| 1. |
- Householder, John Ethan, et al.
(author)
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One sixth of Amazonian tree diversity is dependent on river floodplains
- 2024
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In: NATURE ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION. - 2397-334X.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Amazonia's floodplain system is the largest and most biodiverse on Earth. Although forests are crucial to the ecological integrity of floodplains, our understanding of their species composition and how this may differ from surrounding forest types is still far too limited, particularly as changing inundation regimes begin to reshape floodplain tree communities and the critical ecosystem functions they underpin. Here we address this gap by taking a spatially explicit look at Amazonia-wide patterns of tree-species turnover and ecological specialization of the region's floodplain forests. We show that the majority of Amazonian tree species can inhabit floodplains, and about a sixth of Amazonian tree diversity is ecologically specialized on floodplains. The degree of specialization in floodplain communities is driven by regional flood patterns, with the most compositionally differentiated floodplain forests located centrally within the fluvial network and contingent on the most extraordinary flood magnitudes regionally. Our results provide a spatially explicit view of ecological specialization of floodplain forest communities and expose the need for whole-basin hydrological integrity to protect the Amazon's tree diversity and its function.
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| 2. |
- Luize, Bruno Garcia, et al.
(author)
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Geography and ecology shape the phylogenetic composition of Amazonian tree communities
- 2024
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In: JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY. - 0305-0270 .- 1365-2699.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Aim: Amazonia hosts more tree species from numerous evolutionary lineages, both young and ancient, than any other biogeographic region. Previous studies have shown that tree lineages colonized multiple edaphic environments and dispersed widely across Amazonia, leading to a hypothesis, which we test, that lineages should not be strongly associated with either geographic regions or edaphic forest types. Location: Amazonia. Taxon: Angiosperms (Magnoliids; Monocots; Eudicots). Methods: Data for the abundance of 5082 tree species in 1989 plots were combined with a mega-phylogeny. We applied evolutionary ordination to assess how phylogenetic composition varies across Amazonia. We used variation partitioning and Moran's eigenvector maps (MEM) to test and quantify the separate and joint contributions of spatial and environmental variables to explain the phylogenetic composition of plots. We tested the indicator value of lineages for geographic regions and edaphic forest types and mapped associations onto the phylogeny. Results: In the terra firme and v & aacute;rzea forest types, the phylogenetic composition varies by geographic region, but the igap & oacute; and white-sand forest types retain a unique evolutionary signature regardless of region. Overall, we find that soil chemistry, climate and topography explain 24% of the variation in phylogenetic composition, with 79% of that variation being spatially structured (R-2 = 19% overall for combined spatial/environmental effects). The phylogenetic composition also shows substantial spatial patterns not related to the environmental variables we quantified (R-2 = 28%). A greater number of lineages were significant indicators of geographic regions than forest types. Main Conclusion: Numerous tree lineages, including some ancient ones (>66 Ma), show strong associations with geographic regions and edaphic forest types of Amazonia. This shows that specialization in specific edaphic environments has played a long-standing role in the evolutionary assembly of Amazonian forests. Furthermore, many lineages, even those that have dispersed across Amazonia, dominate within a specific region, likely because of phylogenetically conserved niches for environmental conditions that are prevalent within regions.
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| 3. |
- ter Steege, Hans, et al.
