Mineralogical Characterization and Chemical Properties of Soils as a Consideration for Establishing Sustainable Soil Management Strategies

Problems of soil limiting factors affecting crop growth were not fully understood owing to little attention has been given to soil mineralogy and its association to soil chemical properties. The objective of the study was to assess soil mineralogical and chemical properties of seven soils derived from different parentmaterials as an integrated strategic consideration to establish soil management. Field study was carried out in 2009. Soils were sampled from each horizon of profiles. Results showed that primary and secondary minerals had a strong effect on soil chemical properties. The sand fraction of soils derived from basalt, gabbro, mica schist and serpentinite was dominated by resistant minerals (quartz or opaques), leading to very limited, if any, nutrients released from parent materials. The clay fraction was dominated by kaolinite for soils derived frombasalt, mica schist and gabbaro, and by amorphous materials for the soil derived from serpentinite resulting in low soil cation exchange capacity (CEC). For other three soils derived from volcanic tuff, volcanic basaltic andesite and volcanic ash, the easily weatherable minerals (feldspar and ferromagnesian) were dominant, suggesting the high reserved nutrients. The presence of halloysite and smectite minerals in the soil derived from volcanic tuff resulted in high soil CEC, while the dominance of amorphous materials in soils derived from volcanic basaltic andesite and volcanic ash was responsible for the low CEC. Forsoils derived from basalt, serpentinite, mica schist and gabbro, therefore, the strategic management should be directed to restore soil CEC, pH, exchangeable cations and P content. For soils derived from volcanic tuff, volcanic basaltic andesite and volcanic ash, the presence of easily weatherable minerals indicated many reserved nutrients; hence the soil management is directed for replenishment of nutrients removed by crops

Development of Soils Derived From Weathered Sedimentary, Granitic and Ultrabasic Rocks in South Kalimantan Province: I. Mineralogical Composition and Chemical Properties

Limited information is available on chemical propertiesand mineralogical composition of soils in South Kalimantan Province. The objective of this study is to assess the develop derived from weathered sedimentary, granitic and ultrabasic rocks with respect to soil management. Field investigations and laboratory analyses were performed to compare morphological properties, particle sizes, mineralogical compositions of sand and clay fractions, organic C, N, pH, extractable acidity, P retention, exchangeable cations, cation exchange capacity, and oxides of iron and aluminium. The results. show the AY-14 pedon has a higher degree of development followed by MA-86 and SW-89, respectively as indicated by mineralogical composition and chemical properties. Although the three pedons are dominated by kaolinite, the AY- 14 pedon (developed from an ultrabasic rock) has no weatherable minerals and vermiculite but has high opaques, low quartz and colloid surfaces bearing positive charge. On the other hand, weatherable minerals are only found in SW-89. The MA-86 and SW-89 (developed from granitic and sedimentary rocks, respectively) have low opaques, high quartz, a minor proportion of vermiculite, and colloid surfaces bearing negative charges. These findings suggest that the AY-14 has a higher degree of development than MA-86 and SW-89. Comparison between MA-86 and SW-89 indicated that the former has lower clay cation exchange capacity (CEC) and contains no weatherable minerals indicating that the MA-86 has a higher degree of development than the SW-89. The values of exchangeable cations, CEC of soil and clay, and ECEC were low in all three pedons. The magnitude of each value was lower in the AY-14 followed by MA-86 and SW-89, respectively. In contrast, P retention and iron oxides were the highest in the AY- 14 pedon followed by MA-86 and SW-89, respectively. The three pedons have very acid to acid pH, and low C and N contents. Based on chemical properties and mineralogical composition, the three pedons need different management practices. The soil derived from ultrabasic rock (AY-14) needs higher phosphate fertilizer due to its high P retention, higher organic matter and lime than soils derived from granitic rock (MA-86) and sedimentary rock (SW-89) in order to increase CEC, nutrient availability and soil pH

Preservation of Organic Matter as Affected by Various Clay Contents in an Acid Soil:Beneficial Impact on Groundnut Yield

