Decomposition of emergent macrophyte roots and rhizomes in a northern prairie marsh

Dry mass, nitrogen and phosphorus content in belowground litter of four emergent macrophytes (Typha glauca Godr., Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin., Scolochloa festucacea (Willd.) Link and Scirpus lacustris L.) were followed for 1.2 years in a series of experimental marshes, Delta Marsh, Manitoba. Litter bags containing roots and rhizome materials of each species were buried in unflooded soil, or soil flooded at three water depths (1–30, 31–60, > 60 cm). There were few differences in dry mass loss in unflooded or flooded soils, and depth of flooding also had little effect on decomposition rates. In the flooded sites, Scolochloa and Phragmites roots lost more mass (48.9–63.8% and 59.2–85.5%, respectively) after 112 days than Typha and Scirpus (36.3–43.6 and 37.0–47.2%, respectively). These differences continued through to the end of the study, except in the shallow sites where Scirpus roots lost more mass and had comparable mass remaining as Scolochloa and Phragmites. In the unflooded sites, there was little difference between species. All litters lost nitrogen (22.9–90.0%) and phosphorus (46.3–92.7%) during the first 112 days, then levels tended to remain constant. Decay rates for our belowground root and rhizome litters were comparable to published literature values for aboveground shoot litter of the same species, except for Phragmites roots and rhizomes which decomposed at a faster rate (−k = 0.0014−0.0032) than shoots (−k = 0.0003−0.0007, [van der Valk, A.G., Rhymer, J.M., Murkin, H.R., 1991. Flooding and the decomposition of litter of four emergent plant species in a prairie wetland. Wetlands 11, 1–16]).

Studies on the aconitine-type alkaloids in the roots of Aconitum Carmichaeli Debx. by HPLC/ESIMS/MSn

Studies of aconitine-type alkaloids in the Chinese herb Aconitum Carmichaeli were performed by HPLC/ESIMS/MSn and FTICR/ESIMS in positive ion mode. The characteristic fragmentation pathways in the MSn spectra were summarized based on previously published research literature and further study. According to the fragmentation pathways of mass spectrometry, results from the analysis of standard compounds and reports from literature, 111 compounds were identified or deduced in a total of 117 found compounds in A. Carmichaeli. In the 11 monoester-diterpenoid alkaloids (MDA), 10 diesterditerpenoid alkaloids (DDA) and 81 lipo-alkaloids, the novel alkaloids including 1 MDA, 2 DDA and 48 lipo-alkaloids were detected.

Electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometric study of the aconitines in the roots of aconite

Fragmentation pathways of aconitine-type alkaloids were investigated by electrospray ionization/ion trap multistage tandem mass spectrometry. Low-energy collision-induced dissociation of protonated aconitines follows a dominant first step, the elimination of the C-8-substituent as acetic acid or fatty acid in MS2 spectra. Successive losses of 1-4 CH3OH molecules, 1-3 H2O, CO, benzoic acid, and CH3 or C2H5 (N-substituents) are all fragmentation pathways observed in MS3 and MS4 spectra. By applying knowledge of these fragmentation pathways to the aconitines in the ethanolic extract of aconite roots, all the known aconitines were detected and also 23 unknown aconitine-type alkaloids, in which the lipo-alkaloids containing residues of 15C, 17C and 19C saturated or unsaturated fatty acids were characterized. These odd-carbon-number fatty acid substituents have not been reported previously.

A study of Aconitum alkaloids from aconite roots in Aconitum carmichaeli Debx using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry

In the present paper a study of C-19-diterpene type of aconitum alkaloids, extracted from aconite roots in Aconitum carmichaeli Debx has been made using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of Eight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS), The results demonstrated that the aconitum alkaloids from aconite roots can be determined simultaneously by this method, which was found to be superior to other analytical methods with regard to speed and sensitivity. Fourteen known aconitum alkaloids, including aconitines, benzoylaconitines and lipoaconitines, were assigned in the methanol extract and three compounds not reported before have been targeted separation. The evaluation of the efficiency of different extractions has been studied. These results suggested that the differences of the polarity and basicity of aconitine, and benzoylaconitines and lipoaconitines result from the C-8 constituent groups that are easily lost under MALDI, (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Identification of ginsenosides in roots of Panax ginseng by HPLC-APCI/MS

A new HPLC-APCI/MS method for the identification of ginsenosides has been developed. The analyses were performed on a reversed-phase C-18 column using a binary eluent (acetonitrile and water) under gradient conditions. Although APCI is a high-temperature evaporative process, HPLC-APCI/MS could effectively identify thermo-labile ginsenosides. The [M-H](-) ions and the thermal degradation ions of ginsenosides could be clearly observed under negative and positive ion conditions, respectively, and these were used to identify the molecular masses, the aglycone structures and the sugar groups of ginsenosides. APCI/MS can provide more explicit information than ESI/MS for identifying and distinguishing ginsenosides. Using the HPLC-APCI/MS method, 35 ginsenosides were identified in Panax ginseng. Copyright (C) 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Roots and wings: orthodoxy, tradition, and creativity in Irish folk Catholicism

The present work is an exploration of the beliefs and practices of three lay Catholic devotional communities in and around the city of Cork, Ireland. The research is guided by the theory that folk, or popular, religion is a dynamic process in which individuals and groups utilise the resources of orthodoxy, popular tradition, and personal creativity, to better interpret, articulate, and create religious experiences. Ethnographic fieldwork was the principal method of data collection. Four areas of folk religion are given special attention: the use of religious narrative to represent and reproduce religious experience, the use of material artefacts to create channels for sacred presence and activity, the use of ritual and pilgrimage to establish sacred time and space, and the use of prayer to accomplish all of these goals. These sections are followed by a more holistic analysis of the material, a critical examination of the work, and suggestions for further research.

The Islamic commercial crisis: Institutional roots of economic underdevelopment in the Middle East

During the second millennium, the Middle East's commerce with Western Europe fell increasingly under European domination. Two factors played critical roles. First, the Islamic inheritance system, by raising the costs of dissolving a partnership following a partner's death, kept Middle Eastern commercial enterprises small and ephemeral. Second, certain European inheritance systems facilitated large and durable partnerships by reducing the likelihood of premature dissolution. The upshot is that European enterprises grew larger than those of the Islamic world. Moreover, while ever larger enterprises propelled further organizational transformations in Europe, persistently small enterprises inhibited economic modernization in the Middle East.