(author)
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Mapping density, diversity and species-richness of the Amazon tree flora
- 2023
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In: COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY. - 2399-3642. ; 6:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Using 2.046 botanically-inventoried tree plots across the largest tropical forest on Earth, we mapped tree species-diversity and tree species-richness at 0.1-degree resolution, and investigated drivers for diversity and richness. Using only location, stratified by forest type, as predictor, our spatial model, to the best of our knowledge, provides the most accurate map of tree diversity in Amazonia to date, explaining approximately 70% of the tree diversity and species-richness. Large soil-forest combinations determine a significant percentage of the variation in tree species-richness and tree alpha-diversity in Amazonian forest-plots. We suggest that the size and fragmentation of these systems drive their large-scale diversity patterns and hence local diversity. A model not using location but cumulative water deficit, tree density, and temperature seasonality explains 47% of the tree species-richness in the terra-firme forest in Amazonia. Over large areas across Amazonia, residuals of this relationship are small and poorly spatially structured, suggesting that much of the residual variation may be local. The Guyana Shield area has consistently negative residuals, showing that this area has lower tree species-richness than expected by our models. We provide extensive plot meta-data, including tree density, tree alpha-diversity and tree species-richness results and gridded maps at 0.1-degree resolution. A study mapping the tree species richness in Amazonian forests shows that soil type exerts a strong effect on species richness, probably caused by the areas of these forest types. Cumulative water deficit, tree density and temperature seasonality affect species richness at a regional scale.
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| 4. |
- de Sa Salomao, Andre Luis, et al.
(author)
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Effects of single and mixed estrogens on single and combined cultures of D. subspicatus and P. subcapitata
- 2014
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In: Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0007-4861 .- 1432-0800. ; 93:2, s. 215-221
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper investigates the effect of estrone (E1), 17 beta-estradiol (E2) and 17 alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2) individually and mixed at equal proportions (1:1:1) on Desmodesmus subspicatus and Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata in single and combined cultures (S+) at different exposure times basedon algal growth (in vivo chlorophyll fluorescence and cell counting) and coenobium formation. EE2 and E2 were more toxic to individual and combined (S+) cultures than was E1. The frequency of coenobium formation by D. subspicatus increased significantly for all estrogens and all concentrations. After 96 h, D. subspicatus prevailed in S+. The results of the exposure to E+ suggested a less-than-additive effecton D. subspicatus and S+ and additive effect on P. subcapitata. Toxic effects occurred for both species exposed to E+ with individual estrogen concentrations below the NOEC of each species. Assays must include changes in response due to the exposure of more than one species to more than one estrogen.
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| 5. |
- de Sa Salomao, Andre Luis, et al.
(author)
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Engineered ecosystem for on-site wastewater treatment in tropical areas
- 2012
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In: Water Science and Technology. - : IWA Publishing. - 0273-1223 .- 1996-9732. ; 66:10, s. 2131-2137
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- There is a worldwide demand for decentralized wastewater treatment options. An on-site engineered ecosystem (EE) treatment plant was designed with a multistage approach for small wastewater generators in tropical areas. The array of treatment units included a septic tank, a submersed aerated filter, and a secondary decanter followed by three vegetated tanks containing aquatic macrophytes intercalated with one tank of algae. During 11 months of operation with a flow rate of 52 L h(-1), the system removed on average 93.2% and 92.9% of the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and volatile suspended solids (VSS) reaching final concentrations of 36.3 +/- 12.7 and 13.7 +/- 4.2 mg L-1, respectively. Regarding ammonia-N (NH4-N) and total phosphorus (TP), the system removed on average 69.8% and 54.5% with final concentrations of 18.8 +/- 9.3 and 14.0 +/- 2.5 mg L-1, respectively. The tanks with algae and macrophytes together contributed to the overall nutrient removal with 33.6% for NH4-N and 26.4% for TP. The final concentrations for all parameters except TP met the discharge threshold limits established by Brazilian and EU legislation. The EE was considered appropriate for the purpose for which it was created.
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| 6. |
- de Sá Salomão, André Luís, et al.