Systematic study on the effect of various clay contents on organic C dynamic and groundnut yield (Arachis hypogea) in upland acid soils has not received any attention. The objectives of the study were: (i) to assess the capability of various soil clay contents to preserve organic C, (ii) and to relate the effects of soil clay fraction and organic C on groundnut yield of an acid soil (Ultisol). The soil clay content was artificially adjusted to 15, 30, 45, 60 and 75%. Each soil clay percentage was thoroughly mixed with finely ground rice straw at the rate equals to 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5% of organic C. The soil was then transferred into a pot and planted with corn (Zea mays)for the first 6 months and followed by groundnut for further 6 months. The experiment was arranged in a split plot design with three replications under glasshouse conditions. Results for the first 6 months have been published elsewhere. Hence, results for the last 6 months were presented here. Soil clay was the major factor responsible for the preservation of organic C as indicated by (i) the increased soil organic C with increasing clay fraction, and (ii) the low mineralization rate as shown by CO2-C: total C ratio from low to high 75<60<45<30<15% soil clay. It is observed that every 15% clay increment could preserve another 0.3% organic C for the period of 12 months. The increased soil organic C could linearly increase groundnut yield for 15 and 30% clay and quadratic yield for 45 and 60% clay. The maximum grain yield was 25.7-27.6 g pot-1 (equals to 2.9-3.1 t ha-1), which was obtained at 30-45 % clay containing 1.8-1.9% soil organic C

Point of Zero Charge Determination and the Inluence of P, Basic Slag, Organic Matter and Lime Applications on Colloidal Charge and Quality of Oxisols

The colloidal charge manipulation of highly weathered soils using point of zero charge (PZC or pHo) approach is important in improving soil chemical properties. The objective of this study was to determine the PZC and manipulate colloidal charge surfaces of Oxisols in order to increase their quality. PZC was determined by adjusting pH values from 3 to 7 using potentiometric titration. The change of colloidal surface charges was measured using two extractants; NH4-acetat pH 7 and NH4Cl. A glass house experiment was carried out using 4.5 kg soil/pot. Soil was taken from Sonay, South East Sulawesi and from Sitiung, West Sumatra. Soil was taken from surface layer (0-20 cm) and subsurface layer (20-40 cm) for each location. Four factors consisted of P fertilizer, basic slag, organic matter and lime were used to manipulate colloidal surface charge. The treatment rates were 100, 200 and 400 ppm P for P fertilizer; 2, 4 and 8 t/ha for basic slag; 10, 20 and 40 t/ha for organic matter; 1.5, 3 and 6 t/ha for lime, and a complete control. All 13 treatments with three replications, were arranged using a randomized complete block design in which each layer of two Oxisols is used as a block. The results showed that values of PZC for a surface layer of Sonay Oxisol (OSY) and for surface and subsurface layers of Sitiung Oxisol (OSG) are similar, i.e, pHo was 3.5. In addition, the PZC value for the subsurface layer of OSY occurs at pH 5 which is the highest pHo value compared to three other layers. The PZC value of OSY, at a surface layer is higher than its soil pH value (5.0 vs 4.4) suggesting that colloidal surfaces bear a positive charge. In contrast, the PZC values for the surface layer of OSY and surface and subsurface layers of OSG were lower than their soil pH values, indicating the colloidal surfaces bear a negative charge. Application of P, basic slag, organic matter, and lime was able to manipulate colloidal charge surfaces having positive charges become negative and that the low negative charge of colloidal surfaces become more negative as evidenced from the increase cation exchange capacity (measured in NH4Cl) compared to a control treatment. Application of P, basic slag,organic matter, and lime could increased quality of Oxisols as shown by decreasing K leaching and by increased soybean yields, which drastically increased compared to a control treatment

Suppression of level hybridization due to Coulomb interactions

We investigate an ensemble of systems formed by a ring enclosing a magnetic flux. The ring is coupled to a side stub via a tunneling junction and via Coulomb interaction. We generalize the notion of level hybridization due to the hopping, which is naturally defined only for one-particle problems, to the many-particle case, and we discuss the competition between the level hybridization and the Coulomb interaction. It is shown that strong enough Coulomb interactions can isolate the ring from the stub, thereby increasing the persistent current. Our model describes a strictly canonical system (the number of carriers is the same for all ensemble members). Nevertheless for small Coulomb interactions and a long side stub the model exhibits a persistent current typically associated with a grand canonical ensemble of rings and only if the Coulomb interactions are sufficiently strong does the model exhibit a persistent current which one expects from a canonical ensemble.Comment: 19 pages, 6 figures, uses iop style files, version as publishe

