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Categories: Environmental: Ecosystems, Environmental: Water
Published Photosynthetic mechanism of purple sulfur bacterium adapted to low-calcium environments
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Purple sulfur bacteria (PSB) convert light energy into chemical energy through photosynthesis. Interestingly, certain species can photosynthesize even in environments with low-calcium levels. Using cryo-electron microscopy, researchers unveiled the structure of light-harvesting complexes and elucidated the mechanism that facilitates photosynthesis under low-calcium conditions.
Published Plastic recycling with a protein anchor
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Polystyrene is a widespread plastic that is essentially not recyclable when mixed with other materials and is not biodegradable. A research team has now introduced a biohybrid catalyst that oxidizes polystyrene microparticles to facilitate their subsequent degradation. The catalyst consists of a specially constructed 'anchor peptide' that adheres to polystyrene surfaces and a cobalt complex that oxidizes polystyrene.
Published Even very low levels of pesticide exposure can affect fish for generations
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fish exposed to some pesticides at extremely low concentrations for a brief period of time can demonstrate lasting behavioral changes, with the impact extending to offspring that were never exposed firsthand, a recent study found.
Published Artificial reefs help preserve coral reefs by shifting divers away from the natural ones, according to new long-term study of one in Eilat
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Divers are essentially tourists who love coral reefs and invest a lot of time and effort to watch them. Unfortunately, divers also cause damage to corals, often unintentionally, through disturbing and resuspending sand, touching them, hitting them with their equipment, and scaring fish away. Artificial reefs have been proposed as a means of diverting diving pressure from the natural reef to alternative sites, thus preserving both dive tourism and the coral reef.
Published Nature's checkup: Surveying biodiversity with environmental DNA sequencing
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A thousand kilometers south of Tokyo, far into the largest ocean on Earth, lies a chain of small, volcanic islands -- the Ogasawara Islands. Nature has been able to develop on its own terms here, far from both humans and the warm Kuroshio current, which acts like a shuttle, moving marine species from Taiwan, over the Ryukyu Islands, and up the Pacific coast of mainland Japan. With upwards of 70 % of trees and many animal species being endemic to the archipelago, the islands have been dubbed 'the Galapagos of the East', as they are valuable as both a biodiversity hotspot and a cradle of scientific discovery.
Published Spy-satellite images offer insights into historical ecosystem changes
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New study advocates the use of more than one million declassified images for ecology and conservation. The images can offer better insights into the historical changes of ecosystems, species populations or changes in human influences on the environment dating back to the 1960s. Collaboration between ecologists, conservationists, and remote sensing experts is necessary to explore the full potential of the data.
Published Decline in microbial genetic richness in the western Arctic Ocean
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers analyzed archival samples of bacteria and archaea populations taken from the Beaufort Sea, bordering northwest Canada and Alaska. The samples were collected between 2004 and 2012, a period that included two years -- 2007 and 2012 -- in which the sea ice coverage was historically low. The researchers looked at samples taken from three levels of water: the summer mixed layer, the upper Arctic water below it and the Pacific-origin water at the deepest level. The study examined the microbes' genetic composition using bioinformatics and statistical analysis across the nine-year time span. Using this data, the researchers were able to see how changing environmental conditions were influencing the organisms' structure and function.
Published Viruses that can help 'dial up' carbon capture in the sea
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Armed with a catalog of hundreds of thousands of DNA and RNA virus species in the world's oceans, scientists are now zeroing in on the viruses most likely to combat climate change by helping trap carbon dioxide in seawater or, using similar techniques, different viruses that may prevent methane's escape from thawing Arctic soil.
Published Potassium depletion in soil threatens global crop yields
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Potassium deficiency in agricultural soils is a largely unrecognized but potentially significant threat to global food security if left unaddressed, finds new research.
Published Giant Antarctic sea spiders reproductive mystery solved
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Instead of carrying the babies until they hatched, as in most species of sea spiders, one parent (likely the father) spent two days attaching the eggs to the rocky bottom where they developed for several months before hatching as tiny larvae.
Published Anoxic marine basins are among the best candidates for deep-sea carbon sequestration
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Anoxic marine basins may be among the most viable places to conduct large-scale carbon sequestration in the deep ocean, while minimizing negative impacts to marine life. As we explore ways to actively draw down the levels of carbon in the atmosphere, sending plant biomass to these barren, oxygen-free zones on the seafloor becomes an option worth considering.
Published Measuring neutrons to reduce nuclear waste
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Nuclear power is considered one of the ways to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, but how to deal with nuclear waste products is a concern. Radioactive waste products can be turned into more stable elements, but this process is not yet viable at scale. New research reveals a method to more accurately measure, predict and model a key part of the process to make nuclear waste more stable. This could lead to improved nuclear waste treatment facilities and also to new theories about how some heavier elements in the universe came to be.
Published Beyond peak season: Bacteria in the Arctic seabed are active all year round
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers studied the composition and function of bacteria in the seabed off Svalbard, during alternating periods of polar night and midnight sun. To do this, they specially developed a sampling device, the Ellrott grab. In contrast with bacterial communities in the overlying water, the sediment bacteria hardly change with the seasons. This is probably due to the fact that in the seabed some hard-to-digest foods are available all year round.
Published Online digital data and AI for monitoring biodiversity
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers propose a framework for integrating online digital data into biodiversity monitoring.
Published Searching for clues in the history book of the ocean
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research has shown that the tropical subsurface ocean gained oxygen during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (commonly referred to as PETM). During this short-lived interval of time in Earth s history that occurred 56 million years ago the average temperatures rose by up to six degrees within a few thousand years.
Published How is deforested land in Africa used?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Africa's forested areas -- an estimated 14 % of the global forest area -- are continuing to decline at an increasing rate -- mostly because of human activities to convert forest land for economic purposes. As natural forests are important CO2 and biodiversity reservoirs, this development has a significant impact on climate change and effects the integrity of nature.
Published Environmental monitoring offers low-cost tool for typhoid fever surveillance
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers can accurately track where typhoid fever cases are highest by monitoring environmental samples for viruses called bacteriophages that specifically infect the bacterium that causes typhoid fever.
Published Reforestation programs could threaten vast area of tropical grasslands
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research reveals the scale of inappropriate reforestation projects across Africa. A new study reveals that an area the size of France is threatened by forest restoration initiatives, such as the AFR100 initiative (African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative), due to inappropriate restoration in the form of tree-planting.
Published Big new idea introduced with the help of tiny plankton
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new model bridges the rules of life at the individual scale and the ecosystem level, which could open new avenues of exploration in ecology, global change biology, and ultimately ecosystem management.
Published Trapping sulfate to benefit health, industry and waterways
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have developed a new method to measure and remove sulfate from water, potentially leading to cleaner waterways and more effective nuclear waste treatments.