ALBERT

Beschreibung: There are some active bottom currents on the northern continental slope of the South China Sea (SCS). Reflection seismic profiles show that the bottom current channels occur in the water depth range of 1000 to 2700 m, extending from the NE to the SW, leading to accumulation of discontinuous drifts with higher sedimentation rates on the eastern side of the channel. The stacking pattern of the layers suggests that these drifts propagated southwestward, following the direction of the bottom currents. One sedimentary drift to the southeast of the Dongsha Islands has the highest sedimentation rate of 97cm/ka in the last 12 ka. The sedimentary characteristics of the sediment layers indicate that these bottom currents are most likley caused by the water movement of a branch of the West Pacific Ocean Current, which enters the northern SCS via the Bashi Strait. Once formed, the bottom currents transport sediments along the northern slope of SCS southwestward and finally disappear into the central basin of the SCS. Due to the bottom current activity, the deep-sea sedimentary process in the northern SCS is complex.

Beschreibung: Cold-water coral carbonate mounds, owing their presence mainly to the framework building coral Lophelia pertusa and the activity of associated organisms, are common along the European margin with their spatial distribution allowing them to be divided into a number of mound provinces. Variation in mound attributes are explored via a series of case studies on mound provinces that have been the most intensely investigated: Belgica, Hovland, Pelagia, Logachev and Norwegian Mounds. Morphological variation between mound provinces is discussed under the premise that mound morphology is an expression of the environmental conditions under which mounds are initiated and grow. Cold-water coral carbonate mounds can be divided into those exhibiting “inherited” morphologies (where mound morphology reflects the morphology of the colonised features) and “developed” morphology (where the mounds assume their own gross morphology mainly reflecting dominant hydrodynamic controls). Finer-scale, surface morphological features mainly reflecting biological growth forms are also discussed.

Beschreibung: Sponges of warm- and temperate- but also cold-waters are known to synthesize structurally diverse primary and secondary metabolites. These compounds fulfill a variety of functions including adaptations of the cell membranes to environmental conditions. We show here that boreal sponges of the order Halichondrida are rich sources of brominated lipid fatty acids. The comparison of lipid compositions of halichondrid Demospongiae from boreal and warmer waters indicates an accumulation of brominated fatty acids in sponges from colder settings. Moreover, the spatial distribution of brominated fatty acids in the sponge tissue of one widely distributed sponge of the North-East Atlantic (Phakellia ventilabrum) hints to a function related to membrane fluidity and permeability rather than to defense against predation. However, brominated fatty acids are diagnostic for the presence of bromoperoxidases in sponges and may therefore be potentially useful as markers in a chemical screening for secondary metabolites of pharmacological interest.

Beschreibung: Seasonal (Spring and Summer 2002) concentrations of dissolved (〈0.22 μm) trace metals (Ag, Al, Co, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb), inorganic nutrients (NO3, PO4, Si), and DOC were determined in groundwater samples from 5 wells aligned along a 30 m shore-normal transect in West Neck Bay, Long Island, NY. Results show that significant, systematic changes in groundwater trace metal and nutrient composition occur along the flowpath from land to sea. While conservative mixing between West Neck Bay water and the groundwaters explains the behavior of Si and DOC, non-conservative inputs for Co and Ni were observed (concentration increases of 10- and 2-fold, respectively) and removal of PO4 and NO3 (decreases to about half) along the transport pathway. Groundwater-associated chemical fluxes from the aquifer to the embayment calculated for constituents not exhibiting conservative behavior can vary by orders of magnitude depending on sampling location and season (e.g. Co, 3.4 × 102– 8.2 × 103 μmol d−1). Using measured values from different wells as being representative of the true groundwater endmember chemical composition also results in calculation of very different fluxes (e.g., Cu, 6.3 × 103 μmol d−1 (inland, freshwater well) vs. 2.1 × 105 μmol d−1(seaward well, S = 17 ppt)). This study suggests that seasonal variability and chemical changes occurring within the subterranean estuary must be taken into account when determining the groundwater flux of dissolved trace metals and nutrients to the coastal ocean.

