Good health requires food of good quality. Access to optimal nutrition and health is a fundamental human right. It is for everyone, rich and poor, young and old etc. Malnutrition is still common, and one in seven humans are malnourished because of poverty in the world. Malnutrition is a gigantic societal issue. Malnutrition is related with what we choose produce, how we produce it, and whether and how we make it available to us all. Farmers, industrial agriculture and food processing and distribution profoundly affect ecosystem, climate, moreover they are major factors in our economical and financial system. These players also directly determine the quality of the dietary options available. The path set down for world agriculture into the 21st century was defined barely a decade ago, but we already need further change before the millennium to avert global food system failures. This has much to do with the impact of the green revolution and its perceived inadequacies. We have to address the environmental concerns about modern, technological agriculture, but it is a growing evidence that our global food systems are failing to deliver adequate quantities of healthy, nutritionally balanced food especially to underprivileged people globally. The consequences are affecting human health, well being, productivity, livelihood and stagnating national development efforts in many developing nations. We acknowledge the importance of agriculture and food production, but we also need to acknowledge the importance of agriculture for social fundamental structure and the impact of agriculture on the ecosystem on which we depend. Globally increased agriculture production is attributed to the further industrialization agriculture since the mid 20st century (“green revolution”), but industrial agriculture is also an important reason for that mankind has now passed several planetary boundaries for sustainability. Forging research linkages between agriculture, nutrition and health overcome the adverse effects of past polices for global agriculture, nutrition and national development that have fostered only shortterm, unsustainable, solutions to starvation, malnutrition, underdevelopment, and high human fertility rates. Food system approaches (directing at empowering people and insuring balanced and adequate nutrition and improved health for all in sustainable ways) hold much promise in providing the methods needed for agriculture research to insure sustainable agriculture systems. Heads of state and government must elevate, as a matter of urgency, the nutrition as a national priority. Good nutrition is a human right, but it is impossible to achieve for whole populations with good polices for food, health, nutrition, agriculture, ecology, economy and commerce. It is therefore the responsibility of heads of state and government to provide the leadership that will lead to an allsociety approach for nutrition. We should place the lead responsibility for nutrition in ministries of health rather than agriculture so that the health requirement drives agriculture priorities not vice versa. Nutritional security should be given the same priority as food security.

Protein ubiquitination is a fundamental posttranslational modification event that serves as a signaling function in diverse biological processes. Ubiquitination is accomplished by a series of three enzymatic steps as follows: E1 (ubiquitinactivating enzyme) -E2 (ubiquitinconjugating enzyme, Ubc) -E3 (ubiquitin ligase enzyme). In these processes, the role of Ubc is of pivotal importance. All Ubcs have an active site cysteine (Cys) residue within the highly conserved UBC domain. Ubc-like proteins share high similarities with Ubc but lack the active site Cys which is essential for the conjugation and transfer of ubiquitin to protein substrates, therefore, they have also been designated as UEV (ubiquitinconjugating E2 enzyme variant) proteins. Ubc-like proteins have been found in all eukaryotes examined such as animal, plant and yeast. To date, the functions of Ubclike protein have been extensively studied in animal and yeast. However, it remains largely unknown in plant species, especially in monocot plants, so it is necessary to study Ubc-like protein in this field. Rice is a prominent model for monocotyledonous plants and one of the most important food crops. However, no information is available on Ubclike protein in rice or other monocot plants. Here, we mainly characterized the expression pattern and subcellular localization of a rice Ubclike protein in order to provide a foundation for the function studies of UEV proteins in monocot plants. The molecular characterization of an Ubc-like protein gene in rice was cloned and analyzed, and was designated as OsCROC1A in terms of protein sequence analysis using bioinformatics, gene expression via realtime quantitative PCR, and fluorescence signal localization of the fusion protein in transformed tobacco suspension cultures. The open reading frame (ORF) of OsCROC-1A was cloned from rice (Oryza sativa, cultivar Nipponbare) via RT-PCR, and was used to analyze the expression pattern under abiotic stresses. OsCROC1A contained five exons and four introns, and it encoded a UEV homolog of 146 amino acids corresponding to a theoretical molecular mass of 17 ku and pI of 6.42. OsCROC1A harbored a conserved UBC domain and D catalytic site, and the deduced sequence shared similarities with other homologs ranging from 42.61% to 84.14%. Realtime quantitative PCR was conducted to analyze the spatial expression pattern of OsCROC1A as well as the changes of its expression level under abiotic stresses. As a result, OsCROC-1A was found to be expressed in all tissues examined, and the abundance level was high in leaf, root, lemma, and low in palea, stem, pistil, callus, and the lowest in stamen, implying that the OsCROC-1A is important to both vegetative growth and reproductive development in rice especially to that of leaf, root, lemma. The expression of OsCROC-1A was induced by low temperature of 4 ℃, 20 mmol/L H2O2 and 0.01% MMS, whereas it was repressed by 300 mmol/L mannitol, 100 μmol/L abscisic acid (ABA) and 200 mmol/L NaCl, suggesting that OsCROC1A can respond actively to the negative circumstances by changing its transcripts. OsCROC-1AEGFP was localized to both nucleus and cytosol, indicating that OsCROC-1A not only can play its role in the nucleus as a transcription factor, but also have function in cytosol. In conclusion, OsCROC-1A encodes an Ubc-like protein. It is constitutively expressed in all the tissues examined and is generally modulated by abiotic stress, and OsCROC1A has functions in both nucleus and cytosol. These data provide a foundation for investigating the cellular function and molecular mechanism of OsCROC-1A.

