scholarly journals Habitat conditions strongly affect macro- and microelement concentrations in Taraxacum microspecies growing on coastal meadows along a soil salinity gradient

PeerJ ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. e10233
Author(s):  
Beata Bosiacka ◽  
Monika Myśliwy ◽  
Mateusz Bosiacki

Wild greens can contribute to the human diet as an important source of essential nutrients and drugs. Since environmental factors, including soil properties, may affect the chemical composition of plants, it is necessary among others to assess various habitats in terms of their usefulness for wild plant harvesting and to study impact of environmental factors on the qualitative and quantitative chemical composition of plants. This study was aimed at (1) examining the mineral composition of leaves of three dandelion microspecies, (2) determining the variability of macro- and microelement concentrations in dandelion leaves from populations growing on salty, brackish and non-saline coastal meadows, and (3) assessing the effects of different habitat conditions on the mineral composition of dandelion leaves. It was hypothesized that dandelion microspecies would differ significantly in the mineral composition of leaves. It was also expected that soil conditions would significantly affect nutrient concentrations in dandelion leaves, with soil salinity being the most important factor that differentiated studied populations. Leaves of three dandelion microspecies (Taraxacum balticum, T. nordstedtii, T. haematicum) were harvested in Baltic costal grasslands, along the soil salinity gradient, to determine macro- and microelement concentrations. Soil samples collected in the closest vicinity of the harvested plants showed the study sites to differ significantly in their soil properties. Moderately saline and organic soils, rich in potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), and calcium (Ca), supported T. balticum. Moderately or weakly saline and non-saline, organic or mineral soils, with lower median values of K, Mg, and Ca, were typical of T. nordstedtii sites, while the lowest median values of all the soil properties studied were found for T. haematicum sites. Our results proved that dandelion microspecies differ significantly in the mineral composition of their leaves. The between-microspecies differences were significant for all the macroelements except magnesium and all the microelements except molybdenum. Most of the macro- and microelements in leaves of the dandelion microspecies correlated positively and significantly with the soil properties, the strongest correlations being found for soil salinity and the leaf Na, Mn, Ca, Fe, K and Zn contents, followed by soil pH and the leaf Na, Mn, Fe, K, Ca, Zn and Mg. Moreover, the impact of soil properties on the mineral contents in leaves of the dandelions we examined seems to be stronger than the genetic differences between dandelion microspecies. Results of our studies on mineral composition of dandelion leaves lend support to the contention that wild greens provide essential mineral nutrients to the diet. Coastal meadows, fed by the brackish water of the Baltic Sea and free of anthropogenic pollution, are a good habitat to collect wild greens from.






Author(s):  
D. A. Petrochenkov

Fossils of marine reptiles are a new jewelry and ornamental material and collected in the Ulyanovsk region from the Upper Jurassic deposits. They consist of (wt. %): calcite — 52, apatite — 24 and pyrite — 23, and also gypsum presents. The contents of radioactive and carcinogenic elements are close to background. The original bone structure of reptiles is preserved. Apatite replaces the bone tissue of marine reptiles, forming a cellular framework. According to the chemical composition, apatite refers to fluorohydroxyapatite with an increased Sr content. The size of the crystals is finely-dispersed. Calcite and pyrite fill the central parts of the cells. Calcite crystals of isometric and elongated shape, 0,01—0,05 mm in size, form blocks up to 0,3 mm during intergrowth. Calcite fills thin, discontinuous veins along the contour of cells with a width of up to 0,03 mm. In calcite, among the impurity elements, there are (wt. %, on the average): Mg — 0,30, Mn — 0,39 and Fe — 0,96. Pyrite forms a dispersed impregnation in calcite and apatite, content of impurities is, wt. %: Ni — up to 0,96 and Cu — up to 0,24. On technological and decorative characteristics of fossils of sea reptiles of Ulyanovsk region are qualitative jewelry and ornamental materials of biomineral group, allowing to make a wide assortment of jewelry and souvenir products.



Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 653
Author(s):  
Nataša Imenšek ◽  
Vilma Sem ◽  
Mitja Kolar ◽  
Anton Ivančič ◽  
Janja Kristl

In view of growing requirements of the food industry regarding elderberries (genus Sambucus), a need to increase their productivity and improve their chemical composition has emerged. With this purpose in mind, numerous elderberry interspecific hybrids have been created. In the present work, the content of minerals in their crucial plant parts was studied. It was also investigated whether superior genotypes regarding the mineral composition of berries and inflorescences could be predicted at early stages of plant development. The results showed that elderberry leaves contained the highest amounts of Ca, Mg, Mn, Zn, and Sr, while K and P were predominant in fruit stalks. Fe and Al prevailed in roots and Cu in bark. Although berries showed lower mineral content compared to other plant parts, their mineral content is not negligible and could be comparable to other commonly consumed berries. Genotypes with a favorable mineral content of inflorescences and berries could be predicted on the basis of known mineral composition of their shoots and leaves. The study also indicates that S. nigra genotypes and the majority of interspecific hybrids analyzed are suitable for further genetic breeding or cultivation.



1987 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 135 ◽  
Author(s):  
RB Hacker

Species responses to grazing and environmental factors were studied in an arid halophytic shrubland community in Western Australia. The grazing responses of major shrub species were defined by using reciprocal averaging ordination of botanical data, interpreted in conjunction with a similar ordination of soil chemical properties and measures of soil erosion derived from large-scale aerial photographs. An apparent small-scale interaction between grazing and soil salinity was also defined. Long-term grazing pressure is apparently reduced on localised areas of high salinity. Environmental factors affecting species distribution are complex and appear to include soil salinity, soil cationic balance, geomorphological variation and the influence of cryptogamic crusts on seedling establishment.



