ALBERT

All Library Books, journals and Electronic Records Telegrafenberg

Your email was sent successfully. Check your inbox.

An error occurred while sending the email. Please try again.

Proceed reservation?

Export
Filter
  • Other Sources  (366)
  • Nature Publishing Group  (329)
  • Blackwell Publishing Ltd
  • American Chemical Society (ACS)
  • 1
    Publication Date: 2024-01-24
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉Flood risk assessments require different disciplines to understand and model the underlying components hazard, exposure, and vulnerability. Many methods and data sets have been refined considerably to cover more details of spatial, temporal, or process information. We compile case studies indicating that refined methods and data have a considerable effect on the overall assessment of flood risk. But are these improvements worth the effort? The adequate level of detail is typically unknown and prioritization of improvements in a specific component is hampered by the lack of an overarching view on flood risk. Consequently, creating the dilemma of potentially being too greedy or too wasteful with the resources available for a risk assessment. A “sweet spot” between those two would use methods and data sets that cover all relevant known processes without using resources inefficiently. We provide three key questions as a qualitative guidance toward this “sweet spot.” For quantitative decision support, more overarching case studies in various contexts are needed to reveal the sensitivity of the overall flood risk to individual components. This could also support the anticipation of unforeseen events like the flood event in Germany and Belgium in 2021 and increase the reliability of flood risk assessments.〈/p〉
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Description: BMBF http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347
    Description: Federal Environment Agency http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100010809
    Description: http://howas21.gfz-potsdam.de/howas21/
    Description: https://www.umwelt.niedersachsen.de/startseite/themen/wasser/hochwasser_amp_kustenschutz/hochwasserrisikomanagement_richtlinie/hochwassergefahren_und_hochwasserrisikokarten/hochwasserkarten-121920.html
    Description: https://download.geofabrik.de/europe/germany.html
    Description: https://emergency.copernicus.eu/mapping/list-of-components/EMSN024
    Description: https://data.jrc.ec.europa.eu/collection/id-0054
    Description: https://oasishub.co/dataset/surface-water-flooding-footprinthurricane-harvey-august-2017-jba
    Description: https://www.wasser.sachsen.de/hochwassergefahrenkarte-11915.html
    Keywords: ddc:551.48 ; decision support ; extreme events ; integrated flood risk management ; risk assessment
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 2
    Publication Date: 2024-02-09
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉Gas transport in soils is usually assumed to be purely diffusive, although several studies have shown that non‐diffusive processes can significantly enhance soil gas transport. These processes include barometric air pressure changes, wind‐induced pressure pumping and static air pressure fields generated by wind interacting with obstacles. The associated pressure gradients in the soil can cause advective gas fluxes that are much larger than diffusive fluxes. However, the contributions of the respective transport processes are difficult to separate. We developed a large chamber system to simulate pressure fields and investigate their influence on soil gas transport. The chamber consists of four subspaces in which pressure is regulated by fans that blow air in or out of the chamber. With this setup, we conducted experiments with oscillating and static pressure fields. CO〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 concentrations were measured along two soil profiles beneath the chamber. We found a significant relationship between static lateral pressure gradients and the change in the CO〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 profiles (R〈sup〉2〈/sup〉 = 0.53; 〈italic toggle="no"〉p〈/italic〉‐value 〈2e‐16). Even small pressure gradients between −1 and 1 Pa relative to ambient pressure resulted in an increase or decrease in CO〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 concentrations of 8% on average in the upper soil, indicating advective flow of air in the pore space. Positive pressure gradients resulted in decreasing, negative pressure gradients in increasing CO〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 concentrations. The concentration changes were probably caused by an advective flow field in the soil beneath the chamber generated by the pressure gradients. No effect of oscillating pressure fields was observed in this study. The results indicate that static lateral pressure gradients have a substantial impact on soil gas transport and therefore are an important driver of gas exchange between soil and atmosphere. Lateral pressure gradients in a comparable range can be induced under windy conditions when wind interacts with terrain features. They can also be caused by chambers used for flux measurements at high wind speed or by fans used for head‐space mixing within the chambers, which yields biased flux estimates.〈/p〉
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; advective flux ; chamber flux measurements ; static air pressure fields ; wind‐induced pressure pumping
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 3
    Publication Date: 2023-11-18
    Description: Spatiotemporal characterisation of the soil redox status within the capillary fringe (CF) is a challenging task. Air‐filled porosities (ε), oxygen concentration (O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉) and soil redox potential (EH) are interrelated soil variables within active biogeochemical domains such as the CF. We investigated the impact of water table (WT) rise and drainage in an undisturbed topsoil and subsoil sample taken from a Calcaric Gleysol for a period of 46 days. We merged 1D (EH and matric potential) and 2D (O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉) systems to monitor at high spatiotemporal resolution redox dynamics within self‐constructed redoxtron housings and complemented the data set by a 3D pore network characterization using X‐ray microtomography (X‐ray μCT). Depletion of O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 was faster in the organic matter‐ and clay‐rich aggregated topsoil and the CF extended 〉10 cm above the artificial WT. The homogeneous and less‐aggregated subsoil extended only 4 cm above the WT as indicated by ε–O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉–EH data during saturation. After drainage, 2D O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 imaging revealed a fast aeration towards the lower depths of the topsoil, which agrees with the connected ε derived by X‐ray μCT (ε〈sub〉CT_conn〈/sub〉) of 14.9% of the total porosity. However, small‐scaled anoxic domains with O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 saturation 〈5% were apparent even after lowering the WT (down to 0.25 cm〈sup〉2〈/sup〉 in size) for 23 days. These domains remained a nucleus for reducing soil conditions (E〈sub〉H〈/sub〉 〈 −100 mV), which made it challenging to characterise the soil redox status in the CF. In contrast, the subsoil aeration reached O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 saturation after 8 days for the complete soil volume. Values of ε〈sub〉CT_conn〈/sub〉 around zero in the subsoil highlighted that soil aeration was independent of this parameter suggesting that other variables such as microbial activity must be considered when predicting the soil redox status from ε alone. The use of redoxtrons in combination with localised redox‐measurements and image based pore space analysis resulted in a better 2D/3D characterisation of the pore system and related O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 transport properties. This allowed us to analyse the distribution and activity of microbiological niches highly associated with the spatiotemporal variable redox dynamics in soil environments. Highlights: The time needed to turn from reducing to oxidising (period where all platinum electrodes feature E〈sub〉H〈/sub〉 〉 300 mV) condition differ for two samples with contrasting soil structure. The subsoil with presumably low O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 consumption rates aerated considerably faster than the topsoil and exclusively by O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉 diffusion through medium‐ and fine‐sized pores. To derive the soil redox status based upon the triplet ε–O〈sub〉2〈/sub〉–E〈sub〉H〈/sub〉 is challenging at present in heterogeneous soil domains and larger soil volumes than 250 cm〈sup〉3〈/sup〉. Undisturbed soil sampling along with 2D/3D redox measurement systems (e.g., redoxtrons) improve our understanding of redox dynamics within the capillary fringe.
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; environmental monitoring ; incubation experiments ; redox processes ; soil reducing conditions ; undisturbed soil ; X‐ray microtomography
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 4
    Publication Date: 2023-11-17
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈sec xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="ejss13362-sec-1003" xml:lang="en"〉 〈p xml:lang="en"〉Long‐term experiments (LTEs) have provided data to modellers and agronomists to investigate changes and dynamics of soil organic carbon (SOC) under different cropping systems. As treatment changes have occurred due to agricultural advancements, so too have analytical soil methods. This may lead to method bias over time, which could affect the robust interpretation of data and conclusions drawn. This study aims to quantify differences in SOC due to changes in dry combustion methods over time, using soil samples of a LTE established in 1963 that focuses on mineral and organic fertilizer management in the temperate zone of Northeast Germany. For this purpose, 1059 soil samples, collected between 1976 and 2008, have been analysed twice, once with their historical laboratory method right after sampling, and a second time in 2016 when all samples were analysed using the same elementary analyser. In 9 of 11 soil sampling campaigns, a paired 〈italic toggle="no"〉t〈/italic〉‐test provided evidence for significant differences in the historical SOC values when compared with the re‐analysed concentrations of the same LTE sample. In the sampling years 1988 and 2004, the historical analysis obtained about 0.9 g kg〈sup〉−1〈/sup〉 lower SOC compared with the re‐analysed one. For 1990 and 1998, this difference was about 0.4 g kg〈sup〉−1〈/sup〉. Correction factors, an approach often used to correct for different analytical techniques, could only be applied for 5 of 11 sampling campaigns to account for constant and proportional systematic method error. For this particular LTE, the interpretation of SOC changes due to agronomic management (here fertilization) deviates depending on the analytical method used, which may weaken the explanatory power of the historical data. We demonstrate that analytical method changes over time present one of many challenges in the interpretation of time series data of SOC dynamics. Therefore, LTE site managers need to ensure providing all necessary protocols and data in order to retrace method changes and if necessary recalculate SOC.〈/p〉 〈/sec〉〈sec xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="ejss13362-sec-0003" xml:lang="en"〉 〈title〉Highlights〈/title〉 〈p xml:lang="en"〉〈list list-type="bullet" id="ejss13362-list-0001"〉 〈list-item id="ejss13362-li-0001"〉〈p〉A total of 1059 LTE soil samples taken between 1976 and 2008 were re‐analysed for SOC in 2016〈/p〉〈/list-item〉 〈list-item id="ejss13362-li-0002"〉〈p〉Several methodological changes for SOC determination led to significant different SOC concentration in the same sample〈/p〉〈/list-item〉 〈list-item id="ejss13362-li-0003"〉〈p〉Interpretation and time series of LTE soil data suffer from consideration of analytical method changes and poor documentation of the same〈/p〉〈/list-item〉 〈list-item id="ejss13362-li-0004"〉〈p〉Soil archive establishment, thorough method protocols and diligent proficiency testing after soil method changes ameliorate the dilemma〈/p〉〈/list-item〉 〈/list〉〈/p〉 〈/sec〉
    Description: Brandenburger Staatsministerium für Wissenschaft, Forschung und Kultur http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100004581
    Description: Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100004937
    Description: https://doi.org/10.4228/zalf-acge-b683
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; Bland–Altman ; carbon stocks ; data trueness ; Deming regression ; method bias ; soil archive ; soil survey
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 5
    Publication Date: 2023-12-12
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉Infrared spectroscopy in the visible to near‐infrared (vis–NIR) and mid‐infrared (MIR) regions is a well‐established approach for the prediction of soil properties. Different data fusion and training approaches exist, and the optimal procedures are yet undefined and may depend on the heterogeneity present in the set and on the considered scale. The objectives were to test the usefulness of partial least squares regressions (PLSRs) for soil organic carbon (SOC), total carbon (C〈sub〉t〈/sub〉), total nitrogen (N〈sub〉t〈/sub〉) and pH using vis–NIR and MIR spectroscopy for an independent validation after standard calibration (use of a general PLSR model) or using memory‐based learning (MBL) with and without spiking for a national spectral database. Data fusion approaches were simple concatenation of spectra, outer product analysis (OPA) and model averaging. In total, 481 soils from an Austrian forest soil archive were measured in the vis–NIR and MIR regions, and regressions were calculated. Fivefold calibration‐validation approaches were carried out with a region‐related split of spectra to implement independent validations with n ranging from 47 to 99 soils in different folds. MIR predictions were generally superior over vis–NIR predictions. For all properties, optimal predictions were obtained with data fusion, with OPA and spectra concatenation outperforming model averaging. The greatest robustness of performance was found for OPA and MBL with spiking with 〈italic toggle="no"〉R〈/italic〉〈sup〉2〈/sup〉 ≥ 0.77 (N), 0.85 (SOC), 0.86 (pH) and 0.88 (C〈sub〉t〈/sub〉) in the validations of all folds. Overall, the results indicate that the combination of OPA for vis–NIR and MIR spectra with MBL and spiking has a high potential to accurately estimate properties when using large‐scale soil spectral libraries as reference data. However, the reduction of cost‐effectiveness using two spectrometers needs to be weighed against the potential increase in accuracy compared to a single MIR spectroscopy approach.〈/p〉
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; data fusion ; independent validation ; infrared spectroscopy ; MBL ; nitrogen ; outer product analysis ; pH ; soil organic carbon ; spiking ; total carbon
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 6
    Publication Date: 2024-01-19
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉In recent years, many two‐dimensional (2D) hydrodynamic models have been extended to include the direct rainfall method (DRM). This allows their application as a hydrological‐hydrodynamic model for the determination of floodplains in one model system. In previous studies on DRM, the role of catchment hydrological processes (CaHyPro) and its interaction with the calibration process was not investigated in detail. In the present, case‐oriented study, the influence of the spatiotemporal distribution of the processes precipitation and runoff formation in combination with the 2D model HEC‐RAS is investigated. In a further step, a conceptual approach for event‐based interflow is integrated. The study is performed on the basis of a single storm event in a small rural catchment (low mountain range, 38 km〈sup〉2〈/sup〉) in Hesse (Germany). The model results are evaluated against six quality criteria and compared to a simplified baseline model. Finally, the calibrated improved model is contrasted with a calibrated baseline model. The results show the enhancement of the model results due to the integration of the CaHyPro and highlight its interplay with the calibrated model parameters.〈/p〉
    Keywords: ddc:551.48 ; 2D hydrodynamic modeling ; calibration ; direct rainfall modeling ; hydrological processes ; radar data ; runoff formation
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 7
    Publication Date: 2024-01-26
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉The increasing demand for biomass for food, animal feed, fibre and bioenergy requires optimization of soil productivity, while at the same time, protecting other soil functions such as nutrient cycling and buffering, carbon storage, habitat for biological activity and water filter and storage. Therefore, one of the main challenges for sustainable agriculture is to produce high yields while maintaining all the other soil functions. Mechanistic simulation models are an essential tool to fully understand and predict the complex interactions between physical, biological and chemical processes of soils that generate those functions. We developed a soil model to simulate the impact of various agricultural management options and climate change on soil functions by integrating the relevant processes mechanistically and in a systemic way. As a special feature, we include the dynamics of soil structure induced by tillage and biological activity, which is especially relevant in arable soils. The model operates on a 1D soil profile consisting of a number of discrete layers with dynamic thickness. We demonstrate the model performance by simulating crop growth, root growth, nutrient and water uptake, nitrogen cycling, soil organic matter turnover, microbial activity, water distribution and soil structure dynamics in a long‐term field experiment including different crops and different types and levels of fertilization. The model is able to capture essential features that are measured regularly including crop yield, soil organic carbon, and soil nitrogen. In this way, the plausibility of the implemented processes and their interactions is confirmed. Furthermore, we present the results of explorative simulations comparing scenarios with and without tillage events to analyse the effect of soil structure on soil functions. Since the model is process‐based, we are confident that the model can also be used to predict quantities that have not been measured or to estimate the effect of management measures and climate states not yet been observed. The model thus has the potential to predict the site‐specific impact of management decisions on soil functions, which is of great importance for the development of a sustainable agriculture that is currently also on the agenda of the ‘Green Deal’ at the European level.〈/p〉
    Description: Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347
    Description: https://git.ufz.de/bodium/bodium_v1.0
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; agriculture ; computational model ; simulation ; soil microbiology ; soil structure ; sustainable soil
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 8
    Publication Date: 2024-03-18
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉Temperature and soil moisture are known to control pesticide mineralization. Half‐life times (DT〈sub〉50〈/sub〉) derived from pesticide mineralization curves generally indicate longer residence times at low soil temperature and moisture but do not consider potential changes in the microbial allocation of pesticide‐derived carbon (C). We aimed to determine carbon use efficiency (CUE, formation of new biomass relative to total C uptake) to better understand microbial utilization of pesticide‐derived C under different environmental conditions and to support the conventional description of degradation dynamics based on mineralization. We performed a microcosm experiment at two MCPA (2‐methyl‐4‐chlorophenoxyacetic acid) concentrations (1 and 20 mg kg〈sup〉−1〈/sup〉) and defined 20°C/pF 1.8 as optimal and 10°C/pF 3.5 as limiting environmental conditions. After 4 weeks, 70% of the initially applied MCPA was mineralized under optimal conditions but MCPA mineralization reached less than 25% under limiting conditions. However, under limiting conditions, an increase in CUE was observed, indicating a shift towards anabolic utilization of MCPA‐derived C. In this case, increased C assimilation implied C storage or the formation of precursor compounds to support resistance mechanisms, rather than actual growth since we did not find an increase in the 〈italic toggle="no"〉tfdA〈/italic〉 gene relevant to MCPA degradation. We were able to confirm the assumption that under limiting conditions, C assimilation increases relative to mineralization and that C redistribution, may serve as an explanation for the difference between mineralization and MCPA dissipation‐derived degradation dynamics. In addition, by introducing CUE to the temperature‐ and moisture‐dependent degradation of pesticides, we can capture the underlying microbial constraints and adaptive mechanisms to changing environmental conditions.〈/p〉
    Description: 〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉Changing environmental conditions alter the MCPA degradation dynamics and the allocation of pesticide‐derived carbon to anabolic or catabolic metabolism.〈boxed-text position="anchor" content-type="graphic" id="ejss13417-blkfxd-0001" xml:lang="en"〉 〈graphic position="anchor" id="jats-graphic-1" xlink:href="urn:x-wiley:13510754:media:ejss13417:ejss13417-toc-0001"〉 〈/graphic〉 〈/boxed-text〉〈/p〉
    Description: Collaborative Research Center 1253 CAMPOS (DFG)
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Description: DFG Priority Program 2322 “Soil System”
    Description: Ellrichshausen Foundation
    Description: Research Training Group “Integrated Hydrosystem modeling”
    Description: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5081655
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; anabolism ; carbon use efficiency ; catabolism ; effect of soil moisture and temperature ; gene‐centric process model ; MCPA biodegradation
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 9
    Publication Date: 2022-09-27
    Description: Little research attention has been given to validating clusters obtained from the groundwater geochemistry of the waterworks' capture zone with a prevailing lake‐groundwater exchange. To address this knowledge gap, we proposed a new scheme whereby Gaussian finite mixture modeling (GFMM) and Spike‐and‐Slab Bayesian (SSB) algorithms were utilized to cluster the groundwater geochemistry while quantifying the probability of the resulting cluster membership against each other. We applied GFMM and SSB to 13 geochemical parameters collected during different sampling periods at 13 observation points across the Barnim Highlands plateau located in the northeast of Berlin, Germany; this included 10 observation wells, two lakes, and a gallery of drinking production wells. The cluster analysis of GFMM yielded nine clusters, either with a probability ≥0.8, while the SSB produced three hierarchical clusters with a probability of cluster membership varying from 〈0.2 to 〉0.8. The findings demonstrated that the clustering results of GFMM were in good agreement with the classification as per the principal component analysis and Piper diagram. By superimposing the parameter clustering onto the observation clustering, we could identify discrepancies that exist among the parameters of a certain cluster. This enables the identification of different factors that may control the geochemistry of a certain cluster, although parameters of that cluster share a strong similarity. The GFMM results have shown that from 2002, there has been active groundwater inflow from the lakes towards the capture zone. This means that it is necessary to adopt appropriate measures to reverse the inflow towards the lakes.