The completion of human genome project has led to the identification of thousands of novel genes, most of which remain unknown or poorly understood functions. Cell proliferation is a highly ordered operation process, and it plays an important role in the life activities. The abnormal regulation of cell proliferation often causes a variety of disease occurrence and development. So, the identification and function study of human functional genes involved in regulation of cell proliferation will provide new directions for mechanism research of cell proliferation and therapy strategy of various related diseases. By searching the human RefSeq and expressed sequence tag (EST) databases in GenBank, human function gene TOX (thymocyte selectionassociated high mobility group box) (NCBI RefSeq No: NM_014729) was cloned from human multitissue cDNA library by using PCR (polymerase chain reaction) assay. Bioinformatics analysis was used to identify structural characteristics of TOX, and RTPCR (reverse transcription PCR) was used to detect its expression in cell lines. Fluorescence microscopy was used to analyze subcellular localization of TOX, moreover, cell growth curve assay and flow cytometry experiment were used to study its effect on cell proliferation and cell cycle. The results showed that the full length human gene TOX was 4 131 bp long with an inframe stop codon upstream of the putative ATG start codon and a 3’poly(A) tail, and the open reading frame (ORF) encoded 526 amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 57 ku. The human gene TOX was located on chromosome 8q12.1, and encompassed nine exons and eight introns. Bioinformatics analysis showed the human gene TOX might locate in cell nuclei. TOXcoding protein was one of high mobility group box family members, which were involved in gene regulation of physiological processes. RTPCR analysis revealed that TOX was highly expressed in leukemia cell lines Jurkat and Raji, but was not detected in some tumor cell lines A549, H1299, H520. The analysis by constructing a TOXGFP fusion plasmid showed that the TOXGFP could colocalize with DAPI, a nucleusspecific fluorescent dye, suggesting that the subcellular localization of TOX was in the nucleus. There was a noted increase in cell proliferation during a 5day period by CCK8 assay, and the overexpressed TOX could accelerate the cell growth rate, and increase the ratio of cells in S phase by flow cytometry analysis. In conclusion, human gene TOX encodes a HMGbox family protein, which can regulate gene expression such as transcription and replication through binding with DNA. TOX may regulate some gene expression in cell cycles and it is highly expressed in T and B lymphoma cell lines, suggesting that the TOX gene may regulate the development of diseases related to T and B cells. Although TOX particular mechanism needs further research, the present results indicate that the human gene TOX is involved in the regulation of cell proliferation, and might be developed as a drug target or disease marker.

Pseudopyxis Miq., a genus distributed in eastern China and Japan, comprises three species, in which Pseudopyxis monilirhizoma Tao Chen is endemic to China. The variation analysis of the diagnostic characters among these three species of Pseudopyxis was carried out. Based on principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) of eighteen morphological characters, the individuals of P. depressa were separated distinctly from P. heterophylla + P. monilirhizoma, whereas the separation between P. heterophylla and P. monilirhizoma was not clear. The observations of stem indumentum and seed micromorphology showed the difference between P. depressa and P. heterophylla + P. monilirhizoma, while that of P. heterophylla and P. monilirhizoma was consistent. In case of the observations of stem indumentum and seed micromorphology and PCoA of morphological characters, P. monilirhizoma is consequently combined as a subspecies of P. heterophylla (Miq.) Maxim., and the combination of P. heterophylla subsp. monilirhizoma (Tao Chen) L. X. Ye, C. Z. Zheng & X. F. Jin is proposed.

