No abstract

No abstract

Knowledge of seasonal variation of net ecosystem CO 2 exchange (NEE) and its biotic and abiotic controllers will further our understanding of carbon cycling process, mechanism and large-scale modelling. Eddy covariance technique was used to measure NEE, biotic and abiotic factors for nearly 3 years in the hinterland alpine steppe--Korbresia meadow grassland on the Tibetan Plateau, the present highest fluxnet station in the world. The main objectives are to investigate dynamics of NEE and its components and to determine the major controlling factors. Maximum carbon assimilation took place in August and maximum carbon loss occurred in November. In June, rainfall amount due to monsoon climate played a great role in grass greening and consequently influenced interannual variation of ecosystem carbon gain. From July through September, monthly NEE presented net carbon assimilation. In other months, ecosystem exhibited carbon loss. In growing season, daytime NEE was mainly controlled by photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). In addition, leaf area index (LAI) interacted with PAR and together modulated NEE rates. Ecosystem respiration was controlled mainly by soil temperature and simultaneously by soil moisture. Q 10 was negatively correlated with soil temperature but positively correlated with soil moisture. Large daily range of air temperature is not necessary to enhance carbon gain. Standard respiration rate at referenced 10°C (R 10 ) was positively correlated with soil moisture, soil temperature, LAI and aboveground biomass. Rainfall patterns in growing season markedly influenced soil moisture and therefore soil moisture controlled seasonal change of ecosystem respiration. Pulse rainfall in the beginning and at the end of growing season induced great ecosystem respiration and consequently a great amount of carbon was lost. Short growing season and relative low temperature restrained alpine grass vegetation development. The results suggested that LAI be usually in a low level and carbon uptake be relatively low. Rainfall patterns in the growing season and pulse rainfall in the beginning and at end of growing season control ecosystem respiration and consequently influence carbon balance of ecosystem.

Aptamer-assembled nanomaterials have captured much attention from the field of analytical chemistry in recent years. Although they have been regarded as a promising tool for heavy metal monitoring, report involving aptamer-based biosensors for arsenic detection are rare. Herein we developed a highly sensitive and selective aptamer biosensor for As(iii) detection based on a Resonance Rayleigh Scattering (RRS) spectral assay. Prior to As(iii) detection, we firstly assembled a variety of nanoparticles with different sizes via controlling the concentration of arsenic-binding aptamers in crystal violet (CV) solutions. The results of photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS) and scanning probe microscope (SPM) testified that the introduction of As(iii) had indeed changed the size of nanoparticles, which caused a great variation in the RRS intensity at 310 nm. In the presence of 100 ppb As(iii), a maximum decline in the ratio of RRS intensity was achieved for large nanoparticles assembled from 200 nM of aptamers and CV molecules, where the average size of nanoparticles had decreased from 273 nm to 168 nm. In the case of small nanoparticles, the maximum increase ratio of the RRS intensity was obtained when the concentration of aptamer was over 600 nM. Combined with an RRS spectral assay, an effective biosensor has been developed for As(iii) detection, using the above large and small nanoparticles as the target recognition element. The present biosensor has a detection limit as low as 0.2 ppb, a dynamic range from 0.1 ppb to 200 ppb, and high selectivity over other metal ions. Such an efficient biosensor will play an important role in environmental detection.

Mercury ions (Hg(2+)) can specifically interact with the thymine-rich Hg(2+) aptamer and malachite green (MG) to form the Hg(2+) aptamer-MG-Hg(2+) complex, inducing the increase of resonance scattering (RS) intensity at 611 nm, which enables the label-free detection of Hg(2+) in aqueous solution with high selectivity and a detection limit of 1.7 nM.

No abstract

Guxiang and Baiyu Glaciations are two previously recognized local glaciations of the Tibetan Plateau.They have been widely used as the reference standard for classifying Late Quaternary glaciations on the Tibetan Plateau and its surrounding mountains. However, the numerical chronologies of both glaciations have been lacking. In this study, cosmogenic 10 Be dating was undertaken to define the timing of these two glaciations. The surface boulders deposited by the glaciers of the Guxiang and Baiyu Glaciations have exposure ages of 112.9±16.7-136.5±15.8 ka BP and 11.1±1.9-18.5±2.2 ka BP, respectively. It is likely that the Guxiang and Baiyu Glaciations correspond to marine isotope stages 6 and 2, respectively.

No abstract