Carotenoids from Marine Organisms: Biological Functions and Industrial Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christian Galasso

2017-11-01

Full Text Available As is the case for terrestrial organisms, carotenoids represent the most common group of pigments in marine environments. They are generally biosynthesized by all autotrophic marine organisms, such as bacteria and archaea, algae and fungi. Some heterotrophic organisms also contain carotenoids probably accumulated from food or partly modified through metabolic reactions. These natural pigments are divided into two chemical classes: carotenes (such as lycopene and α- and β-carotene that are composed of hydrogen and carbon; xanthophylls (such as astaxanthin, fucoxanthin and lutein, which are constituted by hydrogen, carbon and oxygen. Carotenoids, as antioxidant compounds, assume a key role in the protection of cells. In fact, quenching of singlet oxygen, light capture and photosynthesis protection are the most relevant biological functions of carotenoids. The present review aims at describing (i the biological functions of carotenoids and their benefits for human health, (ii the most common carotenoids from marine organisms and (iii carotenoids having large success in pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and cosmeceutical industries, highlighting the scientific progress in marine species cultivation for natural pigments production.

Synthetic biology and metabolic engineering for marine carotenoids: new opportunities and future prospects.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chonglong; Kim, Jung-Hun; Kim, Seon-Won

2014-09-17

Carotenoids are a class of diverse pigments with important biological roles such as light capture and antioxidative activities. Many novel carotenoids have been isolated from marine organisms to date and have shown various utilizations as nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. In this review, we summarize the pathways and enzymes of carotenoid synthesis and discuss various modifications of marine carotenoids. The advances in metabolic engineering and synthetic biology for carotenoid production are also reviewed, in hopes that this review will promote the exploration of marine carotenoid for their utilizations.

Synthetic Biology and Metabolic Engineering for Marine Carotenoids: New Opportunities and Future Prospects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chonglong Wang

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Carotenoids are a class of diverse pigments with important biological roles such as light capture and antioxidative activities. Many novel carotenoids have been isolated from marine organisms to date and have shown various utilizations as nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. In this review, we summarize the pathways and enzymes of carotenoid synthesis and discuss various modifications of marine carotenoids. The advances in metabolic engineering and synthetic biology for carotenoid production are also reviewed, in hopes that this review will promote the exploration of marine carotenoid for their utilizations.

Synthetic Biology and Metabolic Engineering for Marine Carotenoids: New Opportunities and Future Prospects

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chonglong; Kim, Jung-Hun; Kim, Seon-Won

2014-01-01

Carotenoids are a class of diverse pigments with important biological roles such as light capture and antioxidative activities. Many novel carotenoids have been isolated from marine organisms to date and have shown various utilizations as nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. In this review, we summarize the pathways and enzymes of carotenoid synthesis and discuss various modifications of marine carotenoids. The advances in metabolic engineering and synthetic biology for carotenoid production are also reviewed, in hopes that this review will promote the exploration of marine carotenoid for their utilizations. PMID:25233369

Emerging concepts promising new horizons for marine biodiscovery and synthetic biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Reen, F Jerry; Gutiérrez-Barranquero, José A; Dobson, Alan D W; Adams, Claire; O'Gara, Fergal

2015-05-13

The vast oceans of the world, which comprise a huge variety of unique ecosystems, are emerging as a rich and relatively untapped source of novel bioactive compounds with invaluable biotechnological and pharmaceutical potential. Evidence accumulated over the last decade has revealed that the diversity of marine microorganisms is enormous with many thousands of bacterial species detected that were previously unknown. Associated with this diversity is the production of diverse repertoires of bioactive compounds ranging from peptides and enzymes to more complex secondary metabolites that have significant bioactivity and thus the potential to be exploited for innovative biotechnology. Here we review the discovery and functional potential of marine bioactive peptides such as lantibiotics, nanoantibiotics and peptidomimetics, which have received particular attention in recent years in light of their broad spectrum of bioactivity. The significance of marine peptides in cell-to-cell communication and how this may be exploited in the discovery of novel bioactivity is also explored. Finally, with the recent advances in bioinformatics and synthetic biology, it is becoming clear that the integration of these disciplines with genetic and biochemical characterization of the novel marine peptides, offers the most potential in the development of the next generation of societal solutions.

Effects of marine reserves on the reproductive biology and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Effects of marine reserves on the reproductive biology and recruitment rates of commonly and rarely exploited limpets. ... For recruitment, we hypothesised that if recruits are attracted to adults or survive better ... AJOL African Journals Online.

Marine Fisheries History: The 50th Anniversay Issue of the Marine Fisheries Review

OpenAIRE

Hobart, Willis L.

1988-01-01

The 1980's seems to have been the decade for conservation anniversaries. Celebrating centennials have been the U.S. Fishery Bulletin (1981), NMFS Woods Hole Laboratory (1985), Journal of the Marine Biological Association (1987) and the Association itself (1984), Pacific halibut fishery (1988), Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole, Mass. (1988), and England's Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food (1989). While the U. S. Department of Commerce turned 75 (1988), 50th anniversa...

A study on biological activity of marine fungi from different habitats in coastal regions.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Songlin; Wang, Min; Feng, Qi; Lin, Yingying; Zhao, Huange

2016-01-01

In recent years, marine fungi have become an important source of active marine natural products. Former researches are limited in habitats selection of fungi with bioactive compounds. In this paper were to measure antibacterial and antitumor cell activity for secondary metabolites of marine fungi, which were isolated from different habitats in coastal regions. 195 strains of marine fungi were isolated and purified from three different habitats. They biologically active experiment results showed that fungi isolation from the mangrove habitats had stronger antibacterial activity than others, and the stains isolated from the estuarial habitats had the least antibacterial activity. However, the strains separated from beach habitats strongly inhibited tumor cell proliferation in vitro, and fungi of mangrove forest habitats had the weakest activity of inhibiting tumor. Meanwhile, 195 fungal strains belonged to 46 families, 84 genera, 142 species and also showed 137 different types of activity combinations by analyzing the inhibitory activity of the metabolites fungi for 4 strains of pathogenic bacteria and B-16 cells. The study investigated the biological activity of marine fungi isolated from different habitats in Haikou coastal regions. The results help us to understand bioactive metabolites of marine fungi from different habitats, and how to selected biological activity fungi from various marine habitats effectively.

Advances in the Application of Genetics in Marine Turtle Biology and Conservation

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Lisa M. Komoroske

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Marine turtles migrate across long distances, exhibit complex life histories, and occupy habitats that are difficult to observe. These factors present substantial challenges to understanding fundamental aspects of their biology or assessing human impacts, many of which are important for the effective conservation of these threatened and endangered species. The early development and application of genetic tools made important contributions to understanding marine turtle population and evolutionary biology, such as providing evidence of regional natal homing by breeding adults, establishing connectivity between rookeries and foraging habitats, and determining phylogeography and broad scale stock structure for most marine turtle species. Recent innovations in molecular technologies, statistical methods, and creative application of genetic tools have significantly built upon this knowledge to address key questions in marine turtle biology and conservation management. Here, we evaluate the latest major advances and potential of marine turtle genetic applications, including improved resolution and large-scale syntheses of population structure, connectivity and phylogeography, estimation of key demographic rates such as age to maturity and operational or breeding sex ratios, insight into reproductive strategies and behavior, and assessment of differential human impacts among populations. We then discuss remaining challenges and emerging capabilities, such as rapid, multiplexed genotyping, and investigation of the genomic underpinnings of adaptive variation afforded by high-throughput sequencing technologies.

Marine actinobacteria associated with marine organisms and their potentials in producing pharmaceutical natural products.

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Valliappan, Karuppiah; Sun, Wei; Li, Zhiyong

2014-09-01

Actinobacteria are ubiquitous in the marine environment, playing an important ecological role in the recycling of refractory biomaterials and producing novel natural products with pharmic applications. Actinobacteria have been detected or isolated from the marine creatures such as sponges, corals, mollusks, ascidians, seaweeds, and seagrass. Marine organism-associated actinobacterial 16S rRNA gene sequences, i.e., 3,003 sequences, deposited in the NCBI database clearly revealed enormous numbers of actinobacteria associated with marine organisms. For example, RDP classification of these sequences showed that 112 and 62 actinobacterial genera were associated with the sponges and corals, respectively. In most cases, it is expected that these actinobacteria protect the host against pathogens by producing bioactive compounds. Natural products investigation and functional gene screening of the actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms revealed that they can synthesize numerous natural products including polyketides, isoprenoids, phenazines, peptides, indolocarbazoles, sterols, and others. These compounds showed anticancer, antimicrobial, antiparasitic, neurological, antioxidant, and anti-HIV activities. Therefore, marine organism-associated actinobacteria represent an important resource for marine drugs. It is an upcoming field of research to search for novel actinobacteria and pharmaceutical natural products from actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms. In this review, we attempt to summarize the present knowledge on the diversity and natural products production of actinobacteria associated with the marine organisms, based on the publications from 1991 to 2013.

Development of Novel Drugs from Marine Surface Associated Microorganisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suhelen Egan

2010-03-01

Full Text Available While the oceans cover more than 70% of the Earth’s surface, marine derived microbial natural products have been largely unexplored. The marine environment is a habitat for many unique microorganisms, which produce biologically active compounds (“bioactives” to adapt to particular environmental conditions. For example, marine surface associated microorganisms have proven to be a rich source for novel bioactives because of the necessity to evolve allelochemicals capable of protecting the producer from the fierce competition that exists between microorganisms on the surfaces of marine eukaryotes. Chemically driven interactions are also important for the establishment of cross-relationships between microbes and their eukaryotic hosts, in which organisms producing antimicrobial compounds (“antimicrobials”, may protect the host surface against over colonisation in return for a nutrient rich environment. As is the case for bioactive discovery in general, progress in the detection and characterization of marine microbial bioactives has been limited by a number of obstacles, such as unsuitable culture conditions, laborious purification processes, and a lack of de-replication. However many of these limitations are now being overcome due to improved microbial cultivation techniques, microbial (meta- genomic analysis and novel sensitive analytical tools for structural elucidation. Here we discuss how these technical advances, together with a better understanding of microbial and chemical ecology, will inevitably translate into an increase in the discovery and development of novel drugs from marine microbial sources in the future.

Bioactivity of marine organisms. Part 3. Screening of marine algae of Indian coast for biological activity

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Kamat, S.Y.; Wahidullah, S.; Naik, C.G.; DeSouza, L.; Jayasree, V.; Ambiye, V.; Bhakuni, D.S.; Goel, A.K.; Garg, H.S.; Srimal, R.C.

Ethanolic extracts from Indian marine algae have been tested for anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-fertility, hypoglycaemic and a wide range of pharmacological activities. Of 34 species investigated 17 appeared biologically active. Six...

Supermarket Marine Biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Colby, Jennifer A.; And Others

1995-01-01

Describes a survey used to determine the availability of intact marine vertebrates and live invertebrates in supermarkets. Results shows that local supermarkets frequently provide a variety of intact marine organisms suitable for demonstrations, experiments, or dissections. (ZWH)

IPCC workshop on impacts of ocean acidification on marine biology and ecosystems. Workshop report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Field, C.B.; Barros, V.; Stocker, T.F.; Dahe, Q.; Mach, K.J.; Plattner, G.-K.; Mastrandrea, M.D.; Tignor, M.; Ebi, K.L.

2011-09-15

Understanding the effects of increasing atmospheric CO{sub 2} concentrations on ocean chemistry, commonly termed ocean acidification, as well as associated impacts on marine biology and ecosystems, is an important component of scientific knowledge about global change. The Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will include comprehensive coverage of ocean acidification and its impacts, including potential feedbacks to the climate system. To support ongoing AR5 assessment efforts, Working Group II and Working Group I (WGII and WGI) of the IPCC held a joint Workshop on Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Marine Biology and Ecosystems in Okinawa, Japan, from 17 to 19 January 2011. The workshop convened experts from the scientific community, including WGII and WGI AR5 authors and review editors, to synthesise scientific understanding of changes in ocean chemistry due to increased CO{sub 2} and of impacts of this changing chemistry on marine organisms, ecosystems, and ecosystem services. This workshop report summarises the scientific content and perspectives presented and discussed during the workshop. It provides syntheses of these perspectives for the workshop's core topics: (i) the changing chemistry of the oceans, (ii) impacts of ocean acidification for individual organisms, and (iii) scaling up responses from individual organisms to ecosystems. It also presents summaries of workshop discussions of key cross-cutting themes, ranging from detection and attribution of ocean acidification and its impacts to understanding ocean acidification in the context of other stressors on marine systems. Additionally, the workshop report includes extended abstracts for keynote and poster presentations at the workshop. (Author)

Effectiveness of biological surrogates for predicting patterns of marine biodiversity: a global meta-analysis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Camille Mellin

Full Text Available The use of biological surrogates as proxies for biodiversity patterns is gaining popularity, particularly in marine systems where field surveys can be expensive and species richness high. Yet, uncertainty regarding their applicability remains because of inconsistency of definitions, a lack of standard methods for estimating effectiveness, and variable spatial scales considered. We present a Bayesian meta-analysis of the effectiveness of biological surrogates in marine ecosystems. Surrogate effectiveness was defined both as the proportion of surrogacy tests where predictions based on surrogates were better than random (i.e., low probability of making a Type I error; P and as the predictability of targets using surrogates (R(2. A total of 264 published surrogacy tests combined with prior probabilities elicited from eight international experts demonstrated that the habitat, spatial scale, type of surrogate and statistical method used all influenced surrogate effectiveness, at least according to either P or R(2. The type of surrogate used (higher-taxa, cross-taxa or subset taxa was the best predictor of P, with the higher-taxa surrogates outperforming all others. The marine habitat was the best predictor of R(2, with particularly low predictability in tropical reefs. Surrogate effectiveness was greatest for higher-taxa surrogates at a <10-km spatial scale, in low-complexity marine habitats such as soft bottoms, and using multivariate-based methods. Comparisons with terrestrial studies in terms of the methods used to study surrogates revealed that marine applications still ignore some problems with several widely used statistical approaches to surrogacy. Our study provides a benchmark for the reliable use of biological surrogates in marine ecosystems, and highlights directions for future development of biological surrogates in predicting biodiversity.

A study on biological activity of marine fungi from different habitats in coastal regions

OpenAIRE

Zhou, Songlin; Wang, Min; Feng, Qi; Lin, Yingying; Zhao, Huange

2016-01-01

In recent years, marine fungi have become an important source of active marine natural products. Former researches are limited in habitats selection of fungi with bioactive compounds. In this paper were to measure antibacterial and antitumor cell activity for secondary metabolites of marine fungi, which were isolated from different habitats in coastal regions. 195 strains of marine fungi were isolated and purified from three different habitats. They biologically active experiment results show...

High Risk Behaviors in Marine Mammals: Linking Behavioral Responses to Anthropogenic Disturbance to Biological Consequences

Science.gov (United States)

2015-09-30

1 DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A. Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. High Risk Behaviors in Marine Mammals : Linking...comprehensive evaluation of biological safety zones for diving marine mammals . In this way we intend to identify those marine mammal species or specific...improving the protection of marine mammals during naval operations. OBJECTIVES We are testing the hypothesis that extreme behaviors requiring

Authorized Course of Instruction for the Quinmester Program. Science: Introduction to Marine Science; Recreation and the Sea; Oceanography; Marine Ecology of South Florida, and Invertebrate Marine Biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Dade County Public Schools, Miami, FL.

All five units, developed for the Dade County Florida Quinmester Program, included in this collection concern some aspect of marine studies. Except for "Recreation and the Sea," intended to give students basic seamanship skills and experience of other marine recreation, all units are designed for students with a background in biology or…

Meta-analysis reveals complex marine biological responses to the interactive effects of ocean acidification and warming

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Ben P; Gwynn-Jones, Dylan; Moore, Pippa J

2013-01-01

Ocean acidification and warming are considered two of the greatest threats to marine biodiversity, yet the combined effect of these stressors on marine organisms remains largely unclear. Using a meta-analytical approach, we assessed the biological responses of marine organisms to the effects of ocean acidification and warming in isolation and combination. As expected biological responses varied across taxonomic groups, life-history stages, and trophic levels, but importantly, combining stressors generally exhibited a stronger biological (either positive or negative) effect. Using a subset of orthogonal studies, we show that four of five of the biological responses measured (calcification, photosynthesis, reproduction, and survival, but not growth) interacted synergistically when warming and acidification were combined. The observed synergisms between interacting stressors suggest that care must be made in making inferences from single-stressor studies. Our findings clearly have implications for the development of adaptive management strategies particularly given that the frequency of stressors interacting in marine systems will be likely to intensify in the future. There is now an urgent need to move toward more robust, holistic, and ecologically realistic climate change experiments that incorporate interactions. Without them accurate predictions about the likely deleterious impacts to marine biodiversity and ecosystem functioning over the next century will not be possible. PMID:23610641

Biology, genome organization and evolution of parvoviruses in marine shrimp

Science.gov (United States)

A number of parvoviruses are now know to infect marine shrimp, and these viruses alone or in combination with other viruses have the potential to cause major losses in shrimp aquaculture globally. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the biology, genome organization, gene expression, and...

Preface to: Special issue on Marine mycology

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Raghukumar, C.

the fourth symposium were published in The Biology of Marine Fungi by the late S.T.Moss from the Portsmouth Polytechnic in 1986. Interestingly, the books so far were exclusively devoted to true or obligate marine fungi but several papers describing... thraustochytrids as contaminants in their primary cell cultures of marine tunicates. They are describing six closely related species of thraustochytrids, identified by molecular markers and claim that a close biological association exist between tunicates...

Synthetic biology approaches: Towards sustainable exploitation of marine bioactive molecules.

Science.gov (United States)

Seghal Kiran, G; Ramasamy, Pasiyappazham; Sekar, Sivasankari; Ramu, Meenatchi; Hassan, Saqib; Ninawe, A S; Selvin, Joseph

2018-06-01

The discovery of genes responsible for the production of bioactive metabolites via metabolic pathways combined with the advances in synthetic biology tools, has allowed the establishment of numerous microbial cell factories, for instance the yeast cell factories, for the manufacture of highly useful metabolites from renewable biomass. Genome mining and metagenomics are two platforms provide base-line data for reconstruction of genomes and metabolomes which is based in the development of synthetic/semi-synthetic genomes for marine natural products discovery. Engineered biofilms are being innovated on synthetic biology platform using genetic circuits and cell signalling systems as represillators controlling biofilm formation. Recombineering is a process of homologous recombination mediated genetic engineering, includes insertion, deletion or modification of any sequence specifically. Although this discipline considered new to the scientific domain, this field has now developed as promising endeavor on the accomplishment of sustainable exploitation of marine natural products. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Marine biotechnologies and synthetic biology, new issues for a fair and equitable profit-sharing commercial use.

Science.gov (United States)

Bloch, Jean-François; Tardieu-Guigues, Elisabeth

2014-10-01

The sea will be a source of economic development in the next years. Today the research works in marine biotechnologies supply new products and processes. The introduction in the laboratories of a new technology, synthesis biology, is going to increase the possibilities of creation of new products. Exploitation of product stemming from marine biodiversity has to be made with regard to various rights among which industrial property law, maritime law and the Convention on BioDiversity. All participants involved in the promotion of research in marine biotechnology must address the fair and equitable sharing of any commercial exploitation. Carrying out work involving synthetic biology has increased the number of unanswered questions about how operators should manage in order to avoid any threat of being sued for infringements of IP rights or for alleged bio-piracy. This paper, by no means exhaustive in the field, analyzes some of the issues raised on the modification to the landscape in marine biotechnology by the advent of synthetic biology. Such issues indicate how important the collaboration between researchers, industrialists, lawyers is for allowing proper use of marine biotech. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Marine-derived biological macromolecule-based biomaterials for wound healing and skin tissue regeneration.

Science.gov (United States)

Chandika, Pathum; Ko, Seok-Chun; Jung, Won-Kyo

2015-01-01

Wound healing is a complex biological process that depends on the wound condition, the patient's health, and the physicochemical support given through external materials. The development of bioactive molecules and engineered tissue substitutes to provide physiochemical support to enhance the wound healing process plays a key role in advancing wound-care management. Thus, identification of ideal molecules in wound treatment is still in progress. The discovery of natural products that contain ideal molecules for skin tissue regeneration has been greatly advanced by exploration of the marine bioenvironment. Consequently, tremendously diverse marine organisms have become a great source of numerous biological macromolecules that can be used to develop tissue-engineered substitutes with wound healing properties. This review summarizes the wound healing process, the properties of macromolecules from marine organisms, and the involvement of these molecules in skin tissue regeneration applications. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Natural Proline-Rich Cyclopolypeptides from Marine Organisms: Chemistry, Synthetic Methodologies and Biological Status.

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, Wan-Yin; Dahiya, Rajiv; Qin, Hua-Li; Mourya, Rita; Maharaj, Sandeep

2016-10-26

Peptides have gained increased interest as therapeutics during recent years. More than 60 peptide drugs have reached the market for the benefit of patients and several hundreds of novel therapeutic peptides are in preclinical and clinical development. The key contributor to this success is the potent and specific, yet safe, mode of action of peptides. Among the wide range of biologically-active peptides, naturally-occurring marine-derived cyclopolypeptides exhibit a broad range of unusual and potent pharmacological activities. Because of their size and complexity, proline-rich cyclic peptides (PRCPs) occupy a crucial chemical space in drug discovery that may provide useful scaffolds for modulating more challenging biological targets, such as protein-protein interactions and allosteric binding sites. Diverse pharmacological activities of natural cyclic peptides from marine sponges, tunicates and cyanobacteria have encouraged efforts to develop cyclic peptides with well-known synthetic methods, including solid-phase and solution-phase techniques of peptide synthesis. The present review highlights the natural resources, unique structural features and the most relevant biological properties of proline-rich peptides of marine-origin, focusing on the potential therapeutic role that the PRCPs may play as a promising source of new peptide-based novel drugs.

Molecular biology in marine science: Scientific questions, technological approaches, and practical implications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-12-31

This report describes molecular techniques that could be invaluable in addressing process-oriented problems in the ocean sciences that have perplexed oceanographers for decades, such as understanding the basis for biogeochemical processes, recruitment processes, upper-ocean dynamics, biological impacts of global warming, and ecological impacts of human activities. The coupling of highly sophisticated methods, such as satellite remote sensing, which permits synoptic monitoring of chemical, physical, and biological parameters over large areas, with the power of modern molecular tools for ``ground truthing`` at small scales could allow scientists to address questions about marine organisms and the ocean in which they live that could not be answered previously. Clearly, the marine sciences are on the threshold of an exciting new frontier of scientific discovery and economic opportunity.

Marine fish community structure and habitat associations on the Canadian Beaufort shelf and slope

Science.gov (United States)

Majewski, Andrew R.; Atchison, Sheila; MacPhee, Shannon; Eert, Jane; Niemi, Andrea; Michel, Christine; Reist, James D.

2017-03-01

Marine fishes in the Canadian Beaufort Sea have complex interactions with habitats and prey, and occupy a pivotal position in the food web by transferring energy between lower- and upper-trophic levels, and also within and among habitats (e.g., benthic-pelagic coupling). The distributions, habitat associations, and community structure of most Beaufort Sea marine fishes, however, are unknown thus precluding effective regulatory management of emerging offshore industries in the region (e.g., hydrocarbon development, shipping, and fisheries). Between 2012 and 2014, Fisheries and Oceans Canada conducted the first baseline survey of offshore marine fishes, their habitats, and ecological relationships in the Canadian Beaufort Sea. Benthic trawling was conducted at 45 stations spanning 18-1001 m depths across shelf and slope habitats. Physical oceanographic variables (depth, salinity, temperature, oxygen), biological variables (benthic chlorophyll and integrated water-column chlorophyll) and sediment composition (grain size) were assessed as potential explanatory variables for fish community structure using a non-parametric statistical approach. Selected stations were re-sampled in 2013 and 2014 for a preliminary assessment of inter-annual variability in the fish community. Four distinct fish assemblages were delineated on the Canadian Beaufort Shelf and slope: 1) Nearshore-shelf: 50 and ≤200 m depths, 3) Upper-slope: ≥200 and ≤500 m depths, and 4) Lower-slope: ≥500 m depths. Depth was the environmental variable that best explained fish community structure, and each species assemblage was spatially associated with distinct aspects of the vertical water mass profile. Significant differences in the fish community from east to west were not detected, and the species composition of the assemblages on the Canadian Beaufort Shelf have not changed substantially over the past decade. This community analysis provides a framework for testing hypotheses regarding the trophic

Molecular diversity of fungi from marine oxygen-deficient environments (ODEs)

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Manohar, C.S.; Forster, D.; Kauff, F.; Stoeck, T.

. Sparrow Jr F K (1936) Biological observations of the marine fungi of woods hole waters. Biol Bull 70: 236-263. States JS & Christensen M (2001) Fungi Associated with Biological Soil Crusts in Desert Grasslands of Utah and Wyoming. Mycologia 93: 432... version: Biology of marine fungi. Ed. by: Raghukumar, C. (Prog. Mol. Subcellular Biol). Springer, vol.53 (Chap 10); 2012; 189-208 Chapter # 10 Molecular diversity of fungi from marine oxygen-deficient environments (ODEs) Cathrine S. Jebaraj 1...

Using the marine unicellular algae in biological monitoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kapkov V. I.

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The possibility of using marine unicellular algae from natural plankton community in biomonitoring of pollution by heavy metals has been investigated. Algae of different taxa from the Mediterranean Sea have been allocated to culture. In the laboratory the culture conditions – i. e. growth medium, temperature, photoperiod, level of artificial light and initial density – have been selected for every species. The impact of heavy metals (Hg, Cd, Cu, Pb in the form of chloride salts on the growth of axenic algae culture has been studied in the modelling experiments. The unicellular marine algae have a very short life cycle, therefore it is possible to use them in the experiments of studying the effect of anthropogenic factors at cellular and population levels on the test-object. With biomonitoring pollution of marine environment by heavy metals and others dangerous toxicants, the major indicators of algae community condition are the cellular cycle and the condition of the photosynthetic apparatus of the cell. The subsequent lysis of cells under the influence of heavy metals leads to the excretion of secondary metabolites which can essentially affect the metal toxicity. The established scales of threshold and lethal concentration of heavy metals for algae of different taxon make it possible to use the ratio of sensitive and resistant species to heavy metals as biological markers when forecasting ecological consequences of pollution of the marine environment by heavy metals. Distinctions in the resistance of different taxon to heavy metals can result in implementing the strategy of selection of test-objects depending on the purposes of the research.

Results of efforts by the Convention on Biological Diversity to describe ecologically or biologically significant marine areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Bax, Nicholas J; Cleary, Jesse; Donnelly, Ben; Dunn, Daniel C; Dunstan, Piers K; Fuller, Mike; Halpin, Patrick N

2016-06-01

In 2004, Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) addressed a United Nations (UN) call for area-based planning, including for marine-protected areas that resulted in a global effort to describe ecologically or biologically significant marine areas (EBSAs). We summarized the results, assessed their consistency, and evaluated the process developed by the Secretariat of the CBD to engage countries and experts in 9 regional workshops held from 2011 to 2014. Experts from 92 countries and 79 regional or international bodies participated. They considered 250 million km(2) of the world's ocean area (two-thirds of the total). The 204 areas they examined in detail differed widely in area (from 5.5 km(2) to 11.1 million km(2) ). Despite the initial focus of the CBD process on areas outside national jurisdiction, only 31 of the areas examined were solely outside national jurisdiction. Thirty-five extended into national jurisdictions, 137 were solely within national jurisdictions, and 28 included the jurisdictions of more than 1 country (1 area lacked precise boundaries). Data were sufficient to rank 88-99% of the areas relative to each of the 7 criteria for EBSAs agreed to previously by Parties to the CBD. The naturalness criterion ranked high for a smaller percentage of the EBSAs (31%) than other criteria (51-70%), indicating the difficulty in finding relatively undisturbed areas in the ocean. The highly participatory nature of the workshops, including easy and consistent access to the relevant information facilitated by 2 technical teams, contributed to the workshop participants success in identifying areas that could be ranked relative to most criteria and areas that extend across jurisdictional boundaries. The formal recognition of workshop results by the Conference of Parties to the CBD resulted in these 204 areas being identified as EBSAs by the 196 Parties. They represent the only suite of marine areas recognized by the international community for their

Syllabus for an Associate Degree Program in Applied Marine Biology and Oceanography.

Science.gov (United States)

Banerjee, Tapan

Included is a detailed outline of the content of each course required or offered as an elective in the associate degree program. With an 18 or 19 unit load each semester the program requires two years, and includes 64 hours at sea every semester. In addition to chemistry, physics, biology, and oceanography courses, there is a required course in…

Sustainable production of biologically active molecules of marine based origin.

Science.gov (United States)

Murray, Patrick M; Moane, Siobhan; Collins, Catherine; Beletskaya, Tanya; Thomas, Olivier P; Duarte, Alysson W F; Nobre, Fernando S; Owoyemi, Ifeloju O; Pagnocca, Fernando C; Sette, L D; McHugh, Edward; Causse, Eric; Pérez-López, Paula; Feijoo, Gumersindo; Moreira, Ma T; Rubiolo, Juan; Leirós, Marta; Botana, Luis M; Pinteus, Susete; Alves, Celso; Horta, André; Pedrosa, Rui; Jeffryes, Clayton; Agathos, Spiros N; Allewaert, Celine; Verween, Annick; Vyverman, Wim; Laptev, Ivan; Sineoky, Sergei; Bisio, Angela; Manconi, Renata; Ledda, Fabio; Marchi, Mario; Pronzato, Roberto; Walsh, Daniel J

2013-09-25

The marine environment offers both economic and scientific potential which are relatively untapped from a biotechnological point of view. These environments whilst harsh are ironically fragile and dependent on a harmonious life form balance. Exploitation of natural resources by exhaustive wild harvesting has obvious negative environmental consequences. From a European industry perspective marine organisms are a largely underutilised resource. This is not due to lack of interest but due to a lack of choice the industry faces for cost competitive, sustainable and environmentally conscientious product alternatives. Knowledge of the biotechnological potential of marine organisms together with the development of sustainable systems for their cultivation, processing and utilisation are essential. In 2010, the European Commission recognised this need and funded a collaborative RTD/SME project under the Framework 7-Knowledge Based Bio-Economy (KBBE) Theme 2 Programme 'Sustainable culture of marine microorganisms, algae and/or invertebrates for high value added products'. The scope of that project entitled 'Sustainable Production of Biologically Active Molecules of Marine Based Origin' (BAMMBO) is outlined. Although the Union is a global leader in many technologies, it faces increasing competition from traditional rivals and emerging economies alike and must therefore improve its innovation performance. For this reason innovation is placed at the heart of a European Horizon 2020 Strategy wherein the challenge is to connect economic performance to eco performance. This article provides a synopsis of the research activities of the BAMMBO project as they fit within the wider scope of sustainable environmentally conscientious marine resource exploitation for high-value biomolecules. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The size distribution of marine atmospheric aerosol with regard to primary biological aerosol particles over the South Atlantic Ocean

Science.gov (United States)

Matthias-Maser, Sabine; Brinkmann, Jutta; Schneider, Wilhelm

The marine atmosphere is characterized by particles which originate from the ocean and by those which reached the air by advection from the continent. The bubble-burst mechanism produces both sea salt as well as biological particles. The following article describes the determination of the size distribution of marine aerosol particles with special emphasis on the biological particles. Th data were obtained on three cruises with the German Research Vessel "METEOR" crossing the South Atlantic Ocean. The measurements showed that biological particles amount to 17% in number and 10% in volume concentration. Another type of particle became obvious in the marine atmosphere, the biologically contaminated particle, i.e. particles which consist partly (approximately up to one-third) of biological matter. Their concentration in the evaluated size class ( r>2 μm) is higher than the concentration of the pure biological particles. The concentrations vary over about one to two orders of magnitude during all cruises.

The marine biological week as an approach to science

Science.gov (United States)

Ransdorf, Angela; Satzinger, Viktoria

2017-04-01

The "Wiedner Gymnasium" is an academic high school with two branches: one focusses on languages and the other one on science. In the language branch the students learn at least three languages; one of which is Latin, whereas the students of the scientific branch can learn geometrical drawing and have to attend a scientific laboratory throughout the last four upper classes. As incentive highlights the language classes have a one week's school trip to France, Italy or Spain at the beginning of their 7th form in order to attend a language school and to practice their language skills. As a counterbalance, there was introduced the "marine biological week" several years ago, in which the students of the scientific branch take part whilst their colleagues have their language trips. The marine biological week takes place in Rovinj, Croatia. A team of biologists and divers leads through a programme, by which the students get an overview of different habitats, their conditions and the different ways of adaptation organisms find. Thus, they also become acquainted with several species of animals and plants which are characteristic for this area. They become familiar with some methods of scientific work and also get to know some of the problems marine ecosystems are confronted with. They also learn a little bit if the Mediterranean history and culture. Back in school all the findings are reviewed and brought into an ecological context. The insights can be used for many other topics, too, such as e.g. evolution. This week has proved to be a good start as well for the topic of ecology as for learning to think scientifically in general. So, you can call it a pivot for the scientific branch of our school.

Neutron activation analysis studies of marine biological species and related marine sediments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guinn, V.P.; Di Casa, M.; de Goeij, J.J.M.; Young, D.R.

1974-01-01

To assess the effects, if any, of elemental pollution of the Pacific Ocean from the major Southern California sewage outfalls, samples of ocean sediments were obtained and specimens of Dover Sole were caught in a number of locations. Liver tissue samples from Dover Sole specimens were analyzed for 12 elements and sediment samples for 4 elements. Although a number of the elements were highly concentrated in the surface sediments in the heavily-polluted areas, the Dover Sole showed no evidence of picking up any of the 12 elements from these polluted sediments. Sediment profiles, versus depth, (0-34 cm) were also determined for As, Sb, Se, and Hg. Stemming partly from the results of the NSF Baseline Study, the Southern California Coastal Water Research Project (SCCWRP) became interested in a more intensive multi-element study of marine biological species and ocean sediments off the coast of Southern California. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects, if any, of a number of selected elements of interest being discharged into the Pacific Ocean from the principal sewage outfalls in the Southern California (Los Angeles) area upon marine biological species. The 12 elements selected for study were Cr, Fe, Co, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Mo, Ag, Cd, Sb, and Hg. Since a number of these elements were not amenable to purely instrumental NAA measurements, a suitable post-irradiation radiochemical separation procedure was devised, thoroughly tested, and then applied to 39 samples of liver tissue from specimens of Dover Sole caught in non-polluted, slightly-polluted, fairly-polluted, and heavily-polluted areas along the coast. A number of surface sediment samples from these same locations were also analyzed, by both instrumental and radiochemical NAA. In the following sections, the samples analyzed are cited, the procedures developed and employed are described, the results obtained are presented, and the conclusions reached are discussed

Synthesis and biology of cyclic imine toxins, an emerging class of potent, globally distributed marine toxins.

Science.gov (United States)

Stivala, Craig E; Benoit, Evelyne; Aráoz, Rómulo; Servent, Denis; Novikov, Alexei; Molgó, Jordi; Zakarian, Armen

2015-03-01

From a small group of exotic compounds isolated only two decades ago, Cyclic Imine (CI) toxins have become a major class of marine toxins with global distribution. Their distinct chemical structure, biological mechanism of action, and intricate chemistry ensures that CI toxins will continue to be the subject of fascinating fundamental studies in the broad fields of chemistry, chemical biology, and toxicology. The worldwide occurrence of potent CI toxins in marine environments, their accumulation in shellfish, and chemical stability are important considerations in assessing risk factors for human health. This review article aims to provide an account of chemistry, biology, and toxicology of CI toxins from their discovery to the present day.

Marine Biological Survey, Peacock Point Outfall, Wake Atoll June 1998 (NODC Accession 0000247)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC), in support of the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) sponsored a marine biological survey at Wake...

Marine Biology: Ecology of the Sea. A Zephyr Learning Packet. Revised.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanner, Joey

From the smallest plankton to the most massive whales, marine biology is the study of the flora and fauna, the living creatures of the ocean. This Zephyr self-directed study unit was developed to bridge the gap between students as passive learners to students as active participants. Originally developed for gifted students, these units emphasize…

Exposure factors for marine eutrophication impacts assessment based on a mechanistic biological model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cosme, Nuno Miguel Dias; Koski, Marja; Hauschild, Michael Zwicky

2015-01-01

marine ecosystem (LME), five climate zones, and site-generic. The XFs obtained range from 0.45 (Central Arctic Ocean) to 15.9kgO2kgN-1 (Baltic Sea). While LME resolution is recommended, aggregated PE or XF per climate zone can be adopted, but not global aggregation due to high variability. The XF......Emissions of nitrogen (N) from anthropogenic sources enrich marine waters and promote planktonic growth. This newly synthesised organic carbon is eventually exported to benthic waters where aerobic respiration by heterotrophic bacteria results in the consumption of dissolved oxygen (DO......). This pathway is typical of marine eutrophication. A model is proposed to mechanistically estimate the response of coastal marine ecosystems to N inputs. It addresses the biological processes of nutrient-limited primary production (PP), metazoan consumption, and bacterial degradation, in four distinct sinking...

Comparison of growth methods and biological activities of brazilian marine Streptomyces

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. C. Granato

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The present work describes the study of the growth and the cytotoxic and antitumor activities of the extracts of the marine microorganisms Streptomyces acrymicini and Streptomyces cebimarensis, the latter a new strain. Both microorganisms were collected from coastal marine sediments of the north coast of São Paulo state. Growth was performed in a shaker and in a bioreactor using Gym medium and the broths of both microorganisms were extracted with ethyl acetate and n-butanol. Three extracts, two organic and one aqueous, from each microorganism were obtained and tested for cytotoxic and antitumor activity using the SF-295 (Central Nervous System, HCT-8 (Colon cell lines, and the MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide method. The growth methods were compared and show that, although the shaker presented reasonable results, the bioreactor represents the best choice for growth of these microorganisms. The biological activity of the different extracts was evaluated and it was demonstrated that the growth methodology may influence the secondary metabolite production and the biological activity.

Overview on Biological Activities and Molecular Characteristics of Sulfated Polysaccharides from Marine Green Algae in Recent Years

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Lingchong; Wang, Xiangyu; Wu, Hao; Liu, Rui

2014-01-01

Among the three main divisions of marine macroalgae (Chlorophyta, Phaeophyta and Rhodophyta), marine green algae are valuable sources of structurally diverse bioactive compounds and remain largely unexploited in nutraceutical and pharmaceutical areas. Recently, a great deal of interest has been developed to isolate novel sulfated polysaccharides (SPs) from marine green algae because of their numerous health beneficial effects. Green seaweeds are known to synthesize large quantities of SPs and are well established sources of these particularly interesting molecules such as ulvans from Ulva and Enteromorpha, sulfated rhamnans from Monostroma, sulfated arabinogalactans from Codium, sulfated galacotans from Caulerpa, and some special sulfated mannans from different species. These SPs exhibit many beneficial biological activities such as anticoagulant, antiviral, antioxidative, antitumor, immunomodulating, antihyperlipidemic and antihepatotoxic activities. Therefore, marine algae derived SPs have great potential for further development as healthy food and medical products. The present review focuses on SPs derived from marine green algae and presents an overview of the recent progress of determinations of their structural types and biological activities, especially their potential health benefits. PMID:25257786

Functional genomics to assess biological responses to marine pollution at physiological and evolutionary timescales: toward a vision of predictive ecotoxicology.

Science.gov (United States)

Reid, Noah M; Whitehead, Andrew

2016-09-01

Marine pollution is ubiquitous, and is one of the key factors influencing contemporary marine biodiversity worldwide. To protect marine biodiversity, how do we surveil, document and predict the short- and long-term impacts of pollutants on at-risk species? Modern genomics tools offer high-throughput, information-rich and increasingly cost-effective approaches for characterizing biological responses to environmental stress, and are important tools within an increasing sophisticated kit for surveiling and assessing impacts of pollutants on marine species. Through the lens of recent research in marine killifish, we illustrate how genomics tools may be useful for screening chemicals and pollutants for biological activity and to reveal specific mechanisms of action. The high dimensionality of transcriptomic responses enables their usage as highly specific fingerprints of exposure, and these fingerprints can be used to diagnose environmental problems. We also emphasize that molecular pathways recruited to respond at physiological timescales are the same pathways that may be targets for natural selection during chronic exposure to pollutants. Gene complement and sequence variation in those pathways can be related to variation in sensitivity to environmental pollutants within and among species. Furthermore, allelic variation associated with evolved tolerance in those pathways could be tracked to estimate the pace of environmental health decline and recovery. We finish by integrating these paradigms into a vision of how genomics approaches could anchor a modernized framework for advancing the predictive capacity of environmental and ecotoxicological science. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

The biology of marine plants

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Dring, M.J

1982-01-01

Since over 90% of the species of marine plants are algae, most of the book is devoted to the marine representatives of this group, with examples from all oceans and coasts of the world where detailed work has been done...

Marine polar steroids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stonik, Valentin A

2001-01-01

Structures, taxonomic distribution and biological activities of polar steroids isolated from various marine organisms over the last 8-10 years are considered. The peculiarities of steroid biogenesis in the marine biota and their possible biological functions are discussed. Syntheses of some highly active marine polar steroids are described. The bibliography includes 254 references.

Diversity and biological activities of the bacterial community associated with the marine sponge Phorbas tenacior (Porifera, Demospongiae).

Science.gov (United States)

Dupont, S; Carré-Mlouka, A; Descarrega, F; Ereskovsky, A; Longeon, A; Mouray, E; Florent, I; Bourguet-Kondracki, M L

2014-01-01

The diversity of the cultivable microbiota of the marine sponge Phorbas tenacior frequently found in the Mediterranean Sea was investigated, and its potential as a source of antimicrobial, antioxidant and antiplasmodial compounds was evaluated. The cultivable bacterial community was studied by isolation, cultivation and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Twenty-three bacterial strains were isolated and identified in the Proteobacteria (α or γ classes) and Actinobacteria phyla. Furthermore, three different bacterial morphotypes localized extracellularly within the sponge tissues were revealed by microscopic observations. Bacterial strains were assigned to seven different genera, namely Vibrio, Photobacterium, Shewanella, Pseudomonas, Ruegeria, Pseudovibrio and Citricoccus. The strains affiliated to the same genus were differentiated according to their genetic dissimilarities using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analyses. Eleven bacterial strains were selected for evaluation of their bioactivities. Three isolates Pseudovibrio P1Ma4, Vibrio P1MaNal1 and Citricoccus P1S7 revealed antimicrobial activity; Citricoccus P1S7 and Vibrio P1MaNal1 isolates also exhibited antiplasmodial activity, while two Vibrio isolates P1Ma8 and P1Ma5 displayed antioxidant activity. These data confirmed the importance of Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria associated with marine sponges as a reservoir of bioactive compounds. This study presents the first report on the diversity of the cultivable bacteria associated with the marine sponge Phorbas tenacior, frequently found in the Mediterranean Sea. Evaluation of the antiplasmodial, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of the isolates has been investigated and allowed to select bacterial strains, confirming the importance of Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria as sources of bioactive compounds. © 2013 The Society for Applied Microbiology.

Antagonistic activity of marine sponges associated Actinobacteria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Selvakumar Dharmaraj

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: To focus on the isolation and preliminary characterization of marine sponges associated Actinobacteria particularly Streptomyces species and also their antagonistic activities against bacterial and fungal pathogens. Methods: The sponges were collected from Kovalam and Vizhinjam port of south-west coast of Kerala, India. Isolation of strains was carried out from sponge extracts using international Streptomyces project media. For preliminary identification of the strains, morphological (mycelial colouration, soluble pigments, melanoid pigmentation, spore morphology, nutritional uptake (carbon utilisation, amonoacids influence, sodium chloride tolerance, physiological (pH, temperature and chemotaxonomical characterization were done. Antimicrobial studies were also carried out for the selected strains. Results: With the help of the spicule structures, the collected marine sponges were identified as Callyspongia diffusa, Mycale mytilorum, Tedania anhelans and Dysidea fragilis. Nearly 94 strains were primarily isolated from these sponges and further they were sub-cultured using international Streptomyces project media. The strains exhibited different mycelial colouration (aerial and substrate, soluble and melanoid pigmentations. The strains possessed three types of sporophore morphology namely rectus flexibilis, spiral and retinaculiaperti. Among the 94 isolates, seven exhibited antibacterial and antifungal activities with maximal zone of inhibition of 30 mm. The nutritional, physiological and chemotaxonomical characteristic study helped in the conventional identification of the seven strains and they all suggest that the strains to be grouped under the genus Streptomyces. Conclusions: The present study clearly helps in the preliminary identification of the isolates associated with marine sponges. Antagonistic activities prove the production of antimicrobial metabolites against the pathogens. Marine sponges associated Streptomyces are

Marine sponge-associated bacteria as a potential source for polyhydroxyalkanoates.

Science.gov (United States)

Sathiyanarayanan, Ganesan; Saibaba, Ganesan; Kiran, George Seghal; Yang, Yung-Hun; Selvin, Joseph

2017-05-01

Marine sponges are filter feeding porous animals and usually harbor a remarkable array of microorganisms in their mesohyl tissues as transient and resident endosymbionts. The marine sponge-microbial interactions are highly complex and, in some cases, the relationships are thought to be truly symbiotic or mutualistic rather than temporary associations resulting from sponge filter-feeding activity. The marine sponge-associated bacteria are fascinating source for various biomolecules that are of potential interest to several biotechnological industries. In recent times, a particular attention has been devoted to bacterial biopolymer (polyesters) such as intracellular polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) produced by sponge-associated bacteria. Bacterial PHAs act as an internal reserve for carbon and energy and also are a tremendous alternative for fossil fuel-based polymers mainly due to their eco-friendliness. In addition, PHAs are produced when the microorganisms are under stressful conditions and this biopolymer synthesis might be exhibited as one of the survival mechanisms of sponge-associated or endosymbiotic bacteria which exist in a highly competitive and stressful sponge-mesohyl microenvironment. In this review, we have emphasized the industrial prospects of marine bacteria for the commercial production of PHAs and special importance has been given to marine sponge-associated bacteria as a potential resource for PHAs.

Primary and Secondary Organic Marine Aerosol and Oceanic Biological Activity: Recent Results and New Perspectives for Future Studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matteo Rinaldi

2010-01-01

Full Text Available One of the most important natural aerosol systems at the global level is marine aerosol that comprises both organic and inorganic components of primary and secondary origin. The present paper reviews some new results on primary and secondary organic marine aerosol, achieved during the EU project MAP (Marine Aerosol Production, comparing them with those reported in the recent literature. Marine aerosol samples collected at the coastal site of Mace Head, Ireland, show a chemical composition trend that is influenced by the oceanic biological activity cycle, in agreement with other observations. Laboratory experiments show that sea-spray aerosol from biologically active sea water can be highly enriched in organics, and the authors highlight the need for further studies on the atmospheric fate of such primary organics. With regard to the secondary fraction of organic aerosol, the average chemical composition and molecular tracer (methanesulfonic-acid, amines distribution could be successfully characterized by adopting a multitechnique analytical approach.

Otters, Marine

Science.gov (United States)

Estes, James A.; Bodkin, James L.; Ben-David, M.; Perrin, William F.; Würsing, Bernd; Thewissen, J.G.M.

2009-01-01

The otters (Mustelidae; Lutrinae) provide an exceptional perspective into the evolution of marine living by mammals. Most extant marine mammals (e.g. the cetaceans, pinnipeds, and sirenians) have been so highly modified by long periods of selection for life in the sea that they bear little resemblance to their terrestrial ancestors. Marine otters, in contrast, are more recent expatriates from freshwater habitats and some species still live in both environments. Contrasts among species within the otters, and among the otters, terrestrial mammals, and the more highly adapted pinnipeds and cetaceans provide powerful insights into mammalian adaptations to life in the sea (Estes, 1989). Among the marine mammals, sea otters (Enhydra lutris, Fig. 1) provide the clearest understanding of consumer-induced effects on ecosystem function. This is due in part to opportunities provided by history and in part to the relative ease with which shallow coastal systems where sea otters live can be observed and studied. Although more difficult to study than sea otters, other otter species reveal the connectivity among the marine, freshwater, and terrestrial systems. These three qualities of the otters – their comparative biology, their role as predators, and their role as agents of ecosystem connectivity – are what make them interesting to marine mammalogy.The following account provides a broad overview of the comparative biology and ecology of the otters, with particular emphasis on those species or populations that live in the sea. Sea otters are features prominently, in part because they live exclusively in the sea whereas other otters have obligate associations with freshwater and terrestrial environments (Kenyon, 1969; Riedman and Estes, 1990).

Parasites as biological tags in marine fisheries research: European Atlantic waters.

Science.gov (United States)

Mackenzie, K; Hemmingsen, W

2015-01-01

Studies of the use of parasites as biological tags for stock identification and to follow migrations of marine fish, mammals and invertebrates in European Atlantic waters are critically reviewed and evaluated. The region covered includes the North, Baltic, Barents and White Seas plus Icelandic waters, but excludes the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Each fish species or ecological group of species is treated separately. More parasite tag studies have been carried out on Atlantic herring Clupea harengus than on any other species, while cod Gadus morhua have also been the subject of many studies. Other species that have been the subjects of more than one study are: blue whiting Micromesistius poutassou, whiting Merlangius merlangus, haddock Melanogrammus aeglefinus, Norway pout Trisopterus esmarkii, horse mackerel Trachurus trachurus and mackerel Scomber scombrus. Other species are dealt with under the general headings redfishes, flatfish, tunas, anadromous fish, elasmobranchs, marine mammals and invertebrates. A final section highlights how parasites can be, and have been, misused as biological tags, and how this can be avoided. It also reviews recent developments in methodology and parasite genetics, considers the potential effects of climate change on the distributions of both hosts and parasites, and suggests host-parasite systems that should reward further research.

Pufferfish mortality associated with novel polar marine toxins in Hawaii

Science.gov (United States)

Work, Thierry M.; Moeller, Perer D. R.; Beauchesne, Kevin R.; Dagenais, Julie; Breeden, Renee; Rameyer, Robert; Walsh, Willliam A.; Abecassis, Melanie; Kobayashi, Donald R.; Conway, Carla M.; Winton, James

2017-01-01

Fish die-offs are important signals in tropical marine ecosystems. In 2010, a mass mortality of pufferfish in Hawaii (USA) was dominated by Arothron hispidus showing aberrant neurological behaviors. Using pathology, toxinology, and field surveys, we implicated a series of novel, polar, marine toxins as a likely cause of this mass mortality. Our findings are striking in that (1) a marine toxin was associated with a kill of a fish species that is itself toxic; (2) we provide a plausible mechanism to explain clinical signs of affected fish; and (3) this epizootic likely depleted puffer populations. Whilst our data are compelling, we did not synthesize the toxin de novo, and we were unable to categorically prove that the polar toxins caused mortality or that they were metabolites of an undefined parent compound. However, our approach does provide a template for marine fish kill investigations associated with marine toxins and inherent limitations of existing methods. Our study also highlights the need for more rapid and cost-effective tools to identify new marine toxins, particularly small, highly polar molecules.

Contrasts between the marine and freshwater biological interactions of plutonium and americium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Livingston, H.D.; Bowen, V.T.

1975-01-01

Whether in lakes or the oceans the transuranic elements plutonium and americium are taken up by marine organisms, with concentration factors that would class them as nice, typical heavy metals. There is no evidence for strong, widespread discrimination against the transuranics by either plant or animal absorptive surfaces. In both freshwater and marine situations the major reservoir of Pu and Am soon becomes the sediments, and organisms are more exposed to uptake of these nuclides the closer is their ecological involvement with the sediments. Although there is little evidence that this can be an ionic strength effect, it does appear that Pu may be somewhat more available, biologically, in marine environments, and Am, conversely, in fresh water. We incline to the belief that details of these behaviors are usually controlled by local availability of organic complexers. No compelling evidence exists of increase in Pu concentration at higher levels of food chains; in marine situations this appears true of Am as well, but a few data suggest that in fresh water fish there is a progressive increase, in higher trophic levels, in the ratio Am to Pu. Although marine and fresh water biogeochemistries of transuranics are much more similar than we had expected, it will generally be dangerous to extrapolate from one to the other. In both systems there appears to us no question that we are observing real element biogeochemistry, not the redistribution of inert, labelled, fallout fragments

Marine Biology: Self-Directed Study Units for Grades K-3 and 4-8, Gifted. Easily Adapted for Regular Classroom Use. Zephyr Learning Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanner, Joey

Originally designed for the gifted student, these reproducible marine biology units emphasize the use of higher order thinking skills and are appropriate for use in any classroom. Interdisciplinary in content, the units provide a broad view of marine biology. Included are two complete units, one created for the upper elementary gifted student and…

Natural antifouling compound production by microbes associated with marine macroorganisms — A review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sathianeson Satheesh

2016-05-01

Full Text Available In the marine environment, all hard surfaces including marine macroorganims are colonized by microorganisms mainly from the surrounding environment. The microorganisms associated with marine macroorganisms offer tremendous potential for exploitation of bioactive metabolites. Biofouling is a continuous problem in marine sectors which needs huge economy for control and cleaning processes. Biotechnological way for searching natural product antifouling compounds gained momentum in recent years because of the environmental pollution associated with the use of toxic chemicals to control biofouling. While, natural product based antifoulants from marine organisms particularly sponges and corals attained significance due to their activities in field assays, collection of larger amount of organisms from the sea is not a viable one. The microorganisms associated with sponges, corals, ascidians, seaweeds and seagrasses showed strong antimicrobial and also antifouling activities. This review highlights the advances in natural product antifoulants research from microbes associated with marine organisms.

Glycosaminoglycans analogues from marine invertebrates: structure, biological effects and potential as new therapeutics.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mauro Sergio Pavao

2014-09-01

Full Text Available In this review, several glycosaminoglycan analogs obtained from different marine invertebrate are reported. The structure, biological activity and mechanism of action of these unique molecules are detailed reviewed and exemplified by experiments in vitro and in vivo. Among the glycans studied are low-sulfated heparin-like polymers from ascidians, containing significant anticoagulant activity and no bleeding effect; dermatan sulfates with significant neurite outgrowth promoting activity and anti-P-selectin from ascidians, and a unique fucosylated chondroitin sulfate from sea cucumbers, possessing anticoagulant activity after oral administration and high anti P- and L-selectin activities. The therapeutic value and safety of these invertebrate glycans have been extensively proved by several experimental animal models of diseases, including thrombosis, inflammation and metastasis. These invertebrate glycans can be obtained in high concentrations from marine organisms that have been used as a food source for decades, and usually obtained from marine farms in sufficient quantities to be used as starting material for new therapeutics.

Marine pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Albaiges, J.

1989-01-01

This book covers the following topics: Transport of marine pollutants; Transformation of pollutants in the marine environment; Biological effects of marine pollutants; Sources and transport of oil pollutants in the Persian Gulf; Trace metals and hydrocarbons in Syrian coastal waters; and Techniques for analysis of trace pollutants

Chromophoric Dissolved Organic Matter across a Marine Distributed Biological Observatory in the Pacific Arctic Region

Science.gov (United States)

Berman, S. L.; Frey, K. E.; Shake, K. L.; Cooper, L. W.; Grebmeier, J. M.

2014-12-01

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) plays an important role in marine ecosystems as both a carbon source for the microbial food web (and thus a source of CO2 to the atmosphere) and as a light inhibitor in marine environments. The presence of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM; the optically active portion of total DOM) can have significant controlling effects on transmittance of sunlight through the water column and therefore on primary production as well as the heat balance of the upper ocean. However, CDOM is also susceptible to photochemical degradation, which decreases the flux of solar radiation that is absorbed. Knowledge of the current spatial and temporal distribution of CDOM in marine environments is thus critical for understanding how ongoing and future changes in climate may impact these biological, biogeochemical, and physical processes. We describe the quantity and quality of CDOM along five key productive transects across a developing Distributed Biological Observatory (DBO) in the Pacific Arctic region. The samples were collected onboard the CCGS Sir Wilfred Laurier in July 2013 and 2014. Monitoring of the variability of CDOM along transects of high productivity can provide important insights into biological and biogeochemical cycling across the region. Our analyses include overall concentrations of CDOM, as well as proxy information such as molecular weight, lability, and source (i.e., autochthonous vs. allochthonous) of organic matter. We utilize these field observations to compare with satellite-derived CDOM concentrations determined from the Aqua MODIS satellite platform, which ultimately provides a spatially and temporally continuous synoptic view of CDOM concentrations throughout the region. Examining the current relationships among CDOM, sea ice variability, biological productivity, and biogeochemical cycling in the Pacific Arctic region will likely provide key insights for how ecosystems throughout the region will respond in future

Nitrous oxide production associated with coastal marine invertebrates

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heisterkamp, Ines Maria; Schramm, Andreas; de Beer, Dirk

2010-01-01

Several freshwater and terrestrial invertebrate species emit the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O). The N2O production associated with these animals was ascribed to incomplete denitrification by ingested sediment or soil bacteria. The present study shows that many marine invertebrates also emit N2......O at substantial rates. A total of 19 invertebrate species collected in the German Wadden Sea and in Aarhus Bay, Denmark, and 1 aquacultured shrimp species were tested for N2O emission. Potential N2O emission rates ranged from 0 to 1.354 nmol ind.–1 h–1, with an average rate of 0.320 nmol ind.–1 h–1...... with an experimentally cleaned shell. Thus, the N2O production associated with marine invertebrates is apparently not due to gut denitrification in every species, but may also result from microbial activity on the external surfaces of animals. The high abundance and potential N2O emission rates of many marine...

Sustained climate warming drives declining marine biological productivity

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, J. Keith; Fu, Weiwei; Primeau, Francois; Britten, Gregory L.; Lindsay, Keith; Long, Matthew; Doney, Scott C.; Mahowald, Natalie; Hoffman, Forrest; Randerson, James T.

2018-03-01

Climate change projections to the year 2100 may miss physical-biogeochemical feedbacks that emerge later from the cumulative effects of climate warming. In a coupled climate simulation to the year 2300, the westerly winds strengthen and shift poleward, surface waters warm, and sea ice disappears, leading to intense nutrient trapping in the Southern Ocean. The trapping drives a global-scale nutrient redistribution, with net transfer to the deep ocean. Ensuing surface nutrient reductions north of 30°S drive steady declines in primary production and carbon export (decreases of 24 and 41%, respectively, by 2300). Potential fishery yields, constrained by lower–trophic-level productivity, decrease by more than 20% globally and by nearly 60% in the North Atlantic. Continued high levels of greenhouse gas emissions could suppress marine biological productivity for a millennium.

Reproductive biology, family conflict, and size of offspring in marine invertebrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamel, Stephanie J; Oyarzun, Fernanda X; Grosberg, Richard K

2010-10-01

All organisms face two fundamental trade-offs in the allocation of energetic resources: one between many small versus a few large offspring, and the second between present and future reproduction. Nowhere are these trade-offs more apparent than in the vast range of variation in the sizes of eggs and offspring exhibited among species of marine invertebrates. It has become increasingly clear that, in many taxa of marine organisms, there is also substantial intraspecific variation in the size of eggs and hatchings. This variation has largely been attributed to adaptive maternal effects. In theory, however, the inevitable conflicts of interest that arise in families of sexually reproducing organisms over the optimal distribution of parental resources among siblings could also account for much of this variation in egg and offspring size. Here, we explore the potential impacts of family conflict on offspring traits by comparing the life histories of two exemplar species of marine organisms, the polychaete Boccardia proboscidea and the gastropod Solenosteira macrospira, emphasizing how differences in modes of fertilization and parental care might influence the phenotype and, consequently, the fitness of offspring. © The Author 2010. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. All rights reserved.

Marine parasites as biological tags in South American Atlantic waters, current status and perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Cantatore, D M P; Timi, J T

2015-01-01

Many marine fisheries in South American Atlantic coasts (SAAC) are threatened by overfishing and under serious risk of collapsing. The SAAC comprises a diversity of environments, possesses a complex oceanography and harbours a vast biodiversity that provide an enormous potential for using parasites as biological tags for fish stock delineation, a prerequisite for the implementation of control and management plans. Here, their use in the SAAC is reviewed. Main evidence is derived from northern Argentine waters, where fish parasite assemblages are dominated by larval helminth species that share a low specificity, long persistence and trophic transmission, parasitizing almost indiscriminately all available fish species. The advantages and constraints of such a combination of characteristics are analysed and recommendations are given for future research. Shifting the focus from fish/parasite populations to communities allows expanding the concept of biological tags from local to regional scales, providing essential information to delineate ecosystem boundaries for host communities. This new concept arose as a powerful tool to help the implementation of ecosystem-based approaches to fisheries management, the new paradigm for fisheries science. Holistic approaches, including parasites as biological tags for stock delineation will render valuable information to help insure fisheries and marine ecosystems against further depletion and collapse.

Using biological effects tools to define Good Environmental Status under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lyons, B.P.; Thain, J.E.; Hylland, K.; Davis, I.; Vethaak, A.D.

2010-01-01

The use of biological effects tools offer enormous potential to meet the challenges outlined by the European Union Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) whereby Member States are required to develop a robust set of tools for defining 11 qualitative descriptors of Good Environmental Status

The Biology of Heterotrophic N2-fixing Bacteria in Marine and Estuarine Waters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bentzon-Tilia, Mikkel

Biological nitrogen (N)2 fixation is of paramount importance for marine N cycling and for life in the oceans in general. It represents the sole mechanism by which microorganisms can channel inert atmospheric N2 gas into biomass and hence it may fuel a significant fraction of primary production...... heterotrophic isolates, this thesis aims at addressing these unknowns. It was found that heterotrophic diazotrophs were present and active in environments previously not associated with N2 fixation e.g. suboxic basins of the Baltic Sea and estuarine surface waters. In these environments they contributed...... with significant amounts fixed N2, suggesting that a reevaluation of the significance of N fixation in suboxic waters and estuarine coastal waters is warranted. It was also documented that heterotrophic diazotrophs could be enriched in culture based on their ability to utilize N2 as the sole N source...

Anthraquinones and Derivatives from Marine-Derived Fungi: Structural Diversity and Selected Biological Activities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mireille Fouillaud

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Anthraquinones and their derivatives constitute a large group of quinoid compounds with about 700 molecules described. They are widespread in fungi and their chemical diversity and biological activities recently attracted attention of industries in such fields as pharmaceuticals, clothes dyeing, and food colorants. Their positive and/or negative effect(s due to the 9,10-anthracenedione structure and its substituents are still not clearly understood and their potential roles or effects on human health are today strongly discussed among scientists. As marine microorganisms recently appeared as producers of an astonishing variety of structurally unique secondary metabolites, they may represent a promising resource for identifying new candidates for therapeutic drugs or daily additives. Within this review, we investigate the present knowledge about the anthraquinones and derivatives listed to date from marine-derived filamentous fungi′s productions. This overview highlights the molecules which have been identified in microorganisms for the first time. The structures and colors of the anthraquinoid compounds come along with the known roles of some molecules in the life of the organisms. Some specific biological activities are also described. This may help to open doors towards innovative natural substances.

Anthraquinones and Derivatives from Marine-Derived Fungi: Structural Diversity and Selected Biological Activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Fouillaud, Mireille; Venkatachalam, Mekala; Girard-Valenciennes, Emmanuelle; Caro, Yanis; Dufossé, Laurent

2016-03-25

Anthraquinones and their derivatives constitute a large group of quinoid compounds with about 700 molecules described. They are widespread in fungi and their chemical diversity and biological activities recently attracted attention of industries in such fields as pharmaceuticals, clothes dyeing, and food colorants. Their positive and/or negative effect(s) due to the 9,10-anthracenedione structure and its substituents are still not clearly understood and their potential roles or effects on human health are today strongly discussed among scientists. As marine microorganisms recently appeared as producers of an astonishing variety of structurally unique secondary metabolites, they may represent a promising resource for identifying new candidates for therapeutic drugs or daily additives. Within this review, we investigate the present knowledge about the anthraquinones and derivatives listed to date from marine-derived filamentous fungi's productions. This overview highlights the molecules which have been identified in microorganisms for the first time. The structures and colors of the anthraquinoid compounds come along with the known roles of some molecules in the life of the organisms. Some specific biological activities are also described. This may help to open doors towards innovative natural substances.

Marine ecology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1977-01-01

Studies on marine ecology included marine pollution; distribution patterns of Pu and Am in the marine waters, sediments, and organisms of Bikini Atoll and the influence of physical, chemical, and biological factors on their movements through marine biogeochemical systems; transfer and dispersion of organic pollutants from an oil refinery through coastal waters; transfer of particulate pollutants, including sediments dispersed during construction of offshore power plants; and raft culture of the mangrove oysters

S.E.A. Lab. Science Experiments and Activities. Marine Science for High School Students in Chemistry, Biology and Physics.

Science.gov (United States)

Hart, Kathy, Ed.

A series of science experiments and activities designed for secondary school students taking biology, chemistry, physics, physical science or marine science courses are outlined. Each of the three major sections--chemistry, biology, and physics--addresses concepts that are generally covered in those courses but incorporates aspects of marine…

Pyridinoacridine alkaloids of marine origin: NMR and MS spectral data, synthesis, biosynthesis and biological activity

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Louis P. Sandjo

2015-09-01

Full Text Available This review focuses on pyridoacridine-related metabolites as one biologically interesting group of alkaloids identified from marine sources. They are produced by marine sponges, ascidians and tunicates, and they are structurally comprised of four to eight fused rings including heterocycles. Acridine, acridone, dihydroacridine, and quinolone cores are features regularly found in these alkaloid skeletons. The lack of hydrogen atoms next to quaternary carbon atoms for two or three rings makes the chemical shift assignment a difficult task. In this regard, one of the aims of this review is the compilation of previously reported, pyridoacridine 13C NMR data. Observations have been made on the delocalization of electrons and the presence of some functional groups that lead to changes in the chemical shift of some carbon resonances. The lack of mass spectra information for these alkaloids due to the compactness of their structures is further discussed. Moreover, the biosynthetic pathways of some of these metabolites have been shown since they could inspire biomimetic synthesis. The synthesis routes used to prepare members of these marine alkaloids (as well as their analogues, which are synthesized for biological purposes are also discussed. Pyridoacridines were found to have a large spectrum of bioactivity and this review highlights and compares the pharmacophores that are responsible for the observed bioactivity.

Progress towards the Conventionon Biological Diversity terrestrial2010 and marine 2012 targets forprotected area coverage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Coad, Lauren; Burgess, Neil David; Fish, Lucy

2010-01-01

coverage targets. National protected areas data from the WDPA have been used to measure progress in protected areas coverage at global, regional and national scale. The mean protected area coverage per nation was 12.2% for terrestrial area, and only 5.1% for near-shore marine area. Variation in protected......Protected area coverage targets set by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) for both terrestrial and marine environments provide a major incentive for governments to review and upgrade their protected area systems. Assessing progress towards these targets will form an important component...... of the work of the Xth CBD Conference of Parties meeting to be held in Japan in 2010. The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is the largest assembly of data on the world's terrestrial and marine protected areas and, as such, represents a fundamental tool in tracking progress towards protected area...

Biological and Climate Controls on North Atlantic Marine Carbon Dynamics Over the Last Millennium: Insights From an Absolutely Dated Shell-Based Record From the North Icelandic Shelf

Science.gov (United States)

Reynolds, D. J.; Hall, I. R.; Scourse, J. D.; Richardson, C. A.; Wanamaker, A. D.; Butler, P. G.

2017-12-01

Given the rapid increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations (pCO2) over the industrial era, there is a pressing need to construct long-term records of natural carbon cycling prior to this perturbation and to develop a more robust understanding of the role the oceans play in the sequestration of atmospheric carbon. Here we reconstruct the past biological and climate controls on the carbon isotopic (δ13Cshell) composition of the North Icelandic shelf waters over the last millennium, derived from the shells of the long-lived marine bivalve mollusk Arctica islandica. Variability in the annually resolved δ13Cshell record is dominated by multidecadal variability with a negative trend (-0.003 ± 0.002‰ yr-1) over the industrial era (1800-2000 Common Era). This trend is consistent with the marine Suess effect brought about by the sequestration of isotopically light carbon (δ13C of CO2) derived from the burning of fossil fuels. Comparison of the δ13Cshell record with Contemporaneous proxy archives, over the last millennium, and instrumental data over the twentieth century, highlights that both biological (primary production) and physical environmental factors, such as relative shifts in the proportion of Subpolar Mode Waters and Arctic Intermediate Waters entrained onto the North Icelandic shelf, atmospheric circulation patterns associated with the winter North Atlantic Oscillation, and sea surface temperature and salinity of the subpolar gyre, are the likely mechanisms that contribute to natural variations in seawater δ13C variability on the North Icelandic shelf. Contrasting δ13C fractionation processes associated with these biological and physical mechanisms likely cause the attenuated marine Suess effect signal at this locality.

Production of Some Biologically Active Secondary Metabolites From Marine-derived Fungus Varicosporina ramulosa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Atalla, M. M.

2008-01-01

Full Text Available In a screening of fungal isolates associated with marine algae collected from Abou-keer, Alexanderia during the four seasons of 2004, to obtain new biologically active compounds. Varicosporina ramulosa isolate was identified and selected as a producer of 13 compounds. Out of 13 pure compounds produced, compounds 3 and 10 were considered as antibacterial and antifungal compounds, respectively as they were active against gram positive, gram negative bacteria and a fungus. Optimization of conditions (fermentation media, incubation period, temperature, initial pH, aeration levels which activate compounds 3 and 10 production were studied. Also the spectral properties (UV, MS, GC/MS, IR and 1H-NMR of the purified compounds were determined. Compound 3 suggested to be dibutyl phthalate and compound 10 may be ergosterol or one of its isomers. Biological evaluation of the two compounds towards 6 different types of tumor cell lines showed weak effect of compound 3 at different concentrations on the viable cell count of the different tumor cell lines. While compound 10 showed different activities against the viable cell count of the 6 different tumor cell lines. It kills 50% of the viable infected liver and lung cells at concentrations equal to 99.7 µg/mL, 74.9µg/mL, respectively. Compound 10 can be recommended as new anticancer compounds.

The Smithsonian-led Marine Global Earth Observatory (MarineGEO): Proposed Model for a Collaborative Network Linking Marine Biodiversity to Ecosystem Processes

Science.gov (United States)

Duffy, J. E.

2016-02-01

Biodiversity - the variety of functional types of organisms - is the engine of marine ecosystem processes, including productivity, nutrient cycling, and carbon sequestration. Biodiversity remains a black box in much of ocean science, despite wide recognition that effectively managing human interactions with marine ecosystems requires understanding both structure and functional consequences of biodiversity. Moreover, the inherent complexity of biological systems puts a premium on data-rich, comparative approaches, which are best met via collaborative networks. The Smithsonian Institution's MarineGEO program links a growing network of partners conducting parallel, comparative research to understand change in marine biodiversity and ecosystems, natural and anthropogenic drivers of that change, and the ecological processes mediating it. The focus is on nearshore, seabed-associated systems where biodiversity and human population are concentrated and interact most, yet which fall through the cracks of existing ocean observing programs. MarineGEO offers a standardized toolbox of research modules that efficiently capture key elements of biological diversity and its importance in ecological processes across a range of habitats. The toolbox integrates high-tech (DNA-based, imaging) and low-tech protocols (diver surveys, rapid assays of consumer activity) adaptable to differing institutional capacity and resources. The model for long-term sustainability involves leveraging in-kind support among partners, adoption of best practices wherever possible, engagement of students and citizen scientists, and benefits of training, networking, and global relevance as incentives for participation. Here I highlight several MarineGEO comparative research projects demonstrating the value of standardized, scalable assays and parallel experiments for measuring fish and invertebrate diversity, recruitment, benthic herbivory and generalist predation, decomposition, and carbon sequestration. Key

Biological sampling for marine radioactivity monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fowler, S.W.

1997-01-01

Strategies and methodologies for using marine organisms to monitor radioactivity in marine waters are presented. When the criteria for monitoring radioactivity is to determine routes of radionuclide transfer to man, the ''critical pathway'' approach is often applied. Alternatively, where information on ambient radionuclide levels and distributions is sought, the approach of selecting marine organisms as ''bioindicators'' of radioactivity is generally used. Whichever approach is applied, a great deal of knowledge is required about the physiology and ecology of the specific organism chosen. In addition, several criteria for qualifying as a bioindicator species are discussed; e.g., it must be a sedentary species which reflects the ambient radionuclide concentration at a given site, sufficiently long-lived to allow long-term temporal sampling, widely distributed to allow spatial comparisons, able to bioconcentrate the radionuclide to a relatively high degree, while showing a simple correlation between radionuclide content in its tissues with that in the surrounding waters. Useful hints on the appropriate species to use and the best way to collect and prepare organisms for radioanalysis are also given. It is concluded that benthic algae and bivalve molluscs generally offer the greatest potential for use as a ''bioindicator'' species in radionuclide biomonitoring programmes. Where knowledge on contribution to radiological dose is required, specific edible marine species should be the organisms of choice; however, both purposes can be served when the edible species chosen through critical pathway analysis is also an excellent bioaccumulator of the radionuclide of interest. (author)

Ichthyoplankton of arvoredo biological marine reserve, Santa Catarina, Brazil

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Thais Rutkowski

Full Text Available Arvoredo Island, located in Santa Catarina state - south Brazil, and its surrounding area were defined as a Conservation Unit (CU in the category of Biological Reserve since 1990. This research aimed to analyze the inter-annual and seasonal (winter and summer variations of ichthyoplankton densities at Arvoredo Biology Marine Reserve (ABMR, and their relationship with environmental variables in 1997/1998 (Campaign 1, 2007/2008 (Campaign 2 and 2008/2009 (Campaign 3. Fish eggs and larvae were sampled using a WP-2 net with 200 µm mesh size. The study area was influenced by three water masses, (i Coastal Water throughout the whole year, (ii Subtropical Shelf Water during the winter, and (iii South Atlantic Central Water mainly in summer. A total of 4,891 eggs were collected and classified as Engraulidae and Sardinella brasiliensis (Clupeidae. The total number of larvae was 467 belonging to 5 orders, 19 families, and 21 species. Taxonomic composition demonstrated a seasonal pattern among periods, with the highest densities of Engraulidae occurring in winter and the families Carangidae, Clupeidae and Gerreidae in summer. The high number of families and abundance of ichthyoplankton observed in ABMR may be important in supplying the adjacent coastal areas impacted by fishing.

Evaluating legacy contaminants and emerging chemicals in marine environments using adverse outcome pathways and biological effects-directed analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Hutchinson, Thomas H; Lyons, Brett P; Thain, John E; Law, Robin J

2013-09-30

Natural and synthetic chemicals are essential to our daily lives, food supplies, health care, industries and safe sanitation. At the same time protecting marine ecosystems and seafood resources from the adverse effects of chemical contaminants remains an important issue. Since the 1970s, monitoring of persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) chemicals using analytical chemistry has provided important spatial and temporal trend data in three important contexts; relating to human health protection from seafood contamination, addressing threats to marine top predators and finally providing essential evidence to better protect the biodiversity of commercial and non-commercial marine species. A number of regional conventions have led to controls on certain PBT chemicals over several years (termed 'legacy contaminants'; e.g. cadmium, lindane, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons [PAHs] and polychlorinated biphenyls [PCBs]). Analytical chemistry plays a key role in evaluating to what extent such regulatory steps have been effective in leading to reduced emissions of these legacy contaminants into marine environments. In parallel, the application of biomarkers (e.g. DNA adducts, CYP1A-EROD, vitellogenin) and bioassays integrated with analytical chemistry has strengthened the evidence base to support an ecosystem approach to manage marine pollution problems. In recent years, however,the increased sensitivity of analytical chemistry, toxicity alerts and wider environmental awareness has led to a focus on emerging chemical contaminants (defined as chemicals that have been detected in the environment, but which are currently not included in regulatory monitoring programmes and whose fate and biological impacts are poorly understood). It is also known that natural chemicals (e.g. algal biotoxins) may also pose a threat to marine species and seafood quality. Hence complex mixtures of legacy contaminants, emerging chemicals and natural biotoxins in marine ecosystems represent

Evaluating legacy contaminants and emerging chemicals in marine environments using adverse outcome pathways and biological effects-directed analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hutchinson, Thomas H.; Lyons, Brett P.; Thain, John E.; Law, Robin J.

2013-01-01

Natural and synthetic chemicals are essential to our daily lives, food supplies, health care, industries and safe sanitation. At the same time protecting marine ecosystems and seafood resources from the adverse effects of chemical contaminants remains an important issue. Since the 1970s, monitoring of persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) chemicals using analytical chemistry has provided important spatial and temporal trend data in three important contexts; relating to human health protection from seafood contamination, addressing threats to marine top predators and finally providing essential evidence to better protect the biodiversity of commercial and non-commercial marine species. A number of regional conventions have led to controls on certain PBT chemicals over several years (termed ‘legacy contaminants’; e.g. cadmium, lindane, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons [PAHs] and polychlorinated biphenyls [PCBs]). Analytical chemistry plays a key role in evaluating to what extent such regulatory steps have been effective in leading to reduced emissions of these legacy contaminants into marine environments. In parallel, the application of biomarkers (e.g. DNA adducts, CYP1A-EROD, vitellogenin) and bioassays integrated with analytical chemistry has strengthened the evidence base to support an ecosystem approach to manage marine pollution problems. In recent years, however, the increased sensitivity of analytical chemistry, toxicity alerts and wider environmental awareness has led to a focus on emerging chemical contaminants (defined as chemicals that have been detected in the environment, but which are currently not included in regulatory monitoring programmes and whose fate and biological impacts are poorly understood). It is also known that natural chemicals (e.g. algal biotoxins) may also pose a threat to marine species and seafood quality. Hence complex mixtures of legacy contaminants, emerging chemicals and natural biotoxins in marine ecosystems represent

78 FR 42935 - Marine Mammals; File No. 16992

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-18

... permit has been issued to Paul Nachtigall, Ph.D., Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, University of... captivity at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, Hawaii. Researchers will conduct hearing... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XB161 Marine...

Will marine productivity wane?

Science.gov (United States)

Laufkötter, Charlotte; Gruber, Nicolas

2018-03-01

If marine algae are impaired severely by global climate change, the resulting reduction in marine primary production would strongly affect marine life and the ocean's biological pump that sequesters substantial amounts of atmospheric carbon dioxide in the ocean's interior. Most studies, including the latest generation of Earth system models, project only moderate global decreases in biological production until 2100 (1, 2), suggesting that these concerns are unwarranted. But on page 1139 of this issue, Moore et al. (3) show that this conclusion might be shortsighted and that there may be much larger long-term changes in ocean productivity than previously appreciated.

Marine Science Teaching at the University Level. Report of the Unesco Workshop on University Curricula. Unesco Technical Papers in Marine Science No. 19.

Science.gov (United States)

United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, Paris (France). Div. of Marine Sciences.

A group of marine science education educators from several countries were requested to provide guidelines for the education and training of marine scientists and formulate recommended curricula in the following disciplines: marine biology (including fisheries biology), physical oceanography, and marine geology. Included in the report are: (1)…

Bioactive Pigments from Marine Bacteria: Applications and Physiological Roles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Azamjon B. Soliev

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Research into natural products from the marine environment, including microorganisms, has rapidly increased over the past two decades. Despite the enormous difficulty in isolating and harvesting marine bacteria, microbial metabolites are increasingly attractive to science because of their broad-ranging pharmacological activities, especially those with unique color pigments. This current review paper gives an overview of the pigmented natural compounds isolated from bacteria of marine origin, based on accumulated data in the literature. We review the biological activities of marine compounds, including recent advances in the study of pharmacological effects and other commercial applications, in addition to the biosynthesis and physiological roles of associated pigments. Chemical structures of the bioactive compounds discussed are also presented.

Marine Education Knowledge Inventory.

Science.gov (United States)

Hounshell, Paul B.; Hampton, Carolyn

This 35-item, multiple-choice Marine Education Knowledge Inventory was developed for use in upper elementary/middle schools to measure a student's knowledge of marine science. Content of test items is drawn from oceanography, ecology, earth science, navigation, and the biological sciences (focusing on marine animals). Steps in the construction of…

Antimicrobial Compounds from Marine Invertebrates-Derived Microorganisms.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Juan; Jung, Jee H; Liu, Yonghong

2016-01-01

It is known that marine invertebrates, including sponges, tunicates, cnidaria or mollusks, host affluent and various communities of symbiotic microorganisms. The microorganisms associated with the invertebrates metabolized various biologically active compounds, which could be an important resource for the discovery and development of potentially novel drugs. In this review, the new compounds with antimicrobial activity isolated from marine invertebrate-derived microorganisms in the last decade (2004-2014) will be presented, with focus on the relevant antimicrobial activities, origin of isolation, and information of strain species. New compounds without antimicrobial activity were not revealed.

Marine medicinal glycomics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vitor Hugo Pomin

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Glycomics is an international initiative aimed to understand the structure and function of the glycans from a given type of cell, tissue, organism, kingdom or even environment, as found under certain conditions. Glycomics is one of the latest areas of intense biological research. Glycans of marine sources are unique in terms of structure and function. They differ considerably from those of terrestrial origin. This review discusses the most known marine glycans of potential therapeutic properties. They are chitin, chitosan, and sulfated polysaccharides named glycosaminoglycans, sulfated fucans and sulfated galactans. Their medical actions are very broad. When certain structural requirements are found, these glycans can exhibit beneficial effects in inflammation, coagulation, thrombosis, cancer growth/metastasis and vascular biology. Both structure and therapeutic mechanisms of action of these marine glycans are discussed here in straight context with the current glycomic age through a project suggestively named Marine Medicinal Glycomics.

Compilation of selected marine radioecological data for the US Subseabed Program: Summaries of available radioecological concentration factors and biological half-lives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomez, L.S.; Marietta, M.G.; Jackson, D.W.

1987-04-01

The US Subseabed Disposal Program has compiled an extensive concentration factor and biological half-life data base from the international marine radioecological literature. A microcomputer-based data management system has been implemented to provide statistical and graphic summaries of these data. The data base is constructed in a manner which allows subsets to be sorted using a number of interstudy variables such as organism category, tissue/organ category, geographic location (for in situ studies), and several laboratory-related conditions (e.g., exposure time and exposure concentration). This report updates earlier reviews and provides summaries of the tabulated data. In addition to the concentration factor/biological half-life data base, we provide an outline of other published marine radioecological works. Our goal is to present these data in a form that enables those concerned with predictive assessment of radiation dose in the marine environment to make a more judicious selection of data for a given application. 555 refs., 19 figs., 7 tabs

Compilation of selected marine radioecological data for the US Subseabed Program: Summaries of available radioecological concentration factors and biological half-lives

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gomez, L.S.; Marietta, M.G.; Jackson, D.W.

1987-04-01

The US Subseabed Disposal Program has compiled an extensive concentration factor and biological half-life data base from the international marine radioecological literature. A microcomputer-based data management system has been implemented to provide statistical and graphic summaries of these data. The data base is constructed in a manner which allows subsets to be sorted using a number of interstudy variables such as organism category, tissue/organ category, geographic location (for in situ studies), and several laboratory-related conditions (e.g., exposure time and exposure concentration). This report updates earlier reviews and provides summaries of the tabulated data. In addition to the concentration factor/biological half-life data base, we provide an outline of other published marine radioecological works. Our goal is to present these data in a form that enables those concerned with predictive assessment of radiation dose in the marine environment to make a more judicious selection of data for a given application. 555 refs., 19 figs., 7 tabs.

76 FR 12070 - Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-04

... Energy's EROS operations in 2010: Marine mammals Biological impacts Company Structure Dates sighted... Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...

Sensitivity and accuracy of atomic absorption spectrophotometry for trace elements in marine biological samples

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fukai, R.; Oregioni, B.

1976-01-01

During the course of 1974-75 atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) has been used extensively in our laboratory for measuring various trace elements in marine biological materials in order to conduct homogeneity tests on the intercalibration samples for trace metal analysis as well as to obtain baseline data for trace elements in various kinds of marine organisms collected from different locations in the Mediterranean Sea. Several series of test experiments have been conducted on the current methodology in use in our laboratory to ensure satisfactory analytical performance in measuring a number of trace elements for which analytical problems have not completely been solved. Sensitivities of the techniques used were repeatedly checked for various elements and the accuracy of the analyses were always critically evaluated by analyzing standard reference materials. The results of these test experiments have uncovered critical points relevant to the application of the AAS to routine analysis

Marine Biology and Oceanography, Grades Nine to Twelve. Part II.

Science.gov (United States)

Kolb, James A.

This unit, one of a series designed to develop and foster an understanding of the marine environment, presents marine science activities for students in grades 9-12. The unit, focusing on sea plants/animals and their interactions with each other and the non-living environment, has sections dealing with: marine ecology; marine bacteriology;…

A review of the biological and geochemical behaviour of technetium in the marine environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beasley, T.M.; Lorz, H.V.

1986-01-01

Present understanding of the behavior of Tc in the marine environment is summarised. The prevalent valence state of Tc in oxygenated seawater is +7, arguing that pertechnetate ion, TcO - 4 , represents the most likely form of this radioelement in seawater. Laboratory experiments using radio-labeled pertechnetate ion have shown that binding of this anion to different classes of marine sediments is slight. Concentration factors for the majority of marine organisms studied to date are small; notable exceptions are seen in certain species of brown algae, polychaetes and macrocrustaceans. Uptake and loss kinetics are generally rapid with the majority of the Tc being associated with shell, exoskeleton and gut. There are, as yet, no data supporting the contention that stable element analogs such as iodate can be used to predict the long-term behavior of 99 Tc (as pertechnetate) in the marine environment. (author)

Biodiversity's big wet secret: the global distribution of marine biological records reveals chronic under-exploration of the deep pelagic ocean.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas J Webb

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Understanding the distribution of marine biodiversity is a crucial first step towards the effective and sustainable management of marine ecosystems. Recent efforts to collate location records from marine surveys enable us to assemble a global picture of recorded marine biodiversity. They also effectively highlight gaps in our knowledge of particular marine regions. In particular, the deep pelagic ocean--the largest biome on Earth--is chronically under-represented in global databases of marine biodiversity. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We use data from the Ocean Biogeographic Information System to plot the position in the water column of ca 7 million records of marine species occurrences. Records from relatively shallow waters dominate this global picture of recorded marine biodiversity. In addition, standardising the number of records from regions of the ocean differing in depth reveals that regardless of ocean depth, most records come either from surface waters or the sea bed. Midwater biodiversity is drastically under-represented. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The deep pelagic ocean is the largest habitat by volume on Earth, yet it remains biodiversity's big wet secret, as it is hugely under-represented in global databases of marine biological records. Given both its value in the provision of a range of ecosystem services, and its vulnerability to threats including overfishing and climate change, there is a pressing need to increase our knowledge of Earth's largest ecosystem.

Composition and predicted functional ecology of mussel - associated bacteria in Indonesian marine lakes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cleary, D.F.R.; Becking, L.E.; Polonia, A.; Freitas, R.M.; Gomes, N.

2015-01-01

In the present study, we sampled bacterial communities associated with mussels inhabiting two distinct coastal marine ecosystems in Kalimantan, Indonesia, namely, marine lakes and coastal mangroves. We used 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing and predicted metagenomic analysis to compare microbial

Marine bioacoustics and technology: The new world of marine acoustic ecology

Science.gov (United States)

Hastings, Mardi C.; Au, Whitlow W. L.

2012-11-01

Marine animals use sound for communication, navigation, predator avoidance, and prey detection. Thus the rise in acoustic energy associated with increasing human activity in the ocean has potential to impact the lives of marine animals. Thirty years ago marine bioacoustics primarily focused on evaluating effects of human-generated sound on hearing and behavior by testing captive animals and visually observing wild animals. Since that time rapidly changing electronic and computing technologies have yielded three tools that revolutionized how bioacousticians study marine animals. These tools are (1) portable systems for measuring electrophysiological auditory evoked potentials, (2) miniaturized tags equipped with positioning sensors and acoustic recording devices for continuous short-term acoustical observation rather than intermittent visual observation, and (3) passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) systems for remote long-term acoustic observations at specific locations. The beauty of these breakthroughs is their direct applicability to wild animals in natural habitats rather than only to animals held in captivity. Hearing capabilities of many wild species including polar bears, beaked whales, and reef fishes have now been assessed by measuring their auditory evoked potentials. Miniaturized acoustic tags temporarily attached to an animal to record its movements and acoustic environment have revealed the acoustic foraging behavior of sperm and beaked whales. Now tags are being adapted to fishes in effort to understand their behavior in the presence of noise. Moving and static PAM systems automatically detect and characterize biological and physical features of an ocean area without adding any acoustic energy to the environment. PAM is becoming a powerful technique for understanding and managing marine habitats. This paper will review the influence of these transformative tools on the knowledge base of marine bioacoustics and elucidation of relationships between marine

Marine Carotenoids against Oxidative Stress: Effects on Human Health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Alessandra Gammone

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Carotenoids are lipid-soluble pigments that are produced in some plants, algae, fungi, and bacterial species, which accounts for their orange and yellow hues. Carotenoids are powerful antioxidants thanks to their ability to quench singlet oxygen, to be oxidized, to be isomerized, and to scavenge free radicals, which plays a crucial role in the etiology of several diseases. Unusual marine environments are associated with a great chemical diversity, resulting in novel bioactive molecules. Thus, marine organisms may represent an important source of novel biologically active substances for the development of therapeutics. In this respect, various novel marine carotenoids have recently been isolated from marine organisms and displayed several utilizations as nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. Marine carotenoids (astaxanthin, fucoxanthin, β-carotene, lutein but also the rare siphonaxanthin, sioxanthin, and myxol have recently shown antioxidant properties in reducing oxidative stress markers. This review aims to describe the role of marine carotenoids against oxidative stress and their potential applications in preventing and treating inflammatory diseases.

Marine Carotenoids against Oxidative Stress: Effects on Human Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Gammone, Maria Alessandra; Riccioni, Graziano; D'Orazio, Nicolantonio

2015-09-30

Carotenoids are lipid-soluble pigments that are produced in some plants, algae, fungi, and bacterial species, which accounts for their orange and yellow hues. Carotenoids are powerful antioxidants thanks to their ability to quench singlet oxygen, to be oxidized, to be isomerized, and to scavenge free radicals, which plays a crucial role in the etiology of several diseases. Unusual marine environments are associated with a great chemical diversity, resulting in novel bioactive molecules. Thus, marine organisms may represent an important source of novel biologically active substances for the development of therapeutics. In this respect, various novel marine carotenoids have recently been isolated from marine organisms and displayed several utilizations as nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. Marine carotenoids (astaxanthin, fucoxanthin, β-carotene, lutein but also the rare siphonaxanthin, sioxanthin, and myxol) have recently shown antioxidant properties in reducing oxidative stress markers. This review aims to describe the role of marine carotenoids against oxidative stress and their potential applications in preventing and treating inflammatory diseases.

Puerto Rico [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lowman, Frank G.

1967-01-01

Present research programme: Marine biology programme (marine biogeochemistry). The programme is designed to provide measurements of the distribution and movements of selected trace elements in a restricted but complete ecological and biogeochemical system. To obtain information on interactions between the marine biosphere and hydrosphere, measurements are being made of biological productivity, amounts of trace elements in the organisms and the environment, biological half-lives of trace elements, characteristics of food webs, and the influence of physical and chemical oceanographic factors upon the distribution patterns of trace elements in the marine waters, organisms and sediments offshore from the west coast of Puerto Rico

Toward a new data standard for combined marine biological and environmental datasets - expanding OBIS beyond species occurrences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daphnis De Pooter

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS is the world’s most comprehensive online, open-access database of marine species distributions. OBIS grows with millions of new species observations every year. Contributions come from a network of hundreds of institutions, projects and individuals with common goals: to build a scientific knowledge base that is open to the public for scientific discovery and exploration and to detect trends and changes that inform society as essential elements in conservation management and sustainable development. Until now, OBIS has focused solely on the collection of biogeographic data (the presence of marine species in space and time and operated with optimized data flows, quality control procedures and data standards specifically targeted to these data. Based on requirements from the growing OBIS community to manage datasets that combine biological, physical and chemical measurements, the OBIS-ENV-DATA pilot project was launched to develop a proposed standard and guidelines to make sure these combined datasets can stay together and are not, as is often the case, split and sent to different repositories. The proposal in this paper allows for the management of sampling methodology, animal tracking and telemetry data, biological measurements (e.g., body length, percent live cover, ... as well as environmental measurements such as nutrient concentrations, sediment characteristics or other abiotic parameters measured during sampling to characterize the environment from which biogeographic data was collected. The recommended practice builds on the Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A standard and on practices adopted by the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF. It consists of a DwC Event Core in combination with a DwC Occurrence Extension and a proposed enhancement to the DwC MeasurementOrFact Extension. This new structure enables the linkage of measurements or facts - quantitative and qualitative properties - to

Biosurfactants Produced by Marine Microorganisms with Therapeutic Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Gudiña, Eduardo J; Teixeira, José A; Rodrigues, Lígia R

2016-02-18

Marine microorganisms possess unique metabolic and physiological features and are an important source of new biomolecules, such as biosurfactants. Some of these surface-active compounds synthesized by marine microorganisms exhibit antimicrobial, anti-adhesive and anti-biofilm activity against a broad spectrum of human pathogens (including multi-drug resistant pathogens), and could be used instead of existing drugs to treat infections caused by them. In other cases, these biosurfactants show anti-cancer activity, which could be envisaged as an alternative to conventional therapies. However, marine biosurfactants have not been widely explored, mainly due to the difficulties associated with the isolation and growth of their producing microorganisms. Culture-independent techniques (metagenomics) constitute a promising approach to study the genetic resources of otherwise inaccessible marine microorganisms without the requirement of culturing them, and can contribute to the discovery of novel biosurfactants with significant biological activities. This paper reviews the most relevant biosurfactants produced by marine microorganisms with potential therapeutic applications and discusses future perspectives and opportunities to discover novel molecules from marine environments.

Biosurfactants Produced by Marine Microorganisms with Therapeutic Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eduardo J. Gudiña

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Marine microorganisms possess unique metabolic and physiological features and are an important source of new biomolecules, such as biosurfactants. Some of these surface-active compounds synthesized by marine microorganisms exhibit antimicrobial, anti-adhesive and anti-biofilm activity against a broad spectrum of human pathogens (including multi-drug resistant pathogens, and could be used instead of existing drugs to treat infections caused by them. In other cases, these biosurfactants show anti-cancer activity, which could be envisaged as an alternative to conventional therapies. However, marine biosurfactants have not been widely explored, mainly due to the difficulties associated with the isolation and growth of their producing microorganisms. Culture-independent techniques (metagenomics constitute a promising approach to study the genetic resources of otherwise inaccessible marine microorganisms without the requirement of culturing them, and can contribute to the discovery of novel biosurfactants with significant biological activities. This paper reviews the most relevant biosurfactants produced by marine microorganisms with potential therapeutic applications and discusses future perspectives and opportunities to discover novel molecules from marine environments.

78 FR 21112 - Marine Mammals; File Nos. 16992 and 14535

Science.gov (United States)

2013-04-09

... hereby given that (1) Paul Nachtigall, Ph.D., Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawaii, P... (Pseudorca crassidens) maintained in captivity at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology in Kaneohe, HI... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XB161 Marine...

Senior High School Earth Sciences and Marine Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Hackenberg, Mary; And Others

This guide was developed for earth sciences and marine sciences instruction in the senior high schools of Duval County, Jacksonville, Florida. The subjects covered are: (1) Earth Science for 10th, 11th, and 12th graders; (2) Marine Biology I for 10th, 11th, and 12th graders; (3) Marine Biology II, Advanced, for 11th and 12th graders; (4) Marine…

Biological Potential of Chitinolytic Marine Bacteria

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Paulsen, Sara Skøtt; Andersen, Birgitte; Gram, Lone

2016-01-01

Chitinolytic microorganisms secrete a range of chitin modifying enzymes, which can be exploited for production of chitin derived products or as fungal or pest control agents. Here, we explored the potential of 11 marine bacteria (Pseudoalteromonadaceae, Vibrionaceae) for chitin degradation using...

Learning about Marine Biology. Superific Science Book VI. A Good Apple Science Activity Book for Grades 5-8+.

Science.gov (United States)

Conway, Lorraine

Based on the assumption that most students have a natural curiosity about the plant and animal life residing in the oceans, this document provides students in grades five through eight with activities in marine biology. The book provides illustrated information and learning activities dealing with: (1) diatoms; (2) the life cycle of the jellyfish;…

76 FR 25308 - Marine Mammals

Science.gov (United States)

2011-05-04

...-XA165 Marine Mammals AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric... Jennifer Burns, Ph.D., University of Alaska Anchorage, Biology Department, 3101 Science Circle, Anchorage, AK, has been issued a permit to conduct [[Page 25309

Tohoku Earthquake-associated Marine Sciences: the research project for the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011

Science.gov (United States)

Kitazato, Hiroshi; Kijima, Akihiro; Kogure, Kazuhiro; Hara, Motoyuki; Nagata, Toshi; Fujikura, Kasunori; Sonoda, Akira

2015-04-01

At 2:46 pm on March 11, 2011, a huge earthquake (M 9.0) occurred off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Region, Japan. The subsequent Tsunamis hit the coasts and seriously damaged fishing villages and towns in the area. Tohoku Region faces Northwestern Pacific where is one of the most productive oceans on the Earth. Then, what happened to the marine ecosystems in the Tohoku Region? What happened to the fishery bioresources? What is the mechanism to sustain high productivity in the Region? Is the ecosystem restoring after 4 years? What is required for the recovery of fisheries in the area? In order to answer these questions, the 10 years research project, TEAMS (Tohoku Ecosystem-Associated Marine Sciences) was launched in January 2012 funded by MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan) to conduct comprehensive research on the area. Tohoku University (TU), Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, the University of Tokyo (AORIUT), Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), and 25 other institutions are conducting research for this project in close association with local government and fishery people. Currently, approximately 400 people (200 scientists, 160 students and others) covering physical, chemical, biological, and geological sciences including modeling take part in the project from all over Japan. MEXT also supports TEAMS by constructing R/V Shinsei Maru in 2013 for the oceanic investigations in the region. In this report, the overview of the ecosystem before and after the disaster, major findings and challenges of TEAMS will be described.

Marine biosurfaces research program

Science.gov (United States)

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) of the U.S. Navy is starting a basic research program to address the initial events that control colonization of surfaces by organisms in marine environments. The program “arises from the Navy's need to understand and ultimately control biofouling and biocorrosion in marine environments,” according to a Navy announcement.The program, “Biological Processes Controlling Surface Modification in the Marine Environment,” will emphasize the application of in situ techniques and modern molecular biological, biochemical, and biophysical approaches; it will also encourage the development of interdisciplinary projects. Specific areas of interest include sensing and response to environmental surface (physiology/physical chemistry), factors controlling movement to and retention at surfaces (behavior/hydrodynamics), genetic regulation of attachment (molecular genetics), and mechanisms of attachment (biochemistry/surface chemistry).

The Source Book of Marine Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Beakley, John C.; And Others

Included is a teachers resource collection of 42 marine science activities for high school students. Both the biological and the physical factors of the marine environment are investigated, including the study of tides, local currents, microscope measuring, beaches, turbidity, sea water solids, pH, and salinity, marine bacteriology, microbiology,…

Biological effects of environmentally relevant concentrations of the pharmaceutical Triclosan in the marine mussel Perna perna (Linnaeus, 1758)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sanzi Cortez, Fernando, E-mail: lecotox@unisanta.br [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares IPEN-CNEN/SP, 05508-000 Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Laboratorio de Ecotoxicologia, Universidade Santa Cecilia, 11045-907 Santos, SP (Brazil); Dias Seabra Pereira, Camilo [Laboratorio de Ecotoxicologia, Universidade Santa Cecilia, 11045-907 Santos, SP (Brazil); Instituto do Mar, Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo, 11030-400 Santos, SP (Brazil); Ramos Santos, Aldo Ramos [Laboratorio de Ecotoxicologia, Universidade Santa Cecilia, 11045-907 Santos, SP (Brazil); Cesar, Augusto; Choueri, Rodrigo Brasil [Laboratorio de Ecotoxicologia, Universidade Santa Cecilia, 11045-907 Santos, SP (Brazil); Instituto do Mar, Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo, 11030-400 Santos, SP (Brazil); Martini, Gisela de Assis [Laboratorio de Ecotoxicologia, Universidade Santa Cecilia, 11045-907 Santos, SP (Brazil); Bohrer-Morel, Maria Beatriz [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares IPEN-CNEN/SP, 05508-000 Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2012-09-15

Triclosan (5-Chloro-2-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy) phenol) is an antibacterial compound widely employed in pharmaceuticals and personal care products. Although this emerging compound has been detected in aquatic environments, scarce information is found on the effects of Triclosan to marine organisms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the toxicity of a concentration range of Triclosan through fertilization assay (reproductive success), embryo-larval development assay (early life stage) and physiological stress (Neutral Red Retention Time assay - NRRT) (adult stage) in the marine sentinel organism Perna perna. The mean inhibition concentrations for fertilization (IC{sub 50} = 0.490 mg L{sup -1}) and embryo-larval development (IC{sub 50} = 0.135 mg L{sup -1}) tests were above environmental relevant concentrations (ng L{sup -1}) given by previous studies. Differently, significant reduction on NRRT results was found at 12 ng L{sup -1}, demonstrating the current risk of the continuous introduction of Triclosan into aquatic environments, and the need of ecotoxicological studies oriented by the mechanism of action of the compound. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Triclosan causes biological adverse effects at environmental relevant concentrations. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Mechanisms of action oriented assays were more sensitive to detect biological damages. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Currently there is environmental risks concerned Triclosan in aquatic ecosystems. - Triclosan causes biological adverse effects at environmentally relevant concentrations.

Biological effects of environmentally relevant concentrations of the pharmaceutical Triclosan in the marine mussel Perna perna (Linnaeus, 1758)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanzi Cortez, Fernando; Dias Seabra Pereira, Camilo; Ramos Santos, Aldo Ramos; Cesar, Augusto; Choueri, Rodrigo Brasil; Martini, Gisela de Assis; Bohrer-Morel, Maria Beatriz

2012-01-01

Triclosan (5-Chloro-2-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy) phenol) is an antibacterial compound widely employed in pharmaceuticals and personal care products. Although this emerging compound has been detected in aquatic environments, scarce information is found on the effects of Triclosan to marine organisms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the toxicity of a concentration range of Triclosan through fertilization assay (reproductive success), embryo-larval development assay (early life stage) and physiological stress (Neutral Red Retention Time assay - NRRT) (adult stage) in the marine sentinel organism Perna perna. The mean inhibition concentrations for fertilization (IC 50 = 0.490 mg L −1 ) and embryo-larval development (IC 50 = 0.135 mg L −1 ) tests were above environmental relevant concentrations (ng L −1 ) given by previous studies. Differently, significant reduction on NRRT results was found at 12 ng L −1 , demonstrating the current risk of the continuous introduction of Triclosan into aquatic environments, and the need of ecotoxicological studies oriented by the mechanism of action of the compound. - Highlights: ► Triclosan causes biological adverse effects at environmental relevant concentrations. ► Mechanisms of action oriented assays were more sensitive to detect biological damages. ► Currently there is environmental risks concerned Triclosan in aquatic ecosystems. - Triclosan causes biological adverse effects at environmentally relevant concentrations.

76 FR 28422 - Marine Mammals; File No. 16053

Science.gov (United States)

2011-05-17

... Paul E. Nachtigall, PhD, Marine Mammal Research Program Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, P.O. Box... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XA384 Marine Mammals; File No. 16053 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric...

Geoengineering impact of open ocean dissolution of olivine on atmospheric CO2, surface ocean pH and marine biology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Köhler, Peter; Abrams, Jesse F; Völker, Christoph; Hauck, Judith; Wolf-Gladrow, Dieter A

2013-01-01

Ongoing global warming induced by anthropogenic emissions has opened the debate as to whether geoengineering is a ‘quick fix’ option. Here we analyse the intended and unintended effects of one specific geoengineering approach, which is enhanced weathering via the open ocean dissolution of the silicate-containing mineral olivine. This approach would not only reduce atmospheric CO 2 and oppose surface ocean acidification, but would also impact on marine biology. If dissolved in the surface ocean, olivine sequesters 0.28 g carbon per g of olivine dissolved, similar to land-based enhanced weathering. Silicic acid input, a byproduct of the olivine dissolution, alters marine biology because silicate is in certain areas the limiting nutrient for diatoms. As a consequence, our model predicts a shift in phytoplankton species composition towards diatoms, altering the biological carbon pumps. Enhanced olivine dissolution, both on land and in the ocean, therefore needs to be considered as ocean fertilization. From dissolution kinetics we calculate that only olivine particles with a grain size of the order of 1 μm sink slowly enough to enable a nearly complete dissolution. The energy consumption for grinding to this small size might reduce the carbon sequestration efficiency by ∼30%. (letter)

Marine Invertebrate Larvae Associated with Symbiodinium: A Mutualism from the Start?

KAUST Repository

Mies, Miguel; Sumida, Paulo Y. G.; Radecker, Nils; Voolstra, Christian R.

2017-01-01

Symbiodinium are dinoflagellate photosynthetic algae that associate with a diverse array of marine invertebrates, and these relationships are comprehensively documented for adult animal hosts. Conversely, comparatively little is known about

REVIEW PAPER-MARINE MICROBIAL BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS

OpenAIRE

Kalyani. P*, Hemalatha. K. P. J

2016-01-01

Oceans have borne most of the biological activities on our planet. A number of biologically active compounds with varying degrees of action, such as anti-tumor, anti-cancer, anti-microtubule, anti-proliferative, cytotoxic, photo protective, as well as antibiotic and antifouling properties, have been isolated to date from marine sources. The marine environment also represents a largely unexplored source for isolation of new microbes (bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, microalgae-cyanobacteria and...

Parasites as biological tags for the discrimination of marine fish stocks in Brazil: current status and perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iris Aparecida Soares

2016-11-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT. Soares I.A. & Luque J.L. [Parasites as biological tags for the discrimination of marine fish stocks in Brazil: current status and perspectives.] Parasitos como marcadores biológicos para discriminação de estoques de peixes marinhos no Brasil: estado atual e perspectivas. Revista Brasileira de Medicina Veterinária, 38(supl. 3:99-113, 2016. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Veterinárias, Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, BR 465 Km 7, Seropédica, RJ 23890-000, Brasil. E-mail: luqueufrrj@gmail.com The global state of marine fisheries and its effects endanger the future of fishery resources, which may result in extinction of several species as well as threatening the overall integrity of the ecosystems. As the fish consumption growths, marine fishing and related market activities are stimulated increasing the incidence of threatened or exploited species. Aiming the future sustainability, fishery inventories need to be properly identified as a tool for implementation of more efficient policies on the management and conservation of the natural resources. Thus, by the high heterogeneity observed in the Atlantic coast of Brazil as well as the lack of related studies using this tool, the country represents great potential for the use of this technique, to improve our knowledge of local fishing resources. Therefore, the present study highlights the use of parasites as biological markers on identifying fish populations through robust statistical analysis, which represents an efficient and low cost approach and the lack of similar studies in Brazil showing the need of more research efforts on this subject in Brazil.

8. Danish meeting for marine researchers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

The publication comprises the programme for the 8th Danish meeting for marine researchers held in Odense (Denmark) on January 25th - 27th, 1994, and the abstracts of the papers that were presented at that meeting. Subjects covered are marine biology, sediments and sedimentation, fish, fishing and fishing regulation, marine processes and the monitoring of Danish straits. (AB)

The 10. Danish marine research meeting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

The publication comprises the programme for the 10th Danish meeting for marine researchers held in Hirtshals (Denmark) on January 21 - 27, 1998, and the abstracts of the papers that were presented at that meeting. Subjects covered are marine biology, sediments and sedimentation, fish, fishing and fishing regulations, marine processes and the monitoring of Danish straits. (EG)

Trace elements at the intersection of marine biological and geochemical evolution

Science.gov (United States)

Robbins, Leslie J.; Lalonde, Stefan V.; Planavsky, Noah J.; Partin, Camille A.; Reinhard, Christopher T.; Kendall, Brian; Scott, Clinton T.; Hardisty, Dalton S.; Gill, Benjamin C.; Alessi, Daniel S.; Dupont, Christopher L.; Saito, Mak A.; Crowe, Sean A.; Poulton, Simon W.; Bekker, Andrey; Lyons, Timothy W.; Konhauser, Kurt O.

2016-01-01

Life requires a wide variety of bioessential trace elements to act as structural components and reactive centers in metalloenzymes. These requirements differ between organisms and have evolved over geological time, likely guided in some part by environmental conditions. Until recently, most of what was understood regarding trace element concentrations in the Precambrian oceans was inferred by extrapolation, geochemical modeling, and/or genomic studies. However, in the past decade, the increasing availability of trace element and isotopic data for sedimentary rocks of all ages has yielded new, and potentially more direct, insights into secular changes in seawater composition – and ultimately the evolution of the marine biosphere. Compiled records of many bioessential trace elements (including Ni, Mo, P, Zn, Co, Cr, Se, and I) provide new insight into how trace element abundance in Earth's ancient oceans may have been linked to biological evolution. Several of these trace elements display redox-sensitive behavior, while others are redox-sensitive but not bioessential (e.g., Cr, U). Their temporal trends in sedimentary archives provide useful constraints on changes in atmosphere-ocean redox conditions that are linked to biological evolution, for example, the activity of oxygen-producing, photosynthetic cyanobacteria. In this review, we summarize available Precambrian trace element proxy data, and discuss how temporal trends in the seawater concentrations of specific trace elements may be linked to the evolution of both simple and complex life. We also examine several biologically relevant and/or redox-sensitive trace elements that have yet to be fully examined in the sedimentary rock record (e.g., Cu, Cd, W) and suggest several directions for future studies.

Regulating Cancer-Associated Fibroblast Biology in Prostate Cancer

Science.gov (United States)

2017-10-01

AWARD NUMBER: W81XWH-15-1-0512 TITLE: Regulating Cancer-Associated Fibroblast Biology in Prostate Cancer PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Andrew...SUBTITLE 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER Regulating Cancer-Associated Fibroblast Biology in Prostate Cancer 5b. GRANT NUMBER W81XWH-15-1-0512 5c. PROGRAM...blocked by the addition of Pim inhibitors. These results suggest that the Pim protein kinase can regulate stromal cell biology to modulate epithelial

Oil spill dispersants induce formation of marine snow by phytoplankton-associated bacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

van Eenennaam, Justine S; Wei, Yuzhu; Grolle, Katja C F; Foekema, Edwin M; Murk, AlberTinka J

2016-03-15

Unusually large amounts of marine snow, including Extracellular Polymeric Substances (EPS), were formed during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The marine snow settled with oil and clay minerals as an oily sludge layer on the deep sea floor. This study tested the hypothesis that the unprecedented amount of chemical dispersants applied during high phytoplankton densities in the Gulf of Mexico induced high EPS formation. Two marine phytoplankton species (Dunaliella tertiolecta and Phaeodactylum tricornutum) produced EPS within days when exposed to the dispersant Corexit 9500. Phytoplankton-associated bacteria were shown to be responsible for the formation. The EPS consisted of proteins and to lesser extent polysaccharides. This study reveals an unexpected consequence of the presence of phytoplankton. This emphasizes the need to test the action of dispersants under realistic field conditions, which may seriously alter the fate of oil in the environment via increased marine snow formation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

78 FR 15933 - Marine Mammals; File No. 17952

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-13

... Daniel P. Costa, Ph.D., Department of Biology and Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XC554 Marine Mammals; File No. 17952 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric...

Western Indian Ocean Journal of Marine Science: Editorial Policies

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Economics - TANZANIA. Thierry LEVITRA. Marine Biology and Mariculture - MADAGASCAR. Blandina LUGENDO. Marine Ecology - TANZANIA. Aviti MMOCHI. Mariculture - TANZANIA. Nyawira MUTHIGA. Marine Ecology and Management - KENYA. Brent NEWMAN. Contamination and Risk Assessment – SOUTH AFRICA.

78 FR 37796 - Marine Mammals; File No. 17952

Science.gov (United States)

2013-06-24

... permit has been issued to Daniel P. Costa, Ph.D., Department of Biology and Institute of Marine Sciences... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XC554 Marine Mammals; File No. 17952 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric...

Mining rare associations between biological ontologies.

Science.gov (United States)

Benites, Fernando; Simon, Svenja; Sapozhnikova, Elena

2014-01-01

The constantly increasing volume and complexity of available biological data requires new methods for their management and analysis. An important challenge is the integration of information from different sources in order to discover possible hidden relations between already known data. In this paper we introduce a data mining approach which relates biological ontologies by mining cross and intra-ontology pairwise generalized association rules. Its advantage is sensitivity to rare associations, for these are important for biologists. We propose a new class of interestingness measures designed for hierarchically organized rules. These measures allow one to select the most important rules and to take into account rare cases. They favor rules with an actual interestingness value that exceeds the expected value. The latter is calculated taking into account the parent rule. We demonstrate this approach by applying it to the analysis of data from Gene Ontology and GPCR databases. Our objective is to discover interesting relations between two different ontologies or parts of a single ontology. The association rules that are thus discovered can provide the user with new knowledge about underlying biological processes or help improve annotation consistency. The obtained results show that produced rules represent meaningful and quite reliable associations.

Mining rare associations between biological ontologies.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fernando Benites

Full Text Available The constantly increasing volume and complexity of available biological data requires new methods for their management and analysis. An important challenge is the integration of information from different sources in order to discover possible hidden relations between already known data. In this paper we introduce a data mining approach which relates biological ontologies by mining cross and intra-ontology pairwise generalized association rules. Its advantage is sensitivity to rare associations, for these are important for biologists. We propose a new class of interestingness measures designed for hierarchically organized rules. These measures allow one to select the most important rules and to take into account rare cases. They favor rules with an actual interestingness value that exceeds the expected value. The latter is calculated taking into account the parent rule. We demonstrate this approach by applying it to the analysis of data from Gene Ontology and GPCR databases. Our objective is to discover interesting relations between two different ontologies or parts of a single ontology. The association rules that are thus discovered can provide the user with new knowledge about underlying biological processes or help improve annotation consistency. The obtained results show that produced rules represent meaningful and quite reliable associations.

Sensor Fusion and Autonomy as a Powerful Combination for Biological Assessment in the Marine Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark A. Moline

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The ocean environment and the physical and biological processes that govern dynamics are complex. Sampling the ocean to better understand these processes is difficult given the temporal and spatial domains and sampling tools available. Biological systems are especially difficult as organisms possess behavior, operate at horizontal scales smaller than traditional shipboard sampling allows, and are often disturbed by the sampling platforms themselves. Sensors that measure biological processes have also generally not kept pace with the development of physical counterparts as their requirements are as complex as the target organisms. Here, we attempt to address this challenge by advocating the need for sensor-platform combinations to integrate and process data in real-time and develop data products that are useful in increasing sampling efficiencies. Too often, the data of interest is only garnered after post-processing after a sampling effort and the opportunity to use that information to guide sampling is lost. Here we demonstrate a new autonomous platform, where data are collected, analyzed, and data products are output in real-time to inform autonomous decision-making. This integrated capability allows for enhanced and informed sampling towards improving our understanding of the marine environment.

137Cs activity and associated dose in the coastal marine environment of India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Verma, G.P.; Sharma, D.N.; Jha, S.K.

2010-01-01

Coastal marine environment is important for India since a considerable percentage of the human population resides in coastal areas. Fallout radionuclides as well as non-radioactive substances have polluted the coastal marine environment of India. The introduction of 137 Cs, a fallout radionuclide, considered as global pollutant, into marine environment has created the need for marine environmental data. The main objective is to provide data on the present level of 137 Cs which is important from the standpoint of radiological health and dose associated with it. Such database will also provide benchmark which will be helpful in assessing the impact of additional contribution to marine radioactivity in the future. The results confirm that the mean annual individual dose from 137 Cs in seafood (fish) for the Indian subcontinent is 0.03 μSv. The highest annual individual dose for 137 Cs due to the ingestion offish is in the age group of 40 to 59 years which is due to the reason that the Indian annual dietary intake of fish is highest in this age group

U.S. Marines' Perceptions of Environmental Factors Associated With Alcohol Binge Drinking.

Science.gov (United States)

Woodruff, Susan I; Hurtado, Suzanne L; Simon-Arndt, Cynthia M

2018-02-07

Alcohol misuse, in particular binge drinking, is a serious concern among military personnel because it is strongly associated with adverse consequences and has a deleterious effect on readiness. Although most alcohol misuse studies have focused on individual risk factors, studies are increasingly examining environmental influences and strategies for reducing alcohol risks. The purpose of this study is to address gaps in what is known about how service members' perceptions of environmental factors are related to binge drinking in the U.S. Marine Corps. The relationship between Marines' self-reports of environmental factors and alcohol binge drinking was assessed in this correlational study using data from three large Marine Corps installations drawn from the Department of Defense 2011 Health Related Behaviors Survey of Active Duty Military Personnel (N = 2,933). We proposed several directional hypotheses based on existing civilian and military studies of alcohol use and misuse, as well as health behavior theory. Agreement with the statements that alcoholic beverages cost too much, that drinking might negatively affect one's military career, and that one's immediate supervisor and installation discourage alcohol use were independently associated with decreased odds of binge drinking (i.e., protective factors). Perceptions that alcoholic beverages are difficult to get was particularly protective; the odds of having binged were lower for participants who endorsed this belief than for those who did not. Perceptions that drinking is part of being in one's unit was a risk factor for binge drinking (odds ratio = 1.29). Even after accounting for strong sociodemographic correlates, binge drinking was independently associated with a number of environmentally oriented perceptions. Beliefs that alcohol is affordable and easy to access were the strongest environmental correlates of increased risk of binge drinking. Addressing the threat alcohol misuse poses to both Marines and

Trace metal concentrations in marine zooplankton from the western Bay of Bengal

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Rejomon, G.; Balachandran, K.K.; Nair, M.; Joseph, T.

on the interrelationships of zooplankton and phytoplankton. – Journal of Marine Biological Association U.K 32: 375-445. [2] Brooks, R.R., Presley, B.J., Kaplan, I.R. (1967): APDC-MIBK extraction system for the determination of trace elements in saline waters by Atomic... of contaminants in the food web dynamics as well as in the biogeochemical cycling of trace elements. Zooplanktons are the most abundant animals in the sea, which play an important role in the marine food chain. They mostly feed on phytoplankton and in turn...

Marine disposal of radioactive wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woodhead, D.S.

1980-01-01

In a general sense, the main attraction of the marine environment as a repository for the wastes generated by human activities lies in the degree of dispersion and dilution which is readily attainable. However, the capacity of the oceans to receive wastes without unacceptable consequences is clearly finite and this is even more true of localized marine environments such as estuaries, coastal waters and semi-enclosed seas. Radionuclides have always been present in the marine environment and marine organisms and humans consuming marine foodstuffs have always been exposed, to some degree, to radiation from this source. The hazard associated with ionizing radiations is dependent upon the adsorption of energy from the radiation field within some biological entity. Thus any disposal of radioactive wastes into the marine environment has consequences, the acceptability of which must be assessed in terms of the possible resultant increase in radiation exposure of human and aquatic populations. In the United Kingdom the primary consideration has been and remains the safe-guarding of public health. The control procedures are therefore designed to minimize as far as practicable the degree of human exposure within the overall limits recommended as acceptable by the International Commission on Radiological Protection. There are several approaches through which control could be exercised and the strenghs and weaknesses of each are considered. In this review the detailed application of the critical path technique to the control of the discharge into the north-east Irish Sea from the fuel reprocessing plant at Windscale is given as a practical example. It will be further demonstrated that when human exposure is controlled in this way no significant risk attaches to the increased radiation exposure experienced by populations of marine organisms in the area. (orig.) [de

A review of phosphate mineral nucleation in biology and geobiology.

Science.gov (United States)

Omelon, Sidney; Ariganello, Marianne; Bonucci, Ermanno; Grynpas, Marc; Nanci, Antonio

2013-10-01

Relationships between geological phosphorite deposition and biological apatite nucleation have often been overlooked. However, similarities in biological apatite and phosphorite mineralogy suggest that their chemical formation mechanisms may be similar. This review serves to draw parallels between two newly described phosphorite mineralization processes, and proposes a similar novel mechanism for biologically controlled apatite mineral nucleation. This mechanism integrates polyphosphate biochemistry with crystal nucleation theory. Recently, the roles of polyphosphates in the nucleation of marine phosphorites were discovered. Marine bacteria and diatoms have been shown to store and concentrate inorganic phosphate (Pi) as amorphous, polyphosphate granules. Subsequent release of these P reserves into the local marine environment as Pi results in biologically induced phosphorite nucleation. Pi storage and release through an intracellular polyphosphate intermediate may also occur in mineralizing oral bacteria. Polyphosphates may be associated with biologically controlled apatite nucleation within vertebrates and invertebrates. Historically, biological apatite nucleation has been attributed to either a biochemical increase in local Pi concentration or matrix-mediated apatite nucleation control. This review proposes a mechanism that integrates both theories. Intracellular and extracellular amorphous granules, rich in both calcium and phosphorus, have been observed in apatite-biomineralizing vertebrates, protists, and atremate brachiopods. These granules may represent stores of calcium-polyphosphate. Not unlike phosphorite nucleation by bacteria and diatoms, polyphosphate depolymerization to Pi would be controlled by phosphatase activity. Enzymatic polyphosphate depolymerization would increase apatite saturation to the level required for mineral nucleation, while matrix proteins would simultaneously control the progression of new biological apatite formation.

Finestkind: The American Lobster. A Learning Experience for Marine Education. Northern New England Marine Education Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Maine Univ., Orono. Coll. of Education.

This interdisciplinary unit is intended for use in the fourth grade. Through discussion of the American Lobster, its economics, history, literature, and biology, the unit describes the effects of the marine environment on human history and culture. Sections deal with how marine organisms have evolved. Detailed descriptions are provided of lobster…

Bioactivity of marine organisms. Part 5. Screening of some marine fauna from the Indian coast

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Naik, C.G.; Kamat, S.Y.; Parameswaran, P.S.; Das, B.; Patel, J.; Ramani, P.; Bhakuni, D.S.; Goel, A.K.; Jain, S.; Srimal, R.C.

(December), 1990, pp. 153-157 BIOACTIVITY OF MARINE ORGANISMS PART V : SCREENING OF SOME MARINE FAUNA FROM THE INDIAN COAST , CG. NAIK, S.Y. KAMAT, P.S. PARAMESHWARAN, B. DAS, JIVEXA PATEL, PRITA RAMANI, D.S. BHAKUNI", A.K. GOEL", SUDHA JAIN" AND R.c. SRIMAL... of Oceanography, Goa, in collaboration with the Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow for the screening of extracts ofmarine organisms for a wide range of biological activities. The programme consists of collection, identification and extraction of marine flora...

Geochemical association of plutonium in marine sediments from Palomares (Spain)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anton, M.P.; Gasco, C.; Sanchez-Cabeza, J.A.; Pujol, L.

1994-01-01

The geochemical association of plutonium in sediments from the marine ecosystem of Palomares has been studied. A sequential leaching technique using selective extractants has been employed to determine the percentages of Pu in the following forms: (a) readily available, (b) exchangeable and adsorbed to specific sites, (c) associated with organic matter, (d) sesquioxides, (e) residual. Plutonium was found to be associated mainly with phases (c), (d) and (e), and therefore, appears to be relatively immobile and not readily available to bottom feeding biota. The effect of different source terms on Pu distribution is also discussed. (orig.)

Marine Mammals and Climate Change in the Pacific Arctic: Impacts & Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, S. E.

2014-12-01

Extreme reductions in Arctic sea ice extent and thickness have become a hallmark of climate change, but impacts to the marine ecosystem are poorly understood. As top predators, marine mammals must adapt to biological responses to physical forcing and thereby become sentinels to ecosystem variability and reorganization. Recent sea ice retreats have influenced the ecology of marine mammals in the Pacific Arctic sector. Walruses now often haul out by the thousands along the NW Alaska coast in late summer, and reports of harbor porpoise, humpback, fin and minke whales in the Chukchi Sea demonstrate that these temperate species routinely occur there. In 2010, satellite tagged bowhead whales from Atlantic and Pacific populations met in the Northwest Passage, an overlap thought precluded by sea ice since the Holocene. To forage effectively, baleen whales must target dense patches of zooplankton and small fishes. In the Pacific Arctic, bowhead and gray whales appear to be responding to enhanced prey availability delivered both by new production and advection pathways. Two programs, the Distributed Biological Observatory (DBO) and the Synthesis of Arctic Research (SOAR), include tracking of marine mammal and prey species' responses to ecosystem shifts associated with sea ice loss. Both programs provide an integrated-ecosystem baseline in support of the development of a web-based Marine Mammal Health Map, envisioned as a component of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS). An overarching goal is to identify ecological patterns for marine mammals in the 'new' Arctic, as a foundation for integrative research, local response and adaptive management.

Biomedical Applications of Enzymes From Marine Actinobacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamala, K; Sivaperumal, P

Marine microbial enzyme technologies have progressed significantly in the last few decades for different applications. Among the various microorganisms, marine actinobacterial enzymes have significant active properties, which could allow them to be biocatalysts with tremendous bioactive metabolites. Moreover, marine actinobacteria have been considered as biofactories, since their enzymes fulfill biomedical and industrial needs. In this chapter, the marine actinobacteria and their enzymes' uses in biological activities and biomedical applications are described. © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Macrofauna Associated with the Sponge Neopetrosia exigua ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

in Marine Biology, Annamalai University, Parangipettai-608 502, Tamil Nadu, India. Keywords: Neopetrosia exigua, sponge, associated-fauna, species richness,. Mauritius, Indian Ocean. Abstract — The macrofaunal community associated with the sponge Neopetrosia exigua (Kirkpatrick, 1900) was studied across a ...

Microbial Surface Colonization and Biofilm Development in Marine Environments

Science.gov (United States)

2015-01-01

SUMMARY Biotic and abiotic surfaces in marine waters are rapidly colonized by microorganisms. Surface colonization and subsequent biofilm formation and development provide numerous advantages to these organisms and support critical ecological and biogeochemical functions in the changing marine environment. Microbial surface association also contributes to deleterious effects such as biofouling, biocorrosion, and the persistence and transmission of harmful or pathogenic microorganisms and their genetic determinants. The processes and mechanisms of colonization as well as key players among the surface-associated microbiota have been studied for several decades. Accumulating evidence indicates that specific cell-surface, cell-cell, and interpopulation interactions shape the composition, structure, spatiotemporal dynamics, and functions of surface-associated microbial communities. Several key microbial processes and mechanisms, including (i) surface, population, and community sensing and signaling, (ii) intraspecies and interspecies communication and interaction, and (iii) the regulatory balance between cooperation and competition, have been identified as critical for the microbial surface association lifestyle. In this review, recent progress in the study of marine microbial surface colonization and biofilm development is synthesized and discussed. Major gaps in our knowledge remain. We pose questions for targeted investigation of surface-specific community-level microbial features, answers to which would advance our understanding of surface-associated microbial community ecology and the biogeochemical functions of these communities at levels from molecular mechanistic details through systems biological integration. PMID:26700108

Bromophenols in Marine Algae and Their Bioactivities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ming, Liu; Hansen, Poul Erik; Lin, Xiukun

2011-01-01

Marine algae contain various bromophenols that have been shown to possess a variety of biological activities, including antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticancer, anti-diabetic, and anti-thrombotic effects. Here, we briefly review the recent progress of these marine algal biomaterials, with respect...

Risk Factors Associated With Suicide Completions Among US Enlisted Marines.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Christopher J; LeardMann, Cynthia A; Vyas, Kartavya J; Crum-Cianflone, Nancy F; White, Martin R

2017-09-15

US enlisted Marines have experienced a substantial increase in suicide rates. We sought to identify risk factors for suicide completions among male Marines who entered basic training in San Diego, California, between June 2001 and October 2010. Suicides that occurred during active-duty military service were counted from June 1, 2001, through June 30, 2012. A total of 108,930 male Marines (66,286 deployers and 42,644 never deployed) were followed for 467,857 person-years of active-duty service time. Of the 790 deaths, 123 (15.6%) were suicides. In the final multivariate hazard model, preservice characteristics of not being a high-school graduate (hazard ratio (HR) = 2.17, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.28, 3.68) and being a smoker at the time of enlistment (HR = 1.91, 95% CI: 1.32, 2.76) were significantly associated with a higher risk for suicide completion. Diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (HR = 4.09, 95% CI: 2.08, 8.05), diagnosed with depression (HR = 2.36, 95% CI: 1.22, 4.58), and received relationship counseling (HR = 3.71, 95% CI: 1.44, 9.54) during military service were significant risks for suicide death. Deployment alone was not significantly associated with a risk for suicide death (HR = 0.53, 95% CI: 0.26, 1.05). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health 2017. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Special issue Oceans and Humans Health: the ecology of marine opportunists.

Science.gov (United States)

Burge, Colleen A; Kim, Catherine J S; Lyles, Jillian M; Harvell, C Drew

2013-05-01

Opportunistic marine pathogens, like opportunistic terrestrial pathogens, are ubiquitous in the environment (waters, sediments, and organisms) and only cause disease in immune-compromised or stressed hosts. In this review, we discuss four host-pathogen interactions within the marine environment that are typically considered opportunistic: sea fan coral-fungus, eelgrass-Labyrinthula zosterae, sea fan-Labyrinthulomycetes, and hard clam-Quahog Parasite Unknown with particular focus on disease ecology, parasite pathology, host response, and known associated environmental conditions. Disease is a natural part of all ecosystems; however, in some cases, a shift in the balance between the host, pathogen, and the environment may lead to epizootics in natural or cultured populations. In marine systems, host-microbe interactions are less understood than their terrestrial counterparts. The biological and physical changes to the world's oceans, coupled with other anthropogenic influences, will likely lead to more opportunistic diseases in the marine environment.

Immense Essence of Excellence: Marine Microbial Bioactive Compounds

OpenAIRE

Ira Bhatnagar; Se-Kwon Kim

2010-01-01

Oceans have borne most of the biological activities on our planet. A number of biologically active compounds with varying degrees of action, such as anti-tumor, anti-cancer, anti-microtubule, anti-proliferative, cytotoxic, photo protective, as well as antibiotic and antifouling properties, have been isolated to date from marine sources. The marine environment also represents a largely unexplored source for isolation of new microbes (bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, microalgae-cyanobacteria and...

77 FR 25145 - Marine Mammals; File No. 978-1857

Science.gov (United States)

2012-04-27

... mammals at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology through May 31, 2012. The minor amendment (No. 978-1857... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XA37 Marine Mammals; File No. 978-1857 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and...

Specific acyclic isoprenoids as biological markers of methanogenic bacteria in marine sediments.

Science.gov (United States)

Brassell, S C; Wardroper, A M; Thomson, I D; Maxwell, J R; Eglinton, G

1981-04-23

The widespread occurrence of extended hopanoids in sediments and petroleums illustrates the importance of bacterial lipid contributions to geological materials. In archaebacteria, however, hopanoids are absent; their role as structural components of biomembranes is fulfilled by acyclic isoprenoids. Recent studies of the lipid constituents of archaebacteria have greatly extended the range of acyclic isoprenoid skeletons known in organisms (Fig. 1). In particularly, isoprenoids with head-to-head linkages have been identified, and such compounds (for example, 3,7,11,15,18,22,26,30-octamethyldotriacontane, I) have been recognized in petroleum and as degradation products of Messel shale kerogen. Here we report the first recognition of 2,6,10,15,19-pentamethyleicosane (II), a known component of methanogens, in marine sediments of Recent to Cretaceous age (Table 1) and suggest that it and certain other acyclic isoprenoids may be used as biological markers for methanogens.

Pharmaceutically active secondary metabolites of marine actinobacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Manivasagan, Panchanathan; Venkatesan, Jayachandran; Sivakumar, Kannan; Kim, Se-Kwon

2014-04-01

Marine actinobacteria are one of the most efficient groups of secondary metabolite producers and are very important from an industrial point of view. Many representatives of the order Actinomycetales are prolific producers of thousands of biologically active secondary metabolites. Actinobacteria from terrestrial sources have been studied and screened since the 1950s, for many important antibiotics, anticancer, antitumor and immunosuppressive agents. However, frequent rediscovery of the same compounds from the terrestrial actinobacteria has made them less attractive for screening programs in the recent years. At the same time, actinobacteria isolated from the marine environment have currently received considerable attention due to the structural diversity and unique biological activities of their secondary metabolites. They are efficient producers of new secondary metabolites that show a range of biological activities including antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, antitumor, cytotoxic, cytostatic, anti-inflammatory, anti-parasitic, anti-malaria, antiviral, antioxidant, anti-angiogenesis, etc. In this review, an evaluation is made on the current status of research on marine actinobacteria yielding pharmaceutically active secondary metabolites. Bioactive compounds from marine actinobacteria possess distinct chemical structures that may form the basis for synthesis of new drugs that could be used to combat resistant pathogens. With the increasing advancement in science and technology, there would be a greater demand for new bioactive compounds synthesized by actinobacteria from various marine sources in future. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Barium in produced water: Is it a toxicological hazard to the marine environment?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Neff, J.M.

1993-01-01

Produced water is a complex aqueous mixture of organic and inorganic chemicals that often is generated in large volumes as a by-product of production of oil and gas. Produced water from offshore oil production platforms sometimes is treated to remove particulate oil and then discharged to the ocean. Barium often is the most abundant inorganic chemical, other than the dominant sea salts, in produced water. Some concern has been expressed that the large amounts of barium discharged to the ocean in produced water may have adverse effects on marine biological communities. The ecological risks associated with discharge to the ocean in produced water may have adverse effects on marine biological communities. The ecological risks associated with discharge to the ocean of barium in produced water were evaluated. Concentrations of barium in produced water from different sources range from less than 1.0 to about 2,000 mg/L, and are inversely correlated with concentrations of sulfate. Concentrations of barium in the ocean usually are in the range of 10 to 20 μg/L; the ocean is undersaturated with respect to barite (BaSO 4 ). During mixing and dilution of a produced water plume in the ocean, barium reacts with the abundant sulfate in seawater and precipitates as barite. Barite is completely nontoxic to marine organisms. Because of the high concentration of sulfate in the ocean, ionic barium can not reach concentrations high enough to be toxic to marine organisms

Presentations at the seventh Danish marine research meeting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-01-01

This report presents contributions from the 7th Danish marine research meeting, arranged by the Danish National Oceanologic Board the 21-24 Jan 1992 in the new Marine Geology Research centre of the Aarhus University. 310 participants presented 76 lectures and 35 posters in the field of marine geology, hydrology, biology contamination monitoring etc. (EG)

IAEA Monitors Marine Radioactivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dixit, Aabha; Kaiser, Peter

2013-01-01

The IAEA assists Member States in using scientific tools to precisely identify and track nuclear and nonnuclear contaminants, as well as to investigate their biological effects on the marine ecosystem

The associations of a marine diet with plasma lipids, blood glucose, blood pressure and obesity among the inuit in Greenland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjerregaard, P; Pedersen, H S; Mulvad, G

2000-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To analyse the associations between the intake of fish and marine mammals and risk factors for cardiovascular disease, ie lipid profile, fasting blood glucose, blood pressure and obesity, in a population whose average consumption of n-3 fatty acids is high compared with Western countries...... and not statistically significant. The pattern was similar within groups with low, medium and high consumption of marine food. CONCLUSIONS: There are statistically significant associations between the consumption of marine food and certain lipid fractions in the blood also in this population with a very high average...... intake of marine food. The observation that blood glucose is positively associated with marine diet in a population survey is new and should be repeated. There was good agreement between the results for the reported consumption of seal and those for the biomarkers. SPONSORSHIP: The study was financially...

Antifouling and antibacterial polyketides from marine gorgonian coral-associated fungus Penicillium sp. SCSGAF 0023.

Science.gov (United States)

Bao, Jie; Sun, Yu-Lin; Zhang, Xiao-Yong; Han, Zhuang; Gao, Hai-Chun; He, Fei; Qian, Pei-Yuan; Qi, Shu-Hua

2013-04-01

Two new polyketides, 6,8,5'6'-tetrahydroxy-3'-methylflavone (1) and paecilin C (2), together with six known analogs secalonic acid D (3), secalonic acid B (4) penicillixanthone A (5), emodin (6), citreorosein (7) and isorhodoptilometrin (8) were obtained from a broth of gorgonian coral-associated fungus Penicillium sp. SCSGAF 0023. Compounds 1 and 6-8 had significant antifouling activity against Balanus amphitrite larvae settlement with EC50 values of 6.7, 6.1, 17.9 and 13.7 μg ml(-1), respectively, and 3-5 showed medium antibacterial activity against four tested bacterial strains. This was the first report of antibacterial activity of 3-5 against marine bacteria and antifouling activity of 6-8 against marine biofouling organism's larvae. The results indicated that gorgonian coral-associated fungus Penicillium sp. SCSGAF 0023 strain could produce antifouling and antibacterial compounds that might aid the host gorgonian coral in protection against marine pathogen bacteria, biofouling organisms and other intruders.

Current Status and Future Prospects of Marine Natural Products (MNPs) as Antimicrobials.

Science.gov (United States)

Choudhary, Alka; Naughton, Lynn M; Montánchez, Itxaso; Dobson, Alan D W; Rai, Dilip K

2017-08-28

The marine environment is a rich source of chemically diverse, biologically active natural products, and serves as an invaluable resource in the ongoing search for novel antimicrobial compounds. Recent advances in extraction and isolation techniques, and in state-of-the-art technologies involved in organic synthesis and chemical structure elucidation, have accelerated the numbers of antimicrobial molecules originating from the ocean moving into clinical trials. The chemical diversity associated with these marine-derived molecules is immense, varying from simple linear peptides and fatty acids to complex alkaloids, terpenes and polyketides, etc. Such an array of structurally distinct molecules performs functionally diverse biological activities against many pathogenic bacteria and fungi, making marine-derived natural products valuable commodities, particularly in the current age of antimicrobial resistance. In this review, we have highlighted several marine-derived natural products (and their synthetic derivatives), which have gained recognition as effective antimicrobial agents over the past five years (2012-2017). These natural products have been categorized based on their chemical structures and the structure-activity mediated relationships of some of these bioactive molecules have been discussed. Finally, we have provided an insight into how genome mining efforts are likely to expedite the discovery of novel antimicrobial compounds.

Metabolic transformation of radionuclides in marine organisms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koyanagi, Taku

1987-01-01

Physico-chemical form of radionuclides is one of the important factors governing the concentration by marine organisms, whereas biological activities affect the existing states of radionuclides especially in coastal waters. Radioiodine in the form of iodate which is predominant species in seawater is reduced to iodide ion by biological activities and concentration factor of iodide is an order of magnitude higher than those of iodate. Extremely high accumulation of transition elements, actinides, or natural radionuclides in branchial heart of octopus is explained by the fuction of adenochrome, a glandular pigment in the organ as a natural complexing agent, and similar metal-binding proteins with relatively low molecular weight have been found in various marine invertebrates. High accumulation of some elements also found in mollusk kidney is considered to be caused by the intracellular concretions composed of calcium phosphate. All these biological processes suggest the significance of further investigations on metabolic transformation of radionuclides in marine organisms. (author)

Baseline marine biological survey at the Peacock Point outfall and other point-source discharges on Wake Atoll, Pacific Ocean in 1998-06 (NODC Accession 0000247)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC) in support of the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) sponsored a marine biological survey at Wake...

Marine natural product peptides with therapeutic potential: Chemistry, biosynthesis, and pharmacology.

Science.gov (United States)

Gogineni, Vedanjali; Hamann, Mark T

2018-01-01

The oceans are a uniquely rich source of bioactive metabolites, of which sponges have been shown to be among the most prolific producers of diverse bioactive secondary metabolites with valuable therapeutic potential. Much attention has been focused on marine bioactive peptides due to their novel chemistry and diverse biological properties. As summarized in this review, marine peptides are known to exhibit various biological activities such as antiviral, anti-proliferative, antioxidant, anti-coagulant, anti-hypertensive, anti-cancer, antidiabetic, antiobesity, and calcium-binding activities. This review focuses on the chemistry and biology of peptides isolated from sponges, bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, ascidians, and other marine sources. The role of marine invertebrate microbiomes in natural products biosynthesis is discussed in this review along with the biosynthesis of modified peptides from different marine sources. The status of peptides in various phases of clinical trials is presented, as well as the development of modified peptides including optimization of PK and bioavailability. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Assessing biological invasions in European Seas: Biological traits of the most widespread non-indigenous species

Science.gov (United States)

Cardeccia, Alice; Marchini, Agnese; Occhipinti-Ambrogi, Anna; Galil, Bella; Gollasch, Stephan; Minchin, Dan; Narščius, Aleksas; Olenin, Sergej; Ojaveer, Henn

2018-02-01

The biological traits of the sixty-eight most widespread multicellular non-indigenous species (MWNIS) in European Seas: Baltic Sea, Western European Margin of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea were examined. Data for nine biological traits was analyzed, and a total of 41 separate categories were used to describe the biological and ecological functions of these NIS. Our findings show that high dispersal ability, high reproductive rate and ecological generalization are the biological traits commonly associated with MWNIS. The functional groups that describe most of the 68 MWNIS are: photoautotrophic, zoobenthic (both sessile and motile) and nektonic predatory species. However, these 'most widespread' species comprise a wide range of taxa and biological trait profiles; thereby a clear "identikit of a perfect invader" for marine and brackish environments is difficult to define. Some traits, for example: "life form", "feeding method" and "mobility", feature multiple behaviours and strategies. Even species introduced by a single pathway, e.g. vessels, feature diverse biological trait profiles. MWNIS likely to impact community organization, structure and diversity are often associated with brackish environments. For many traits ("life form", "sociability", "reproductive type", "reproductive frequency", "haploid and diploid dispersal" and "mobility"), the categories mostly expressed by the impact-causing MWNIS do not differ substantially from the whole set of MWNIS.

77 FR 12010 - Marine Mammals; File Nos. 1076-1789 and 14502

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-28

... NMFS to study and document the health and biology of wild marine mammals as well as those marine... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XB040 Marine Mammals; File Nos. 1076-1789 and 14502 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic...

Diversity of pigmented Gram-positive bacteria associated with marine macroalgae from Antarctica.

Science.gov (United States)

Leiva, Sergio; Alvarado, Pamela; Huang, Ying; Wang, Jian; Garrido, Ignacio

2015-12-01

Little is known about the diversity and roles of Gram-positive and pigmented bacteria in Antarctic environments, especially those associated with marine macroorganisms. This work is the first study about the diversity and antimicrobial activity of culturable pigmented Gram-positive bacteria associated with marine Antarctic macroalgae. A total of 31 pigmented Gram-positive strains were isolated from the surface of six species of macroalgae collected in the King George Island, South Shetland Islands. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities ≥99%, 18 phylotypes were defined, which were clustered into 11 genera of Actinobacteria (Agrococcus, Arthrobacter, Brachybacterium, Citricoccus, Kocuria, Labedella, Microbacterium, Micrococcus, Rhodococcus, Salinibacterium and Sanguibacter) and one genus of the Firmicutes (Staphylococcus). It was found that five isolates displayed antimicrobial activity against a set of macroalgae-associated bacteria. The active isolates were phylogenetically related to Agrococcus baldri, Brachybacterium rhamnosum, Citricoccus zhacaiensis and Kocuria palustris. The results indicate that a diverse community of pigmented Gram-positive bacteria is associated with Antartic macroalgae and suggest its potential as a promising source of antimicrobial and pigmented natural compounds. © FEMS 2015. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Marine Carotenoids and Cardiovascular Risk Markers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lorenza Speranza

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Marine carotenoids are important bioactive compounds with physiological activities related to prevention of degenerative diseases.found principally in plants, with potential antioxidant biological properties deriving from their chemical structure and interaction with biological membranes. They are substances with very special and remarkable properties that no other groups of substances possess and that form the basis of their many, varied functions and actions in all kinds of living organisms. The potential beneficial effects of marine carotenoids have been studied particularly in astaxanthin and fucoxanthin as they are the major marine carotenoids. Both these two carotenoids show strong antioxidant activity attributed to quenching singlet oxygen and scavenging free radicals. The potential role of these carotenoids as dietary anti-oxidants has been suggested to be one of the main mechanisms for their preventive effects against cancer and inflammatory diseases. The aim of this short review is to examine the published studies concerning the use of the two marine carotenoids, astaxanthin and fucoxanthin, in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

Ruggedized Portable Instrumentation Package for Marine Mammal Evoked Potential Hearing Measurements (DURIP)

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-30

NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology,Marine Mammal...Program Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology P.O. Box 1106 Kailua, Hawaii 96734 phone: (808) 247-5297 fax: (808) 247-5831 email: nachtiga...portable equipment was used at the Hilo Stranding Center to obtain the audiograms. Ready and available for RIMPAC excercises. 2 IMPACT

A Catalogue of marine biodiversity indicators

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heliana Teixeira

2016-11-01

Full Text Available A Catalogue of Marine Biodiversity Indicators was developed with the aim of providing the basis for assessing the environmental status of the marine ecosystems. Useful for the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD, this catalogue allows the navigation of a database of indicators mostly related to biological diversity, non-indigenous species, food webs, and seafloor integrity. Over 600 indicators were compiled, which were developed and used in the framework of different initiatives (e.g. EU policies, research projects and in national and international contexts (e.g. Regional Seas Conventions, and assessments in non-European seas. The catalogue reflects the current scientific capability to address environmental assessment needs by providing a broad coverage of the most relevant indicators for marine biodiversity and ecosystem integrity.The available indicators are reviewed according to their typology, data requirements, development status, geographical coverage, relevance to habitats or biodiversity components, and related human pressures. Through this comprehensive overview, we discuss the potential of the current set of indicators in a wide range of contexts, from large-scale to local environmental programs, and we also address shortcomings in light of current needs.Developed by the DEVOTES Project, the catalogue is freely available through the DEVOTool software application, which provides browsing and query options for the associated metadata. The tool allows extraction of ranked indicator lists best fulfilling selected criteria, enabling users to search for suitable indicators to address a particular biodiversity component, ecosystem feature, habitat or pressure in a marine area of interest.This tool is useful for EU Member States, Regional Sea Conventions, the European Commission, non-governmental organizations, managers, scientists and any person interested in marine environmental assessment. It allows users to

A Catalogue of Marine Biodiversity Indicators

KAUST Repository

Teixeira, Heliana; Berg, Torsten; Uusitalo, Laura; Fü rhaupter, Karin; Heiskanen, Anna Stiina; Mazik, Krysia; Lynam, Christopher P.; Neville, Suzanna; Rodriguez, J. German; Papadopoulou, Nadia; Moncheva, Snejana; Churilova, Tanya; Kryvenko, Olga; Krause-Jensen, Dorte; Zaiko, Anastasija; Verí ssimo, Helena; Pantazi, Maria; Carvalho, Susana; Patrí cio, Joana; Uyarra, Maria C.; Borja, À ngel

2016-01-01

A Catalogue of Marine Biodiversity Indicators was developed with the aim of providing the basis for assessing the environmental status of the marine ecosystems. Useful for the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), this catalogue allows the navigation of a database of indicators mostly related to biological diversity, non-indigenous species, food webs, and seafloor integrity. Over 600 indicators were compiled, which were developed and used in the framework of different initiatives (e.g., EU policies, research projects) and in national and international contexts (e.g., Regional Seas Conventions, and assessments in non-European seas). The catalogue reflects the current scientific capability to address environmental assessment needs by providing a broad coverage of the most relevant indicators for marine biodiversity and ecosystem integrity. The available indicators are reviewed according to their typology, data requirements, development status, geographical coverage, relevance to habitats or biodiversity components, and related human pressures. Through this comprehensive overview, we discuss the potential of the current set of indicators in a wide range of contexts, from large-scale to local environmental programs, and we also address shortcomings in light of current needs. Developed by the DEVOTES Project, the catalogue is freely available through the DEVOTool software application, which provides browsing and query options for the associated metadata. The tool allows extraction of ranked indicator lists best fulfilling selected criteria, enabling users to search for suitable indicators to address a particular biodiversity component, ecosystem feature, habitat, or pressure in a marine area of interest. This tool is useful for EU Member States, Regional Sea Conventions, the European Commission, non-governmental organizations, managers, scientists, and any person interested in marine environmental assessment. It allows users to build

A Catalogue of Marine Biodiversity Indicators

KAUST Repository

Teixeira, Heliana

2016-11-04

A Catalogue of Marine Biodiversity Indicators was developed with the aim of providing the basis for assessing the environmental status of the marine ecosystems. Useful for the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), this catalogue allows the navigation of a database of indicators mostly related to biological diversity, non-indigenous species, food webs, and seafloor integrity. Over 600 indicators were compiled, which were developed and used in the framework of different initiatives (e.g., EU policies, research projects) and in national and international contexts (e.g., Regional Seas Conventions, and assessments in non-European seas). The catalogue reflects the current scientific capability to address environmental assessment needs by providing a broad coverage of the most relevant indicators for marine biodiversity and ecosystem integrity. The available indicators are reviewed according to their typology, data requirements, development status, geographical coverage, relevance to habitats or biodiversity components, and related human pressures. Through this comprehensive overview, we discuss the potential of the current set of indicators in a wide range of contexts, from large-scale to local environmental programs, and we also address shortcomings in light of current needs. Developed by the DEVOTES Project, the catalogue is freely available through the DEVOTool software application, which provides browsing and query options for the associated metadata. The tool allows extraction of ranked indicator lists best fulfilling selected criteria, enabling users to search for suitable indicators to address a particular biodiversity component, ecosystem feature, habitat, or pressure in a marine area of interest. This tool is useful for EU Member States, Regional Sea Conventions, the European Commission, non-governmental organizations, managers, scientists, and any person interested in marine environmental assessment. It allows users to build

Polyparasitism Is Associated with Increased Disease Severity in Toxoplasma gondii-Infected Marine Sentinel Species

Science.gov (United States)

Gibson, Amanda K.; Raverty, Stephen; Lambourn, Dyanna M.; Huggins, Jessica; Magargal, Spencer L.; Grigg, Michael E.

2011-01-01

In 1995, one of the largest outbreaks of human toxoplasmosis occurred in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Genetic typing identified a novel Toxoplasma gondii strain linked to the outbreak, in which a wide spectrum of human disease was observed. For this globally-distributed, water-borne zoonosis, strain type is one variable influencing disease, but the inability of strain type to consistently explain variations in disease severity suggests that parasite genotype alone does not determine the outcome of infection. We investigated polyparasitism (infection with multiple parasite species) as a modulator of disease severity by examining the association of concomitant infection of T. gondii and the related parasite Sarcocystis neurona with protozoal disease in wild marine mammals from the Pacific Northwest. These hosts ostensibly serve as sentinels for the detection of terrestrial parasites implicated in water-borne epidemics of humans and wildlife in this endemic region. Marine mammals (151 stranded and 10 healthy individuals) sampled over 6 years were assessed for protozoal infection using multi-locus PCR-DNA sequencing directly from host tissues. Genetic analyses uncovered a high prevalence and diversity of protozoa, with 147/161 (91%) of our sampled population infected. From 2004 to 2009, the relative frequency of S. neurona infections increased dramatically, surpassing that of T. gondii. The majority of T. gondii infections were by genotypes bearing Type I lineage alleles, though strain genotype was not associated with disease severity. Significantly, polyparasitism with S. neurona and T. gondii was common (42%) and was associated with higher mortality and more severe protozoal encephalitis. Our finding of widespread polyparasitism among marine mammals indicates pervasive contamination of waterways by zoonotic agents. Furthermore, the significant association of concomitant infection with mortality and protozoal encephalitis identifies polyparasitism as

Polyparasitism is associated with increased disease severity in Toxoplasma gondii-infected marine sentinel species.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amanda K Gibson

2011-05-01

Full Text Available In 1995, one of the largest outbreaks of human toxoplasmosis occurred in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Genetic typing identified a novel Toxoplasma gondii strain linked to the outbreak, in which a wide spectrum of human disease was observed. For this globally-distributed, water-borne zoonosis, strain type is one variable influencing disease, but the inability of strain type to consistently explain variations in disease severity suggests that parasite genotype alone does not determine the outcome of infection. We investigated polyparasitism (infection with multiple parasite species as a modulator of disease severity by examining the association of concomitant infection of T. gondii and the related parasite Sarcocystis neurona with protozoal disease in wild marine mammals from the Pacific Northwest. These hosts ostensibly serve as sentinels for the detection of terrestrial parasites implicated in water-borne epidemics of humans and wildlife in this endemic region. Marine mammals (151 stranded and 10 healthy individuals sampled over 6 years were assessed for protozoal infection using multi-locus PCR-DNA sequencing directly from host tissues. Genetic analyses uncovered a high prevalence and diversity of protozoa, with 147/161 (91% of our sampled population infected. From 2004 to 2009, the relative frequency of S. neurona infections increased dramatically, surpassing that of T. gondii. The majority of T. gondii infections were by genotypes bearing Type I lineage alleles, though strain genotype was not associated with disease severity. Significantly, polyparasitism with S. neurona and T. gondii was common (42% and was associated with higher mortality and more severe protozoal encephalitis. Our finding of widespread polyparasitism among marine mammals indicates pervasive contamination of waterways by zoonotic agents. Furthermore, the significant association of concomitant infection with mortality and protozoal encephalitis identifies

78 FR 42757 - Marine Mammals; File No. 17411

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-17

... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XC541 Marine Mammals; File No. 17411 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric... permit has been issued to Dr. Jennifer Burns, University of Alaska Anchorage, Biology Department...

Marine Nucleosides: Structure, Bioactivity, Synthesis and Biosynthesis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ri-Ming Huang

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Nucleosides are glycosylamines that structurally form part of nucleotide molecules, the building block of DNA and RNA. Both nucleosides and nucleotides are vital components of all living cells and involved in several key biological processes. Some of these nucleosides have been obtained from a variety of marine resources. Because of the biological importance of these compounds, this review covers 68 marine originated nucleosides and their synthetic analogs published up to June 2014. The review will focus on the structures, bioactivities, synthesis and biosynthetic processes of these compounds.

Habitat damage, marine reserves, and the value of spatial management

KAUST Repository

Moeller, Holly V.

2013-07-01

The biological benefits of marine reserves have garnered favor in the conservation community, but "no-take" reserve implementation is complicated by the economic interests of fishery stakeholders. There are now a number of studies examining the conditions under which marine reserves can provide both economic and ecological benefits. A potentially important reality of fishing that these studies overlook is that fishing can damage the habitat of the target stock. Here, we construct an equilibrium bioeconomic model that incorporates this habitat damage and show that the designation of marine reserves, coupled with the implementation of a tax on fishing effort, becomes both biologically and economically favorable as habitat sensitivity increases. We also study the effects of varied degrees of spatial control on fisheries management. Together, our results provide further evidence for the potential monetary and biological value of spatial management, and the possibility of a mutually beneficial resolution to the fisherman-conservationist marine reserve designation dilemma. © 2013 by the Ecological Society of America.

Flourishing ocean drives the end-Permian marine mass extinction.

Science.gov (United States)

Schobben, Martin; Stebbins, Alan; Ghaderi, Abbas; Strauss, Harald; Korn, Dieter; Korte, Christoph

2015-08-18

The end-Permian mass extinction, the most severe biotic crisis in the Phanerozoic, was accompanied by climate change and expansion of oceanic anoxic zones. The partitioning of sulfur among different exogenic reservoirs by biological and physical processes was of importance for this biodiversity crisis, but the exact role of bioessential sulfur in the mass extinction is still unclear. Here we show that globally increased production of organic matter affected the seawater sulfate sulfur and oxygen isotope signature that has been recorded in carbonate rock spanning the Permian-Triassic boundary. A bifurcating temporal trend is observed for the strata spanning the marine mass extinction with carbonate-associated sulfate sulfur and oxygen isotope excursions toward decreased and increased values, respectively. By coupling these results to a box model, we show that increased marine productivity and successive enhanced microbial sulfate reduction is the most likely scenario to explain these temporal trends. The new data demonstrate that worldwide expansion of euxinic and anoxic zones are symptoms of increased biological carbon recycling in the marine realm initiated by global warming. The spatial distribution of sulfidic water column conditions in shallow seafloor environments is dictated by the severity and geographic patterns of nutrient fluxes and serves as an adequate model to explain the scale of the marine biodiversity crisis. Our results provide evidence that the major biodiversity crises in Earth's history do not necessarily implicate an ocean stripped of (most) life but rather the demise of certain eukaryotic organisms, leading to a decline in species richness.

78 FR 14984 - Marine Mammals; File No. 17411

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-08

... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648-XC541 Marine Mammals; File No. 17411 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric.... Jennifer Burns, University of Alaska Anchorage, Biology Department, Anchorage, AK, has applied in due form...

Antibacterial, antifungal and cytotoxic activities exhibited by endophytic fungi from the Brazilian marine red alga Bostrychia tenella (Ceramiales

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rafael de Felício

Full Text Available Abstract Marine environment is one of the most important sources regarding natural products research. Besides, marine microorganisms have been denominated as a talented natural source for discovery of new leads. Although the association of macroalgae and fungi has been described regarding ecological issues, there is a lack of studies about marine seaweed endophytic fungi. In this context, the goal of this study was to evaluate cytotoxic, antifungal and antibacterial activities of endophytic fungi isolated from the Brazilian marine seaweed Bostrychia tenella (J.V. Lamouroux J. Agardh (Ceramiales, Rhodophyta. Forty-five endophytic microorganism strains were isolated from B. tenella. Crude extracts and organic fractions of ten selected strains were obtained after growth in rice medium. Samples were evaluated for cytotoxicity, antifungal and antibacterial assays. Penicillium strains showed positive results in a diversity of assays, and other five strains were active in at least one test. In addition, cytochalasin D was isolated from Xylaria sp. This alga is composed of a microbiological potential, since its endophytic strains exhibited remarkable biological properties. Moreover, cytochalasin D isolation has confirmed chemical potential of marine endophytic strains. This is the first study in which cultured fungi isolates from the Brazilian macroalga B. tenella were evaluated concerning biological properties. Results corroborated that this species could be a pharmaceutical source from marine environment. Furthermore, Acremonium implicatum is being firstly described as marine endophyte and Xylaria sp., Trichoderma atroviride and Nigrospora oryzae as marine seaweed endophytes. Thus, this work reports the first study relating detailed isolation, cultivation and biological evaluation (cytotoxic, antifungal and antibacterial of endophytes Penicillium decaturense and P. waksmanii from the Brazilian marine red alga B. tenella. We are also reporting the

Marine Natural Product Bis-indole Alkaloid Caulerpin: Chemistry and Biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Lunagariya, Jignesh; Bhadja, Poonam; Zhong, Shenghui; Vekariya, Rohit; Xu, Shihai

2017-09-27

Marine bis-indole alkaloids comprise a large and increasingly growing class of secondary metabolites, and continue to deliver a great variety of structural templates. The alkaloids derived from marine resources play a crucial role in medicinal chemistry and as chemical agents. In particular, bis-indole alkaloid caulerpin isolated from marine green algae Caulerpa and a red algae Chondria armata at various places around the world, and tested against several therapeutic areas such as anti-diabetic, antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, anti-larvicidal, anti-herpes, anti-tubercular, anti-microbial and immunostimulating activity as well as means of other chemical agents. Herein, we summarized discovery of caulerpin, and its potential medicinal and chemical applications in chronological order with various aspects. Additionally, synthesis of caulerpin, its functional analogues, and structural isomer have also been reviewed. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Marine Structural Biomaterials in Medical Biomimicry.

Science.gov (United States)

Green, David W; Lee, Jong-Min; Jung, Han-Sung

2015-10-01

Marine biomaterials display properties, behaviors, and functions that have not been artificially matched in relation to their hierarchical construction, crack-stopping properties, growth adaptation, and energy efficiency. The discovery and understanding of such features that are characteristic of natural biomaterials can be used to manufacture more energy-efficient and lightweight materials. However, a more detailed understanding of the design of natural biomaterials with good performance and the mechanism of their design is required. Far-reaching biomolecular characterization of biomaterials and biostructures from the ocean world is possible with sophisticated analytical methods, such as whole-genome RNA-seq, and de novo transcriptome sequencing and mass spectrophotometry-based sequencing. In combination with detailed material characterization, the elements in newly discovered biomaterials and their properties can be reconstituted into biomimetic or bio-inspired materials. A major aim of harnessing marine biomaterials is their translation into biomimetic counterparts. To achieve full translation, the genome, proteome, and hierarchical material characteristics, and their profiles in space and time, have to be associated to allow for smooth biomimetic translation. In this article, we highlight the novel science of marine biomimicry from a materials perspective. We focus on areas of material design and fabrication that have excelled in marine biological models, such as embedded interfaces, chiral organization, and the use of specialized composite material-on-material designs. Our emphasis is primarily on key materials with high value in healthcare in which we evaluate their future prospects. Marine biomaterials are among the most exquisite and powerful aspects in materials science today.

Thalassiosira mala (Bacillariophyta), a potentially harmful, marine ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Thalassiosira malaitalic> (Bacillariophyta), a potentially harmful, marine diatom from Chilka Lake and other coastal localities of Odisha, India: Nomenclature, ... Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306–4370, USA; Department of Biology, Valdosta State University, Valdosta, GA ...

Molecular Architecture and Biomedical Leads of Terpenes from Red Sea Marine Invertebrates

Science.gov (United States)

Hegazy, Mohamed Elamir F.; Mohamed, Tarik A.; Alhammady, Montaser A.; Shaheen, Alaa M.; Reda, Eman H.; Elshamy, Abdelsamed I.; Aziz, Mina; Paré, Paul W.

2015-01-01

Marine invertebrates including sponges, soft coral, tunicates, mollusks and bryozoan have proved to be a prolific source of bioactive natural products. Among marine-derived metabolites, terpenoids have provided a vast array of molecular architectures. These isoprenoid-derived metabolites also exhibit highly specialized biological activities ranging from nerve regeneration to blood-sugar regulation. As a result, intense research activity has been devoted to characterizing invertebrate terpenes from both a chemical and biological standpoint. This review focuses on the chemistry and biology of terpene metabolites isolated from the Red Sea ecosystem, a unique marine biome with one of the highest levels of biodiversity and specifically rich in invertebrate species. PMID:26006713

Molecular Architecture and Biomedical Leads of Terpenes from Red Sea Marine Invertebrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed Elamir F. Hegazy

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Marine invertebrates including sponges, soft coral, tunicates, mollusks and bryozoan have proved to be a prolific source of bioactive natural products. Among marine-derived metabolites, terpenoids have provided a vast array of molecular architectures. These isoprenoid-derived metabolites also exhibit highly specialized biological activities ranging from nerve regeneration to blood-sugar regulation. As a result, intense research activity has been devoted to characterizing invertebrate terpenes from both a chemical and biological standpoint. This review focuses on the chemistry and biology of terpene metabolites isolated from the Red Sea ecosystem, a unique marine biome with one of the highest levels of biodiversity and specifically rich in invertebrate species.

Ecological Research Division, Marine Research Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1980-05-01

This report presents program summaries of the various projects sponsored during 1979 by the Marine Research Program of the Ecological Research Division. Program areas include the effects of petroleum hydrocarbons on the marine environment; a study of the baseline ecology of a proposed OTEC site near Puerto Rico; the environmental impact of offshore geothermal energy development; the movement of radionuclides through the marine environment; the environmental aspects of power plant cooling systems; and studies of the physical and biological oceangraphy of the continental shelves bordering the United States.

Ecological Research Division, Marine Research Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-05-01

This report presents program summaries of the various projects sponsored during 1979 by the Marine Research Program of the Ecological Research Division. Program areas include the effects of petroleum hydrocarbons on the marine environment; a study of the baseline ecology of a proposed OTEC site near Puerto Rico; the environmental impact of offshore geothermal energy development; the movement of radionuclides through the marine environment; the environmental aspects of power plant cooling systems; and studies of the physical and biological oceangraphy of the continental shelves bordering the United States

Rafting rocks reveal marine biological dispersal: A case study using clasts from beach-cast macroalgal holdfasts

Science.gov (United States)

Garden, Christopher J.; Craw, Dave; Waters, Jonathan M.; Smith, Abigail

2011-12-01

Tracking and quantifying biological dispersal presents a major challenge in marine systems. Most existing methods for measuring dispersal are limited by poor resolution and/or high cost. Here we use geological data to quantify the frequency of long-distance dispersal in detached bull-kelp (Phaeophyceae: Durvillaea) in southern New Zealand. Geological resolution in this region is enhanced by the presence of a number of distinct and readily-identifiable geological terranes. We sampled 13,815 beach-cast bull-kelp plants across 130 km of coastline. Rocks were found attached to 2639 of the rafted plants, and were assigned to specific geological terranes (source regions) to quantify dispersal frequencies and distances. Although the majority of kelp-associated rock specimens were found to be locally-derived, a substantial number (4%) showed clear geological evidence of long-distance dispersal, several having travelled over 200 km from their original source regions. The proportion of local versus foreign clasts varied considerably between regions. While short-range dispersal clearly predominates, long-distance travel of detached bull-kelp plants is shown to be a common and ongoing process that has potential to connect isolated coastal populations. Geological analyses represent a cost-effective and powerful method for assigning large numbers of drifted macroalgae to their original source regions.

Methods to examine reproductive biology in free-ranging, fully-marine mammals.

Science.gov (United States)

Lanyon, Janet M; Burgess, Elizabeth A

2014-01-01

Historical overexploitation of marine mammals, combined with present-day pressures, has resulted in severely depleted populations, with many species listed as threatened or endangered. Understanding breeding patterns of threatened marine mammals is crucial to assessing population viability, potential recovery and conservation actions. However, determining reproductive parameters of wild fully-marine mammals (cetaceans and sirenians) is challenging due to their wide distributions, high mobility, inaccessible habitats, cryptic lifestyles and in many cases, large body size and intractability. Consequently, reproductive biologists employ an innovative suite of methods to collect useful information from these species. This chapter reviews historic, recent and state-of-the-art methods to examine diverse aspects of reproduction in fully-aquatic mammals.

Lessons learned from practical approaches to reconcile mismatches between biological population structure and stock units of marine fish

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kerr, Lisa A.; Hintzen, Niels T.; Cadrin, Steven X.

2017-01-01

for overexploitation of unique spawning components, which can lead to loss of productivity and reduced biodiversity along with destabilization of local and regional stock dynamics. Furthermore, ignoring complex population structure and stock connectivity can lead to misperception of the magnitude of fish productivity......, which can translate to suboptimal utilization of the resource. We describe approaches that are currently being applied to improve the assessment and management process for marine fish in situations where complex spatial structure has led to an observed mismatch between the scale of biological...... and resilience of fish species....

How are climate and marine biological outbreaks functionally linked?

Science.gov (United States)

Hayes, Marshall L.; Bonaventura, Joseph; Mitchell, Todd P.; Prospero, Joseph M.; Shinn, Eugene A.; Van Dolah, Frances; Barber, Richard T.

2001-01-01

Since the mid-1970s, large-scale episodic events such as disease epidemics, mass mortalities, harmful algal blooms and other population explosions have been occurring in marine environments at an historically unprecedented rate. The variety of organisms involved (host, pathogens and other opportunists) and the absolute number of episodes have also increased during this period. Are these changes coincidental? Between 1972 and 1976, a global climate regime shift took place, and it is manifest most clearly by a change in strength of the North Pacific and North Atlantic pressure systems. Consequences of this regime shift are: (1) prolonged drought conditions in the Sahel region of Africa; (2) increased dust supply to the global atmosphere, by a factor of approximately four; (3) increased easterly trade winds across the Atlantic; (4) increased eolian transport of dust to the Atlantic and Caribbean basins; and (5) increased deposition of iron-rich eolian dust to typically iron-poor marine regions. On the basis of well-documented climate and dust observations and the widely accepted increase in marine outbreak rates, this paper proposes that the increased iron supply has altered the micronutrient factors limiting growth of opportunistic organisms and virulence of pathogenic microbes, particularly in macronutrient-rich coastal systems.

Production of Enzymes from Marine Actinobacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, X Q; Xu, X N; Chen, L Y

Marine actinobacteria are well recognized for their capabilities to produce valuable natural products, which have great potential for applications in medical, agricultural, and fine chemical industries. In addition to producing unique enzymes responsible for biosynthesis of natural products, many marine actinobacteria also produce hydrolytic enzymes which are able to degrade various biopolymers, such as cellulose, xylan, and chitin. These enzymes are important to produce biofuels and biochemicals of interest from renewable biomass. In this chapter, the recent reports of novel enzymes produced by marine actinobacteria are reviewed, and advanced technologies that can be applied to search for novel marine enzymes as well as for improved enzyme production by marine actinobacteria are summarized, which include ribosome engineering, genome mining, as well as synthetic biology studies. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Contribution of Seawater Surfactants to Generated Primary Marine Aerosol Particles

Science.gov (United States)

Frossard, A. A.; Gerard, V.; Duplessis, P.; Kinsey, J. D.; Lu, X.; Zhu, Y.; Bisgrove, J.; Maben, J. R.; Long, M. S.; Chang, R.; Beaupre, S. R.; Kieber, D. J.; Keene, W. C.; Noziere, B.; Cohen, R. C.

2017-12-01

Surfactants account for minor fractions of total organic carbon in the ocean but may have major impacts on the surface tension of bursting bubbles at the sea surface that drive the production of primary marine aerosol particles (PMA). Surfactants associated with marine aerosol may also significantly reduce the surface tension of water thereby increasing the potential for cloud droplet activation and growth. During September and October 2016, PMA were produced from bursting bubbles in seawater using a high capacity generator at two biologically productive and two oligotrophic stations in the western North Atlantic, as part of a cruise on the R/V Endeavor. Surfactants were extracted from paired PMA and seawater samples, and their ionic compositions, total concentrations, and critical micelle concentrations (CMC) were quantified and compared for the four hydrographic stations. Higher surfactant concentrations were determined in the aerosol produced from biologically productive seawater compared to oligotrophic seawater, and the surfactants extracted from productive seawater were stronger (had lower CMCs) than those in the oligotrophic seawater. Surfactants associated with PMA and seawater in productive regions also varied over diel cycles, whereas those in the oligotrophic regions did not. This work demonstrates a direct link between surfactants in seawater and those in PMA.

Marine biology, intertidal ecology, and a new place for biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Benson, Keith R

2015-01-01

At the present time, there is considerable interest for the physical setting of science, that is, its actual 'place' of practice. Among historians of biology, place has been considered to be a crucial component for the study of ecology. Other historians have noted the 'built' environments (laboratories) for the study of biology along the seashore, even referring to these places in terms more applicable to vacation sites. In this paper, I examine the place of intertidal ecology investigations, both in terms of the physical space and the built space. Part of the examination will investigate the aesthetic aspect of the Pacific Coast, part will evaluate the unique character of the intertidal zone, and part will consider the construction of natural laboratories and built laboratories as characteristic places for biology.

Quantifying shark distribution patterns and species-habitat associations: implications of marine park zoning.

Science.gov (United States)

Espinoza, Mario; Cappo, Mike; Heupel, Michelle R; Tobin, Andrew J; Simpfendorfer, Colin A

2014-01-01

Quantifying shark distribution patterns and species-specific habitat associations in response to geographic and environmental drivers is critical to assessing risk of exposure to fishing, habitat degradation, and the effects of climate change. The present study examined shark distribution patterns, species-habitat associations, and marine reserve use with baited remote underwater video stations (BRUVS) along the entire Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP) over a ten year period. Overall, 21 species of sharks from five families and two orders were recorded. Grey reef Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos, silvertip C. albimarginatus, tiger Galeocerdo cuvier, and sliteye Loxodon macrorhinus sharks were the most abundant species (>64% of shark abundances). Multivariate regression trees showed that hard coral cover produced the primary split separating shark assemblages. Four indicator species had consistently higher abundances and contributed to explaining most of the differences in shark assemblages: C. amblyrhynchos, C. albimarginatus, G. cuvier, and whitetip reef Triaenodon obesus sharks. Relative distance along the GBRMP had the greatest influence on shark occurrence and species richness, which increased at both ends of the sampling range (southern and northern sites) relative to intermediate latitudes. Hard coral cover and distance across the shelf were also important predictors of shark distribution. The relative abundance of sharks was significantly higher in non-fished sites, highlighting the conservation value and benefits of the GBRMP zoning. However, our results also showed that hard coral cover had a large effect on the abundance of reef-associated shark species, indicating that coral reef health may be important for the success of marine protected areas. Therefore, understanding shark distribution patterns, species-habitat associations, and the drivers responsible for those patterns is essential for developing sound management and conservation approaches.

Recent Advances in Marine Algae Polysaccharides: Isolation, Structure, and Activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Shu-Ying; Huang, Xuesong; Cheong, Kit-Leong

2017-12-13

Marine algae have attracted a great deal of interest as excellent sources of nutrients. Polysaccharides are the main components in marine algae, hence a great deal of attention has been directed at isolation and characterization of marine algae polysaccharides because of their numerous health benefits. In this review, extraction and purification approaches and chemico-physical properties of marine algae polysaccharides (MAPs) are summarized. The biological activities, which include immunomodulatory, antitumor, antiviral, antioxidant, and hypolipidemic, are also discussed. Additionally, structure-function relationships are analyzed and summarized. MAPs' biological activities are closely correlated with their monosaccharide composition, molecular weights, linkage types, and chain conformation. In order to promote further exploitation and utilization of polysaccharides from marine algae for functional food and pharmaceutical areas, high efficiency, and low-cost polysaccharide extraction and purification methods, quality control, structure-function activity relationships, and specific mechanisms of MAPs activation need to be extensively investigated.

Marine products with anti-protozoal activity: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

García, Marley; Monzote, Lianet

2014-01-01

The marine organisms are a rich source of varied natural products with unique functionality. A variety of natural products of new molecular structures with diverse biological activities have been reported from marine flora and fauna for treatment and/or prevention of human diseases. The present review briefly illustrates current status of marine products as antiprotozoal agents. The in vitro and in vivo studies of marine algae, invertebrates and micro-organism against different protozoa parasites are included. The marine products studied, according to international criterions for selection of more promisory products in the different models reported, demonstrated their potentialities as antiprozoal agents. Herein, the interest of scientific community to search new alternatives from marine environment has been demonstrated.

University Curricula in the Marine Sciences and Related Fields. Academic Years 1969-70 and 1970-71.

Science.gov (United States)

1971-01-01

equipment to be temporarily installed and removed each cruise. The ACONA has a speed of nine knots and an en - durance of three weeks or 4500 miles...Professor of Biology Harville, John, Ph.D., Professor of Biology and Marine Science Kenk, Vida , M.S., Assistant Professor McMaster, Pauline, M.A...Associate Professor of Resource Policies and Utilization Marts , Marion E., Ph.D., Vice Provost; Director, Summer Quarter; Professor of Geography and

Marine Science

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Aims and scope: The Western Indian Ocean Journal of Marine Science provides an avenue for the wide dissem- ination of high ... or by any means without permission in writing from the copyright holder. ..... Journal of Chemical Engineering Research and Design 82 ... Indian Ocean Marine Science Association Technical.

Bioavailability of sediment-bound contaminants to marine organisms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brown, B. [Battelle/Marine Sciences Lab., Sequim, WA (United States)]|[Colby Coll., Waterville, ME (United States); Neff, J. [Battelle/Marine Sciences Lab., Sequim, WA (United States)]|[Battelle Ocean Sciences, Duxbury, MA (United States)

1993-09-01

The bioavailability of sediment-bound contaminants to marine organisms indicates that there exists a potential for transfer of these contaminants through marine food webs to commercial fisheries products consumed by humans. However, there has been relatively little effort to combine and synthesize data on chemical/biological interactions between benthic animals and seagrasses and the sediments in which they reside on the one hand, and on the chemistry of bioaccumulation on the other. This report provides a conceptual basis for an approach to bioavailability and biomagnification of sediment-bound contaminants that reviews biological and chemical approaches.

Bioactivity of marine organisms. 4. Screening of some marine animals from the Indian coast

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Naik, C.G.; Kamat, S.Y.; Parameswaran, P.S.; Das, B.; Battacharya, J.; Ramani, P.; Bhakuni, D.S.; Goel, A.K.; Jain, S.; Srimal, R.C.

Of twenty eight alcoholic extracts of marine organisms screened for a wide range of pharmacological activities, 15 showed biological activity. Of these two were anti implantation, 3 CNS stimulant, 2 hypotensive, 4 diuretic, 4 hypoglycaemic, 2...

Antimycobacterial Metabolites from Marine Invertebrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Daletos, Georgios; Ancheeva, Elena; Chaidir, Chaidir; Kalscheuer, Rainer; Proksch, Peter

2016-10-01

Marine organisms play an important role in natural product-based drug research due to accumulation of structurally unique and bioactive metabolites. The exploration of marine-derived compounds may significantly extend the scientific knowledge of potential scaffolds for antibiotic drug discovery. Development of novel antitubercular agents is especially significant as the emergence of drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains remains threateningly high. Marine invertebrates (i.e., sponges, corals, gorgonians) as a source of new chemical entities are the center of research for several scientific groups, and the wide spectrum of biological activities of marine-derived compounds encourages scientists to carry out investigations in the field of antibiotic research, including tuberculosis treatment. The present review covers published data on antitubercular natural products from marine invertebrates grouped according to their biogenetic origin. Studies on the structure-activity relationships of these important leads are highlighted as well. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The Marine Food Chain in Relation to Biodiversity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew R.G. Price

2001-01-01

Full Text Available Biodiversity provides “raw materials” for the food chain and seafood production, and also influences the capacity of ecosystems to perform these and other services. Harvested marine seafood species now exceed 100 million t y -1 and provide about 6% of all protein and 17% of animal protein consumed by humans. These resources include representatives from about nine biologically diverse groups of plants and animals. Fish account for most of the world’s marine catches, of which only 40 species are taken in abundance. Highest primary productivity and the richest fisheries are found within Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ. This narrow strip (200 nautical mile/370 km wide is not only the site of coastal “food factories” but also the area associated with heaviest perturbation to the marine environment. Structural redundancy is evident in marine ecosystems, in that many species are interchangeable in the way they characterise assemblage composition. While there is probably functional redundancy within groups, the effects of species loss on ecosystem performance cannot be easily predicted. In particular, the degree to which biodiversity per se is needed for ecosystem services, including seafood/fishery production, is poorly understood. Many human activities, including unsustainable fishing and mariculture, lead to erosion of marine biodiversity. This can undermine the biophysical cornerstones of fisheries and have other undesirable environmental side effects. Of direct concern are “species effects”, in particular the removal of target and non-target fishery species, as well as conservationally important fauna. Equally disrupting but less immediate are “ecosystem effects”, such as fishing down the food web, following a shift from harvested species of high to low trophic level. Physical and biological disturbances from trawl nets and dynamite fishing on coral reefs can also severely impact ecosystem structure and function. �

The biology and chemistry of the zoanthamine alkaloids.

Science.gov (United States)

Behenna, Douglas C; Stockdill, Jennifer L; Stoltz, Brian M

2008-01-01

Marine natural products have long played an important role in natural products chemistry and drug discovery. Mirroring the rich variety and complicated interactions of the marine environment, the substances isolated from sea creatures tend to be incredibly diverse in both molecular structure and biological activity. The natural products isolated from the polyps of marine zoanthids are no exception. The zoanthamine alkaloids, the first of which were isolated over 20 years ago, are of particular interest to the synthetic community because they feature a novel structural framework and exhibit a broad range of biological activities. In this Review, we summarize the major contributions to understanding the zoanthamine natural products with regard to their isolation and structure determination, as well as studies on their biological activity and total synthesis.

The Evaluation and Utilization of Marine-derived Bioactive Compounds with Anti-obesity Effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Qiu; Yu, Huahua; Li, Pengcheng

2018-01-01

Obesity is a global epidemic throughout the world. There is thus increasing interest in searching for natural bioactive compounds with anti-obesity effect. A number of marine compounds have been regarded as potential sources of bioactive compounds and are associated with an anti-obesity effect. Marine-derived compounds with anti-obesity effect and their current applications, methods and indicators for the evaluation of anti-obesity activity are summarized in this review. in order to make contributions to the development of marine-derived functional food against obesity. In this review, an overview of marine-derived compounds with anti-obesity effect, including marine polysaccharides, marine lipid, marine peptides, marine carotenoids is intensively made with an emphasis on their efficacy and mechanism of action. Meanwhile, methods and indicators for the evaluation of anti-obesity activity are discussed. We summarize these methods into three categories: in vitro assay (including adsorption experiments and enzyme inhibitory assay), cell line study, animal experiments and clinical experiments. In addition, a brief introduction of the current applications of marine bioactive compounds with anti-obesity activity is discussed. Marine environment is a rich source of both biological and chemical diversity. In the past decades, numerous novel compounds with anti-obesity activity have been obtained from marine organisms, and many of them have been applied to industrial production such as functional foods and pharmaceuticals. Further studies are needed to explore the above-mentioned facts. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Studies on marine oil spills and their ecological damage

Science.gov (United States)

Mei, Hong; Yin, Yanjie

2009-09-01

The sources of marine oil spills are mainly from accidents of marine oil tankers or freighters, marine oil-drilling platforms, marine oil pipelines, marine oilfields, terrestrial pollution, oil-bearing atmosphere, and offshore oil production equipment. It is concluded upon analysis that there are two main reasons for marine oil spills: (I) The motive for huge economic benefits of oil industry owners and oil shipping agents far surpasses their sense of ecological risks. (II) Marine ecological safety has not become the main concern of national security. Oil spills are disasters because humans spare no efforts to get economic benefits from oil. The present paper draws another conclusion that marine ecological damage caused by oil spills can be roughly divided into two categories: damage to marine resource value (direct value) and damage to marine ecosystem service value (indirect value). Marine oil spills cause damage to marine biological, fishery, seawater, tourism and mineral resources to various extents, which contributes to the lower quality and value of marine resources.

Sediment Contaminants and Infauna Associated with Recreational Boating Structures in a Multi-Use Marine Park

Science.gov (United States)

Sim, Vivian X. Y.; Dafforn, Katherine A.; Simpson, Stuart L.; Kelaher, Brendan P.; Johnston, Emma L.

2015-01-01

Multi-use marine parks achieve conservation through spatial management of activities. Zoning of marine parks in New South Wales, Australia, includes high conservation areas and special purpose zones (SPZ) where maritime activities are concentrated. Although such measures geographically constrain anthropogenic impacts, we have limited understanding of potential ecological effects. We assessed sediment communities and contaminants adjacent to boating infrastructure (boat ramps, jetties and a marina) in a SPZ from the Clyde Estuary in Batemans Marine Park. Metal concentrations and fines content were elevated at boating structures compared to reference sites. Species richness was higher at sites with boating structures, where capitellid polychaetes and nematodes dominated the communities. Changes associated with boating structures were localised and did not extend beyond breakwalls or to reference sites outside the SPZ. The study highlights the benefits of appropriate zoning in a multi-use marine park and the potential to minimise stress on pristine areas through the application of spatial management. PMID:26086427

Sediment Contaminants and Infauna Associated with Recreational Boating Structures in a Multi-Use Marine Park.

Science.gov (United States)

Sim, Vivian X Y; Dafforn, Katherine A; Simpson, Stuart L; Kelaher, Brendan P; Johnston, Emma L

2015-01-01

Multi-use marine parks achieve conservation through spatial management of activities. Zoning of marine parks in New South Wales, Australia, includes high conservation areas and special purpose zones (SPZ) where maritime activities are concentrated. Although such measures geographically constrain anthropogenic impacts, we have limited understanding of potential ecological effects. We assessed sediment communities and contaminants adjacent to boating infrastructure (boat ramps, jetties and a marina) in a SPZ from the Clyde Estuary in Batemans Marine Park. Metal concentrations and fines content were elevated at boating structures compared to reference sites. Species richness was higher at sites with boating structures, where capitellid polychaetes and nematodes dominated the communities. Changes associated with boating structures were localised and did not extend beyond breakwalls or to reference sites outside the SPZ. The study highlights the benefits of appropriate zoning in a multi-use marine park and the potential to minimise stress on pristine areas through the application of spatial management.

Sediment Contaminants and Infauna Associated with Recreational Boating Structures in a Multi-Use Marine Park.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vivian X Y Sim

Full Text Available Multi-use marine parks achieve conservation through spatial management of activities. Zoning of marine parks in New South Wales, Australia, includes high conservation areas and special purpose zones (SPZ where maritime activities are concentrated. Although such measures geographically constrain anthropogenic impacts, we have limited understanding of potential ecological effects. We assessed sediment communities and contaminants adjacent to boating infrastructure (boat ramps, jetties and a marina in a SPZ from the Clyde Estuary in Batemans Marine Park. Metal concentrations and fines content were elevated at boating structures compared to reference sites. Species richness was higher at sites with boating structures, where capitellid polychaetes and nematodes dominated the communities. Changes associated with boating structures were localised and did not extend beyond breakwalls or to reference sites outside the SPZ. The study highlights the benefits of appropriate zoning in a multi-use marine park and the potential to minimise stress on pristine areas through the application of spatial management.

Diversity and antimicrobial potential of culturable heterotrophic bacteria associated with the endemic marine sponge Arenosclera brasiliensis

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Cintia P.J. Rua

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Marine sponges are the oldest Metazoa, very often presenting a complex microbial consortium. Such is the case of the marine sponge Arenosclera brasiliensis, endemic to Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. In this investigation we characterized the diversity of some of the culturable heterotrophic bacteria living in association with A. brasiliensis and determined their antimicrobial activity. The genera Endozoicomonas (N = 32, Bacillus (N = 26, Shewanella (N = 17, Pseudovibrio (N = 12, and Ruegeria (N = 8 were dominant among the recovered isolates, corresponding to 97% of all isolates. Approximately one third of the isolates living in association with A. brasiliensis produced antibiotics that inhibited the growth of Bacillus subtilis, suggesting that bacteria associated with this sponge play a role in its health.

Identifying oil/marine snow associations in mesocosm simulations of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill event using solid-state 13C NMR spectroscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Hatcher, Patrick G; Obeid, Wassim; Wozniak, Andrew S; Xu, Chen; Zhang, Saijin; Santschi, Peter H; Quigg, Antonietta

2018-01-01

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill stimulated the release of marine snow made up of dead/living plankton/bacteria and their exopolymeric polysaccharide substances (EPS), termed marine oil snow (MOS), promoting rapid removal of oil from the water column into sediments near the well site. Mesocosm simulations showed that Macondo surrogate oil readily associates with the marine snow. Quantitative solid-state 13 C NMR readily distinguishes this oil from naturally formed marine snow and reveals that adding the dispersant Corexit enhances the amount of oil associated with the MOS, thus contributing to rapid removal from the water column. Solvent extraction of MOS removes the oil-derived compounds for analysis by one and two-dimensional GC/MS and evaluation of potential transformations they undergo when associated with the EPS. The results reveal that the oil associated with EPS is subjected to rapid transformation, in a matter of days, presumably by bacteria and fungi associated with EPS. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Marine litter in an EBSA (Ecologically or Biologically Significant Area) of the central Mediterranean Sea: Abundance, composition, impact on benthic species and basis for monitoring entanglement.

Science.gov (United States)

Consoli, Pierpaolo; Andaloro, Franco; Altobelli, Chiara; Battaglia, Pietro; Campagnuolo, Silvana; Canese, Simonepietro; Castriota, Luca; Cillari, Tiziana; Falautano, Manuela; Pedà, Cristina; Perzia, Patrizia; Sinopoli, Mauro; Vivona, Pietro; Scotti, Gianfranco; Esposito, Valentina; Galgani, Francois; Romeo, Teresa

2018-05-01

Marine litter is commonly observed everywhere in the ocean. In this study, we analyzed 17 km of video footage, collected by a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) at depths ranging between 20 and 220 m, during 19 transects performed on the rocky banks of the Straits of Sicily. Recently, the Contracting Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) recognized this site as an Ecologically or Biologically Significant Area (EBSA). The research aim was to quantify the abundance of marine litter and its impact on benthic fauna. Litter density ranged from 0 items/100 m 2 to 14.02 items/100 m 2 with a mean (±standard error) of 2.13 (±0.84) items/100 m 2 . The observed average density was higher (5.2 items/100 m 2 ) at depths >100 m than at shallower depths (fishing lines contributed to 98.07% of the overall litter density, then representing the dominant source of marine debris. Litter interactions with fauna were frequently observed, with 30% of litter causing "entanglement/coverage" and 15% causing damage to sessile fauna. A total of 16 species showed interaction (entanglement/coverage or damage) with litter items and 12 of these are species of conservation concern according to international directives and agreements (CITES, Berne Convention, Habitat Directive, SPA/BD Protocol, IUCN Red List); we also observed 7 priority habitats of the SPA/BD Protocol. This research will support the implementation of monitoring "Harm" as recommended by the UN Environment/MAP Regional Plan on Marine Litter Management in the Mediterranean, and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). The institution of a SPAMI in the investigated area could represent a good management action for the protection of this hotspot of biodiversity and to achieve a Good Environmental Status (GES) for the marine environment by 2020, under the MSFD. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microbial bioavailability regulates organic matter preservation in marine sediments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koho, K. A.; Nierop, K. G. J.; Moodley, L.; Middelburg, J. J.; Pozzato, L.; Soetaert, K.; van der Plicht, J.; Reichart, G-J.; Herndl, G.

2013-01-01

Burial of organic matter (OM) plays an important role in marine sediments, linking the short-term, biological carbon cycle with the long-term, geological subsurface cycle. It is well established that low-oxygen conditions promote organic carbon burial in marine sediments. However, the mechanism

Anticancer Drugs from Marine Flora: An Overview

OpenAIRE

Sithranga Boopathy, N.; Kathiresan, K.

2010-01-01

Marine floras, such as bacteria, actinobacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, microalgae, seaweeds, mangroves, and other halophytes are extremely important oceanic resources, constituting over 90% of the oceanic biomass. They are taxonomically diverse, largely productive, biologically active, and chemically unique offering a great scope for discovery of new anticancer drugs. The marine floras are rich in medicinally potent chemicals predominantly belonging to polyphenols and sulphated polysaccharide...

DNA barcodes for marine fungal identification and discovery

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Velmurugan, S.; Prasannakumar, C.; Manokaran, S.; AjithKumar, T.; Samkamaleson, A.; Palavesam, A.

, Parangipettai 608502, India bDivision of Biological Oceanography, National Institute of Oceanography, Panaji 403001, India cCentre for Marine Science and Technology, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Rajakamangalam 629502, India a r t i c l e i n f o Article... Mycological Society. All rights reserved. Introduction Fungi are an indispensable part of life in the biosphere as they have many functional roles in different ecosystems. Obligate marine fungi are those that grow and sporulate exclusively in a marine...

Marine Flora and Fauna of the Northeastern United States. Copepoda: Lernaeopodidae and Sphyriidae.

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, Ju-Shey

This report is part of a sub-series to aid biology students, biologists, biological oceanographers, and informed laymen in the identification and study of marine flora and fauna of the Northeastern United States. Contents of this report include: (1) Introduction; (2) Glossary; (3) Key to the marine lernaeopodoid copepods of the Northeastern United…

Isolation and identification of marine fish tumour (odontoma associated bacteria

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Ramalingam Vijayakumar

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Objective: To identify fish tumour associated bacteria. Methods: The marine fish Sphyraena jello with odontoma was collected from in Tamil Nadu (Southeast India, and tumour associated bacteria were isolated. Then the isolated bacteria were identified based on molecular characters. Results: A total of 4 different bacterial species were isolated from tumour tissue. The bacterial species were Bacillus sp., Pontibacter sp., Burkholderia sp. and Macrococcus sp., and the sequences were submitted in DNA Data Bank of Japan with accession numbers of AB859240, AB859241, AB859242 and AB859243 respectively. Conclusions: Four different bacterial species were isolated from Sphyraena jello, but the role of bacteria within tumour needs to be further investigated.

Synthesis and Bioactivity of Secondary Metabolites from Marine Sponges Containing Dibrominated Indolic Systems

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Azzurra Stefanucci

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Marine sponges. (e.g., Hyrtios sp., Dragmacidin sp., Aglophenia pleuma, Aplidium cyaneum, Aplidium meridianum. produce bioactive secondary metabolites involved in their defence mechanisms. Recently it was demonstrated that several of those compounds show a large variety of biological activities against different human diseases with possible applications in medicinal chemistry and in pharmaceutical fields, especially related to the new drug development process. Researchers have focused their attention principally on secondary metabolites with anti-cancer and cytotoxic activities. A common target for these molecules is the cytoskeleton, which has a central role in cellular proliferation, motility, and profusion involved in the metastatic process associate with tumors. In particular, many substances containing brominated indolic rings such as 5,6-dibromotryptamine, 5,6-dibromo-N-methyltryptamine, 5,6-dibromo-N-methyltryptophan (dibromoabrine, 5,6-dibromo-N,N-dimethyltryptamine and 5,6-dibromo-L-hypaphorine isolated from different marine sources, have shown anti-cancer activity, as well as antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties. Considering the structural correlation between endogenous monoamine serotonin with marine indolic alkaloids 5,6-dibromoabrine and 5,6-dibromotryptamine, a potential use of some dibrominated indolic metabolites in the treatment of depression-related pathologies has also been hypothesized. Due to the potential applications in the treatment of various diseases and the increasing demand of these compounds for biological assays and the difficult of their isolation from marine sources, we report in this review a series of recent syntheses of marine dibrominated indole-containing products.

Isolation, Identification And Screening Antibacterial Activity from Marine Sponge-Associated Fungi Against Multidrug-Resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli

Science.gov (United States)

Triandala Sibero, Mada; Sabdaningsih, Aninditia; Cristianawati, Olvi; Nuryadi, Handung; Karna Radjasa, Ocky; Sabdono, Agus; Trianto, Agus

2017-02-01

Irrational used of antibiotic in several decades ago causing resistant in bacteria and decreasing the cure rate of infectious diseases. Multidrug-resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli is known to cause various of infectious diseases such as urinary tract infection, nosocomial bloodstream infection, meningitis, bacteraemia, and gastrointestinal disease. Marine sponge-associated fungi have potential as source of new compound to combat MDR E. coli. The aims of this research were to isolate marine sponge-assosiated fungi, to screen potential fungi against MDR E. coli, to identify the potential fungi and its host sponge. There were 29 marine sponge-associated fungi successfully isolated from 9 sponges. Among 29 sponge-associated fungi screened, there were 7 isolates showed antibacterial activity against MDR E. coli. The best inhibition zone produced by MPS 14.1/MT 02 and MPS 14.3/MT 04 from sponge PP.SP.16.14. According to fungi identification result fungus MPS 14.1/MT 02 was identified as Trichoderma asperellum while MPS 14.3/MT 04 was identified as Trichoderma reesei. Sponge identification leaded the PP.SP.16.14 as Cinachyrella sp.

Biological effect produced by ionizing radiations on occupational workers in Carlos Andrade Marin Hospital

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arias Pullaguari, Ines Yolanda

2003-01-01

The objective of this study was to establish the biological effects on occupational workers. In this study, have made a bibliographic review of the changes on skin of 217 professionals; between 21 and 70 years radiologists, X-ray technicians, radioisotope workers, nurses and others, which were exposed to ionizing radiation, in the departments of Diagnosis and Treatment of the Hospital Carlos Andrade Marin of the Quito city. From this universe 133 workers were excluded of the analysis. From the totality of lesions produced on the skin; the depilation constituted 40.18%, hyper pigmentation 19.34%, hypo pigmentation 9 %, capillary fragility 13.39%, erythema 13.39%, alopecia 5.37%. From the totality of lesions produced in blood: the leukopenia constituted 20.23% between all workers. The percentage method was used for statical calculation. A bibliographic update is done and the most relevant clinical aspects are reviewed. (The author)

Marine-Derived Bioactive Peptides with Pharmacological Activities- A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sana Rabiei

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Some nutritional factors are related to chronic disease. In response to increased concern regarding nutrition and health, the functional and nutraceuticals food markets have been developed. During food digestion, proteins are hydrolyzed and a wide range of peptides are formed. Some of these peptides have special structures which permit them to confer particular biological functions. Marine animals which involve more than half of the world biological varieties are a wide source of bioactive proteins and peptides. Marine derived peptides show various physiologic functions such as anti-oxidant, antimicrobial, anti-cancer, Angiotensin1-Converting Enzyme (ACE glucosidase and a-amylase inhibitory effects in vitro. Before application of marine bioactive peptides as nutraceuticals or functional food ingredients, their efficacy should be approved through pre-clinical animal and then clinical studies. The aim of this study was to review the studies conducted on the pharmacological effect of marine bioactive peptides in animal models and humans.

Biological insights from 108 schizophrenia-associated genetic loci

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ripke, Stephan; Neale, Benjamin M.; Corvin, Aiden

2014-01-01

and 113,075 controls. We identify 128 independent associations spanning 108 conservatively defined loci that meet genome-wide significance, 83 of which have not been previously reported. Associations were enriched among genes expressed in brain, providing biological plausibility for the findings. Many...

Basic concepts in marine biology and ecology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Small, L.F.

1997-01-01

An introduction to the marine biota, and how the biota interact with their physico-chemical environment, is given in this chapter. In particular, food web and trophic level relationships are discussed, from phytopIankton production through consumer organisms and the ''microbial loop''. The effects of organism size and functional relationships within the food web paradigm are emphasized, rather than taxonomic relationships. Examples initially given in terms of carbon, nitrogen, or energy transfer through food webs are placed in context with radionuclide transfer and the concept of biomagnification. (author)

Faunistics (marine animals)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2009-01-01

These PowerPoint files are compiled from various sources: Internet, field guides, scientific monographs, textbooks, my own photos and drawings, etc. I have no copyright or permission to use most of the illustrations. The file is therefore only intended for internal use within the Marine Biology...... for identification have only been included for about a quarter of the species only, because of lack of time).     These files contain information of about 570 species of marine invertebrates found in the waters around Denmark. They should be the most common species. Which species should be selected for files like......) with the programme PowerPoint X for Mac® Service Release 1.     Comments and suggestions are welcome from students and colleagues. HD&P = Køie, Kristiansen & Weitemeyer, Havets dyr og planter. DN = Danmarks Natur, vol. 3, Havet     Tomas Cedhagen, Department of Marine Ecology, University of Aarhus, Finlandsgade 14...

Factors associated with occupational exposure to biological material among nursing professionals.

Science.gov (United States)

Negrinho, Nádia Bruna da Silva; Malaguti-Toffano, Silmara Elaine; Reis, Renata Karina; Pereira, Fernanda Maria Vieira; Gir, Elucir

2017-01-01

to identify factors associated with occupational exposure to biological material among nursing professionals. a cross-sectional study was conducted in a high complexity hospital of a city in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Nursing professionals were interviewed from March to November 2015. All ethical aspects were observed. among the 226 professionals interviewed, 17.3% suffered occupational exposure to potentially contaminated biological material, with 61.5% being percutaneous. Factors such as age (p=0.003), professional experience in nursing (p=0.015), and experience at the institution (p=0.032) were associated with the accidents with biological material. most accidents with biological material among nursing professionals were percutaneous. Age, professional experience, and experience at the institution were considered factors associated with occupational exposure.

Opportunities in Biological Sciences; [VGM Career Horizons Series].

Science.gov (United States)

Winter, Charles A.

This book provides job descriptions and discusses career opportunities in various fields of the biological sciences. These fields include: (1) biotechnology, genetics, biomedical engineering, microbiology, mycology, systematic biology, marine and aquatic biology, botany, plant physiology, plant pathology, ecology, and wildlife biology; (2) the…

International laboratory of marine radioactivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1981-08-01

The director's report presents the overall aims and objectives of the laboratory, and some of the significant findings to date. Among these is the different behaviour in oceans of Pu and Am. Thus, fallout Pu, in contrast to Am, tends to remain in the soluble form. The vertical downward transport of Am is much quicker than for Pu. Since 1980, uptake and depuration studies of sup(95m)Tc have been carried out on key marine species. Marine environmental behaviour of Tc is being evaluated carefully in view of its being a significant constituent of nuclear wastes. Growing demands are being made on the laboratory for providing intercalibration and instrument maintenance services, and for providing training for scientists from developing countries. The body of the report is divided into 5 sections dealing with marine biology, marine chemistry, marine geochemistry/sedimentation, environmental studies, and engineering services, respectively. Appendices list laboratory staff, publications by staff members, papers and reports presented at meetings or conferences, consultants to the laboratory from 1967-1980, fellowships, trainees and membership of committees, task forces and working groups

Biological responses of two marine organisms of ecological relevance to on-going ocean acidification and global warming.

Science.gov (United States)

Gomiero, A; Bellerby, R G J; Manca Zeichen, M; Babbini, L; Viarengo, A

2018-05-01

Recently, there has been a growing concern that climate change may rapidly and extensively alter global ecosystems with unknown consequences for terrestrial and aquatic life. While considerable emphasis has been placed on terrestrial ecology consequences, aquatic environments have received relatively little attention. Limited knowledge is available on the biological effects of increments of seawater temperature and pH decrements on key ecological species, i.e., primary producers and/or organisms representative of the basis of the trophic web. In the present study, we addressed the biological effects of global warming and ocean acidification on two model organisms, the microbenthic marine ciliate Euplotes crassus and the green alga Dunaliella tertiocleta using a suite of high level ecological endpoint tests and sub-lethal stress measures. Organisms were exposed to combinations of pH and temperature (TR1: 7.9 [pH], 25.5 °C and TR2: 7.8 [pH], 27,0 °C) simulating two possible environmental scenarios predicted to occur in the habitats of the selected species before the end of this century. The outcomes of the present study showed that the tested scenarios did not induce a significant increment of mortality on protozoa. Under the most severe exposure conditions, sub-lethal stress indices show that pH homeostatic mechanisms have energetic costs that divert energy from essential cellular processes and functions. The marine protozoan exhibited significant impairment of the lysosomal compartment and early signs of oxidative stress under these conditions. Similarly, significant impairment of photosynthetic efficiency and an increment in lipid peroxidation were observed in the autotroph model organism held under the most extreme exposure condition tested. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Associations between marine food consumption and plasma concentrations of POPs in a Norwegian coastal population.

Science.gov (United States)

Rylander, Charlotta; Sandanger, Torkjel Manning; Brustad, Magritt

2009-02-01

There are strong indications that a moderate intake of fatty fish decreases the risk of cardiovascular diseases due to its content of omega-3 fatty acids. Other studies indicate that fatty fish consumption increase the body burden of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) and may thereby increase the risk of negative health effects. Many of the latter studies are based on POP analysis of fatty fish, from which a recommended daily intake for humans has been calculated based on the no-observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) obtained from animal studies. Studies investigating associations between human plasma concentrations of POPs and intake of marine food show deviating results. In this study we investigated associations between self-reported intake of marine food (fatty fish, fish liver, fish liver oil, seagull eggs and halibut) and plasma concentrations of POPs. The study group consisted of 44 women and 16 men from northern Norway with a marine based diet. In addition to donate blood samples, the participants answered a detailed food frequency questionnaire with special emphasis on marine food consumption. Concentrations of 25 different POPs were measured in plasma. PCB 153 and p'p-DDE were the most ubiquitous PCB and chlorinated pesticide and the geometric mean concentrations were 73 ng/g lipids and 116 ng/g lipids respectively. The main findings in this study were that age, gender and intake of fresh fish liver oil were significant predictors of three of the most common PCBs and trans-Nonachlor in this study group. In addition, intake of seagull eggs influenced the concentration of PCB 180. However, even though the participants had a high intake of marine food they did not have elevated levels of POPs compared to other study groups. Intake of fatty fish did not significantly affect the body burden of POPs in this study group.

Bio screening of marine organisms from the coasts of Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, A.M.; Ameen, M.; Naz, S.; Noureen, S.

