scholarly journals Evidence for aggregation and export of cyanobacteria and nano-eukaryotes from the Sargasso Sea euphotic zone

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 203-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. W. Lomas ◽  
S. B. Moran

Abstract. Pico-plankton and nano-plankton are generally thought to represent a negligible fraction of the total particulate organic carbon (POC) export flux in oligotrophic gyres due to their small size, slow individual sinking rates, and tight grazer control that leads to high rates of recycling in the euphotic zone. Based upon recent inverse modeling and network analysis however, it has been hypothesized that pico-plankton, including the cyanobacteria Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus, and nano-plankton contribute significantly to POC export, via formation and gravitational settling of aggregates and/or consumption of those aggregates by mesozooplankton, in proportion to their contribution to net primary production. This study presents total suspended particulate (>0.7 μm) and particle size-fractionated (10–20 μm, 20–53 μm, >53 μm) pigment concentrations from within and below the euphotic zone in the oligotrophic subtropical North Atlantic, collected using Niskin bottles and large volume in-situ pumps, respectively. Results show the indicator pigments for Synechococcus, Prochlorococcus and nano-eukaryotes are; (1) found at depths down to 500 m, and; (2) essentially constant, relative to the sum of all indicator pigments, across particle size fractions ranging from 10 μm to >53 μm. Based upon the presence of chlorophyll precursor and degradation pigments, and that in situ pumps do not effectively sample fecal pellets, it is concluded that these pigments were redistributed to deeper waters on larger, more rapidly sinking aggregates likely by gravitational settling and/or convective mixing. Using available pigment and ancillary data from these cruises, these Synechococcus, Prochlorococcus and nano-plankton derived aggregates are estimated to contribute 2–13% (5 ± 4%), 1–20% (5 ± 7%), and 6–43% (23 ± 14%) of the total sediment trap POC flux measured on the same cruises, respectively. Furthermore, nano-eukaryotes contribute equally to POC export and autotrophic biomass, while cyanobacteria contributions to POC export are one-tenth of their contribution to autotrophic biomass. These field observations provide direct evidence that pico- and nano-plankton represent a significant contribution to the total POC export via formation of aggregates in this oligotrophic ocean gyre. We suggest that aggregate formation and fate should be included in ecosystem models, particularly as oligotrophic regions are hypothesized to expand in areal extent with warming and increased stratification in the future.

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 7173-7206 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. W. Lomas ◽  
S. B. Moran

Abstract. Pico-plankton and nano-plankton are generally thought to represent a negligible fraction of the total particulate organic carbon (POC) export flux in oligotrophic gyres due to their small size, slow individual sinking rates, and tight grazer control that leads to high rates of recycling in the euphotic zone. Based upon recent inverse modeling and network analysis however, it has been hypothesized that pico-plankton, including the cyanobacteria Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus, and nano-plankton contribute significantly to POC export, via formation of aggregates and consumption of those aggregates by mesozooplankton, in proportion to their contribution to net primary production. This study presents total suspended particulate (> 0.7 μm) and particle size-fractionated (10–20 μm, 20–53 μm, > 53 μm) pigment concentrations from within and below the euphotic zone in the oligotrophic subtropical North Atlantic, collected using Niskin bottles and large volume in-situ pumps, respectively. Results show the indicator pigments for Synechococcus, Prochlorococcus and nano-eukaryotes are; (1) found at depths down to 500 m, and; (2) essentially constant, relative to the sum of all indicator pigments, across particle size fractions ranging from 10 μm to > 53 μm. Based upon the presence of chlorophyll precursor and degradation pigments, and that in-situ pumps do not effectively sample fecal pellets, it is concluded that these pigments were redistributed to deeper waters on larger, more rapidly sinking aggregates. Using available pigment data and ancillary cruise data, these Synechococcus, Prochlorococcus and nano-plankton derived aggregates are estimated to contribute 2–13% (5 ± 4%), 1–20% (5 ± 7%), and 6–43% (23 ± 14%) of the total sediment trap POC flux measured on the same cruises, respectively. Furthermore, nano-eukaryotes contribute equally to POC export and autotrophic biomass, while cyanobacteria contributions to POC export are one-tenth of their contribution to autotrophic biomass. These field observations provide direct evidence that pico- and nano-plankton represent a significant contribution to the total POC export in this oligotrophic ocean gyre. We suggest that this pathway should be included in ecosystem models, particularly as oligotrophic regions are hypothesized to expand in areal extent with warming and increased stratification in the future.


Geophysics ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
pp. WB201-WB211 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Buchanan ◽  
J. Triantafilis ◽  
I. O. A. Odeh ◽  
R. Subansinghe

The soil particle-size fractions (PSFs) are one of the most important attributes to influence soil physical (e.g., soil hydraulic properties) and chemical (e.g., cation exchange) processes. There is an increasing need, therefore, for high-resolution digital prediction of PSFs to improve our ability to manage agricultural land. Consequently, use of ancillary data to make cheaper high-resolution predictions of soil properties is becoming popular. This approach is known as “digital soil mapping.” However, most commonly employed techniques (e.g., multiple linear regression or MLR) do not consider the special requirements of a regionalized composition, namely PSF; (1) should be nonnegative (2) should sum to a constant at each location, and (3) estimation should be constrained to produce an unbiased estimation, to avoid false interpretation. Previous studies have shown that the use of the additive log-ratio transformation (ALR) is an appropriate technique to meet the requirements of a composition. In this study, we investigated the use of ancillary data (i.e., electromagnetic (EM), gamma-ray spectrometry, Landsat TM, and a digital elevation model to predict soil PSF using MLR and generalized additive models (GAM) in a standard form and with an ALR transformation applied to the optimal method (GAM-ALR). The results show that the use of ancillary data improved prediction precision by around 30% for clay, 30% for sand, and 7% for silt for all techniques (MLR, GAM, and GAM-ALR) when compared to ordinary kriging. However, the ALR technique had the advantage of adhering to the special requirements of a composition, with all predicted values nonnegative and PSFs summing to unity at each prediction point and giving more accurate textural prediction.


