Acid mine drainage: streambed sorption of copper, cadmium and zinc

January 10, 1990.Includes bibliographical references.Grant no. 14-08-0001-1551, Project no. 04; financed in part by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Geological Survey, through the Colorado Water Resources Research Institute

Adsorption of copper, cadmium and zinc on suspended sediments in a stream contaminated by acid mine drainage: the effect of seasonal changes in dissolved organic carbon

January 1, 1991.Bibliography: pages 13-14.Grant no. 14-08-0001-G1551-01, Project no. 04; financed in part by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Geological Survey

Isotopic Variability of Mercury in Ore, Mine-Waste Calcine, and Leachates of Mine-Waste Calcine from Areas Mined for Mercury

The isotopic composition of mercury (Hg) was determined in cinnabar ore, mine-waste calcine (retorted ore), and leachates obtained from water leaching experiments of calcine from two large Hg mining districts in the U.S. This study is the first to report significant mass-dependent Hg isotopic fractionation between cinnabar ore and resultant calcine. Data indicate that δ²⁰²Hg values relative to NIST 3133 of calcine (up to 1.52‰) in the Terlingua district, Texas, are as much as 3.24‰ heavier than cinnabar (−1.72‰) prior to retorting. In addition, δ²⁰²Hg values obtained from leachates of Terlingua district calcines are isotopically similar to, or as much as 1.17‰ heavier than associated calcines, most likely due to leaching of soluble, byproduct Hg compounds formed during ore retorting that are a minor component in the calcines. As a result of the large fractionation found between cinnabar and calcine, and because calcine is the dominant source of Hg contamination from the mines studied, δ²⁰²Hg values of calcine may be more environmentally important in these mined areas than the primary cinnabar ore. Measurement of the Hg isotopic composition of calcine is necessary when using Hg isotopes for tracing Hg sources from areas mined for Hg, especially mine water runoff

Thousands of small, novel genes predicted in global phage genomes

Fremin BJ, Bhatt AS, Kyrpides NC, et al. Thousands of small, novel genes predicted in global phage genomes. Cell Reports. 2022;39(12): 110984

Thousands of small, novel genes predicted in global phage genomes.

Small genes (<150 nucleotides) have been systematically overlooked in phage genomes. We employ a large-scale comparative genomics approach to predict >40,000 small-gene families in ∼2.3 million phage genome contigs. We find that small genes in phage genomes are approximately 3-fold more prevalent than in host prokaryotic genomes. Our approach enriches for small genes that are translated in microbiomes, suggesting the small genes identified are coding. More than 9,000 families encode potentially secreted or transmembrane proteins, more than 5,000 families encode predicted anti-CRISPR proteins, and more than 500 families encode predicted antimicrobial proteins. By combining homology and genomic-neighborhood analyses, we reveal substantial novelty and diversity within phage biology, including small phage genes found in multiple host phyla, small genes encoding proteins that play essential roles in host infection, and small genes that share genomic neighborhoods and whose encoded proteins may share related functions