Widespread methane seepage along the continental margin off Svalbard - from Bjørnøya to Kongsfjorden.

Numerous articles have recently reported on gas seepage offshore Svalbard, because the gas emission from these Arctic sediments was thought to result from gas hydrate dissociation, possibly triggered by anthropogenic ocean warming. We report on findings of a much broader seepage area, extending from 74° to 79°, where more than a thousand gas discharge sites were imaged as acoustic flares. The gas discharge occurs in water depths at and shallower than the upper edge of the gas hydrate stability zone and generates a dissolved methane plume that is hundreds of kilometer in length. Data collected in the summer of 2015 revealed that 0.02-7.7% of the dissolved methane was aerobically oxidized by microbes and a minor fraction (0.07%) was transferred to the atmosphere during periods of low wind speeds. Most flares were detected in the vicinity of the Hornsund Fracture Zone, leading us to postulate that the gas ascends along this fracture zone. The methane discharges on bathymetric highs characterized by sonic hard grounds, whereas glaciomarine and Holocene sediments in the troughs apparently limit seepage. The large scale seepage reported here is not caused by anthropogenic warming.

Abundance and activity of methanotrophic bacteria in littoral and profundal sediments of lake constance (Germany).

The abundances and activities of aerobic methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) were compared in depth profiles of littoral and profundal sediments of Lake Constance, Germany. Abundances were determined by quantitative PCR (qPCR) targeting the pmoA gene and by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), and data were compared to methane oxidation rates calculated from high-resolution concentration profiles. qPCR using type I MOB-specific pmoA primers indicated that type I MOB represented a major proportion in both sediments at all depths. FISH indicated that in both sediments, type I MOB outnumbered type II MOB at least fourfold. Results obtained with both techniques indicated that in the littoral sediment, the highest numbers of methanotrophs were found at a depth of 2 to 3 cm, corresponding to the zone of highest methane oxidation activity, although no oxygen could be detected in this zone. In the profundal sediment, highest methane oxidation activities were found at a depth of 1 to 2 cm, while MOB abundance decreased gradually with sediment depth. In both sediments, MOB were also present at high numbers in deeper sediment layers where no methane oxidation activity could be observed.

Factors influencing the cultivability of lake water bacteria.

Counting bacteria in natural water samples by cultivation yields only low recovery efficiencies (ca. 1%), compared to total counts obtained after 4,6-diamidino-2-phenylindol (DAPI) staining. In order to optimize the cultivation of heterotrophic planktonic bacteria from Lake Constance (Germany), selected parameters of the medium composition were modified. The most important factor was the concentration of organic substrate (nutrient broth plus yeast extract), which significantly influenced the "most probable number" obtained in liquid growth medium. Reduced oxygen concentrations (3-12%) lowered the "most probable number". Addition of N-acyl homoserine lactones to the medium increased the cultivability slightly. Low substrate concentrations [0.03-0.06% (w/v)], an incubation atmosphere of 21% oxygen at 16 degrees C for 4 weeks were optimal and increased the cultivability ("most probable number" related to total bacterial counts) to an average cultivability of 18+/-11%, (n=8). The results indicate that cultivabilities of heterotrophic bacteria from lakewater samples can be significantly increased by modifying the cultivation methods.

Role of receptors for epidermal growth factor and insulin-like growth factors I and II in the differentiation of rat mammary glands from lactogenesis I to lactogenesis II.

In addition to ovarian steroids and lactogenic hormones from the placenta and pituitary, growth factors control the growth and differentiation of mammary glands. Lactogenesis II at the end of pregnancy is under the control of progesterone. Ovariectomy results in a significant decrease in the number of receptors for epidermal growth factor (EGF) and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and an increase in IGF-II binding sites in mammary gland acini of rats, without affecting the affinity for their respective ligand. Although concentrations of EGF, IGF-I and IGF-II receptors are regulated by oestradiol and progesterone, replacement treatment with ovarian steroids after ovariectomy showed that receptor concentrations do not mediate the restraint on lactogenesis. Progesterone treatment, which inhibits the onset of lactogenesis II, did not restore EGF receptor concentrations to control values, and the presence of oestradiol was required to reverse the effect of ovariectomy. Oestradiol, which potentiates the effect of ovariectomy on milk synthesis, increases IGF-I receptor concentrations. IGF-II receptor concentrations, after the different steroid treatments, were consistent with the steroid effect on milk synthesis. The changes observed in the concentrations of these growth factor receptors at the onset of mammary gland secretion are not considered to affect the progesterone block to lactogenesis II, but rather are a consequence of the shift of the hormonal and, hence, physiological status of the gland.