Author(s):  
Kranti Singh ◽  
Surajpal Verma ◽  
Shyam Prasad ◽  
Indu Bala

Ciprofloxacin hydrochloride loaded Eudragit RS100 nanoparticles were prepared by using w/o/w emulsification (multiple emulsification) solvent evaporation followed by drying of nanoparticles at 50°C. The nanoparticles were further incorporated into the pH-triggered in situ gel forming system which was prepared using Carbopol 940 in combination with HPMC as viscosifying agent. The developed nanoparticles was evaluated for particle size, zeta potential value and loading efficiency; nanoparticle incorporated in situ gelling system was evaluated for pH, clarity, gelling strength, rheological studies, in-vitro release studies and ex-vivo precorneal permeation studies. The nanopaticle showed the mean particle size varying between 263.5nm - 325.9 nm with the mean zeta potential value of -5.91 mV to -8.13 mV and drug loading capacity varied individually between 72.50% to 98.70% w/w. The formulation was clear with no suspended particles, showed good gelling properties. The gelling was quick and remained for longer time period. The developed formulation was therapeutically efficacious, stable and non-irritant. It provided the sustained release of drug over a period of 8-10 hours.


Fuel ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 291 ◽  
pp. 120270
Author(s):  
Seo Yeong Kang ◽  
Su Been Seo ◽  
Eun Sol Go ◽  
Hyung Woo Kim ◽  
Sang In Keel ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana L M Gomes ◽  
Antonio V I Bueno ◽  
Fernando A Jacovaci ◽  
Guilherme Donadel ◽  
Luiz F Ferraretto ◽  
...  

Abstract Our objective was to examine the effects of processing, moisture, and anaerobic storage length of reconstituted corn grain (RCG) on the fermentation profile, geometric mean particle size (GMPS), and ruminal dry matter disappearance (DMD). Dry corn kernels were ground (hammer mill, 5-mm screen) or rolled, then rehydrated to 30%, 35%, or 40% moisture, and stored for 0, 14, 30, 60, 90, 120, or 180 d in laboratory silos. Rolled corn had an increased GMPS compared with ground corn (2.24 and 1.13 mm, respectively, at ensiling). However, there was a trend for an interaction between processing and moisture concentration to affect particle size, with GMPS increasing with increased moisture concentration, especially in ground corn. Longer storage periods also slightly increased GMPS. Processing, moisture, and storage length interacted to affect the fermentation pattern (two- or three-way interactions). Overall, pH decreased, whereas lactic acid, acetic acid, ethanol, and NH3-N increased with storage length. RCG with 30% moisture had less lactic acid than corn with 35% and 40% moisture, indicating that fermentation might have been curtailed and also due to the clostridial fermentation that converts lactic acid to butyric acid. Ensiling reconstituted ground corn with 30% of moisture led to greater concentrations of ethanol and butyric acid, resulting in greater DM loss than grain rehydrated to 35% or 40% of moisture. Ammonia-N and in situ ruminal DMD were highest for reconstituted ground corn with 35% or 40% of moisture, mainly after 60 d of storage. Therefore, longer storage periods and greater moisture contents did not offset the negative effect of greater particle size on the in situ ruminal DMD of rolled RCG. Nonetheless, RCG should be ensiled with more than 30% moisture and stored for at least 2 mo to improve the ruminal DMD and reduce the formation of ethanol and butyric acid.


Metals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1201
Author(s):  
Xinghua Ji ◽  
Cheng Zhang ◽  
Shufeng Li

SiCp reinforced aluminium matrix composites (AMCs), which are widely used in the aerospace, automotive, and electronic packaging fields along with others, are usually prepared by ex situ techniques. However, interfacial contamination and poor wettability of the ex situ techniques make further improvement in their comprehensive performance difficult. In this paper, SiCp reinforced AMCs with theoretical volume fractions of 15, 20, and 30% are prepared by powder metallurgy and in situ reaction via an Al-Si-C system. Moreover, a combined method of external addition and an in situ method is used to investigate the synergistic effect of ex situ and in situ SiCp on AMCs. SiC particles can be formed by an indirect reaction: 4Al + 3C → Al4C3 and Al4C3 + 3Si → 3SiC + 4Al. This reaction is mainly through the diffusion of Si, in which Si diffuses around Al4C3 and then reacts with Al4C3 to form SiCp. The in situ SiC particles have a smooth boundary, and the particle size is approximately 1–3 μm. A core-shell structure having good bonding with an aluminium matrix was generated, which consists of an ex situ SiC core and an in situ SiC shell with a thickness of 1–5 μm. The yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of in situ SiCp reinforced AMCs can be significantly increased with a constant ductility by adding 5% ex situ SiCp for Al-28Si-7C. The graphite particle size has a significant effect on the properties of the alloy. A criterion to determine whether Al4C3 is a complete reaction is achieved, and the forming mechanism of the core-shell structure is analysed.


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