Chlorpyrifos (CP) is a broadspectrum, moderately toxic organophosphorus insecticide. It is widely used throughout the world, especially in recent years with the restrictions or eliminations of highly toxic organophosphorus compounds. The fate of CP after a single application in soil and its effects on soil microbial population, microbial functional diversity, microbial respiration, and enzyme activities have been well investigated. However, the influence of CP application on the soil fungal community succession remains unknown. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) is currently used in the characterization of soil bacterial and fungal community. DGGE analysis can provide a picture composed of an array of bands with different intensities, and the banding patterns of DGGE are analyzed using Quantity One V4.62 software (Bio-Rad). An Excel worksheet was used to calculate the ShannonWiener index (H), and Matlab software (MathWorks) was performed to do principal component analysis (PCA) of DGGE data. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of CP application on soil fungal community using PCRDGGE based on internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and 28S rDNA amplification products. After preincubation in the dark for one week at 25 ℃, CP was applied to soils with a predetermined volume of their commercial formulation, following proper dilution with distilled water, to give a final concentration of 5 mg/kg corresponding to the recommended dose. Soil samples received the same amount of sterilized water without CP were used as controls. Each treatment was conducted thrice, and a total of six microcosms were prepared. At 1, 7, 15, 30, 45, and 60 d after CP treatment, soil samples were collected to detect CP residue in the soil and to extract soil DNA for polymerase chain reaction (PCR)DGGE analysis. The degradation curve of CP in soil showed that the CP residues in the soil samples were significantly decreased to 2.086, 0.355, and 0.008 mg/kg respectively after 7, 30 and 60 d of CP treatment. The degradation of CP in soil was interpreted with the firstorder kinetics, y=5.357e-0.09x, R2=0.905. The halflife of CP was 7.99 d calculated by firstorder function. ITS1f-GC/ITS2 and U1-GC/U2 primer pairs were used to amplify ITS region and 28S rDNA respectively, and thereafter DGGE was used to further detect fungal community. DGGE fingerprint showed that the composition of fungal community was obviously changed by CP treatment, and the ShannonWiener diversity index (H) was increased and kept in higher level since 7 d after CP treatment. PCA analysis showed that the samples of CP treatment were significantly separated from those of controls. In conclusion, our data and research demonstrate that the CP application can affect the soil fungal community in a quick and persistent way.

Alginate polysaccharide produced by marine brown algae or certain Gramnegative bacteria is a linear anionic binary copolymer of β-D-mannuronic acid (M) and α-L-guluronic acid (G) residues. Alginate lyase (EC 4.2.2.3; EC 4.2.2.11), also known as alginase or alginate depolymerase, catalyzes the degradation of alginate at the nonreducing terminus by β-elimination mechanism, forming unsaturated oligosaccharides with double bonds. Since the original description of alginate lyases about 50 years ago, more than 50 enzymes have been characterized from a variety of algae, marine invertebrates, terrestrial and marine microorganisms. As a tool enzyme to degrade alginate biologically, alginate lyase has been explored and utilized in broad fields. It has been reported that alginate lyase or its crude extract can play a pivotal role in decomposing brown seaweeds, producing alginate oligosaccharides, analyzing the fine structure of alginate, preparing protoplasts of seaweed, and reducing viscosity of alginate biofilm built up in the lungs of cystic fibrosis sufferers. To elucidate the unique properties of alginate lyase, great efforts have so far been made around enzyme production, purification, characterization, and gene recombinant and so on. In the present study, a wild marine strain capable of producing alginate lyase was screened and studied in order to develop a potential overproducing strain using a lowcost culture medium. Marine microorganisms producing alginate lyase were screened by agar plate using alginate as only carbon source. The morphological, biochemical and physiological characteristics and 16S rRNA gene were analyzed to identify the taxonomic position of strain QZ-4. The enzymological characteristics of alginate lyase from the strain QZ-4 were determined by ultraviolet (UV) method, including the optimal temperature, pH, thermal and pH stability, metal ions and ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) tolerance, etc. The results showed that the strain QZ-4 was a Gramnegative rod bacterium. Its suitable growth temperature ranged from 15 to 25 ℃ and NaCl concentration ranged from 15 to 60 g/L. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons indicated that the strain QZ-4 was a member of Pseudoalteromonas tetraodonis. The GenBank accession number was acquired as HM130919. The alginate lyase was characterized as a single band by sodium dodecyl sulfatepolyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDSPAGE) and had the same decomposing ability on high guluronate and mannuronate polymers separately. The alginate lyase remained stable below 35 ℃ at the alkaline conditions. The optimal catalytic activity was showed at 40 ℃ and pH 7.5. The alginate lyase was activated by ions such as Mg2+, Na+, Fe3+ and Mn2+, but was inhibited by Zn2+ and EDTA. The results of kinetic studies showed that the Vmax (maximum reaction velocity) and MichaelisMenten constant (Km) were measured individually as 0.541 U/mL and 0.051 mg/mL by LineweaverBurk (L-B) plot. In conclusion, the above results indicate that P. tetraodonis strain QZ-4 has a consistent alginate lyase yield and biomass at the present culture condition, compared with other alginate lyaseproducing strains among the genus Pseudoalteromonas sp. The simple nutrition demand of strain QZ4 makes a lowcost culture medium possible, and the yield of alginate lyase can reach as high as 135 U/mL in shaking flask during a short fermentation period. Therefore, the strain QZ-4 has the potential of producing alginate lyase on a large scale and further research is required to elucidate fermentation conditions and kinetics of this enzyme.