Prognostic Value of Three Different Methods of MGMT Promoter Methylation Analysis in a Prospective Trial on Newly Diagnosed Glioblastoma

Hypermethylation in the promoter region of the MGMT gene encoding the DNA repair protein O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase is among the most important prognostic factors for patients with glioblastoma and predicts response to treatment with alkylating agents like temozolomide. Hence, the MGMT status is widely determined in most clinical trials and frequently requested in routine diagnostics of glioblastoma. Since various different techniques are available for MGMT promoter methylation analysis, a generally accepted consensus as to the most suitable diagnostic method remains an unmet need. Here, we assessed methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) as a qualitative and semi-quantitative method, pyrosequencing (PSQ) as a quantitative method, and methylation-specific multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MS-MLPA) as a semi-quantitative method in a series of 35 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded glioblastoma tissues derived from patients treated in a prospective clinical phase II trial that tested up-front chemoradiotherapy with dose-intensified temozolomide (UKT-05). Our goal was to determine which of these three diagnostic methods provides the most accurate prediction of progression-free survival (PFS). The MGMT promoter methylation status was assessable by each method in almost all cases (n = 33/35 for MSP; n = 35/35 for PSQ; n = 34/35 for MS-MLPA). We were able to calculate significant cut-points for the continuous methylation signals at each CpG site analysed by PSQ (range, 11.5 to 44.9%) and at one CpG site assessed by MS-MLPA (3.6%) indicating that a dichotomisation of continuous methylation data as a prerequisite for comparative survival analyses is feasible. Our results show that, unlike MS-MLPA, MSP and PSQ provide a significant improvement of predicting PFS compared with established clinical prognostic factors alone (likelihood ratio tests: p<0.001). Conclusively, taking into consideration prognostic value, cost effectiveness and ease of use, we recommend pyrosequencing for analyses of MGMT promoter methylation in high-throughput settings and MSP for clinical routine diagnostics with low sample numbers

Peri-operative red blood cell transfusion in neonates and infants: NEonate and Children audiT of Anaesthesia pRactice IN Europe: A prospective European multicentre observational study

BACKGROUND: Little is known about current clinical practice concerning peri-operative red blood cell transfusion in neonates and small infants. Guidelines suggest transfusions based on haemoglobin thresholds ranging from 8.5 to 12 g dl-1, distinguishing between children from birth to day 7 (week 1), from day 8 to day 14 (week 2) or from day 15 (≥week 3) onwards. OBJECTIVE: To observe peri-operative red blood cell transfusion practice according to guidelines in relation to patient outcome. DESIGN: A multicentre observational study. SETTING: The NEonate-Children sTudy of Anaesthesia pRactice IN Europe (NECTARINE) trial recruited patients up to 60 weeks' postmenstrual age undergoing anaesthesia for surgical or diagnostic procedures from 165 centres in 31 European countries between March 2016 and January 2017. PATIENTS: The data included 5609 patients undergoing 6542 procedures. Inclusion criteria was a peri-operative red blood cell transfusion. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary endpoint was the haemoglobin level triggering a transfusion for neonates in week 1, week 2 and week 3. Secondary endpoints were transfusion volumes, 'delta haemoglobin' (preprocedure - transfusion-triggering) and 30-day and 90-day morbidity and mortality. RESULTS: Peri-operative red blood cell transfusions were recorded during 447 procedures (6.9%). The median haemoglobin levels triggering a transfusion were 9.6 [IQR 8.7 to 10.9] g dl-1 for neonates in week 1, 9.6 [7.7 to 10.4] g dl-1 in week 2 and 8.0 [7.3 to 9.0] g dl-1 in week 3. The median transfusion volume was 17.1 [11.1 to 26.4] ml kg-1 with a median delta haemoglobin of 1.8 [0.0 to 3.6] g dl-1. Thirty-day morbidity was 47.8% with an overall mortality of 11.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate lower transfusion-triggering haemoglobin thresholds in clinical practice than suggested by current guidelines. The high morbidity and mortality of this NECTARINE sub-cohort calls for investigative action and evidence-based guidelines addressing peri-operative red blood cell transfusions strategies. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT02350348

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead