Reduction of adenylylsulfate and 3′-phosphoadenylylsulfate in phototrophic bacteria

Summary Extracts of 14 species of phototrophic bacteria, partly grown with different sulfur compounds, were tested for their ability to form volatile sulfur compounds from adenylylsulfate (APS) and 3-phosphoadenylylsulfate (PAPS). The Rhodospirillum species showed marked activities with both APS and PAPS while the Rhodopseudomonas species seem to prefer PAPS. the Chromatiaceae exhibited the strongest activities with APS, whereas Chlorobium limicola had equally high activity with PAPS.We thank J. F. Imhoff for skilful assistance and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft for financial support.     

Net ATP synthesis by running the red cell calcium pump backwards.

Ca2+ loaded inside-out vesicles from human red blood cells, yielding C2+ into a Ca2+ free medium with 4 mM EGTA, 2 mM ADP and 10 mM phosphate, produced an excess of 14.9 pmoles . min-1 . (mg protein)-1 of ATP compared to controls in which the transmembrane Ca2+ gradient was abolished by the ionophore A 23 187.     

Metal accumulation inAgaricus bisporus: Influence of Cd and Cu on growth and tyrosinase activity

Summary To investigate heavy metal uptake in the common mushroomAgaricus bisporus, commercial cultures of the fungus were exposed to different amounts of copper ad cadmium. In contrast to copper, cadmium already exerted pronounced toxic effects at low concentrations (>10 M) in the compost and concomitantly enhanced the uptake of copper. Tyrosinase activity measured in the fruit bodies increased sharply, when small amounts of Cd (10 M) were added to copper-rich compost. Gel filtration experiments with crude extracts from fruit bodies demonstrated the absence of a low molecular weight metal binding protein.Acknowledgments. This work was supported by the Schweizerischer Nationalfonds grant 3.420–0.78 (to K.L.) and by Hauser Champignonkulturen AG. We are indepted to Dr D. Rast for helpful discussions.     

草酸盐矿物的Raman和红外光谱特征研究:寻找行星生命的有效方法

草酸盐矿物的形成可以用来证明苔藓、真菌等低级生物的存在. 系统研究了一水草酸钙石、二水草酸钙石、草酸铜石、草酸铁石、草酸镁石、草酸钠石和草酸胺石等7种草酸盐矿物的Raman和红外光谱特征. 研究表明, 草酸盐矿物的CO Raman伸缩振动峰与阳离子种类有关, 二水草酸钙石、草酸铜石、草酸镁石、草酸钠石的CO Raman伸缩振动峰依次是1468, 1489, 1471, 1456 cm^-1. 除草酸胺石外, 只有Raman和红外光谱特征能够证明这些草酸盐矿物的络合特性. 还对水的OH 伸缩振动的光谱学特征进行了测定和分析, 用来区分草酸钙石中是否含有结晶水及结晶水的含量. 结果的重要性在于可以用振动光谱技术来鉴定赋存在岩石表层的草酸盐矿物, 从而用于证明其他行星(如火星)上是否有生命或曾经有生命存在.     

沧水铺火山岩锆石SHRIMP U-Pb年龄及“南华系”底界新证据

湖南益阳地区沧水铺组陆相火山岩-火山碎屑沉积砾岩为一套高角度不整合于中元古界冷家溪群复理石浊积岩之上的楔状地层. 取自该组地层下部火山岩段底部的英安质火山集块岩样品(N3)的高精度离子探针(SHRIMP)锆石U-Pb同位素年龄为814±12 Ma, 这一年龄数据与已有的沧水铺组火山岩年龄数据(921~933 Ma)差距较大, 它代表了该地区新元古界新的底界年龄. 此项研究结果改变了沧水铺火山岩的时代归属, 并支持以下观点: (1) 研究区缺失了新元古代早期(814~1000 Ma之间)的沉积地层; (2)华南裂谷系始于约820 Ma左右; (3) 820 Ma可能是中国新元古界“南华系”的底界年龄.     

Contamination trends of polybrominated diphenyl ethers, organochlorine pesticides and heavy metals in sediments from Dagu Drainage River estuary, Tianjin

Concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers （PBDEs）, organochlorine pesticides （OCPs） and heavy metals in two sediment cores, taken from the Dagu Drainage River, were determined. The contamination trends of these three kinds of compounds were obtained. The results showed that concentrations of PBDEs increased in recent years; there were new contamination sources for OCPs in this area; contamination levels of heavy metals had no significant change in the last several years. Comparing the results of these two cores, erosion and dilution of seawater had different effects on the transportation of these compounds.     

The liquid phase separation of Bi-Ga hypermonotectic alloy under acoustic levitation condition

Containerless treatment of Bi-58.5at%Ga hypermonotecUc alloy is successfully performed with acoustic levitation technique. Under acoustic levitation condition, the second phase （Ga） distributes almost homogeneously in solidification sample, opposite to macrosegregation in solidification sample under conventional condition. Stokes motion of the second liquid droplet （Ga） is significantly restrained under acoustic levitation condition. The analyses indicate that the melt vibration in the gravity direction forced by acoustic field can induce steady flow around the second liquid droplet, which influences droplet shape during its moving upward and consequently restrains Stokes motion velocity of the second liquid droplet.     

Low-field positive and high-field negative magnetoresistances in multiphase Fe-oxide thin films at room temperature

Multiphase Fe-oxide thin films are fabricated on glass substrates by a facing-target sputtering tech- nique. X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveal that Fe, Fe3BO4, γ -Fe2BO3B and FeO coexist in the films. High resolution transmission electron microscopy shows the well-defined colum- nar grain structure with the unoxidized Fe as the core and iron-oxide as the shell. The low-field positive and high-field negative magnetoresistances coexist in such a system at room temperature, which can be explained by considering a shell/core model. Nonlinear current-voltage curve and photovoltaic effect further confirm the tunneling-type conduction.     

One Dimensional Nanostructures for Lithium-ion Batteries, Gas Sensors and Optoelectronics Applications

1 Results One dimensional (1D) nanostructures such as nanowires,nanotubes,nanorods and nanoribbons have been extensively investigated for a wide range of applications[1].Here,we present the synthesis,characterization and technological applications of several 1D nanostructures including SnO2 nanowires,CuO nanoribbons,CdSe nanowires and In2O3 nanowires.SnO2 nanowires were synthesized by thermal evaporation combined with a self-catalyzed growth procedure.Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observation shows...     

The early Holocene optimum inferred from a hish-resolution pollen record of Husuansyan Maar Lake in southern China

A high-resolution pollen record of the past 13000 a from Huguangyan Maar Lake reveals the vegetation and environment changes in southern China during the Holocene. It shows that （i） pollen percentage of trees and shrubs reached 56% during the early Holocene （11600-7800 cal a BP）, of which the pollen percentage of tropical trees reached a maximum at 9500-8000 cal a BP, reflecting a hot and wet environment; （ii） during the mid-Holocene （7800-4200 cal a BP）, the pollen percentage of montane coniferous trees and herbs increased, while the percentage of tropical-subtropical trees decreased, indicating lower temperature and humidity; （iii） in the late Holocene spanning from 4200 to 350 cal a BP, the pollen percentage of herbs and montane conifer increased significantly, indicating a marked decrease of temperature and humidity. Our pollen data reveal that the time period 9500-8000 cal a BP in southern China represents a climatic optimum for the Holocene characterized by hot and wet conditions. This is consistent with the Holocene optimum found in lower latitude regions globally. We speculate that strong insolation might cause the northward migration of the ITCZ and subtropical summer monsoon front, which resulted in an early Holocene optimum in the Huguangyan area. The dry tendency and climate fluctuations of the middle and late Holocene could be associated with a decrease in solar insolation and frequent ENSO event.