Soil secondary salinisation is a problem resulting in a decreased productivity of protected vegetable production in China. In protected greenhouses, salts accumulated in soil are mainly as Ca2+ and NO3- , which are different from those in coast saline soil as Na+ and Cl-. The effects of different types of salts accumulated in soils on plant leaf growth and root morphology have been well documented; however, little has been done on different types of salts affecting root growth and its metabolism. In this research, we used a commercial tomato hybrid Solanum lycopersicum L. cv. Hezuo903 in hydroponic culture to investigate the effects of two types of salts, Ca(NO3)2 and NaCl, on root respiration and metabolism including KCNresistant respiratory rate (Valt), cytochrome respiratory rate (Vcyt), root production rate of O.-2, H2O2 concentration and activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), guaiacol peroxidase (GPX) and catalase (CAT). The seedlings were transplanted into 10 L plastic containers containing aerated full nutrient solution. Fourteen days after being transferred to the hydroponic medium, the salt treatments were applied by adding 80 mmol/L Ca(NO3)2 or 120 mmol/L NaCl to the nutrient solution and were maintained for 12 d. Four trays (16 plants) were included in each treatment as well as in the controls. Root respiration was measured as oxygen consumption in a 2-mL closed cuvette using a Clark type oxygen electrode. Salicylhydroxamic acid was used as an inhibitor for alternative respiration and KCN was used as an inhibitor for cytochrome respiration. The results showed that both root and shoot growth of tomato plants were severely inhibited by salt stress. Compared to the control plants, the shoot and root dry masses in Ca(NO3)2stressed plants were reduced by 42.5% and 33.5% respectively, less than in NaClstressed plants by 63.2% and 53.8% respectively. Salt stress decreased the total respiratory rate (VT) due to the decrease of Vcyt, particularly under NaCl stress, but increased Valt, which was again more pronounced under NaCl stress. After 12 d of treatment, the ratio of Valt to VT increased by 51.2% in Ca(NO3)2treated plants and 63.5% in NaCltreated plants, respectively, while this ratio remained unchanged at 26.1% in control plants. The production rate of O.-2 and H2O2 concentration were increased by salt stress, especially under NaCl stress. This was also the case for the activities of SOD, CAT and GPX during the first 8 d of NaCl treatment, while the activities of these enzymes under Ca(NO3)2 treatment were increased all the time. After 12 d of treatment, the MDA content increased by 48.3% in Ca(NO3)2-stressed plants and by 122.8% in NaCl-stressed plants respectively. In conclusion, NaCl stress cause much severer inhibition to plant growth than Ca(NO3)2 stress, which may be resulted from its damage effects with a higher lipid peroxidation level and lower respiratory rate, though its elevated KCNresistant respiration effect can compensate partly such detrimental effects. It is also interesting to note that in companion with the enhancement of O.-2 and H2O2 production, KCNresistant respiratory rate and its ratio to total respiratory rate increase significantly in salt-stressed plants, suggesting that the increased KCNresistant respiration might be able to enhance reactive oxygen species scavenge in saltstressed plants, especially in NaClstressed plants.

Yellow clayey soil is one type of medium-low yield farmland, while rational applications of nitrogen fertilizer have great significance for enhancing its grain yield. Using controlledrelease fertilizer as basal nitrogen fertilizer, single basal application is an effective way to improve the labor productivity, reduce fertilizing costs, increase farmer income, and also increase the yield and nitrogen use efficiency. However, its fertilizer efficiency is more affected by environment. Therefore, this study aims to look for suitable types and contents of nitrogen fertilizer for the double-cropping rice in yellow clayey soil in Jinqu Basin, and to provide theoretical basis for reforming medium-low yield paddy soil. A field experiment was conducted to study the effects of no nitrogen fertilizer (CK), conventional fertilizer (prilled urea (PU) application of many times) and different types of controlledrelease fertilizer as basal nitrogen fertilizer to single basal application on yield, dry matter and N accumulation, postanthesis dry matter amount and nitrogen utilization of double-cropping rice in yellow clayey soil. The equal amount of nitrogen (N) application with 180 kg/hm2 was used for each fertilizer treatment. The results showed that, compared with CK, nitrogen treatments significantly increased grain yield by 77.7%103.5% on early rice and 56.4%72.9% on late rice, with the profit increased by 7 14910 648 ChineseYuan/hm2 and 8 05510 950 Chinese Yuan/hm2 respectively. Compared with convention fertilizer (PU 100%), all treatments of controlled-release fertilizers as basal nitrogen fertilizer to single basal application had different performance on early and late rice. The grain yield, profit and agronomic nitrogen use efficiency (ANUE) were significantly increased by more than 9.9%, 2 281 Chinese Yuan/hm2, 3.7 kg/kg, respectively, in the treatments of ureaformaldehyde (UF 100%) and urea with nitrapyrin (NPU 100%) on early rice, NPU 100% and 70% sulfur-polyester resin-coated urea (SPCU) mixing 30% prilled urea (SPCU 70% + PU 30%) on late rice. The treatment of NPU 100% also significantly increased nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) by 27.3% and 78.3% respectively on early and late rice. In conclusion, under this field experiment conditions, the modes of nitrogen application in the treatments of UF 100% or NPU 100% on early rice, NPU 100% or SPCU 70%+PU 30% on late rice can meet the demand of rice growth when the yield, economic efficiency and nitrogen use efficiency are taken into account. Importantly, the application of NPU showed similar nutritional contribution and economic efficiency on the early and late rice, and should be taken as an available and economic nitrogen fertilizer on double-cropping rice in yellow clayey soil.

