Global patterns and drivers of ecosystem functioning in rivers and riparian zones

River ecosystems receive and process vast quantities of terrestrial organic carbon, the fate of which depends strongly on microbial activity. Variation in and controls of processing rates, however, are poorly characterized at the global scale. In response, we used a peer-sourced research network and a highly standardized carbon processing assay to conduct a global-scale field experiment in greater than 1000 river and riparian sites. We found that Earth's biomes have distinct carbon processing signatures. Slow processing is evident across latitudes, whereas rapid rates are restricted to lower latitudes. Both the mean rate and variability decline with latitude, suggesting temperature constraints toward the poles and greater roles for other environmental drivers (e.g., nutrient loading) toward the equator. These results and data set the stage for unprecedented "next-generation biomonitoring" by establishing baselines to help quantify environmental impacts to the functioning of ecosystems at a global scale.peerReviewe

Quantitative cerebral blood flow imaging with extended-focus optical coherence microscopy

Quantitative three-dimensional blood flow imaging is a valuable technique to investigate the physiology of the brain. Two-photon microscopy (2PM) allows quantification of the local blood flow velocity with micrometric resolution by performing repeated line scans, but prohibitively long measurement times would be required to apply this technique to full three-dimensional volumes. By multiplexing the image acquisition over depth, Fourier domain optical coherence tomography (FDOCT) enables quantification of blood flow velocities with a high volume acquisition rate, albeit at a relatively low spatial resolution. Extended-focus optical coherence microscopy (xfOCM) increases the lateral resolution without sacrificing depth of field and therefore combines the high volume acquisition rate of FDOCT with a resolution comparable to 2PM. Here, we demonstrate high-resolution quantitative imaging of the blood flow velocity vectorâs magnitude in the adult murine brain with xfOCM.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Blood flow measurement and slow flow detection in retinal vessels with Joint Spectral and Time domain method in ultrahigh speed OCT

We present an application of the Joint Spectral and Time domain OCT (STdOCT) method for detection of wide range of flows in the retinal vessels. We utilized spectral/Fourier domain OCT (SOCT) technique for development of scan protocols for Doppler signal analysis. We performed retinal imaging in normal eyes using ultrahigh speed (200 000 axial scans/s) SOCT instrument with a CMOS camera. Various raster scan protocols were implemented for investigation of blood flow in the retina. Data analysis was performed using the method of joint Spectral and Time domain OCT (STdOCT). Detection of blood flow velocities ranging from several tens of mm/s to a fraction of mm/s was possible with scanning methods allowing for appropriate selection of time intervals between data taken for Doppler OCT analysis. Axial blood flow velocity measurement was possible in retinal vessels. Doppler OCT signal can be utilized as a contrast mechanism for visualization of retinal capillaries.Poland. Ministry of Science and Higher Education (Grant Number 2076/B/H03/2009/37

Water activity of aqueous solutions of ethylene oxide-propylene oxide block copolymers and maltodextrins

The water activity of aqueous solutions of EO-PO block copolymers of six different molar masses and EO/PO ratios and of maltodextrins of three different molar masses was determined at 298.15 K. The results showed that these aqueous solutions present a negative deviation from Raoult's law. The Flory-Huggins and UNIFAC excess Gibbs energy models were employed to model the experimental data. While a good agreement was obtained with the Flory-Huggins equation, discrepancies were observed when predicting the experimental behavior with the UNIFAC model. The water activities of ternary systems formed by a synthetic polymer, maltodextrin and water were also measured and used to test the predictive capability of both models