Aquaporins play a significant role in plant water relations. To further understand the aquaporin function in plants under water stress, the expression of a subgroup of aquaporins, plasma membrane intrinsic proteins （...Aquaporins play a significant role in plant water relations. To further understand the aquaporin function in plants under water stress, the expression of a subgroup of aquaporins, plasma membrane intrinsic proteins （PIPs）, was studied at both the protein and mRNA level in upland rice （Oryza sativa L. cv. Zhonghan 3） and lowland rice （Oryza sativa L. cv. Xiushui 63） when they were water stressed by treatment with 20% polyethylene glycol （PEG）. Plants responded differently to 20% PEG treatment. Leaf water content of upland rice leaves was reduced rapidly. PIP protein level increased markedly in roots of both types, but only in leaves of upland rice after 10 h of PEG treatment. At the mRNA level, OsPIP1,2, OsPIP1,3, OsPIP2;1 and OsPIP2;5 in roots as well as OsPIP1,2 and OsPIP1;3 in leaves were significantly up-regulated in upland rice, whereas the corresponding genes remained unchanged or down-regulated in lowland rice. Meanwhile, we observed a significant increase in the endogenous abscisic acid （ABA） level in upland rice but not in lowland rice under water deficit. Treatment with 60 μM ABA enhanced the expression of OsPIP1;2, OsPIP2;5 and OsPIP2;6 in roots and OsPIP1;2, OsPIP2;4 and OsPIP2;6 in leaves of upland rice. The responsiveness of PIP genes to water stress and ABA were different, implying that the regulation of PIP genes involves both ABA-dependent and ABA-independent signaling oathways during water deficit.展开更多
China has experienced a rapid urbanization since late 1970s. The great increase of urban population has resulted in various environmental changes, of which urban water shortage and water environment problems have occu...China has experienced a rapid urbanization since late 1970s. The great increase of urban population has resulted in various environmental changes, of which urban water shortage and water environment problems have occurred in most cities, especially in the rapidly developing urban agglomerations in the eastern coastal region. This research, taking Shandong Peninsula Urban Agglomeration （SPUA） as a case study area analyzes the urbanization expansion in the last decades, discusses the water shortage and water environment changes following the rapid economic development and urbanization sueh as groundwater sinking in the urban and plain area, sea water and saltwater intrusion in the coastal cities, water pollution overspreading and water ecosystem degradation, and puts forwards some strategies for sustainabilitv in populous regions with severe water shortage. Some countermeasures for sustainable development of SPUA are put forward, such as constructing modern water resources inter-city networks to regulate water resouree between cities, adjnsting urbanization policy and urban scale planning to promote the development of small towns and medium sized cities, optimizing urban industry structure by restricting high water consumption enterprises and stimulating the growth of tertiary industry. improving water use efficiency to rednce fresh water consumption and wastewater discharge, introducing economic means to water pricing and water management system, and restoring ecological conditions to strengthen the natural water-making capacity.展开更多
The water shortage in the Middle East is a well-known problem. The introduction of diesel operated pumps for irrigation has caused a severe drop in groundwater levels. At the same time the demand for groundwater is gr...The water shortage in the Middle East is a well-known problem. The introduction of diesel operated pumps for irrigation has caused a severe drop in groundwater levels. At the same time the demand for groundwater is growing to alarming proportions. Alternative ways of groundwater supply and management need to be found to halt social and economical disaster in the future. Why not look at history？ Qanats are subterranean tunnels ancient civilizations built to access groundwater. The technique is a sustainable method of groundwater extraction. Throughout the Middle East some settlements still make use of these ancient systems. In the summer of 2000, a community rehabilitation of a qanat was executed International Center for Areas （ICARDA） and with support from the Agricultural Research in Dry international donors. The renovation served as a pilot community intervention within a participatory action research project aimed at evaluating the use of qanats in Syria. In a second stage of the project, the pilot was scaled up to a nation-wide survey of Syrian qanats in 2001. This resulted in qanat renovations on other sites executed in 2oo2 and 2oo3 with further international support. This paper compares the first pilot renovation with a recent qanat renovation that took place in Qarah, Syria.展开更多
Objective Several previous studies have shown androgens deficiency in men with CHF, and 2 studies on the prognostic significance of serum levels of androgens in CHF patients have yielded conflicting results. The aim o...Objective Several previous studies have shown androgens deficiency in men with CHF, and 2 studies on the prognostic significance of serum levels of androgens in CHF patients have yielded conflicting results. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between serum concentration of testosterone and mortality in men with systolic CHE Methods A total of 175 elderly （age ≥ 60 years） men with CHF were recruited. Total testosterone fiT） and sex hormone binding globulin （SHBG） were measured, and free serum testosterone （eFT） was calculated. The median follow-up time was 1262 days. Results During follow-up 54 （30.9%） patients died. TT and eFF deficiency was found in 21.7% （38/175） and 27.4% （48/175） patients, respectively. Both TT and eFT were inversely associated with LVEF and NT-proBNP （all P〈0.01）. Kaplan-Meier curves for patients in low, medium and high tertiles according to TF and eFT level showed significantly different cumulative survival rate （both P〈0.01 by log-rank test）. However, after adjustment for clinical variables, there were no significant associations between either Tr or eFT levels or survival time （OR=0.97, 95% CI, 0.84-1.12, P--0.28; and OR=0.92, 95% CI, 0.82-1.06,/＇=0.14, respectively）. Conclusion Our study showed that although levels of TT and eFT are commonly decreased in elderly patients with systolic CHF and related to disease severity, they are not independent predictors for mortality展开更多
Standard is the technical foundation of national economic and social development, and it is the basic rule of establishing social regulation. Researching and constituting the standard system of urban domestic water sa...Standard is the technical foundation of national economic and social development, and it is the basic rule of establishing social regulation. Researching and constituting the standard system of urban domestic water saving technology is to offer important science basis for revising standard plan and standardize research plan. This paper introduces the present situation of our urban domestic water saving technical standard system, problem and the development direction in the future, as well as project planning of constructing urban domestic water saving technical standard system.展开更多
Huaihe River is one of three major rivers in China with a large population and developed economy. By the 1970s, the water quality of Huaihe River was deteriorating daily and more than a hundred serious pollution accid...Huaihe River is one of three major rivers in China with a large population and developed economy. By the 1970s, the water quality of Huaihe River was deteriorating daily and more than a hundred serious pollution accidents of water quality happened and caused the inestimable losses in the production, life and health of residents along the river and terribly damaged the ecological system of the river. Through the continuous large-scale treatment for more than 10 years, the deterioration of water quality in Huaihe River has been basically inhibited. Nevertheless, the water pollution in Huaihe River is, on the whole, still very serious for many reasons, including special climatic conditions, terrible lack of water resource, obsolete industrial structure and unsound management system for the river, etc. This essay deeply analyzes the rea- sons why the water pollution of Huaihe River is ＂chronic＂ and puts forward the corresponding countermeasures for how to continuously improve the water quality of the river. In the end, this essay argues that it still takes 30-50 years or even a longer period, even if every measures are implemented smoothly and strictly, to actually make the water of Huaihe River clean and gradually restore its normal ecological and environmental functions.展开更多
文摘Aquaporins play a significant role in plant water relations. To further understand the aquaporin function in plants under water stress, the expression of a subgroup of aquaporins, plasma membrane intrinsic proteins （PIPs）, was studied at both the protein and mRNA level in upland rice （Oryza sativa L. cv. Zhonghan 3） and lowland rice （Oryza sativa L. cv. Xiushui 63） when they were water stressed by treatment with 20% polyethylene glycol （PEG）. Plants responded differently to 20% PEG treatment. Leaf water content of upland rice leaves was reduced rapidly. PIP protein level increased markedly in roots of both types, but only in leaves of upland rice after 10 h of PEG treatment. At the mRNA level, OsPIP1,2, OsPIP1,3, OsPIP2;1 and OsPIP2;5 in roots as well as OsPIP1,2 and OsPIP1;3 in leaves were significantly up-regulated in upland rice, whereas the corresponding genes remained unchanged or down-regulated in lowland rice. Meanwhile, we observed a significant increase in the endogenous abscisic acid （ABA） level in upland rice but not in lowland rice under water deficit. Treatment with 60 μM ABA enhanced the expression of OsPIP1;2, OsPIP2;5 and OsPIP2;6 in roots and OsPIP1;2, OsPIP2;4 and OsPIP2;6 in leaves of upland rice. The responsiveness of PIP genes to water stress and ABA were different, implying that the regulation of PIP genes involves both ABA-dependent and ABA-independent signaling oathways during water deficit.
基金the National Social Science Fund of China（Grant No.06BJL036）Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province （Grant No.Y2006E05）.
