Changyan Tian

Anaerobic Nitrate-Dependent Iron (II) Oxidation by a Novel Autotrophic Bacterium, Citrobacter freundii Strain PXL1

Anaerobic Fe(II) Oxidizing Denitrifiers (AFODN), a type of newly found Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria, play an important role in iron and nitrogen cycling. In the present study, a novel AFODN strain PXL1 was isolated from anaerobic activated sludge. Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed similarity between this strain and Citrobactor freundii. The strain reduced 30% of nitrate and oxidized 85% of Fe(II) over 72 h with an initial Fe(II) concentration of 3.4 mM and nitrate concentration of 9.5 mM. Oxidation of iron was dependent on the reduction of nitrate to nitrite in the absence of other electron donors or acceptors. Nitrate reduction and Fe(II) oxidation followed first-order reaction kinetics. Iron oxides accumulated in the culture were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). The strain recovered deposited oxidized Fe in the form of amorphous Fe oxides.

Global Transcriptome Profiling of Salicornia europaea L. Shoots under NaCl Treatment

Background Soil salinity is a major abiotic stress that limits agriculture productivity worldwide. Salicornia europaea is well adapted to extreme saline environments with more than 1,000 mM NaCl in the soil, so it could serve as an important model species for studying halophilic mechanisms in euhalophytes. To obtain insights into the molecular basis of salt tolerance, we present here the first extensive transcriptome analysis of this species using the Illumina HiSeq™ 2000. Principal Findings A total of 41 and 39 million clean reads from the salt-treated (Se200S) and salt-free (SeCKS) tissues of S. europaea shoots were obtained, and de novo assembly produced 97,865 and 101,751 unigenes, respectively. Upon further assembly with EST data from both Se200S and SeCKS, 109,712 high-quality non-redundant unigenes were generated with a mean unigene size of 639 bp. Additionally, a total of 3,979 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected between the Se200S and SeCKS libraries, with 348 unigenes solely expressed in Se200S and 460 unigenes solely expressed in SeCKS. Furthermore, we identified a large number of genes that are involved in ion homeostasis and osmotic adjustment, including cation transporters and proteins for the synthesis of low-molecular compounds. All unigenes were functionally annotated within the COG, GO and KEGG pathways, and 10 genes were validated by qRT-PCR. Conclusion Our data contains the extensive sequencing and gene-annotation analysis of S. europaea. This genetic knowledge will be very useful for future studies on the molecular adaptation to abiotic stress in euhalophytes and will facilitate the genetic manipulation of other economically important crops.

Suppression of Fusarium oxysporum and induced resistance of plants involved in the biocontrol of Cucumber Fusarium Wilt by Streptomyces bikiniensis HD-087

Cucumber Fusarium Wilt, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum, which usually leads to severe economic damage, is a common destructive disease worldwide. To date, no effective method has yet been found to counteract this disease. A fungal isolate, designated HD-087, which was identified as Streptomyces bikiniensis using physiological-biochemical identification and 16S rRNA sequence analysis, is shown to possess distinctive inhibitory activity against F. oxysporum. The fermentation broth of HD-087 leads to certain abnormalities in pathogen hyphae. It peroxidizes cell membrane lipids, which leads to membrane destruction along with cytoplasm leakage. This broth also restrains germination of the conidia. The activities of the enzymes peroxidase, phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, and β-1,3-glucanase in cucumber leaves were dramatically increased after treated with fermentation broth of HD-087. The levels of chlorophyll and soluble sugars were also found to be increased, with the relative conductivity of leaves being reduced. In short, the metabolites of strain HD-087 can effectively suppress F. oxysporum and trigger induced resistance in cucumber.