    Description: Article impact statement: The probability of cluster membership quantified using an algorithm should be validated against another probabilistic‐based classifier.
    Description: Federal Ministry of Education and Research http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347
    Keywords: ddc:551.9 ; ddc:551.49
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 10
    Publication Date: 2022-10-01
    Description: Copper (Cu) is an essential element for plants and microorganisms and at larger concentrations a toxic pollutant. A number of factors controlling Cu dynamics have been reported, but information on quantitative relationships is scarce. We aimed to (i) quantitatively describe and predict soil Cu concentrations (CuAR) in aqua regia considering site‐specific effects and effects of pH, soil organic carbon (SOC) and cation exchange capacity (CEC), and (ii) study the suitability of mixed‐effects modelling and rule‐based models for the analysis of long‐term soil monitoring data. Thirteen uncontaminated long‐term monitoring soil profiles in southern Germany were analysed. Since there was no measurable trend of increasing CuAR concentrations with time in the respective depth ranges of the sites, data from different sampling dates were combined and horizon‐specific regression analyses including model simplifications were carried out for 10 horizons. Fixed‐ and mixed‐effects models with the site as a random effect were useful for the different horizons and significant contributions (either of main effects or interactions) of SOC, CEC and pH were present for 9, 8 and 7 horizons, respectively. Horizon‐specific rule‐based cubist models described the CuAR data similarly well. Validations of cubist models and mixed‐effects models for the CuAR concentrations in A horizons were successful for the given population after random splitting into calibration and validation samples, but not after independent validations with random splitting according to sites. Overall, site, CEC, SOC and pH provide important information for a description of CuAR concentrations using the different regression approaches. Highlights: Information on quantitative relationships for factors controlling Cu dynamics is scarce. Site, CEC, SOC and pH provide important information for a description of Cu concentrations. Validations of cubist models and mixed‐effects models for A horizons were successful for a closed population of sites.
    Description: Bavarian State Ministry of the Environment and Consumer Protection http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100010219
    Description: Ministry of Agriculture and Environment Mecklenburg‐Western Pomerania
    Keywords: ddc:631.4
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 11
    Publication Date: 2022-10-04
    Description: Soil aeration is a critical factor for oxygen‐limited subsoil processes, as transport by diffusion and advection is restricted by the long distance to the free atmosphere. Oxygen transport into the soil matrix is highly dependent on its connectivity to larger pore channels like earthworm and root colonised biopores. Here we hypothesize that the soil matrix around biopores represents different connectivity depending on biopore genesis and actual coloniser. We analysed the soil pore system of undisturbed soil core samples around biopores generated or colonised by roots and earthworms and compared them with the pore system of soil, not in the immediacy of a biopore. Oxygen partial pressure profiles and gas relative diffusion was measured in the rhizosphere and drilosphere from the biopore wall into the bulk soil with microelectrodes. The measurements were linked with structural features such as porosity and connectivity obtained from X‐ray tomography and image analysis. Aeration was enhanced in the soil matrix surrounding biopores in comparison to the bulk soil, shown by higher oxygen concentrations and higher relative diffusion coefficients. Biopores colonised by roots presented more connected lateral pores than earthworm colonised ones, which resulted in enhanced aeration of the rhizosphere compared to the drilosphere. This has influenced biotic processes (microbial turnover/mineralization or root respiration) at biopore interfaces and highlights the importance of microstructural features for soil processes and their dependency on the biopore's coloniser.
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: ddc:631.4
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 12
    Publication Date: 2022-07-26
    Description: Application of farmyard manure (FYM) is common practice to improve physical and chemical properties of arable soil and crop yields. However, studies on effects of FYM application mainly focussed on topsoils, whereas subsoils have rarely been addressed so far. We, therefore, investigated the effects of 36‐year FYM application with different rates of annual organic carbon (OC) addition (0, 469, 938 and 1875 g C m−2 a−1) on OC contents of a Chernozem in 0–30 cm (topsoil) and 35–45 cm (subsoil) depth. We also investigated its effects on soil structure and hydraulic properties in subsoil. X‐ray computed tomography was used to analyse the response of the subsoil macropore system (≥19 μm) and the distribution of particulate organic matter (POM) to different FYM applications, which were related to contents in total OC (TOC) and water‐extractable OC (WEOC). We show that FYM‐C application of 469 g C m−2 a−1 caused increases in TOC and WEOC contents only in the topsoil, whereas rates of ≥938 g C m−2 a−1 were necessary for TOC enrichment also in the subsoil. At this depth, the subdivision of TOC into different OC sources shows that most of the increase was due to fresh POM, likely by the stimulation of root growth and bioturbation. The increase in subsoil TOC went along with increases in macroporosity and macropore connectivity. We neither observed increases in plant‐available water capacity nor in unsaturated hydraulic conductivity. In conclusion, only very high application of FYM over long periods can increase OC content of subsoil at our study site, but this increase is largely based on fresh, easily degradable POM and likely accompanied by high C losses when considering the discrepancy between OC addition rate by FYM and TOC response in soil. Highlights A new image processing procedure to distinguish fresh and decomposed POM. The increase of subsoil C stock based to a large extend on fresh, labile POM. Potential of arable subsoils for long‐term C storage by large FYM application rates is limited. The increase in TOC has no effect on hydraulic properties of the subsoil.
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: ddc:631.4
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 13
    Publication Date: 2023-01-20
    Description: Stable hydrogen isotope ratios (δ2H values) in structural hydroxyl groups of pedogenic clay minerals are inherited from the surrounding water at the time of their formation. Only non‐exchangeable H preserves the environmental forensic and paleoclimate information (δ2Hn value). To measure δ2Hn values in structural H of clay minerals and soil clay fractions, we adapted a steam equilibration method by accounting for high hygroscopicity. Our δ2Hn values for USGS57 biotite (−95.3 ± SD 0.9‰) and USGS58 muscovite (30.7 ± 1.4‰) differed slightly but significantly from the reported δ2H values (−91.5 ± 2.4‰ and −28.4 ± 1.6‰), because the minerals contained 1.1%–4.4% of exchangeable H. The low SD of replicate measurements (n = 3) confirmed a high precision. The clay separation method including destruction of Fe oxides, carbonates and soil organic matter, and dispersion did not significantly change the δ2Hn values of five different clay minerals. However, we were unable to remove all organic matter from the soil clay fractions resulting in an estimated bias of 1‰ in two samples and 15‰ in the carbon‐richest sample. Our results demonstrate that δ2Hn values of structural H of clay minerals and soil clay fractions can be reliably measured without interference from atmospheric water and the method used to separate the soil clay fraction. Highlights We tested steam equilibration to determine stable isotope ratios of structural H in clay. Gas‐tight capsule sealing in Ar atmosphere was necessary to avoid remoistening. Our steam equilibration method showed a high accuracy and precision. The clay separation method did not change stable isotope ratios of structural H in clay.
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: ddc:549 ; controlled isotope exchange technique ; deuterium ; montmorillonite ; soil clay separation ; soil organic matter removal ; steam equilibration ; structural H ; USGS57 biotite ; vermiculite ; δ2H
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 14
    Publication Date: 2023-01-26
    Description: Erosion is a severe threat to the sustainable use of agricultural soils. However, the structural resistance of soil against the disruptive forces steppe soils experience under field conditions has not been investigated. Therefore, 132 topsoils under grass‐ and cropland covering a large range of physico‐chemical soil properties (sand: 2–76%, silt: 18–80%, clay: 6–30%, organic carbon: 7.3–64.2 g kg−1, inorganic carbon: 0.0–8.5 g kg−1, pH: 4.8–9.5, electrical conductivity: 32–946 μS cm−1) from northern Kazakhstan were assessed for their potential erodibility using several tests. An adjusted drop‐shatter method (low energy input of 60 Joule on a 250‐cm3 soil block) was used to estimate the stability of dry soil against weak mechanical forces, such as saltating particles striking the surface causing wind erosion. Three wetting treatments with various conditions and energies (fast wetting, slow wetting, and wet shaking) were applied to simulate different disruptive effects of water. Results indicate that aggregate stability was higher for grassland than cropland soils and declined with decreasing soil organic carbon content. The results of the drop‐shatter test suggested that 29% of the soils under cropland were at risk of wind erosion, but only 6% were at high risk (i.e. erodible fraction 〉60%). In contrast, the fast wetting treatment revealed that 54% of the samples were prone to become “very unstable” and 44% “unstable” during heavy rain or snowmelt events. Even under conditions comparable to light rain events or raindrop impact, 53–59% of the samples were “unstable.” Overall, cropland soils under semi‐arid conditions seem much more susceptible to water than wind erosion. Considering future projections of increasing precipitation in Kazakhstan, we conclude that the risk of water erosion is potentially underestimated and needs to be taken into account when developing sustainable land use strategies. Highlights Organic matter is the important binding agent enhancing aggregation in steppe topsoils. Tillage always declines aggregate stability even without soil organic carbon changes. All croplands soil are prone to wind or water erosion independent of their soil properties. Despite the semi‐arid conditions, erosion risk by water seems higher than by wind.
    Description: Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; climate change ; land use ; soil organic carbon ; soil texture ; water erosion ; wind erosion
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 15
    Publication Date: 2023-01-21
    Description: Charcoal‐rich Technosols on century‐old relict charcoal hearths (RCHs) are the subject of ongoing research regarding potential legacy effects that result from historic charcoal production and subsequent charcoal amendments on forest soil properties and forest ecosystems today. RCHs consist mostly of Auh horizons that are substantially enriched in soil organic carbon (SOC), of which the largest part seems to be of pyrogenic origin (PyC). However, the reported range of SOC and PyC contents in RCH soil also suggests that they are enriched in nonpyrogenic SOC. RCH soils are discussed as potential benchmarks for the long‐term influence of biochar amendment and the post‐wildfire influences on soil properties. In this study, we utilised a large soil sample dataset (n = 1245) from 52 RCH sites in north‐western Connecticut, USA, to quantify SOC contents by total element analysis. The contents of condensed highly aromatic carbon as a proxy for black carbon (BC) were predicted by using a modified benzene polycarboxylated acid (BPCA) marker method in combination with diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) spectroscopy‐based partial least square regression (r2 = 0.89). A high vertical spatial sampling resolution allowed the identification of soil organic matter (SOM) enrichment and translocation processes. The results show an average 75% and 1862% increase in TOC and BPCA‐derived carbon, respectively, for technogenic Auh horizons compared to reference soils. In addition to an increase in aromatic properties, increased carboxylic properties of the RCH SOC suggest self‐humification effects of degrading charcoal and thereby the continuing formation of leachable aromatic carbon compounds, which could have effects on pedogenic processes in buried soils. Indeed, we show BPCA‐derived carbon concentrations in intermediate technogenic Cu horizons and buried top/subsoils that suggest vertical translocation of highly aromatic carbon originating in RCH Auh horizons. Topmost Auh horizons showed a gradual decrease in total organic carbon (TOC) contents with increasing depth, suggesting accumulation of recent, non‐pyrogenic SOM. Lower aliphatic absorptions in RCH soil spectra suggest different SOM turnover dynamics compared to reference soils. Furthermore, studied RCH soils featured additional TOC enrichment, which cannot be fully explained now. Highlights BC to TOC ratio and high resolution vertical SOC distribution in 52 RCH sites were studied. RCH soils non‐BC pool was potentially different to reference soils. RCH soils feature TOC accumulation in the topmost horizon. There is BC translocation into buried soils on RCH sites.
