[Arsenic Methylation Efficiency Changes During Paddy Soil Drying and Its Key Influencing Factors Analysis].

The straight head disease of rice is one of the main problems limiting rice production. Arsenic (As) methylation in paddy soils is considered to be highly related to the occurrence of the straight head disease. As a typical field practice, rice fields are usually drained during the late tillering stage and the mid-late grain filling stage. Nevertheless, the key influencing factors on the As methylation efficiency during paddy soil drying remain unclear. In this study, an indoor cultivation experiment was set up to simulate the drying process of paddy soil. Two As-contaminated soils collected from Xingren (XR) in Guizhou province and Nandan (ND) in Guangxi province were used as test soils. Each soil was treated with the addition of rice straw (RS) and without rice straw (CK). With the drying of paddy soil (0, 24, 36, 48, and 60 h), the changes in soil Eh, pH, total organic carbon (TOC), and As chemical species in the porewater were determined. The abundance of the As methylation functional gene (arsM), sulfate-reducing bacteria (harboring dsrA, As methylation-related microorganism), and methanogens (harboring mcrA, As demethylation-related microorganism), as well as the diversity of arsM-harboring microorganisms, were also observed. The results showed that during the process of drying paddy soil, soil Eh changed from -300--200 mV under complete flooding to -150--50 mV after drying; however, the change in soil pH was not obvious. The concentrations of inorganic As (iAs) and dimethylarsenic (DMAs) in porewater significantly increased (P<0.05) with the drying process. Additionally, the concentration of DMAs in the RS treatment was prominently higher than that in CK. Compared with XR soil, the concentration of DMAs in ND soil was higher. As a function of soil drying time, the As methylation efficiency of XR soil (XR-CK and XR-RS) slightly increased but was not significant (P>0.05), whereas the As methylation efficiency of ND soil (ND-CK and ND-RS) increased significantly (P<0.05). After the drying time reached 60 h, the As methylation efficiency of ND-CK and ND-RS increased by 61.8% and 23.2%, respectively, compared with those at the early stage of drying (0 hours). The copy numbers of the arsM and dsrA genes greatly increased with the extension of drying time, whereas an opposite trend was observed for the copy number of the mcrA gene. Furthermore, the addition of straw obviously increased the gene abundance of whole bacteria and arsM-, dsrA-, and mcrA-harboring bacteria. Based on the multi-factor analysis of variance and the redundancy analysis, it was found that the test soil type, straw addition, drying time, and their interaction had a critical influence on the changes in As species, As methylation efficiency, and the gene abundance in soils. TOC, Eh, and the functional genes associated with As methylation were positively linked with the methylated As content in soil porewater but negatively correlated with that of iAs. According to the sequence of the arsM-harboring microbe, it was clearly demonstrated that a community shift of As-methylating microbe occurred with the soil drying. Here, the following conclusions were derived:① the drying process did not lower the As methylation efficiency in paddy soil. On the contrary, in this study, the As methylation efficiency, especially that for ND soil, remarkably improved. The addition of straw notably promoted the As methylation efficiency and the content of DMAs in porewater. ② An increasing tendency was observed for the abundance of microbes related to As methylation, whereas a reverse trend was indicated for microbes related to As demethylation. The community shift of arsM-harboring microbes might be the crucial reason for the improved As methylation efficiency during the soil drying. These observations contribute to a better understanding of the As methylation process during paddy soil drying and will shed light on the future mitigation of rice straight head disease in paddy soils.

Influence of straw-derived humic acid-like substance on the availability of Cd/As in paddy soil and their accumulation in rice grain.

Humic acid amendments have been widely advocated for the remediation of heavy metal-contaminated soil. However, the impacts of straw-derived humic acid-like substances on the remediation of cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) co-contaminated paddy soil remain unclear and the potential mechanism required clarification. In this study, we employed a pot experiment and chose a straw-derived humic acid-like substance (BFA) as the amendment with four doses to investigate how BFA affects the availability of Cd and As in soil and their accumulation in rice. The results showed that grain Cd decreased by 25.65-36.03%, while there was no significant change in total As (TAs) with the addition of BFA. The contents of DCB-Fe, DCB-As and DCB-Cd on the root surface decreased by 6.07-40.54% during the whole growth stage. The addition of BFA significantly decreased the pe + pH and enhanced the transformation of crystalline iron oxides (Fed) into amorphous forms (Feo) in the soil. The CaCl2-extractable Cd decreased and the KH2PO4-extractable As increased with the decrease in pe + pH and Fed and the relative increase in Feo. The correlation analysis showed that the decrease in availability of Cd and translocation factor of Cd effectively decreased the grain Cd and the decrease in DCB-Cd may also contribute to decreasing the uptake of Cd by rice. However, the increase in As of roots and shoots might play key roles in restricting the transport of As to rice grains. Consequently, the addition of BFA could effectively reduce the Cd accumulation in rice under flooding conditions, while no risk of As accumulation in rice grain was observed. The present work provides a new perspective for the application of straw-derived humic acid-like substances as amendments on Cd-As co-contaminated soils, which should be advocated as an eco-friendly, economical and effective soil amendment in the future.