文摘China has experienced a rapid urbanization since late 1970s. The great increase of urban population has resulted in various environmental changes, of which urban water shortage and water environment problems have occurred in most cities, especially in the rapidly developing urban agglomerations in the eastern coastal region. This research, taking Shandong Peninsula Urban Agglomeration （SPUA） as a case study area analyzes the urbanization expansion in the last decades, discusses the water shortage and water environment changes following the rapid economic development and urbanization sueh as groundwater sinking in the urban and plain area, sea water and saltwater intrusion in the coastal cities, water pollution overspreading and water ecosystem degradation, and puts forwards some strategies for sustainabilitv in populous regions with severe water shortage. Some countermeasures for sustainable development of SPUA are put forward, such as constructing modern water resources inter-city networks to regulate water resouree between cities, adjnsting urbanization policy and urban scale planning to promote the development of small towns and medium sized cities, optimizing urban industry structure by restricting high water consumption enterprises and stimulating the growth of tertiary industry. improving water use efficiency to rednce fresh water consumption and wastewater discharge, introducing economic means to water pricing and water management system, and restoring ecological conditions to strengthen the natural water-making capacity.
文摘The water shortage in the Middle East is a well-known problem. The introduction of diesel operated pumps for irrigation has caused a severe drop in groundwater levels. At the same time the demand for groundwater is growing to alarming proportions. Alternative ways of groundwater supply and management need to be found to halt social and economical disaster in the future. Why not look at history？ Qanats are subterranean tunnels ancient civilizations built to access groundwater. The technique is a sustainable method of groundwater extraction. Throughout the Middle East some settlements still make use of these ancient systems. In the summer of 2000, a community rehabilitation of a qanat was executed International Center for Areas （ICARDA） and with support from the Agricultural Research in Dry international donors. The renovation served as a pilot community intervention within a participatory action research project aimed at evaluating the use of qanats in Syria. In a second stage of the project, the pilot was scaled up to a nation-wide survey of Syrian qanats in 2001. This resulted in qanat renovations on other sites executed in 2oo2 and 2oo3 with further international support. This paper compares the first pilot renovation with a recent qanat renovation that took place in Qarah, Syria.
文摘Objective Several previous studies have shown androgens deficiency in men with CHF, and 2 studies on the prognostic significance of serum levels of androgens in CHF patients have yielded conflicting results. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between serum concentration of testosterone and mortality in men with systolic CHE Methods A total of 175 elderly （age ≥ 60 years） men with CHF were recruited. Total testosterone fiT） and sex hormone binding globulin （SHBG） were measured, and free serum testosterone （eFT） was calculated. The median follow-up time was 1262 days. Results During follow-up 54 （30.9%） patients died. TT and eFF deficiency was found in 21.7% （38/175） and 27.4% （48/175） patients, respectively. Both TT and eFT were inversely associated with LVEF and NT-proBNP （all P〈0.01）. Kaplan-Meier curves for patients in low, medium and high tertiles according to TF and eFT level showed significantly different cumulative survival rate （both P〈0.01 by log-rank test）. However, after adjustment for clinical variables, there were no significant associations between either Tr or eFT levels or survival time （OR=0.97, 95% CI, 0.84-1.12, P--0.28; and OR=0.92, 95% CI, 0.82-1.06,/＇=0.14, respectively）. Conclusion Our study showed that although levels of TT and eFT are commonly decreased in elderly patients with systolic CHF and related to disease severity, they are not independent predictors for mortality
基金The national basic platform project of science and technology.This paper is a part of standard system of water resource used continuously in China.(2004DEA70920-04)
文摘Standard is the technical foundation of national economic and social development, and it is the basic rule of establishing social regulation. Researching and constituting the standard system of urban domestic water saving technology is to offer important science basis for revising standard plan and standardize research plan. This paper introduces the present situation of our urban domestic water saving technical standard system, problem and the development direction in the future, as well as project planning of constructing urban domestic water saving technical standard system.
文摘Huaihe River is one of three major rivers in China with a large population and developed economy. By the 1970s, the water quality of Huaihe River was deteriorating daily and more than a hundred serious pollution accidents of water quality happened and caused the inestimable losses in the production, life and health of residents along the river and terribly damaged the ecological system of the river. Through the continuous large-scale treatment for more than 10 years, the deterioration of water quality in Huaihe River has been basically inhibited. Nevertheless, the water pollution in Huaihe River is, on the whole, still very serious for many reasons, including special climatic conditions, terrible lack of water resource, obsolete industrial structure and unsound management system for the river, etc. This essay deeply analyzes the rea- sons why the water pollution of Huaihe River is ＂chronic＂ and puts forward the corresponding countermeasures for how to continuously improve the water quality of the river. In the end, this essay argues that it still takes 30-50 years or even a longer period, even if every measures are implemented smoothly and strictly, to actually make the water of Huaihe River clean and gradually restore its normal ecological and environmental functions.