Hickory (Carya cathayensis) is a plant famous for production of edible nuts and oil in southeast China, which is mainly distributed in Tianmu Mountain at the junction of Zhejiang and Anhui Provinces. There is a long cultivation and utilization history of hickory, and continued development and adaption of advanced management practices since 1980s, such as high fertilizer addition and effectively artificial weeding techniques, etc. However, this intensive management for highly economic profit of nut production may lead to soil degradation, and the influence of such intensive management measures on soil organic carbon (SOC) under hickory forest has not yet been reported. So the objectives of this study were to investigate the effects of intensive management on SOC content and distribution of hickory forest, which could provide useful information for sustainable management of hickory forests. The experiment sites located in Lin’an City (118°51′119°52′ E, 29°56′30°23′ N), which were the major production base of hickory and the total acreage reached 29 047.1 hm2. Soil samples (030 cm depth) were collected from 306 plots with the areas of 1 km by 1 km for each plot between July and August in 2008 according to the multipoint sampling method. The characteristics of each sample plot were recorded such as altitude, parent rock, soil species and slope, and the soil bulk density, SOC content and other soil nutrients were measured in the laboratory. The results showed that the average SOC content and density were 18.87 g/kg and 60.92 t/hm2, which were significantly lower than those under evergreen broadleaf forest. Multivariate covariance analysis showed that the SOC content of hickory forest was significantly influenced by three factors of altitude, parent rock and township. The SOC content (21.59 g/kg) in Daxiagu town was significantly higher than those in Heqiao, Maxiao, Tuankou and Qingliangfeng towns. The SOC content enhanced with the increase of altitude. It was also found that the SOC content in granite rocks was significant higher than those in sandshale rocks. The total storage of SOC on 030 cm layers was 1 828.92×103 t. Soil pH and bulk density showed significantly negative correlations with SOC content (R2=0.187 10.207 6, n=306, P<0.01). Furthermore, SOC content was significantly and positively correlated with available nitrogen, available phosphorus, available potassium and available sulfur (R2=0.193 10.708 7, n=306, P<0.01). In conclusion, to sustain the soil organic carbon and C. cathayensis production, it is recommended that more organic fertilizers (manures) should be used together with chemical fertilizers.

Soil fauna is an important component of soil ecosystems, which plays a significant role in the decomposition of biological remains, soil properties and the enhancement of material recycling and energy conversion in soils. Slope locations are one of the important topographical factors in mountain environments, which play an important role in driving the reallocation of water and light, and have a significant effecton plant growth, soil moisture, microbes as well as soil fauna. However, how do the slope locations affect soil fauna community is still unknown. Hence, this study focuses on the effects of slope location on the community structure of soil fauna in kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis) plantation which was planted with the density of 2 500 indiv./hm2 in 2000. Soil fauna at three different slope locations (upper slope, middle slope and lower slope) with four soil layers (herb, 0-5 cm, 5-10 cm and 10-15 cm) in the kiwifruit plantation were studied. Macrofauna samples (n=3) were picked up by hand in each sampled slope with the area of 50 cm×50 cm (0.25 m2). After recording the types of soil fauna, the samples were put into a container with alcohol and were transported to laboratory for detailed classification to family level. Mesofauna samples were collected by steel core (r=5 cm, v=100 cm3) and were stored in soil fauna sealing black bags, then, the collected samples were transported to laboratory within 12 h and were subsequently separated by Tullgren (n=3) and Baermann (n=3) methods over a period of 48 h, respectively. Microscopy for mesofauna was with an interval of 4 h in order to prevent autolysis of Enchytraeidae, then was prolonged. All collected soil faunae were calculated and classified by microscope, and were identified to the order level following Pictorial Keys to Soil Animals of China. The results showed that a total of 2 077 individuals of soil fauna, belonging to five phyla, 13 classes and 29 orders, were collected. The highest density of total species was in upper slope and lowest density was in lower slope. The dominant communities in upper slope were Nematoda and Enchytraeidae, accounting for 22.1% and 56.3% of the individuals, respectively. Acarina, Nematoda and Enchytraeidae were the dominant groups in middle slope, accounting for 12.2%, 14.2% and 58.8% of the individuals, respectively. Collembola, Acarina and Nematoda were the dominant groups in lower slope, accounting for 23.7%, 18.6% and 35.5% of the individuals, respectively. The order of soil fauna density profile distribution was upper > middle > lower, except 510 cm layer. The densities of soil fauna in herb and 05 cm layer collected by Tullgren method were significantly higher in upper slope than in middle and lower slope (P<0.05), and the densities of soil fauna in 510 cm and 1015 cm layer collected by Baermann method were significantly higher in upper slope than in middle and lower slope (P<0.05). Omnivorous soil fauna had the largest individual number compared with other guild compositions, and the total ratios of omnivorous and saprozoic soil faunae in upper slope, middle slope and lower slope were 68.72%, 76.81% and 81.1%, respectively. ShannonWiener index and Pielou index were higher in lower slope than in upper and middle slopes，but Simpson index was lower in lower slope than in upper and middle slopes. In sum, the guild compositions, densities of profile distribution, group numbers and diversity indexes of soil fauna in the kiwifruit plantation have significant responses to slope locations with the highest soil temperature in upper slope and soil water content in lower slope.

