High Solute Load Research Articles

Assessment of non-point source of pollution using chemical mass balance approach: a case study of River Alaknanda, a tributary of River Ganga, India.

The low ionic concentration meltwaters of the rivers originating from the Himalayan glaciers play a significant role in diluting the high solute load emanating from Ganga plain catchments. Hence, any change in the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the Himalayan tributaries of River Ganga under the changing climatic scenario will impact the hydrochemical parameters of River Ganga as well. Hydrochemical investigations have been carried out in the River Alaknanda, a tributary of River Ganga during the period September 2016-May 2018 and revealed that TSS and COD values were observed above the prescribed criteria limit of 10mg/L for drinking purpose for river as prescribed by CPCB. The anions for all sampling sites and seasons were observed to be in decreasing order of HCO3- > SO42- > Cl- > NO3- and cations Ca2+ > Mg2+ > Na+ > K+. The weathering of rock forming minerals of drainage basin is responsible for the chemical composition of river water. HCO3- being the dominant anion in the study area accounts for its presence due to carbonate and silicate weathering. Ion exchange process controls the major ion chemistry of the river water. The assessment and management of non-point sources (NPS) pollution are difficult by any deterministic method and require a vast amount of data to compensate for their extent of contamination, in the account of their prevailing nature in response to hydrological processes and land use patterns. In the present investigation, the application of a simple chemical mass balance approach based on law of conservation of mass/matter has been applied on River Alaknanda, a tributary of River Ganga for measuring the chemical mass loadings of some selected water quality constituents, viz., major cations (sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and ammonium) and major anions (chloride, sulfate, nitrate, and phosphate) at upstream and downstream of different point source locations for examining the contribution made by non-point sources of pollution to the river. Time series analysis of various ion concentrations at point source sites and upstream/downstream sites inferred that the fluvial variations pertaining to ion concentration and flux are strongly dependent on the seasonal changes. More contribution (> 30-50%) for almost all constituents from uncharacterized sources was observed in the months of November to February, which may be attributed to intensified agricultural activities during the winter months particularly cereals and vegetables.

Cryostratigraphy of mid-Miocene permafrost at Friis Hills, McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica – ERRATUM

The origin and stability of ground ice in the stable uplands of the McMurdo Dry Valleys remains poorly understood, with most studies focusing on the near-surface permafrost. The 2016 Friis Hills Drilling Project retrieved five cores reaching 50 m depth in mid-Miocene permafrost, a period when Antarctica transitioned to a hyper-arid environment. This study characterizes the cryostratigraphy of arguably the oldest permafrost on Earth and assesses 15 Myr of ground ice evolution using the REGO model. Four cryostratigraphic units were identified: 1) surficial dry permafrost (0–30 cm), 2) ice-rich to ice-poor permafrost (0.3–5.0 m) with high solute load and δ18O values (-16.2 ± 1.8‰) and low D-excess values (-65.6 ± 4.3‰), 3) near-dry permafrost (5–20 m) and 4) ice-poor to ice-rich permafrost (20–50 m) containing ice lenses with low solute load and δ18O values (-34.6 ± 1.2‰) and D-excess of 6.9 ± 2.6‰. The near-surface δ18O profile of ground ice is comparable to other sites in the stable uplands, suggesting that this ice is actively responding to changing surface environmental conditions and challenging the assumption that the surface has remained frozen for 13.8 Myr. The deep ice lenses probably originate from the freezing of meteoric water during the mid-Miocene, and their δ18O composition suggests mean annual air temperatures ~7–11°C warmer than today.

Cryostratigraphy of mid-Miocene permafrost at Friis Hills, McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica

AbstractThe origin and stability of ground ice in the stable uplands of the McMurdo Dry Valleys remains poorly understood, with most studies focusing on the near-surface permafrost. The 2016 Friis Hills Drilling Project retrieved five cores reaching 50 m depth in mid-Miocene permafrost, a period when Antarctica transitioned to a hyper-arid environment. This study characterizes the cryostratigraphy of arguably the oldest permafrost on Earth and assesses 15 Myr of ground ice evolution using the REGO model. Four cryostratigraphic units were identified: 1) surficial dry permafrost (0–30 cm), 2) ice-rich to ice-poor permafrost (0.3–5.0 m) with high solute load and δ18O values (-16.2 ± 1.8‰) and low D-excess values (-65.6 ± 4.3‰), 3) near-dry permafrost (5–20 m) and 4) ice-poor to ice-rich permafrost (20–50 m) containing ice lenses with low solute load and δ18O values (-34.6 ± 1.2‰) and D-excess of 6.9 ± 2.6‰. The near-surface δ18O profile of ground ice is comparable to other sites in the stable uplands, suggesting that this ice is actively responding to changing surface environmental conditions and challenging the assumption that the surface has remained frozen for 13.8 Myr. The deep ice lenses probably originate from the freezing of meteoric water during the mid-Miocene, and their δ18O composition suggests mean annual air temperatures ~7–11°C warmer than today.

