Journal of Ocean University of China 

About: Journal of Ocean University of China is an academic journal published by Springer Science+Business Media. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Sea surface temperature & Population. It has an ISSN identifier of 1672-5182. Over the lifetime, 2116 publications have been published receiving 13405 citations. The journal is also known as: Zhongguo Haiyang Daxue xuebao & Oceanic and Coastal Sea Research.

Heavy metal bioaccumulation and toxicity with special reference to microalgae

Abstract: The bioaccumulation and toxicity of heavy metals were reviewed with special reference to microalgae, the key component of the food web in aquatic ecosystems. Heavy metals enter algal cells either by means of active transport or by endocytosis through chelating proteins and affect various physiological and biochemical processes of the algae. The toxicity primarily results from their binding to the sulphydryl groups in proteins or disrupting protein structure or displacing essential elements. Metals can break the oxidative balance of the algae, inducing antioxidant enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX). The amount of oxidized proteins and lipids in the algal cells thus indicates the severity of the stress. Algal tolerance to heavy metal is highly dependent upon the defense response against the probable oxidative damages. Production of binding factors and proteins, exclusion of metals from cells by ion-selective transporters and excretion or compartmentalization have been suggested with regard to reducing heavy metal toxicity. However, a comprehensive description on the mechanisms underlining metal toxicity of microalgae and gaining tolerance is yet to be elaborated.

Reconsidering melt-water pulses 1A and 1B: Global impacts of rapid sea-level rise

Abstract: Re-evaluation of the post-glacial sea level derived from the Barbados coral-reef borings suggests slightly revised depth ranges and timing of melt-water pulses MWP-1A (96–76m, 14.3–14.0ka cal BP) and IB (58–45m, 11.5–11.2ka cal BP), respectively. Ages of non-reef sea-level indicators from the Sunda Shelf, the East China Sea and Yellow Sea for these two intervals are unreliable because of the well-documented radiocarbon (14C) plateau, but their vertical clustering corresponds closely with MWP-1A and IB depth ranges. Close correlation of the revised sea-level curve with Greenland ice-core data suggests that the 14C plateau may be related to oceanographic-atmospheric changes due to rapid sea-level rise, fresh-water input, and impaired ocean circulation. MWP-1A appears to have occurred at the end of Bolling Warm Transition, suggesting that the rapid sea-level rise may have resulted from lateral heat transport from low to high-latitude regions and subsequent abrupt ice-sheet collapses in both North America-Europe and Antarctica. An around 70 mm a−1 transgression during MWP-1A may have increased freshwater discharge to the North Atlantic by as much as an order of magnitude, thereby disturbing thermohaline circulation and initiating the Older Dry as global cooling.

Review of maritime transportation air emission pollution and policy analysis

Abstract: The study of air emission in maritime transportation is new, and the recognition of its importance has been rising in the recent decade. The emissions of CO2, SO2, NO2 and particulate matters from maritime transportation have contributed to climate change and environmental degradation. Scientifically, analysts still have controversies regarding how to calculate the emissions and how to choose the baseline and methodologies. Three methods are generally used, namely the ‘bottom up’ approach, the ‘top down’ approach and the STEEM, which produce very different results, leading to various papers with great uncertainties. This, in turn, results in great difficulties to policy makers who attempt to regulate the emissions. A recent technique, the STEEM, is intended to combine the former two methods to reduce their drawbacks. However, the regulations based on its results may increase the costs of shipping companies and cause the competitiveness of the port states and coastal states. Quite a few papers have focused on this area and provided another fresh perspective for the air emission to be incorporated in maritime transportation regulations; these facts deserve more attention. This paper is to review the literature on the debates over air emission calculation, with particular attention given to the STEEM and the refined estimation methods. It also reviews related literature on the economic analysis of maritime transportation emission regulations, and provides an insight into such analysis. At the end of this paper, based on a review and analysis of previous literature, we conclude with the policy indications in the future and work that should be done. As the related regulations in maritime transportation emissions are still at their beginning stage in China, this paper provides specific suggestions on how China should regulate emissions in the maritime transportation sector.

Adsorption of heavy metal ions, dyes and proteins by chitosan composites and derivatives — A review

Abstract: Chitosan composites and derivatives have gained wide attentions as effective biosorbents due to their low costs and high contents of amino and hydroxyl functional groups. They have showed significant potentials of removing metal ions, dyes and proteins from various media. Chemical modifications that lead to the formation of the chitosan derivatives and chitosan composites have been extensively studied and widely reported in literatures. The aims of this review were to summarize the important information of the bioactivities of chitosan, highlight the various preparation methods of chitosan-based active biosorbents, and outline its potential applications in the adsorption of heavy metal ions, dyes and proteins from wastewater and aqueous solutions.

Co-production of lipids, eicosapentaenoic acid, fucoxanthin, and chrysolaminarin by Phaeodactylum tricornutum cultured in a flat-plate photobioreactor under varying nitrogen conditions

Abstract: The marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum is a polymorphological, ecologically significant, and well-studied model of unicellular microalga. This diatom can accumulate diverse important metabolites. Herein, we cultured P. tricornutum in an internally installed tie-piece flat-plate photobioreactor under 14.5 m mol L−1 (high nitrogen, HN) and 2.9 m mol L−1 (low nitrogen, LN) of KNO3 and assessed its time-resolved changes in biochemical compositions. The results showed that HN was inductive to accumulate high biomass (4.1 g L−1). However, the LN condition could accelerate lipid accumulation in P. tricornutum. The maximum total lipid (TL) content under LN was up to 42.5% of biomass on day 12. Finally, neutral lipids (NLs) were 63.8% and 75.7% of TLs under HN and LN, respectively. The content of EPA ranged from 2.3% to 1.5% of dry weight during the growth period under the two culture conditions. Peak volumetric lipid productivity of 128.4 mg L−1d−1 was achieved in the HN group (on day 9). The highest volumetric productivity values of EPA, chrysolaminarin, and fucoxanthin were obtained in the exponential phase (on day 6) under HN, which were 9.6, 93.6, and 4.7 mg L−1d−1, respectively. In conclusion, extractable amounts of lipids, EPA, fucoxanthin, and chrysolaminarin could be obtained from P. tricornutum by regulating the culture conditions.