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; benzene polycarboxylated acid marker (BPCA) ; black carbon ; charcoal degradation ; charcoal kiln ; pyrogenic carbon ; relict charcoal hearth ; biochar
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 16
    Publication Date: 2024-02-28
    Description: 〈title xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"〉Abstract〈/title〉〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉Hydrogeological information about an aquifer is difficult and costly to obtain, yet essential for the efficient management of groundwater resources. Transferring information from sampled sites to a specific site of interest can provide information when site‐specific data is lacking. Central to this approach is the notion of site similarity, which is necessary for determining relevant sites to include in the data transfer process. In this paper, we present a data‐driven method for defining site similarity. We apply this method to selecting groups of similar sites from which to derive prior distributions for the Bayesian estimation of hydraulic conductivity measurements at sites of interest. We conclude that there is now a unique opportunity to combine hydrogeological expertise with data‐driven methods to improve the predictive ability of stochastic hydrogeological models.〈/p〉
    Description: 〈p xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xml:lang="en"〉〈italic〉Article impact statement〈/italic〉: This article introduces hierarchical clustering as a method for defining a notion of site similarity; the aim of this method is to improve the derivation of prior distributions in Bayesian methods in hydrogeology.〈/p〉
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Description: https://github.com/GeoStat-Bayesian/geostatDB
    Description: https://github.com/GeoStat-Bayesian/exPrior
    Description: https://github.com/GeoStat-Bayesian/siteSimilarity
    Keywords: ddc:551.49 ; hydrogeological sites ; hydrogeological modeling
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 17
    Publication Date: 2024-03-22
    Description: Soil fauna drives crucial processes of energy and nutrient cycling in agricultural systems, and influences the quality of crops and pest incidence. Soil tillage is the most influential agricultural manipulation of soil structure, and has a profound influence on soil biology and its provision of ecosystem services. The objective of this study was to quantify through meta‐analyses the effects of reducing tillage intensity on density and diversity of soil micro‐ and mesofaunal communities, and how these effects vary among different pedoclimatic conditions and interact with concurrent management practices. We present the results of a global meta‐analysis of available literature data on the effects of different tillage intensities on taxonomic and functional groups of soil micro‐ and mesofauna. We collected paired observations (conventional vs. reduced forms of tillage/no‐tillage) from 133 studies across 33 countries. Our results show that reduced tillage intensity or no‐tillage increases the total density of springtails (+35%), mites (+23%), and enchytraeids (+37%) compared to more intense tillage methods. The meta‐analyses for different nematode feeding groups, life‐forms of springtails, and taxonomic mite groups showed higher densities under reduced forms of tillage compared to conventional tillage on omnivorous nematodes (+53%), epedaphic (+81%) and hemiedaphic (+84%) springtails, oribatid (+43%) and mesostigmatid (+57%) mites. Furthermore, the effects of reduced forms of tillage on soil micro‐ and mesofauna varied with depth, climate and soil texture, as well as with tillage method, tillage frequency, concurrent fertilisation, and herbicide application. Our findings suggest that reducing tillage intensity can have positive effects on the density of micro‐ and mesofaunal communities in areas subjected to long‐term intensive cultivation practices. Our results will be useful to support decision making on the management of soil faunal communities and will facilitate modelling efforts of soil biology in global agroecosystems. HIGHLIGHTS Global meta‐analysis to estimate the effect of reducing tillage intensity on micro‐ and mesofauna Reduced tillage or no‐tillage has positive effects on springtail, mite and enchytraeid density Effects vary among nematode feeding groups, springtail life forms and mite suborders Effects vary with texture, climate and depth and depend on the tillage method and frequency
    Description: Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347
    Description: https://doi.org/10.20387/bonares-eh0f-hj28
    Keywords: ddc:631.4 ; agricultural land use ; conservation agriculture ; conventional agriculture ; soil biodiversity ; soil cultivation
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 18
    Publication Date: 2021-06-28
    Description: Efforts to collaboratively manage the risk of flooding are ultimately based on individuals learning about risks, the decision process, and the effectiveness of decisions made in prior situations. This article argues that much can be learned about a governance setting by explicitly evaluating the relationships through which influential individuals and their immediate contacts receive and send information to one another. We define these individuals as “brokers,” and the networks that emerge from their interactions as “learning spaces.” The aim of this article is to develop strategies to identify and evaluate the properties of a broker's learning space that are indicative of a collaborative flood risk management arrangement. The first part of this article introduces a set of indicators, and presents strategies to employ this list so as to systematically identify brokers, and compare their learning spaces. The second part outlines the lessons from an evaluation that explored cases in two distinct flood risk management settings in Germany. The results show differences in the observed brokers' learning spaces. The contacts and interactions of the broker in Baden‐Württemberg imply a collaborative setting. In contrast, learning space of the broker in North Rhine‐Westphalia lacks the same level of diversity and polycentricity.
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Description: MWK Baden‐Württemberg
    Keywords: 333.91 ; brokerage ; collaborative water governance ; comanagement ; comparative analysis ; social networks
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 19
    Publication Date: 2021-07-04
    Description: Most common machine learning (ML) algorithms usually work well on balanced training sets, that is, datasets in which all classes are approximately represented equally. Otherwise, the accuracy estimates may be unreliable and classes with only a few values are often misclassified or neglected. This is known as a class imbalance problem in machine learning and datasets that do not meet this criterion are referred to as imbalanced data. Most datasets of soil classes are, therefore, imbalanced data. One of our main objectives is to compare eight resampling strategies that have been developed to counteract the imbalanced data problem. We compared the performance of five of the most common ML algorithms with the resampling approaches. The highest increase in prediction accuracy was achieved with SMOTE (the synthetic minority oversampling technique). In comparison to the baseline prediction on the original dataset, we achieved an increase of about 10, 20 and 10% in the overall accuracy, kappa index and F‐score, respectively. Regarding the ML approaches, random forest (RF) showed the best performance with an overall accuracy, kappa index and F‐score of 66, 60 and 57%, respectively. Moreover, the combination of RF and SMOTE improved the accuracy of the individual soil classes, compared to RF trained on the original dataset and allowed better prediction of soil classes with a low number of samples in the corresponding soil profile database, in our case for Chernozems. Our results show that balancing existing soil legacy data using synthetic sampling strategies can significantly improve the prediction accuracy in digital soil mapping (DSM). Highlights Spatial distribution of soil classes in Iran can be predicted using machine learning (ML) algorithms. The synthetic minority oversampling technique overcomes the drawback of imbalanced and highly biased soil legacy data. When combining a random forest model with synthetic sampling strategies the prediction accuracy of the soil model improves significantly. The resulting new soil map of Iran has a much higher spatial resolution compared to existing maps and displays new soil classes that have not yet been mapped in Iran.
    Description: Alexander von Humboldt‐Stiftung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100005156
    Description: German Research Foundation http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Description: Soil and Water Research Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization, Karaj, Iran
    Keywords: 631.4 ; covariates ; imbalanced data ; machine learning ; random forest ; soil legacy data
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 20
    Publication Date: 2021-06-16
    Description: The application of biochar to agricultural soils to increase nutrient availability, crop production and carbon sequestration has gained increasing interest but data from field experiments on temperate, marginal soils are still under‐represented. In the current study, biochar, produced from organic residues (digestates) from a biogas plant, was applied with and without digestates at low (3.4 t ha−1) and intermediate (17.1 t ha−1) rates to two acidic and sandy soils in northern Germany that are used for corn (Zea mays L.) production. Soil nutrient availability, crop yields, microbial biomass and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from heterotrophic respiration were measured over two consecutive years. The effects of biochar application depended on the intrinsic properties of the two tested soils and the biochar application rates. Although the soils at the fallow site, with initially low nutrient concentrations, showed a significant increase in pH, soil nutrients and crop yield after low biochar application rates, a similar response was found at the cornfield site only after application of substantially larger amounts of biochar. The effect of a single dose of biochar at the beginning of the experiment diminished over time but was still detectable after 2 years. Whereas plant available nutrient concentrations increased after biochar application, the availability of potentially phytotoxic trace elements (Zn, Pb, Cd, Cr) decreased significantly, and although slight increases in microbial biomass carbon and heterotrophic CO2 fluxes were observed after biochar application, they were mostly not significant. The results indicate that the application of relatively small amounts of biochar could have positive effects on plant available nutrients and crop yields of marginal arable soils and may decrease the need for mineral fertilizers while simultaneously increasing the sequestration of soil organic carbon. Highlights A low rate of biochar increased plant available nutrients and crop yield on marginal soils. Biochar application reduced the availability of potentially harmful trace elements. Heterotrophic respiration showed no clear response to biochar application. Biochar application may reduce fertilizer need and increase carbon sequestration on marginal soils.
    Description: German Academic Exchange Service http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001655
    Description: Institute Strategic Programme grants, “Soils to Nutrition”
    Keywords: 631.4 ; black carbon ; carbon sequestration ; corn ; digestate ; heterotrophic respiration ; marginal soils ; microbial biomass
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 21
    Publication Date: 2021-06-27
    Description: Social inequalities lead to flood resilience inequalities across social groups, a topic that requires improved documentation and understanding. The objective of this paper is to attend to these differences by investigating self‐stated flood recovery across genders in Vietnam as a conceptual replication of earlier results from Germany. This study employs a regression‐based analysis of 1,010 respondents divided between a rural coastal and an urban community in Thua Thien‐Hue province. The results highlight an important set of recovery process‐related variables. The set of relevant variables is similar across genders in terms of inclusion and influence, and includes age, social capital, internal and external support after a flood, perceived severity of previous flood impacts, and the perception of stress‐resilience. However, women were affected more heavily by flooding in terms of longer recovery times, which should be accounted for in risk management. Overall, the studied variables perform similarly in Vietnam and Germany. This study, therefore, conceptually replicates previous results suggesting that women display slightly slower recovery levels as well as that psychological variables influence recovery rates more than adverse flood impacts. This provides an indication of the results' potentially robust nature due to the different socio‐environmental contexts in Germany and Vietnam.
    Keywords: 333.7 ; flood recovery ; resilience ; societal equity ; vulnerability
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 22
    Publication Date: 2021-07-05
    Description: Nitrogen (N) fertilization is the major contributor to nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from agricultural soil, especially in post‐harvest seasons. This study was carried out to investigate whether ryegrass serving as cover crop affects soil N2O emissions and denitrifier community size. A microcosm experiment was conducted with soil planted with perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and bare soil, each with four levels of N fertilizer (0, 5, 10 and 20 g N m−2; applied as calcium ammonium nitrate). The closed‐chamber approach was used to measure soil N2O fluxes. Real‐time PCR was used to estimate the biomass of bacteria and fungi and the abundance of genes involved in denitrification in soil. The results showed that the presence of ryegrass decreased the nitrate content in soil. Cumulative N2O emissions of soil with grass were lower than in bare soil at 5 and 10 g N m−2. Fertilization levels did not affect the abundance of soil bacteria and fungi. Soil with grass showed greater abundances of bacteria and fungi, as well as microorganisms carrying narG, napA, nirK, nirS and nosZ clade I genes. It is concluded that ryegrass serving as a cover crop holds the potential to mitigate soil N2O emissions in soils with moderate or high NO3− concentrations. This highlights the importance of cover crops for the reduction of N2O emissions from soil, particularly following N fertilization. Future research should explore the full potential of ryegrass to reduce soil N2O emissions under field conditions as well as in different soils. Highlights This study was to investigate whether ryegrass serving as cover crop affects soil N2O emissions and denitrifier community size; Plant reduced soil N substrates on one side, but their root exudates stimulated denitrification on the other side; N2O emissions were lower in soil with grass than bare soil at medium fertilizer levels, and growing grass stimulated the proliferation of almost all the denitrifying bacteria except nosZ clade II; Ryegrass serving as a cover crop holds the potential to mitigate soil N2O emissions.
    Description: China Scholarship Council http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100004543
    Description: The National Science Project for University of Anhui Province
    Keywords: 551.9 ; 631.4 ; denitrification ; perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) ; soil bacteria ; soil CO2 emissions ; soil N2O emissions
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 23
    Publication Date: 2021-07-04
    Description: High‐performance numerical codes are an indispensable tool for hydrogeologists when modeling subsurface flow and transport systems. But as they are written in compiled languages, like C/C++ or Fortran, established software packages are rarely user‐friendly, limiting a wider adoption of such tools. OpenGeoSys (OGS), an open‐source, finite‐element solver for thermo‐hydro‐mechanical–chemical processes in porous and fractured media, is no exception. Graphical user interfaces may increase usability, but do so at a dramatic reduction of flexibility and are difficult or impossible to integrate into a larger workflow. Python offers an optimal trade‐off between these goals by providing a highly flexible, yet comparatively user‐friendly environment for software applications. Hence, we introduce ogs5py, a Python‐API for the OpenGeoSys 5 scientific modeling package. It provides a fully Python‐based representation of an OGS project, a large array of convenience functions for users to interact with OGS and connects OGS to the scientific and computational environment of Python.
    Description: German Federal Environmental Foundation http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100007636
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: 551.49 ; hydrogeology ; subsurface flow ; modeling ; software
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 24
    Publication Date: 2021-06-27
    Description: Transport processes that lead to exchange of mass between surface water and groundwater play a significant role for the ecological functioning of aquatic systems, for hydrological processes and for biogeochemical transformations. In this study, we present a novel integral modeling approach for flow and transport at the sediment–water interface. The model allows us to simultaneously simulate turbulent surface and subsurface flow and transport with the same conceptual approach. For this purpose, a conservative transport equation was implemented to an existing approach that uses an extended version of the Navier–Stokes equations. Based on previous flume studies which investigated the spreading of a dye tracer under neutral, losing and gaining flow conditions the new solver is validated. Tracer distributions of the experiments are in close agreement with the simulations. The simulated flow paths are significantly affected by in‐ and outflowing groundwater flow. The highest velocities within the sediment are found for losing condition, which leads to shorter residence times compared to neutral and gaining conditions. The largest extent of the hyporheic exchange flow is observed under neutral condition. The new solver can be used for further examinations of cases that are not suitable for the conventional coupled models, for example, if Reynolds numbers are larger than 10. Moreover, results gained with the integral solver provide high‐resolution information on pressure and velocity distributions at the rippled streambed, which can be used to improve flow predictions. This includes the extent of hyporheic exchange under varying ambient groundwater flow conditions.
    Description: Technische Universität Berlin, Germany
    Description: German Research Foundation http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001659
    Keywords: 551.4 ; aquatic systems ; sediment-water interface ; transport model
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 25
    Publication Date: 2021-07-05
    Description: Sustainable arable cropping relies on repeated liming. Yet, the associated increase in soil pH can reduce the availability of iron (Fe) to plants. We hypothesized that repeated liming, but not pedogenic processes such as lessivage (i.e., translocation of clay particles), alters the Fe cycle in Luvisol soil, thereby affecting Fe isotope composition in soils and crops. Hence, we analysed Fe concentrations and isotope compositions in soil profiles and winter rye from the long‐term agricultural experimental site in Berlin‐Dahlem, Germany, where a controlled liming trial with three field replicates per treatment has been conducted on Albic Luvisols since 1923. Heterogeneity in subsoil was observed at this site for Fe concentration but not for Fe isotope composition. Lessivage had not affected Fe isotope composition in the soil profiles. The results also showed that almost 100 years of liming lowered the concentration of the HCl‐extractable Fe that was potentially available for plant uptake in the surface soil (0–15 cm) from 1.03 (standard error (SE) 0.03) to 0.94 (SE 0.01) g kg−1. This HCl‐extractable Fe pool contained isotopically lighter Fe (δ56Fe = −0.05 to −0.29‰) than the bulk soil (δ56Fe = −0.08 to 0.08‰). However, its Fe isotope composition was not altered by the long‐term lime application. Liming resulted in relatively lower Fe concentrations in the roots of winter rye. In addition, liming led to a heavier Fe isotope composition of the whole plants compared with those grown in the non‐limed plots (δ56FeWholePlant_ + Lime = −0.12‰, SE 0.03 vs. δ56FeWholePlant_‐Lime = −0.21‰, SE 0.01). This suggests that the elevated soil pH (increased by one unit due to liming) promoted the Fe uptake strategy through complexation of Fe(III) from the rhizosphere, which favoured heavier Fe isotopes. Overall, the present study showed that liming and a related increase in pH did not affect the Fe isotope compositions of the soil, but may influence the Fe isotope composition of plants grown in the soil if they alter their Fe uptake strategy upon the change of Fe availability. Highlights Fe concentrations and stocks, but not Fe isotope compositions, were more heterogeneous in subsoil than in topsoil. Translocation of clay minerals did not result in Fe isotope fractionation in the soil profile of a Luvisol. Liming decreased Fe availability in topsoil, but did not affect its δ56Fe values. Uptake of heavier Fe isotopes by graminaceous crops was more pronounced at elevated pH.
    Description: Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347
    Keywords: 551.9 ; liming ; plant‐available Fe pool in soil ; winter rye ; δ56Fe
    Type: article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 26
    Publication Date: 2022-04-01
    Description: We present a workflow to estimate geostatistical aquifer parameters from pumping test data using the Python package welltestpy. The procedure of pumping test analysis is exemplified for two data sets from the Horkheimer Insel site and from the Lauswiesen site, Germany. The analysis is based on a semi‐analytical drawdown solution from the upscaling approach Radial Coarse Graining, which enables to infer log‐transmissivity variance and horizontal correlation length, beside mean transmissivity, and storativity, from pumping test data. We estimate these parameters of aquifer heterogeneity from type‐curve analysis and determine their sensitivity. This procedure, implemented in welltestpy, is a template for analyzing any pumping test. It goes beyond the possibilities of standard methods, for example, based on Theis' equation, which are limited to mean transmissivity and storativity. A sensitivity study showed the impact of observation well positions on the parameter estimation quality. The insights of this study help to optimize future test setups for geostatistical aquifer analysis and provides guidance for investigating pumping tests with regard to aquifer statistics using the open‐source software package welltestpy.
    Description: Article impact statement: We present a workflow to infer parameters of subsurface heterogeneity from pumping test data exemplified at two sites using welltestpy.
    Description: German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU) http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100007636
    Keywords: ddc:551.49
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 27
    Publication Date: 2022-04-01
    Description: In designed experiments, different sources of variability and an adequate scale of measurement need to be considered, but not all approaches in common usage are equally valid. In order to elucidate the importance of sources of variability and choice of scale, we conducted an experiment where the effects of biochar and slurry applications on soil properties related to soil fertility were studied for different designs: (a) for a field‐scale sampling design with either a model soil (without natural variability) as an internal control or with composited soils, (b) for a design with a focus on amendment variabilities, and (c) for three individual field‐scale designs with true field replication and a combined analysis representative of the population of loess‐derived soils. Three silty loam sites in Germany were sampled and the soil macroaggregates were crushed. For each design, six treatments (0, 0.15 and 0.30 g slurry‐N kg−1 with and without 30 g biochar kg−1) were applied before incubating the units under constant soil moisture conditions for 78 days. CO2 fluxes were monitored and soils were analysed for macroaggregate yields and associated organic carbon (C). Mixed‐effects models were used to describe the effects. For all soil properties, results for the loess sites differed with respect to significant contributions of fixed effects for at least one site, suggesting the need for a general inclusion of different sites. Analysis using a multilevel model allowed generalizations for loess soils to be made and showed that site:slurry:biochar and site:slurry interactions were not negligible for macroaggregate yields. The use of a model soil as an internal control enabled observation of variabilities other than those related to soils or amendments. Experiments incorporating natural variability in soils or amendments resulted in partially different outcomes, indicating the need to include all important sources of variability. Highlights Effects of biochar and slurry applications were studied for different designs and mixed‐effects models were used to describe the effects. Including an internal control allowed observation of, e.g., methodological and analytical variabilities. The results suggested the need for a general inclusion of different sites. Analysis using a multilevel model allowed generalizations for loess soils. The results indicated the need to include all important sources of variability.
    Keywords: ddc:631.4
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 28
    Publication Date: 2022-04-01
    Description: Temperate forest soils are often considered as an important sink for atmospheric carbon (C), thereby buffering anthropogenic CO2 emissions. However, the effect of tree species composition on the magnitude of this sink is unclear. We resampled a tree species common garden experiment (six sites) a decade after initial sampling to evaluate whether forest floor (FF) and topsoil organic carbon (Corg) and total nitrogen (Nt) stocks changed in dependence of tree species (Norway spruce—Picea abies L., European beech—Fagus sylvatica L., pedunculate oak—Quercus robur L., sycamore maple—Acer pseudoplatanus L., European ash—Fraxinus excelsior L. and small‐leaved lime—Tilia cordata L.). Two groups of species were identified in terms of Corg and Nt distribution: (1) Spruce with high Corg and Nt stocks in the FF developed as a mor humus layer which tended to have smaller Corg and Nt stocks and a wider Corg:Nt ratio in the mineral topsoil, and (2) the broadleaved species, of which ash and maple distinguished most clearly from spruce by very low Corg and Nt stocks in the FF developed as mull humus layer, had greater Corg and Nt stocks, and narrow Corg:Nt ratios in the mineral topsoil. Over 11 years, FF Corg and Nt stocks increased most under spruce, while small decreases in bulk mineral soil (esp. in 0–15 cm and 0–30 cm depth) Corg and Nt stocks dominated irrespective of species. Observed decadal changes were associated with site‐related and tree species‐mediated soil properties in a way that hinted towards short‐term accumulation and mineralisation dynamics of easily available organic substances. We found no indication for Corg stabilisation. However, results indicated increasing Nt stabilisation with increasing biomass of burrowing earthworms, which were highest under ash, lime and maple and lowest under spruce. Highlights We studied if tree species differences in topsoil Corg and Nt stocks substantiate after a decade. The study is unique in its repeated soil sampling in a multisite common garden experiment. Forest floors increased under spruce, but topsoil stocks decreased irrespective of species. Changes were of short‐term nature. Nitrogen was most stable under arbuscular mycorrhizal species.
    Description: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaff (DFG)
    Keywords: ddc:551.9 ; ddc:631.41
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 29
    Publication Date: 2021-09-29
    Description: Coping with the growing impacts of flooding in EU countries, a paradigm shift in flood management can be observed, moving from safety‐based towards risk‐based approaches and holistic perspectives. Flood resilience is a common denominator of most of the approaches. In this article, we present the ‘Flood Resilience Rose’ (FRR), a management tool to promote harmonised action towards flood resilience in European regions and beyond. The FRR is a result of a two‐step process. First, based on scientific concepts as well as analysis of relevant policy documents, we identified three ‘levels of operation’. The first level refers to the EU Floods Directive and an extended multi‐layer safety approach, comprising the four different layers of protection, prevention, preparedness and recovery, and related measures to be taken. This level is not independent but depends both on the institutional (second level) and the wider (third level) context. Second, we used surveys, semi‐structured interviews and group discussions during workshops with experts from Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom to validate the definitions and the FRR's practical relevance. The presented FRR is thus the result of rigorous theoretical and practical consideration and provides a tool capable to strengthen flood risk management practice.
    Description: European Regional Development Fund http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100008530
    Keywords: 551.48 ; flood defence measures ; governance and institutions ; integrated flood risk management ; resilience
    Type: map
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 30
    Publication Date: 2022-09-30
    Description: In recent years, German cities were heavily impacted by pluvial flooding and related damage is projected to increase due to climate change and urbanisation. It is important to ask how to improve urban pluvial flood risk management. To understand the current state of property level adaptation, a survey was conducted in four municipalities that had recently been impacted by pluvial flooding. A hybrid framework based on the Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) and the Protection Action Decision Model (PADM) was used to investigate drivers of adaptive behaviour through both descriptive and regression analyses. Descriptive statistics revealed that participants tended to instal more low‐ and medium‐cost measures than high‐cost measures. Regression analyses showed that coping appraisal increased protection motivation, but that the adaptive behaviour also depends on framing factors, particularly homeownership. We further found that, while threat appraisal solely affects protection motivation and responsibility appraisal affects solely maladaptive thinking, coping appraisal affects both. Our results indicate that PMT is a solid starting point to study adaptive behaviours in the context of pluvial flooding, but we need to go beyond that by, for instance, considering factors of the PADM, such as responsibility, ownership, or respondent age, to fully understand this complex decision‐making process.
    Description: Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347
    Keywords: ddc:551.489 ; ddc:363.34
    Language: English
    Type: doc-type:article
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 31
    Publication Date: 2020-01-02
    Description: Microplastics (MPs, 〈5 mm) have been reported as emerging environmental contaminants, but reliable data are still lacking. We compared the two most promising techniques for MP analysis, namely, Raman and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, by analyzing MPs extracted from North Sea surface waters. Microplastics 〉500 μm were visually sorted and manually analyzed by μ-Raman and attenuated total reflection (ATR)-FTIR spectroscopy. Microplastics ≤500 μm were concentrated on gold-coated filters and analyzed by automated single-particle exploration coupled to μ-Raman (ASPEx-μ-Raman) and FTIR imaging (reflection mode). The number of identified MPs 〉500 μm was slightly higher for μ-Raman (+23%) than ATR-FTIR analysis. Concerning MPs ≤500 μm, ASPEx-μ-Raman quantified two-times higher MP numbers but required a four-times higher analysis time compared to FTIR imaging. Because ASPEx-μ-Raman revealed far higher MP concentrations (38–2621 particles m–3) compared to the results of previous water studies (0–559 particles m–3), the environmental concentration of MPs ≤500 μm may have been underestimated until now. This may be attributed to the exceptional increase in concentration with decreasing MP size found in this work. Our results demonstrate the need for further research to enable time-efficient routine application of ASPEx-μ-Raman for reliable MP counting down to 1 μm.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 32
    Publication Date: 2021-01-08
    Description: The cage occupancy plays a crucial role in the thermodynamic stability of clathrate hydrates and is an important quantity for understanding the CO2–CH4 replacement phenomenon. In this work, the occupancy isotherms of pure CH4, pure CO2, and their mixture in sI and sII hydrates are studied by GCMC + MD simulations. The adsorption of CH4 and CO2 + CH4 in the sI and sII hydrates can be categorized as the one-site Langmuir type. The calculated occupancy ratio θL/θS and the abundance ratio of CO2 to CH4 vary with the temperature and pressure, which provide the prerequisite information for the prediction of CH4 recovery yield at different conditions in the CO2–CH4 gas exchange process. The phase equilibria of clathrate hydrates of pure gases and mixtures are explored and the corresponding heat of dissociation and hydration numbers are determined. The current investigation provides new perspectives to understand the mechanism behind the gas adsorption behavior of clathrate hydrates.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 33
    Publication Date: 2022-12-22
    Description: Infections arising from multidrug-resistant pathogenic bacteria are spreading rapidly throughout the world and threaten to become untreatable. The origins of resistance are numerous and complex, but one underlying factor is the capacity of bacteria to rapidly export drugs through the intrinsic activity of efflux pumps. In this Review, we describe recent advances that have increased our understanding of the structures and molecular mechanisms of multidrug efflux pumps in bacteria. Clinical and laboratory data indicate that efflux pumps function not only in the drug extrusion process but also in virulence and the adaptive responses that contribute to antimicrobial resistance during infection. The emerging picture of the structure, function and regulation of efflux pumps suggests opportunities for countering their activities.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 34
    Publication Date: 2020-06-25
    Description: Naturally produced polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) pervade the marine environment and structurally resemble toxic man-made brominated flame retardants. PBDEs bioaccumulate in marine animals and are likely transferred to the human food chain. However, the biogenic basis for PBDE production in one of their most prolific sources, marine sponges of the order Dysideidae, remains unidentified. Here, we report the discovery of PBDE biosynthetic gene clusters within sponge-microbiome-associated cyanobacterial endosymbionts through the use of an unbiased metagenome-mining approach. Using expression of PBDE biosynthetic genes in heterologous cyanobacterial hosts, we correlate the structural diversity of naturally produced PBDEs to modifications within PBDE biosynthetic gene clusters in multiple sponge holobionts. Our results establish the genetic and molecular foundation for the production of PBDEs in one of the most abundant natural sources of these molecules, further setting the stage for a metagenomic-based inventory of other PBDE sources in the marine environment.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 35
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    American Chemical Society (ACS)
    In:  Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 56 (44). pp. 12755-12762.
    Publication Date: 2020-02-06
    Description: The discharges from industrial processes constitute the main source of copper contamination in aqueous ecosystems. In this study we investigated the capacity of different types of biochar (derived from chicken manure, eucalyptus, corncob, olive mill and pine sawdust) to remove copper from aqueous solution in a continuous-flow system. The flow rate of the system strongly influenced the amount of copper retained. The adsorption to the corncob biochar varied from 5.51 to 3.48 mg Cu g-1 as the flux decreased from 13 to 2.5 mL min-1. The physicochemical characteristics of biochar determine the copper retention capacity and the underlying immobilization mechanisms. Biochars with high inorganic contents retain the largest amounts of copper and may be suitable for using in water treatment systems to remove heavy metals. The copper retention capacity of the biochars ranged between ~1.3 and 26 mg g-1 and varied in the following order: chicken manure 〉 olive mill 〉〉 corncob 〉 eucalyptus 〉 sawdust pine.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 36
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    American Chemical Society (ACS)
    In:  Environmental Science & Technolog, 51 (23). pp. 13733-13739.