Carbon Dioxide Fluxes and Concentrations in a Cotton Field in Northwestern China:Effects of Plastic Mulching and Drip Irrigation

Abstract In northwestern China, there has been a change from traditional cultivation system (TC) with no mulching and flood irrigation to a more modern cultivation system (MC) using plastic film mulching with drip irrigation. A field study was conducted to compare soil CO 2 concentrations and soil surface CO 2 fluxes between TC and MC systems during a cotton growing season. CO 2 concentrations in the soil profile were higher in the MC system (3107-9212 μL L −1 ) than in the TC system (1275-8994 μL L −1 ) but the rate of CO 2 flux was lower in the MC system. Possible reasons for this included decreased gas diffusion and higher soil moisture due to the mulching cover in the MC system, and the consumption of soil CO 2 by weathering reactions. Over the whole cotton growing season, accumulated rates of CO 2 flux were 300 and 394 g C m −2 for the MC and TC systems, respectively. When agricultural practices were converted from traditional cultivation to a plastic film mulching system, soil CO 2 emissions could be reduced by approximately 100 g C m −2 year −1 in agricultural lands in arid and/or semi-arid areas of northern and northwestern China.

Responses of CH4, CO2 and N2O fluxes to increasing nitrogen deposition in alpine grassland of the Tianshan Mountains

To assess the effects of nitrogen (N) deposition on greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes in alpine grassland of the Tianshan Mountains in central Asia, CH(4), CO(2) and N(2)O fluxes were measured from June 2010 to May 2011. Nitrogen deposition tended to significantly increase CH(4) uptake, CO(2) and N(2)O emissions at sites receiving N addition compared with those at site without N addition during the growing season, but no significant differences were found for all sites outside the growing season. Air temperature, soil temperature and water content were the important factors that influence CO(2) and N(2)O emissions at year-round scale, indicating that increased temperature and precipitation in the future will exert greater impacts on CO(2) and N(2)O emissions in the alpine grassland. In addition, plant coverage in July was also positively correlated with CO(2) and N(2)O emissions under elevated N deposition rates. The present study will deepen our understanding of N deposition impacts on GHG balance in the alpine grassland ecosystem, and help us assess the global N effects, parameterize Earth System models and inform decision makers.

Effects of salinity and nitrate on production and germination of dimorphic seeds applied both through the mother plant and exogenously during germination in Suaeda salsa

Salinity and nitrogen are two important environmental factors that affect the distribution of halophytes in their natural saline habitats. Seeds of the euhalophyte Suaeda salsa L. were harvested from plants that had been treated with 1 or 500 mm NaCl combined with 0.5 or 5 mm NO3−-N (nitrate) for 115 days in a glasshouse. Germination was evaluated under different concentrations of NaCl and nitrate. Plants exposed to high salinity (500 mm) and low nitrate (0.5 mm) tended to produce heavy seeds. Either high salinity (500 mm) or high nitrate (5 mm) increased the brown/black seed ratio. The concentrations of Na+, K+, and Cl− were higher in brown than in black seeds, and NO3− concentrations were higher in black than in brown seeds, regardless of NaCl and nitrate treatments during plant culture. Regardless of NaCl and nitrate concentrations during germination, seeds from plants grown with 0.5 mm nitrate generally germinated more rapidly than seeds from plants grown with 5 mm nitrate, and the difference was greater for black than for brown seeds. Exogenous nitrate during germination enhanced the germination of brown seeds less than that of black seeds. Producing more brown seeds and heavy black or brown seeds appears to be an adaptation of S. suaeda to saline environments. Producing more black seeds, which tend to remain dormant, should reduce competition for nitrogen and appears to be an adaptation to nitrogen-limited environments. In conclusion, nitrate provided exogenously or by mother plants to black seeds may act as a signal molecule that enhances the germination of black S. suaeda seeds.

A Multiyear Assessment of Air Quality Benefits from China’s Emerging Shale Gas Revolution: Urumqi as a Case Study

China is seeking to unlock its shale gas in order to curb its notorious urban air pollution, but robust assessment of the impact on PM2.5 pollution of replacing coal with natural gas for winter heating is lacking. Here, using a whole-city heating energy shift opportunity offered by substantial reductions in coal combustion during the heating periods in Urumqi, northwest China, we conducted a four-year study to reveal the impact of replacing coal with natural gas on the mass concentrations and chemical components of PM2.5. We found a significant decline in PM2.5, major soluble ions and metal elements in PM2.5 in January of 2013 and 2014 compared with the same periods in 2012 and 2011, reflecting the positive effects on air quality of using natural gas as a heating fuel throughout the city. This occurred following complete replacement with natural gas for heating energy in October 2012. The weather conditions during winter did not show any significant variation over the four years of the study. Our results indicate that China and other developing nations will benefit greatly from a change in energy source, that is, increasing the contribution of either natural gas or shale gas to total energy consumption with a concomitant reduction in coal consumption.