Evaluation of Polyuria: The Roles of Solute Loading and Water Diuresis

Polyuria, defined as daily urine output in excess of 3.0 to 3.5L/d, can occur due to solute or water diuresis. Solute-induced polyuria can be seen in hospitalized patients after a high solute load from exogenous protein administration or following relief of urinary obstruction. Similar clinical scenarios are rarely encountered in the outpatient setting. We describe a case of polyuria due to high solute ingestion and excessive water intake leading to a mixed picture of solute and water diuresis. Restriction of the daily solute load and water intake resulted in complete resolution of polyuria. Determination of the daily excreted urinary osmoles may yield important clues to the cause of polyuria and should be included in the routine workup of polyuria.

Identification of drought-response genes and a study of their expression during sucrose accumulation and water deficit in sugarcane culms.

BackgroundThe ability of sugarcane to accumulate high concentrations of sucrose in its culm requires adaptation to maintain cellular function under the high solute load. We have investigated the expression of 51 genes implicated in abiotic stress to determine their expression in the context of sucrose accumulation by studying mature and immature culm internodes of a high sucrose accumulating sugarcane cultivar. Using a sub-set of eight genes, expression was examined in mature internode tissues of sugarcane cultivars as well as ancestral and more widely related species with a range of sucrose contents. Expression of these genes was also analysed in internode tissue from a high sucrose cultivar undergoing water deficit stress to compare effects of sucrose accumulation and water deficit.ResultsA sub-set of stress-related genes that are potentially associated with sucrose accumulation in sugarcane culms was identified through correlation analysis, and these included genes encoding enzymes involved in amino acid metabolism, a sugar transporter and a transcription factor. Subsequent analysis of the expression of these stress-response genes in sugarcane plants that were under water deficit stress revealed a different transcriptional profile to that which correlated with sucrose accumulation. For example, genes with homology to late embryogenesis abundant-related proteins and dehydrin were strongly induced under water deficit but this did not correlate with sucrose content. The expression of genes encoding proline biosynthesis was associated with both sucrose accumulation and water deficit, but amino acid analysis indicated that proline was negatively correlated with sucrose concentration, and whilst total amino acid concentrations increased about seven-fold under water deficit, the relatively low concentration of proline suggested that it had no osmoprotectant role in sugarcane culms.ConclusionsThe results show that while there was a change in stress-related gene expression associated with sucrose accumulation, different mechanisms are responding to the stress induced by water deficit, because different genes had altered expression under water deficit.

Protective Effect of KCl Loading in Gentamicin Nephrotoxicity

Aminoglycoside nephrotoxicity in experimental animals can be reduced by calcium loading, inducing diabetes, and giving thyroid hormone, while a potassium deficient diet enhances aminoglycoside nephrotoxicity. This study investigated whether potassium loading protects against gentamicin nephrotoxicity in the rat. In part I, group GK ate a diet containing 3.5% potassium and drank 0.2 mol/L KCl. Pair-fed rats eating a standard diet, group G, ate a 1% potassium diet and drank water. After 10 days, each group received gentamicin subcutaneously, 60 mg/kg twice daily for 8 days. The control groups, K and C, received the high or normal potassium diet, respectively. To control for a protective effect from a high solute load, the effect of equimolar NaCl loading was studied in group GNa and Na. At the end of the 8 days of gentamicin, inulin clearance was significantly higher in GK compared with G(0.6 +/- 0.1 v 0.3 +/- 0.1 mL/min per 100 g body weight [BW], P less than 0.05), but group GNa (0.4 +/- 0.1 mL/min per 100 g BW) was not different from group G. Morphological studies demonstrated that potassium-loaded rats (group GK) had significantly less proximal tubular necrosis compared with rats on a standard potassium diet, group G. Sodium loading did not protect against cellular necrosis. Part II studied renal function, cortical Na,K-adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) and gentamicin accumulation after 2 days of gentamicin to determine the early functional and biochemical effects of potassium loading before overt renal functional impairment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)