    Publication Date: 2020-02-06
    Description: The majority of methane produced in many anoxic sediments is released via ebullition. These bubbles are subject to dissolution as they rise, and dissolution rates are strongly influenced by bubble size. Current understanding of natural methane bubble size distributions is limited by the difficulty in measuring bubble sizes over wide spatial or temporal scales. Our custom optical bubble size sensors recorded bubble sizes and release timing at 8 locations in Upper Mystic Lake, MA continuously for 3 months. Bubble size distributions were spatially heterogeneous even over relatively small areas experiencing similar flux, suggesting that localized sediment conditions are important to controlling bubble size. There was no change in bubble size distributions over the 3 month sampling period, but mean bubble size was positively correlated with daily ebullition flux. Bubble data was used to verify the performance of a widely used bubble dissolution model, and the model was then used to estimate that bubble dissolution accounts for approximately 10% of methane accumulated in the hypolimnion during summer stratification, and at most 15% of the diffusive air–water–methane flux from the epilimnion.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 37
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Methods, 13 (2). pp. 107-108.
    Publication Date: 2020-06-24
    Description: To the Editor: We congratulate Halsey et al. for their important discussion of the random nature of P values in an earlier issue of this journal1. P values from identical experiments can differ greatly in a way that is surprising to many2, 3, 4, 5, 6. The failure to appreciate this…
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Format: other
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 38
    Publication Date: 2020-06-23
    Description: High-throughput techniques based on restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (RADseq) are enabling the low-cost discovery and genotyping of thousands of genetic markers for any species, including non-model organisms, which is revolutionizing ecological, evolutionary and conservation genetics. Technical differences among these methods lead to important considerations for all steps of genomics studies, from the specific scientific questions that can be addressed, and the costs of library preparation and sequencing, to the types of bias and error inherent in the resulting data. In this Review, we provide a comprehensive discussion of RADseq methods to aid researchers in choosing among the many different approaches and avoiding erroneous scientific conclusions from RADseq data, a problem that has plagued other genetic marker types in the past.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 39
    Publication Date: 2023-12-21
    Description: Remarkable technological advances have revealed ever more properties and behaviours of individual microorganisms, but the novel data generated by these techniques have not yet been fully exploited. In this Opinion article, we explain how individual-based models (IBMs) can be constructed based on the findings of such techniques and how they help to explore competitive and cooperative microbial interactions. Furthermore, we describe how IBMs have provided insights into self-organized spatial patterns from biofilms to the oceans of the world, phage–CRISPR dynamics and other emergent phenomena. Finally, we discuss how combining individual-based observations with IBMs can advance our understanding at both the individual and population levels, leading to the new approach of microbial individual-based ecology (μIBE).
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 40
    Publication Date: 2024-04-12
    Description: Bacteria use quorum sensing to orchestrate gene expression programmes that underlie collective behaviours. Quorum sensing relies on the production, release, detection and group-level response to extracellular signalling molecules, which are called autoinducers. Recent work has discovered new autoinducers in Gram-negative bacteria, shown how these molecules are recognized by cognate receptors, revealed new regulatory components that are embedded in canonical signalling circuits and identified novel regulatory network designs. In this Review we examine how, together, these features of quorum sensing signal–response systems combine to control collective behaviours in Gram-negative bacteria and we discuss the implications for host–microbial associations and antibacterial therapy.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 41
    Publication Date: 2017-10-24
    Description: Mesoscale ocean eddies are ubiquitous coherent rotating structures of water with radial scales on the order of 100 kilometers. Eddies play a key role in the transport and mixing of momentum and tracers across the World Ocean. We present a global daily mesoscale ocean eddy dataset that contains ~45 million mesoscale features and 3.3 million eddy trajectories that persist at least two days as identified in the AVISO dataset over a period of 1993–2014. This dataset, along with the open-source eddy identification software, extract eddies with any parameters (minimum size, lifetime, etc.), to study global eddy properties and dynamics, and to empirically estimate the impact eddies have on mass or heat transport. Furthermore, our open-source software may be used to identify mesoscale features in model simulations and compare them to observed features. Finally, this dataset can be used to study the interaction between mesoscale ocean eddies and other components of the Earth System.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 42
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Reviews Microbiology, 13 (8). pp. 509-523.
    Publication Date: 2020-06-23
    Description: Microorganisms produce a wealth of structurally diverse specialized metabolites with a remarkable range of biological activities and a wide variety of applications in medicine and agriculture, such as the treatment of infectious diseases and cancer, and the prevention of crop damage. Genomics has revealed that many microorganisms have far greater potential to produce specialized metabolites than was thought from classic bioactivity screens; however, realizing this potential has been hampered by the fact that many specialized metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) are not expressed in laboratory cultures. In this Review, we discuss the strategies that have been developed in bacteria and fungi to identify and induce the expression of such silent BGCs, and we briefly summarize methods for the isolation and structural characterization of their metabolic products.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 43
    Publication Date: 2017-12-21
    Description: Cultivable Actinobacteria are the largest source of microbially derived bioactive molecules. The high demand for novel antibiotics highlights the need for exploring novel sources of these bacteria. Microbial symbioses with sessile macro-organisms, known to contain bioactive compounds likely of bacterial origin, represent an interesting and underexplored source of Actinobacteria. We studied the diversity and potential for bioactive-metabolite production of Actinobacteria associated with two marine lichens ( Lichina confinis and L. pygmaea ; from intertidal and subtidal zones) and one littoral lichen ( Roccella fuciformis ; from supratidal zone) from the Brittany coast (France), as well as the terrestrial lichen Collema auriforme (from a riparian zone, Austria). A total of 247 bacterial strains were isolated using two selective media. Isolates were identified and clustered into 101 OTUs (98% identity) including 51 actinobacterial OTUs. The actinobacterial families observed were: Brevibacteriaceae, Cellulomonadaceae, Gordoniaceae, Micrococcaceae, Mycobacteriaceae, Nocardioidaceae, Promicromonosporaceae, Pseudonocardiaceae, Sanguibacteraceae and Streptomycetaceae. Interestingly, the diversity was most influenced by the selective media rather than lichen species or the level of lichen thallus association. The potential for bioactive-metabolite biosynthesis of the isolates was confirmed by screening genes coding for polyketide synthases types I and II. These results show that littoral lichens are a source of diverse potentially bioactive Actinobacteria.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 44
    Publication Date: 2020-11-23
    Description: Large amounts of the greenhouse gas methane are released from the seabed to the water column1, where it may be consumed by aerobic methanotrophic bacteria2. The size and activity of methanotrophic communities, which determine the amount of methane consumed in the water column, are thought to be mainly controlled by nutrient and redox dynamics3–7. Here, we report repeated measurements of methanotrophic activity and community size at methane seeps west of Svalbard, and relate them to physical water mass properties and modelled ocean currents. We show that cold bottom water, which contained a large number of aerobic methanotrophs, was displaced by warmer water with a considerably smaller methanotrophic community within days. Ocean current simulations using a global ocean/sea-ice model suggest that this water mass exchange is consistent with short-term variations in the meandering West Spitsbergen Current. We conclude that the shift from an offshore to a nearshore position of the current can rapidly and severely reduce methanotrophic activity in the water column. Strong fluctuating currents are common at many methane seep systems globally, and we suggest that they affect methane oxidation in the water column at other sites, too.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 45
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Climate Change, 5 (1). pp. 71-79.
    Publication Date: 2017-02-24
    Description: Climate change is altering oceanic conditions in a complex manner, and the concurrent amendment of multiple properties will modify environmental stress for primary producers. So far, global modelling studies have focused largely on how alteration of individual properties will affect marine life. Here, we use global modelling simulations in conjunction with rotated factor analysis to express model projections in terms of regional trends in concomitant changes to biologically influential multi-stressors. Factor analysis demonstrates that regionally distinct patterns of complex oceanic change are evident globally. Preliminary regional assessments using published evidence of phytoplankton responses to complex change reveal a wide range of future responses to interactive multi-stressors with 〈20–300% shifts in phytoplankton physiological rates, and many unexplored potential interactions. In a future ocean, provinces will encounter different permutations of change that will probably alter the dominance of key phytoplankton groups and modify regional productivity, ecosystem structure and biogeochemistry. Consideration of regionally distinct multi-stressor patterns can help guide laboratory and field studies as well as the interpretation of interactive multi-stressors in global models.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 46
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Climate Change, 5 (1). pp. 12-14.
    Publication Date: 2017-04-13
    Description: Reflection on the rapidly growing field of ocean acidification research highlights priorities for future research on the changing ocean.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 47
    Publication Date: 2017-12-19
    Description: Thin oceanic crust is formed by decompression melting of the upper mantle at mid-ocean ridges, but the origin of the thick and buoyant continental crust is enigmatic. Juvenile continental crust may form from magmas erupted above intraoceanic subduction zones, where oceanic lithosphere subducts beneath other oceanic lithosphere. However, it is unclear why the subduction of dominantly basaltic oceanic crust would result in the formation of andesitic continental crust at the surface. Here we use geochemical and geophysical data to reconstruct the evolution of the Central American land bridge, which formed above an intra-oceanic subduction system over the past 70Myr. We find that the geochemical signature of erupted lavas evolved from basaltic to andesitic about 10Myr ago - coincident with the onset of subduction of more oceanic crust that originally formed above the Galápagos mantle plume. We also find that seismic P-waves travel through the crust at velocities intermediate between those typically observed for oceanic and continental crust. We develop a continentality index to quantitatively correlate geochemical composition with the average P-wave velocity of arc crust globally. We conclude that although the formation and evolution of continents may involve many processes, melting enriched oceanic crust within a subduction zone - a process probably more common in the Archaean - can produce juvenile continental crust.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 48
    Publication Date: 2017-12-19
    Description: The stomachs of most vertebrates operate at an acidic pH of 2 generated by the gastric H+/K+-ATPase located in parietal cells. The acidic pH in stomachs of vertebrates is believed to aid digestion and to protect against environmental pathogens. Little attention has been placed on whether acidic gastric pH regulation is a vertebrate character or a deuterostome ancestral trait. Here, we report alkaline conditions up to pH 10.5 in the larval digestive systems of ambulacraria (echinoderm + hemichordate), the closest relative of the chordate. Microelectrode measurements in combination with specific inhibitors for acid-base transporters and ion pumps demonstrated that the gastric alkalization machinery in sea urchin larvae is mainly based on direct H+ secretion from the stomach lumen and involves a conserved set of ion pumps and transporters. Hemichordate larvae additionally utilized HCO 3- transport pathways to generate even more alkaline digestive conditions. Molecular analyses in combination with acidification experiments supported these findings and identified genes coding for ion pumps energizing gastric alkalization. Given that insect larval guts were also reported to be alkaline, our discovery raises the hypothesis that the bilaterian ancestor utilized alkaline digestive system while the vertebrate lineage has evolved a strategy to strongly acidify their stomachs.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 49
    Publication Date: 2015-07-16
    Description: Symbiotic relationships between phytoplankton and N-2-fixing microorganisms play a crucial role in marine ecosystems. The abundant and widespread unicellular cyanobacteria group A (UCYN-A) has recently been found to live symbiotically with a haptophyte. Here, we investigated the effect of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), iron (Fe) and Saharan dust additions on nitrogen (N-2) fixation and primary production by the UCYN-A-haptophyte association in the subtropical eastern North Atlantic Ocean using nifH expression analysis and stable isotope incubations combined with single-cell measurements. N-2 fixation by UCYN-A was stimulated by the addition of Fe and Saharan dust, although this was not reflected in the nifH expression. CO2 fixation by the haptophyte was stimulated by the addition of ammonium nitrate as well as Fe and Saharan dust. Intriguingly, the single-cell analysis using nanometer scale secondary ion mass spectrometry indicates that the increased CO2 fixation by the haptophyte in treatments without added fixed N is likely an indirect result of the positive effect of Fe and/or P on UCYN-A N-2 fixation and the transfer of N-2-derived N to the haptophyte. Our results reveal a direct linkage between the marine carbon and nitrogen cycles that is fuelled by the atmospheric deposition of dust. The comparison of single-cell rates suggests a tight coupling of nitrogen and carbon transfer that stays balanced even under changing nutrient regimes. However, it appears that the transfer of carbon from the haptophyte to UCYN-A requires a transfer of nitrogen from UCYN-A. This tight coupling indicates an obligate symbiosis of this globally important diazotrophic association.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 50
    Publication Date: 2017-04-12
    Description: Quasi-decadal variability in solar irradiance has been suggested to exert a substantial effect on Earth’s regional climate. In the North Atlantic sector, the 11-year solar signal has been proposed to project onto a pattern resembling the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), with a lag of a few years due to ocean-atmosphere interactions. The solar/NAO relationship is, however, highly misrepresented in climate model simulations with realistic observed forcings. In addition, its detection is particularly complicated since NAO quasi-decadal fluctuations can be intrinsically generated by the coupled ocean-atmosphere system. Here we compare two multi-decadal ocean-atmosphere chemistry-climate simulations with and without solar forcing variability. While the experiment including solar variability simulates a 1–2-year lagged solar/NAO relationship, comparison of both experiments suggests that the 11-year solar cycle synchronizes quasi-decadal NAO variability intrinsic to the model. The synchronization is consistent with the downward propagation of the solar signal from the stratosphere to the surface.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 51
    Publication Date: 2017-02-20
    Description: Dissolved oxygen in sea water affects marine habitats and biogeochemical cycles. Oceanic zones with oxygen deficits represent 7% of the volume and 8% of the area of the oceans, and are thought to be expanding. One of the most pronounced lies in the region off Peru, where mesoscale activity in the form of fronts and eddies is strong. Here, we study the dynamics of the Peruvian oxygen minimum zone in a Lagrangian framework, using a coupled physical-biogeochemical numerical model and finite-size Lyapunov exponent fields, to evaluate the role of mesoscale activity. We find that, at depths between 380 and 600 m, mesoscale structures have two distinct roles. First, their mean positions and paths delimit and maintain the oxygen minimum zone boundaries. Second, their high-frequency fluctuations inject oxygen across the oxygen minimum zone boundaries and eddy fluxes are one order of magnitude higher than mean oxygen fluxes. We conclude that these eddy fluxes contribute to the ventilation of the Peruvian oxygen minimum zone.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 52
    Publication Date: 2021-04-23
    Description: The symbiotic association of corals and unicellular algae of the genus Symbiodinium in the southern Persian/Arabian Gulf (PAG) display an exceptional heat tolerance, enduring summer peak temperatures of up to 36 °C. As yet, it is not clear whether this resilience is related to the presence of specific symbiont types that are exclusively found in this region. Therefore, we used molecular markers to identify the symbiotic algae of three Porites species along 〉1000 km of coastline in the PAG and the Gulf of Oman and found that a recently described species, Symbiodinium thermophilum, is integral to coral survival in the southern PAG, the world’s hottest sea. Despite the geographic isolation of the PAG, we discovered that representatives of the S. thermophilum group can also be found in the adjacent Gulf of Oman providing a potential source of thermotolerant symbionts that might facilitate the adaptation of Indian Ocean populations to the higher water temperatures expected for the future. However, corals from the PAG associated with S. thermophilum show strong local adaptation not only to high temperatures but also to the exceptionally high salinity of their habitat. We show that their superior heat tolerance can be lost when these corals are exposed to reduced salinity levels common for oceanic environments elsewhere. Consequently, the salinity prevailing in most reefs outside the PAG might represent a distribution barrier for extreme temperature-tolerant coral/Symbiodinium associations from the PAG.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 53