Beschreibung: A mass balance for the naturally-occurring radium isotopes (224Ra, 223Ra, 228Ra, and 226Ra) in Jamaica Bay, NY, was conducted by directly estimating the individual Ra contributions of wastewater discharge, diffusion from fine-grained subtidal sediments, water percolation through marshes, desorption from resuspended particles, and water exchange at the inlet. The mass balance revealed a major unknown source term accounting for 19–71% of the total Ra input, which could only be resolved by invoking a source from submarine groundwater. Shallow (〈 2 m depth) groundwater from permeable sediments in Jamaica Bay was brackish and enriched in Ra relative to surface bay waters by over two orders of magnitude. To balance Ra fluxes, a submarine groundwater input of 0.8 × 109–9.0 × 109 L d− 1 was required. This flux was similar for all four isotopes, with individual estimates varying by less than a factor of 2. Our calculated groundwater flux was 6- to 70-fold higher than the fresh groundwater discharge to the bay estimated by hydrological methods, but closely matched direct flow rates measured with seepage meters. This suggests that a substantial portion of the discharge consisted of recirculated seawater. The magnitude of submarine groundwater discharge varied seasonally, in the order: summer 〉 autumn 〉 spring. Chemical analyses suggest that the recirculated seawater component of submarine groundwater delivers as much dissolved nitrogen to the bay as the fresh groundwater flux.

Beschreibung: Two new compounds, 2, 3, 5-trimethyl-6-(3-oxobutan-2-yl)-4H-pyran-4-one (1) and (2R)-2, 3-dihydro-7-hydroxy-6, 8-dimethyl-2-[(E)-prop-1-enyl] chromen-4-one (2), together with six known compounds (3–8), were isolated from a deep-sea fungus, identified as Aspergillus sydowi, by a bioassay-guided method. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods and the cytotoxicities were evaluated by SRB method.

Beschreibung: Species of the genus Hysterothylacium are among the most common marine nematode fish parasites in the northern Atlantic. Due to recent findings of cryptic speciation in other parasitic ascaridoid nematodes, a similar pattern of sibling species was hypothesized also for Hysterothylacium aduncum. By investigating a 886- to 890-bp-long genomic DNA fragment including ITS-1, 5.8S rDNA and ITS-2 of 40 specimens of H. aduncum of sprat (Sprattus sprattus) of four different biogeographical regions (North Sea, English Channel, Bay of Biscay, Adriatic Sea), we could not detect significant genetic variability and therefore cryptic speciation. Nevertheless, while ITS-1 and 5.8S rDNA sequences were identical for all analysed specimens, ITS-2 sequences showed a population-specific pattern with the differentiation of an English Channel/Bay of Biscay group from a North Sea/Mediterranean Sea group.

Beschreibung: A stable and specific bacterial community was shown to be associated with the Mediterranean sponge Chondrilla nucula. The associated bacterial communities were demonstrated to be highly similar for all studied specimens regardless of sampling time and geographical region. In addition, analysis of 16S rDNA clone libraries revealed three constantly C. nucula-associated bacterial phylotypes belonging to the Acidobacteria, the Gamma- and Deltaproteobacteria present in sponge specimens from two Mediterranean regions with distinct water masses (Ligurian Sea and Adriatic Sea). For the first time, candidate division TM7 bacteria were found in marine sponges. A major part (79%) of the C. nucula-derived 16S rDNA sequences were closely related to other sponge-associated bacteria. Phylogenetic analysis identified 14 16S rRNA gene sequence clusters, seven of which consisted of exclusively sponge-derived sequences, whereas the other seven clusters contained additional environmental sequences. This study adds to a growing database on the stability and variability of microbial consortia associated with marine sponges.

Beschreibung: A liquid chromatograph/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) method was developed for the simultaneous quantitation of seven compounds (safflor yellow A, puerarin, daidzein, ginsenosides (Rg(1), Rb(1), Rd), and notoginsenoside R(1)) in rat plasma samples with sufficient sensitivity to facilitate analysis of samples collected after an intravenous injection of Naodesheng. The plasma samples were subjected to protein precipitation with acetone, and analyzed using negative atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry in selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode with baicalin as an internal standard. Good linearity for all the seven compounds was observed. The intra- and inter-day precision of analysis was 〈15.0% for each compound, and the accuracy ranged from 90.0% to 109.0%. This quantitation method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of following intravenous injection of rats with Naodesheng