Cadmium and arsenic availability in soil under submerged incubation: The influence of humic substances on iron speciation.

Humic substances (HSs), as electron shuttles, are associated with iron oxide transformation, yet the manner by which HSs affect Cd/As availabilities during this process under anaerobic conditions remains unclear. Two HSs (humic sodium, HA-Na, and biochemical fulvic acid, BFA) were applied at 0, 1, 2, and 4 gCkg-1 in a submerged incubation experiment. The dissolved, extractable and fractions of Cd/As and different iron oxides in soils were monitored. The addition of both HA-Na and BFA decreased the CaCl2-extractable Cd by 12.66-93.13%, and increased the KH2PO4-extractable As by 18.81-71.38% on the 60th day of incubation. The soil Eh and crystalline iron oxides (Fed) decreased, while amorphous iron oxides (Feo) and dissolved As increased after addition of both HSs. However, the two HSs had opposite effects on soil pH and dissolved Cd at the end of the incubation. HA-Na immobilized 19.47-85.99% more available Cd than did BFA over the incubation, although the extent of immobilization was similar with the maximum application rate on the 60th day. BFA mobilized 5.22-26.12% more available As than did HA-Na. XPS data showed that FeOOH decreased while the FeO component increased over the incubation. Correlation analysis and SEM showed that the reduction in the soil Eh and Fed and relative increase in Feo increased the available Cd, while decreased the available As. Consequently, the addition of HA-Na and BFA, particularly combined with flooding irrigation management, could effectively reduce the available Cd in Cd-contaminated soil. However, this method should be used with caution in As-contaminated soil.

[Comparison in cadmium accumulation capacities of different leafy vegetables through cadmium-rich substrate cultivation]. / åˆ©ç”¨å¯Œé•‰åŸºè´¨æ ½åŸ¹å¿«é€Ÿæ¯”è¾ƒä¸åŒå¶èœé•‰ç´¯ç§¯èƒ½åŠ›çš„å·®å¼‚.

To acquire a feasible method for a rapid comparison of the cadmium (Cd) accumulation capacities of different leafy vegetables, using substrate cultivation with different contents of Cd and cultivation time, we compared the observed Cd accumulation capacity with these obtained in the field. The results showed that the Cd content and bio-concentration factors (BCFs) value in the aboveground tissue of leafy vegetable varied significantly with Cd content and cultivation time. Multi-factor analysis of variance showed that vegetable variety, cultivation time, Cd content in substrate and their interaction had significant effects on BCFs of Cd in leafy vegetable. Leafy vegetable variety was the dominant factor affecting BCFs of Cd in leafy vegetable and controlled its absolute level. When Cd content in the substrate reached 1.0 mg·kg-1 with a cultivation of 10 days, the correlation coefficient of Cd BCFs between the substrate cultivation and field experiments was the highest, with a R2 value of 0.90. The results of cluster analysis and one-way ANOVA had the highest consistence with the field results. Comparatively, the substrate cultivation with Cd content of 1.0 mg·kg-1 and a cultivation of 10 days showed a good reproducibility and stability in reflecting the difference in Cd accumulation capacities of different leafy vegetable varieties. The Cd-rich substrate cultivation could be used to screen the vegetables with low Cd accumulation and also would promote the field application of the vegetables with low Cd accumulation in the Cd-contaminated area of China.

[Aging process of arsenite [As(3)]in soils originated from different parent materials.] / 外源As(⠢)在不同母质发育土壤中的老化过程.

An incubation test was conducted to study the bioavailability and fractionations of exogenous arsenite [As(3)] during the aging period in three soils originated from different parent materials, including quaternary red clay, purple sandy shale and granite. The results indicated that the exogenous arsenite As(3) were totally transformed into As(V) after 120 d aging. The available As content in soils derived from the three soils generally decreased sequentially throughout the aging period in the order of purple sandy shale, granite and quaternary red clay. The pseudo-second-order model well fitted the change of available As content with aging time (P＜0.05). Soil pH, organic matter (SOM) content and the concentrations of Fe, Al and Mn oxides were the main factors influencing the red soil arsenic in aging, especially, Mn oxides played a more crucial role than Fe and Al oxides in As aging (P＜0.05). Correlation analysis revealed that the non-specially and specially absorbed As constituted the primary forms of available As.

[Effects of vegetable cultivation years on microbial biodiversity and abundance of nitrogen cycling in greenhouse soils].

The effects of facility vegetable cultivation years (three, nine, fourteen or seventeen years) on biodiversity and abundance of soil microorganisms, such as bacteria, ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and nirK type denitrifying bacteria, in the greenhouse soils in Wuwei of Gansu Province, China were determined by the combined analyses of terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) and real-time quantitative PCR. The results showed that the dominant population structure and abundance of bacteria, AOB, nirK type denitrifying bacteria in the soils were significantly different from those in the farmland fields. The dominant population also changed with the cultivation years. With the increase of vegetable cultivation years, the abundance of 16S rRNA and nirK gene in the 0-20 cm soil layer first increased and then decreased, with the maximum values of 9.67 x 10(9) and 2.30 x 10(7) copies x g(-1) soil at year 14 and year 9, being as 1.51 and 1.52 times of that of the 3-year, respectively. However, the abundance of amoA gene showed an opposite trend. The amoA gene copy number in the 14-year sample was 3.28 x 10(7) copies x g(-1) soil, which was only 45.7% of that of the 3-year. These results illustrated that the ecological adaptation mechanisms of the different functional microorganisms involved in nitrogen cycling had significant differences in the facility vegetable soils, and provided a base for further researches on exploring and explaining the characteristics and adaptation mechanisms of microorganisms in greenhouse soil.

[Effects of different fertilization regimes on abundance and community structure of the nirK-type denitrifying bacteria in greenhouse vegetable soils].

The community structure and abundance of nirK-type denitrifying bacteria in different soil layers (0-20 cm and 20-40 cm) under various fertilization regimes in Wuwei, Gansu Province were investigated by the combination of terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) and real-time quantitative PCR. Results showed that the nirK-type denitrifying bacteria community structure was significantly affected by fertilization regimes, especially for 70, 156 and 190 bp T-RFs that represented the dominant populations in greenhouse soil. Fertilization regimes significantly influenced the abundance of nirK gene in the 0-20 cm soil layer with the highest abundance of nirK gene copy number (2.16 x 10(7) copies x g(-1) soil) detected in the manure treatment (M), which was 2.04 and 2.02 times of that in the control (CK) and chemical fertilizer (NPK) treatments, respectively. Both the dominant population and abundance of nirK-type denitrifying bacteria in the greenhouse soil were significantly different between the 0-20 cm and 20-40 cm soil layers, and the nirK-type denitrifying bacteria community structure and abundance in the greenhouse soil were obviously different from that in the field. Soil pH, soil organic matter content and nitrate-N content had the greatest influence on the bacterial community composition. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that there were not only anaerobic nirK-type denitrifying bacteria in greenhouse soil, but also aerobic denitrifying bacteria, such as Rhizobium, Ochrobactrum, Agrobacterium.

[Bioremediation of heavy metal pollution by edible fungi: a review].

Bioremediation is the method of using organisms and their derivatives to absorb heavy metals from polluted environment, with the characteristics of low cost, broad sources, and no secondary pollution. Heavy metals enrichment by edible fungi is an important research focus of bioremediation, because it can decrease the eco-toxicity of heavy metals via the uptake by edible fungi, and thereby, take a definite role in heavy metal remediation. This paper reviewed the research progress on the enrichment of heavy metal copper, cadmium, lead, zinc, arsenic, and chromium by edible fungi and the possible enrichment mechanisms, and prospected the development and applications of heavy metal enrichment by edible fungi in the management of polluted environment.

[Effects of organic fertilization on arsenic absorption of pakchoi (Brassica chinensis) on arsenic-contaminated red soil].

A pot experiment with arsenic-contaminated red soil was conducted to study the effects of applying pig dung and chicken manure on the growth and arsenic absorption of pakchoi (Brassica chinensis), and on soil available arsenic. Applying pig dung and chicken manure to the arsenic-contaminated red soil increased the biomass of pakchoi to some extent. Comparing with the control, applying pig dung increased the pakchoi biomass significantly (P < 0.05). The soil available arsenic content after applying pig dung increased by 394.9%-1033.6% (P < 0.05), and that after applying chicken manure increased by 30.4%-94.1%. Organic fertilization promoted the arsenic absorption of pakchoi, with the arsenic uptake after applying pig dung increased by 20.7%-53.9%. The application of pig dung and chicken manure to arsenic-contaminated red soil could somewhat increase the soil available arsenic content and the arsenic uptake by crops, and thus, increase the risks of agricultural product quality and environment.

[Action mechanisms of microorganisms on arsenic and the feasibility of utilizing fungi remediation of arsenic-contaminated soil].