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Global warming was reported to cause growth reductions in tropical shallow water corals in both, cooler and warmer, regions of the coral species range. This suggests regional adaptation with less heat-tolerant populations in cooler and more thermo-tolerant populations in warmer regions. Here, we investigated seasonal changes in the in situ metabolic performance of the widely distributed hermatypic coral Pocillopora verrucosa along 12 degrees latitudes featuring a steep temperature gradient between the northern (28.5 degrees N, 21-27 degrees C) and southern (16.5 degrees N, 28-33 degrees C) reaches of the Red Sea. Surprisingly, we found little indication for regional adaptation, but strong indications for high phenotypic plasticity: Calcification rates in two seasons (winter, summer) were found to be highest at 28-29 degrees C throughout all populations independent of their geographic location. Mucus release increased with temperature and nutrient supply, both being highest in the south. Genetic characterization of the coral host revealed low inter-regional variation and differences in the Symbiodinium clade composition only at the most northern and most southern region. This suggests variable acclimatization potential to ocean warming of coral populations across the Red Sea: high acclimatization potential in northern populations, but limited ability to cope with ocean warming in southern populations already existing at the upper thermal margin for corals
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 54
    Publication Date: 2017-04-12
    Description: Over the past 60 years, both average daily precipitation intensity and extreme precipitation have increased in many regions1, 2, 3. Part of these changes, or even individual events4, 5, have been attributed to anthropogenic warming6, 7. Over the Black Sea and Mediterranean region, the potential for extreme summertime convective precipitation has grown8 alongside substantial sea surface temperature increase. A particularly devastating convective event experienced in that region was the July 2012 precipitation extreme near the Black Sea town of Krymsk9. Here we study the effect of sea surface temperature (SST) increase on convective extremes within the region, taking the Krymsk event as a showcase example. We carry out ensemble sensitivity simulations with a convection-permitting atmospheric model and show the crucial role of SST increase in the extremeness of the event. The enhancement of lower tropospheric instability due to the current warmer Black Sea allows deep convection to be triggered, increasing simulated precipitation by more than 300% relative to simulations with SSTs characteristic of the early 1980s. A highly nonlinear precipitation response to incremental SST increase suggests that the Black Sea has exceeded a regional threshold for the intensification of convective extremes. The physical mechanism we identify indicates that Black Sea and Mediterranean coastal regions may face abrupt amplifications of convective precipitation under continued SST increase, and illustrates the limitations of thermodynamical bounds for estimating the temperature scaling of convective extremes.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 55
    Publication Date: 2017-12-19
    Description: To date, the parameters that determine the rupture area of great subduction zone earthquakes remain contentious. On 1 April 2014, the Mw 8.1 Iquique earthquake ruptured a portion of the well-recognized northern Chile seismic gap but left large highly coupled areas un-ruptured. Marine seismic reflection and swath bathymetric data indicate that structural variations in the subducting Nazca Plate control regional-scale plate-coupling variations, and the limited extent of the 2014 earthquake. Several under-thrusting seamounts correlate to the southward and up-dip arrest of seismic rupture during the 2014 Iquique earthquake, thus supporting a causal link. By fracturing of the overriding plate, the subducting seamounts are likely further responsible for reduced plate-coupling in the shallow subduction zone and in a lowly coupled region around 20.5°S. Our data support that structural variations in the lower plate influence coupling and seismic rupture offshore Northern Chile, whereas the structure of the upper plate plays a minor role.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 56
    Publication Date: 2021-04-23
    Description: Oceanic dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is an important carbon pool, similar in magnitude to atmospheric CO2, but the fate of its oldest forms is not well understood. Hot hydrothermal circulation may facilitate the degradation of otherwise un-reactive dissolved organic matter, playing an important role in the long-term global carbon cycle. The oldest, most recalcitrant forms of DOC, which make up most of oceanic DOC, can be recovered by solid-phase extraction. Here we present measurements of solid-phase extractable DOC from samples collected between 2009 and 2013 at seven vent sites in the Atlantic, Pacific and Southern oceans, along with magnesium concentrations, a conservative tracer of water circulation through hydrothermal systems. We find that magnesium and solid-phase extractable DOC concentrations are correlated, suggesting that solid-phase extractable DOC is almost entirely lost from solution through mineralization or deposition during circulation through hydrothermal vents with fluid temperatures of 212-401°C. In laboratory experiments, where we heated samples to 380°C for four days, we found a similar removal efficiency. We conclude that thermal degradation alone can account for the loss of solid-phase extractable DOC in natural hydrothermal systems, and that its maximum lifetime is constrained by the timescale of hydrothermal cycling, at about 40 million years
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 57
    Publication Date: 2016-11-03
    Description: Cold-water corals (CWC) are widely distributed around the world forming extensive reefs at par with tropical coral reefs. They are hotspots of biodiversity and organic matter processing in the world’s deep oceans. Living in the dark they lack photosynthetic symbionts and are therefore considered to depend entirely on the limited flux of organic resources from the surface ocean. While symbiotic relations in tropical corals are known to be key to their survival in oligotrophic conditions, the full metabolic capacity of CWC has yet to be revealed. Here we report isotope tracer evidence for efficient nitrogen recycling, including nitrogen assimilation, regeneration, nitrification and denitrification. Moreover, we also discovered chemoautotrophy and nitrogen fixation in CWC and transfer of fixed nitrogen and inorganic carbon into bulk coral tissue and tissue compounds (fatty acids and amino acids). This unrecognized yet versatile metabolic machinery of CWC conserves precious limiting resources and provides access to new nitrogen and organic carbon resources that may be essential for CWC to survive in the resource-depleted dark ocean.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed , info:eu-repo/semantics/article
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 58
    Publication Date: 2019-02-25
    Description: The interoceanic transfer of seawater between the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic, ‘Agulhas leakage’, forms a choke point for the overturning circulation in the global ocean. Here, by combining output from a series of high-resolution ocean and climate models with in situ and satellite observations, we construct a time series of Agulhas leakage for the period 1870–2014. The time series demonstrates the impact of Southern Hemisphere westerlies on decadal timescales. Agulhas leakage shows a correlation with the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation on multi-decadal timescales; the former leading by 15 years. This is relevant for climate in the North Atlantic
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 59
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Climate Change, 5 (4). pp. 343-347.
    Publication Date: 2017-04-13
    Description: Sea-level rise1 is one of the most pressing aspects of anthropogenic global warming with far-reaching consequences for coastal societies. However, sea-level rise did2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and will strongly vary from coast to coast8, 9, 10. Here we investigate the long-term internal variability effects on centennial projections of dynamic sea level (DSL), the local departure from the globally averaged sea level. A large ensemble of global warming integrations has been conducted with a climate model, where each realization was forced by identical CO2 increase but started from different atmospheric and oceanic initial conditions. In large parts of the mid- and high latitudes, the ensemble spread of the projected centennial DSL trends is of the same order of magnitude as the globally averaged steric sea-level rise, suggesting that internal variability cannot be ignored when assessing twenty-first-century DSL trends. The ensemble spread is considerably reduced in the mid- to high latitudes when only the atmospheric initial conditions differ while keeping the oceanic initial state identical; indicating that centennial DSL projections are strongly dependent on ocean initial conditions.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed , info:eu-repo/semantics/article
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 60
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Restructure data-gathering and evaluation networks to address climate change, energy, food, health and water provision, say Yonglong Lu and colleagues.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 61
    Publication Date: 2017-12-19
    Description: Global mean surface warming has stalled since the end of the twentieth century1, 2, but the net radiation imbalance at the top of the atmosphere continues to suggest an increasingly warming planet. This apparent contradiction has been reconciled by an anomalous heat flux into the ocean3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, induced by a shift towards a La Niña-like state with cold sea surface temperatures in the eastern tropical Pacific over the past decade or so. A significant portion of the heat missing from the atmosphere is therefore expected to be stored in the Pacific Ocean. However, in situ hydrographic records indicate that Pacific Ocean heat content has been decreasing9. Here, we analyse observations along with simulations from a global ocean–sea ice model to track the pathway of heat. We find that the enhanced heat uptake by the Pacific Ocean has been compensated by an increased heat transport from the Pacific Ocean to the Indian Ocean, carried by the Indonesian throughflow. As a result, Indian Ocean heat content has increased abruptly, which accounts for more than 70% of the global ocean heat gain in the upper 700 m during the past decade. We conclude that the Indian Ocean has become increasingly important in modulating global climate variability.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 62
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature, 521 (7553). pp. 428-430.
    Publication Date: 2017-12-19
    Description: An index of water-circulation strength in the North Atlantic Ocean has been derived from sea-level measurements. This provides fresh evidence of the ocean's leading role in multidecadal climate variability. See Letter p.508
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 63
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Increasingly, spatial geochemical zonation, present as geographically distinct, subparallel trends, is observed along hotspot tracks, such as Hawaii and the Galapagos. The origin of this zonation is currently unclear. Recently zonation was found along the last B70 Myr of the Tristan-Gough hotspot track. Here we present new Sr–Nd–Pb–Hf isotope data from the older parts of this hotspot track (Walvis Ridge and Rio Grande Rise) and re-evaluate published data from the Etendeka and Parana flood basalts erupted at the initiation of the hotspot track. We show that only the enriched Gough, but not the less-enriched Tristan, component is present in the earlier (70–132 Ma) history of the hotspot. Here we present a model that can explain the temporal evolution and origin of plume zonation for both the Tristan-Gough and Hawaiian hotspots, two end member types of zoned plumes, through processes taking place in the plume sources at the base of the lower mantle.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 64
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations are causing ocean acidification (OA), altering carbonate chemistry with consequences for marine organisms. Here we show that OA increases by 46–212% the production of phenolic compounds in phytoplankton grown under the elevated CO2 concentrations projected for the end of this century, compared with the ambient CO2 level. At the same time, mitochondrial respiration rate is enhanced under elevated CO2 concentrations by 130–160% in a single species or mixed phytoplankton assemblage. When fed with phytoplankton cells grown under OA, zooplankton assemblages have significantly higher phenolic compound content, by about 28–48%. The functional consequences of the increased accumulation of toxic phenolic compounds in primary and secondary producers have the potential to have profound consequences for marine ecosystem and seafood quality, with the possibility that fishery industries could be influenced as a result of progressive ocean changes
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 65
    Publication Date: 2020-11-09
    Description: Coexisting bacteria form various microbial communities in human body parts. In these ecosystems they interact in various ways and the properties of the interaction network can be related to the stability and functional diversity of the local bacterial community. In this study, we analyze the interaction network among bacterial OTUs in 11 locations of the human body. These belong to two major groups. One is the digestive system and the other is the female genital tract. In each local ecosystem we determine the key species, both the ones being in key positions in the interaction network and the ones that dominate by frequency. Beyond identifying the key players and discussing their biological relevance, we also quantify and compare the properties of the 11 networks. The interaction networks of the female genital system and the digestive system show totally different architecture. Both the topological properties and the identity of the key groups differ. Key groups represent four phyla of prokaryotes. Some groups appear in key positions in several locations, while others are assigned only to a single body part. The key groups of the digestive and the genital tracts are totally different.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 66
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Climate Change, 5 (1). pp. 4-6.
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: A sustainable global ocean observation system requires timely implementation of the framework for ocean observing. The recent Qingdao Global Ocean Summit highlighted the need for a more coherent institutional response to maintain an integrated ocean-observing system.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 67
    Publication Date: 2019-02-25
    Description: Fossils of marine microorganisms such as planktic foraminifera are among the cornerstones of palaeoclimatological studies. It is often assumed that the proxies derived from their shells represent ocean conditions above the location where they were deposited. Planktic foraminifera, however, are carried by ocean currents and, depending on the life traits of the species, potentially incorporate distant ocean conditions. Here we use high-resolution ocean models to assess the footprint of planktic foraminifera and validate our method with proxy analyses from two locations. Results show that foraminifera, and thus recorded palaeoclimatic conditions, may originate from areas up to several thousands of kilometres away, reflecting an ocean state significantly different from the core site. In the eastern equatorial regions and the western boundary current extensions, the offset may reach 1.5 °C for species living for a month and 3.0 °C for longer-living species. Oceanic transport hence appears to be a crucial aspect in the interpretation of proxy signals.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 68
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  The ISME Journal, 9 (3). pp. 670-682.
    Publication Date: 2017-04-13
    Description: Microbiota provide their hosts with a range of beneficial services, including defense from external pathogens. However, host-associated microbial communities themselves can act as a source of opportunistic pathogens depending on the environment. Marine poikilotherms and their microbiota are strongly influenced by temperature, but experimental studies exploring how temperature affects the interactions between both parties are rare. To assess the effects of temperature, temperature stress and infection on diversity, composition and dynamics of the hemolymph microbiota of Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas), we conducted an experiment in a fully-crossed, three-factorial design, in which the temperature acclimated oysters (8 or 22 °C) were exposed to temperature stress and to experimental challenge with a virulent Vibrio sp. Strain. We monitored oyster survival and repeatedly collected hemolymph of dead and alive animals to determine the microbiome composition by 16s rRNA gene amplicon pyrosequencing. We found that the microbial dynamics and composition of communities in healthy animals (including infection survivors) were significantly affected by temperature and temperature stress, but not by infection. The response was mediated by changes in the incidence and abundance of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) and accompanied by little change at higher taxonomic levels, indicating dynamic stability of the hemolymph microbiome. Dead and moribund oysters, on the contrary, displayed signs of community structure disruption, characterized by very low diversity and proliferation of few OTUs. We can therefore link short-term responses of host-associated microbial communities to abiotic and biotic factors and assess the potential feedback between microbiota dynamics and host survival during disease.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 69
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Climate Change, 5 (5). pp. 419-423.
    Publication Date: 2017-12-19
    Description: The useful energy services and energy density value of fossil carbon fuels could be retained for longer timescales into the future if their combustion is balanced by CO2 recapture and storage. We assess the global balance between fossil carbon supply and the sufficiency (size) and capability (technology, security) of candidate carbon stores. A hierarchy of value for extraction-to-storage pairings is proposed, which is augmented by classification of CO2 containment as temporary (〈1,000 yr) or permanent (〉100,000 yr). Using temporary stores is inefficient and defers an intergenerational problem. Permanent storage capacity is adequate to technically match current fossil fuel reserves. However, rates of storage creation cannot balance current and expected rates of fossil fuel extraction and CO2 consequences. Extraction of conventional natural gas is uniquely holistic because it creates the capacity to re-inject an equivalent tonnage of carbon for storage into the same reservoir and can re-use gas-extraction infrastructure for storage. By contrast, balancing the extraction of coal, oil, biomass and unconventional fossil fuels requires the engineering and validation of additional carbon storage. Such storage is, so far, unproven in sufficiency.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 70
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Ocean islands, seamounts and volcanic ridges are thought to form above mantle plumes. Yet, this mechanism cannot explain many volcanic features on the Pacific Ocean floor and some might instead be caused by cracks in the oceanic crust linked to the reorganization of plate motions. A distinctive bend in the Hawaiian–Emperor volcanic chain has been linked to changes in the direction of motion of the Pacific Plate, movement of the Hawaiian plume, or a combination of both. However, these links are uncertain because there is no independent record that precisely dates tectonic events that affected the Pacific Plate. Here we analyse the geochemical characteristics of lava samples collected from the Musicians Ridges, lines of volcanic seamounts formed close to the Hawaiian–Emperor bend. We find that the geochemical signature of these lavas is unlike typical ocean island basalts and instead resembles mid-ocean ridge basalts. We infer that the seamounts are unrelated to mantle plume activity and instead formed in an extensional setting, due to deformation of the Pacific Plate. 40Ar/39Ar dating reveals that the Musicians Ridges formed during two time windows that bracket the time of formation of the Hawaiian–Emperor bend, 53–52 and 48–47 million years ago. We conclude that the Hawaiian–Emperor bend was formed by plate–mantle reorganization, potentially triggered by a series of subduction events at the Pacific Plate margins.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Format: archive
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 71
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Methods, 12 (5). pp. 377-378.