(author)
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Estrogenicity and Genotoxicity Detection in Different Contaminated Waters
- 2015
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In: Human and Ecological Risk Assessment. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1080-7039 .- 1549-7860. ; 21:7, s. 1793-1809
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- ABSTRACT: Owing that Oreochromis niloticus is resistant to different aquatic environments,four contaminated sites were selected: decentralized engineered ecosystem(DEE) and conventional wastewater treatment plants(WWTP); urban lagoon; and gasoline-contaminated marshland. Endocrine disruption was assessed by alkali-labile phosphate(ALP) quantification,genotoxicity by micronuclei frequency,and morphological changes by hepatosomatic and gonadosomatic indexes. The ALP baseline of non-exposed O. niloticus males was low,compared with other fish species in the literature. Endocrine disruption was observed in fish exposed to raw wastewater of WWTP and DEE,discharge point of channeled river in the urban lagoon,and water from gasoline-contaminated marshland. After treatment in the DEE,the endocrine disruption effect was removed. The micronuclei frequency corroborated with the ALP results in most cases and proved to be a useful tool to assess genotoxicity in fish. The exposure time of 15 days was not enough to provoke morphological effects in most samples. However,in all gasoline-contaminated samples,the fishes showed an increase in the hepatosomatic index followed by a decrease in the gonadosomatic index. The tested biomarkers showed feasibility,sensibility,reproducibility,and were complementary in the assessment of chronic ecotoxicity; therefore,we recommend them to compose a suitable protocol for aquatic monitoring programs.
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| 7. |
- de Sa Salomao, Andre Luis
(author)
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Occurrence and ecotoxicity of endocrine disruptor chemicals in aquatic environment and sewage treatment systems
- 2014
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The applicability of one selected method for indirect measurement of vitellogenin (Vtg) in fish plasma based on the quantification of alkali-labile phosphates (ALP method) to assess estrogenicity in water was investigated. The ALP method applied in this investigation was originally developed with Carassius carassius (Crucian carps). This thesis describes the first attempt of using this method with Oreochromis niloticus (Nile tilapia). In a first part of the investigation, laboratory studies were conducted with water spiked with 17a-ethinylestradiol (EE2), 17b-estradiol (E2), and estrone (E1) in order to assess the method sensitivity. The effects of these estrogens were investigated on the basis of both load and concentration, using experimental units with two different volumes (2 L and 130 L). After validation of the method, the estrogenicity of the following contaminated waters was assessed: (i) affluent and effluent of one large conventional municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and one small decentralized wastewater treatment plant (Decentralized Engineered Ecosystem-DEE); (ii) surface water (SW) and groundwater (GW) obtained from a gasoline-contaminated marshland; (iii) samples from a urban lagoon (LRF) located in Rio de Janeiro city with high density population and clandestine sewage discharge. An additional goal of the thesis was to assess the effect (other than endocrine disruption) caused by EE2, E2 and E1 to microalgae. Assays with single and mixed estrogens and single and combined cultures (S+) of the green microalgae P. subcapitata and D. subspicatus were carried out. The results have shown that EE2 and E2 were more estrogenic and toxic than E1 to the fishes and to the microalgae respectively. Mixed solutions of estrogens (E+) in equal proportions (EE2:E2:E1) resulted in additive effect on O. niloticus and P. subcapitata and less-than-additive effect on D. subspicatus and S+ measured as ALP (for fish) and EC50 (for microalgae). Combined cultivation of both algae species and longer exposure time (96 h) resulted in attenuation of the toxic effects caused by single (EE2, E2 or E1) and mixed (E+) estrogens according to EC50 (T0h 0.07, 0.09, 0.18, and 0.06 µg mL-1; and T96h 1.29, 1.87, 5.58, and 4.61 µg mL-1, respectively). The decentralized engineered ecosystem was more efficient than the conventional WWTP regarding estrogenicity removal from the final effluent. Estrogenicity was detected in some samples of the urban lagoon (LRF) and the surface (SW) and groundwater (GW) of the gasoline-contaminated marshland. Therefore, the investigations suggested that interactions (additive and less-than additive effect) take place when different estrogens are present in the water environment and interactions also occur between algae species, which affect the final toxicity. Additionally, the study highlighted the importance of taking into account not only concentration and dose regime but also the mass load and therefore, the volume used in the experimental units, which are rarely addressed in ecotoxicity assays. Considering the good sensitivity of O. niloticus exposed to relatively low concentrations of estrogens, the combination of the ALP method with auxiliary biomarkers (particularly micronucleus-MN) can be a suitable protocol for estrogenicity and genotoxicity detection in different contaminated waters as part of water environmental monitoring programs.
