Search results for " Sediment"
showing 10 items of 762 documents
Effects of alternative electron acceptors on the activity and community structure of methane-producing and consuming microbes in the sediments of two…
2017
The role of anaerobic CH4 oxidation in controlling lake sediment CH4 emissions remains unclear. Therefore, we tested how relevant EAs (SO42−, NO3−, Fe3+, Mn4+, O2) affect CH4 production and oxidation in the sediments of two shallow boreal lakes. The changes induced to microbial communities by the addition of Fe3+ and Mn4+ were studied using next-generation sequencing targeting the 16S rRNA and methyl-coenzyme M reductase (mcrA) genes and mcrA transcripts. Putative anaerobic CH4-oxidizing archaea (ANME-2D) and bacteria (NC 10) were scarce (up to 3.4% and 0.5% of archaeal and bacterial 16S rRNA genes, respectively), likely due to the low environmental stability associated with shallow depths.…
Microbial communities of polluted sub-surface marine sediments
2018
Abstract Microbial communities of coastal marine sediment play a key role in degradation of petroleum contaminants. Here the bacterial and archaeal communities of sub-surface sediments (5–10 cm) of the chronically polluted Priolo Bay (eastern coast of Sicily, Italy), contaminated mainly by n-alkanes and biodegraded/weathered oils, were characterized by cultural and molecular approaches. 16S-PCR-DGGE analysis at six stations, revealed that bacterial communities are highly divergent and display lower phylogenetic diversity than the surface sediment; sub-surface communities respond to oil supplementation in microcosms with a significant reduction in biodiversity and a shift in composition; the…
Bacterial communities in sediment of a Mediterranean marine protected area
2017
Biodiversity is crucial in preservation of ecosystems, and bacterial communities play an indispensable role for the functioning of marine ecosystems. The Mediterranean marine protected area (MPA) “Capo Gallo–Isola delle Femmine” was instituted to preserve marine biodiversity. The bacterial diversity associated with MPA sediment was compared with that from sediment of an adjacent harbour exposed to intense nautical traffic. The MPA sediment showed higher diversity with respect to the impacted site. A 16S rDNA clone library of the MPA sediment allowed the identification of 7 phyla: Proteobacteria (78%), Firmicutes (11%), Acidobacteria (3%), Actinobacteria (3%), Bacteroidetes (2%), Planctomyc…
Human-Driven Microbiological Contamination of Benthic and Hyporheic Sediments of an Intermittent Peri-Urban River Assessed from MST and 16S rRNA Gene…
2017
International audience; Rivers are often challenged by fecal contaminations. The barrier effect of sediments against fecal bacteria was investigated through the use of a microbial source tracking (MST) toolbox, and by Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) of V5-V6 16S rRNA gene (rrs) sequences. Non-metric multi-dimensional scaling analysis of V5-V6 16S rRNA gene sequences differentiated bacteriomes according to their compartment of origin i.e., surface water against benthic and hyporheic sediments. Classification of these reads showed the most prevalent operating taxonomic units (OTU) to be allocated to Flavobacterium and Aquabacterium. Relative numbers of Gaiella, Haliangium, and Thermoleophilu…
Assessing the effect of mercury pollution on cultured benthic foraminifera community using morphological and eDNA metabarcoding approaches
2018
Mercury (Hg) is a highly toxic element for living organisms and is known to bioaccumulate and biomagnify. Here, we analyze the response of benthic foraminifera communities cultured in mesocosm and exposed to different concentrations of Hg. Standard morphological analyses and environmental DNA metabarcoding show evidence that Hg pollution has detrimental effects on benthic foraminifera. The molecular analysis provides a more complete view of foraminiferal communities including the soft-walled single-chambered monothalamiids and small-sized hard-shelled rotaliids and textulariids than the morphological one. Among these taxa that are typically overlooked in morphological studies we found poten…
The essentials of marine biotechnology
2021
Coastal countries have traditionally relied on the existing marine resources (e.g., fishing, food, transport, recreation, and tourism) as well as tried to support new economic endeavors (ocean energy, desalination for water supply, and seabed mining). Modern societies and lifestyle resulted in an increased demand for dietary diversity, better health and well-being, new biomedicines, natural cosmeceuticals, environmental conservation, and sustainable energy sources. These societal needs stimulated the interest of researchers on the diverse and underexplored marine environments as promising and sustainable sources of biomolecules and biomass, and they are addressed by the emerging field of ma…
Short-term cactus pear [
2018
Background: Dietary ingredients and food components are major modifiable factors protecting immune system and preventing the progression of a low-grade chronic inflammation responsible for age-related diseases. Objective: Our study explored whether cactus pear (Opuntia ficus-indica, Surfarina cultivar) fruit supplementation modulates plasma inflammatory biomarkers in healthy adults. Correlations between inflammatory parameters and antioxidant status were also assessed in parallel. Design: In a randomised, 2-period (2 weeks/period), crossover, controlled-feeding study, conducted in 28 healthy volunteers [mean age 39.96 (±9.15) years, BMI 23.1 (±1.5) kg/m2], the effects of a diet supplemented…
Biotechnological Agents for Patients With Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor Associated Periodic Syndrome-Therapeutic Outcome and Predictors of Response:…
2021
Objective: To describe the role of biotechnological therapies in patients with tumor necrosis factor receptor associated periodic syndrome (TRAPS) and to identify any predictor of complete response.Methods: Clinical, laboratory, and therapeutic data from 44 Caucasian TRAPS patients treated with biologic agents were retrospectively collected in 16 Italian tertiary Centers.Results: A total of 55 biological courses with anakinra (n = 26), canakinumab (n = 16), anti-TNF-α agents (n = 10), and tocilizumab (n = 3) were analyzed. A complete response was observed in 41 (74.5%) cases, a partial response in 9 (16.4%) cases and a treatment failure in 5 (9.1%) cases. The frequency of TRAPS exacerbation…
Elusive active faults in a low strain rate region (Sicily, Italy): Hints from a multidisciplinary land-to-sea approach
2022
Low Strain Rate regions (LSRrs), i.e., areas undergoing tectonic deformation at rates of 1 mm/yr or less, often host important cities and highly vulnerable anthropogenic assets, and due to their subdued topography and relatively infrequent seismicity, are often considered low seismic hazard areas. Despite this, infrequent but high-magnitude earthquakes in such regions suggest that identifying active structures in the LSRr is one of the primary challenges for both the scientific community and modern societies. In such regions, one of the main issues in identifying active faults is the lack of valuable outcrop data due to erosional/sedimentation rates overwhelming the fault deformation, causi…
Up-to-date Spanish continental Neogene synthesis and paleoclimatic interpretation
1993
A synthesis of the Spanish continental Neogene is presented by designing an integrated correlative chart of the Neo" gen-e "succes"Siuns-ofthe "lberian-PeninsuIa-. -Ninemain-sedimentary-breaks-have-been -distinguished-in-most-of-the "basins. They are considered a valuable criteria for correlation as they occur in similar time intervals from basin to basin. The determined sedimentary breaks occur in the Agenian, Ramblian, Middle Aragonian, Late Aragonian, Late Vallesian, Middle Turolian, Late Turolian, Late Ruscinian-Early Villafranchian, and Villafranchian ages. The larger interior basins (Ebro, Tajo, Duero) show a fairly complete Neogene sedimentary record in which the aboye mentioned sedi…