a detailed report of LV infection and propagation in a freshwater fish cell line, and presents direct electron microscopy evidence for propagation of the virus in infected cells. A possible process by which the CPEs are controlled is suggested.

Transparent and Light-Emitting Epoxy Super-Nanocomposites Containing ZnO-QDs/SiO2 Nanocomposite Particles as Encapsulating Materials for Solid-State Lighting

In this article, the ZnO quantum dots-SiO2 (Z-S) nanocomposite particles were first synthesized. Transparent Z-S/epoxy super-nanocomposites were then prepared by introducing calcined Z-S nanocomposite particles with a proper ratio of ZnO to SiO2 into a transparent epoxy matrix in terms of the filler-matrix refractive index matching principle. It was shown that the epoxy super-nanocomposites displayed intense luminescence with broad emission spectra. Moreover, the epoxy super-nanocomposites showed the interesting afterglow phenomenon with a long phosphorescence lifetime that was not observed for ZnO-QDs/epoxy nanocomposites. Finally, the transparent and light-emitting Z-S/epoxy super-nanocomposites were successfully employed as encapsulating materials for synthesis of highly bright LED lamps.

Development of current-based microscopic defect analysis method using optical filling techniques for the defect study on heavily irradiated high-resistivity Si sensors/detectors

Current-based microscopic defect analysis method such as current deep level transient spectroscopy (I-DLTS) and thermally stimulated current have been developed over the years at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) for the defect characterizations on heavily irradiated (Phi(n) >= 10(13) n/cm(2)) high-resistivity (>= 2 k Omega cm) Si sensors/detectors. The conventional DLTS method using a capacitance transient is not valid on heavily irradiated high-resistivity Si sensors/detectors. A new optical filling method, using lasers with various wavelengths, has been applied, which is more efficient and suitable than the traditional voltage-pulse filling. Optimum defect-filling schemes and conditions have been suggested for heavily irradiated high-resistivity Si sensors/detectors. (c) 2006 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Nonadiabatic geometric quantum computation with trapped ions

We propose a nonadiabatic scheme for geometric quantum computation with trapped ions. By making use of the Aharonov-Anandan phase, the proposed scheme not only preserves the globally geometric nature in quantum computation, but also provides the advantage of nonadiabaticity that overcomes the problem of slow evolution in the existing adiabatic schemes. Moreover, the present scheme requires only two atomic levels in each ion, making it an appealing candidate for quantum computation.

Assembly of side-functional monomers with inorganic nanometer particles

Monomers of methacrylate with various pi -conjugated pendants were designed and prepared in our laboratory, The monomer with suitable end-group was successfully assembled with nano-scale inorganic particles to form an orderly-aligned structure that showed special optical properties, both absorption and emission band were much red-shifted compared with the monomer, A new type of organic/inorganic hybrid materials was obtained by in situ polymerization of the assembly, The hybrid materials could also show special optical properties as the assembly, This might open a new route to tune the emission color.