Planktonic primary production in a tidally influenced mangrove forest on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.

The seasonal variation of planktonic primary productivity was measured during one year in the main channel in the interior part of the mangrove forest of the Estero de Morales (Estero de Punta Morales), a mangrove system located in the Golfo de Nicoya at the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Samples were incubated at the surface, 0.5 m and 1.0 m depth and the “light and dark bottle technique” was employed. The annual gross primary productivity (PPg) was 457 and the net primary productivity (PPn) was 278 g C m–2 a-1. Daily PPg ranged from 0.29 to 3.88 and PPn from 0.12 to 2.76 g C m-2 d-1. The highest rates observed in May and September were due to red tide blooms. The seasonal variation of primary productivity inside the mangrove forest depends closely on the PP in the adjacent area of the upper Golfo de Nicoya. Obviously the PP was light-limited since the compensation depth in the ebb current was found at only 1m depth. In the flood current it was somewhat deeper. The planktonic primary productivity inside the mangrove forest was completely restricted to the open channels. A simultaneous measurement demonstrated that PPn of the phytoplankton could not take place under the canopy of the mangroves. Additional studies on the time course of the oxygen concentration in the mouth of the main channel over 24 hrs demonstrated a relation between the O2 and the tidal curves. The ebb current had always lower O2 concentrations than the flood current, regardless of the time of the day. The difference to the foregoing high tide, however, was much smaller when the low tide occurred during the day. This indicates that under the canopy the net primary production and hence O2 liberation of the attached macro- and microalgae, together with the high PPn of the phytoplankton in the channels, helped the oxygen concentration not to decrease as far as during the night. Nevertheless it shows that the consumtion of organic material in the submersed part of the mangrove forest exceeds always its production

Biogeochemische Entschlüsselung der Quellen organischen Materials in einer mehrschichtigen komplexen Bodensequenz

Entgegen der ursprünglichen Annahme wird ein Grossteil des pflanzenbürtigen organischen Materials in Böden nicht durch die Blattstreu eingetragen, sondern gerade in tieferen Bodenhorizonten durch Wurzeln. Da der Eintrag auch in tiefere Bodenhorizonte und Paläoböden stattfindet, ist die qualitative und quantitative Abschätzung unterschiedlicher Quellen organischen Materials wichtig, wenn man das organische Material in Paläoböden mit dem Ziel der Umweltrekonstruktion oder hinsichtlich der C-Speicherkapazität charakterisieren möchte. In der Präsentation wird ein Ansatz vorgestellt, in dem mittels Biomarkern, Datierung und Modellierung verschiedene anthropogene und natürliche Quellen in einer 2 m mächtigen Bodensequenz, bestehend aus mehreren Podsolen, einem Plaggenboden und zwischengelagerten Sedimenten, rekonstruiert werden. Mittels Alkanen, Fettsäuren und Alkoholen in unterschiedlichen Bodentiefen und dem Vergleich mit Pflanzenproben inklusive einer inversen Modellierung mittels VERHIB liessen sich nicht nur die dominanten Vegetationen zur Zeiten der Podsolbildung differenzieren. Ausserdem konnte die Quellvegetation der Plaggen, sowie die bevorzugte landwirtschaftliche Nutzung inklusive der Kulturpflanzen rekonstruiert werden. Weiterhin trägt die heutige Waldvegetation signifikant zum Eintrag wurzelbürtigen organischen Materials in den Plaggenboden und darunterliegende Bereiche bei. Zusätzlich lassen unterschiedliche Quellen an Fäkalien und Brandrückständen, die mittels Sterolen und Stanolen bzw. PAKs untersucht wurden, auf eine sukzessive Veränderung in verschiedenen Phasen der Plaggenwirtschaft schliessen. Unterstützt werden die Laborbefunde durch Erkenntnisse, die während der Feldarbeiten erhoben wurden, wie z.B. dreidimensionale Verteilung der Wurzelhäufigkeiten, Verteilungsmuster von Nährelementen, die die Verteilung der Wurzeln beeinflussen und Pollendaten aus einem benachbarten Bodenprofil. Der gewählte Ansatz zeigt in bisher einmaliger Weise das Potential von Biomarkeranalysen zur Vegetations- und Umweltrekonstruktion und archäologischer Deutung auf

Rooting Cuttings of Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra L.)