Epidemiological studies reveal that diets rich in fruits and vegetables can reduce the incidence of chronic diseases, such as ageing, cardiovascular disease and cancer, et al. According to previous reports, oxidative stress is closely related with the occurrence and development of chronic diseases. Therefore, anti-oxidative compounds derived from plant foods are gaining more interest in ameliorating adverse health risks because of their low toxicity and few side effects. The World Health Organization has emphasized that phenolic components, especially from colorful fruits, play an important role in preventing diseases that seriously threaten people’s health, including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, and obesity. Blueberries are highly recommended because of their abundant anthocyanins and other phenolic compounds. Furthermore, wild blueberries contain usually more polyphenol content than the cultivars. In China, the Greater Hinggan Mountains in Northeast China is the main producing area of wild blueberries, and the annual yield is about 100 to 200 thousand tons. Therefore, Chinese wild blueberries have great value of development and utilization. However, there are few literatures available about the nutritional compounds and anti-oxidative activity of the Chinese wild blueberries. In this study, contents of functional compounds in fresh wild blueberries, such as total phenols, total anthocyanins and vitamin C, were analyzed by FolinCiocalteu method, pHdifferential method and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method, respectively. Moreover, in order to understand the compositions of polyphenols and the main antioxidative components in wild blueberries, blueberry polyphenols were separated and purified. After being purified sequentially by Amberlite XAD-7 column and Sephadex-LH-20 column, polyphenols from blueberries were subsequently separated into three fractions: anthocyaninrich fraction, phenolic acidrich fraction, and flavonoidrich fraction. The conditions of 2, 2’-azobis (2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride (AAPH)induced oxidative damage of HepG-2 cells were optimized, including cellular proliferation capability, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level, and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). Based on the in vitro model of AAPHinduced oxidative damage of HepG-2 cells, the antioxidative activity and synergistic effect of these polyphenolic fractions from blueberries were studied. The results indicated that the contents of total polyphenols and anthocyanin and vitamin C in wild blueberries were 459 mg, 277 mg and 2 721 μg per 100 g respectively. Among these three polyphenolic fractions, anthocyanins and phenolic acids were dominant and their contents in total blueberry polyphenols were 40.21% and 38.27% respectively, however, the content of flavonoidrich fraction was only 4.45%. After optimizing the conditions of AAPHinduced oxidative damage of HepG-2 cells, 0.6 mmol/L AAPH was selected at last due to the lower cytotoxicity and significantly higher intracellular ROS level under this AAPH concentration. On the aspect of antioxidative activity, the maximal clearance rates of ROS for anthocyaninrich fraction, phenolicrich fraction, and flavonoidrich fraction were 37%, 49%, 53% respectively, and additive effect was observed, but there were not synergistic effect among them. According to the above described results, Chinese wild blueberries are rich in anthocyanins and phenolic acids, and their good antioxidative activity is attributed to the high content of total polyphenols. It is concluded that wild blueberries are good antioxidative foods.

In the tea refining process, baking and aromaimproving technology is widely used in many kinds of dry tea to improve and stabilize the tea quality. Through baking process, not only the moisture of tea could be effectively reduced but also the harmful bacteria could be killed, which is good for preservation; furthermore, baking promotes the dehydration saccharification and isomerization of tea components which is good for tea quality by the way of reducing the bitterness, astringent taste and removing stale taste and miscellaneous taste of tea. So far, research on baking and aromaimproving technology was limited to baking temperature, baking time and so on. Considering that different heating rates in baking and aromaimproving process has different thermal effects on tea. It usually heats up faster on tea surface, but slower inside the tea due to the thermal conductivity factor, therefore, fast heating rate usually leads to uneven heating effect and to the decreases of tea quality. In this work, baking treatments with different heating rates were applied to Longjing tea, and the effects of heating rates on the tea quality were investigated. Middle and low grade Longjing teas were used as tested materials. Different baking treatments were carried out with final temperature of 110 ℃ and heating rates of 4, 6 and 8 ℃/min respectively. Treatment A4 was directly heated at 110 ℃ for 45 minutes, and the unheated Longjing tea as a control. Different baking time was implemented in accordance with different heating rates to ensure that all the tea with different treatments received the same total heat. The effects of heating rate on the tea quality were estimated by sensory evaluation, quality component determination and gas chromatography-mass spectrum (GC-MS) for aroma analysis. The results indicated that different heating rates in baking process had obvious impact on the tea quality. Values from chemical tests showed that the slow heating rate resulted in the higher contents of amino acids and chlorophyll and the lower contents of tea polyphenols, implying better quality compared with other treatments, which was consistent with the results of sensory evaluation. The heating rate also had significant effects on the aroma quality of tea. Slow heating rate resulted in the higher contents of β-myrcene, ocimene, translinaloloxide, linalool and nonanal, which were characteristic constituents of clean aroma and were good for the flavor quality of the tea, than the fast heating rates did. While the fast heating rate or direct baking led to highfired taste and scorched flavor. It is concluded that compared with the fast heating rate, the slow heating rate in baking and aromaimproving process obviously improves the colour, flavor and taste quality of tea, indicating that it is hopeful to find a way for further improvements in baking technology.

High concentration of ammonia and nitrite in fish/shrimp culture system is harmful to aquatic creatures, and the excess nitrogen and phosphorus discharged into rivers and lakes without treatment will lead to eutrophication of water body. Therefore, using hydrophytes or filter feeders to control effectively these N and P elements from aquaculture system has recently become a key issue for in site wastewater treatment. A simulated experiment was conducted in 2012 to understand the effects of hydrophytes and filter feeders on N and P removal from aquaculture wastewater and purification. Ceratophyllum demersum, Myriophyllum verticillatum and Bellamya aeruginosa were selected as experimental materials, and seven different treatments were arranged in the plastic tank for testing the N and P removal ability of these creatures or combination treatments, including C. demersum, M. verticillatum, B. aeruginosa, C. demersum + M. verticillatum, C. demersum + B. aeruginosa, M. verticillatum + B. aeruginosa, C. demersum + M. verticillatum + B. aeruginosa. The effects of purification and removal rate of N and P in aquaculture wastewater by these treatments were investigated in hydrostatic conditions from 7th May, 2012 to 5th June, 2012. Ammonia, nitrite, total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were measured. All data were analyzed by Microsoft Excel 2007 and SPSS 20.0. The results showed that more than 90% of ammonia and nitrite contents were removed and the final concentrations were decreased to less than 0.5 and 0.1 mg/L respectively after 30 days in all treatments. C. demersum gave better reduction of ammonia and nitrite than the rest of the groups, which removed 96.37% and 97.85% of ammonia and nitrite in less than 18 days, respectively. The all seven treatments removed 14.93%20.92% of TN and 11.95%17.92% of TP in the aquaculture wastewater after 30 days. Among these treatments, M. verticillatum and M. verticillatum + B. aeruginosa showed best performance on the TN removal rate by 26.62% at day 18 and 24.65% at day 24, respectively. M. verticillatum absorbed and removed TN in wastewater more quickly than the others, giving a removal efficiency of 24.20% in only 12 days. With the experimental time prolonging, the combination treatments showed an obvious advantage compared with using single material. C. demersum + B. aeruginosa indicated the best efficiency on the TP removal with the highest removal efficiency of 31.54% after 6 days of treatment. Comparing C. demersum with M. verticillatum treatment, the former showed better efficiency in improving DO and decreasing COD values. The C. demersum + B. aeruginosa treatment showed the best removal efficiency of COD. In conclusion, for the aquaculture wastewater with high ammonia, nitrite and phosphorus concentrations, C. demersum is more effective than M. verticillatum and B. aeruginosa in purifying the wastewater, and the variety of combinations provide better performance during a long period.

It has been several years since the promotion and application of analytic hierarchy process (AHP). Many scholars have used this model to analyze the configurations of plant landscape, but there are few using the quantitative and qualitative evaluation model of AHP to analyze highclass universities. One of the reasons is that these universities have large scale constructions, diversified plants, elaborated function blocks, and there are huge amount of statistics. East area of Zijingang campus, Zhejiang University was taken as an example. This area was divided into A, B, C three large plots and 10 blocks named by its original name. Based on AHP, the quantitative indicators were selected such as diversity of species, ornamental characteristics, and structure of life style at the three sample plots, and the qualitative indicators such as harmony of campus plants with whole habitat and hard landscape were screened by using the methods of questionnaire survey and examination on the spot. The results showed that the east area of Zijingang campus had rich vegetation and plant species diversity. It had achieved harmonious standards at plant landscape and architectural landscape, but its local plant landscape needed to be improved. Compared with A and B plots, plot C got the highest total score in the microlevel. In sum, the research provides a reference for plant landscape construction of other universities and lays a basis for plant landscape reconstruction on Zijingang campus of Zhejiang University.