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| 8. |
- de Sa Salomao, Andre Luis, et al.
(author)
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Quantification of alkali-labile phosphate groups in the plasma of Oreochromis niloticus exposed to intermittent discharges of oestrogens : effect of concentration vs. load
- 2014
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In: International Journal of Environmental Analytical Chemistry. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0306-7319 .- 1029-0397. ; 94:11, s. 1161-1172
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Vitellogenin protein (Vtg) in Oreochromis niloticus plasma has been indirectly quantified through protein-bound phosphate groups also known as alkali-labile phosphates (ALP) using a recently modified method. Such method as described in the literature was originally applied to Crucian carp and resulted in lower detection limits (3.2 mu g PO(4)(3-)per mL). In this study, O. niloticus males were exposed to intermittent doses of oestrogens for 15 days using different concentrations (converted to loads) of 17 alpha-ethinyloestradiol (EE2) (two different aquarium volumes), oestrone (E1) and 17 beta-oestradiol (E2) individually and in combination (1:1:1). The induction of physiologic and genotoxic effects in erythrocytes was investigated. For the tested oestrogen (EE2), load proved to be more relevant than concentration in determining the oestrogenicity. O. niloticus males proved to have lower ALP baseline (4.11 mu g PO43-/mL plasma, IQ(25)=3.38; IQ(75)=5.18) than other fish species, including Crucian carp, which makes it suitable for oestrogenicity detection in water. Exposure to E2, EE2 separately and in combination (1:1:1) all induced significant increases in the ALP levels at loads >= 0.72 mu g/fish. This load was three times lower than the E1 load required to increase ALP (>= 2.2 mu g/fish). All oestrogens with loads >= 0.072 mu g/fish caused significant increase in micronucleus frequency (>= 2 parts per thousand) compared with the control (0.1 +/- 0.4 parts per thousand). The study highlighted the importance of taking into account not only concentration and dose regime but also the mass load and therefore, the volume used in the experimental units, which is rarely addressed in ecotoxicity assays. Considering the good sensitivity of O. niloticus exposed to relatively low concentrations of oestrogens, the combination of the ALP method with auxiliary biomarkers (particularly micronucleus) can be used as a protocol for oestrogenicity and genotoxicity detection in different contaminated waters as part of water environmental monitoring programmes.
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| 9. |
- Hogland, Marika, et al.
(author)
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Remarks on four novel landfill mining case studies in Estonia and Sweden
- 2018
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In: Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management. - : Springer. - 1438-4957 .- 1611-8227. ; 20:2, s. 1355-1363
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In common sense, a landfill is a place where the life cycle of products ends. Landfill mining (LFM) mostly deals with former dumpsites and derived material may have a significant importance for the circular economy. Deliverables of recently applied LFM projects in Sweden and Estonia have revealed the potential and problems for material recovery. There are 75-100 thousand old landfills and dumps in the Baltic Sea Region, and they pose environmental risks to soil, water and air by pollution released from leachate and greenhouse gas emissions. Excavation of landfills is potential solution for solving these problems, and at the same time, there are perspectives to recover valuable lands and materials, save expenses for final coverage of the landfills and aftercare control. The research project "Closing the Life Cycle of Landfills-Landfill Mining in the Baltic Sea Region for Future" included investigation at four case studies in Estonia and Sweden: Kudjape, Torma, Hogbytorp and Vika landfills. Added value of this research project is characterization of waste fine fraction material, determination of concentration for most critical and rare earth elements. The main results showed that both, coarse and fine, fractions of waste might have certain opportunities of recovery.
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| 10. |
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