Several techniques have been used experimentally to vegetatively propagate northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.), including: 1) rooting juvenile softwood cuttings in intermittent mist, 2) rooting shoots originating from mature buds grafted onto juvenile root stocks, and 3) in vitro shoot proliferation of juvenile or mature shoots followed by in vitro rooting. Of these techniques, rooting juvenile softwood cuttings has provided the most consistent results for northern red oak (NRO). Juvenility (or at least the associated ability to form adventitious roots) disappears rapidly among progressive flushes of growth in NRO seedlings. Decreased rooting has been reported for NRO shoots obtained from progressive flushes of growth produced within a growing season, as well as shoots representing flushes obtained from successive seasons of growth. However, as with many other tree species, the process of maturation in NRO can be slowed by pruning to encourage juvenile shoot production. Optimizing the number of juvenile cuttings produced from each stock plant is necessary for efficient rooted cutting production systems. In addition, rooting conditions must be determined for the shoots produced under these pruning regimes. Two NRO rooted cutting studies are currently being conducted at NCSU. The objective of the first study is to evaluate the effects of stock plant pruning location, diameter, and age on new shoot production. Treatments include pruning first-year seedlings, as well as one-, two-, and three-year-old seedlings to the base of the first, second, third, or fourth flush of growth produced during the first growing season. The objective of the second study is to evaluate the ability of the shoots produced in the first study to form adventitious roots. Treatments include three rooting hormone levels (0.5%, 1%, and 1.5% IBA) and a control (45% EtOH). Preliminary results from both studies will be presented.Papers and abstracts from the 27th Southern Forest Tree Improvement Conference held at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma on June 24-27, 2003

Bodentypologische Bewertung des Nährstoffstatus deutscher Ackerböden

Phosphor (P) ist einer der am stärksten limitierenden Nährstoffe im Pflanzenbau. Die zukünftige Abnahme der natürlichen P-Reserven hat die Diskussion um nachhaltige Managementstrategien in der Landwirtschaft entfacht. Dabei gewinnt der Unterboden als Nährstoffreservoir seit kurzem vermehrte Aufmerksamkeit. Erste Studien an Dauerfeldversuchen deuten darauf hin, dass sich große Vorräte von pflanzenverfügbarem P im Unterboden befinden, die bei Nährstoffmangel im Oberboden von den Pflanzen genutzt werden können. Wir gehen davon aus, dass die P-Versorgung allgemein gut ist, aber von Bodentyp und -art abhängt. Ziel der Studie war es, einen Überblick der P-Versorgung für deutsche Ackerböden bis in 1 m Tiefe zu geben. Hierfür wurde eine repräsentative Auswahl von ca. 100 Ackerstandorten aus der Bodenzustandserhebung Landwirtschaft des Thünen-Instituts verwendet. In einem systematischen Raster wurden landwirtschaftliche Böden beprobt, mit Teilproben aus den Tiefenabschnitten 0-10 cm, 10-30 cm, 30-50 cm, 50-70 cm und 70-100 cm. An den homogenisierten, getrockneten und auf 2 mm gesiebten Teilproben wurde Calciumlactat-lösliches P (PCAL) als Proxy für pflanzenverfügbares P analysiert. Die bisherigen Daten deuten an, dass die P-Versorgung an über 70% der Standorte ideal bis hoch ist (Gehaltsklassen C und D) und an ca. 13% der Standorte niedrig bis sehr niedrig (A, B). PCAL-Gehalte nahmen mit der Tiefe ab und waren in 70-100 cm um eine Zehnerpotenz niedriger als in 0-30 cm Tiefe. Trotzdem befanden sich an sandigen und schluffigen Standorten durchschnittlich 30% der PCAL-Vorräte in einer Tiefe von 30-100 cm und 16-17% dieser Vorräte sogar unterhalb von 50 cm (PCAL50). Zur Nährstoffverteilung an tonigen Standorten kann noch keine Aussage gemacht werden, da hierzu noch keine repräsentative Anzahl von Standorten analysiert worden ist. Braunerde und Parabraunerde lagen mit 14 und 11% PCAL50 unter dem Schnitt, während bei den P-reichen Böden PCAL50 in Tiefenumbruchböden und Plaggenböden mit 22 und 46% am höchsten war. Unsere Ergebnisse belegen, dass sich im Unterboden große Nährstoffvorräte befinden, aber auch die Oberböden gut mit P versorgt sind. Die Tiefenverteilung ist zum Teil texturabhängig, wird aber auch vom Bodentyp und der Landnutzungsgeschichte beeinflusst. Um die relativen Anteile des PCAL am Gesamt-P zu bestimmen, sind entsprechende Analysen in Arbeit