Oxygen consumption rate is an important physiological parameter for evaluating the adaptation and influence of aquatic animals to the surrounding environment. The oxygen consumption rate of bivalve is dependent on various internal and external factors, such as developmental stage, body mass and sexual cycle stage, geographic latitude, season, temperature oscillation, feeding condition, oxygen saturation in water, and tidal conditions. Therefore, oxygen consumption rate of bivalve measured in situ is more accurate in reflecting metabolic intensity of the bivalve in natural habitat than that measured under laboratory condition. In this study, oxygen consumption rate of freshwater pearl mussel Hyriopsis cumingii with different mussel sizes was measured in situ using flowthrough respirometry. The mussels included oneyearold (shell lengths were 52 and 77 mm respectively) and twoyearold (shell lengths were 69, 87 and 102 mm respectively) ones. The measurement lasted for 3 days, during which the mussels were put in respirometers and aerated well water flow through the respirometers. Water samples were collected at the inlet and outlet of respirometers at 0:00, 6:00, 12:00 and 18:00 every day, and dissolved oxygen was analyzed with the Winkler method. During the measurement, water temperature was (22.7±0.7) ℃, and pH was 8.07±0.02, and dissolved oxygen concentration in water flowing into the respirometers was (6.05±0.52) mg/L. The results showed that the massspecific oxygen consumption rate decreased with the increase of body mass of the mussels. When the shell lengths were 52, 77, 69, 87 and 102 mm, the oxygen consumption rate of per unit mass was (27.85±7.15), (17.94±4.89), (18.76±6.55), (14.26±3.24) and (14.25±2.51) mg/(kg·h), respectively. The individual oxygen consumption rate ［CI/(mg/(individual·d))］ significantly correlated to mussel mass (m/g) and shell length (L/mm), and the regression equation was lg CI=0.781 lg m-0.051 (R2=0.826, n=43, P<0.05) or lg CI=2.648 lg L-4 (R2=0.815, n=43, P<0.05). Diel variation in oxygen consumption rate of per unit mass of the mussel showed that the oxygen consumption rate was 1.2 times higher at 0:00 than that at 12:00. No significant change was found in oxygen consumption rate of per unit mass of the mussel during the starvation of 3 days. The above results reveal that the oxygen consumption rate of per unit mass or individual oxygen consumption rate of fresh water pearl mussel H. cumingii are dependent on shell length or mussel mass. Compared to the fishes cocultured in commercial farming ponds, oxygen consumption rate of the mussel is lower. Therefore, respiration of the mussel is not a main source of dissolved oxygen consumption in the ponds with integrated culture of H. cumingii and fish.

Oxygen consumption rate is an important physiological indicator for evaluating the environmental adaptation of bivalves. Generally, oxygen consumption rate of bivalve is measured with closed respirometry or flow-through respirometry. So far, the influence of different respirometry on oxygen consumption rate of bivalve has not been well evaluated. In this paper, we reported the oxygen consumption rate of twoyearold freshwater mussel Hyriopsis cumingii (mussel mass (41.95±6.23) g) measured with closed respirometry, flow-through respirometry and flow-closed respirometry (oxygen consumption rate was measured with closed respirometry after the mussel was acclimated in flow-through respirometer for 2 h), respectively. The measurement of oxygen consumption rate lasted for 2 h, during which water temperature was 22 ℃. After the measurement, water samples were collected at the upper, middle and lower stratifications of the respiration chamber by siphon, and DO (dissolved oxygen) concentrations and pH values were measured. In the respiration chambers of the closed respirometry and flow-closed respirometry, significant stratification in DO concentration was detected. The results showed that the DO concentration was significantly higher at the upper or middle stratification than that at the lower stratification in the respiration chambers of the closed or flowclosed respirometry, whereas no significant DO stratification was detected in the respiration chambers of the flow-through respirometry. The oxygen consumption rates of the mussel based on DO concentrations at the upper and middle stratifications using closed respirometry were (100.9±49.5) and (199.7±49.9) mg/(kg·h) respectively, which were significantly lower than the oxygen consumption rate ［(1 710.8±509.6) mg/(kg·h)］ calculated based on DO concentration at the lower stratification. The oxygen consumption rates of the mussel based on DO concentrations at the upper and middle stratifications using flowclosed respirometry were (390.06±88.2) and (653.3±78.7) mg/(kg·h) respectively, which were significantly lower than the oxygen consumption rate ［(1 116.4±300.9) mg/(kg·h)］ calculated based on DO concentration at the lower stratification. The errors introduced by the DO stratification were calibrated by measuring DO concentrations at different stratifications in the respiration chambers and calculating the oxygen consumption rate with a calibrated equation. The result indicated that the calibrated oxygen consumption rates measured with the closed and flowclosed respirometry were (552.8±115.1) and (625.4±72.4) mg/(kg·h) respectively, which did not statistically differ from the oxygen consumption rate measured with the flow-through respirometry ［(504.7±103.1) mg/(kg·h)］. The above results reveal that the oxygen consumption rate of the mussel can be erroneously estimated using closed or flowclosed respirometry without the calibration of DO stratification in the respiration chambers. Using the flow-through respirometry can diminish the stress of operation disturbance and monitor the oxygen consumption rate of the tested mussel at a long time scale. Therefore, the flow-through respirometry was recommended for measuring the oxygen consumption rate of bivalve.