    Publication Date: 2020-06-24
    Description: Today’s predictions are tomorrow’s priors
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 72
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Climate Change, 5 (12). pp. 1107-1113.
    Publication Date: 2017-04-11
    Description: Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) from the atmosphere has been proposed as a measure for mitigating global warming and ocean acidification. To assess the extent to which CDR might eliminate the long-term consequences of anthropogenic CO2 emissions in the marine environment, we simulate the effect of two massive CDR interventions with CO2 extraction rates of 5 GtC yr(-1) and 25 GtC yr(-1), respectively, while CO2 emissions follow the extended RCP8.5 pathway. We falsify two hypotheses: the first being that CDR can restore pre-industrial conditions in the ocean by reducing the atmospheric CO2 concentration back to its pre-industrial level, and the second being that high CO2 emissions rates (RCP8.5) followed by CDR have long-term oceanic consequences that are similar to those of low emissions rates (RCP2.6). Focusing on pH, temperature and dissolved oxygen, we find that even after several centuries of CDR deployment, past CO2 emissions would leave a substantial legacy in the marine environment.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 73
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, 14 (2). pp. 111-129.
    Publication Date: 2020-06-23
    Description: Natural products have been a rich source of compounds for drug discovery. However, their use has diminished in the past two decades, in part because of technical barriers to screening natural products in high-throughput assays against molecular targets. Here, we review strategies for natural product screening that harness the recent technical advances that have reduced these barriers. We also assess the use of genomic and metabolomic approaches to augment traditional methods of studying natural products, and highlight recent examples of natural products in antimicrobial drug discovery and as inhibitors of protein–protein interactions. The growing appreciation of functional assays and phenotypic screens may further contribute to a revival of interest in natural products for drug discovery.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 74
    Publication Date: 2020-06-25
    Description: Crossover recombination reshuffies genes and prevents errors in segregation tha't Iead to extra or missing chromosomes (aneuploidy) in human eggs, a major cause of pregnancy failure and congenital disorders. Here we generate genome-wide maps of cro~sovers and chromosome segregation patterns by recovering all three products of single female meioses. Genotyping 〉4 millioninformative SNPs from 23 complete meioses allowed us to map 2,032 maternal and 1,342 paternal crossovers and to infer the segregation patterns of 529 chromosome pairs. We uncover a new reverse chromosome segregation pattern in which both homologsseparate their sister chromatids at meiosis I; detect selection for higher recombination rates in the female germ line by the elimination of aneuploid embryos; and report chromosomal drive against non recombinant chromatids at meiosis II. Collectively, our findings show !hat recombination not only affects homolog segregation at meiosis I but also the fate of sister chromatids at meiosis II.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 75
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  The ISME Journal, 9 (3). pp. 696-707.
    Publication Date: 2019-01-17
    Description: Thiomicrospira species are ubiquitously found in various marine environments and appear particularly common in hydrothermal vent systems. Members of this lineage are commonly classified as sulfur-oxidizing chemolithoautotrophs. Although sequencing of Thiomicrospira crunogena's genome has revealed genes that encode enzymes for hydrogen uptake activity and for hydrogenase maturation and assembly, hydrogen uptake ability has so far not been reported for any Thiomicrospira species. We isolated a Thiomicrospira species (SP-41) from a deep sea hydrothermal vent and demonstrated that it can oxidize hydrogen. We show in vivo hydrogen consumption, hydrogen uptake activity in partially purified protein extracts and transcript abundance of hydrogenases during different growth stages. The ability of this strain to oxidize hydrogen opens up new perspectives with respect to the physiology of Thiomicrospira species that have been detected in hydrothermal vents and that have so far been exclusively associated with sulfur oxidation.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 76
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature, 522 (7554). pp. 36-37.
    Publication Date: 2019-03-05
    Description: The identification of an exchange of nutrients and signalling molecules between a planktonic alga and a bacterium demonstrates that targeted mutualistic interactions occur across domains of life in the oceans. See Letter p.98
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 77
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    American Chemical Society (ACS)
    In:  Environmental Science & Technology, 49 (22). pp. 13121-13129.
    Publication Date: 2019-10-24
    Description: Laboratory sediment incubations and continuous ebullition monitoring over an annual cycle in the temperate Saar River, Germany confirm that impounded river zones can produce and emit methane at high rates (7 to 30 (g CH4 m–3 d–1) at 25 °C and 270 to 700 (g CH4 m–2 yr–1), respectively). Summer methane ebullition (ME) peaks were a factor of 4 to 10 times the winter minima, and sediment methane formation was dominated by the upper sediment (depths of 0.14 to 0.2 m). The key driver of the seasonal ME dynamics was temperature. An empirical model relating methane formation to temperature and sediment depth, derived from the laboratory incubations, reproduced the measured daily ebullition from winter to midsummer, although late summer and autumn simulated ME exceeded the observed ME. A possible explanation for this was substrate limitation. We recommend measurements of methanogenically available carbon sources to identify substrate limitation and help characterize variation in methane formation with depth and from site to site.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 78
    Publication Date: 2019-03-05
    Description: Particles in aquatic environments host distinct communities of microbes, yet the evolution of particlespecialized taxa and the extent to which specialized microbial metabolism is associated with particles is largely unexplored. Here, we investigate the hypothesis that a widely distributed and uncultivated microbial group - the marine group II euryarchaea (MGII) - interacts with living and detrital particulate organic matter (POM) in the euphotic zone of the central California Current System. Using fluorescent in situ hybridization, we verified the association of euryarchaea with POM. We further quantified the abundance and distribution of MGII 16S ribosomal RNA genes in size-fractionated seawater samples and compared MGII functional capacity in metagenomes from the same fractions. The abundance of MGII in free-living and 〈3 μm fractions decreased with increasing distance from the coast, whereas MGII abundance in the 0.8-3 lm fraction remained constant. At several offshore sites, MGII abundance was highest in particle fractions, indicating that particle-attached MGII can outnumber free-living MGII under oligotrophic conditions. Compared with free-living MGII, the genome content of MGII in particleassociated fractions exhibits an increased capacity for surface adhesion, transcriptional regulation and catabolism of high molecular weight substrates. Moreover, MGII populations in POM fractions are phylogenetically distinct from and more diverse than free-living MGII. Eukaryotic phytoplankton additions stimulated MGII growth in bottle incubations, providing the first MGII net growth rate measurements. These ranged from 0.47 to 0.54 d-1. However, MGII were not recovered in wholegenome amplifications of flow-sorted picoeukaryotic phytoplankton and heterotrophic nanoflagellates, suggesting that MGII in particle fractions are not physically attached to living POM. Collectively, our results support a linkage between MGII ecophysiology and POM, implying that marine archaea have a role in elemental cycling through interactions with particles. © 2015 International Society for Microbial Ecology. All rights reserved.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 79
    Publication Date: 2019-03-05
    Description: Algae with secondary plastids of a red algal origin, such as ochrophytes (photosynthetic stramenopiles), are diverse and ecologically important, yet their evolutionary history remains controversial. We sequenced plastid genomes of two ochrophytes, Ochromonas sp. CCMP1393 (Chrysophyceae) and Trachydiscus minutus (Eustigmatophyceae). A shared split of the clpC gene as well as phylogenomic analyses of concatenated protein sequences demonstrated that chrysophytes and eustigmatophytes form a clade, the Limnista, exhibiting an unexpectedly elevated rate of plastid gene evolution. Our analyses also indicate that the root of the ochrophyte phylogeny falls between the recently redefined Khakista and Phaeista assemblages. Taking advantage of the expanded sampling of plastid genome sequences, we revisited the phylogenetic position of the plastid of Vitrella brassicaformis, a member of Alveolata with the least derived plastid genome known for the whole group. The results varied depending on the dataset and phylogenetic method employed, but suggested that the Vitrella plastids emerged from a deep ochrophyte lineage rather than being derived vertically from a hypothetical plastid-bearing common ancestor of alveolates and stramenopiles. Thus, we hypothesize that the plastid in Vitrella, and potentially in other alveolates, may have been acquired by an endosymbiosis of an early ochrophyte.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 80
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Extreme, abrupt Northern Hemisphere climate oscillations during the last glacial cycle (140,000 years ago to present) were modulated by changes in ocean circulation and atmospheric forcing. However, the variability of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC), which has a role in controlling heat transport from low to high latitudes and in ocean CO2 storage, is still poorly constrained beyond the Last Glacial Maximum. Here we show that a deep and vigorous overturning circulation mode has persisted for most of the last glacial cycle, dominating ocean circulation in the Atlantic, whereas a shallower glacial mode with southern-sourced waters filling the deep western North Atlantic prevailed during glacial maxima. Our results are based on a reconstruction of both the strength and the direction of the AMOC during the last glacial cycle from a highly resolved marine sedimentary record in the deep western North Atlantic. Parallel measurements of two independent chemical water tracers (the isotope ratios of 231Pa/230Th and 143Nd/144Nd), which are not directly affected by changes in the global cycle, reveal consistent responses of the AMOC during the last two glacial terminations. Any significant deviations from this configuration, resulting in slowdowns of the AMOC, were restricted to centennial-scale excursions during catastrophic iceberg discharges of the Heinrich stadials. Severe and multicentennial weakening of North Atlantic Deep Water formation occurred only during Heinrich stadials close to glacial maxima with increased ice coverage, probably as a result of increased fresh-water input. In contrast, the AMOC was relatively insensitive to submillennial meltwater pulses during warmer climate states, and an active AMOC prevailed during Dansgaard–Oeschger interstadials (Greenland warm periods).
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 81
    Publication Date: 2022-09-21
    Description: Plant species diversity regulates the productivity1–3 and stability2,4 of natural ecosystems, along with their resilience to disturbance5,6. The influence of species diversity on the productivity of agronomic systems is less clear7–10. Plant genetic diversity is also suspected to influence ecosystem function3,11–14, although empirical evidence is scarce. Given the large range of genotypes that can be generated per species through artificial selection, genetic diversity is a potentially important leverage of productivity in cultivated systems. Here we assess the effect of species and genetic diversity on the production and sustainable supply of livestock fodder in sown grasslands, comprising single and multispecies assemblages characterized by different levels of genetic diversity, exposed to drought and non-drought conditions. Multispecies assemblages proved more productive than monocultures when subject to drought, regardless of the number of genotypes per species present. Conversely, the temporal stability of production increased only with the number of genotypes present under both drought and non-drought conditions, and was unaffected by the number of species. We conclude that taxonomic and genetic diversity can play complementary roles when it comes to optimizing livestock fodder production in managed grasslands, and suggest that both levels of diversity should be considered in plant breeding programmes designed to boost the productivity and resilience of managed grasslands in the face of increasing environmental hazards.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 82
    Publication Date: 2023-09-19
    Description: Nitrous oxide is a potent greenhouse gas and a key compound in stratospheric ozone depletion. In the ocean, nitrous oxide is produced at intermediate depths through nitrification and denitrification, in particular at low oxygen concentrations. Although a third of natural emissions of nitrous oxide to the atmosphere originate from the ocean, considerable uncertainties in the distribution and magnitude of the emissions still exist. Here we present high-resolution surface measurements and vertical profiles of nitrous oxide that include the highest reported nitrous oxide concentrations in marine surface waters, suggesting that there is a hotspot of nitrous oxide emissions in high-productivity upwelling ecosystems along the Peruvian coast. We estimate that off Peru, the extremely high nitrous oxide supersaturations we observed drive a massive efflux of 0.2–0.9 Tg of nitrogen emitted as nitrous oxide per year, equivalent to 5–22% of previous estimates of global marine nitrous oxide emissions. Nutrient and gene abundance data suggest that coupled nitrification–denitrification in the upper oxygen minimum zone and transport of resulting nitrous oxide to the surface by upwelling lead to the high nitrous oxide concentrations. Our estimate of nitrous oxide emissions from the Peruvian coast surpasses values from similar, highly productive areas.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 83
    Publication Date: 2023-11-29
    Description: Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RubisCO) is a key enzyme of the Calvin cycle, which is responsible for most of Earth's primary production. Although research on RubisCO genes and enzymes in plants, cyanobacteria and bacteria has been ongoing for years, still little is understood about its regulation and activation in bacteria. Even more so, hardly any information exists about the function of metagenomic RubisCOs and the role of the enzymes encoded on the flanking DNA owing to the lack of available function-based screens for seeking active RubisCOs from the environment. Here we present the first solely activity-based approach for identifying RubisCO active fosmid clones from a metagenomic library. We constructed a metagenomic library from hydrothermal vent fluids and screened 1056 fosmid clones. Twelve clones exhibited RubisCO activity and the metagenomic fragments resembled genes from Thiomicrospira crunogena. One of these clones was further analyzed. It contained a 35.2 kb metagenomic insert carrying the RubisCO gene cluster and flanking DNA regions. Knockouts of twelve genes and two intergenic regions on this metagenomic fragment demonstrated that the RubisCO activity was significantly impaired and was attributed to deletions in genes encoding putative transcriptional regulators and those believed to be vital for RubisCO activation. Our new technique revealed a novel link between a poorly characterized gene and RubisCO activity. This screen opens the door to directly investigating RubisCO genes and respective enzymes from environmental samples.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 84
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Reviews Microbiology, 12 (10). pp. 686-698.
    Publication Date: 2020-06-23
    Description: Marine phytoplankton blooms are annual spring events that sustain active and diverse bloom-associated bacterial populations. Blooms vary considerably in terms of eukaryotic species composition and environmental conditions, but a limited number of heterotrophic bacterial lineages — primarily members of the Flavobacteriia, Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria — dominate these communities. In this Review, we discuss the central role that these bacteria have in transforming phytoplankton-derived organic matter and thus in biogeochemical nutrient cycling. On the basis of selected field and laboratory-based studies of flavobacteria and roseobacters, distinct metabolic strategies are emerging for these archetypal phytoplankton-associated taxa, which provide insights into the underlying mechanisms that dictate their behaviours during blooms.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 85
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    American Chemical Society (ACS)
    In:  Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 53 (17). pp. 6998-7007.
