Integrated water resources management for emergency situations: A case study of Macau.

Integrated urban water management (IUWM) is a useful tool that can be used to alleviate water resource shortages in developing regions like Macau, where 98% of the raw water comes from mainland China. In Macau, scarce water resources deteriorate rapidly in emergency situations, such as accidental chemical spills upstream of the supply reservoir or salty tides. During these times, only the water from the two freshwater reservoirs in Macau can be used.

A system dynamics urban water management model for Macau, China.

Urban water resources have been facing significant pressure from population growth, urbanization, and climate change. A system dynamics urban water management model was proposed to simulate the dynamic interactions between urban water demands and society, economy, climate, and water conservation. The residents' water conservation willingness was incorporated in the model and water-saving effects were quantified.

The Transcriptome of the Zoanthid Protopalythoa variabilis (Cnidaria, Anthozoa) Predicts a Basal Repertoire of Toxin-like and Venom-Auxiliary Polypeptides.

Protopalythoa is a zoanthid that, together with thousands of predominantly marine species, such as hydra, jellyfish, and sea anemones, composes the oldest eumetazoan phylum, i.e., the Cnidaria.

Friedmanniella endophytica sp. nov., an endophytic actinobacterium isolated from bark of Kandelia candel.

A coccus-shaped, non-spore-forming actinobacterium, designated strain 4Q3S-3T, was isolated from surface-sterilized bark of the mangrove plant Kandelia candel collected from Cotai Ecological Zones in Macao, China, and tested by a polyphasic approach to clarify its taxonomic position. This actinobacterium was Gram-stain-positive and aerobic. Neither substrate nor aerial mycelia were formed, and no diffusible pigments were observed on the media tested.

Genome-guided Investigation of Antibiotic Substances produced by Allosalinactinospora lopnorensis CA15-2(T) from Lop Nor region, China.

Microbial secondary metabolites are valuable resources for novel drug discovery. In particular, actinomycetes expressed a range of antibiotics against a spectrum of bacteria. In genus level, strain Allosalinactinospora lopnorensis CA15-2(T) is the first new actinomycete isolated from the Lop Nor region, China.

Nakamurella endophytica sp. nov., a novel endophytic actinobacterium isolated from the bark of Kandelia candel.

A Gram-stain-positive, aerobic, coccus-shaped, non-spore-forming actinobacterium, designated strain 2Q3S-4-2T, was isolated from the surface-sterilized bark of Kandelia candel, collected from Cotai Ecological Zones in Macao, PR China. It was tested using a polyphasic approach to determine its taxonomic position. Strain 2Q3S-4-2T grew optimally without NaCl at 28-30 °C and at pH 7.

Occurrence and possible sources of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) along the Chao River, China.

To analyze the possible influence of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on Miyun Reservoir, 14 soil samples and 1 water sample were collected along the Chao River, which is the main upstream source of the reservoir. A total of 24 kinds of OCPs and 12 kinds of dioxin-like PCBs were measured. Results showed that the ∑OCPs concentration ranged from 0.

Is urban development an urban river killer? A case study of Yongding Diversion Channel in Beijing, China.

The high population and concrete environment alter urban areas by changing temperature, rainfall runoff, and water resource utilization activities. This study was conducted to investigate the water quality features of the Yongding Diversion Channel in Beijing, China, and its relationship with rainfall and urban development. Monthly water quality data were obtained from April to October of 2004 at monitoring sites of Sanjiadian, Gaojing, Luodaozhuang, and Yuyuangtan.

Modeling single and repeated dose pharmacokinetics of PFOA in mice.

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) displays complicated pharmacokinetics in that serum concentrations indicate long half-lives despite which steady state appears to be achieved rapidly. In this study, serum and tissue concentration time-courses were obtained for male and female CD1 mice after single, oral doses of 1 and 10 mg/kg of PFOA. When using one- and two-compartment models, the pharmacokinetics for these two dosages are not consistent with serum time-course data from female CD1 mice administered 60 mg/kg, or with serum concentrations following repeated daily doses of 20 mg/kg PFOA.

Substrate uptake tests and quantitative FISH show differences in kinetic growth of bulking and non-bulking activated sludge.

The competition between filaments and floc formers in activated sludge has been historically described using kinetic selection. However, recent studies have suggested that bacterial storage may also be an important factor in microbial selection, since the dynamic nature of substrate flows into wastewater treatment plants elicit transient responses from microorganisms. Respirometry-based kinetic selection should thus be reevaluated by considering cell storage, and a more reliable method should be developed to include bacterial storage in the analysis of growth of filaments and floc formers in activated sludge.

Relationship of species-specific filament levels to filamentous bulking in activated sludge.

To examine the relationship between activated-sludge bulking and levels of specific filamentous bacteria, we developed a statistics-based quantification method for estimating the biomass levels of specific filaments using 16S rRNA-targeted fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) probes. The results of quantitative FISH for the filament Sphaerotilus natans were similar to the results of quantitative membrane hybridization in a sample from a full-scale wastewater treatment plant. Laboratory-scale reactors were operated under different flow conditions to develop bulking and nonbulking sludge and were bioaugmented with S.