Floodplain restoration enhances denitrification and reach-scale nitrogen removal in an agricultural stream

Streams of the agricultural Midwest, USA, export large quantities of nitrogen, which impairs downstream water quality, most notably in the Gulf of Mexico. The two-stage ditch is a novel restoration practice, in which floodplains are constructed alongside channelized ditches. During high flows, water flows across the floodplains, increasing benthic surface area and stream water residence time, as well as the potential for nitrogen removal via denitrification. To determine two-stage ditch nitrogen removal efficacy, we measured denitrification rates in the channel and on the floodplains of a two-stage ditch in north-central Indiana for one year before and two years after restoration. We found that instream rates were similar before and after the restoration, and they were influenced by surface water $\text{NO}_{3}^{−}$ concentration and sediment organic matter content. Denitrification rates were lower on the constructed floodplains and were predicted by soil exchangeable $\text{NO}_{3}^{−}$ concentration. Using storm flow simulations, we found that two-stage ditch restoration contributed significantly to $\text{NO}_{3}^{−}$ removal during storm events, but because of the high $\text{NO}_{3}^{−}$ loads at our study site, <10% of the $\text{NO}_{3}^{−}$ load was removed under all storm flow scenarios. The highest percentage of $\text{NO}_{3}^{−}$ removal occurred at the lowest loads; therefore, the two-stage ditch's effectiveness at reducing downstream N loading will be maximized when the practice is coupled with efforts to reduce N inputs from adjacent fields

Contrasting food web linkages for the grazing pathway in 3 temperate forested streams using {sup 15}N as a tracer

Nitrogen is a critical element controlling the productivity and dynamics of stream ecosystems and many streams are limited by the supply of biologically available nitrogen. The authors are learning more about the fate of inorganic nitrogen entering streams through {sup 15}N tracer additions. The Lotic Intersite Nitrogen Experiment (LINX) is studying the uptake, cycling, and fate of {sup 15}N-NH{sub 4} in the stream food web of 10 streams draining different biomes. Using the {sup 15}N tracer method and data from 3 sites in the study, the authors can differentiate patterns in the cycling of nitrogen through the grazing pathway (N from the epilithon to grazing macroinvertebrates) for 3 temperate forested streams. Here, they quantify the relationship between the dominant grazer and its proposed food resource, the epilithon, by comparing {sup 15}N levels of grazers with those of the epilithon, as well as the biomass, nitrogen content, and chlorophyll a standing stocks of the epilithon in 3 streams

Ammonium and nitrate uptake lengths in a small forested stream determined by {sup 15}N tracer and short-term nutrient enrichment experiments

Nutrient cycling is an important characteristic of all ecosystems, including streams. Nutrients often limit the growth rates of stream algae and heterotrophic microbes and the decomposition rate of allochthonous organic matter. Nutrient uptake (S{sub W}), defined as the mean distance traveled by a nutrient atom dissolved in stream water before uptake by biota is often used as an index of nutrient cycling in streams. It is often overlooked, however, that S{sub W} is not a measure of nutrient uptake rate per se, but rather a measure of the efficiency with which a stream utilizes the available nutrient supply. The ideal method for measuring S{sub W} involves short-term addition of a nutrient tracer. Regulatory constraints often preclude use of nutrient radiotracers in field studies and methodological difficulties and high analytical costs have previously hindered the use of stable isotope nutrient tracers (e.g., {sup 15}N). Short-term nutrient enrichments are an alternative to nutrient tracer additions for measuring S{sub W}

Physicists use mathematics to describe physical principles an mathematicians use physical phenomena to illustrate mathematical formula - Do they really mean the same?

Hydrogen sulfide (H(2)S) and NO are important gasotransmitters, but how endogenous H(2)S affects the circulatory system has remained incompletely understood. Here, we show that CTH or CSE (cystathionine γ-lyase)-produced H(2)S scavenges vascular NO and controls its endogenous levels in peripheral arteries, which contribute to blood pressure regulation. Furthermore, eNOS (endothelial NO synthase) and phospho-eNOS protein levels were unaffected, but levels of nitroxyl were low in CTH-deficient arteries, demonstrating reduced direct chemical interaction between H(2)S and NO. Pretreatment of arterial rings from CTH-deficient mice with exogenous H(2)S donor rescued the endothelial vasorelaxant response and decreased tissue NO levels. Our discovery that CTH-produced H(2)S inhibits endogenous endothelial NO bioavailability and vascular tone is novel and fundamentally important for understanding how regulation of vascular tone is tailored for endogenous H(2)S to contribute to systemic blood pressure function