    Publication Date: 2018-01-03
    Description: Structure I methane hydrates are formed in situ from water-in-mineral oil emulsions in a high pressure rheometer cell. Viscosity is measured as hydrates form, grow, change under flow, and dissociate. Experiments are performed at varying water volume fraction in the original emulsion (0–0.40), temperature (0–6 °C), and initial pressure of methane (750–1500 psig). Hydrate slurries exhibit a sharp increase in viscosity upon hydrate formation, followed by complex behavior dictated by factors including continued hydrate formation, shear alignment, methane depletion/dissolution, aggregate formation, and capillary bridging. Hydrate slurries possess a yield stress and are shear-thinning fluids, which are described by the Cross model. Hydrate slurry viscosity and yield stress increased with increasing water volume fraction. As driving force for hydrate formation decreases (increasing temperature, decreasing pressure), hydrate slurry viscosity increases, suggesting that slower hydrate formation leads to larger and more porous aggregates. In total, addition of water to a methane saturated oil can cause more than a fifty-fold increase in viscosity if hydrates form.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 86
    Publication Date: 2020-06-24
    Description: The synthetic production of monodisperse single magnetic domain nanoparticles at ambient temperature is challenging. In nature, magnetosomes--membrane-bound magnetic nanocrystals with unprecedented magnetic properties--can be biomineralized by magnetotactic bacteria. However, these microbes are difficult to handle. Expression of the underlying biosynthetic pathway from these fastidious microorganisms within other organisms could therefore greatly expand their nanotechnological and biomedical applications. So far, this has been hindered by the structural and genetic complexity of the magnetosome organelle and insufficient knowledge of the biosynthetic functions involved. Here, we show that the ability to biomineralize highly ordered magnetic nanostructures can be transferred to a foreign recipient. Expression of a minimal set of genes from the magnetotactic bacterium Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense resulted in magnetosome biosynthesis within the photosynthetic model organism Rhodospirillum rubrum. Our findings will enable the sustainable production of tailored magnetic nanostructures in biotechnologically relevant hosts and represent a step towards the endogenous magnetization of various organisms by synthetic biology.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 87
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Reviews Microbiology, 12 (10). pp. 686-698.
    Publication Date: 2020-06-23
    Description: Marine phytoplankton blooms are annual spring events that sustain active and diverse bloom-associated bacterial populations. Blooms vary considerably in terms of eukaryotic species composition and environmental conditions, but a limited number of heterotrophic bacterial lineages — primarily members of the Flavobacteriia, Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria — dominate these communities. In this Review, we discuss the central role that these bacteria have in transforming phytoplankton-derived organic matter and thus in biogeochemical nutrient cycling. On the basis of selected field and laboratory-based studies of flavobacteria and roseobacters, distinct metabolic strategies are emerging for these archetypal phytoplankton-associated taxa, which provide insights into the underlying mechanisms that dictate their behaviours during blooms.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 88
    Publication Date: 2018-04-03
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 89
    Publication Date: 2015-07-24
    Description: Collectively, marine sediments comprise the largest reservoir of methane on Earth. The flux of methane from the sea bed to the overlying water column is mitigated by the sulphate-dependent anaerobic oxidation of methane by marine microbes within a discrete sedimentary horizon termed the sulphate–methane transition zone. According to conventional isotope systematics, the biological consumption of methane leaves a residue of methane enriched in 13C (refs 1, 2, 3). However, in many instances the methane within sulphate–methane transition zones is depleted in 13C, consistent with the production of methane, and interpreted as evidence for the intertwined anaerobic oxidation and production of methane4, 5, 6. Here, we report results from experiments in which we incubated cultures of microbial methane consumers with methane and low levels of sulphate, and monitored the stable isotope composition of the methane and dissolved inorganic carbon pools over time. Residual methane became progressively enriched in 13C at sulphate concentrations above 0.5 mM, and progressively depleted in 13C below this threshold. We attribute the shift to 13C depletion during the anaerobic oxidation of methane at low sulphate concentrations to the microbially mediated carbon isotope equilibration between methane and carbon dioxide. We suggest that this isotopic effect could help to explain the 13C-depletion of methane in subseafloor sulphate–methane transition zones.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 90
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, 15 (10). pp. 647-664.
    Publication Date: 2020-06-23
    Description: Mammalian organs are challenging to study as they are fairly inaccessible to experimental manipulation and optical observation. Recent advances in three-dimensional (3D) culture techniques, coupled with the ability to independently manipulate genetic and microenvironmental factors, have enabled the real-time study of mammalian tissues. These systems have been used to visualize the cellular basis of epithelial morphogenesis, to test the roles of specific genes in regulating cell behaviours within epithelial tissues and to elucidate the contribution of microenvironmental factors to normal and disease processes. Collectively, these novel models can be used to answer fundamental biological questions and generate replacement human tissues, and they enable testing of novel therapeutic approaches, often using patient-derived cells.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 91
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Geoscience, 7 (3). pp. 160-161.
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Decadal climate variability has long received limited attention. With the slow-down in surface warming since the late 1990s, the decadal scale has rightly become a focus of attention: for assessing climate change and its impacts, it is of critical importance
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 92
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Changes in solar activity have previously been proposed to cause decadal- to millennial-scale fluctuations in both the modern and Holocene climates1. Direct observational records of solar activity, such as sunspot numbers, exist for only the past few hundred years, so solar variability for earlier periods is typically reconstructed from measurements of cosmogenic radionuclides such as 10Be and 14C from ice cores and tree rings2, 3. Here we present a high-resolution 10Be record from the ice core collected from central Greenland by the Greenland Ice Core Project (GRIP). The record spans from 22,500 to 10,000 years ago, and is based on new and compiled data4, 5, 6. Using 14C records7, 8 to control for climate-related influences on 10Be deposition, we reconstruct centennial changes in solar activity. We find that during the Last Glacial Maximum, solar minima correlate with more negative δ18O values of ice and are accompanied by increased snow accumulation and sea-salt input over central Greenland. We suggest that solar minima could have induced changes in the stratosphere that favour the development of high-pressure blocking systems located to the south of Greenland, as has been found in observations and model simulations for recent climate9, 10. We conclude that the mechanism behind solar forcing of regional climate change may have been similar under both modern and Last Glacial Maximum climate conditions.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 93
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Although ocean warming and acidification are recognized as two major anthropogenic perturbations of today’s oceans we know very little about how marine phytoplankton may respond via evolutionary change. We tested for adaptation to ocean warming in combination with ocean acidification in the globally important phytoplankton species Emiliania huxleyi. Temperature adaptation occurred independently of ocean acidification levels. Growth rates were up to 16% higher in populations adapted for one year to warming when assayed at their upper thermal tolerance limit. Particulate inorganic (PIC) and organic (POC) carbon production was restored to values under present-day ocean conditions, owing to adaptive evolution, and were 101% and 55% higher under combined warming and acidification, respectively, than in non-adapted controls. Cells also evolved to a smaller size while they recovered their initial PIC:POC ratio even under elevated CO2. The observed changes in coccolithophore growth, calcite and biomass production, cell size and elemental composition demonstrate the importance of evolutionary processes for phytoplankton performance in a future ocean.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 94
    Publication Date: 2018-11-09
    Description: The origin of novel phenotypic characters is a key component in organismal diversification; yet, the mechanisms underlying the emergence of such evolutionary novelties are largely unknown. Here we examine the origin of egg-spots, an evolutionary innovation of the most species-rich group of cichlids, the haplochromines, where these conspicuous male fin colour markings are involved in mating. Applying a combination of RNAseq, comparative genomics and functional experiments, we identify two novel pigmentation genes, fhl2a and fhl2b, and show that especially the more rapidly evolving b-paralog is associated with egg-spot formation. We further find that egg-spot bearing haplochromines, but not other cichlids, feature a transposable element in the cis-regulatory region of fhl2b. Using transgenic zebrafish, we finally demonstrate that this region shows specific enhancer activities in iridophores, a type of pigment cells found in egg-spots, suggesting that a cis-regulatory change is causally linked to the gain of expression in egg-spot bearing haplochromines
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 95
    Publication Date: 2018-04-03
    Description: Between 1965 and 1990, the waters of the Nordic Seas and the subpolar basins of the North Atlantic Ocean freshened substantially1. The Arctic Ocean also became less saline over this time, as a consequence of increasing runoff1, 2, 3, 4, but it is not clear whether flow from the Arctic Ocean was the main source of the Nordic Seas salinity anomaly. As a region of deep-water formation, the Nordic Seas are central to the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, but this process is inhibited if the surface salinity is too low2. Here we use the instrumental record of Nordic Seas hydrography, along with a global ocean–sea-ice model hindcast simulation, to identify the sources and magnitude of freshwater that has accumulated in the Nordic Seas since 1950. We find that the freshwater anomalies within the Nordic Seas can mostly be explained by less salt entering the southern part of the basin with the relatively saline Atlantic inflow, with seemingly little contribution from the Arctic Ocean. We conclude that hydrographic changes in the Nordic Seas are primarily related to changes in the Atlantic Ocean. We infer that if the Atlantic inflow and Nordic Seas both freshen similarly, this would render the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation relatively insensitive to Nordic Seas freshwater content.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 96
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: Hydrothermal flow at oceanic spreading centres accounts for about ten per cent of all heat flux in the oceans and controls the thermal structure of young oceanic plates. It also influences ocean and crustal chemistry, provides a basis for chemosynthetic ecosystems, and has formed massive sulphide ore deposits throughout Earth’s history. Despite this, how and under what conditions heat is extracted, in particular from the lower crust, remains largely unclear. Here we present high-resolution, whole-crust, two- and three-dimensional simulations of hydrothermal flow beneath fast-spreading ridges that predict the existence of two interacting flow components, controlled by different physical mechanisms, that merge above the melt lens to feed ridge-centred vent sites. Shallow on-axis flow structures develop owing to the thermodynamic properties of water, whereas deeper off-axis flow is strongly shaped by crustal permeability, particularly the brittle–ductile transition. About 60 per cent of the discharging fluid mass is replenished on-axis by warm (up to 300 degrees Celsius) recharge flow surrounding the hot thermal plumes, and the remaining 40 per cent or so occurs as colder and broader recharge up to several kilometres away from the axis that feeds hot (500–700 degrees Celsius) deep-rooted off-axis flow towards the ridge. Despite its lower contribution to the total mass flux, this deep off-axis flow carries about 70 per cent of the thermal energy released at the ridge axis. This combination of two flow components explains the seismically determined thermal structure of the crust and reconciles previously incompatible models favouring either shallower on-axis or deeper off-axis hydrothermal circulation.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 97
    Publication Date: 2017-03-09
    Description: Nitrogen fixation, the biological reduction of dinitrogen gas (N2) to ammonium (NH4+), is quantitatively the most important external source of new nitrogen (N) to the open ocean. Classically, the ecological niche of oceanic N2 fixers (diazotrophs) is ascribed to tropical oligotrophic surface waters, often depleted in fixed N, with a diazotrophic community dominated by cyanobacteria. Although this applies for large areas of the ocean, biogeochemical models and phylogenetic studies suggest that the oceanic diazotrophic niche may be much broader than previously considered, resulting in major implications for the global N-budget. Here, we report on the composition, distribution and abundance of nifH, the functional gene marker for N2 fixation. Our results show the presence of eight clades of diazotrophs in the oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) off Peru. Although proteobacterial clades dominated overall, two clusters affiliated to spirochaeta and archaea were identified. N2 fixation was detected within OMZ waters and was stimulated by the addition of organic carbon sources supporting the view that non-phototrophic diazotrophs were actively fixing dinitrogen. The observed co-occurrence of key functional genes for N2 fixation, nitrification, anammox and denitrification suggests that a close spatial coupling of N-input and N-loss processes exists in the OMZ off Peru. The wide distribution of diazotrophs throughout the water column adds to the emerging view that the habitat of marine diazotrophs can be extended to low oxygen/high nitrate areas. Furthermore, our statistical analysis suggests that NO2− and PO43− are the major factors affecting diazotrophic distribution throughout the OMZ. In view of the predicted increase in ocean deoxygenation resulting from global warming, our findings indicate that the importance of OMZs as niches for N2 fixation may increase in the futur
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 98
    facet.materialart.
    Unknown
    Nature Publishing Group
    In:  Nature Communications, 5 (3304).
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: The realization that mitigation efforts to reduce CO2 emissions have, until now, been relatively ineffective has led to an increasing interest in climate engineering as a possible means of preventing potentially catastrophic consequences of climate change. While many studies have addressed the potential effectiveness of individual methods there have been few attempts to compare them. We use an Earth system model to compare the effectiveness and side effects of afforestation, artificial ocean upwelling, ocean iron fertilization, ocean alkalinization, and solar radiation management during a high CO2-emissions scenario. We find that even when applied continuously and at scales as large as currently deemed possible, all methods are, individually, either relatively ineffective with limited (〈8%) warming reductions, or they have severe side effects and cannot be stopped without causing rapid climate change. Our simulations suggest that the potential for these types of climate engineering to make up for failed mitigation may be very limited.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 99
    Publication Date: 2015-07-24
    Description: Geophysical evidence suggests that fluids along fault planes have an important role in generating earthquakes; however, the nature of these fluids has not been well defined. The 2011 magnitude 9.0 Tohoku-Oki earthquake ruptured the interface between the subducting Pacific plate and the overlying Okhotsk plate. Here we report a sharp increase in mantle-derived helium in bottom seawater near the rupture zone 1 month after the earthquake. The timing and location indicate that fluids were released from the mantle on the seafloor along the plate interface. The movement of the fluids was rapid, with a velocity of ~4 km per day and an uncertainty factor of four. This rate is much faster than what would be expected from pressure-gradient propagation, suggesting that over-pressurized fluid is discharged along the plate interface.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
  • 100
    Publication Date: 2019-09-23
    Description: In the oceans’ high-nitrate–low-chlorophyll regions, such as the Peru/Humboldt Current system and the adjacent eastern equatorial Pacific1, primary productivity is limited by the micronutrient iron. Within the Peruvian upwelling area, bioavailable iron is released from the reducing continental margin sediments2. The magnitude of this seafloor source could change with fluctuations in the extension or intensity of the oxygen minimum zones3, 4. Here we show that measurements of molybdenum, uranium and iron concentrations can be used as a proxy for sedimentary iron release, and use this proxy to assess iron release from the sea floor beneath the Peru upwelling system during the past 140,000 years. We observe a coupling between levels of denitrification, as indicated by nitrogen isotopes, trace metal proxies for oxygenation, and sedimentary iron concentrations. Specifically, periods with poor upper ocean oxygenation are characterized by more efficient iron retention in the sediment and a diminished iron supply to the water column. We attribute efficient iron retention under more reducing conditions to widespread sulphidic conditions in the surface sediment and concomitant precipitation of iron sulphides. We argue that iron release from continental margin sediments is most effective in a narrow redox window where neither oxygen nor sulphide is present. We therefore suggest that future deoxygenation in the Peru upwelling area would be unlikely to result in increased iron availability, whereas in weaker oxygen minimum zones partial deoxygenation may enhance the iron supply.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed , info:eu-repo/semantics/article
    Format: text
    Format: text
    Location Call Number Expected Availability
    BibTip Others were also interested in ...
Close ⊗
This website uses cookies and the analysis tool Matomo. More information can be found here...