Web-based patient-reported outcomes using the International Consortium for Health Outcome Measurement dataset in a major German university hospital: observational study

Background: Collecting patient-reported outcome (PRO) data systematically enables objective evaluation of treatment and its related outcomes. Using disease-specific questionnaires developed by the International Consortium for Health Outcome Measurement (ICHOM) allows for comparison between physicians, hospitals, and even different countries. Objective: This pilot project aimed to establish a digital system to measure PROs for new patients with breast cancer who attended the Charité Breast Center. This approach should serve as a blueprint to further expand the PRO measurement to other disease entities and departments. Methods: In November 2016, we implemented a Web-based system to collect PRO data at Charité Breast Center using the ICHOM dataset. All new patients at the Breast Center were enrolled and answered a predefined set of questions using a tablet computer. Once they started their treatment at Charité, automated emails were sent to the patients at predefined treatment points. Those emails contained a Web-based link through which they could access and answer questionnaires. Results: By now, 541 patients have been enrolled and 2470 questionnaires initiated. Overall, 9.4% (51/541) of the patients were under the age of 40 years, 49.7% (269/541) between 40 and 60 years, 39.6% (214/541) between 60 and 80 years, and 1.3% (7/541) over the age of 80 years. The average return rate of questionnaires was 67.0%. When asked about the preference regarding paper versus Web-based questionnaires, 6.0% (8/134) of the patients between 50 and 60 years, 6.0% (9/150) between 60 and 70 years, and 12.7% (9/71) over the age of 70 years preferred paper versions. Conclusions: Measuring PRO in patients with breast cancer in an automated electronic version is possible across all age ranges while simultaneously achieving a high return rate

Profiles of SUMO and ubiquitin conjugation in an Alzheimer's disease model

► Global levels of ubiquitinated proteins increased in the hippocampus of Tg2576 mice. ► No global changes in either SUMO-1 or SUMO-2/3 conjugation in any brain regions analysed. ► SUMO conjugating and deconjugating enzymes, UBC9 and SENP-1, unaltered in Tg2576 mice. ► Total levels of AMPA and kainate receptors were also unaffected in Tg2576 mice. ► Posttranslational modification by ubiquitin may play a role in Alzheimer's disease

How strange are compact star interiors ?

We discuss a Nambu--Jona-Lasinio (NJL) type quantum field theoretical approach to the quark matter equation of state with color superconductivity and construct hybrid star models on this basis. It has recently been demonstrated that with increasing baryon density, the different quark flavors may occur sequentially, starting with down-quarks only, before the second light quark flavor and at highest densities also the strange quark flavor appears. We find that color superconducting phases are favorable over non-superconducting ones which entails consequences for thermodynamic and transport properties of hybrid star matter. In particular, for NJL-type models no strange quark matter phases can occur in compact star interiors due to mechanical instability against gravitational collapse, unless a sufficiently strong flavor mixing as provided by the Kobayashi-Maskawa-'t Hooft determinant interaction is present in the model. We discuss observational data on mass-radius relationships of compact stars which can put constraints on the properties of dense matter equation of state.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, to appear in the Proceedings of the International Conference SQM2009, Buzios, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sep.27-Oct.2, 200

Clotting Changes, Including Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation, during Rapid Renal-Homograft Rejection

One of two patients in whom early homograft rejection developed after renal transplantation had many antidonor antibodies before operation. By the measurement of gradients across intracorporeal and extracorporeal homografts in this patient, the new kidneys were shown to sequester host immunoglobulins, platelets, white cells and clotting factors. Moreover, the renal venous blood then contained fibrinolytic activity. This presensitized recipient, as well as a second patient who did not have detectable preformed humoral antibodies, gave evidence from clinical observation and from the various clotting tests of disseminated intravascular coagulation with fibrinolysis and a severe bleeding diathesis. Immunofluorescent and histologic studies revealed a laying down of fibrin in the homograft vessels that continued in some cases to cortical necrosis of the transplanted kidneys or, alternatively, receded at the time fibrinolysis occurred. The variety of rejection seen in these patients has been characterized as an immunologically induced coagulopathy. © 1970, Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved