scholarly journals Gammarus-Microbial Interactions: A Review

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Nelson
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Aquatic Ecosystems ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Fungal Species ◽  
Microbial Interactions ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Freshwater Habitats ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Survival And Growth ◽  
Organic Matter Fractions

Gammarusspp. are typically classified as shredders under the functional feeding group classification. In the wild and in the laboratory,Gammarusspp. will often shred leaves, breaking them down into finer organic matter fractions. However, leaf litter is a poor quality food source (i.e., high C : N and C : P ratios) and very little leaf material is assimilated by shredders. In freshwater habitats leaf litter is colonized rapidly (within ∼1-2 weeks) by aquatic fungi and bacteria, making the leaves more palatable and nutritious to consumers. Several studies have shown thatGammarusspp. show preference for conditioned leaves over nonconditioned leaves and certain fungal species to others. Furthermore,Gammarusspp. show increased survival and growth rates when fed conditioned leaves compared to non-conditioned leaves. Thus,Gammarusspp. appear to rely on the microbial biofilm associated with leaf detritus as a source of carbon and/or essential nutrients. Also,Gammarusspp. can have both positive and negative effects on the microbial communities on which they fed, making them an important component of the microbial loop in aquatic ecosystems.

scholarly journals Exogenous enzymes and probiotics alter digestion kinetics, volatile fatty acid content and microbial interactions in the gut of Nile tilapia

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roel M. Maas ◽  
Yale Deng ◽  
Yueming Dersjant-Li ◽  
Jules Petit ◽  
Marc C. J. Verdegem ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acid ◽  
Acid Content ◽  
Nile Tilapia ◽  
Volatile Fatty Acid ◽  
Fatty Acid Content ◽  
Microbial Interactions ◽  
Gut Health ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Exogenous Enzymes ◽  
Digestion Kinetics

AbstractSustainable aquafeed production requires fishmeal replacement, leading to an increasing use of plant-derived ingredients. As a consequence, higher levels of antinutritional substances, such as non-starch polysaccharides and phytate, are present in aquafeeds, with negative effects on fish performance, nutrient digestibility and overall gut health. To alleviate these negative effects, providing exogenous digestive enzymes and/or probiotics can be an effective solution. In this study, we tested the effect of dietary supplementation of enzymes (phytase and xylanase) and probiotics (three strains of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens) on nutrient digestion kinetics and volatile fatty acid content along the gut, and the distal gut microbiome diversity in Nile tilapia. Chyme volatile fatty content was increased with probiotic supplementation in the proximal gut, while lactate content, measured for the first time in vivo in fish, decreased with enzymes along the gut. Enzyme supplementation enhanced crude protein, Ca and P digestibility in proximal and middle gut. Enzymes and probiotics supplementation enhanced microbial interactions as shown by network analysis, while increased the abundance of lactic acid bacteria and Bacillus species. Such results suggest that supplementation with exogenous enzymes and probiotics increases nutrient availability, while at the same time benefits gut health and contributes to a more stable microbiome environment.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of Three Post-Harvest Rehabilitation Treatments for Runoff and Sediment Reduction on Skid Trails in the Hyrcanian Forests

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 309-324
Author(s):  
Meghdad Jourgholami ◽  
Masoumeh Ahmadi ◽  
Farzam Tavankar ◽  
Rodolfo Picchio
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Sediment Yield ◽  
Rainfall Intensity ◽  
Regression Equations ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Straw Mulch ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Different Levels ◽  
Runoff And Sediment Yield

Ground-based skidding operations can lead to soil compaction and displacement, which could cause negative effects on forest soil. Hence, some efforts such as forestry best management practices (BMPs) must be implemented in the prone area to mitigate these possible impacts. Several materials and treatments have been adopted to suppress these adverse effects by increasing the ground cover. However, the effects of mulch treatments on runoff and sediment yield are inconclusive with a diverse range of effectiveness. For these reasons, in this research mulch treatments were tested as to determine how the application of organic mulch amendments such as straw and leaf litter and contour-felled logs would alleviate the runoff and sediment yield on machine operating trails and ensure successful hillslope stabilization. The aims of the study were to analyse and compare the effectiveness of leaf litter (LM) and straw mulch (SM) rate and different distances of contour-felled logs (CFL) to mitigate the runoff and sediment yield, and examine the impact of rainfall intensity on effectiveness of litter mulch, straw mulch, and contour-felled logs. Totally, 30 bounded runoff plots in the machine operating trails and four treatments including litter mulch (LMR1: 0.62, LMR2: 1.24, and LMR3: 1.86 kg m-2), straw mulch (SMR1: 0.45, SMR2: 0.92, and SMR3: 1.34 kg m-2), contour-felled logs (CFL10: 10, CFL20: 20, and CFL30: 30 m), and untreated area were established in triplicate with 4 m width and 100 m length. During the study period, the runoff and sediment yield in the untreated trails (U) were 2.36 mm and 11.84 g m-2. Straw (from 41.5 to 60.6%) and litter mulch (from 38.1 to 55.1%), and contour-felled logs treatments (from 70.8 to 88.1%) significantly decreased the runoff, compared to U treatment. Results show that mulch treatments with three different levels of Litter Mulch Rate, LMR1, LMR2, and LMR3 decreased mean sediment by 46.6, 64.0 and 71.8%, in the treatments with three different levels of Straw Mulch Rate, SMR1, SMR2, and SMR3 decreased mean sediment by 42.9, 62.1, and 69.9%, and in the treatments with three different distances of Contour-Felled Logs, CFL10, CFL20, and CFL30 decreased mean sediment by 90.6, 94.7 and 88.3% comparing to U, respectively. The relationships of the runoff and sediment responses to increasing mulching rate of litter and straw followed as negative logarithmic curves, but the decreasing-increasing trends were observed in runoff and sediment yield as the distance between contour-felled logs increased from 10 to 30 m. Polynomial regression equations were developed for predicting the runoff and sediment yield as a function of the application rate of litter and straw mulch and the distance between contour-felled logs, and rainfall intensity. We concluded that contour-felled logs treatment was more effective than both litter and straw mulch to mitigate the runoff, runoff coefficient, and sediment yield on machine operating trails. As a management measure, it could be possible to propose that the contour-felled logs with a distance of 20 m be prescribed to protect the machine operating trails from the negative effects of surface waterflow.

scholarly journals Fungal traits important for soil aggregation

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anika Lehmann ◽  
Weishuang Zheng ◽  
Masahiro Ryo ◽  
Katharina Soutschek ◽  
Rebecca Rongstock ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Systematic Investigation ◽  
Fungal Species ◽  
Soil Aggregation ◽  
Aminopeptidase Activity ◽  
Aggregate Formation ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Saprobic Fungi ◽  
Positive Effects

AbstractSoil health and sustainability is essential for ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Soil structure, the complex arrangement of soil into aggregates and pore spaces, is a key feature of soils under the influence of soil life. Soil biota, and among them filamentous saprobic fungi, have well-documented effects on soil aggregation. However, it is unclear what fungal properties, or traits, contribute to the overall positive effect on soil aggregation. So far, we lack a systematic investigation of a broad suite of fungal species for their trait expression and the relation of these traits to their soil aggregation capability.Here, we apply a trait-based approach to a set of 15 traits measured under standardized conditions on 31 fungal strains including Ascomycota, Basidiomycota and Mucoromycota, all isolated from the same soil.We found a spectrum of soil aggregate formation capability ranging from neutral to positive and large differences in trait expression among strains. We identified biomass density (positive effects), leucine aminopeptidase activity (negative effects) and phylogeny as important modulators of fungal aggregate formation capability. Our results point to a typical suite of traits characterizing fungi that are good soil aggregators; this could inform screening for fungi to be used in biotechnological applications, and illustrates the power of employing a trait-based approach to unravel biological mechanisms of soil aggregation, which could now be extended to other organism groups.

scholarly journals Deciphering the evolution of microbial interactions: in silico studies of two-member microbial communities

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gayathri Sambamoorthy ◽  
Karthik Raman
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Communities ◽  
In Silico ◽  
Microbial Interactions ◽  
Interaction Patterns ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Community Function ◽  
Evolutionary Forces ◽  
In Silico Studies ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
In The Wild

Microbes thrive in communities, embedded in a complex web of interactions. These interactions, particularly metabolic interactions, play a crucial role in maintaining the community structure and function. As the organisms thrive and evolve, a variety of evolutionary processes alter the interactions among the organisms in the community, although the community function remains intact. In this work, we simulate the evolution of two-member microbial communities in silico to study how evolutionary forces can shape the interactions between organisms. We employ genomescale metabolic models of organisms from the human gut, which exhibit a range of interaction patterns, from mutualism to parasitism. We observe that the evolution of microbial interactions varies depending upon the starting interaction and also on the metabolic capabilities of the organisms in the community. We find that evolutionary constraints play a significant role in shaping the dependencies of organisms in the community. Evolution of microbial communities yields fitness benefits in only a small fraction of the communities, and is also dependent on the interaction type of the wild-type communities. The metabolites cross-fed in the wild-type communities appear in only less than 50% of the evolved communities. A wide range of new metabolites are cross-fed as the communities evolve. Further, the dynamics of microbial interactions are not specific to the interaction of the wild-type community but vary depending on the organisms present in the community. Our approach of evolving microbial communities in silico provides an exciting glimpse of the dynamics of microbial interactions and offers several avenues for future investigations.

scholarly journals Phytoremediation of Toxic Metals: A Sustainable Green Solution for Clean Environment

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (21) ◽  
pp. 10348
Author(s):  
S. M. Omar Faruque Babu ◽  
M. Belal Hossain ◽  
M. Safiur Rahman ◽  
Moshiur Rahman ◽  
A. S. Shafiuddin Ahmed ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aquatic Ecosystems ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
The Body ◽  
Species Selection ◽  
Environmentally Benign ◽  
Soil Parameters ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Clean Environment ◽  
Green Solution

Contamination of aquatic ecosystems by various sources has become a major worry all over the world. Pollutants can enter the human body through the food chain from aquatic and soil habitats. These pollutants can cause various chronic diseases in humans and mortality if they collect in the body over an extended period. Although the phytoremediation technique cannot completely remove harmful materials, it is an environmentally benign, cost-effective, and natural process that has no negative effects on the environment. The main types of phytoremediation, their mechanisms, and strategies to raise the remediation rate and the use of genetically altered plants, phytoremediation plant prospects, economics, and usable plants are reviewed in this review. Several factors influence the phytoremediation process, including types of contaminants, pollutant characteristics, and plant species selection, climate considerations, flooding and aging, the effect of salt, soil parameters, and redox potential. Phytoremediation’s environmental and economic efficiency, use, and relevance are depicted in our work. Multiple recent breakthroughs in phytoremediation technologies are also mentioned in this review.

scholarly journals No Difference in Instream Decomposition Among Upland Agricultural and Forested Streams in Kenya

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen C. Kadeka ◽  
Frank O. Masese ◽  
David M. Lusega ◽  
Augustine Sitati ◽  
Benjamin N. Kondowe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leaf Litter ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Leaf Litter Decomposition ◽  
Limited Data ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Decomposition Rates ◽  
Tropical Regions ◽  
Fine Mesh ◽  
Agricultural Streams

Expansion of agriculture is particularly worrying in tropical regions of the world, where native forests have been replaced by croplands and grasslands, with severe consequences for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem functioning. However, limited data exist on the effects of agriculture on the functioning of tropical streams. We conducted a leaf litter decomposition experiment in coarse- and fine-mesh litterbags using the three species of leaves (Eucalyptus globulus [non-native], Vernonia myriantha, and Syzygium cordatum [indigenous]) in three forested and agricultural streams to determine the effect of agriculture on instream leaf litter decomposition in headwater stream sites. We also examined the functional composition of macroinvertebrates in the streams through the contents of benthic kick samples. Agricultural streams had a less dense riparian canopy and smaller abundance of coarse organic particulate matter, and higher electric conductivity and suspended solids than forested streams. In terms of the effects of litter quality on decomposition rates, Vernonia had the fastest decomposition rates while Eucalyptus had the slowest in both forested and agricultural sites. Shredder invertebrates were less abundant in agricultural streams, and in both stream types, they were less diverse and abundant than other functional groups. Overall, leaf litter decomposition rates did not respond to agricultural land-use. The hypothesized negative effects of agriculture on organic matter processing were minimal and likely modulated by intact riparian zones along agricultural streams.

scholarly journals Towards a sustainable approach to wastewater treatment strategy for eutrophication abatement

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 00056 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Neverova-Dziopak
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Aquatic Ecosystems ◽  
Aquatic Vegetation ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Economic Point ◽  
The Public ◽  
Treatment Technologies

Eutrophication is one of the consequences of the negative anthropogenic impact on aquatic ecosystems. It leads to the degradation of both sweet and marine ecosystems, constituting a kind of secondary pollution of waters, which disturbs all types of their use. Undertakings related to preventing the negative effects of eutrophication are mainly conducted towards reducing the loads of nutrients introduced into surface waters and controlling the entire conditions in aquatic ecosystems in order to limit the development of aquatic vegetation. The increasingly restrictive legal requirement regarding the content of nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater discharged into recipients enforces the application of expensive treatment technologies, and the public is becoming more aware of the rising costs of water and wastewater fees. In addition, wastewater treatment is a factor which has a negative impact on air quality due to greenhouse gas emissions and generates other environmental problems. The challenge for facilities, however, is determining which treatment alternatives will best meet their needs, both technically and financially, and to choose the most sustainable path. The problem of establishing a reasonable level of nutrient removal from wastewater, justified from an ecological and economic point of view is discussed in the paper.

“The effects of family therapeutic interventions on mental health and quality of life of children with cancer: A systematic review”

2022 ◽  
pp. 135910452110618
Author(s):  
Konstantina Vasilopoulou ◽  
Angeliki Skoutari ◽  
Konstantinos Siomos ◽  
Nikolaos Christodoulou
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Psychosocial Interventions ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Patient Centered ◽  
Children With Cancer

Background: The diagnosis of a childhood malignancy and the following period are very stressful for the little patient and the whole family. Depression, anxiety, and poor quality of life (QoL) are some of the negative effects of pediatric cancer to the children and their parents. Family therapeutic interventions aim to improve mental health and QoL of these children. Methods: A systematic search of the electronic database PubMed was conducted for articles that studied the effect of family therapeutic interventions on mental health and QoL of children with cancer. Results: A total of 634 articles were evaluated, of which 10 articles met the inclusion criteria. A percentage of 70% of the studies, representing seven different types of interventions, seemed to be beneficial for the participant’s mental health and QoL. The remaining three studies did not significantly improve mental health and QoL. Conclusion: The results of our review indicate that family psychosocial interventions are beneficial for children with cancer. These children and their families are a growing population requiring more patient-centered, time flexible interventions which may enhance family bonding and patients’ positive emotions.

Fungal richness does not buffer the effects of streams salinization on litter decomposition

2021 ◽  
Vol 57 ◽  
pp. 5
Author(s):  
Janine Pereira da Silva ◽  
Aingeru Martínez ◽  
Ana Lúcia Gonçalves ◽  
Felix Bärlocher ◽  
Cristina Canhoto
Keyword(s):  
Mass Loss ◽  
Litter Decomposition ◽  
Fungal Biomass ◽  
Fungal Species ◽  
Aquatic Hyphomycetes ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Stream Functioning ◽  
Induced Changes ◽  
Sporulation Rate ◽  
The Impact

Freshwater salinization is a world-wide phenomenon threatening stream communities and ecosystem functioning. In these systems, litter decomposition is a main ecosystem-level process where fungi (aquatic hyphomycetes) play a central role linking basal resource and higher levels of food-web. The current study evaluated the impact of aquatic hyphomycete richness on leaf litter decomposition when subjected to salinization. In a microcosm study, we analysed leaf mass loss, fungal biomass, respiration and sporulation rate by fungal assemblages at three levels of species richness (1, 4, 8 species) and three levels of salinity (0, 8, 16 g NaCl L‑1). Mass loss and sporulation rate were depressed at 8 and 16 g NaCl L‑1, while fungal biomass and respiration were only negatively affected at 16 g L‑1. A richness effect was only observed on sporulation rates, with the maximum values found in assemblages of 4 species. In all cases, the negative effects of high levels of salinization on the four tested variables superimposed the potential buffer capacity of fungal richness. The study suggests functional redundancy among the fungal species even at elevated salt stress conditions which may guarantee stream functioning at extreme levels of salinity. Nonetheless, it also points to the possible importance of salt induced changes on fungal diversity and identity in salinized streams able to induce bottom-up effects in the food webs.

scholarly journals Patient Evaluation of Food Waste in Three Hospitals in Southern Italy

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (22) ◽  
pp. 4330 ◽  
Author(s):  
Schiavone ◽  
Pelullo ◽  
Attena
Keyword(s):  
Food Waste ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Side Plate ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Campania Region ◽  
Average Percentage ◽  
Similar Patient

In recent years, food waste has received great attention and is now considered the cause of many negative effects, including health, economic, social and environmental issues. A cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of 762 inpatients at three hospitals of Campania region in Italy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the amount of food waste occurring in these hospitals using a structured questionnaire and asking inpatients about the average percentage of food they had disposed of in the previous three days. The overall food wasted amounted to 41.6%. The main plates, first (pasta or rice), second plate (meat or fish), resulted in similar amounts of waste (38.5% and 39.7%, respectively). The side plate (vegetable or potatoes), however, generated the greatest amount of waste (55.0%); 40.7% of patients totally discarded this part of their meals. The type of food wastage among the three hospitals reflected similar patient behaviours, with the amount of food wasted never falling below 30%. Females tended to waste more food than males (59.1% vs. 38.2%; p = 0.000). Other variables were correlated with less food waste, such as having a good opinion of the food’s quality (RR = 1.91; 95% C.I. = 1.68–2.17) and satisfaction with the foodservice in general (RR = 1.86; 95% C.I. = 1.64–2.10). Poor quality, different eating habits and the feeling of satiety were the main reasons patients gave for food waste. Our study suggests that the most promising way to reduce food waste in hospitals is to improve the quality of meals and to establish an individual, simplified and flexible meal reservation process based on specific needs and preferences.

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