2010 ◽  
Vol 158 ◽  
pp. 197-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Liu ◽  
Yue Xin Han ◽  
Wan Zhong Yin

The process mineralogy of potassium-rich shale from Chaoyang of Liaoning, China, was studied. Research results showed there are much less variety and smaller quantities in mineral compositions. Calculated mineral composition by means of chemical composition analysis combined with XRD, MLA, IR and TG-DSC analyses showed that main minerals with were Potassium-feldspar, muscovite, biotite and illite, and gangue minerals were quartz and small amounts of hematite. Potassium-rich minerals such as potassium-feldspar and muscovite contact smoothly with quartz respectively, and there was the direction arrangement among potassium-feldspar, quartz and muscovite in the shale. And quartz and hematite were main cement in the shale. The influences of the research results on the potassium extraction from potassium-rich shale were distinct.



Author(s):  
Hitoshi Owada ◽  
Tomoko Ishii ◽  
Mayumi Takazawa ◽  
Hiroyasu Kato ◽  
Hiroyuki Sakamoto ◽  
...  

A “realistic alteration model” is needed for various cementitious materials. Hypothetical settings of mineral composition calculated based on the chemical composition of cement, such as Atkins’s model, have been used to estimate the alteration of cementitious material. However, model estimates for the concentration of certain elements such as Al and S in leachate have been different from experimental values. In a previous study, we created settings for a mineralogical alteration model by taking the initial chemical composition of cementitious materials from analysis results in experiments and applying their ratios to certain hydrated cement minerals, then added settings for secondary generated minerals in order to account for Ca leaching. This study of alteration estimates for ordinary portland cement (OPC) in groundwater showed that the change in Al and S concentrations in simulated leachate approached values for actual leachate[1]. In the present study, we develop an appropriate mineral alteration model for blended cementitious materials and conduct batch-type leaching experiments that use crushed samples of blast furnace slag cement (BFSC), silica cement (SC), and fly ash cement (FAC). The cement blends in these experiments used OPC blended with blast furnace slag of 70 wt.%, silica cement consisting of an amorphous silica fine powder of 20 wt.%, and fly ash of 30 wt.%. De-ionized water was used as the leaching solution. The solid-liquid ratios in the leaching tests were varied in order to simulate the alteration process of cement hydrates. The compositions of leachate and minerals obtained from leaching tests were compared with those obtained from models using hypothetical settings of mineral composition. We also consider an alteration model that corresponds to the diversity of these materials. As a result of applying the conventional OPC model to blended cementitious materials, the estimated Al concentration in the aqueous solution was significantly different from the measured concentration. We therefore propose an improved model that takes better account of Al behavior by using a more reliable initial mineral model for Al concentration in the solution.



PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. e0241794
Author(s):  
Maroua Jerbi ◽  
Sonia Labidi ◽  
Anissa Lounès-Hadj Sahraoui ◽  
Hatem Chaar ◽  
Faysal Ben Jeddi

Whereas the role of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in plant growth improvement has been well described in agroecosystems, little is known about the effect of environmental factors on AMF root colonization status of barley, the fourth most important cereal crop all over the world. In order to understand the influence of environmental factors, such as climatic and soil physico-chemical properties, on the spontaneous mycorrhizal ability of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), a field investigation was conducted in 31 different sites in sub-humid, upper and middle semi-arid areas of Northern Tunisia. Mycorrhizal root colonization of H. vulgare varied considerably among sites. Principal component analysis showed that barley mycorrhization is influenced by both climatic and edaphic factors. A partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) revealed that 39% (R²) of the total variation in AMF mycorrhizal rate of barley roots was mainly explained by chemical soil properties and climatic characteristics. Whereas barley root mycorrhizal rates were inversely correlated with soil organic nitrogen (ON), available phosphorus amounts (P), altitude (Z), average annual rainfall (AAR), they were directly correlated with soil pH and temperature. Our results indicated that AMF root colonization of barley was strongly related to climatic characteristics than chemical soil properties. The current study highlights the importance of the PLS-SEM to understand the interactions between climate, soil properties and AMF symbiosis of barley in field conditions.



2021 ◽  
Vol 901 (1) ◽  
pp. 012044
Author(s):  
G V Stepanova ◽  
M V Volovik

Annotation It is shown that the buffer capacity of dry matter of alfalfa of the first cut in the flowering phase is 5.66-5.94 mol / liter. With an increase in the content of crude protein and crude ash by 1%, it increases by 0.14-0.40 and 0.49-0.86 mol / liter, respectively, with an increase in the content of soluble carbohydrates by 1%, it decreases by 1.44 mol / liter … The dry matter of the second cut alfalfa has a high forage quality. The content of crude protein from the stemming-beginning of budding phase to the flowering phase is in the range of 23.44-20.20%, crude ash 9.24-8.10%, while the content of crude fiber is reduced to 22.92-29.01%, dry matter - up to 20.84-26.00%. The buffer capacity of dry matter reaches 9.69-7.23 mol / liter. The main influence on the buffer capacity is exerted by the mineral composition of the dry matter. An increase in the content of crude ash by 1% increases the buffer capacity of dry matter by 0.55 ± 0.16 - 1.36 ± 0.14 mol / l, an increase in the content of crude protein by 1% increases the buffer capacity by 0.15 ± 0.06 - 0.39 ± 0.14 mol / liter.



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