2012-01-01

This review article covers the literature on bio screening of crude extracts, fractions and pure compounds isolated from various marine organisms including seaweeds, mangroves, invertebrates and bacteria collected from the coasts of Karachi (Pakistan) published during the period 1984-2010. Recent studies showed that a number of novel compounds have been isolated from marine organisms possessing interesting biological activities. Various research groups from Pakistan have conducted the extensive bioassay-guided investigation of chemical constituents of marine organisms which showed anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, nematicidal, anti-inflammatory, anti-leishmanial, anti-coagulation, cytotoxicity, enzyme inhibition, inhibition of edema, anti-cancer, brine shrimp lethality, Lemna minor bioassay, phyto toxicity, spasmolytic, analgesic and hypolipidaemic activities. More than 70 marine organisms have been reported with reference to their biological studies and about 100 pure compounds were isolated from these organisms but only 18 compounds and 5 synthetic analogues of compound 1 were found active. This review article is particularly focused only on the reported bioactive compounds and crude extracts of marine organisms. (author)

Decadal-Scale Forecasting of Climate Drivers for Marine Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Salinger, J; Hobday, A J; Matear, R J; O'Kane, T J; Risbey, J S; Dunstan, P; Eveson, J P; Fulton, E A; Feng, M; Plagányi, É E; Poloczanska, E S; Marshall, A G; Thompson, P A

Climate influences marine ecosystems on a range of time scales, from weather-scale (days) through to climate-scale (hundreds of years). Understanding of interannual to decadal climate variability and impacts on marine industries has received less attention. Predictability up to 10 years ahead may come from large-scale climate modes in the ocean that can persist over these time scales. In Australia the key drivers of climate variability affecting the marine environment are the Southern Annular Mode, the Indian Ocean Dipole, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation, and the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation, each has phases that are associated with different ocean circulation patterns and regional environmental variables. The roles of these drivers are illustrated with three case studies of extreme events-a marine heatwave in Western Australia, a coral bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef, and flooding in Queensland. Statistical and dynamical approaches are described to generate forecasts of climate drivers that can subsequently be translated to useful information for marine end users making decisions at these time scales. Considerable investment is still needed to support decadal forecasting including improvement of ocean-atmosphere models, enhancement of observing systems on all scales to support initiation of forecasting models, collection of important biological data, and integration of forecasts into decision support tools. Collaboration between forecast developers and marine resource sectors-fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, biodiversity management, infrastructure-is needed to support forecast-based tactical and strategic decisions that reduce environmental risk over annual to decadal time scales. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Transit and absorption of nuclear industry derivatives by marine biota

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mayr, L.; Moraes, R.; Lopes, M.A.; Vicente, C.; Mauro, J.N.

1988-01-01

A broard research program on radionuclides became necessary due to the construction of the Nuclear Power Plant at Angra dos Reis. As part of this program the research developped by the Marine Biology Departament, UFRJ, aimed at estimating the radiation doses to wich the population of the region might be exposed and to determine biological indicators to radioactive contamination. Up to the present moment, the bioacumulation factors (BFs) of 60 Co, 137 Cs and 131 I by ''clam'' (Anomalocardia brasiliana) and the biological half-life of cobalt and cesium in this animal were determined, as well as the B.F. of 85 Sr by ''snail'' (Strombus pugilis) and by ''barnacle'' (Megabalanus tintinnabulum). The remobilization of 60 Co by microbiological activity in marine sediment was also studied. These studies were made using the standard methodology for bioaccumulation and elimination in closed water systems. The results showed an important microbiological activity in the remobilization of elements in the sediment. Due to the low bioaccumulation factors obtained the studied organisms were not considered ideal biological indicators for radioactive pollution. However, their importance as edible animals in the Angra dos Reis region recommends their radiometry for routine radiological monitoring. Studies on other organisms and/or radionuclides are now in progress at the Marine Biology Departament (UFRJ). (author) [pt

Defining scenarios of future vectors of change in marine life and associated economic sectors

Science.gov (United States)

Groeneveld, Rolf A.; Bosello, Francesco; Butenschön, Momme; Elliott, Mike; Peck, Myron A.; Pinnegar, John K.

2018-02-01

Addressing the multitude of challenges in marine policy requires an integrated approach that considers the multitude of drivers, pressures, and interests, from several disciplinary angles. Scenarios are needed to harmonise the analyses of different components of the marine system, and to deal with the uncertainty and complexity of the societal and biogeophysical dynamics in the system. This study considers a set of socio-economic scenarios to (1) explore possible futures in relation to marine invasive species, outbreak forming species, and gradual changes in species distribution and productivity; and (2) harmonise the projection modelling performed within associated studies. The exercise demonstrates that developing interdisciplinary scenarios as developed in this study is particularly complicated due to (1) the wide variety in endogeneity or exogeneity of variables in the different analyses involved; (2) the dual role of policy decisions as variables in a scenario or decisions to be evaluated and compared to other decisions; and (3) the substantial difference in time scale between societal and physical drivers.

Copepods use chemical trails to find sinking marine snow aggregates

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lombard, Fabien; Koski, Marja; Kiørboe, Thomas

2013-01-01

Copepods are major consumers of sinking marine particles and hence reduce the efficiency of the biological carbon pump. Their high abundance on marine snow suggests that they can detect sinking particles remotely. By means of laboratory observations, we show that the copepod Temora longicornis ca...

Dynamics, thermodynamics, radiation, and cloudiness associated with cumulus-topped marine boundary layers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ghate, Virendra P. [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Miller, Mark [Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, NJ (United States)

2016-11-01

The overall goal of this project was to improve the understanding of marine boundary clouds by using data collected at the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) sites, so that they can be better represented in global climate models (GCMs). Marine boundary clouds are observed regularly over the tropical and subtropical oceans. They are an important element of the Earth’s climate system because they have substantial impact on the radiation budget together with the boundary layer moisture, and energy transports. These clouds also have an impact on large-scale precipitation features like the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). Because these clouds occur at temporal and spatial scales much smaller than those relevant to GCMs, their effects and the associated processes need to be parameterized in GCM simulations aimed at predicting future climate and energy needs. Specifically, this project’s objectives were to (1) characterize the surface turbulent fluxes, boundary layer thermodynamics, radiation field, and cloudiness associated with cumulus-topped marine boundary layers; (2) explore the similarities and differences in cloudiness and boundary layer conditions observed in the tropical and trade-wind regions; and (3) understand similarities and differences by using a simple bulk boundary layer model. In addition to working toward achieving the project’s three objectives, we also worked on understanding the role played by different forcing mechanisms in maintaining turbulence within cloud-topped boundary layers We focused our research on stratocumulus clouds during the first phase of the project, and cumulus clouds during the rest of the project. Below is a brief description of manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals that describe results from our analyses.

Joint Program on Molecular Biology of Marine Organisms

Science.gov (United States)

1992-08-20

and lateral flagella formation in a marine vibrio (Belas and Colwell, 1982). Upon contact with a surface, the polar flagella of Vibrio ... parahemolyticus ceased to function. Shortl’ thereafter, lateral flagella formed around the cells, apparently mediating the "irreversible" attachment process. Pilus...Colwell. 1982. Adsorption kinetics of 18 Slaterally and polarly flagellated Vibrio . J. Bacteriol. 151:1568-1580. S-- Brown, C.M., D.C. Ellwood, and

The effects of marine carbohydrates and glycosylated compounds on human health.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Hee-Kyoung; Seo, Chang Ho; Park, Yoonkyung

2015-03-16

Marine organisms have been recognized as a valuable source of bioactive compounds with industrial and nutraceutical potential. Recently, marine-derived carbohydrates, including polysaccharides and low molecular weight glycosylated oligosaccharides, have attracted much attention because of their numerous health benefits. Moreover, several studies have reported that marine carbohydrates exhibit various biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-infection, anticoagulant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-diabetic effects. The present review discusses the potential industrial applications of bioactive marine carbohydrates for health maintenance and disease prevention. Furthermore, the use of marine carbohydrates in food, cosmetics, agriculture, and environmental protection is discussed.

Immense essence of excellence: marine microbial bioactive compounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatnagar, Ira; Kim, Se-Kwon

2010-10-15

Oceans have borne most of the biological activities on our planet. A number of biologically active compounds with varying degrees of action, such as anti-tumor, anti-cancer, anti-microtubule, anti-proliferative, cytotoxic, photo protective, as well as antibiotic and antifouling properties, have been isolated to date from marine sources. The marine environment also represents a largely unexplored source for isolation of new microbes (bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, microalgae-cyanobacteria and diatoms) that are potent producers of bioactive secondary metabolites. Extensive research has been done to unveil the bioactive potential of marine microbes (free living and symbiotic) and the results are amazingly diverse and productive. Some of these bioactive secondary metabolites of microbial origin with strong antibacterial and antifungal activities are being intensely used as antibiotics and may be effective against infectious diseases such as HIV, conditions of multiple bacterial infections (penicillin, cephalosporines, streptomycin, and vancomycin) or neuropsychiatric sequelae. Research is also being conducted on the general aspects of biophysical and biochemical properties, chemical structures and biotechnological applications of the bioactive substances derived from marine microorganisms, and their potential use as cosmeceuticals and nutraceuticals. This review is an attempt to consolidate the latest studies and critical research in this field, and to showcase the immense competence of marine microbial flora as bioactive metabolite producers. In addition, the present review addresses some effective and novel approaches of procuring marine microbial compounds utilizing the latest screening strategies of drug discovery.

Immense Essence of Excellence: Marine Microbial Bioactive Compounds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ira Bhatnagar

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Oceans have borne most of the biological activities on our planet. A number of biologically active compounds with varying degrees of action, such as anti-tumor, anti-cancer, anti-microtubule, anti-proliferative, cytotoxic, photo protective, as well as antibiotic and antifouling properties, have been isolated to date from marine sources. The marine environment also represents a largely unexplored source for isolation of new microbes (bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, microalgae-cyanobacteria and diatoms that are potent producers of bioactive secondary metabolites. Extensive research has been done to unveil the bioactive potential of marine microbes (free living and symbiotic and the results are amazingly diverse and productive. Some of these bioactive secondary metabolites of microbial origin with strong antibacterial and antifungal activities are being intensely used as antibiotics and may be effective against infectious diseases such as HIV, conditions of multiple bacterial infections (penicillin, cephalosporines, streptomycin, and vancomycin or neuropsychiatric sequelae. Research is also being conducted on the general aspects of biophysical and biochemical properties, chemical structures and biotechnological applications of the bioactive substances derived from marine microorganisms, and their potential use as cosmeceuticals and nutraceuticals. This review is an attempt to consolidate the latest studies and critical research in this field, and to showcase the immense competence of marine microbial flora as bioactive metabolite producers. In addition, the present review addresses some effective and novel approaches of procuring marine microbial compounds utilizing the latest screening strategies of drug discovery.

The Common Marine Isopod Crustacea of Puerto Rico A handbook for marine biologists

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Menzies, Robert J.; Glynn, Peter W.

1968-01-01

The collecting sites from which isopods were obtained are located around the island (see p. 84). Concentrated collecting at several depths was done in the San Juan area at Boca de Cangrejos and at La Parguera where the Institute of Marine Biology is located. Many collections were made by washing a

An Analysis of Costs and Cenefits Associated with Initial Contracting Technical Education and Training for Unrestricted Marine Officers

Science.gov (United States)

2017-03-01

Distance learning education can be very valuable for working adults, especially for busy service members. The NPS DLP offers a defense-focused...COSTS AND BENEFITS ASSOCIATED WITH INITIAL CONTRACTING TECHNICAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOR UNRESTRICTED MARINE OFFICERS by Lee A. White...WITH INITIAL CONTRACTING TECHNICAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOR UNRESTRICTED MARINE OFFICERS 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR(S) Lee A. White 7. PERFORMING

The developing framework of marine ecotoxicology: Pollutants as a variable in marine ecosystems?

Science.gov (United States)

Luoma, Samuel N.

1996-01-01

Marine ecosystems include a subset in which at least some interrelated geochemical, biochemical, physiological, population and community characteristics are changed by pollutants. Moderate contamination is relatively widespread in coastal and estuarine ecosystems, so the subset of ecosystems with at least some processes affected could be relatively large. Pollutant influences have changed and will probably continue to change on time scales of decades. Biological exposures and dose in such ecosystems are species-specific and determined by how the species is exposed to different environmental media and the geochemistry of individual pollutants within those media. Bioaccumulation models offer significant promise for interpreting such exposures. Biological responses to pollutants need to be more directly linked to exposure and dose. At the level of the individual this might be improved by better understanding relationships between tissue concentrations of pollutants and responses to pollutants. Multi-discipline field and laboratory studies combined with advanced understanding of some basic processes have reduced the ambiguities in interpreting a few physiological/organismic responses to pollutants in nature. Recognition of pollutant-induced patterns in population responses could lead to similar advances. A rational framework for ecotoxicology is developing, but its further advance is dependent upon better integration of ecotoxicology with basic marine ecology and biology.

Global coordination and standardisation in marine biodiversity through the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS and related databases.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark J Costello

Full Text Available The World Register of Marine Species is an over 90% complete open-access inventory of all marine species names. Here we illustrate the scale of the problems with species names, synonyms, and their classification, and describe how WoRMS publishes online quality assured information on marine species. Within WoRMS, over 100 global, 12 regional and 4 thematic species databases are integrated with a common taxonomy. Over 240 editors from 133 institutions and 31 countries manage the content. To avoid duplication of effort, content is exchanged with 10 external databases. At present WoRMS contains 460,000 taxonomic names (from Kingdom to subspecies, 368,000 species level combinations of which 215,000 are currently accepted marine species names, and 26,000 related but non-marine species. Associated information includes 150,000 literature sources, 20,000 images, and locations of 44,000 specimens. Usage has grown linearly since its launch in 2007, with about 600,000 unique visitors to the website in 2011, and at least 90 organisations from 12 countries using WoRMS for their data management. By providing easy access to expert-validated content, WoRMS improves quality control in the use of species names, with consequent benefits to taxonomy, ecology, conservation and marine biodiversity research and management. The service manages information on species names that would otherwise be overly costly for individuals, and thus minimises errors in the application of nomenclature standards. WoRMS' content is expanding to include host-parasite relationships, additional literature sources, locations of specimens, images, distribution range, ecological, and biological data. Species are being categorised as introduced (alien, invasive, of conservation importance, and on other attributes. These developments have a multiplier effect on its potential as a resource for biodiversity research and management. As a consequence of WoRMS, we are witnessing improved

Global Coordination and Standardisation in Marine Biodiversity through the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) and Related Databases

Science.gov (United States)

Bouchet, Philippe; Boxshall, Geoff; Fauchald, Kristian; Gordon, Dennis; Hoeksema, Bert W.; Poore, Gary C. B.; van Soest, Rob W. M.; Stöhr, Sabine; Walter, T. Chad; Vanhoorne, Bart; Decock, Wim

2013-01-01

The World Register of Marine Species is an over 90% complete open-access inventory of all marine species names. Here we illustrate the scale of the problems with species names, synonyms, and their classification, and describe how WoRMS publishes online quality assured information on marine species. Within WoRMS, over 100 global, 12 regional and 4 thematic species databases are integrated with a common taxonomy. Over 240 editors from 133 institutions and 31 countries manage the content. To avoid duplication of effort, content is exchanged with 10 external databases. At present WoRMS contains 460,000 taxonomic names (from Kingdom to subspecies), 368,000 species level combinations of which 215,000 are currently accepted marine species names, and 26,000 related but non-marine species. Associated information includes 150,000 literature sources, 20,000 images, and locations of 44,000 specimens. Usage has grown linearly since its launch in 2007, with about 600,000 unique visitors to the website in 2011, and at least 90 organisations from 12 countries using WoRMS for their data management. By providing easy access to expert-validated content, WoRMS improves quality control in the use of species names, with consequent benefits to taxonomy, ecology, conservation and marine biodiversity research and management. The service manages information on species names that would otherwise be overly costly for individuals, and thus minimises errors in the application of nomenclature standards. WoRMS' content is expanding to include host-parasite relationships, additional literature sources, locations of specimens, images, distribution range, ecological, and biological data. Species are being categorised as introduced (alien, invasive), of conservation importance, and on other attributes. These developments have a multiplier effect on its potential as a resource for biodiversity research and management. As a consequence of WoRMS, we are witnessing improved communication within the

Environmental Impacts—Marine Ecosystems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brander, Keith; Ottersen, Geir; Bakker, J.P.

2016-01-01

This chapter presents a review of what is known about the impacts of climate change on the biota (plankton, benthos, fish, seabirds and marine mammals) of the North Sea. Examples show how the changing North Sea environment is affecting biological processes and organisation at all scales, including...... the physiology, reproduction, growth, survival, behaviour and transport of individuals; the distribution, dynamics and evolution of populations; and the trophic structure and coupling of ecosystems. These complex responses can be detected because there are detailed long-term biological and environmental records...

Using fuzzy logic to determine the vulnerability of marine species to climate change.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Miranda C; Cheung, William W L

2018-02-01

Marine species are being impacted by climate change and ocean acidification, although their level of vulnerability varies due to differences in species' sensitivity, adaptive capacity and exposure to climate hazards. Due to limited data on the biological and ecological attributes of many marine species, as well as inherent uncertainties in the assessment process, climate change vulnerability assessments in the marine environment frequently focus on a limited number of taxa or geographic ranges. As climate change is already impacting marine biodiversity and fisheries, there is an urgent need to expand vulnerability assessment to cover a large number of species and areas. Here, we develop a modelling approach to synthesize data on species-specific estimates of exposure, and ecological and biological traits to undertake an assessment of vulnerability (sensitivity and adaptive capacity) and risk of impacts (combining exposure to hazards and vulnerability) of climate change (including ocean acidification) for global marine fishes and invertebrates. We use a fuzzy logic approach to accommodate the variability in data availability and uncertainties associated with inferring vulnerability levels from climate projections and species' traits. Applying the approach to estimate the relative vulnerability and risk of impacts of climate change in 1074 exploited marine species globally, we estimated their index of vulnerability and risk of impacts to be on average 52 ± 19 SD and 66 ± 11 SD, scaling from 1 to 100, with 100 being the most vulnerable and highest risk, respectively, under the 'business-as-usual' greenhouse gas emission scenario (Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5). We identified 157 species to be highly vulnerable while 294 species are identified as being at high risk of impacts. Species that are most vulnerable tend to be large-bodied endemic species. This study suggests that the fuzzy logic framework can help estimate climate vulnerabilities and risks

Biological Carbon Dioxide Assimilation Process Using Marine Phytoplankton Tetraselmis suecica and Bivalve Perna viridis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sirichai Dharmvanij

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The Biological CO2 assimilation process using marine phytoplankton and marine bivalve was evaluated by carbon assimilation of the green mussel Perna viridis fed with Tetraselmis suecica under laboratory condition. Incorporation of carbon dioxide into phytoplankton biomass was performed through aeration. The experiment consisted of three treatments i.e. mussels without feeding (Control, mussels fed with T. suecica cultured with air (Treatment 1: T-Air, and mussels fed with T. suecica cultured with 1.5% CO2 in air (Treatment 2: T-CO2. The results showed that growth of mussels in T-Air and T-CO2 was 22.4 ± 4.0 mg/individual/day and 28.9 ± 12.3 mg/individual/day, respectively, which was significantly higher than control (mussels without feeding. Growth of mussels in T-Air was significantly lower than in T-CO2. Carbon content in shell (15.59 ± 0.57 % D.W. and meat (38.28 ± 1.72 % D.W. of mussels fed with aerated T. suecica (T-Air was significantly higher than that found in mussels fed with 1.5% CO2 T. suecica (14.2 ± 0.47 and 36.61± 0.43 % D.W. in shell and in meat, respectively (p≤0.05. With T-Air, 1.95±0.27 and 9.36±1.24% of carbon from T. suecica cells was assimilated into shell and meat of the mussel, respectively, while in T-CO2 , carbon assimilation from T. suecica cells in shell and meat was 2.19±0.55 and 11.22±2.76% respectively.

Chapter 5:Biological Properties of Wood

Science.gov (United States)

Rebecca E. Ibach

2013-01-01

There are numerous biological degradations that wood is exposed to in various environments. Biological damage occurs when a log, sawn product, or final product is not stored, handled, or designed properly. Biological organisms such as bacteria, mold, stain, decay fungi, insects, and marine borers depend heavily on temperature and moisture conditions to grow. Figure 5.1...

Biologically Predisposed Learning and Selective Associations in Amygdalar Neurons

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Ain; Barot, Sabiha K.; Kim, Jeansok J.; Bernstein, Ilene L.

2011-01-01

Modern views on learning and memory accept the notion of biological constraints--that the formation of association is not uniform across all stimuli. Yet cellular evidence of the encoding of selective associations is lacking. Here, conditioned stimuli (CSs) and unconditioned stimuli (USs) commonly employed in two basic associative learning…

Environmental science. Rethinking the marine carbon cycle: factoring in the multifarious lifestyles of microbes.

Science.gov (United States)

Worden, Alexandra Z; Follows, Michael J; Giovannoni, Stephen J; Wilken, Susanne; Zimmerman, Amy E; Keeling, Patrick J

2015-02-13

The profound influence of marine plankton on the global carbon cycle has been recognized for decades, particularly for photosynthetic microbes that form the base of ocean food chains. However, a comprehensive model of the carbon cycle is challenged by unicellular eukaryotes (protists) having evolved complex behavioral strategies and organismal interactions that extend far beyond photosynthetic lifestyles. As is also true for multicellular eukaryotes, these strategies and their associated physiological changes are difficult to deduce from genome sequences or gene repertoires—a problem compounded by numerous unknown function proteins. Here, we explore protistan trophic modes in marine food webs and broader biogeochemical influences. We also evaluate approaches that could resolve their activities, link them to biotic and abiotic factors, and integrate them into an ecosystems biology framework. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Rethinking Trade-Driven Extinction Risk in Marine and Terrestrial Megafauna.

Science.gov (United States)

McClenachan, Loren; Cooper, Andrew B; Dulvy, Nicholas K

2016-06-20

Large animals hunted for the high value of their parts (e.g., elephant ivory and shark fins) are at risk of extinction due to both intensive international trade pressure and intrinsic biological sensitivity. However, the relative role of trade, particularly in non-perishable products, and biological factors in driving extinction risk is not well understood [1-4]. Here we identify a taxonomically diverse group of >100 marine and terrestrial megafauna targeted for international luxury markets; estimate their value across three points of sale; test relationships among extinction risk, high value, and body size; and quantify the effects of two mitigating factors: poaching fines and geographic range size. We find that body size is the principal driver of risk for lower value species, but that this biological pattern is eliminated above a value threshold, meaning that the most valuable species face a high extinction risk regardless of size. For example, once mean product values exceed US$12,557 kg(-1), body size no longer drives risk. Total value scales with size for marine animals more strongly than for terrestrial animals, incentivizing the hunting of large marine individuals and species. Poaching fines currently have little effect on extinction risk; fines would need to be increased 10- to 100-fold to be effective. Large geographic ranges reduce risk for terrestrial, but not marine, species, whose ranges are ten times greater. Our results underscore both the evolutionary and ecosystem consequences of targeting large marine animals and the need to geographically scale up and prioritize conservation of high-value marine species to avoid extinction. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Design of laboratory radiotracer studies in marine radioecology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schulte, E.H.

1997-01-01

A condensed description of methods used in laboratory radiotracer studies in marine radioecology is presented showing also the difficulties which may be encountered in order to obtain realistic and comparable information on the general behaviour of radionuclides in marine organisms. Practical guidance on the choice of the biological material and how to setup laboratory experiments and to control properly important experimental conditions are given. Key parameters like concentration factors and biological half-lives are defined and the theoretical estimation and practical determination of input, uptake, accumulation and loss of radionuclides in marine biota are formulated by the aid of mathematical equations. Examples of uptake and loss curves obtained in the laboratory are shown. The importance of some environmental factors (temperature, food, growth) on uptake and loss of radionuclides are demonstrated. Comparison of experimental and field data of concentration factors is reported to show the difficulty in extrapolating from laboratory experiments to nature. (author)

Isolation, Phylogenetic Analysis and Anti-infective Activity Screening of Marine Sponge-Associated Actinomycetes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Safwat Ahmed

2010-02-01

Full Text Available Terrestrial actinomycetes are noteworthy producers of a multitude of antibiotics, however the marine representatives are much less studied in this regard. In this study, 90 actinomycetes were isolated from 11 different species of marine sponges that had been collected from offshore Ras Mohamed (Egypt and from Rovinj (Croatia. Phylogenetic characterization of the isolates based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing supported their assignment to 18 different actinomycete genera representing seven different suborders. Fourteen putatively novel species were identified based on sequence similarity values below 98.2% to other strains in the NCBI database. A putative new genus related to Rubrobacter was isolated on M1 agar that had been amended with sponge extract, thus highlighting the need for innovative cultivation protocols. Testing for anti-infective activities was performed against clinically relevant, Gram-positive (Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, fungi (Candida albicans and human parasites (Leishmania major, Trypanosoma brucei. Bioactivities against these pathogens were documented for 10 actinomycete isolates. These results show a high diversity of actinomycetes associated with marine sponges as well as highlight their potential to produce anti-infective agents.

Chemical Constituents and Biological Properties of the Marine Soft ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

1001/PKIMIA/811187); and the authors. (F.A.) and (Y.C.K.) are also grateful to. Universiti Sains Malaysia for the USM fellowship awards. . REFERENCES. 1. John Faulkner D. Marine natural products. Natural. Product Reports, 1999; 16(2): 155-198. 2. Bowden BF, Coll JC, Mitchell SJ. Studies of. Australian soft corals. XXI.

Marine oils: Complex, confusing, confounded?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benjamin B. Albert

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Marine oils gained prominence following the report that Greenland Inuits who consumed a high-fat diet rich in long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs also had low rates of cardiovascular disease. Marine n-3 PUFAs have since become a billion dollar industry, which will continue to grow based on current trends. However, recent systematic reviews question the health benefits of marine oil supplements, particularly in the prevention of cardiovascular disease. Marine oils constitute an extremely complex dietary intervention for a number of reasons: i the many chemical compounds they contain; ii the many biological processes affected by n-3 PUFAs; iii their tendency to deteriorate and form potentially toxic primary and secondary oxidation products; and iv inaccuracy in the labelling of consumer products. These complexities may confound the clinical literature, limiting the ability to make substantive conclusions for some key health outcomes. Thus, there is a pressing need for clinical trials using marine oils whose composition has been independently verified and demonstrated to be minimally oxidised. Without such data, it is premature to conclude that n-3 PUFA rich supplements are ineffective.

Using the marine unicellular algae in biological monitoring

OpenAIRE

Kapkov V. I.; Shoshina E. V.; Belenikina O. A.

2017-01-01

The possibility of using marine unicellular algae from natural plankton community in biomonitoring of pollution by heavy metals has been investigated. Algae of different taxa from the Mediterranean Sea have been allocated to culture. In the laboratory the culture conditions – i. e. growth medium, temperature, photoperiod, level of artificial light and initial density – have been selected for every species. The impact of heavy metals (Hg, Cd, Cu, Pb) in the form of chloride salts on the growth...

The ecology, status, and conservation of marine and shoreline birds on the west coast of Vancouver Island

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vermeer, K.; Butler, R.W.; Morgan, K.H.

1992-01-01

A symposium was held to combine various disciplines to provide a review of current knowledge about the marine biology of the west coast of Vancouver Island, with a particular emphasis on birds. Papers were presented on the physical and biological environment of the study region, the population and breeding ecology of marine and shoreline birds, the distribution of marine and shoreline birds at sea, the effects of oil pollution on the bird population, and the conservation of marine and shoreline birds. Separate abstracts have been prepared for two papers from this symposium

Sexual selection in marine plankton

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sichlau, Mie Hylstofte

Copepods are among the most abundant metazoans on the planet and play an important role in the marine food web. Many aspects of their ecology have consequently been studied, including details of their reproductive biology and mating behaviour. Sexual selection, the part of evolution which selects...

Using Remote Sensing Products to Identify Marine Association Patterns in Factors Relating to ENSO in the Pacific Ocean

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cunjin Xue

2017-01-01

Full Text Available El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO and its relationships with marine environmental parameters comprise a very complicated and interrelated system. Traditional spatiotemporal techniques face great challenges in dealing with which, how, and where the marine environmental parameters in different zones help to drive, and respond to, ENSO events. Remote sensing products covering a 15-year period from 1998 to 2012 were used to quantitatively explore these patterns in the Pacific Ocean (PO by a prevail quantitative association rule mining algorithm, that is, a priori, within a mining framework. The marine environmental parameters considered were monthly anomaly of sea surface chlorophyll-a (CHLA, monthly anomaly of sea surface temperature (SSTA, monthly anomaly of sea level anomaly (SLAA, monthly anomaly of sea surface precipitation (SSPA, and monthly anomaly of sea surface wind speed (WSA. Four significant discoveries are found, namely: (1 Association patterns among marine environmental parameters and ENSO events were found primarily in five sub-regions of the PO: the western PO, the central and eastern tropical PO, the middle of the northern subtropical PO, offshore of the California coast, and the southern PO; (2 In the western and the middle and east of the equatorial PO, the association patterns are more complicated than other regions; (3 The following factors were found to be predicators of and responses to La Niña events: abnormal decrease of SLAA and WSA in the east of the equatorial PO, abnormal decrease of SSPA and WSA in the middle of the equatorial PO, abnormal decrease of SSTA in the eastern and central tropical PO, and abnormal increase of SLAA in the western PO; (4 Only abnormal decrease of CHLA in the middle of the equatorial PO was found to be a predicator of and response to El Niño events. These findings will help to improve our abilities to identify the marine association patterns in factors relating to ENSO events.

Alabama ESI: M_MAMMAL (Marine Mammal Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for dolphins and manatees in Alabama. Vector polygons in this data set represent marine mammal distribution...

Virginia ESI: M_MAMMAL (Marine Mammal Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for dolphin, seals, whales, and porpoise in Virginia. Vector polygons in this data set represent marine...

Maryland ESI: M_MAMMAL (Marine Mammal Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for seals, whales, porpoise, and dolphin in Maryland. Vector polygons in this data set represent marine...

Bioactivity and Applications of Sulphated Polysaccharides from Marine Microalgae

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rui Manuel Santos Costa de Morais

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Marine microalgae have been used for a long time as food for humans, such as Arthrospira (formerly, Spirulina, and for animals in aquaculture. The biomass of these microalgae and the compounds they produce have been shown to possess several biological applications with numerous health benefits. The present review puts up-to-date the research on the biological activities and applications of polysaccharides, active biocompounds synthesized by marine unicellular algae, which are, most of the times, released into the surrounding medium (exo- or extracellular polysaccharides, EPS. It goes through the most studied activities of sulphated polysaccharides (sPS or their derivatives, but also highlights lesser known applications as hypolipidaemic or hypoglycaemic, or as biolubricant agents and drag-reducers. Therefore, the great potentials of sPS from marine microalgae to be used as nutraceuticals, therapeutic agents, cosmetics, or in other areas, such as engineering, are approached in this review.

Competition and facilitation between the marine nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Cyanothece and its associated bacterial community

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brauer, Verena S; Stomp, Maayke; Bouvier, Thierry; Fouilland, Eric; Leboulanger, Christophe; Confurius-Guns, Veronique; Weissing, Franz J; Stal, Lucas J; Huisman, Jef

2015-01-01

N2-fixing cyanobacteria represent a major source of new nitrogen and carbon for marine microbial communities, but little is known about their ecological interactions with associated microbiota. In this study we investigated the interactions between the unicellular N2-fixing cyanobacterium Cyanothece

Marine biodiversity in Colombia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diaz, Juan Manuel

2002-01-01

One decade ago, the seas and oceans were considered biologically less diverse that the terrestrial environment. Now it is known that it is on the contrary; 33 of the 34 categories of animals (phylum), they are represented in the sea, compared with those solely 15 that exist in earth. The investigation about the diversity of life in the sea has been relatively scorned, but there are big benefits that we can wait if this is protected. The captures of fish depend on it; the species captured by the fisheries are sustained of the biodiversity of their trophic chains and habitats. The marine species are probably the biggest reservoir of chemical substances that can be used in pharmaceutical products. The genetic material of some species can be useful in biotechnical applications. The paper treats topics like the current state of the knowledge in marine biodiversity and it is done a diagnostic of the marine biodiversity in Colombia

Israel Marine Bio-geographic Database (ISRAMAR-BIO)

Science.gov (United States)

Greengrass, Eyal; Krivenko, Yevgeniya; Ozer, Tal; Ben Yosef, Dafna; Tom, Moshe; Gertman, Isaac

2015-04-01

The knowledge of the space/time variations of species is the basis for any ecological investigations. While historical observations containing integral concentrations of biological parameters (chlorophyll, abundance, biomass…) are organized partly in ISRAMAR Cast Database, the taxon-specific data collected in Israel has not been sufficiently organized. This has been hindered by the lack of standards, variability of methods and complexity of biological data formalization. The ISRAMAR-BIO DB was developed to store various types of historical and future available information related to marine species observations and related metadata. Currently the DB allows to store biological data acquired by the following sampling devices such as: van veer grab, box corer, sampling bottles, nets (plankton, trawls and fish), quadrates, and cameras. The DB's logical unit is information regarding a specimen (taxa name, barcode, image), related attributes (abundance, size, age, contaminants…), habitat description, sampling device and method, time and space of sampling, responsible organization and scientist, source of information (cruise, project and publication). The following standardization of specimen and attributes naming were implemented: Taxonomy according to World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS: http://www.marinespecies.org). Habitat description according to Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standards (CMECS: http://www.cmecscatalog.org) Parameter name; Unit; Device name; Developmental stage; Institution name; Country name; Marine region according to SeaDataNet Vocabularies (http://www.seadatanet.org/Standards-Software/Common-Vocabularies). This system supports two types of data submission procedures, which support the above stated data structure. The first is a downloadable excel file with drop-down fields based on the ISRAMAR-BIO vocabularies. The file is filled and uploaded online by the data contributor. Alternatively, the same dataset can be assembled by

77 FR 14348 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Marine Recreational Information Program

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-09

... Collection; Comment Request; Marine Recreational Information Program AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric... for revision of a current information collection. Marine recreational anglers are surveyed to collect catch and effort data, fish biology data, and angler socioeconomic characteristics. These data are...

On the ecological role of Copepoda in the Suez Canal marine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Moreover, the importance of copepods in the marine food web and secondary productivity in the canal water, as well as their response to environmental variations in the Suez Canal ecosystem were discussed. KEY WORDS: Zooplankton, Copepoda, food web, marine ecosystem, Suez Canal Egyptian Journal of Biology ...

Effects of environment temperature rise on marine life. Bibliographic study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ancellin, J.; Eustache, M.; Vilquin, A.

1973-12-01

The effects of a temperature rise in the marine environment resulting from thermal wastes have already been covered by many studies. A body of data acquired on this subject, in the biological field, experimentally and in situ are reviewed. To this are added data concerning the major effects associated with the use of cooling systems, drag effect exerted on organisms by the pumping system and consequences due to the use of anti-fouling substances, as well as some ideas concerning the potential use of thermal wastes in the field of aquaculture [fr

Glycobiology of Reproductive Processes in Marine Animals: The State of the Art

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Costantini

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Glycobiology is the study of complex carbohydrates in biological systems and represents a developing field of science that has made huge advances in the last half century. In fact, it combines all branches of biomedical research, revealing the vast and diverse forms of carbohydrate structures that exist in nature. Advances in structure determination have enabled scientists to study the function of complex carbohydrates in more depth and to determine the role that they play in a wide range of biological processes. Glycobiology research in marine systems has primarily focused on reproduction, in particular for what concern the chemical communication between the gametes. The current status of marine glycobiology is primarily descriptive, devoted to characterizing marine glycoconjugates with potential biomedical and biotechnological applications. In this review, we describe the current status of the glycobiology in the reproductive processes from gametogenesis to fertilization and embryo development of marine animals.

Transuranic elements in marine environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bowen, V.T.

1975-04-01

Transuranic elements are present in marine environments as a result of worldwide fallout, close-in fallout, the SNAP-9A burnup, pipeline disposal of reprocessing wastes, neutron capture by uranium in one-pass cooling-water reactors and the B-52 crash in Thule, Greenland. Distributions and movements of 239 Pu, 240 Pu, 241 Am, and 137 Cs from these introductions in the Atlantic Ocean are being studied partly because the transuranic elements themselves are geochemically interesting, partly because they appear to serve as tracers for specific oceanographic processes, and partly because of concern that man is faced with the problem of disposal of rapidly increasing amounts of transuranics as radioactive waste, and that we must be able, soon, to predict the fates and the effects of those amounts that reach the coastal waters or the deep oceans. Plutonium and americium are widely distributed in the oceans as a result of man's activities. Both appear to be more mobile than expected, and Pu shows little behavior in these environments that had been predicted from laboratory studies. Although their associations with biological material seem to be most striking for rooted plants or Sargassum, it is too premature to dismiss the possibility of their being a real hazard to marine life

Bacterial Liasons: Bacteria Associated With Marine Benthic Meiofauna in the Gulf of Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Diaz, K. S.; Sevigny, J.; Leasi, F.; Thomas, W. K.

2017-12-01

All macroorganisms are colonized by and harbor microbial associates that form their microbiome. Some microbial associates establish predictable symbioses across a host species. Other microbial assemblages, such as the human gut microbiome, exhibit semi-predictable patterns dependent on various factors such as host habitat and diet. Host species typically share core microbiota that remain temporally and spatially stable, but turnover of accessory microbiota due to to environmental change often confers adaptive advantage to the host would not receive from its own genome or core microbiome. Benthic meiofauna, microscopic eukaryotes that live in marine sediments, harbor bacterial associates that may confer functional advantages in the face of environmental perturbation that allow the host to persist and adapt during an environmental disturbance such as an oil spill. However, benthic meiofauna and their microbiota represent relatively unknown components of marine environments. In 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill poured over 0.5 million metric tons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Now, much of the oil has dispersed, but some still lingers in environments such as marine sediments. Benthic meiofauna remain affected by these lingering hydrocarbons. Their inability to simply leave their habitat makes them ideal sentinels of environmental change that can factor into understanding oil spill impacts and inform response and mitigation of similar future events. Binning bacterial sequences from host whole shotgun genomes allows for analysis of microbiome gene coding and functional potentials that may assist the host through environmental disturbances, such as genes involved in hydrocarbon degradation pathways. 16S rRNA gene surveys reveal of microbiome composition of diverse meiofaunal taxa collected throughout the Gulf of Mexico. This work will examine structure and distribution of benthic meiofauna microbiomes in the Gulf of Mexico. Thus far, 16S surveys display

Tropical dermatology: marine and aquatic dermatology.

Science.gov (United States)

Haddad, Vidal; Lupi, Omar; Lonza, Juan Pedro; Tyring, Stephen K

2009-11-01

Dermatoses caused by marine organisms are frequently seen in dermatology clinics worldwide. Cutaneous injuries after exposure to marine environments include bacterial and fungal infections and lesions caused by aquatic plants and protists. Some of these diseases are well known by dermatologists, such as Vibrio vulnificus septicemia and erysipeloid, but others are uncommon, such as envenomation caused by ingestion or contact with certain dinoflagellates or cyanobacteria, which are associated with rashes that can begin within minutes after exposure. Many marine/aquatic invertebrates, such as sponges, cnidarians, echinoderms, crustaceans, and mollusks, are associated with different kinds of dermatologic lesions that can vary from irritant or allergic contact dermatitis to physical trauma and envenomations. These cutaneous lesions may result in mild local reactions or can be associated with severe systemic reactions. Invertebrate animals, such as cnidarians, sea urchins, and worms, and aquatic vertebrates, such as venomous fishes and stingrays, are commonly associated with skin lesions in many countries, where they can constitute occupational dermatoses among fishermen and scuba divers, but they can also be observed among persons who contact these animals in kitchens or beaches. The presence of unusual lesions, a recent travel history, and/or a report of contact with an aquatic environment (including ownership of a marine or freshwater aquarium) should alert the dermatologist to the etiology of the cutaneous problems. After completing this learning activity, participants should be able to recognize the cutaneous manifestations of marine/aquatic infections, bites, stings, and wounds, etc., treat the cutaneous manifestations of marine/aquatic injuries, and help prevent marine/aquatic injuries.

Marine biodiversity in Japanese waters.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katsunori Fujikura

Full Text Available To understand marine biodiversity in Japanese waters, we have compiled information on the marine biota in Japanese waters, including the number of described species (species richness, the history of marine biology research in Japan, the state of knowledge, the number of endemic species, the number of identified but undescribed species, the number of known introduced species, and the number of taxonomic experts and identification guides, with consideration of the general ocean environmental background, such as the physical and geological settings. A total of 33,629 species have been reported to occur in Japanese waters. The state of knowledge was extremely variable, with taxa containing many inconspicuous, smaller species tending to be less well known. The total number of identified but undescribed species was at least 121,913. The total number of described species combined with the number of identified but undescribed species reached 155,542. This is the best estimate of the total number of species in Japanese waters and indicates that more than 70% of Japan's marine biodiversity remains un-described. The number of species reported as introduced into Japanese waters was 39. This is the first attempt to estimate species richness for all marine species in Japanese waters. Although its marine biota can be considered relatively well known, at least within the Asian-Pacific region, considering the vast number of different marine environments such as coral reefs, ocean trenches, ice-bound waters, methane seeps, and hydrothermal vents, much work remains to be done. We expect global change to have a tremendous impact on marine biodiversity and ecosystems. Japan is in a particularly suitable geographic situation and has a lot of facilities for conducting marine science research. Japan has an important responsibility to contribute to our understanding of life in the oceans.

A Balanced Marine Aquarium [and] The Biology of Marine Aquarium Fishes Collected in Monroe County, Florida. A Two-Paper NOAA Technical Memorandum.

Science.gov (United States)

Palko, Barbara Jayne; And Others

This document consists of two separate papers. The first paper, "A Balanced Marine Aquarium" (Barbara Jayne Palko), discusses various aspects of a balanced marine aquarium. Information provided includes the basic and optional equipment needed to construct a balanced aquarium, preparations for setting up the aquarium, preparing the…

Comparing marine and terrestrial ecosystems: Implications for the design of coastal marine reserves

Science.gov (United States)

Carr, M.H.; Neigel, J.E.; Estes, J.A.; Andelman, S.; Warner, R.R.; Largier, J. L.

2003-01-01

Concepts and theory for the design and application of terrestrial reserves is based on our understanding of environmental, ecological, and evolutionary processes responsible for biological diversity and sustainability of terrestrial ecosystems and how humans have influenced these processes. How well this terrestrial-based theory can be applied toward the design and application of reserves in the coastal marine environment depends, in part, on the degree of similarity between these systems. Several marked differences in ecological and evolutionary processes exist between marine and terrestrial ecosystems as ramifications of fundamental differences in their physical environments (i.e., the relative prevalence of air and water) and contemporary patterns of human impacts. Most notably, the great extent and rate of dispersal of nutrients, materials, holoplanktonic organisms, and reproductive propagules of benthic organisms expand scales of connectivity among near-shore communities and ecosystems. Consequently, the "openness" of marine populations, communities, and ecosystems probably has marked influences on their spatial, genetic, and trophic structures and dynamics in ways experienced by only some terrestrial species. Such differences appear to be particularly significant for the kinds of organisms most exploited and targeted for protection in coastal marine ecosystems (fishes and macroinvertebrates). These and other differences imply some unique design criteria and application of reserves in the marine environment. In explaining the implications of these differences for marine reserve design and application, we identify many of the environmental and ecological processes and design criteria necessary for consideration in the development of the analytical approaches developed elsewhere in this Special Issue.

Marine protected area restricts demographic connectivity: Dissimilarity in a marine environment can function as a biological barrier.

Science.gov (United States)

Sato, Masaaki; Honda, Kentaro; Uy, Wilfredo H; Baslot, Darwin I; Genovia, Tom G; Nakamura, Yohei; Bernardo, Lawrence Patrick C; Kurokochi, Hiroyuki; Pantallano, Allyn Duvin S; Lian, Chunlan; Nadaoka, Kazuo; Nakaoka, Masahiro

2017-10-01

The establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs) can often lead to environmental differences between MPAs and fishing zones. To determine the effects on marine dispersal of environmental dissimilarity between an MPA and fishing zone, we examined the abundance and recruitment patterns of two anemonefishes ( Amphiprion frenatus and A. perideraion ) that inhabit sea anemones in different management zones (i.e., an MPA and two fishing zones) by performing a field survey and a genetic parentage analysis. We found lower levels of abundance per anemone in the MPA compared to the fishing zones for both species ( n  = 1,525 anemones, p  = .032). The parentage analysis also showed that lower numbers of fishes were recruited from the fishing zones and outside of the study area into each anemone in the MPA than into each anemone in the fishing zones ( n  = 1,525 anemones, p  fishing zones ( n  = 384 females, p  = .516). Because the ocean currents around the study site were unlikely to cause a lower settlement intensity of larvae in the MPA, the ocean circulation was not considered crucial to the observed abundance and recruitment patterns. Instead, stronger top-down control and/or a lower density of host anemones in the MPA were potential factors for such patterns. Our results highlight the importance of dissimilarity in a marine environment as a factor that affects connectivity.

Production of bioethanol from papaya and pineapple wastes using marine associated microorganisms

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Jayaprakashvel, M.; Akila, S.; Venkatramani, M.; Vinothini, S.; Bhagat, J.; Hussain, A. J.

and methane are advantageous. In this study, an attempt was made to produce bio-ethanol by marine fungi in fermentation process with the use of fruit wastes (papaya and pine apple) as substrates. A total of 19 marine fungi were isolated from various marine...

Quantifying Stress in Marine Mammals: Measuring Biologically Active Cortisol in Cetaceans and Pinnipeds

Science.gov (United States)

2015-09-30

boonstra/ LONG-TERM GOALS This research will improve our ability to measure stress in marine mammals. Stress hormones ( glucocorticoids ...either cortisol or corticosterone) are easily measured in blood and are an important measure of stress. However, a large proportion of glucocorticoids ...are best estimated by measuring “free glucocorticoid ” levels (i.e. that hormone not bound by CBG). This project will improve the capacity of marine

Circumpolar dynamics of a marine top-predator track ocean warming rates.

Science.gov (United States)

Descamps, Sébastien; Anker-Nilssen, Tycho; Barrett, Robert T; Irons, David B; Merkel, Flemming; Robertson, Gregory J; Yoccoz, Nigel G; Mallory, Mark L; Montevecchi, William A; Boertmann, David; Artukhin, Yuri; Christensen-Dalsgaard, Signe; Erikstad, Kjell-Einar; Gilchrist, H Grant; Labansen, Aili L; Lorentsen, Svein-Håkon; Mosbech, Anders; Olsen, Bergur; Petersen, Aevar; Rail, Jean-Francois; Renner, Heather M; Strøm, Hallvard; Systad, Geir H; Wilhelm, Sabina I; Zelenskaya, Larisa

2017-09-01

Global warming is a nonlinear process, and temperature may increase in a stepwise manner. Periods of abrupt warming can trigger persistent changes in the state of ecosystems, also called regime shifts. The responses of organisms to abrupt warming and associated regime shifts can be unlike responses to periods of slow or moderate change. Understanding of nonlinearity in the biological responses to climate warming is needed to assess the consequences of ongoing climate change. Here, we demonstrate that the population dynamics of a long-lived, wide-ranging marine predator are associated with changes in the rate of ocean warming. Data from 556 colonies of black-legged kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla distributed throughout its breeding range revealed that an abrupt warming of sea-surface temperature in the 1990s coincided with steep kittiwake population decline. Periods of moderate warming in sea temperatures did not seem to affect kittiwake dynamics. The rapid warming observed in the 1990s may have driven large-scale, circumpolar marine ecosystem shifts that strongly affected kittiwakes through bottom-up effects. Our study sheds light on the nonlinear response of a circumpolar seabird to large-scale changes in oceanographic conditions and indicates that marine top predators may be more sensitive to the rate of ocean warming rather than to warming itself. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

78 FR 30273 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to a...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-22

..., breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or sheltering [Level B harassment].'' Summary of Request We received... fish populations; however, the entire barge mooring project is scheduled to be completed by September...), biological (e.g., sounds produced by marine mammals, fish, and invertebrates), and anthropogenic sound (e.g...

76 FR 39386 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Port of Anchorage...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-06

...) consist of multiple animals and animals such as beluga whales often travel in groups. There were 731... MARAD complied with this requirement by assembling a monitoring team from the Alaska Pacific University... graduate and undergraduate marine biology students conducted approximately 600 hours of scientific...

75 FR 38465 - Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Port of Anchorage...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-02

... monitoring team from the Alaska Pacific University (APU) to implement a NMFS-approved scientific monitoring..., from May 4 through November 18, 2009, trained graduate and undergraduate marine biology students..., comprising 54 groups, and one harbor seal traveling through the study area. Spatial distribution analysis...

Effects of gelling agent and extracellular signaling molecules on the culturability of marine bacteria

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rygaard, Anita Mac; Schmidt Thøgersen, Mariane; Nielsen, Kristian Fog

2017-01-01

Only 1 % of marine bacteria are currently culturable using standard laboratory procedures and this is a major obstacle for our understanding of the biology of marine microorganisms and for the discovery of novel microbial natural products. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to invest......Only 1 % of marine bacteria are currently culturable using standard laboratory procedures and this is a major obstacle for our understanding of the biology of marine microorganisms and for the discovery of novel microbial natural products. Therefore, the purpose of the present study...... was to investigate if improved cultivation conditions, including the use of an alternative gelling agent, and supplementation with signaling molecules, could improve the culturability of bacteria from seawater. Substituting agar with gellan gum improved viable counts 3 – 40-fold, depending on medium composition...

Impacts of electromagnetic fields associated with marine and hydrokinetic surrogate technologies on fish movements and behaviors.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Claisse, Jeremy T. [Vantuna Research Group, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Pondella, Daniel J. [Vantuna Research Group, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Williams, Chelsea M. [Vantuna Research Group, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Zahn, Laurel A. [Vantuna Research Group, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Williams, Jonathan P. [Vantuna Research Group, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

2015-09-30

Marine and hydrokinetic energy (MHK) and offshore wind devices are being developed and deployed in U.S. and international waters. Electric current flowing through subsea transmission cables associated with these devices will generate electromagnetic fields (EMF), which may interact with, and potentially impact, marine fishes. Some marine fishes can detect electric and/or magnetic fields and use them to navigate, orientate, and sense prey, mates and predators. Over the past five years there have been multiple comprehensive reviews and studies evaluating the potential vulnerability of marine fishes to EMF produced by MHK devices. Most documented effects involve sub-lethal behavioral responses of individual fish when in close proximity to EMF (e.g., fish being repelled by or attracted to fields). These reviews reach conclusions that the current state of research on this topic is still in its infancy and evaluations of potential impacts are associated with great uncertainty. A variety of MHK technologies are likely to be considered for deployment offshore of the Hawaiian Islands, and there is a need to be able to better predict and assess potential associated environmental impacts. The goal of this study was to provide a complementary piece to these previous reviews (e.g., Normandeau et al. 2011) by focusing on marine fish species in the Hawaii region. We compiled the relevant available information, then prioritized fish species as candidates for various paths of future research. To address this, we first developed a list of Hawaii Region Focal Species, which included fishes that are more likely to be sensitive to EMF. We then compiled species-specific information available in the literature on their sensitivity to EMF, as well as life history, movement and habitat use information that could inform an analysis of their likelihood of encountering EMF from subsea cables associated with MHK devices. Studies have only documented EMF sensitivity in 11 of the marine fish

Convergent evolution of marine mammals is associated with distinct substitutions in common genes

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Xuming; Seim, Inge; Gladyshev, Vadim N.