Atmospheric Nitrogen Deposition at Two Sites in an Arid Environment of Central Asia

Arid areas play a significant role in the global nitrogen cycle. Dry and wet deposition of inorganic nitrogen (N) species were monitored at one urban (SDS) and one suburban (TFS) site at Urumqi in a semi-arid region of central Asia. Atmospheric concentrations of NH3, NO2, HNO3, particulate ammonium and nitrate (pNH4 + and pNO3 −) concentrations and NH4-N and NO3-N concentrations in precipitation showed large monthly variations and averaged 7.1, 26.6, 2.4, 6.6, 2.7 µg N m−3 and 1.3, 1.0 mg N L−1 at both SDS and TFS. Nitrogen dry deposition fluxes were 40.7 and 36.0 kg N ha−1 yr−1 while wet deposition of N fluxes were 6.0 and 8.8 kg N ha−1 yr−1 at SDS and TFS, respectively. Total N deposition averaged 45.8 kg N ha−1 yr−1at both sites. Our results indicate that N dry deposition has been a major part of total N deposition (83.8% on average) in an arid region of central Asia. Such high N deposition implies heavy environmental pollution and an important nutrient resource in arid regions.

Effect of Nitrate on Root Development and Nitrogen Uptake of Suaeda physophora Under NaCl Salinity

The effects of NaCl salinity and NO3- on growth, root morphology, and nitrogen uptake of a halophyte Suaeda physophora were evaluated in a factorial experiment with four concentrations of NaCl (1, 150, 300, and 450 mmol L-1) and three NO3- levels (0.05, 5, and 10 mmol L-1) in solution culture for 30 d. Addition of NO3- at 10 mmol L-1 significantly improved the shoot (P l 0.001) and root (P l 0.001) growth and the promotive effect of NO3- was more pronounced on root dry weight despite the high NaCl concentration in the culture solution, leading to a significant increase in the root:shoot ratio (P l 0.01). Lateral root length, but not primary root length, considerably increased with increasing NaCl salinity and NO3- levels (P l 0.001), implying that Na+ and NO3- in the culture solution simultaneously stimulated lateral root growth. Concentrations of Na+ in plant tissues were also significantly increased by higher NaCl treatments (P l 0.001). At 10 mmol L-1 NO3-, the concentrations of NO3- and total nitrogen and nitrate reductase activities in the roots were remarkably reduced by increasing salinity (P l 0.001), but were unaffected in the shoots. The results indicated that the fine lateral root development and effective nitrogen uptake of the shoots might contribute to high salt tolerance of S. physophora under adequate NO3- supply.

Response of alpine grassland to elevated nitrogen deposition and water supply in China.

Species composition and productivity are influenced by water and N availability in semi-arid grasslands. To assess the effects of increased N deposition and water supply on plant species composition and productivity, two field experiments with four N addition treatments, and three N and water combination treatments were conducted in alpine grassland in the mid Tianshan mountains, northwest China. When considering N addition alone, aboveground biomass (AGB) of forbs (FAGB) responded less to N addition than AGB of grasses (GAGB). GAGB increased as an effect of N combined with water addition but FAGB did not show such an effect, reflecting a stronger response of grasses to the interaction of water availability and N than forbs. Under all treatments, N allocation to the aboveground tissue did not change for either forbs or grasses. N deposition and water addition did not alter species richness in the present study. These results suggest that N addition generally promoted AGB but had little effect on species richness in wet years. Snowfall in winter combined with rainfall in the early growing season likely plays a critical role in regulating plant growth of the subsequent year in the alpine grassland.