Utilizing fungi to remediate arsenic-contaminated soil and water body has a great potential, which has been focused and highlighted in environmental sciences. Though the arsenic in environment can not be biodegraded as organic contaminants, its bioavailability can be affected by microorganisms via the processes oxidation/reduction, absorption/desorption, methylation/demethylation, and precipitation/dissolution, etc., and thereby, its toxicity could be reduced, and the arsenic-contaminated environment could be remediated. This paper introduced the action mechanisms of microorganisms on arsenic, summarized the research progress in the arsenic bioaccumulation and bio-volatilization by fungi, and discussed the feasibility of utilizing fungi in the remediation of arsenic-contaminated soil, aimed to provide theoretical reference for the bioremediation strategies of arsenic-contaminated soils.

[Changes of heavy metals form during aerobic high temperature composting of pig manure and the effects of passivators].

Sequential extraction method was employed to study the heavy metals concentration and form change during aerobic high temperature compositing of pig manure, and the effects of amendment with different proportion of passivators on the concentration and form change. During the composting process, the concentrations of total As, Cu, and Zn in the manure all increased to some extent. As for the form change of the heavy metals, the exchangeable As and Zn decreased while the residual As and Zn increased, indicating that the availability of As and Zn declined through the composting process. On the other hand, the exchangeable and residual Cu decreased while the carbonate-, Fe/Mn-, and organic bound Cu increased, suggesting the potential environmental risk of the future application of the compost. Among the passivators amended, 5.0% of sepiolite and 2.5% of bentonite had the best effect in reducing the availability of As and Zn, with the residual form of As and Zn after composting increased by 79.8% and 158.6%, respectively, and 7.5% of sepiolite induced the least decrement (39.3%) of residual Cu, compared with the control. Therefore, amendment with appropriate proportion of passivator during pig manure composting could decrease the availability of heavy metals in the manure, and reduce the environmental risk of applying the compost to farmland.

[Heavy metals cycling and its regulation in China cropland ecosystems].

This paper analyzed the current situation of heavy metal contamination in cropland soils in China, and discussed the input, output, and balance of heavy metals in cropland ecosystems. It was considered that heavy metals had definite accumulation in cropland ecosystems, but overall speaking, this accumulation had relatively small environmental risk, and only some plants, especially vegetables, accumulated heavy metals over the standards. In mining areas, adjacent areas of smelting plants, and the farming areas using larger amounts of related wastes, the heavy metals content in plants and soils was at least ten times higher than that in normal croplands, existing larger environmental risk. Aiming at the current situation of heavy metal contamination of farmland soils in China, some effective regulation measures for the heavy metal cycling in the cropland ecosystems were proposed, and the further research prospects in related fields were discussed.

[Transformation of exogenous dimethyl arsenic in soil].

A pot experiment was conducted to study the speciation transformation of exogenous dimethyl arsenic (DMA) in soil. The added DMA was mainly transformed into arsenate [As(V)], accompanied with a small amount of monomethyl arsenic (MMA). When the concentration of added DMA was 30 mg x kg(-1), the transformation rate was the highest, being 6.71%, 8.11%, 11.33%, and 19.32% when the cultivation time was 10, 15, 30, and 40 days, respectively. With increasing concentration of added DMA, soil soluble arsenic (AE-As) had an increasing trend, but decreased as the cultivation time increased. Comparing with CK, the addition of DMA increased the concentrations of soil arsenic bounded to aluminum (Al-As), iron (Fe-As), calcium (Ca-As), which was possibly due to the adsorption or fixation of added DMA and its transformation products by the oxides or hydroxides of soil aluminum, iron, and calcium.

[High arsenic-tolerant fungi: their isolation and tolerant ability].

A total of thirteen fungal strains with higher arsenic (As)-tolerance ability were isolated from six As-contaminated soil samples collected from the mining areas of Shimen County and Chenz-hou City in Hunan Province. Among the strains isolated, Penicillin janthinellum, Fusarium oxysporum, and Trichoderma asperellum had the highest As-tolerance ability, based on the morphological identification and phylogenetic analysis. Culture experiment showed that on the solid plates with 30,000, 30,000, and 20,000 mg x L(-1) of As, P. janthinellum, F. oxysporum, and T. asperellum had a better colony growth, and after cultured in the liquid medium with 0-50, 0-50, and 0-80 mg x L(-1) of As for 2 days, respectively, the dry mycelia masses of the three strains all increased with increasing As concentration. When the As concentration reached 50, 50, and 80 mg x L(-1), respectively, the fungal biomass of F. oxysporum, T. asperellum, and P. janthinellum increased significantly, compared with CK. High concentration As had no significant effects on the sporalation of the three fungal strains.