2015-01-01

Phenotypic convergence is thought to be driven by parallel substitutions coupled with natural selection at the sequence level. Multiple independent evolutionary transitions of mammals to an aquatic environment offer an opportunity to test this thesis. Here, whole genome alignment of coding sequences identified widespread parallel amino acid substitutions in marine mammals; however, the majority of these changes were not unique to these animals. Conversely, we report that candidate aquatic adaptation genes, identified by signatures of likelihood convergence and/or elevated ratio of nonsynonymous to synonymous nucleotide substitution rate, are characterized by very few parallel substitutions and exhibit distinct sequence changes in each group. Moreover, no significant positive correlation was found between likelihood convergence and positive selection in all three marine lineages. These results suggest that convergence in protein coding genes associated with aquatic lifestyle is mainly characterized by independent substitutions and relaxed negative selection. PMID:26549748

Firms plunge into the sea. Marine Biotechnology Industry, a first investigation

OpenAIRE

Gaia Raffaella eGreco; Marco eCinquegrani

2016-01-01

Marine biology made in the last four decades giant leaps. Several scientific and technological breakthroughs shaped research in the marine environment. Thanks to the revelation of the enormous width and complexity of sea life, marine biotechnology began a fast path of development that involved both the public and the private domain. Although there exist some studies on the dimensions and the evolution of the industry, few and scattered is the knowledge about the firms and the dynamics that ch...

American Samoa ESI: M_MAMMAL (Marine Mammal Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for whales and dolphins in American Samoa. Vector polygons in this data set represent marine mammal...

Aluminum smelter-derived polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and flatfish health in the Kitimat marine ecosystem, British Columbia, Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Lyndal L; Ylitalo, Gina M; Myers, Mark S; Anulacion, Bernadita F; Buzitis, Jon; Collier, Tracy K

2015-04-15

From 2000-2004 a monitoring study was conducted to evaluate the impacts of aluminum smelter-derived polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on the health of fish in the marine waters of Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada. These waters are part of the historical fishing grounds of the Haisla First Nation, and since the 1950s the Alcan Primary Metal Company has operated an aluminum smelter at the head of the Kitimat Arm embayment. As a result, adjacent marine and estuarine sediments have been severely contaminated with a mixture of smelter-associated PAHs in the range of 10,000-100,000 ng/g dry wt. These concentrations are above those shown to cause adverse effects in fish exposed to PAHs in urban estuaries, but it was uncertain whether comparable effects would be seen at the Kitimat site due to limited bioavailability of smelter-derived PAHs. Over the 5-year study we conducted biennial collections of adult English sole (Parophrys vetulus) and sediment samples at the corresponding capture sites. Various tissue samples (e.g. liver, kidney, gonad, stomach contents) and bile were taken from each animal to determine levels of exposure and biological effects, and compare the uptake and toxicity of smelter-derived PAHs with urban mixtures of PAHs. Results showed significant intersite differences in concentrations of PAHs. Sole collected at sites nearest the smelter showed increased PAH exposure, as well as significantly higher prevalences of PAH-associated liver disease, compared to sites within Kitimat Arm that were more distant from the smelter. However, measures of PAH exposure (e.g., bile metabolites) were surprisingly high in sole from the reference sites outside of Kitimat Arm, though sediment and dietary PAHs at these sites were low, and fish from the areas showed no biological injury. PAH uptake, exposure, and biological effects in Kitimat English sole were relatively lower when compared to English sole collected from urban sites contaminated with PAH mixtures from

Marine oxygen holes as a consequence of oceanic acidification

Science.gov (United States)

Hofmann, M.; Schellnhuber, H.-J.

2009-04-01

An increase of atmospheric CO2 levels will not only drive future global mean temperatures towards values unprecedented during the whole Quaternary, but will also lead to an acidification of sea water which could harm the marine biota. Here we assess possible impacts of elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations on the marine biological carbon pump by utilizing a business-as-usual emission scenario of anthropogenic CO2. A corresponding release of 4075 Petagrams of Carbon in total has been applied to simulate the current millennium by employing an Earth System Model of Intermediate Complexity (EMIC). This work is focused on studying the implications of reduced biogenic calcification caused by an increasing degree of oceanic acidification on the marine biological carbon pump. The attenuation of biogenic calcification imposes a small negative feedback on rising atmospheric pCO2 levels, tending to stabilize the Earth's climate. Since mineral ballast, notably particulate CaCO3, plays a dominant role in carrying organic matter through the water column, a reduction of its export fluxes weakens the strength of the biological carbon pump. There is, however, a dramatic effect discovered in our model world with severe consequences: since organic matter is oxidized in shallow waters when mineral-ballast fluxes weaken, oxygen holes (hypoxic zones) start to expand considerably in the oceans with potentially harmful impacts on a variety of marine ecosystems. Our study indicates that unbridled ocean acidification would exacerbate the observed hypoxia trends due to various environmental factors as reported in recent empirical studies.

[Research advances in ecological stoichiometry of marine plankton].

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Lei; Li, Chao-Lun

2014-10-01

Ecological stoichiometry can be simply defined as: The biology of elements from molecules to the biosphere, which spans all levels of the environment and of the life. It's a new idea to build a unified theory and becomes an inevitable trend to develop the ecological science. Marine ecosystems, which contribute to 50% of the biosphere biomass, are the important component of the global biogeochemical cycles. Marine zooplankton plays an important role in the material circulation and energy flow of marine ecosystems and serves as a connecting link between the preceding and the following in a more precise understanding of the key elemental cycles. However, research on ecological stoichiometry of marine plankton is fragmentary and rare. This article summarized the ecological phenomena and mechanisms of limiting elements affecting marine plankton, the response of biochemical substances to nutrition limitation, and the food chain transmission and feedback of nutrition limitation. Meanwhile, we also put forward some perspectives for future research of ecological stoichiometry of plankton in China' s seas.

Marine ecosystem response to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Edwards

Full Text Available Against the backdrop of warming of the Northern Hemisphere it has recently been acknowledged that North Atlantic temperature changes undergo considerable variability over multidecadal periods. The leading component of natural low-frequency temperature variability has been termed the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO. Presently, correlative studies on the biological impact of the AMO on marine ecosystems over the duration of a whole AMO cycle (∼60 years is largely unknown due to the rarity of continuously sustained biological observations at the same time period. To test whether there is multidecadal cyclic behaviour in biological time-series in the North Atlantic we used one of the world's longest continuously sustained marine biological time-series in oceanic waters, long-term fisheries data and historical records over the last century and beyond. Our findings suggest that the AMO is far from a trivial presence against the backdrop of continued temperature warming in the North Atlantic and accounts for the second most important macro-trend in North Atlantic plankton records; responsible for habitat switching (abrupt ecosystem/regime shifts over multidecadal scales and influences the fortunes of various fisheries over many centuries.

Review Paper Trends in tagging of marine mammals: a review of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The number of scientific papers resulting from biologging instruments deployed on marine mammals is increasing as improved technologies result in smaller devices and improved sensor-, storage- and transmission capabilities. I undertook a comprehensive review of papers resulting from biologging deployments on ...

Biological activities of secondary metabolites of the order Zoanthids

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zahra Aminikhoei

2015-11-01

Full Text Available The phylum Cnidaria is a large, diverse and ecologically important group of marine invertebrates, which produce powerful toxins and venoms. The number of marine natural product from cnidarians isolated from class Anthozoa. Among the Anthozoa, the order of zoanthids are sessile, clonal and mostly brightly colored invertebrate which produce high biodiversity of cytolitic, neurotoxic and cardiotoxic compounds. Zoanthids containing palytoxins are reportedly among the most toxic marine organisms known. In addition, a high concentration of zoanthamine alkaloids extracted from this group.The zoanthamine alkaloids were isolated over 20 years ago, exhibit a broad range of biological activities.The best studied and most well-known biological activity of zoanthamine derivative significantly suppressed bone resorption and enhanced bone formation.

75 FR 21231 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistics Survey

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-23

... Collection; Comment Request; Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistics Survey AGENCY: National Oceanic and... Andrews, (301) 713-2328, ext. 148 or [email protected] . SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Abstract Marine recreational anglers are surveyed for catch and effort data, fish biology data, and angler socioeconomic...

The neurologic effects of noxious marine creatures.

Science.gov (United States)

Southcott, R V

1975-01-01

The concept of the sea as a source of noxious agents is perhaps not a familiar one to clinical neurologists, judging by the lack of reference to these agents in standard textbooks. Chemical, physiologic, and pharmacologic laboratories are increasingly investigating the properties of marine toxins, finding in them compounds with interesting and novel structures or unusual physiologic effects. Such substances are seen as possible agents for biologic and, more particularly, physiologic research, and as possible sources of new pharmaceuticals. These include hormone-like substances and antiviral or antitumor agents. Despite these specialized developments, which are in large measure a consequence of the technological advances of the present century, the clinician is at times directly concerned with the effects of marine toxic substances. For example, in Japan, puffer fish or tetrodotoxic poisoning is one of the major causes of deaths from food poisoning. Another marine toxin that has caused many explosive outbreaks of food poisoning. with many deaths in various parts of the world, comes from clams or mussels. This toxin, saxitoxin, is produced by species of marine protozoa including Gonyaulax, and is concentrated in filter-feeding molluscs. These two examples were of significant interest in medicine long before the technologic developments of the twentieth century. In the last few decades, entirely new problems of marine intoxication have arisen as a result of marine pollution from the disposal of industrial wastes in the sea. The most striking example of a man-made marine intoxication has been the outbreak of Minamata disease. In Minamata, Japan, the disposal of mercury-contaminated industrial wastes from a plastics factory into an enclosed bay, followed by human consumption of the contaminated fishes, crabs, or shellfish, led to many instances of acute cerebral degeneration. With the increasing exploration of the sea for both pleasure and economic exploitation, which

Biological toxicity of lanthanide elements on algae.

Science.gov (United States)

Tai, Peidong; Zhao, Qing; Su, Dan; Li, Peijun; Stagnitti, Frank

2010-08-01

The biological toxicity of lanthanides on marine monocellular algae was investigated. The specific objective of this research was to establish the relationship between the abundance in the seawater of lanthanides and their biological toxicities on marine monocellular algae. The results showed that all single lanthanides had similar toxic effects on Skeletonema costatum. High concentrations of lanthanides (29.04+/-0.61 micromol L(-1)) resulted in 50% reduction in growth of algae compared to the controls (0 micromol L(-1)) after 96 h (96 h-EC50). The biological toxicity of 13 lanthanides on marine monocellular algae was unrelated with the abundance of different lanthanide elements in nature, and the "Harkins rule" was not appropriate for the lanthanides. A mixed solution that contained equivalent concentrations of each lanthanide element had the same inhibition effect on algae cells as each individual lanthanide element at the same total concentration. This phenomenon is unique compared to the groups of other elements in the periodic table. Hence, we speculate that the monocellular organisms might not be able to sufficiently differentiate between the almost chemically identical lanthanide elements. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Marine science in Revista de Biologia Tropical in its 50th anniversary].

Science.gov (United States)

Cortés, Jorge; Nielsen, Vanessa

2002-01-01

The first paper published in the Revista de Biología Tropical (RBT) on anything related to marine science was in 1963. Since then the number of marine-related papers has increased to 637, which represents 27% of the total production of RBT (excluding the Supplements), and 33% since 1979. Most publications are Full Articles on Ecology (135 papers). The marine ecosystem of which there is more publications is the coral reefs (28); and fish is the most studied taxonomic group (165). Almost half of the Supplements are marine related (12). The RBT must continue its efforts to maintain itself as a leading marine science publication in Latin America.

Oceanic acidification affects marine carbon pump and triggers extended marine oxygen holes.

Science.gov (United States)

Hofmann, Matthias; Schellnhuber, Hans-Joachim

2009-03-03

Rising atmospheric CO(2) levels will not only drive future global mean temperatures toward values unprecedented during the whole Quaternary but will also lead to massive acidification of sea water. This constitutes by itself an anthropogenic planetary-scale perturbation that could significantly modify oceanic biogeochemical fluxes and severely damage marine biota. As a step toward the quantification of such potential impacts, we present here a simulation-model-based assessment of the respective consequences of a business-as-usual fossil-fuel-burning scenario where a total of 4,075 Petagrams of carbon is released into the atmosphere during the current millennium. In our scenario, the atmospheric pCO(2) level peaks at approximately 1,750 microatm in the year 2200 while the sea-surface pH value drops by >0.7 units on global average, inhibiting the growth of marine calcifying organisms. The study focuses on quantifying 3 major concomitant effects. The first one is a significant (climate-stabilizing) negative feedback on rising pCO(2) levels as caused by the attenuation of biogenic calcification. The second one is related to the biological carbon pump. Because mineral ballast, notably CaCO(3), is found to play a dominant role in carrying organic matter through the water column, a reduction of its export fluxes weakens the strength of the biological carbon pump. There is, however, a third effect with severe consequences: Because organic matter is oxidized in shallow waters when mineral-ballast fluxes weaken, oxygen holes (hypoxic zones) start to expand considerably in the oceans in our model world--with potentially harmful impacts on a variety of marine ecosystems.

HPLC-ESI-IT-MS/MS Analysis and Biological Activity of Triterpene Glycosides from the Colombian Marine Sponge Ectyoplasia ferox

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jhonny Colorado-Ríos

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The marine sponge Ectyoplasia ferox produces antipredatory and allelopathic triterpenoid glycosides as part of its chemical defense repertoire against predators, competitors, and fouling organisms. These molecules are responsible for the pharmacological potential found in the glycosides present in this species. In order to observe the glycochemical diversity present in E. ferox, a liquid chromatography coupled to a tandem mass spectrometry approach to analyse a complex polar fraction of this marine sponge was performed. This gave valuable information for about twenty-five compounds three of which have been previously reported and another three which were found to be composed of known aglycones. Furthermore, a group of four urabosides, sharing two uncommon substitutions with carboxyl groups at C-4 on the terpenoid core, were identified by a characteristic fragmentation pattern. The oxidized aglycones present in this group of saponins can promote instability, making the purification process difficult. Cytotoxicity, cell cycle modulation, a cell cloning efficiency assay, as well as its hemolytic activity were evaluated. The cytotoxic activity was about IC50 40 µg/mL on Jurkat and CHO-k1 cell lines without exhibiting hemolysis. Discussion on this bioactivity suggests the scanning of other biological models would be worthwhile.

Remote sensing for water quality and biological measurements in coastal waters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, R.W.; Harriss, R.C.

1980-01-01

Recent remote sensing experiments in the United States' coastal waters indicate that certain biological and water quality parameters have distinctive spectral characteristics. Data outputs from remote sensors, to date, include: (1) high resolution measurements to determine concentrations and distributions of total suspended particulates, temperature, salinity, chlorophyll a, and phytoplankton color group associations from airborne and/or satellite platforms, and (2) low resolution measurements of total suspended solids, temperature, ocean color, and possibly chlorophyll from satellite platforms. A summary of platforms, sensors and parameters measured is given. Remote sensing, especially when combined with conventional oceanographic research methods, can be useful in such high priority research areas as estuarine and continental shelf sediment transport dynamics, transport and fate of marine pollutants, marine phytoplankton dynamics, and ocean fronts

Combining of radionuclides with constituent materials of marine algae

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakamura, Ryoichi; Nakahara, Motokazu; Ishii, Toshiaki; Ueda, Taishi; Shimizu, Chiaki.

1979-01-01

The relations between the accumulation-elimination of radionuclides and the constituent materials of marine algae were studied to determine more precisely the mechanism of the radioactive contamination of marine organisms. This will increase the information about the behavior of radionuclides in marine organisms in relation to the environmental conditions (temperature, physico-chemical state of radioisotope, and so on) and the biological conditions (feeding habits, species, and so on). Eisenia contaminated by 137 Cs and 106 Ru- 106 Rh was fractionated by solvent extraction into 6 fractions. The largest portion of 137 Cs was in the boiling water fraction; 106 Ru- 106 Rh was most extracted by 24% KOH solution. Elution patterns by Sephadex G-100 gel-filtration of samples differed largely from each other, both among the 3 kinds of radionuclides and between the 2 species of the algae. Therefore, the accumulation of the radionuclides by the marine algae was proved to be not only due to a physical absorption to the surface of the algae but also to the biological combining of the radionuclides with the constituents of the algae. Furthermore, it was found that radionuclides which combine with a few constituents of alga are not eliminated equally. This is considered to be useful for the physiological analysis of elimination curves. (author)

Marine Flora and Fauna of the Northeastern United States. Sipuncula.

Science.gov (United States)

Cutler, Edward B.

This report is part of a subseries entitled "Marine Flora and Fauna of the Northeastern United States" which is designed for use by biology students, biologists, biological oceanographers and informed laymen. Contents of this report include: (1) Introduction; (2) Key to Sipuncula (Peanut Worms); (3) Annotated Systematic List of Species;…

Proceedings of the Third Annual Student Symposium on Marine Affairs (University of Hawaii, Manoa Campus, January 13, 1978).

Science.gov (United States)

1978

This volume of the proceedings of the Third Annual Student Symposium on Marine Affairs contains 32 papers in eight categories: (1) coastal zone management; (2) marine resources; (3) aquaculture; (4) alternative marine energy sources; (5) ocean engineering; (6) recreational facilities; (7) marine biology; and (8) options. The papers are the…

Bibliography on marine pollution in South Africa

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Darracott, DA

1976-06-01

Full Text Available The South African Committee in Oceanographic Research (SANCOR) has been requested to compile a comprehensive bibliography on marine biology in South Africa. It is hoped that it will appear in 1977. SANCOR has made funds available on its 1976 budget...

Italy. Report 1 [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Argiero, L.

1967-01-01

Present research programme: Studies on radioactive, biological and hydrographic characteristics of Tyrrhenian Sea; Organization of suitable control network of marine water and fauna: systematic measurement of present components of natural and artificial radioactivity of water, sediments and of the marine food chain techniques of sampling; analysis and measurement of particular radioisotopes in marine water. α, β, γ analysis of samples; γ spectrometry, research on 90 Sr and 137 Cs. Determination of concentration factors of radioisotopes which are responsible for contamination of principal components of the flora and fauna in the Tyrrhenian Sea; research of hydrographie factors influencing the distribution of marine radioactivity. Nuclide content of other organisms of the Tyrrhenian flora and fauna

Anticancer drugs from marine flora: an overview.

Science.gov (United States)

Sithranga Boopathy, N; Kathiresan, K

2010-01-01

Marine floras, such as bacteria, actinobacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, microalgae, seaweeds, mangroves, and other halophytes are extremely important oceanic resources, constituting over 90% of the oceanic biomass. They are taxonomically diverse, largely productive, biologically active, and chemically unique offering a great scope for discovery of new anticancer drugs. The marine floras are rich in medicinally potent chemicals predominantly belonging to polyphenols and sulphated polysaccharides. The chemicals have displayed an array of pharmacological properties especially antioxidant, immunostimulatory, and antitumour activities. The phytochemicals possibly activate macrophages, induce apoptosis, and prevent oxidative damage of DNA, thereby controlling carcinogenesis. In spite of vast resources enriched with chemicals, the marine floras are largely unexplored for anticancer lead compounds. Hence, this paper reviews the works so far conducted on this aspect with a view to provide a baseline information for promoting the marine flora-based anticancer research in the present context of increasing cancer incidence, deprived of the cheaper, safer, and potent medicines to challenge the dreadful human disease.

Anticancer Drugs from Marine Flora: An Overview

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Sithranga Boopathy

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Marine floras, such as bacteria, actinobacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, microalgae, seaweeds, mangroves, and other halophytes are extremely important oceanic resources, constituting over 90% of the oceanic biomass. They are taxonomically diverse, largely productive, biologically active, and chemically unique offering a great scope for discovery of new anticancer drugs. The marine floras are rich in medicinally potent chemicals predominantly belonging to polyphenols and sulphated polysaccharides. The chemicals have displayed an array of pharmacological properties especially antioxidant, immunostimulatory, and antitumour activities. The phytochemicals possibly activate macrophages, induce apoptosis, and prevent oxidative damage of DNA, thereby controlling carcinogenesis. In spite of vast resources enriched with chemicals, the marine floras are largely unexplored for anticancer lead compounds. Hence, this paper reviews the works so far conducted on this aspect with a view to provide a baseline information for promoting the marine flora-based anticancer research in the present context of increasing cancer incidence, deprived of the cheaper, safer, and potent medicines to challenge the dreadful human disease.

Ecosystem productivity is associated with bacterial phylogenetic distance in surface marine waters.

Science.gov (United States)

Galand, Pierre E; Salter, Ian; Kalenitchenko, Dimitri

2015-12-01

Understanding the link between community diversity and ecosystem function is a fundamental aspect of ecology. Systematic losses in biodiversity are widely acknowledged but the impact this may exert on ecosystem functioning remains ambiguous. There is growing evidence of a positive relationship between species richness and ecosystem productivity for terrestrial macro-organisms, but similar links for marine micro-organisms, which help drive global climate, are unclear. Community manipulation experiments show both positive and negative relationships for microbes. These previous studies rely, however, on artificial communities and any links between the full diversity of active bacterial communities in the environment, their phylogenetic relatedness and ecosystem function remain hitherto unexplored. Here, we test the hypothesis that productivity is associated with diversity in the metabolically active fraction of microbial communities. We show in natural assemblages of active bacteria that communities containing more distantly related members were associated with higher bacterial production. The positive phylogenetic diversity-productivity relationship was independent of community diversity calculated as the Shannon index. From our long-term (7-year) survey of surface marine bacterial communities, we also found that similarly, productive communities had greater phylogenetic similarity to each other, further suggesting that the traits of active bacteria are an important predictor of ecosystem productivity. Our findings demonstrate that the evolutionary history of the active fraction of a microbial community is critical for understanding their role in ecosystem functioning. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Marine Corps Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) and Marine Personnel Carrier (MPC): Background and Issues for Congress

Science.gov (United States)

2016-09-09

providing critical capabilities to execute the nation’s military strategy . On January 6, 2011, after spending approximately $3 billion in...the Landing Craft , Air Cushioned (LCAC). The LAV-25 has been in service since 1983. According to the Marine Program Executive Office (PEO) Land...the Marines’ new MPC/ACV acquisition strategy and its associated challenges and risks. Marine Corps Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) and Marine

Association of marine archaea with the digestive tracts of two marine fish species

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Maarel, Marc J.E.C. van der; Artz, Rebekka R.E.; Haanstra, Rene; Forney, Larry J.

Recent studies have shown that archaea which were always thought to live under strict anoxic or extreme environmental conditions are also present in cold, oxygenated seawater, soils, the digestive tract of a holothurian deep-sea-deposit feeder, and a marine sponge, In this study we show, by using

Community composition, structure, and interrelationships in the marine intertidal Endocladia muricata – Balanus glandula association in Monterey Bay, California

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Glynn, Peter W.

1965-01-01

Studies of the community composition, structure and species interrelationships of the Endocladia-Balanus association were carried out on the rocky shores at the Hopkins Marine Station, Pacific Grove, California, over the period 1959—1961. The organisms making up this biotic association form a

Italy. Report 2 [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schreiber, B. [Istituto di Zoologia, Universita-Parma (Italy)

1967-03-15

Present research programme (long-term): Radionuclides in plankton an marine sediments. Ecology of Anvantheria as Sr ''scanengers''. General distribution of radionuclides in marine environment Systematics and ecology of Avantharia, studied in different seas as a biological problem. Content of {sup 90}Sr in plankton in relation to the presence or absence of Avantharia Radiochemistry of sea sediments (littoral); sedimentological and petrographical researches for stratigraphic purposes. Fall-out and wastes radionuclides absorbed by sediments. Correlation between Acantharia and concentration factor for {sup 90}Sr. Stratigraphy of fall-out radionuclides in sea sediments. Biological researches on Acantharia rearing for turnover studies in vitro. Stratigraphical researches on recent coastal sediments for geochronological problems by means of fall-out radionuclides.

Italy. Report 2 [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schreiber, B.

1967-01-01

Present research programme (long-term): Radionuclides in plankton an marine sediments. Ecology of Anvantheria as Sr ''scanengers''. General distribution of radionuclides in marine environment Systematics and ecology of Avantharia, studied in different seas as a biological problem. Content of 90 Sr in plankton in relation to the presence or absence of Avantharia Radiochemistry of sea sediments (littoral); sedimentological and petrographical researches for stratigraphic purposes. Fall-out and wastes radionuclides absorbed by sediments. Correlation between Acantharia and concentration factor for 90 Sr. Stratigraphy of fall-out radionuclides in sea sediments. Biological researches on Acantharia rearing for turnover studies in vitro. Stratigraphical researches on recent coastal sediments for geochronological problems by means of fall-out radionuclides

Immunoendocrine alterations following Marine Corps Martial Arts training are associated with changes in moral cognitive processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Siedlik, Jacob A; Deckert, Jake A; Clopton, Aaron W; Gigliotti, Nicole; Chan, Marcia A; Benedict, Stephen H; Herda, Trent J; Gallagher, Philip M; Vardiman, John P

2016-02-01

Combined physical and psychological stress events have been associated with exacerbated endocrine responses and increased alterations in immune cell trafficking when compared to exercise stress alone. Military training programs are rigorous in nature and often purposefully delivered in environments combining high levels of both physical and mental stress. The objective of this study was to assess physiological and cognitive changes following U.S. Marine Corps Martial Arts training. Seven active-duty, male Marines were observed during a typical Marine Corps Martial Arts training session. Immune parameters, including immunomodulatory cytokines, and hormone concentrations were determined from blood samples obtained at baseline, immediately post training (IP) and at 15min intervals post-training to 1h (R15, R30, R45, R60). Assessments of cognitive moral functioning (moral judgment and intent) were recorded at intervals during recovery. There were significant fluctuations in immunoendocrine parameters. Peak endocrine measures were observed within the IP-R15 time interval. Distributions of circulating immune cells were significantly altered with neutrophils and all lymphocyte subsets elevated at IP. IFN-γ and IL-17a exhibited small, non-significant, parallel increases over the recovery period. Moral functioning was informed by different social identities during the recovery resulting in changes in moral decision-making. These data demonstrate that the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program induces significant alterations in lymphocyte and leukocyte distributions, but does not shift the balance of Th1/Th2 cytokines or induce a systemic inflammatory response. The program does, however, induce alterations in moral decision-making ability associated with the observed endocrine responses, even suggesting a potential interaction between one's social identities and endocrine responses upon moral decision-making. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Encyclopedic approach to Marine History of Russia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrey V. Ishin

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Marine direction of foreign policy is for Russia one of key. It is determined geographical position of the Russian state banks of which is washed plenty of Maureies. Also it is related to that considerable part of population lives on the coast of Russian Maureies, and industry, located in an off-shore bar brings, in a large contribution to the economy.Many Russian marine travelers were the discoverers of «new» earths. The contribution of the Russian scientists to the hydrophysical, geological and biological study of Maureies and Oceans is great. Russia possesses a navy, to the constituents approximately one-third of total tonnage of world VMF and one of large in the world a rybopromyslovym fleet. Transport ships under the flag of Russian Federation it is possible to meet planets in the remotest corners. In a number of areas of military shipbuilding and civil shipbuilding Russia had and continues to save priority.Enhanceable interest to the Seas and Oceans found the reflection in the fundamental Russian documents, including, in the Marine doctrine of Russian Federation, ratified Russia President in 2015. In it the value of marine spaces for the Russian state is marked. In the Marine doctrine of Russian Federation is writtenin: «The skilled providing, marine teaching and education play an important role in the increase of efficiency of marine activity. They are directed on preparation, bringing in and maintainance of skilled shots of all levels, maintenance of professionalism, marine traditions and not indifferent relation of citizens to marine history of country, serve positive presentation, propaganda and support of national marine policy, to marine activity and marine service in society».Marine direction, marine science about regions found a reflection in the publications of row of the Russian authors, devoted research of policy of Russia in such regions, as: Black Sea region, Caspian region, Arctic, and also in the series of Encyclopaedias

Study Finds Association between Biological Marker and Susceptibility to the Common Cold

Science.gov (United States)

... W X Y Z Study Finds Association Between Biological Marker and Susceptibility to the Common Cold Share: © ... a cold caused by a particular rhinovirus. The biological marker identified in the study was the length ...

Trophic transfer of microplastics and mixed contaminants in the marine food web and implications for human health.

Science.gov (United States)

Carbery, Maddison; O'Connor, Wayne; Palanisami, Thavamani

2018-06-01

Plastic litter has become one of the most serious threats to the marine environment. Over 690 marine species have been impacted by plastic debris with small plastic particles being observed in the digestive tract of organisms from different trophic levels. The physical and chemical properties of microplastics facilitate the sorption of contaminants to the particle surface, serving as a vector of contaminants to organisms following ingestion. Bioaccumulation factors for higher trophic organisms and impacts on wider marine food webs remain unknown. The main objectives of this review were to discuss the factors influencing microplastic ingestion; describe the biological impacts of associated chemical contaminants; highlight evidence for the trophic transfer of microplastics and contaminants within marine food webs and outline the future research priorities to address potential human health concerns. Controlled laboratory studies looking at the effects of microplastics and contaminants on model organisms employ nominal concentrations and consequently have little relevance to the real environment. Few studies have attempted to track the fate of microplastics and mixed contaminants through a complex marine food web using environmentally relevant concentrations to identify the real level of risk. To our knowledge, there has been no attempt to understand the transfer of microplastics and associated contaminants from seafood to humans and the implications for human health. Research is needed to determine bioaccumulation factors for popular seafood items in order to identify the potential impacts on human health. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

World Register of marine Cave Species (WoRCS): a new Thematic Species Database for marine and anchialine cave biodiversity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gerovasileiou, Vasilis; Martínez, Alejandro; Álvarez, Fernando; Boxshall, Geoff; Humphreys, William F.; Jaume, Damià; Becking, L.E.; Muricy, Guilherme; Hengstum, van Peter J.; Dekeyzer, Stefanie; Decock, Wim; Vanhoorne, Bart; Vandepitte, Leen; Bailly, Nicolas; Iliffe, Thomas M.

2016-01-01

Scientific exploration of marine cave environments and anchialine ecosystems over recent decades has led to outstanding discoveries of novel taxa, increasing our knowledge of biodiversity. However, biological research on underwater caves has taken place only in a few areas of the world and relevant

Nematode-associated microbial taxa do not correlate with host phylogeny, geographic region or feeding morphology in marine sediment habitats.

Science.gov (United States)

Schuelke, Taruna; Pereira, Tiago José; Hardy, Sarah M; Bik, Holly M

2018-04-01

Studies of host-associated microbes are critical for advancing our understanding of ecology and evolution across diverse taxa and ecosystems. Nematode worms are ubiquitous across most habitats on earth, yet little is known about host-associated microbial assemblages within the phylum. Free-living nematodes are globally abundant and diverse in marine sediments, with species exhibiting distinct buccal cavity (mouth) morphologies that are thought to play an important role in feeding ecology and life history strategies. Here, we investigated patterns in marine nematode microbiomes, by characterizing host-associated microbial taxa in 281 worms isolated from a range of habitat types (deep-sea, shallow water, methane seeps, Lophelia coral mounds, kelp holdfasts) across three distinct geographic regions (Arctic, Southern California and Gulf of Mexico). Microbiome profiles were generated from single worms spanning 33 distinct morphological genera, using a two-gene metabarcoding approach to amplify the V4 region of the 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene targeting bacteria/archaea and the V1-V2 region of the 18S rRNA gene targeting microbial eukaryotes. Contrary to our expectations, nematode microbiome profiles demonstrated no distinct patterns either globally (across depths and ocean basins) or locally (within site); prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbial assemblages did not correlate with nematode feeding morphology, host phylogeny or morphological identity, ocean region or marine habitat type. However, fine-scale analysis of nematode microbiomes revealed a variety of novel ecological interactions, including putative parasites and symbionts, and potential associations with bacterial/archaeal taxa involved in nitrogen and methane cycling. Our results suggest that in marine habitats, free-living nematodes may utilize diverse and generalist foraging strategies that are not correlated with host genotype or feeding morphology. Furthermore, some abiotic factors such as geographic region

Marine Flora and Fauna of the Northeastern United States. Echinodermata: Holothuroidea.

Science.gov (United States)

Pawson, David L.

This report is part of a subseries entitled "Marine Flora and Fauna of the Northeastern United States" which is designed for use by biology students, biologists, biological oceanographers and informed laymen. Contents of this report include: (1) Introduction; (2) Morphology; (3) Systematic Characters; (4) Examination Procedures; (5)…

Sea surface temperature contributes to marine crocodylomorph evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Jeremy E; Amiot, Romain; Lécuyer, Christophe; Benton, Michael J

2014-08-18

During the Mesozoic and Cenozoic, four distinct crocodylomorph lineages colonized the marine environment. They were conspicuously absent from high latitudes, which in the Mesozoic were occupied by warm-blooded ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs. Despite a relatively well-constrained stratigraphic distribution, the varying diversities of marine crocodylomorphs are poorly understood, because their extinctions neither coincided with any major biological crises nor with the advent of potential competitors. Here we test the potential link between their evolutionary history in terms of taxic diversity and two abiotic factors, sea level variations and sea surface temperatures (SST). Excluding Metriorhynchoidea, which may have had a peculiar ecology, significant correlations obtained between generic diversity and estimated Tethyan SST suggest that water temperature was a driver of marine crocodylomorph diversity. Being most probably ectothermic reptiles, these lineages colonized the marine realm and diversified during warm periods, then declined or became extinct during cold intervals.

Canada. Report 2 [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ophel, I.L.

1967-01-01

There are two areas where I have long thought that knowledge is sadly lacking. These have considerable fundamental interest but the knowledge is even more Important for the setting of permissible levels of radioactive waste disposals into the oceans. They are as follows: (1) Effects of chronic irradiation on the developmental and adult stages of marine organisms - particularly edible fish; (2) Biological half-lives of fission products in marine organisms

Canada. Report 2 [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ophel, I. L. [Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Biology and Health Physics Division, Environmental Research Branch, Chalk River, ON (Canada)

1967-03-15

There are two areas where I have long thought that knowledge is sadly lacking. These have considerable fundamental interest but the knowledge is even more Important for the setting of permissible levels of radioactive waste disposals into the oceans. They are as follows: (1) Effects of chronic irradiation on the developmental and adult stages of marine organisms - particularly edible fish; (2) Biological half-lives of fission products in marine organisms.

Isolation of microplastics in biota-rich seawater samples and marine organisms

Science.gov (United States)

Cole, Matthew; Webb, Hannah; Lindeque, Pennie K.; Fileman, Elaine S.; Halsband, Claudia; Galloway, Tamara S.

2014-01-01

Microplastic litter is a pervasive pollutant present in aquatic systems across the globe. A range of marine organisms have the capacity to ingest microplastics, resulting in adverse health effects. Developing methods to accurately quantify microplastics in productive marine waters, and those internalized by marine organisms, is of growing importance. Here we investigate the efficacy of using acid, alkaline and enzymatic digestion techniques in mineralizing biological material from marine surface trawls to reveal any microplastics present. Our optimized enzymatic protocol can digest >97% (by weight) of the material present in plankton-rich seawater samples without destroying any microplastic debris present. In applying the method to replicate marine samples from the western English Channel, we identified 0.27 microplastics m−3. The protocol was further used to extract microplastics ingested by marine zooplankton under laboratory conditions. Our findings illustrate that enzymatic digestion can aid the detection of microplastic debris within seawater samples and marine biota. PMID:24681661

Sensitivity of Coastal Environments and Wildlife to Spilled Oil: Hudson River: M_MAMMAL (Marine Mammal Polygons)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for marine mammals (seals) in the Hudson River. Vector polygons in this data set represent marine mammal...

Exploration of Fungal Association From Hard Coral Against Pathogen MDR Staphylococcus haemolyticus

Science.gov (United States)

Cristianawati, O.; Radjasa, O. K.; Sabdono, A.; Trianto, A.; Sabdaningsih, A.; Sibero, M. T.; Nuryadi, H.

2017-02-01

Staphylococcus haemolyticus are opportunistic bacteria and as the second leading cause of nosocomial infections. It is a disease causing septicemia, peritonitis, otitis, and urinary tract infections and infections of the eye. It also a phenotype resistant to multiple antibiotics commercial. There is now an urgency to find an alternative antibiotics to combat this bacteria. It has been widely reported that many bioactive marine natural products from marine invertebrate have striking similarities to metabolites of their associated microorganisms including fungi. Hard coral associated microorganisms are among of the most interesting and promising marine natural product sources, which produce with various biological activities. The proposed work focused on the discovery of bioactive compounds and also estimated the phylogenetic diversity from fungal association of hard coral against pathogen MDR Staphylococcus haemolyticus. A total of 32 fungal association, FHP 7 which were isolated from Favia sp. capable of inhibiting the growth MDR. Molecular identification based on 18S rRNA gene sequences revealed that the active fungal association belonged 100% to the members from one of the genera Trichoderma longibrachiatum. Accession Number LC185084.1.

Marine geochemistry ocean circulation, carbon cycle and climate change

CERN Document Server

Roy-Barman, Matthieu

2016-01-01

Marine geochemistry uses chemical elements and their isotopes to study how the ocean works. It brings quantitative answers to questions such as: What is the deep ocean mixing rate? How much atmospheric CO2 is pumped by the ocean? How fast are pollutants removed from the ocean? How do ecosystems react to the anthropogenic pressure? The book provides a simple introduction to the concepts (environmental chemistry, isotopes), the methods (field approach, remote sensing, modeling) and the applications (ocean circulation, carbon cycle, climate change) of marine geochemistry with a particular emphasis on isotopic tracers. Marine geochemistry is not an isolated discipline: numerous openings on physical oceanography, marine biology, climatology, geology, pollutions and ecology are proposed and provide a global vision of the ocean. It includes new topics based on ongoing research programs such as GEOTRACES, Global Carbon Project, Tara Ocean. It provides a complete outline for a course in marine geochemistry. To favor a...

A descriptive study of biological and psychosocial factors associated ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017-08-31

Aug 31, 2017 ... Obesity has long been a major health concern among adults, but its increasing prevalence rates ... The association between the BMIs of the biological parents and their ... with different kinds of food, consumption of fatty foods.

Proteomics Insights: Proteins related to Larval Attachment and Metamorphosis of Marine Invertebrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

KONDETHIMMANAHALLI eCHANDRAMOULI

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The transition in an animal from a pelagic larval stage to a sessile benthic juvenile typically requires major morphological and behavioral changes. Larval competency, attachment and initiation of metamorphosis are thought to be regulated by intrinsic chemical signals and specific sets of proteins. However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate larval attachment and metamorphosis in marine invertebrates have yet to be fully elucidated. Despite the many challenges associated with analysis of the larvae proteome, recent proteomic technologies have been used to address specific questions in larval developmental biology. These and other molecular studies have generated substantial amount of information of the proteins and molecular pathways involved in larval attachment and metamorphosis. Furthermore, the results of these studies have shown that systematic changes in protein expression patterns and post-translational modifications (PTM are crucial for the transition from larva to juvenile. The degeneration of larval tissues is mediated by protein degradation, while the development of juvenile organs may require PTM. In terms of application, the identified proteins may serve as targets for antifouling compounds, and biomarkers for environmental stressors. In this review we highlight the strengths and limitations of proteomic tools in the context of the study of marine invertebrate larval biology.

Proteomics insights: proteins related to larval attachment and metamorphosis of marine invertebrates

KAUST Repository

Chandramouli, Kondethimmanahalli

2014-10-31

The transition in an animal from a pelagic larval stage to a sessile benthic juvenile typically requires major morphological and behavioral changes. Larval competency, attachment and initiation of metamorphosis are thought to be regulated by intrinsic chemical signals and specific sets of proteins. However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate larval attachment and metamorphosis in marine invertebrates have yet to be fully elucidated. Despite the many challenges associated with analysis of the larvae proteome, recent proteomic technologies have been used to address specific questions in larval developmental biology. These and other molecular studies have generated substantial amount of information of the proteins and molecular pathways involved in larval attachment and metamorphosis. Furthermore, the results of these studies have shown that systematic changes in protein expression patterns and post-translational modifications (PTMs) are crucial for the transition from larva to juvenile. The degeneration of larval tissues is mediated by protein degradation, while the development of juvenile organs may require PTM. In terms of application, the identified proteins may serve as targets for antifouling compounds, and biomarkers for environmental stressors. In this review we highlight the strengths and limitations of proteomic tools in the context of the study of marine invertebrate larval biology.

Proteomics insights: proteins related to larval attachment and metamorphosis of marine invertebrates

KAUST Repository

Chandramouli, Kondethimmanahalli; Qian, Pei-Yuan; Ravasi, Timothy

2014-01-01

The transition in an animal from a pelagic larval stage to a sessile benthic juvenile typically requires major morphological and behavioral changes. Larval competency, attachment and initiation of metamorphosis are thought to be regulated by intrinsic chemical signals and specific sets of proteins. However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate larval attachment and metamorphosis in marine invertebrates have yet to be fully elucidated. Despite the many challenges associated with analysis of the larvae proteome, recent proteomic technologies have been used to address specific questions in larval developmental biology. These and other molecular studies have generated substantial amount of information of the proteins and molecular pathways involved in larval attachment and metamorphosis. Furthermore, the results of these studies have shown that systematic changes in protein expression patterns and post-translational modifications (PTMs) are crucial for the transition from larva to juvenile. The degeneration of larval tissues is mediated by protein degradation, while the development of juvenile organs may require PTM. In terms of application, the identified proteins may serve as targets for antifouling compounds, and biomarkers for environmental stressors. In this review we highlight the strengths and limitations of proteomic tools in the context of the study of marine invertebrate larval biology.

Screening of marine sponge-associated bacteria from ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ramakrishna

2012-11-01

Nov 1, 2012 ... It was then confirmed by means of basic local alignment search tool (BLAST). From these results, it is confirmed that the ... using the effective compounds from marine sources has increased. Bioactive compounds from .... Methanol was used as the control, the plates were incubated for 24 h at 37°C (Li et al., ...

Combining Methods to Describe Important Marine Habitats for Top Predators: Application to Identify Biological Hotspots in Tropical Waters.

Science.gov (United States)

Thiers, Laurie; Louzao, Maite; Ridoux, Vincent; Le Corre, Matthieu; Jaquemet, Sébastien; Weimerskirch, Henri

2014-01-01

In tropical waters resources are usually scarce and patchy, and predatory species generally show specific adaptations for foraging. Tropical seabirds often forage in association with sub-surface predators that create feeding opportunities by bringing prey close to the surface, and the birds often aggregate in large multispecific flocks. Here we hypothesize that frigatebirds, a tropical seabird adapted to foraging with low energetic costs, could be a good predictor of the distribution of their associated predatory species, including other seabirds (e.g. boobies, terns) and subsurface predators (e.g., dolphins, tunas). To test this hypothesis, we compared distribution patterns of marine predators in the Mozambique Channel based on a long-term dataset of both vessel- and aerial surveys, as well as tracking data of frigatebirds. By developing species distribution models (SDMs), we identified key marine areas for tropical predators in relation to contemporaneous oceanographic features to investigate multi-species spatial overlap areas and identify predator hotspots in the Mozambique Channel. SDMs reasonably matched observed patterns and both static (e.g. bathymetry) and dynamic (e.g. Chlorophyll a concentration and sea surface temperature) factors were important explaining predator distribution patterns. We found that the distribution of frigatebirds included the distributions of the associated species. The central part of the channel appeared to be the best habitat for the four groups of species considered in this study (frigatebirds, brown terns, boobies and sub-surface predators).

Combining Methods to Describe Important Marine Habitats for Top Predators: Application to Identify Biological Hotspots in Tropical Waters.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laurie Thiers

Full Text Available In tropical waters resources are usually scarce and patchy, and predatory species generally show specific adaptations for foraging. Tropical seabirds often forage in association with sub-surface predators that create feeding opportunities by bringing prey close to the surface, and the birds often aggregate in large multispecific flocks. Here we hypothesize that frigatebirds, a tropical seabird adapted to foraging with low energetic costs, could be a good predictor of the distribution of their associated predatory species, including other seabirds (e.g. boobies, terns and subsurface predators (e.g., dolphins, tunas. To test this hypothesis, we compared distribution patterns of marine predators in the Mozambique Channel based on a long-term dataset of both vessel- and aerial surveys, as well as tracking data of frigatebirds. By developing species distribution models (SDMs, we identified key marine areas for tropical predators in relation to contemporaneous oceanographic features to investigate multi-species spatial overlap areas and identify predator hotspots in the Mozambique Channel. SDMs reasonably matched observed patterns and both static (e.g. bathymetry and dynamic (e.g. Chlorophyll a concentration and sea surface temperature factors were important explaining predator distribution patterns. We found that the distribution of frigatebirds included the distributions of the associated species. The central part of the channel appeared to be the best habitat for the four groups of species considered in this study (frigatebirds, brown terns, boobies and sub-surface predators.

Marine Enzymes: Production and Applications for Human Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, T Eswara; Imchen, M; Kumavath, R

Marine microbial enzymes have wide applications in bioindustries. Selection of microorganisms for enzyme production at the industrial level requires good yield and high production rate. A number of enzymes such as amylase, caseinase, lipase, gelatinase, and DNases have been discovered from microbes isolated from extreme marine environments. Such enzymes are thermostable, tolerant to a varied range of pH and other harsh conditions required in industrial applications. Novelty in their structure and characteristics has shown promising scope to the researchers in academia and industry. In this chapter, we present a bird's eye view on recent research works in the field of enzyme production from marine origin as well as their potential biological applications relevant to human health. © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Marine Carotenoids: Biological Functions and Commercial Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Vílchez, Carlos; Forján, Eduardo; Cuaresma, María; Bédmar, Francisco; Garbayo, Inés; Vega, José M.

2011-01-01

Carotenoids are the most common pigments in nature and are synthesized by all photosynthetic organisms and fungi. Carotenoids are considered key molecules for life. Light capture, photosynthesis photoprotection, excess light dissipation and quenching of singlet oxygen are among key biological functions of carotenoids relevant for life on earth. Biological properties of carotenoids allow for a wide range of commercial applications. Indeed, recent interest in the carotenoids has been mainly for their nutraceutical properties. A large number of scientific studies have confirmed the benefits of carotenoids to health and their use for this purpose is growing rapidly. In addition, carotenoids have traditionally been used in food and animal feed for their color properties. Carotenoids are also known to improve consumer perception of quality; an example is the addition of carotenoids to fish feed to impart color to farmed salmon. PMID:21556162

Biological risks associated with consumption of reptile products

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Magnino, S.; Colin, P.; Dei-Cas, E.

2009-01-01

recently increased in some areas of the world. Biological risks associated with the consumption of products from both farmed and wild reptile meat and eggs include infections caused by bacteria (Salmonella spp., Vibrio spp.). parasites (Spirometra, Trichinella, Gnathostoma, pentastomids), as well...... to increase the occurrence of biological hazards in reptile meat. Application of GHP, GMP and HACCP procedures, respectively at farm and slaughterhouse level, is crucial for controlling the hazards.......The consumption of a wide variety of species of reptiles caught from the wild has been an important source of protein for humans world-wide for millennia. Terrapins. snakes, lizards, crocodiles and iguanas are now farmed and the consumption and trade of their meat and other edible products have...

Shell biofilm-associated nitrous oxide production in marine molluscs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heisterkamp, I.M.; Schramm, Andreas; Larsen, Lone Heimann

2013-01-01

Emission of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O) from freshwater and terrestrial invertebrates has exclusively been ascribed to N2O production by ingested denitrifying bacteria in the anoxic gut of the animals. Our study of marine molluscs now shows that also microbial biofilms on shell surfaces...... are important sites of N2O production. The shell biofilms of Mytilus edulis, Littorina littorea and Hinia reticulata contributed 18-94% to the total animal-associated N2O emission. Nitrification and denitrification were equally important sources of N2O in shell biofilms as revealed by 15N-stable isotope...... mollusc species. Ammonium excretion by the animals was found to be sufficient to sustain N2O production in the shell biofilm. Apparently, the animals provide a nutrient-enriched microenvironment that stimulates growth and N2O production of the shell biofilm. This animal-induced stimulation...

The GLOFOULING Partnerships project and the anti-fouling systems: challenges for Marine Environment Protection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabián Ramírez Cabrales

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Within the framework of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, the regulation of international maritime transport is a priority to face the challenges on the Protection of the Marine Environment. However, some states present difficulties in complying with international or normative agreements adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO. In particular, we revised the Guidelines for the control and management of ships’ biofouling to minimize the transfer of invasive aquatic species and their linkage with the Glofouling Associations project, including the adverse effects of the use of antifouling systems and the biocides that may contain. As preliminary results, we identified the challenges that this global project entails for States, shipbuilders, ship maintenance and cleaning companies, universities, port authorities, repair facilities, dry docks and ship recycling, manufacturers and suppliers of anti-fouling paints and other stakeholders. We concluded that the challenges for the international maritime community are linked to the ability of States and stakeholders to enhance scientific knowledge, develop research capacity and transfer marine technology to mitigate marine biological contamination of ships.

Horns Rev offshore wind farm. Environmental impact assessment of sea bottom and marine biology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leonhard, S.B.

2000-03-15

An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of a planned 150 MW offshore wind farm at Horns Rev has been carried out for the marine biology and sea bottom in the area, and includes vegetation and benthic fauna. The study forms part of a total EIA of the planned offshore wind farm. This EIA study has been drawn up in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Ministry of Environment and Energy in the publication, 'Guidelines for preparation of EIAstudies for offshore wind farms. Horns Rev is situated off Blaevands Huk, which is Denmark's most westerly point. It is a shallow reef with water depths between 2 and 9 metres and is primarily composed of sand, gravel and pebbles. The area designated for the wind farm lies directly south of Horns Rev and is dominated by sand with a median particle size of 0.3 mm. Along the edges, towards areas of greater depth, the particle size increases. There are areas of fine sand in the deepest area, and in isolated pockets within the proposed wind farm site. The sediment is characterised by a very low (<1%) organic matter content. On the basis of the expected impact from the establishment of the wind farm, it is not deemed necessary to carry out special programmes during the construction phase for monitoring of the environmental-biological conditions. A monitoring and control programme is recommended during the production phase in order to follow the copper concentration in bivalves, or alternatively to initiate recovery or elimination of the copper-laden waste. A control programme is recommended during the production phase in order to follow the establishment and succession of the fouling community on the wind turbine foundations and scour-protecting revetments. (BA)

Horns Rev offshore wind farm. Environmental impact assessment of sea bottom and marine biology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Leonhard, S B

2000-03-15

An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of a planned 150 MW offshore wind farm at Horns Rev has been carried out for the marine biology and sea bottom in the area, and includes vegetation and benthic fauna. The study forms part of a total EIA of the planned offshore wind farm. This EIA study has been drawn up in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Ministry of Environment and Energy in the publication, 'Guidelines for preparation of EIAstudies for offshore wind farms. Horns Rev is situated off Blaevands Huk, which is Denmark's most westerly point. It is a shallow reef with water depths between 2 and 9 metres and is primarily composed of sand, gravel and pebbles. The area designated for the wind farm lies directly south of Horns Rev and is dominated by sand with a median particle size of 0.3 mm. Along the edges, towards areas of greater depth, the particle size increases. There are areas of fine sand in the deepest area, and in isolated pockets within the proposed wind farm site. The sediment is characterised by a very low (<1%) organic matter content. On the basis of the expected impact from the establishment of the wind farm, it is not deemed necessary to carry out special programmes during the construction phase for monitoring of the environmental-biological conditions. A monitoring and control programme is recommended during the production phase in order to follow the copper concentration in bivalves, or alternatively to initiate recovery or elimination of the copper-laden waste. A control programme is recommended during the production phase in order to follow the establishment and succession of the fouling community on the wind turbine foundations and scour-protecting revetments. (BA)

DNA Sequencing as a Tool to Monitor Marine Ecological Status

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kelly D. Goodwin

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Many ocean policies mandate integrated, ecosystem-based approaches to marine monitoring, driving a global need for efficient, low-cost bioindicators of marine ecological quality. Most traditional methods to assess biological quality rely on specialized expertise to provide visual identification of a limited set of specific taxonomic groups, a time-consuming process that can provide a narrow view of ecological status. In addition, microbial assemblages drive food webs but are not amenable to visual inspection and thus are largely excluded from detailed inventory. Molecular-based assessments of biodiversity and ecosystem function offer advantages over traditional methods and are increasingly being generated for a suite of taxa using a “microbes to mammals” or “barcodes to biomes” approach. Progress in these efforts coupled with continued improvements in high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics pave the way for sequence data to be employed in formal integrated ecosystem evaluation, including food web assessments, as called for in the European Union Marine Strategy Framework Directive. DNA sequencing of bioindicators, both traditional (e.g., benthic macroinvertebrates, ichthyoplankton and emerging (e.g., microbial assemblages, fish via eDNA, promises to improve assessment of marine biological quality by increasing the breadth, depth, and throughput of information and by reducing costs and reliance on specialized taxonomic expertise.

Marine proteomics: a critical assessment of an emerging technology.

Science.gov (United States)

Slattery, Marc; Ankisetty, Sridevi; Corrales, Jone; Marsh-Hunkin, K Erica; Gochfeld, Deborah J; Willett, Kristine L; Rimoldi, John M

2012-10-26

The application of proteomics to marine sciences has increased in recent years because the proteome represents the interface between genotypic and phenotypic variability and, thus, corresponds to the broadest possible biomarker for eco-physiological responses and adaptations. Likewise, proteomics can provide important functional information regarding biosynthetic pathways, as well as insights into mechanism of action, of novel marine natural products. The goal of this review is to (1) explore the application of proteomics methodologies to marine systems, (2) assess the technical approaches that have been used, and (3) evaluate the pros and cons of this proteomic research, with the intent of providing a critical analysis of its future roles in marine sciences. To date, proteomics techniques have been utilized to investigate marine microbe, plant, invertebrate, and vertebrate physiology, developmental biology, seafood safety, susceptibility to disease, and responses to environmental change. However, marine proteomics studies often suffer from poor experimental design, sample processing/optimization difficulties, and data analysis/interpretation issues. Moreover, a major limitation is the lack of available annotated genomes and proteomes for most marine organisms, including several "model species". Even with these challenges in mind, there is no doubt that marine proteomics is a rapidly expanding and powerful integrative molecular research tool from which our knowledge of the marine environment, and the natural products from this resource, will be significantly expanded.

75 FR 25729 - Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-07

.... Department of the Interior, Minerals Management Service (MMS) Alaska OCS leases located greater than 60 mi... in the Chukchi Sea on marine mammals would most likely be acoustic in nature. Petroleum development and associated activities introduce sound into the marine environment. Potential acoustic effects on...

Marine Carotenoids: Biological Functions and Commercial Applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vilchez, C.; Forján, E.; Cuaresma, M.; Bédmar, F.; Garbayo, I.; Vega, J.M.

2011-01-01

Carotenoids are the most common pigments in nature and are synthesized by all photosynthetic organisms and fungi. Carotenoids are considered key molecules for life. Light capture, photosynthesis photoprotection, excess light dissipation and quenching of singlet oxygen are among key biological

Marine Isolates of Trichoderma spp. as Potential Halotolerant Agents of Biological Control for Arid-Zone Agriculture ▿ †

Science.gov (United States)

Gal-Hemed, Inbal; Atanasova, Lea; Komon-Zelazowska, Monika; Druzhinina, Irina S.; Viterbo, Ada; Yarden, Oded

2011-01-01

The scarcity of fresh water in the Mediterranean region necessitates the search for halotolerant agents of biological control of plant diseases that can be applied in arid-zone agriculture irrigated with saline water. Among 29 Trichoderma strains previously isolated from Mediterranean Psammocinia sp. sponges, the greatest number of isolates belong to the Trichoderma longibrachiatum-Hypocrea orientalis species pair (9), H. atroviridis/T. atroviride (9), and T. harzianum species complex (7), all of which are known for high mycoparasitic potential. In addition, one isolate of T. asperelloides and two putative new species, Trichoderma sp. O.Y. 14707 and O.Y. 2407, from Longibrachiatum and Strictipilosa clades, respectively, have been identified. In vitro salinity assays showed that the ability to tolerate increasing osmotic pressure (halotolerance) is a strain- or clade-specific property rather than a feature of a species. Only a few isolates were found to be sensitive to increased salinity, while others either were halotolerant or even demonstrated improved growth in increasingly saline conditions. In vitro antibiosis assays revealed strong antagonistic activity toward phytopathogens due to the production of both soluble and volatile metabolites. Two marine-derived Trichoderma isolates, identified as T. atroviride and T. asperelloides, respectively, effectively reduced Rhizoctonia solani damping-off disease on beans and also induced defense responses in cucumber seedlings against Pseudomonas syringae pv. lachrimans. This is the first inclusive evaluation of marine fungi as potential biocontrol agents. PMID:21666030

Molecular Phylogenetics of the Serranid Subfamily Epinephelinae: Speciation and Biogeography in a Nearshore Marine Fish Clade

OpenAIRE

Craig, Matthew T,

2005-01-01

The processes that shape present day distributions of marine organisms have remained a central topic in evolutionary biology, conservation biology, and ecology. In this thesis, genetic data from mitochondrial and nuclear genes were used to create a phylogenetic hypothesis for the groupers of the subfamily Epinephelinae as a means of evaluating the current taxonomy of the group and the geography of speciation in marine organisms. The molecular phylogenetic hypothesis presented in Chap...

Tracking the Debate Around Marine Protected Areas: Key Issues and the BEG Framework

Science.gov (United States)

Thorpe, Andy; Bavinck, Maarten; Coulthard, Sarah

2011-04-01

Marine conservation is often criticized for a mono-disciplinary approach, which delivers fragmented solutions to complex problems with differing interpretations of success. As a means of reflecting on the breadth and range of scientific research on the management of the marine environment, this paper develops an analytical framework to gauge the foci of policy documents and published scientific work on Marine Protected Areas. We evaluate the extent to which MPA research articles delineate objectives around three domains: biological-ecological [B]; economic-social[E]; and governance-management [G]. This permits us to develop an analytic [BEG] framework which we then test on a sample of selected journal article cohorts. While the framework reveals the dominance of biologically focussed research [B], analysis also reveals a growing frequency of the use of governance/management terminology in the literature over the last 15 years, which may be indicative of a shift towards more integrated consideration of governance concerns. However, consideration of the economic/social domain appears to lag behind biological and governance concerns in both frequency and presence in MPA literature.

Surface-active biopolymers from marine bacteria for potential biotechnological applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karina Sałek

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Surface-active agents are amphiphilic chemicals that are used in almost every sector of modern industry, the bulk of which are produced by organo-chemical synthesis. Those produced from biological sources (biosurfactants and bioemulsifiers, however, have gained increasing interest in recent years due to their wide structural and functional diversity, lower toxicities and high biodegradability, compared to their chemically-synthesised counterparts. This review aims to present a general overview on surface-active agents, including their classification, where new types of these biomolecules may lay awaiting discovery, and some of the main bottlenecks for their industrial-scale production. In particular, the marine environment is highlighted as a largely untapped source for discovering new types of surface-active agents. Marine bacteria, especially those living associated with micro-algae (eukaryotic phytoplankton, are a highly promising source of polymeric surface-active agents with potential biotechnological applications. The high uronic acids content of these macromolecules has been linked to conferring them with amphiphilic qualities, and their high structural diversity and polyanionic nature endows them with the potential to exhibit a wide range of functional diversity. Production yields (e.g. by fermentation for most microbial surface-active agents have often been too low to meet the volume demands of industry, and this principally remains as the most important bottleneck for their further commercial development. However, new developments in recombinant and synthetic biology approaches can offer significant promise to alleviate this bottleneck. This review highlights a particular biotope in the marine environment that offers promise for discovering novel surface-active biomolecules, and gives a general overview on specific areas that researchers and the industry could focus work towards increasing the production yields of microbial surface

Cyclobutane-Containing Alkaloids: Origin, Synthesis, and Biological Activities

OpenAIRE

Sergeiko, Anastasia; Poroikov, Vladimir V; Hanuš, Lumir O; Dembitsky, Valery M

2008-01-01

Present review describes research on novel natural cyclobutane-containing alkaloids isolated from terrestrial and marine species. More than 60 biological active compounds have been confirmed to have antimicrobial, antibacterial, antitumor, and other activities. The structures, synthesis, origins, and biological activities of a selection of cyclobutane-containing alkaloids are reviewed. With the computer program PASS some additional biological activities are also predicted, which point toward ...

Japan [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saiki, M.

1967-01-01

Among the present research programmes: Studies on rcidiochemical analysis of sea-water and fishes; Studies on uptake of radionuclides by marine organisms; Studies on internal exposure arising from marine products; The convenient and appropriate method of analysis and determination of radioactivity in sea— water and fishes is investigated; Biological concentration of fission products and induced products in fishes and plankton arc studied from the radioecological point of view; Contribution of radionuclides in fishes and algae to those in the total Japanese diet is studied, in connection with fall-out studies

An improved Pearson's correlation proximity-based hierarchical clustering for mining biological association between genes.

Science.gov (United States)

Booma, P M; Prabhakaran, S; Dhanalakshmi, R

2014-01-01

Microarray gene expression datasets has concerned great awareness among molecular biologist, statisticians, and computer scientists. Data mining that extracts the hidden and usual information from datasets fails to identify the most significant biological associations between genes. A search made with heuristic for standard biological process measures only the gene expression level, threshold, and response time. Heuristic search identifies and mines the best biological solution, but the association process was not efficiently addressed. To monitor higher rate of expression levels between genes, a hierarchical clustering model was proposed, where the biological association between genes is measured simultaneously using proximity measure of improved Pearson's correlation (PCPHC). Additionally, the Seed Augment algorithm adopts average linkage methods on rows and columns in order to expand a seed PCPHC model into a maximal global PCPHC (GL-PCPHC) model and to identify association between the clusters. Moreover, a GL-PCPHC applies pattern growing method to mine the PCPHC patterns. Compared to existing gene expression analysis, the PCPHC model achieves better performance. Experimental evaluations are conducted for GL-PCPHC model with standard benchmark gene expression datasets extracted from UCI repository and GenBank database in terms of execution time, size of pattern, significance level, biological association efficiency, and pattern quality.

Non-toxic, non-biocide-release antifouling coatings based on molecular structure design for marine applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nurioglu, A.G.; Carvalho Esteves, de A.C.; With, de G.

2015-01-01

Marine biofouling generally refers to the undesirable accumulation of biological organisms on surfaces in contact with seawater. This natural phenomenon represents a major economic concern for marine industries, e.g. for ships and vessels, oil and wind-turbine sea-platforms, pipelines, water valves

Cumulative human impacts on marine predators

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Maxwell, Sara M; Hazen, Elliott L; Bograd, Steven J

2013-01-01

Stressors associated with human activities interact in complex ways to affect marine ecosystems, yet we lack spatially explicit assessments of cumulative impacts on ecologically and economically key components such as marine predators. Here we develop a metric of cumulative utilization and impact...

United States of America. Report 1 [Marine Radioecology. Current Research and Future Scope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakatani, R.E.

1967-01-01

Biology Department's aquatic research activities are primarily in freshwater radioecology and not in marine radioecology. The major reason for this lack of marine work is geographical location of our laboratory on the banks of the Columbia River, roughly 300 miles from the ocean. Recently, however, we have completed some preliminary work with 65 Zn metabolism in Anonyx sp., a marine benthic amphipod. Lake some inland laboratories, we have found that limited marine work can be done by hauling in sea water. We have been able to maintain the amphipods in a reasonably healthy state in our laboratory for about four weeks

Sensory properties of marinated herring (Clupea harengus) processed from raw material from commercial landings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Durita; Hyldig, Grethe; Nielsen, Jette

2005-01-01

Sensory properties of marinated herring processed from raw material from Danish commercial catches were described and related to fishing season and biological, chemical and functional properties. Herring was caught on five cruises and stored on board in tanks or ice. The sensory profile of marina......Sensory properties of marinated herring processed from raw material from Danish commercial catches were described and related to fishing season and biological, chemical and functional properties. Herring was caught on five cruises and stored on board in tanks or ice. The sensory profile...

Defining Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs) as a contribution to Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs): A Core Task of the Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON) to Accelerate Integration of Biological Observations in the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS)

Science.gov (United States)

Pearlman, J.; Muller-Karger, F. E.; Sousa Pinto, I.; Costello, M. J.; Duffy, J. E.; Appeltans, W.; Fischer, A. S.; Canonico, G.; Klein, E.; Obura, D.; Montes, E.; Miloslavich, P.; Howard, M.

2017-12-01

The Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON) is a networking effort under the umbrella of the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON). The objective of the MBON is to link existing groups engaged in ocean observation and help define practical indices to deploy in an operational manner to track changes in the number of marine species, the abundance and biomass of marine organisms, the diverse interactions between organisms and the environment, and the variability and change of specific habitats of interest. MBON serves as the biodiversity arm of Blue Planet, the initiative of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) for the benefit of society. The Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) was established under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) in 1991 to organize international ocean observing efforts. The mission of the GOOS is to support monitoring to improve the management of marine and coastal ecosystems and resources, and to enable scientific research. GOOS is engaged in a continuing, rigorous process of identifying Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs). MBON is working with GOOS and the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS, also under the IOC) to define Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs) as those Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs) that have explicit taxonomic records associated with them. For practical purposes, EBVs are a subset of the EOVs. The focus is to promote the integration of biological EOVs including EBVs into the existing and planned national and international ocean observing systems. The definition avoids a proliferation of 'essential' variables across multiple organizations. MBON will continue to advance practical and wide use of EBVs and related EOV. This is an effective way to contribute to several UN assessments (e.g., from IPBES, IPCC, and the World Ocean Assessment under the UN Regular Process), UN Sustainable Development Goals, and to address targets and goals defined under

Pharmaceutical, cosmeceutical, and traditional applications of marine carbohydrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmed, Abdul Bakrudeen Ali; Adel, Mohaddeseh; Karimi, Pegah; Peidayesh, Mahvash

2014-01-01

Marine carbohydrates are most important organic molecules made by photosynthetic organisms. It is very essential for humankind: the role in being an energy source for the organism and they are considered as an important dissolve organic compound (DOC) in marine environment's sediments. Carbohydrates found in different marine environments in different concentrations. Polysaccharides of carbohydrates play an important role in various fields such as pharmaceutical, food production, cosmeceutical, and so on. Marine organisms are good resources of nutrients, and they are rich carbohydrate in sulfated polysaccharide. Seaweeds (marine microalgae) are used in different pharmaceutical industries, especially in pharmaceutical compound production. Seaweeds have a significant amount of sulfated polysaccharides, which are used in cosmeceutical industry, besides based on the biological applications. Since then, traditional people, cosmetics products, and pharmaceutical applications consider many types of seaweed as an important organism used in food process. Sulfated polysaccharides containing seaweed have potential uses in the blood coagulation system, antiviral activity, antioxidant activity, anticancer activity, immunomodulating activity, antilipidepic activity, etc. Some species of marine organisms are rich in polysaccharides such as sulfated galactans. Various polysaccharides such as agar and alginates, which are extracted from marine organisms, have several applications in food production and cosmeceutical industries. Due to their high health benefits, compound-derived extracts of marine polysaccharides have various applications and traditional people were using them since long time ago. In the future, much attention is supposed to be paid to unraveling the structural, compositional, and sequential properties of marine carbohydrate as well. © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Biodiversity of Arctic marine ecosystems and responses to climate change

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Michel, C.; Bluhm, B.; Gallucci, V.

2012-01-01

The Arctic Ocean is undergoing major changes in many of its fundamental physical constituents, from a shift from multi- to first-year ice, shorter ice-covered periods, increasing freshwater runoff and surface stratification, to warming and alteration in the distribution of water masses....... These changes have important impacts on the chemical and biological processes that are at the root of marine food webs, influencing their structure, function and biodiversity. Here we summarise current knowledge on the biodiversity of Arctic marine ecosystems and provide an overview of fundamental factors...... that structure ecosystem biodiversity in the Arctic Ocean. We also discuss climateassociated effects on the biodiversity of Arctic marine ecosystems and discuss implications for the functioning of Arctic marine food webs. Based on the complexity and regional character of Arctic ecosystem reponses...

Behaviour and fate of artificial redionuclides in the marine environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-01-01

Behaviour of artificial radionuclides in the marine environment, effect of the physico-chemical forms of the radionuclides. Behavior of radionuclides in the physical and biological environments and general evaluation of transfers [fr

Patterns in Parent-Child Conversations about Animals at a Marine Science Center

Science.gov (United States)

Rigney, Jennifer C.; Callanan, Maureen A.

2011-01-01

Parent-child conversations are a potential source of children's developing understanding of the biological domain. We investigated patterns in parent-child conversations that may inform children about biological domain boundaries. At a marine science center exhibit, we compared parent-child talk about typical sea animals with faces (fish) with…

Microbial Diversity in Sulfate-Reducing Marine Sediment Enrichment Cultures Associated with Anaerobic Biotransformation of Coastal Stockpiled Phosphogypsum (Sfax, Tunisia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hana Zouch

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Anaerobic biotechnology using sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB is a promising alternative for reducing long-term stockpiling of phosphogypsum (PG, an acidic (pH ~3 by-product of the phosphate fertilizer industries containing high amounts of sulfate. The main objective of this study was to evaluate, for the first time, the diversity and ability of anaerobic marine microorganisms to convert sulfate from PG into sulfide, in order to look for marine SRB of biotechnological interest. A series of sulfate-reducing enrichment cultures were performed using different electron donors (i.e., acetate, formate, or lactate and sulfate sources (i.e., sodium sulfate or PG as electron acceptors. Significant sulfide production was observed from enrichment cultures inoculated with marine sediments, collected near the effluent discharge point of a Tunisian fertilizer industry (Sfax, Tunisia. Sulfate sources impacted sulfide production rates from marine sediments as well as the diversity of SRB species belonging to Deltaproteobacteria. When PG was used as sulfate source, Desulfovibrio species dominated microbial communities of marine sediments, while Desulfobacter species were mainly detected using sodium sulfate. Sulfide production was also affected depending on the electron donor used, with the highest production obtained using formate. In contrast, low sulfide production (acetate-containing cultures was associated with an increase in the population of Firmicutes. These results suggested that marine Desulfovibrio species, to be further isolated, are potential candidates for bioremediation of PG by immobilizing metals and metalloids thanks to sulfide production by these SRB.

Global distribution and climate forcing of marine organic aerosol: 1. Model improvements and evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Meskhidze

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Marine organic aerosol emissions have been implemented and evaluated within the National Center of Atmospheric Research (NCAR's Community Atmosphere Model (CAM5 with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's 7-mode Modal Aerosol Module (MAM-7. Emissions of marine primary organic aerosols (POA, phytoplankton-produced isoprene- and monoterpenes-derived secondary organic aerosols (SOA and methane sulfonate (MS⁻ are shown to affect surface concentrations of organic aerosols in remote marine regions. Global emissions of submicron marine POA is estimated to be 7.9 and 9.4 Tg yr⁻¹, for the Gantt et al. (2011 and Vignati et al. (2010 emission parameterizations, respectively. Marine sources of SOA and particulate MS⁻ (containing both sulfur and carbon atoms contribute an additional 0.2 and 5.1 Tg yr⁻¹, respectively. Widespread areas over productive waters of the Northern Atlantic, Northern Pacific, and the Southern Ocean show marine-source submicron organic aerosol surface concentrations of 100 ng m⁻³, with values up to 400 ng m⁻³ over biologically productive areas. Comparison of long-term surface observations of water insoluble organic matter (WIOM with POA concentrations from the two emission parameterizations shows that despite revealed discrepancies (often more than a factor of 2, both Gantt et al. (2011 and Vignati et al. (2010 formulations are able to capture the magnitude of marine organic aerosol concentrations, with the Gantt et al. (2011 parameterization attaining better seasonality. Model simulations show that the mixing state of the marine POA can impact the surface number concentration of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN. The largest increases (up to 20% in CCN (at a supersaturation (S of 0.2% number concentration are obtained over biologically productive ocean waters when marine organic aerosol is assumed to be externally mixed with sea-salt. Assuming

Marine natural products: a new wave of drugs?

Science.gov (United States)

Montaser, Rana; Luesch, Hendrik

2011-01-01

The largely unexplored marine world that presumably harbors the most biodiversity may be the vastest resource to discover novel ‘validated’ structures with novel modes of action that cover biologically relevant chemical space. Several challenges, including the supply problem and target identification, need to be met for successful drug development of these often complex molecules; however, approaches are available to overcome the hurdles. Advances in technologies such as sampling strategies, nanoscale NMR for structure determination, total chemical synthesis, fermentation and biotechnology are all crucial to the success of marine natural products as drug leads. We illustrate the high degree of innovation in the field of marine natural products, which in our view will lead to a new wave of drugs that flow into the market and pharmacies in the future. PMID:21882941

Effect of different combining patterns of radionuclides in marine organisms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ueda, T.; Suzuki, Y.; Nakamura, R.; Nakahara, M.

1981-01-01

Information on the environmental factors (level of radioactivity in sea water, salinity, temperature, etc.), the biological factors (growth stage, species of organism, etc.), and the metabolism of radionuclides in marine organisms should be taken into account so as to understand the mechanism of radioactive contamination of marine organisms. From this viewpoint, the combining of radionuclides with constituents in marine organisms was studied, indicating the differences as follows: (a) Different appearances of radioactive cobalt in the liver of the abalone due to chemical forms: From the gel filtration profiles on Sephadex it was observed that 57 Co accumulated in the liver of the abalone from sea water labelled by complexed 57 Co combines with a constituent in the liver that has a molecular weight of about 40,000. However, 60 Co taken up from sea water containing ionic 60 Co combines with other constituents in the liver. (b) Appearance of radionuclides in fish due to pathways (sea water and food): In fish liver, most 137 Cs from both sea water and food combines with only one constituent substance; the molecular weight of this substance was estimated at 1100-1300. Cobalt-60 from both sea water and food associates with two different molecular weight constituents, but 65 Zn made a considerable difference in the gel filtration profiles between sea water and food. These results indicate that the metabolism of radionuclides in marine organisms may possibly be varied by the chemical forms of radionuclides in sea water and the pathways of radionuclides. (author)

Practical management of cumulative anthropogenic impacts with working marine examples.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Andrew J; Kyhn, Line A

2015-04-01

Human pressure on the environment is expanding and intensifying, especially in coastal and offshore areas. Major contributors to this are the current push for offshore renewable energy sources, which are thought of as environmentally friendly sources of power, as well as the continued demand for petroleum. Human disturbances, including the noise almost ubiquitously associated with human activity, are likely to increase the incidence, magnitude, and duration of adverse effects on marine life, including stress responses. Stress responses have the potential to induce fitness consequences for individuals, which add to more obvious directed takes (e.g., hunting or fishing) to increase the overall population-level impact. To meet the requirements of marine spatial planning and ecosystem-based management, many efforts are ongoing to quantify the cumulative impacts of all human actions on marine species or populations. Meanwhile, regulators face the challenge of managing these accumulating and interacting impacts with limited scientific guidance. We believe there is scientific support for capping the level of impact for (at a minimum) populations in decline or with unknown statuses. This cap on impact can be facilitated through implementation of regular application cycles for project authorization or improved programmatic and aggregated impact assessments that simultaneously consider multiple projects. Cross-company collaborations and a better incorporation of uncertainty into decision making could also help limit, if not reduce, cumulative impacts of multiple human activities. These simple management steps may also form the basis of a rudimentary form of marine spatial planning and could be used in support of future ecosystem-based management efforts. © 2014 Society for Conservation Biology.

Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Novel 3-Alkylpyridine Marine Alkaloid Analogs with Promising Anticancer Activity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alessandra Mirtes Marques Neves Gonçalves

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Cancer continues to be one of the most important health problems worldwide, and the identification of novel drugs and treatments to address this disease is urgent. During recent years, marine organisms have proven to be a promising source of new compounds with action against tumoral cell lines. Here, we describe the synthesis and anticancer activity of eight new 3-alkylpyridine alkaloid (3-APA analogs in four steps and with good yields. The key step for the synthesis of these compounds is a Williamson etherification under phase-transfer conditions. We investigated the influence of the length of the alkyl chain attached to position 3 of the pyridine ring on the cytotoxicity of these compounds. Biological assays demonstrated that compounds with an alkyl chain of ten carbon atoms (4c and 5c were the most active against two tumoral cell lines: RKO-AS-45-1 and HeLa. Micronucleus and TUNEL assays showed that both compounds are mutagenic and induce apoptosis. In addition, Compound 5c altered the cellular actin cytoskeleton in RKO-AS-45-1 cells. The results suggest that Compounds 4c and 5c may be novel prototype anticancer agents.

Dispersal similarly shapes both population genetics and community patterns in the marine realm

KAUST Repository

Chust, Guillem

2016-06-27

Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations and, if limited, is one of the main processes to maintain and generate regional biodiversity. According to neutral theories of molecular evolution and biodiversity, dispersal limitation of propagules and population stochasticity are integral to shaping both genetic and community structure. We conducted a parallel analysis of biological connectivity at genetic and community levels in marine groups with different dispersal traits. We compiled large data sets of population genetic structure (98 benthic macroinvertebrate and 35 planktonic species) and biogeographic data (2193 benthic macroinvertebrate and 734 planktonic species). We estimated dispersal distances from population genetic data (i.e., FST vs. geographic distance) and from β-diversity at the community level. Dispersal distances ranked the biological groups in the same order at both genetic and community levels, as predicted by organism dispersal ability and seascape connectivity: macrozoobenthic species without dispersing larvae, followed by macrozoobenthic species with dispersing larvae and plankton (phyto- and zooplankton). This ranking order is associated with constraints to the movement of macrozoobenthos within the seabed compared with the pelagic habitat. We showed that dispersal limitation similarly determines the connectivity degree of communities and populations, supporting the predictions of neutral theories in marine biodiversity patterns.

Dispersal similarly shapes both population genetics and community patterns in the marine realm

Science.gov (United States)

Chust, Guillem; Villarino, Ernesto; Chenuil, Anne; Irigoien, Xabier; Bizsel, Nihayet; Bode, Antonio; Broms, Cecilie; Claus, Simon; Fernández de Puelles, María L.; Fonda-Umani, Serena; Hoarau, Galice; Mazzocchi, Maria G.; Mozetič, Patricija; Vandepitte, Leen; Veríssimo, Helena; Zervoudaki, Soultana; Borja, Angel

2016-06-01

Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations and, if limited, is one of the main processes to maintain and generate regional biodiversity. According to neutral theories of molecular evolution and biodiversity, dispersal limitation of propagules and population stochasticity are integral to shaping both genetic and community structure. We conducted a parallel analysis of biological connectivity at genetic and community levels in marine groups with different dispersal traits. We compiled large data sets of population genetic structure (98 benthic macroinvertebrate and 35 planktonic species) and biogeographic data (2193 benthic macroinvertebrate and 734 planktonic species). We estimated dispersal distances from population genetic data (i.e., FST vs. geographic distance) and from β-diversity at the community level. Dispersal distances ranked the biological groups in the same order at both genetic and community levels, as predicted by organism dispersal ability and seascape connectivity: macrozoobenthic species without dispersing larvae, followed by macrozoobenthic species with dispersing larvae and plankton (phyto- and zooplankton). This ranking order is associated with constraints to the movement of macrozoobenthos within the seabed compared with the pelagic habitat. We showed that dispersal limitation similarly determines the connectivity degree of communities and populations, supporting the predictions of neutral theories in marine biodiversity patterns.

Dispersal similarly shapes both population genetics and community patterns in the marine realm

KAUST Repository

Chust, Guillem; Villarino, Ernesto; Chenuil, Anne; Irigoien, Xabier; Bizsel, Nihayet; Bode, Antonio; Broms, Cecilie; Claus, Simon; Ferná ndez de Puelles, Marí a L.; Fonda-Umani, Serena; Hoarau, Galice; Mazzocchi, Maria G.; Mozetič, Patricija; Vandepitte, Leen; Verí ssimo, Helena; Zervoudaki, Soultana; Borja, Angel

2016-01-01

Dispersal plays a key role to connect populations and, if limited, is one of the main processes to maintain and generate regional biodiversity. According to neutral theories of molecular evolution and biodiversity, dispersal limitation of propagules and population stochasticity are integral to shaping both genetic and community structure. We conducted a parallel analysis of biological connectivity at genetic and community levels in marine groups with different dispersal traits. We compiled large data sets of population genetic structure (98 benthic macroinvertebrate and 35 planktonic species) and biogeographic data (2193 benthic macroinvertebrate and 734 planktonic species). We estimated dispersal distances from population genetic data (i.e., FST vs. geographic distance) and from β-diversity at the community level. Dispersal distances ranked the biological groups in the same order at both genetic and community levels, as predicted by organism dispersal ability and seascape connectivity: macrozoobenthic species without dispersing larvae, followed by macrozoobenthic species with dispersing larvae and plankton (phyto- and zooplankton). This ranking order is associated with constraints to the movement of macrozoobenthos within the seabed compared with the pelagic habitat. We showed that dispersal limitation similarly determines the connectivity degree of communities and populations, supporting the predictions of neutral theories in marine biodiversity patterns.

Marine microbial ecology in a molecular world: what does the future hold?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David A. Caron

2005-06-01

Full Text Available Advances in genetic and immunological approaches during the last few decades have transformed medicine and biomedical research. The human genome and the genomes of numerous model organisms are now fully sequenced. Initial exploitation of this wealth of genetic information has begun to revolutionize research on these species, and the applications derived from it. Progress in understanding the ecology of microorganisms (including marine taxa has followed closely on the heels of these advances, owing to the tremendous benefit afforded by major technological advances in biomedicine. Through the application of these novel approaches and new technologies, marine microbial ecology has moved from a minor footnote within marine biology and biological oceanography during the 1950s and ‘60s to the focus of much of our present interest in the ocean. During the intervening half-century we have learned a great deal regarding the overall abundances, distributions and activities of microorganisms in the sea. Recognition of the extraordinary diversity of marine microbes, the predominant role that they play in global biogeochemical processes, and the potential for natural or engineered microbial products to benefit humankind, has placed marine microbes in the spotlight of both scientific and popular attention. Our fascination with these minute denizens of the ocean is not likely to wane anytime soon. Recent studies have indicated that we still know relatively little about the breadth of microbial diversity in marine ecosystems. In addition, many (most? of the predominant marine microbial forms in nature have not yet been brought into laboratory culture. Thus, our knowledge is still rudimentary with respect to the spectra of biochemical, physiological and behavioral abilities of these species, and the study of marine microbes will remain a major focus of investigations in marine science well into the foreseeable future. As a large cadre of researchers moves

Radionuclide biological half-life values for terrestrial and aquatic wildlife

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beresford, N.A.; Beaugelin-Seiller, K.; Burgos, J.; Cujic, M.; Fesenko, S.; Kryshev, A.; Pachal, N.; Real, A.; Su, B.S.; Tagami, K.; Vives i Batlle, J.; Vives-Lynch, S.; Wells, C.; Wood, M.D.

2015-01-01

The equilibrium concentration ratio is typically the parameter used to estimate organism activity concentrations within wildlife dose assessment tools. Whilst this is assumed to be fit for purpose, there are scenarios such as accidental or irregular, fluctuating, releases from licensed facilities when this might not be the case. In such circumstances, the concentration ratio approach may under- or over-estimate radiation exposure depending upon the time since the release. To carrying out assessments for such releases, a dynamic approach is needed. The simplest and most practical option is representing the uptake and turnover processes by first-order kinetics, for which organism- and element-specific biological half-life data are required. In this paper we describe the development of a freely available international database of radionuclide biological half-life values. The database includes 1907 entries for terrestrial, freshwater, riparian and marine organisms. Biological half-life values are reported for 52 elements across a range of wildlife groups (marine = 9, freshwater = 10, terrestrial = 7 and riparian = 3 groups). Potential applications and limitations of the database are discussed. - Highlights: • 1907 biological half-life values have been collated for wildlife species. • Data cover 52 elements. • 27 marine, freshwater, riparian and terrestrial organisms are included.

Antimicrobial and anticancer activity and DNA fingerprinting of extracts from Red Sea marine fungal symbiotes.

OpenAIRE

Asma Alsed; Marwa M. Azab; Amany K. Ibrahim

2016-01-01

Marine microorganisms have become an important source of pharmacologically active metabolites. More specifically, fungi from the marine environment have shown great potential as suggested by the diversity of secondary metabolites. The aim of this study was to look for bioactive natural products from Red Sea derived fungi. Numerous natural products with novel structures and distinct biological activities have been discovered as the secondary metabolites of marine- derived microbes....

Enewetak Marine Biological Laboratory 1973--1974 annual report. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1974-01-01

Brief summaries are presented of ecological studies carried out at Enewetak from July 1973 through June 30, 1974. Data are included on the content of 90 Sr in the skeleton of coral. Other studies included measurements of the chemical composition of 60 marine animals; and the growth rate, interactions of prey populations, food supply, food chains, and population dynamics of communities of crustaceans, molluscs, corals, sponges, algae, reef fishes, and shore birds. (U.S.)

Ocean-Atmosphere Coupling associated with Typhoons/ Hurricane and their impacts on marine ecosystem (Invited)

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, D. L.

2010-12-01

DanLing TANG South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences,Guangzhou, China Phone (86) 13924282728; Fax/Tel: (86) 020 89023203 (off), 020 89023191 (Lab),Email,lingzistdl@126.com, Typhoon / hurricane activities and their impacts on environments have been strengthening in both intensity and spatial coverage, along with global changes in the past several decades; however, our knowledge about impact of typhoon on the marine ecosystem is very scarce. We have conducted a series studies in the South China Sea (SCS), investigating phytoplankton, sea surface temperature (SST), fishery data and related factors before, during, and after typhoon. Satellite remote sensing and in situ observation data obtained from research cruise were applied. Our study showed that typhoon can support nutrients to surface phytoplankton by inducing upwelling and vertical mixing, and typhoon rain can also nourish marine phytoplankton; both typhoon winds and rain can enhance production of marine phytoplankton. Slow-moving typhoon induced phytoplankton blooms of higher Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), the strong typhoon induced phytoplankton blooms of a large area. We conservatively estimate that typhoon periods may account for 3.5% of the annual primary production in the oligotrophic SCS. It indicated that one typhoon may induce transport of nutrient-rich water from depth and from the coast to offshore regions, nourishing phytoplankton biomass. More observations confirmed that typhoon can induce cold eddy, and cold eddy can support eddy-shape phytoplankton bloom by upwelling. We have suggested a new index to evaluate typhoon impact on marine ecosystem and environment. This is the first time to report moving eddies and eddy-shape phytoplankton blooms associated with tropical cyclone, the relationship among tropical cyclone, cold eddy upwelling and eddy-shape phytoplankton bloom may give some viewpoint on the tropical cyclone's affection on the mesoscale circulation. Those studies may

Implications of Ocean Acidification for Marine Microorganisms from the Free-Living to the Host-Associated

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul A O'Brien

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Anthropogenic CO2 emissions are causing oceans to become more acidic, with consequences for all marine life including microorganisms. Studies reveal that from the microbes that occupy the open ocean to those intimately associated with their invertebrate hosts, changing ocean chemistry will alter the critical functions of these important organisms. Our current understanding indicates that bacterial communities associated with their host will shift as pH drops by another 0.2-0.4 units over the next 100 years. It is unclear what impacts this will have for host health, however increased vulnerability to disease seems likely for those associated with reef corals. Natural CO2 seeps have provided a unique setting for the study of microbial communities under OA in situ, where shifts in the bacterial communities associated with corals at the seep are correlated with a decline in abundance of the associated coral species. Changes to global biogeochemical cycles also appear likely as photosynthesis and nitrogen fixation by pelagic microbes becomes enhanced under low pH conditions. However, recent long-term studies have shown that pelagic microbes are also capable of evolutionary adaptation, with some physiological responses to a decline in pH restored after hundreds of generations at high pCO2 levels. The impacts of ocean acidification (OA also will not work in isolation, thus synergistic interactions with other potential stressors, such as rising seawater temperatures, will likely exacerbate the microbial response to OA. This review discusses our existing understanding of the impacts of OA on both pelagic and host-associated marine microbial communities, whilst highlighting the importance of controlled laboratory studies and in situ experiments, to fill the current gaps in our knowledge.

Organization of marine phenology data in support of planning and conservation in ocean and coastal ecosystems

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Kathryn A.; Fornwall, Mark D.; Weltzin, Jake F.; Griffis, R.B.

2014-01-01

Among the many effects of climate change is its influence on the phenology of biota. In marine and coastal ecosystems, phenological shifts have been documented for multiple life forms; however, biological data related to marine species' phenology remain difficult to access and is under-used. We conducted an assessment of potential sources of biological data for marine species and their availability for use in phenological analyses and assessments. Our evaluations showed that data potentially related to understanding marine species' phenology are available through online resources of governmental, academic, and non-governmental organizations, but appropriate datasets are often difficult to discover and access, presenting opportunities for scientific infrastructure improvement. The developing Federal Marine Data Architecture when fully implemented will improve data flow and standardization for marine data within major federal repositories and provide an archival repository for collaborating academic and public data contributors. Another opportunity, largely untapped, is the engagement of citizen scientists in standardized collection of marine phenology data and contribution of these data to established data flows. Use of metadata with marine phenology related keywords could improve discovery and access to appropriate datasets. When data originators choose to self-publish, publication of research datasets with a digital object identifier, linked to metadata, will also improve subsequent discovery and access. Phenological changes in the marine environment will affect human economics, food systems, and recreation. No one source of data will be sufficient to understand these changes. The collective attention of marine data collectors is needed—whether with an agency, an educational institution, or a citizen scientist group—toward adopting the data management processes and standards needed to ensure availability of sufficient and useable marine data to understand

Seventy-one important questions for the conservation of marine biodiversity.

Science.gov (United States)

Parsons, E C M; Favaro, Brett; Aguirre, A Alonso; Bauer, Amy L; Blight, Louise K; Cigliano, John A; Coleman, Melinda A; Côté, Isabelle M; Draheim, Megan; Fletcher, Stephen; Foley, Melissa M; Jefferson, Rebecca; Jones, Miranda C; Kelaher, Brendan P; Lundquist, Carolyn J; McCarthy, Julie-Beth; Nelson, Anne; Patterson, Katheryn; Walsh, Leslie; Wright, Andrew J; Sutherland, William J

2014-10-01

The ocean provides food, economic activity, and cultural value for a large proportion of humanity. Our knowledge of marine ecosystems lags behind that of terrestrial ecosystems, limiting effective protection of marine resources. We describe the outcome of 2 workshops in 2011 and 2012 to establish a list of important questions, which, if answered, would substantially improve our ability to conserve and manage the world's marine resources. Participants included individuals from academia, government, and nongovernment organizations with broad experience across disciplines, marine ecosystems, and countries that vary in levels of development. Contributors from the fields of science, conservation, industry, and government submitted questions to our workshops, which we distilled into a list of priority research questions. Through this process, we identified 71 key questions. We grouped these into 8 subject categories, each pertaining to a broad component of marine conservation: fisheries, climate change, other anthropogenic threats, ecosystems, marine citizenship, policy, societal and cultural considerations, and scientific enterprise. Our questions address many issues that are specific to marine conservation, and will serve as a road map to funders and researchers to develop programs that can greatly benefit marine conservation. © 2014 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The Society for the Study of Evolution.

Marine data and information management system for the Indian Ocean

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sarupria, J.S.

The user friendly computer system for the management of marine data/information has been developed for processing of physical, chemical, biological, geological and geophysical data sets with a common inventory database. It provides geographical...

The IAEA worldwide intercomparison exercises (1990-1997). Determination of trace elements in marine sediments and biological samples

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coquery, M.; Carvalho, F.P.; Azemard, S.; Horvat, M.

1999-01-01

Four major worldwide intercomparison exercises for the determination of trace elements in various environmental matrices were completed by the IAEA Marine Environment Laboratory since 1990: SD-M-2/TM, deep sea marine sediment; IAEA-350, tuna fish homogenate; IAEA-356, contaminated coastal sediment and IAEA-140, sea plant (Fucus sp.). These intercomparison exercises aim at enabling individual laboratories to monitor their performance. The results of these exercises allowed us to make an overall evaluation of the quality of data provided for environmental assessment and to identify the trends of analytical performance in the determination of trace elements over the years. The number of participants in each exercise varied between 68 and 130, and permits statistical evaluation of the performance for a number of elements. For each intercomparison exercise, the performance of the participant laboratories was assessed by comparing reported results with established reference values calculating 'Z-scores'. The results show that for each sample matrix, the values reported by some laboratories were far from satisfactory in the earlier exercises, in particular for Cd, Cr and Pb. Nevertheless, over time, a general improvement of performance can clearly be seen for all elements. Moreover, there was a noticeable increase in the number of laboratories with good performance in the two most recent exercises, observed both for biological and for sediment matrices. However, the determination of trace elements such as Cd, Cr, Pb and Hg in low level environmental samples still remains a major challenge to the analysts. For this reason and in order to assess the current performance of laboratories for low environmental levels of contaminants, the future intercomparison exercises will concentrate on low level sediment and fish samples

[Biological disturbances during the lupus-associated pancreatitis: case report].

Science.gov (United States)

Sayagh, Sanae; Benchekroun, Leila; Bouabdellah, Mounya; Jaouhar, Nezha; El Aoufi, Farida; El Oufir, Fatiha; Alaoui, Meryem; Adnaoui, Mohammed; Chabraoui, Layachi

2015-01-01

We report in this paper the case of female patient, hypertriglyceridemia associated with milky serum and hyperglycemia have been the alarm signal of a lupus-associated pancreatitis, the confirmation of this entity was done with elevated rate of serum lipase activity. It is about a 33 years age female. She has as unique antecedent a lupus diagnosed on January of the same. The patient was admitted on august 2013 for another episode of lupus associated to the lower lamb edema with a rate of C3 at 0.4 g/L (0.82-1,93) and C4 at 0.05 g/L (0.15-0.57). One day after the beginning of the corticotherapy, the patient presented hyperthermia, ataxis and behavior troubles, epigastric and articular pains and vomiting. Biochemical tests found hyperglycemia at 38.9 mmol/L (3.9-6.1), dyslipidemia with hypertriglyceridemia at 15.7 mmol/L (0.3-1.7) and total cholesterol rate at 5.2 mmol/L (<5.2) associated with milky serum. Haematological tests objective normocytic normochromic anemia with 81 g/L of hemoglobin, lymphopenia at 0.88 G/L and normal platelet rate. Lupus associated pancreatitis was suggested and confirmed biologically with an hyperlipasemia at 180 UI/L (8-78) and radiologicaly with the image of focal hepatic steatosis. We conclude that on the presence of lupus, gastrointestinal and/or biological signs must motivate the measurement of the serum lipase activity as quickly as possible to assess the diagnosis of lupus-associated pancreatitis.

Lost at sea: ocean acidification undermines larval fish orientation via altered hearing and marine soundscape modification.

Science.gov (United States)

Rossi, Tullio; Nagelkerken, Ivan; Pistevos, Jennifer C A; Connell, Sean D

2016-01-01

The dispersal of larvae and their settlement to suitable habitat is fundamental to the replenishment of marine populations and the communities in which they live. Sound plays an important role in this process because for larvae of various species, it acts as an orientational cue towards suitable settlement habitat. Because marine sounds are largely of biological origin, they not only carry information about the location of potential habitat, but also information about the quality of habitat. While ocean acidification is known to affect a wide range of marine organisms and processes, its effect on marine soundscapes and its reception by navigating oceanic larvae remains unknown. Here, we show that ocean acidification causes a switch in role of present-day soundscapes from attractor to repellent in the auditory preferences in a temperate larval fish. Using natural CO2 vents as analogues of future ocean conditions, we further reveal that ocean acidification can impact marine soundscapes by profoundly diminishing their biological sound production. An altered soundscape poorer in biological cues indirectly penalizes oceanic larvae at settlement stage because both control and CO2-treated fish larvae showed lack of any response to such future soundscapes. These indirect and direct effects of ocean acidification put at risk the complex processes of larval dispersal and settlement. © 2016 The Author(s).

Radionuclides in the study of marine processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kershaw, P.J.; Woodhead, D.S.

1991-01-01

For many years, the radioactive properties of the naturally occurring radionuclides have been used to determine their distributions in the marine environment and, more generally, to gain an understanding of the dynamic processes which control their behaviour in attaining these distributions. More recently the inputs from human activities of both natural and artificial (i.e. man-made) radionuclides have provided additional opportunities for the study of marine processes on local, regional and global scales. The primary objective of the symposium is to provide a forum for an open discussion of the insights concerning processes in the marine environment which can be gained from studies of radionuclide behaviour. Papers have been grouped within the following principal themes; the uses of radionuclides as tracers of water transport; scavenging and particulate transport processes in the oceans as deduced from radionuclide behaviour; processes in the seabed and radionuclides in biological systems. (Author)

Marine Sciences: from natural history to ecology and back, on Darwin's shoulders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ferdinando Boero

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The naturalist Charles Darwin founded modern ecology, considering in a single conceptual framework the manifold aspects regarding the organization of life at various levels of complexity and its relationship with the physical world. The development of powerful analytical tools led to abandon Darwin's natural history and to transform naturalists, as Darwin labelled himself, into the practitioners of more focused disciplines, aimed at tackling specific problems that considered the various aspects of the organization of life in great detail but, also, in isolation from each other. Among the various disciplines that stemmed from the Darwinian method, ecology was further split into many branches, and marine ecology was no exception. The compartmentalization of the marine realm into several sub-domains (e.g., plankton, benthos, nekton led to neglect of the connections linking the various parts that were separated for the ease of analyses that, in this way, prevented synthetic visions. The way marine sciences were studied also led to separate visions depending on the employed tools, so that ship-based biological oceanography developed almost separately from marine station-based marine biology. The necessity of putting together such concepts as biodiversity and ecosystem functioning is rapidly leading to synthetic approaches that re-discover the historical nature of ecology, leading to the dawn of a new natural history.

"Conserving Marine Biodiversity in the Global Marine Commons: Co-evolution and Interaction with the Law of the Sea"

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robin Margaret Warner

2014-05-01

Full Text Available As global shipping intensifies and technological advances provide more opportunities to access the resources of the high seas and the deep seabed beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ, the catalogue of threats to the marine environment and its biodiversity increase commensurately. Beyond these threats, new and emerging uses of ABNJ including more intrusive marine scientific research, bio-prospecting, deep seabed mining and environmental modification activities to mitigate the effects of climate change have the potential to harm the highly interconnected and sensitive ecosystems of the open ocean and the deep seabed if not sustainably managed now and into the future. Modern conservation norms such as environmental impact assessment, marine protected areas, marine spatial planning and development mechanisms such as technology transfer and capacity building are under developed in the legal and institutional framework for ABNJ. This article examines key normative features of the legal and institutional framework for ABNJ and their applicability to conservation of marine biodiversity, gaps and disconnects in that framework and ongoing global initiatives to develop more effective governance structures. It discusses some of the options being considered in the UN Ad Hoc Informal Open-ended Working Group to study issues related to the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ Working Group to evolve the legal and institutional framework for conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in ABNJ and their current and future relevance for the law of the sea. It concludes that the discussions in the BBNJ Working Group and related initiatives in the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD and at regional level have demonstrated that a more integrated legal and institutional structure is needed to address growing threats to marine biodiversity in ABNJ.

Economic growth and marine biodiversity: influence of human social structure on decline of marine trophic levels.

Science.gov (United States)

Clausen, Rebecca; York, Richard

2008-04-01

We assessed the effects of economic growth, urbanization, and human population size on marine biodiversity. We used the mean trophic level (MTL) of marine catch as an indicator of marine biodiversity and conducted cross-national time-series analyses (1960-2003) of 102 nations to investigate human social influences on fish catch and trends in MTL. We constructed path models to examine direct and indirect effects relating to marine catch and MTL. Nations' MTLs declined with increased economic growth, increased urbanization, and increased population size, in part because of associated increased catch. These findings contradict the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis, which claims that economic modernization will reduce human impact on the environment. To make informed decisions on issues of marine resource management, policy makers, nonprofit entities, and professional societies must recognize the need to include social analyses in overall conservation-research strategies. The challenge is to utilize the socioeconomic and ecological research in the service of a comprehensive marine-conservation movement.

Habitat damage, marine reserves, and the value of spatial management

KAUST Repository

Moeller, Holly V.; Neubert, Michael G.

2013-01-01

The biological benefits of marine reserves have garnered favor in the conservation community, but "no-take" reserve implementation is complicated by the economic interests of fishery stakeholders. There are now a number of studies examining

Bristol Bay, Alaska Subarea ESI: M_MAMPT (Marine Mammal Points)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for Steller sea lions and seals in the Bristol Bay Subarea. The Subarea includes marine and coastal areas...

Marine intervals in Neogene fluvial deposits of western Amazonia

Science.gov (United States)

Boonstra, Melanie; Troelstra, Simon; Lammertsma, Emmy; Hoorn, Carina

2014-05-01

Amazonia is one of the most species rich areas on Earth, but this high diversity is not homogeneous over the entire region. Highest mammal and tree-alpha diversity is found in the fluvio-lacustrine Pebas system, a Neogene wetland associated with rapid radiation of species. The estuarine to marine origin of various modern Amazonian fish, plants, and invertebrates has been associated with past marine ingressions into this freshwater Pebas system. The exact nature and age of these invasions is, however, debated. Here we present new evidence from fluvial and fluvio-lacustrine deposits of Neogene age in southeast Colombia, that point to periods of widespread marine conditions in western Amazonia. Our evidence is based on an analysis of marine palynomorphs, such as organic linings of foraminifera and dinoflagellate cysts, present in dark sandy clay sediments that outcrop along the Caqueta and Amazon rivers. Characteristically, the foraminiferal linings can be assigned to three benthic morphotypes only, e.g. Ammonia, Elphidium and Trochammina. This low diversity assemblage is associated with estuarine/marginal marine conditions. No distinct marine elements such as shelf or planktonic species were encountered. The observed foraminiferal linings and dinocyst assemblages are typical for a (eutrophic) shallow marine environment, suggesting that the Pebas freshwater wetland system occasionally changed to (marginal) marine. Although some reworked elements are found, a typical Neogene dinocyst taxon is commonly found supporting in situ deposition. Sedimentological features typical for tidal conditions that are reported for sites in Peru and northeastern Brazil likely relate to these marine ingressions. Sea level changes as well as foreland basin development related to Andes formation may have facilitated the entry of marine water during the Neogene.

Oil spill dispersants induce formation of marine snow by phytoplankton-associated bacteria

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Eenennaam, van J.S.; Wei, Yuzhu; Grolle, K.C.F.; Foekema, E.M.; Murk, A.J.

2016-01-01

Unusually large amounts of marine snow, including Extracellular Polymeric Substances (EPS), were formed during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The marine snow settled with oil and clay minerals as an oily sludge layer on the deep sea floor. This study tested the hypothesis that the

Microarray Glycan Profiling Reveals Algal Fucoidan Epitopes in Diverse Marine Metazoans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Armando A. Salmeán

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Despite the biological importance and pharmacological potential of glycans from marine organisms, there are many unanswered questions regarding their distribution, function, and evolution. Here we describe microarray-based glycan profiling of a diverse selection of marine animals using antibodies raised against fucoidan isolated from a brown alga. We demonstrate the presence of two fucoidan epitopes in six animals belonging to three phyla including Porifera, Molusca, and Chordata. We studied the spatial distribution of these epitopes in Cliona celata (“boring sponge” and identified their restricted localization on the surface of internal chambers. Our results show the potential of high-throughput screening and probes commonly used in plant and algal cell wall biology to study the diversity and distribution of glycan structures in metazoans.

Looking for hotspots of marine metacommunity connectivity: a methodological framework

Science.gov (United States)

Melià, Paco; Schiavina, Marcello; Rossetto, Marisa; Gatto, Marino; Fraschetti, Simonetta; Casagrandi, Renato

2016-03-01

Seascape connectivity critically affects the spatiotemporal dynamics of marine metacommunities. Understanding how connectivity patterns emerge from physically and biologically-mediated interactions is therefore crucial to conserve marine ecosystem functions and biodiversity. Here, we develop a set of biophysical models to explore connectivity in assemblages of species belonging to a typical Mediterranean community (Posidonia oceanica meadows) and characterized by different dispersing traits. We propose a novel methodological framework to synthesize species-specific results into a set of community connectivity metrics and show that spatiotemporal variation in magnitude and direction of the connections, as well as interspecific differences in dispersing traits, are key factors structuring community connectivity. We eventually demonstrate how these metrics can be used to characterize the functional role of each marine area in determining patterns of community connectivity at the basin level and to support marine conservation planning.

Underwater itineraries at Egadi Islands: Marine biodiversity protection through actions for sustainable tourism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cocito, Silvia; Delbono, Ivana; Barsanti, Mattia; Di Nallo, Giuseppina; Lombardi, Chiara; Peirano, Andrea

2015-01-01

Sustainable tourism is recognized as a high priority for environmental and biological conservation. Promoting protection of local biological and environmental resources is a useful action for conservation of marine biodiversity in Marine Protected Areas and for stimulating awareness among residents and visitors. The publication of two books dedicated to the description of 28 selected underwater itineraries, for divers and snorkelers, and a web site with underwater videos represent concrete actions by ENEA for the promotion of sustainable tourism at the Marine Protected Area of Egadi Islands (Sicily, Italy). 177 species were recorded at Favignana, and around the same number at Marettimo and Levanzo islands: among those species, some of them are important for conservation and protection (e.g. Astrospartus mediterraneus), some of them are rare (i.e. Anthipatella subpinnata) and with a high aesthetic value (e.g. Paramuricea clavata, Savalia savaglia), while others are invasive (e.g. Caulerpa cylindracea) [it

Design and properties of marine reactors and associated R and D

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gagarinski, A; Ignatiev, V [Russian Research Centre Kurchatov Inst., Moscow (Russian Federation); Devell, L [Studsvik Eco and Safety AB, Nykoeping (Sweden)

1996-05-01

The report is a review of open information available in the USA, UK, France, Russia and other countries on the design and properties of marine reactors and associated R and D. First, a short discussion is given of the milestones and main trends for the development of nuclear-powered ships. Then a brief review is presented of features for ship reactor design. Light water and liquid metal cooled reactor technologies are described and reactor operating experiences for Russian ice-breakers assessed. Traditional and alternative civil uses of submarine and surface shipboard reactor technology in Russia and Japan are also treated. Finally, some problems connected with radioactive waste by the nuclear-powered fleet are briefly considered. 41 refs, 27 figs, 19 tabs.

Design and properties of marine reactors and associated R and D

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gagarinski, A.; Ignatiev, V.; Devell, L.

1996-05-01

The report is a review of open information available in the USA, UK, France, Russia and other countries on the design and properties of marine reactors and associated R and D. First, a short discussion is given of the milestones and main trends for the development of nuclear-powered ships. Then a brief review is presented of features for ship reactor design. Light water and liquid metal cooled reactor technologies are described and reactor operating experiences for Russian ice-breakers assessed. Traditional and alternative civil uses of submarine and surface shipboard reactor technology in Russia and Japan are also treated. Finally, some problems connected with radioactive waste by the nuclear-powered fleet are briefly considered. 41 refs, 27 figs, 19 tabs

Subcellular partitioning kinetics, metallothionein response and oxidative damage in the marine mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis exposed to cadmium-based quantum dots

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rocha, Thiago Lopes [CIMA, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro (Portugal); Gomes, Tânia [CIMA, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro (Portugal); Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Gaustadalléen 21, NO-0349 Oslo (Norway); Durigon, Emerson Giuliani [CIMA, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro (Portugal); Bebianno, Maria João, E-mail: mbebian@ualg.pt [CIMA, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro (Portugal)

2016-06-01

The environmental health impact of metal-based nanomaterials is of emerging concern, but their metabolism and detoxification pathways in marine bioindicator species remain unclear. This study investigated the role of subcellular partitioning kinetics, metallothioneins (MTs) response and oxidative damage (lipid peroxidation – LPO) in the marine mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis exposed to CdTe quantum dots (QDs) in comparison with its dissolved counterpart. Mussels were exposed to QDs and dissolved Cd for 21 days at 10 μg Cd L{sup −1} followed by a 50 days depuration. Higher Cd concentrations were detected in fractions containing mitochondria, nucleus and lysosomes, suggesting potential subcellular targets of QDs toxicity in mussel tissues. Tissue specific metabolism patterns were observed in mussels exposed to both Cd forms. Although MT levels were directly associated with Cd in both forms, QDs subcellular partitioning is linked to biologically active metal (BAM), but no increase in LPO occurred, while in the case of dissolved Cd levels are in the biologically detoxified metal (BDM) form, indicating nano-specific effects. Mussel gills showed lower detoxification capability of QDs, while the digestive gland is the major tissue for storage and detoxification of both Cd forms. Both mussel tissues were unable to completely eliminate the Cd accumulated in the QDs form (estimated half-life time > 50 days), highlighting the potential source of Cd and QDs toxicity for human and environmental health. Results indicate tissue specific metabolism patterns and nano-specific effects in marine mussel exposed to QDs. - Highlights: • Subcellular partitioning and MT response are Cd form, tissue and time dependent. • Tissue specific metabolism of Cd-based quantum dots (QDs) in marine mussels. • QDs are slower biologically detoxified when compared to dissolved Cd. • Subcellular partitioning and biomarker responses indicate nano-specific effects. • Subcellular

DEGRADATION OF WEATHERED OIL BY MIXED MARINE BACTERIA AND THE TOXICITY OF ACCUMULATED WATER-SOLUBLE MATERIAL TO TWO MARINE CRUSTACEA

Science.gov (United States)

Artificially weathered crude oil was degraded by four diverse cultures of mixed marine bacteria under optimized conditions for 7 and 14 days. Loss in total weight of starting oil (30 g) ranged from 6.8-17.3% in biologically active incubations compared with only 0.9-1.1% in steril...

Indicator-based assessment of marine biological diversity – lessons from 10 case studies across the European Seas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Uusitalo

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The Marine Strategy Framework Directive requires the environmental status of European marine waters to be assessed using biodiversity as one out of 11 descriptors, but the complexity of marine biodiversity and its large span across latitudinal and salinity gradients have been a challenge to the scientific community aiming to produce approaches for integrating information from a broad range of indicators. The Nested Environmental status Assessment Tool (NEAT, developed for the integrated assessment of the status of marine waters, was applied to ten marine ecosystems to test its applicability and compare biodiversity assessments across the four European regional seas. We evaluate the assessment results as well as the assessment designs of the ten cases, and how the assessment design, particularly the choices made regarding the area and indicator selection, affected the results. The results show that only 2 out of the 10 case study areas show more than 50 % probability of being in good status in respect of biodiversity. No strong pattern among the ecosystem components across the case study areas could be detected, but marine mammals, birds, and benthic vegetation indicators tended to indicate poor status while zooplankton indicators indicated good status when included into the assessment. The analysis shows that the assessment design, including the selection of indicators, their target values, geographical resolution and habitats to be assessed, has potentially a high impact on the result, and the assessment structure needs to be understood in order to make an informed assessment. Moreover, recommendations are provided for the best practice of using NEAT for marine status assessments.

Cumulative human impacts on marine predators.

Science.gov (United States)

Maxwell, Sara M; Hazen, Elliott L; Bograd, Steven J; Halpern, Benjamin S; Breed, Greg A; Nickel, Barry; Teutschel, Nicole M; Crowder, Larry B; Benson, Scott; Dutton, Peter H; Bailey, Helen; Kappes, Michelle A; Kuhn, Carey E; Weise, Michael J; Mate, Bruce; Shaffer, Scott A; Hassrick, Jason L; Henry, Robert W; Irvine, Ladd; McDonald, Birgitte I; Robinson, Patrick W; Block, Barbara A; Costa, Daniel P

2013-01-01

Stressors associated with human activities interact in complex ways to affect marine ecosystems, yet we lack spatially explicit assessments of cumulative impacts on ecologically and economically key components such as marine predators. Here we develop a metric of cumulative utilization and impact (CUI) on marine predators by combining electronic tracking data of eight protected predator species (n=685 individuals) in the California Current Ecosystem with data on 24 anthropogenic stressors. We show significant variation in CUI with some of the highest impacts within US National Marine Sanctuaries. High variation in underlying species and cumulative impact distributions means that neither alone is sufficient for effective spatial management. Instead, comprehensive management approaches accounting for both cumulative human impacts and trade-offs among multiple stressors must be applied in planning the use of marine resources.

Exotic harmful algae in marine ecosystems : an integrated biological-economic-legal analysis of impacts and policies

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Bergh, JCJM; Nunes, PALD; Dotinga, HM; Kooistra, WHCF; Vrieling, EG; Peperzak, L

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are the cause of important damages to marine living resources and human beings. HABs are generated by micro-algae. These marine species are primarily introduced through ballast water of ships and, to a lesser extent, through import of living fish, in particular shellfish.

Marine Natural Products from New Caledonia—A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sofia-Eléna Motuhi

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Marine micro- and macroorganisms are well known to produce metabolites with high biotechnological potential. Nearly 40 years of systematic prospecting all around the New Caledonia archipelago and several successive research programs have uncovered new chemical leads from benthic and planktonic organisms. After species identification, biological and/or pharmaceutical analyses are performed on marine organisms to assess their bioactivities. A total of 3582 genera, 1107 families and 9372 species have been surveyed and more than 350 novel molecular structures have been identified. Along with their bioactivities that hold promise for therapeutic applications, most of these molecules are also potentially useful for cosmetics and food biotechnology. This review highlights the tremendous marine diversity in New Caledonia, and offers an outline of the vast possibilities for natural products, especially in the interest of pursuing collaborative fundamental research programs and developing local biotechnology programs.

Ecotoxicology of arsenic in the marine environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Neff, J.M. [Battelle Ocean Sciences Lab., Duxbury, MA (United States)

1997-05-01

Arsenic has a complex marine biogeochemistry that has important implications for its toxicity to marine organisms and their consumers. The average concentration of total arsenic in the ocean is about 1.7 {micro}g/L, about two orders of magnitude higher than the US Environmental Protection Agency`s human health criterion value of 0.0175 {micro}g/L. The dominant form of arsenic in oxygenated marine and brackish waters in arsenate (As V). The more toxic and potentially carcinogenic arsenite (As III) rarely accounts for more than 20% of total arsenic in seawater. Uncontaminated marine sediments contain from 5 to about 40 {micro}g/g dry weight total arsenic. Arsenate dominates in oxidized sediments and is associated primarily with iron oxyhydroxides. In reducing marine sediments, arsenate is reduced to arsenite and is associated primarily with sulfide minerals. Marine algae accumulate arsenate from seawater, reduce it to arsenite, and then oxidize the arsenite to a large number of organoarsenic compounds. The algae release arsenite, methylarsonic acid, and dimethylarsinic acid to seawater. Dissolved arsenite and arsenate are more toxic to marine phytoplankton than to marine invertebrates and fish. This may be due to the fact that marine animals have a limited ability to bioconcentrate inorganic arsenic from seawater but can bioaccumulate organoarsenic compounds from their food. Tissues of marine invertebrates and fish contain high concentrations of arsenic, usually in the range of about 1 to 100 {micro}g/g dry weight, most of it in the form of organoarsenic compounds, particularly arsenobetaine. Organoarsenic compounds are bioaccumulated by human consumers of seafood products, but the arsenic is excreted rapidly, mostly as organoarsenic compounds. Arsenobetaine, the most abundant organoarsenic compound in seafoods, is not toxic or carcinogenic to mammals. Little of the organoarsenic accumulated by humans from seafood is converted to toxic inorganic arsenite.

Attenuation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa virulence by marine invertebrate–derived Streptomyces sp.

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Naik, D.N.; Wahidullah, S.; Meena, R.M.

-Gly is to some extent responsible for the observed biological activity, cinnamic acid seems to be the main compound responsible for it. Marine-derived actinomycetes are a potential storehouse for QS inhibitors....

Cumulative and Synergistic Effects of Physical, Biological, and Acoustic Signals on Marine Mammal Habitat Use Physical Oceanography Component: Soundscapes Under Sea Ice: Can We Listen for Open Water?

Science.gov (United States)

2013-09-30

Physical, Biological, and Acoustic Signals on Marine Mammal Habitat Use Physical Oceanography Component: Soundscapes Under Sea Ice: Can we listen for... Soundscapes Under Sea Ice: Can we listen for open water? 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d...the source. These different sounds can be described as “ soundscapes ”, and graphically represented by comparing two or more features of the sound

Antifouling Compounds from Marine Macroalgae.

Science.gov (United States)

Dahms, Hans Uwe; Dobretsov, Sergey

2017-08-28

Marine macroalgae produce a wide variety of biologically-active metabolites that have been developed into commercial products, such as antibiotics, immunosuppressive, anti-inflammatory, cytotoxic agents, and cosmetic products. Many marine algae remain clean over longer periods of time, suggesting their strong antifouling potential. Isolation of biogenic compounds and the determination of their structure could provide leads for the development of environmentally-friendly antifouling paints. Isolated substances with potent antifouling activity belong to fatty acids, lipopeptides, amides, alkaloids, lactones, steroids, terpenoids, and pyrroles. It is unclear as yet to what extent symbiotic microorganisms are involved in the synthesis of these compounds. Algal secondary metabolites have the potential to be produced commercially using genetic and metabolic engineering techniques. This review provides an overview of publications from 2010 to February 2017 about antifouling activity of green, brown, and red algae. Some researchers were focusing on antifouling compounds of brown macroalgae, while metabolites of green algae received less attention. Several studies tested antifouling activity against bacteria, microalgae and invertebrates, but in only a few studies was the quorum sensing inhibitory activity of marine macroalgae tested. Rarely, antifouling compounds from macroalgae were isolated and tested in an ecologically-relevant way.

Technetium-99 content in some marine organisms collected near La Hague, France

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeanmaire, L.; Patti, F.; Cappellini, L.; Masson, M.; Germain, P.

1981-01-01

Analyses for 99 Tc in some marine biological samples taken near the outlet of the low level radioactive effluent pipeline of the nuclear reprocessing plant of La Hague, France, gave positive results. From 500 to 3500 pCi kg -1 wet weight of 99 Tc were observed in brown algae; Fucus sp. appeared to be a good indicator of this long-lived radionuclide in a marine environment. (author)

Conformational stability and self-association equilibrium in biologics.

Science.gov (United States)

Clarkson, Benjamin R; Schön, Arne; Freire, Ernesto

2016-02-01

Biologics exist in equilibrium between native, partially denatured, and denatured conformational states. The population of any of these states is dictated by their Gibbs energy and can be altered by changes in physical and solution conditions. Some conformations have a tendency to self-associate and aggregate, an undesirable phenomenon in protein therapeutics. Conformational equilibrium and self-association are linked thermodynamic functions. Given that any associative reaction is concentration dependent, conformational stability studies performed at different protein concentrations can provide early clues to future aggregation problems. This analysis can be applied to the selection of protein variants or the identification of better formulation solutions. In this review, we discuss three different aggregation situations and their manifestation in the observed conformational equilibrium of a protein. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Praziquantel degradation in marine aquarium water

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amber Thomas

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Praziquantel (PZQ is a drug commonly utilized to treat both human schistosomiasis and some parasitic infections and infestations in animals. In the aquarium industry, PZQ can be administered in a “bath” to treat the presence of ectoparasites on both the gills and skin of fish and elasmobranchs. In order to fully treat an infestation, the bath treatment has to maintain therapeutic levels of PZQ over a period of days or weeks. It has long been assumed that, once administered, PZQ is stable in a marine environment throughout the treatment interval and must be mechanically removed, but no controlled experiments have been conducted to validate that claim. This study aimed to determine if PZQ would break down naturally within a marine aquarium below its 2 ppm therapeutic level during a typical 30-day treatment: and if so, does the presence of fish or the elimination of all living biological material impact the degradation of PZQ? Three 650 L marine aquarium systems, each containing 12 fish (French grunts: Haemulon flavolineatum, and three 650 L marine aquariums each containing no fish were treated with PZQ (2 ppm and concentrations were measured daily for 30 days. After one round of treatment, the PZQ was no longer detectable in any system after 8 (±1 days. The subsequent two PZQ treatments yielded even faster PZQ breakdown (non-detectable after 2 days and 2 ± 1 day, respectively with slight variations between systems. Linear mixed effects models of the data indicate that day and trial most impact PZQ degradation, while the presence of fish was not a factor in the best-fit models. In a completely sterilized marine system (0.5 L PZQ concentration remained unchanged over 15 days, suggesting that PZQ may be stable in a marine system during this time period. The degradation observed in non-sterile marine systems in this study may be microbial in nature. This work should be taken into consideration when providing PZQ bath treatments to marine animals

Effects of nanomaterials on marine invertebrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Canesi, Laura; Corsi, Ilaria

2016-09-15

The development of nanotechnology will inevitably lead to the release of consistent amounts of nanomaterials (NMs) and nanoparticles (NPs) into marine ecosystems. Ecotoxicological studies have been carried out to identify potential biological targets of NPs, and suitable models for predicting their impact on the health of the marine environment. Recent studies in invertebrates mainly focused on NP accumulation and sub-lethal effects, rather than acute toxicity. Among marine invertebrates, bivalves represent by large the most studied group, with polychaetes and echinoderms also emerging as significant targets of NPs. However, major scientific gaps still need to be filled. In this work, factors affecting the fate of NPs in the marine environment, and their consequent uptake/accumulation/toxicity in marine invertebrates will be summarized. The results show that in different model species, NP accumulation mainly occurs in digestive tract and gills. Data on sub-lethal effects and modes of action of different types of NPs (mainly metal oxides and metal based NPs) in marine invertebrates will be reviewed, in particular on immune function, oxidative stress and embryo development. Moreover, the possibility that such effects may be influenced by NP interactions with biomolecules in both external and internal environment will be introduced. In natural environmental media, NP interactions with polysaccharides, proteins and colloids may affect their agglomeration/aggregation and consequent bioavailability. Moreover, once within the organism, NPs are known to interact with plasma proteins, forming a protein corona that can affect particle uptake and toxicity in target cells in a physiological environment. These interactions, leading to the formation of eco-bio-coronas, may be crucial in determining particle behavior and effects also in marine biota. In order to classify NPs into groups and predict the implications of their release into the marine environment, information on

Marine Bacteria with antimicrobials capacity isolated from cultures of bivalve mollusks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabiola Pellon

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Microorganisms have commonly been studied as producers of antibacterial substances; yet they are also considered producers of antifungic, antiviral, antiparasitic, citotoxics and inhibitory of other forms of cellular growth substances. This paper describes the isolation, inhibitory potential and phenotipic characterization of native bacterial strains associated to bivalve mollusks such as Argopecten purpuratus “concha de abanico” and Crassostrea gigas “ostra” in cultivation systems. From 345 marine strains collected, 20 strains were recovered that had the ability of inhibiting a wide spectrum of fish, mollusks and shellfish pathogenic bacteria; being the most sensitive pathogens Aeromonas sobria P-281, Aeromonas hydrophila ATCC 7966, Vibrio vulnificus ATCC 27562 and Vibrio parahaemolyticus ATCC 17803. The phenotipic characterization of this strains with inhibitory capacity allowed the identification of the following genera: Vibrio (40%, Aeromonas (15%, Flavobacterium (10%, Pseudomonas (5%, Moraxella (5%, Flexibacter (5%. A 20% could not be identified. The results suggest that the isolated bacteria could be used as probiotics agents for the biological control of pathogens from marine organisms of interest in mariculture.

Chemical Oceanography and the Marine Carbon Cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Emerson, Steven; Hedges, John

The principles of chemical oceanography provide insight into the processes regulating the marine carbon cycle. The text offers a background in chemical oceanography and a description of how chemical elements in seawater and ocean sediments are used as tracers of physical, biological, chemical and geological processes in the ocean. The first seven chapters present basic topics of thermodynamics, isotope systematics and carbonate chemistry, and explain the influence of life on ocean chemistry and how it has evolved in the recent (glacial-interglacial) past. This is followed by topics essential to understanding the carbon cycle, including organic geochemistry, air-sea gas exchange, diffusion and reaction kinetics, the marine and atmosphere carbon cycle and diagenesis in marine sediments. Figures are available to download from www.cambridge.org/9780521833134. Ideal as a textbook for upper-level undergraduates and graduates in oceanography, environmental chemistry, geochemistry and earth science and a valuable reference for researchers in oceanography.

Reductive Dehalogenation of Brominated Phenolic Compounds by Microorganisms Associated with the Marine Sponge Aplysina aerophoba

Science.gov (United States)

Ahn, Young-Beom; Rhee, Sung-Keun; Fennell, Donna E.; Kerkhof, Lee J.; Hentschel, Ute; Häggblom, Max M.

2003-01-01

Marine sponges are natural sources of brominated organic compounds, including bromoindoles, bromophenols, and bromopyrroles, that may comprise up to 12% of the sponge dry weight. Aplysina aerophoba sponges harbor large numbers of bacteria that can amount to 40% of the biomass of the animal. We postulated that there might be mechanisms for microbially mediated degradation of these halogenated chemicals within the sponges. The capability of anaerobic microorganisms associated with the marine sponge to transform haloaromatic compounds was tested under different electron-accepting conditions (i.e., denitrifying, sulfidogenic, and methanogenic). We observed dehalogenation activity of sponge-associated microorganisms with various haloaromatics. 2-Bromo-, 3-bromo-, 4-bromo-, 2,6-dibromo-, and 2,4,6-tribromophenol, and 3,5-dibromo-4-hydroxybenzoate were reductively debrominated under methanogenic and sulfidogenic conditions with no activity observed in the presence of nitrate. Monochlorinated phenols were not transformed over a period of 1 year. Debromination of 2,4,6-tribromophenol, and 2,6-dibromophenol to 2-bromophenol was more rapid than the debromination of the monobrominated phenols. Ampicillin and chloramphenicol inhibited activity, suggesting that dehalogenation was mediated by bacteria. Characterization of the debrominating methanogenic consortia by using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (TRFLP) and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analysis indicated that different 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) phylotypes were enriched on the different halogenated substrates. Sponge-associated microorganisms enriched on organobromine compounds had distinct 16S rDNA TRFLP patterns and were most closely related to the δ subgroup of the proteobacteria. The presence of homologous reductive dehalogenase gene motifs in the sponge-associated microorganisms suggested that reductive dehalogenation might be coupled to dehalorespiration. PMID:12839794

Anti-photoaging and Photoprotective Compounds Derived from Marine Organisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramjee Pallela

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Marine organisms form a prominent component of the oceanic population, which significantly contribute in the production of cosmeceutical and pharmaceutical molecules with biologically efficient moieties. In addition to the molecules of various biological activities like anti-bacterial, anti-cancerous, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative etc., these organisms also produce potential photoprotective or anti-photoaging agents, which are attracting present day researchers. Continuous exposure to UV irradiation (both UV-A and UV-B leads to the skin cancer and other photoaging complications, which are typically mediated by the reactive oxygen species (ROS, generated in the oxidative pathways. Many of the anti-oxidative and anti-photoaging compounds have been identified previously, which work efficiently against photodamage of the skin. Recently, marine originated photoprotective or anti-photoaging behavior was observed in the methanol extracts of Corallina pilulifera (CPM. These extracts were found to exert potent antioxidant activity and protective effect on UV-A-induced oxidative stress in human dermal fibroblast (HDF cells by protecting DNA and also by inhibiting matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs, a key component in photoaging of the skin due to exposure to UV-A. The present review depicts various other photoprotective compounds from algae and other marine sources for further elaborative research and their probable use in cosmeceutical and pharmaceutical industries.

Mesoscale eddies are oases for higher trophic marine life

KAUST Repository

Godø , Olav R.; Samuelsen, Annette; Macaulay, Gavin J.; Patel, Ruben; Hjø llo, Solfrid Sæ tre; Horne, John; Kaartvedt, Stein; Johannessen, Johnny A.

2012-01-01

Mesoscale eddies stimulate biological production in the ocean, but knowledge of energy transfers to higher trophic levels within eddies remains fragmented and not quantified. Increasing the knowledge base is constrained by the inability of traditional sampling methods to adequately sample biological processes at the spatio-temporal scales at which they occur. By combining satellite and acoustic observations over spatial scales of 10 s of km horizontally and 100 s of m vertically, supported by hydrographical and biological sampling we show that anticyclonic eddies shape distribution and density of marine life from the surface to bathyal depths. Fish feed along density structures of eddies, demonstrating that eddies catalyze energy transfer across trophic levels. Eddies create attractive pelagic habitats, analogous to oases in the desert, for higher trophic level aquatic organisms through enhanced 3-D motion that accumulates and redistributes biomass, contributing to overall bioproduction in the ocean. Integrating multidisciplinary observation methodologies promoted a new understanding of biophysical interaction in mesoscale eddies. Our findings emphasize the impact of eddies on the patchiness of biomass in the sea and demonstrate that they provide rich feeding habitat for higher trophic marine life. 2012 God et al.

Mesoscale eddies are oases for higher trophic marine life

KAUST Repository

Godø, Olav R.

2012-01-17

Mesoscale eddies stimulate biological production in the ocean, but knowledge of energy transfers to higher trophic levels within eddies remains fragmented and not quantified. Increasing the knowledge base is constrained by the inability of traditional sampling methods to adequately sample biological processes at the spatio-temporal scales at which they occur. By combining satellite and acoustic observations over spatial scales of 10 s of km horizontally and 100 s of m vertically, supported by hydrographical and biological sampling we show that anticyclonic eddies shape distribution and density of marine life from the surface to bathyal depths. Fish feed along density structures of eddies, demonstrating that eddies catalyze energy transfer across trophic levels. Eddies create attractive pelagic habitats, analogous to oases in the desert, for higher trophic level aquatic organisms through enhanced 3-D motion that accumulates and redistributes biomass, contributing to overall bioproduction in the ocean. Integrating multidisciplinary observation methodologies promoted a new understanding of biophysical interaction in mesoscale eddies. Our findings emphasize the impact of eddies on the patchiness of biomass in the sea and demonstrate that they provide rich feeding habitat for higher trophic marine life. 2012 God et al.

Mesoscale eddies are oases for higher trophic marine life.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olav R Godø

Full Text Available Mesoscale eddies stimulate biological production in the ocean, but knowledge of energy transfers to higher trophic levels within eddies remains fragmented and not quantified. Increasing the knowledge base is constrained by the inability of traditional sampling methods to adequately sample biological processes at the spatio-temporal scales at which they occur. By combining satellite and acoustic observations over spatial scales of 10 s of km horizontally and 100 s of m vertically, supported by hydrographical and biological sampling we show that anticyclonic eddies shape distribution and density of marine life from the surface to bathyal depths. Fish feed along density structures of eddies, demonstrating that eddies catalyze energy transfer across trophic levels. Eddies create attractive pelagic habitats, analogous to oases in the desert, for higher trophic level aquatic organisms through enhanced 3-D motion that accumulates and redistributes biomass, contributing to overall bioproduction in the ocean. Integrating multidisciplinary observation methodologies promoted a new understanding of biophysical interaction in mesoscale eddies. Our findings emphasize the impact of eddies on the patchiness of biomass in the sea and demonstrate that they provide rich feeding habitat for higher trophic marine life.

Status of marine turtle rehabilitation in Queensland

OpenAIRE

Jaylene Flint; Mark Flint; Colin James Limpus; Paul Mills

2017-01-01

Rehabilitation of marine turtles in Queensland has multifaceted objectives. It treats individual animals, serves to educate the public, and contributes to conservation. We examined the outcome from rehabilitation, time in rehabilitation, and subsequent recapture and restranding rates of stranded marine turtles between 1996 and 2013 to determine if the benefits associated with this practice are cost-effective as a conservation tool. Of 13,854 marine turtles reported as stranded during this 18-...

Marine Invertebrate Natural Products for Anti-Inflammatory and Chronic Diseases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kalimuthu Senthilkumar

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The marine environment represents a relatively available source of functional ingredients that can be applied to various aspects of food processing, storage, and fortification. Moreover, numerous marine invertebrates based compounds have biological activities and also interfere with the pathogenesis of diseases. Isolated compounds from marine invertebrates have been shown to pharmacological activities and are helpful for the invention and discovery of bioactive compounds, primarily for deadly diseases like cancer, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS, osteoporosis, and so forth. Extensive research within the last decade has revealed that most chronic illnesses such as cancer, neurological diseases, diabetes, and autoimmune diseases exhibit dysregulation of multiple cell signaling pathways that have been linked to inflammation. On the basis of their bioactive properties, this review focuses on the potential use of marine invertebrate derived compounds on anti-inflammatory and some chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, HIV, and cancer.

Biological substantiation of antipsychotic-associated pneumonia: Systematic literature review and computational analyses.

Science.gov (United States)

Sultana, Janet; Calabró, Marco; Garcia-Serna, Ricard; Ferrajolo, Carmen; Crisafulli, Concetta; Mestres, Jordi; Trifirò', Gianluca

2017-01-01

Antipsychotic (AP) safety has been widely investigated. However, mechanisms underlying AP-associated pneumonia are not well-defined. The aim of this study was to investigate the known mechanisms of AP-associated pneumonia through a systematic literature review, confirm these mechanisms using an independent data source on drug targets and attempt to identify novel AP drug targets potentially linked to pneumonia. A search was conducted in Medline and Web of Science to identify studies exploring the association between pneumonia and antipsychotic use, from which information on hypothesized mechanism of action was extracted. All studies had to be in English and had to concern AP use as an intervention in persons of any age and for any indication, provided that the outcome was pneumonia. Information on the study design, population, exposure, outcome, risk estimate and mechanism of action was tabulated. Public repositories of pharmacology and drug safety data were used to identify the receptor binding profile and AP safety events. Cytoscape was then used to map biological pathways that could link AP targets and off-targets to pneumonia. The literature search yielded 200 articles; 41 were included in the review. Thirty studies reported a hypothesized mechanism of action, most commonly activation/inhibition of cholinergic, histaminergic and dopaminergic receptors. In vitro pharmacology data confirmed receptor affinities identified in the literature review. Two targets, thromboxane A2 receptor (TBXA2R) and platelet activating factor receptor (PTAFR) were found to be novel AP target receptors potentially associated with pneumonia. Biological pathways constructed using Cytoscape identified plausible biological links potentially leading to pneumonia downstream of TBXA2R and PTAFR. Innovative approaches for biological substantiation of drug-adverse event associations may strengthen evidence on drug safety profiles and help to tailor pharmacological therapies to patient risk

Marine metagenomics as a source for bioprospecting

KAUST Repository

Kodzius, Rimantas

2015-08-12

This review summarizes usage of genome-editing technologies for metagenomic studies; these studies are used to retrieve and modify valuable microorganisms for production, particularly in marine metagenomics. Organisms may be cultivable or uncultivable. Metagenomics is providing especially valuable information for uncultivable samples. The novel genes, pathways and genomes can be deducted. Therefore, metagenomics, particularly genome engineering and system biology, allows for the enhancement of biological and chemical producers and the creation of novel bioresources. With natural resources rapidly depleting, genomics may be an effective way to efficiently produce quantities of known and novel foods, livestock feed, fuels, pharmaceuticals and fine or bulk chemicals.

77 FR 73986 - Marine Mammals; Issuance of Permits

Science.gov (United States)

2012-12-12

..., Department of Biology, Roger Williams University, Bristol, RI on June 5, 2012, for level B harassment of... INFORMATION for a list of names and address of recipients. ADDRESSES: The Letters of Confirmation and related... research that may result only in taking by level B harassment of marine mammals. The following Letters of...

Global imprint of climate change on marine life

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Poloczanska, Elvira S.; Brown, Christopher J.; Sydeman, William J.

2013-01-01

Past meta-analyses of the response of marine organisms to climate change have examined a limited range of locations1,2, taxonomic groups2–4 and/or biological responses5,6. This has precluded a robust overview of the effect of climate change in the global ocean. Here, we synthesized all available ...

Dr Jacob van der Land, marine biologist extraordinary

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bruggen, van A.C.

2001-01-01

This contribution is an attempt to sketch the life and works of Dr Jacob van der Land, curator of worms and chief marine biologist of the National Museum of Natural History, on the occasion of his official retirement. Born in 1935, Jacob van der Land read biology at Leiden University (1958-1964),

CeDAMar global database of abyssal biological sampling

OpenAIRE

Stuart, Carol T.; Arbizu, Pedro Martinez; Smith, Craig R.; Molodtsova, Tina; Brandt, Angelika; Etter, Ron J.; Escobar-briones, Elva; Fabri, Marie-claire; Rex, Michael A.

2008-01-01

The Census of the Diversity of Abyssal Marine Life (CeDAMar), a division of the Census of Marine Life, has compiled the first comprehensive global database of biological samples taken in the abyssal plains of the world ocean. It is an essential resource for planning future exploration of the abyss, for synthesizing patterns of biogeography and biodiversity, and for environmentally safe exploitation of natural resources. The database is described in this article, and made available to investig...

Cancer Preventive Efficacy of Marine Carotenoid Fucoxanthin: Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thamaraiselvan Rengarajan

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Epidemiological investigations have shown that overcoming the risk of cancer is related to the consumption of green vegetables and fruits. Many compounds from different origins, such as terrestrial plants and marine and microbial sources, have been reported to have therapeutic effects of which marine sources are the most important because the diversity of marine life is more varied than other sources. Fucoxanthin is one important compound with a marine origin and belongs to the group of carotenoids; it can be found in marine brown seaweeds, macroalgae, and diatoms, all of which have remarkable biological properties. Numerous studies have shown that fucoxanthin has considerable medicinal potential and promising applications in human health. In this review, we summarize the anticancer effects of fucoxanthin through several different mechanisms including anti-proliferation, induction of apoptosis, cell cycle arrest and anti-angiogenesis, and its possible role in the treatment of cancer.

Strengthened enforcement enhances marine sanctuary performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brendan P. Kelaher

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Marine sanctuaries are areas where the extraction of biota is not permitted. Although most marine sanctuaries have a positive influence on biotic communities, not all sanctuaries are meeting their conservation objectives. Amidst possible explanations (e.g., size, age and isolation, insufficient enforcement is often speculated to be a key driver of marine sanctuary underperformance. Despite this, there are few studies directly linking quantitative enforcement data to changes in biotic communities within marine sanctuaries. Here, we used an asymmetrical-BACI experimental design from 2006–2012 to test whether new enforcement initiatives enhanced abundances of target fishes and threatened species in an existing large sub-tropical marine sanctuary relative to areas open to fishing. Implementation of the new enforcement initiatives in 2010 was associated with a 201% increase in annual fine rate and a significant increase in target fish and elasmobranch abundance, as well as sightings of a critically-endangered shark, in the marine sanctuary relative to areas open to fishing. Overall, these results demonstrate that strengthening enforcement can have a rapid positive influence on target fish and perhaps threatened species in a subtropical marine sanctuary. From this, we contend that increased enforcement guided by risk-based compliance planning and operations may be a useful first step for improving underperforming marine sanctuaries.

Locomotion and the Cost of Hunting in Large, Stealthy Marine Carnivores.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Terrie M; Fuiman, Lee A; Davis, Randall W

2015-10-01

Foraging by large (>25 kg), mammalian carnivores often entails cryptic tactics to surreptitiously locate and overcome highly mobile prey. Many forms of intermittent locomotion from stroke-and-glide maneuvers by marine mammals to sneak-and-pounce behaviors by terrestrial canids, ursids, and felids are involved. While affording proximity to vigilant prey, these tactics are also associated with unique energetic costs and benefits to the predator. We examined the energetic consequences of intermittent locomotion in mammalian carnivores and assessed the role of these behaviors in overall foraging efficiency. Behaviorally-linked, three-axis accelerometers were calibrated to provide instantaneous locomotor behaviors and associated energetic costs for wild adult Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) diving beneath the Antarctic ice. The results were compared with previously published values for other marine and terrestrial carnivores. We found that intermittent locomotion in the form of extended glides, burst-and-glide swimming, and rollercoaster maneuvers while hunting silverfish (Pleuragramma antarcticum) resulted in a marked energetic savings for the diving seals relative to continuously stroking. The cost of a foraging dive by the seals decreased by 9.2-59.6%, depending on the proportion of time gliding. These energetic savings translated into exceptionally low transport costs during hunting (COTHUNT) for diving mammals. COTHUNT for Weddell seals was nearly six times lower than predicted for large terrestrial carnivores, and demonstrates the importance of turning off the propulsive machinery to facilitate cost-efficient foraging in highly active, air-breathing marine predators. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. All rights reserved. For permissions please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Exposure Patterns and Health Effects Associated with Swimming and Surfing in Polluted Marine Waters

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, S. B.

2007-05-01

Marine bathing beaches are closed to the public whenever water quality fails to meet State and Federal standards. In this talk I will explore the science (and lack thereof!) behind these beach closures, including the health effects data upon which standards are based, shortcomings of the current approach used for testing and notification, and the high degree of spatial and temporal heterogeneity associated with human exposure to pollutants in these systems. The talk will focus on examples from Huntington Beach, where the speaker has conducted research over the past several years.

Marine Sciences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1986-01-01

PNL research in the marine sciences is focused on establishing a basic understanding of the mechanisms of stress and tolerance in marine organisms exposed to contaminants. Several environmental stressors had been investigated in earlier energy-related research. In a landmark study, for example, PNL had established that the severity of fish disease caused by the common infectious agent, Flexobacter columnaris, was seriously aggravated by thermal enhancement and certain ecological factors. Subsequent studies demonstrated that the primary immune response in fish, challenged by columnaris, could be permanently suppressed by comparatively low tritium exposures. The research has suggested that a potential exists for a significant biological impact when an aquatic stressor is added to an ambient background of other stressors, which may include heat, heavy metal ions, radiation or infectious microorganisms. More recently, PNL investigators have shown that in response to heavy metal contaminants, animals synthesize specific proteins (metallothioneins), which bind and sequester metals in the animals, thus decreasing metal mobility and effects. Companion studies with host-specific intracellular pathogens are being used to investigate the effects of heavy metals on the synthesis of immune proteins, which mitigate disease processes. The results of these studies aid in predicting the ecological effects of energy-related contaminants on valued fin and shellfish species

Microarray glycan profiling reveals algal fucoidan epitopes in diverse marine metazoans

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Asunción Salmeán, Armando; Hervé, Cécile; Jørgensen, Bodil

2017-01-01

Despite the biological importance and pharmacological potential of glycans from marine organisms, there are many unanswered questions regarding their distribution, function, and evolution. Here we describe microarray-based glycan profiling of a diverse selection of marine animals using antibodies...... raised against fucoidan isolated from a brown alga. We demonstrate the presence of two fucoidan epitopes in six animals belonging to three phyla including Porifera, Molusca, and Chordata. We studied the spatial distribution of these epitopes in Cliona celata ("boring sponge") and identified...

Eutrophication status of marine environment of Mumbai and Jawaharlal Nehru ports

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sawant, S.S.; Prabhudessai, L.; Venkat, K.

The marine environment of Mumbai and Jawaharlal Nehru ports was monitored for some environmental and biological parameters during three different periods between 2001 and 2002. The results are compared with the records available since 1960s...

Proceedings of the 28. Arctic and Marine Oilspill Program (AMOP) Technical Seminar

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

Leading-edge technologies used in marine oil spill response operations were described at this international conference, along with other topics of interest such as contingency planning and legislation. The different sessions at this conference were entitled: (1) physical and chemical properties and behaviour of spilled oil, (2) oil spill fingerprinting, (3) activity updates and contingency planning, (4) oil spill risk assessment, (5) in-situ burning and oil spill treating agents, (6) containment and recovery, (7) shoreline protection and cleanup, (8) detection, tracking and remote sensing, (9) spill modelling, (10) biological effects of oil and oil biodegradation, and (11) recent spill experiences. The conference also featured a technical seminar on chemical spills with a special session on counter-terrorism. Several presentations described the process of oil in water interactions and were aimed at optimizing response functions in harsh Arctic marine waters and strategy development for marine oil spill response and shoreline assessment. Several studies also presented new mechanical, chemical and biological treatments for oil spills. All 68 presentations were indexed separately for inclusion in this database. (author)

Relative invasion risk for plankton across marine and freshwater systems: examining efficacy of proposed international ballast water discharge standards.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oscar Casas-Monroy

Full Text Available Understanding the implications of different management strategies is necessary to identify best conservation trajectories for ecosystems exposed to anthropogenic stressors. For example, science-based risk assessments at large scales are needed to understand efficacy of different vector management approaches aimed at preventing biological invasions associated with commercial shipping. We conducted a landscape-scale analysis to examine the relative invasion risk of ballast water discharges among different shipping pathways (e.g., Transoceanic, Coastal or Domestic, ecosystems (e.g., freshwater, brackish and marine, and timescales (annual and per discharge event under current and future management regimes. The arrival and survival potential of nonindigenous species (NIS was estimated based on directional shipping networks and their associated propagule pressure, environmental similarity between donor-recipient ecosystems (based on salinity and temperature, and effects of current and future management strategies (i.e., ballast water exchange and treatment to meet proposed international biological discharge standards. Our findings show that current requirements for ballast water exchange effectively reduce invasion risk to freshwater ecosystems but are less protective of marine ecosystems because of greater environmental mismatch between source (oceanic and recipient (freshwater ecoregions. Future requirements for ballast water treatment are expected to reduce risk of zooplankton NIS introductions across ecosystem types but are expected to be less effective in reducing risk of phytoplankton NIS. This large-scale risk assessment across heterogeneous ecosystems represents a major step towards understanding the likelihood of invasion in relation to shipping networks, the relative efficacy of different invasion management regimes and seizing opportunities to reduce the ecological and economic implications of biological invasions.

SBRML: a markup language for associating systems biology data with models.

Science.gov (United States)

Dada, Joseph O; Spasić, Irena; Paton, Norman W; Mendes, Pedro

2010-04-01

Research in systems biology is carried out through a combination of experiments and models. Several data standards have been adopted for representing models (Systems Biology Markup Language) and various types of relevant experimental data (such as FuGE and those of the Proteomics Standards Initiative). However, until now, there has been no standard way to associate a model and its entities to the corresponding datasets, or vice versa. Such a standard would provide a means to represent computational simulation results as well as to frame experimental data in the context of a particular model. Target applications include model-driven data analysis, parameter estimation, and sharing and archiving model simulations. We propose the Systems Biology Results Markup Language (SBRML), an XML-based language that associates a model with several datasets. Each dataset is represented as a series of values associated with model variables, and their corresponding parameter values. SBRML provides a flexible way of indexing the results to model parameter values, which supports both spreadsheet-like data and multidimensional data cubes. We present and discuss several examples of SBRML usage in applications such as enzyme kinetics, microarray gene expression and various types of simulation results. The XML Schema file for SBRML is available at http://www.comp-sys-bio.org/SBRML under the Academic Free License (AFL) v3.0.

NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Fluorescence and other Optical Properties of Biological Particles for Biological Warfare Agent Sensors

CERN Document Server

Hoekstra, Alfons; Videen, Gorden; Optics of Biological Particles

2007-01-01

This book covers the optics of single biological particles, both theory and experiment, with emphasis on Elastic Light Scattering and Fluorescence. It deals with the optics of bacteria (bio-aerosols), marine particles (selected phytoplankton communities) and red and white blood cells. Moreover, there are dedicated chapters on a general theory for scattering by a cell, and modelling and simulation of scattering by inhomogeneous biological cells. Finally, one chapter is dedicated to astro-biological signatures, discussing the possibilities for detecting non-terrestrial biological material. The volume has up-to-date discussions on new experimental and numerical techniques, and many examples of applications of these techniques in real-life systems, as used to detect and characterize e.g. biological warfare agents or human blood cells.

Some unsolved problems concerning copepods associated with marine invertebrates

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gotto, R.V.

1990-01-01

Three unsolved problems relating to symbiotic copepods of marine invertebrates are discussed: 1. The whereabouts of the unknown male of the gill parasite of lobsters, Nicothoe astaci. 2. The occurrence of very large and apparently post-reproductive females in the annelidicolous Cyclorhiza megalova.

Marine Polysaccharides: A Source of Bioactive Molecules for Cell Therapy and Tissue Engineering

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne-Marie Fischer

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The therapeutic potential of natural bioactive compounds such as polysaccharides, especially glycosaminoglycans, is now well documented, and this activity combined with natural biodiversity will allow the development of a new generation of therapeutics. Advances in our understanding of the biosynthesis, structure and function of complex glycans from mammalian origin have shown the crucial role of this class of molecules to modulate disease processes and the importance of a deeper knowledge of structure-activity relationships. Marine environment offers a tremendous biodiversity and original polysaccharides have been discovered presenting a great chemical diversity that is largely species specific. The study of the biological properties of the polysaccharides from marine eukaryotes and marine prokaryotes revealed that the polysaccharides from the marine environment could provide a valid alternative to traditional polysaccharides such as glycosaminoglycans. Marine polysaccharides present a real potential for natural product drug discovery and for the delivery of new marine derived products for therapeutic applications.

Lost in translation? Standardising the terminology used in marine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Confusion between terms and ambiguities among definitions have long plagued the field of invasion biology. One result is disruption in flow of information from researchers to policy-makers and managers who rely on science to inform regulatory frameworks and management actions. We reviewed the South African marine ...

The Distributed Biological Observatory (DBO)-A Change Detection Array in the Pacific Arctic Sector

Science.gov (United States)

Grebmeier, J. M.; Moore, S. E.; Cooper, L. W.; Frey, K. E.; Pickart, R. S.

2011-12-01

The Pacific sector of the Arctic Ocean is experiencing major reductions in seasonal sea ice extent and increases in sea surface temperatures. One of the key uncertainties in this region is how the marine ecosystem will respond to seasonal shifts in the timing of spring sea ice retreat and/or delays in fall sea ice formation. Variations in upper ocean water hydrography, planktonic production, pelagic-benthic coupling and sediment carbon cycling are all influenced by sea ice and temperature changes. Climate changes are likely to result in shifts in species composition and abundance, northward range expansions, and changes in lower trophic level productivity that can directly cascade and affect the life cycles of higher trophic level organisms. Several regionally critical marine sites in the Pacific Arctic sector that have very high biomass and are focused foraging points for apex predators have been re-occupied during multiple international cruises. The data documenting the importance of these ecosystem "hotspots" provide a growing marine time-series from the northern Bering Sea to Barrow Canyon at the boundary of the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. Results from these studies show spatial changes in carbon production and export to the sediments as indicated by infaunal community composition and biomass, shifts in sediment grain size on a S-to-N latitudinal gradient, and range extensions for lower trophic levels and further northward migration of higher trophic organisms, such as gray whales. There is also direct evidence of negative impacts on ice dependent species, such as walrus and polar bears. To more systematically track the broad biological response to sea ice retreat and associated environmental change, an international consortium of scientists are developing a "Distributed Biological Observatory" (DBO) that includes selected biological measurements at multiple trophic levels. The DBO currently focuses on five regional biological "hotspot" locations along a

Secondary Metabolites from the Culture of the Marine Sponge-Associated Fungi Talaromyces tratensis and Sporidesmium circinophorum.

Science.gov (United States)

Buttachon, Suradet; May Zin, War War; Dethoup, Tida; Gales, Luís; Pereira, José A; Silva, Artur M S; Kijjoa, Anake

2016-06-01

Wortmin (1), meso-1,4-bis(4-methoxybenzyl)-2,3-butanediol (2), and a new isocoumarin derivative tratenopyrone (3) were isolated from the marine sponge-associated fungus Talaromyces tratensis KUFA 0091. A new diphenyl ether derivative, circinophoric acid (4), was isolated, together with the previously reported anthraquinones catenarin and physcion, the benzophenone monomethylsoluchrin, and β-ergosterol-5,8-endoperoxide, from the marine sponge-associated fungus Sporidesmium circinophorum KUFA 0043. The structures of the new compounds were established based on an extensive analysis of 1D and 2D NMR spectra, and, in the case of compounds 2-4, also by X-ray analysis. All of the isolated compounds were tested for their antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, and multidrug-resistant isolates from the environment, as well as for their anti-quorum sensing based on the pigment production of Chromobacterium violaceum ATCC 31523. None of the compounds exhibited either antibacterial (MIC > 256 µg/mL) or anti-quorum sensing activities. The compounds were also inactive in the antifungal (MIC > 512 µg/mL) and cancer cell line (GI50 > 150 µM) assays. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Bioactivity of the extracts from some marine animals of the Indian coast

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Kamat, S.Y.; Solimabi; Naqvi, S.W.A.; DeSouza, L.; Reddy, C.V.G.; Bhakuni, D.S.; Dhawan, B.N.

Twenty six species of marine animals from Indian coast were extracted with aqueous ethanol and the extracts were subjected to a broad-based biological screening including the tests for antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antifertility...

World Register of marine Cave Species (WoRCS: a new Thematic Species Database for marine and anchialine cave biodiversity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vasilis Gerovasileiou

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Scientific exploration of marine cave environments and anchialine ecosystems over recent decades has led to outstanding discoveries of novel taxa, increasing our knowledge of biodiversity. However, biological research on underwater caves has taken place only in a few areas of the world and relevant information remains fragmented in isolated publications and databases. This fragmentation makes assessing the conservation status of marine cave species especially problematic, and this issue should be addressed urgently given the stresses resulting from planned and rampant development in the coastal zone worldwide. The goal of the World Register of marine Cave Species (WoRCS initiative is to create a comprehensive taxonomic and ecological database of known species from marine caves and anchialine systems worldwide and to present this as a Thematic Species Database (TSD of the World Register of marine Species (WoRMS. WoRCS will incorporate ecological data (e.g., type of environment, salinity regimes, and cave zone as well as geographical information on the distribution of species in cave and anchialine environments. Biodiversity data will be progressively assembled from individual database sources at regional, national or local levels, as well as from literature sources (estimate: >20,000 existing records of cave-dwelling species scattered in several databases. Information will be organized in the WoRCS database following a standard glossary based on existing terminology. Cave-related information will be managed by the WoRCS thematic editors with all data dynamically linked to WoRMS and its team of taxonomic editors. In order to mobilize data into global biogeographic databases, a Gazetteer of the Marine and Anchialine Caves of the World will be established. The presence records of species could be eventually georeferenced for submission to the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS and constitute an important dataset for biogeographical and

Development of marine flyash concrete and evaluation of its performance with respect to physico-chemical and biological factors in marine environment