6; most were men (61%), and almost all were Caucasian (95 7%) On

6; most were men (61%), and almost all were Caucasian (95.7%). On the Mini-Mental State Examination, they had a mean score of 24.96 (3.56 standard deviation) and a range of scores from 12 to 29, indicating that some individuals had mild to moderate levels of cognitive impairment. 15 Research assistants (RA) at both sites interviewed residents using the Preferences for Everyday Living Inventory (PELI). Developed and tested with home health and NH populations, the PELI elicits seniors’ preferences related to 55 daily activities that fall into 5 preference domains: growth activities (eg, reading),

diversionary (eg, watching TV), self-dominion (eg, choosing what to eat), social contact (eg, keeping in contact with family), and caregivers and care (eg, giving instruction to formal caregiver).16 Several click here of the PELI items were subsequently selected for inclusion in the MDS 3.0, which is used in all Medicare and Medicaid certified NHs.17 RAs asked participants whether they liked each

activity “a lot,” “somewhat,” or “not at all” (scale: 2 to 0). If the response was “likes a lot,” researchers asked about preference satisfaction: “How satisfied were you with the fulfillment of this preference over the last 2 weeks?” Possible responses were “not at all satisfied,” “somewhat satisfied,” and “completely satisfied” (scale: 0 to 2). These response options were selected because cognitively impaired individuals are frequently overwhelmed by the cognitive Sorafenib ic50 load imposed by more options. Researchers constructed a measure of preference congruence by examining the relationship between strongly held preferences and a resident’s self-report of their satisfaction with care related to those preferences. Respondents had strong preferences (“likes a lot”) for a mean of 29 items (standard deviation = 10.32), with a range from 12 to 51 items for the sample. On average, respondents reported that three-fourths (75.6%) of their most strongly endorsed preferences either were “completely satisfied” (mean percent = 52.8) or “somewhat satisfied” (mean percent = 3-mercaptopyruvate sulfurtransferase 22.8). One-fourth were “not satisfied at all” (mean percent = 24.4). To account for acquiescence

bias,18 only the response, “completely satisfied,” was chosen to represent preference congruence. An Excel spreadsheet calculated a preference congruence indicator for each respondent on every item. A difference score was created by subtracting the respondent’s “likes a lot” score (2) from his or her satisfaction rating (0–2, where a higher number represents higher satisfaction). The team chose only to calculate a preference congruence score based on strongly endorsed preferences (“likes a lot”). The goal was to focus staff attention on important preferences as a first step toward individualizing care delivery. The resulting Excel report was color-coded for easy interpretation. Red indicated a strongly held preference that a resident felt was “not satisfied at all.

As an example, Figure 11 shows the baroclinic current υ_^g and th

As an example, Figure 11 shows the baroclinic current υ_^g and the difference υ_^−υ_^g of the total flow υ_ and the baroclinic flow part (both monthly means) for August 1991. It is seen that the baroclinic part generally forms a basin-wide anticyclonic circulation, which is opposite to the known cyclonic gyre. The speed increases towards the continental coast (Figure 11a). The difference plot (Figure 11b) shows that the baroclinic component amounts to 10% of the total flow weakening the cyclonic circulation. The Ekman regime is characterized by the balance of the Coriolis force and the vertical exchange of momentum:

−fυe(x,y,z,t)=∂∂z(Aυ(z)∂ue(x,y,z,t)∂z), fυe(x,y,z,t)=∂∂z(Aυ(z)∂ue(x,y,z,t)∂z). GSI-IX In the work of Pohlmann (2003) the terms on the right-hand side are again calculated by means of the complete circulation model HAMSOM. From this forcing the Ekman flow (ue, υe) is deduced. MK2206 Aυ(z) is the vertical eddy coefficient

and depends on depth. Stronger currents (not Ekman balanced) are now appearing along the Norwegian coast. Figure 12a shows by way of example for August 1991 the monthly mean of the Ekman currents at 5 m depth. It has maximum values along the British coast with an onshore direction. Owing to stronger winds it is higher in winter. The difference plot (total current minus Ekman current) in Figure 12b exhibits a residual flow of equal magnitude, but directed offshore (which means a compensation of the Ekman current). The JEBAR term is a component of the oceanic vorticity balance; it describes how baroclinic pressure gradients force the flow in the case of a non-uniform bottom topography. Pohlmann (2003) analysed the vorticity balance of the North Sea for a certain time period, calculating separately the β-term, the vortex stretching and the JEBAR term.

From this study, Figure 13 shows the spatial structure of JEBAR for August 1991: J(χ,1H)=−fH(υ_g∇_H),withχ≡gρ0∫−H0zρdz. Maximum values are seen in the regions where density and topography gradients intersect. Examples are the outer estuaries of the Rivers Rhine and Elbe, the Norwegian Trench and the Fair Isle Passage. During summer the JEBAR gradients, which are directed towards the centre Idelalisib nmr of the North Sea, are enlarged as a result of the joint action of temperature and salinity gradients. Of the remaining terms of the vorticity balance, the temporal derivative and the β-term are smaller than JEBAR by one to two orders of magnitude, whereas the vortex stretching is equally important. Here we present some results of research work done at the Institute of Oceanography, University of Hamburg, within the last two decades. They concern storm surges and the budgets of heat and fresh water in the North Sea.

S3) In sediment samples collected a year after the DWH and often

S3). In sediment samples collected a year after the DWH and often exhibiting low petrogenic content, the application of oil source-fingerprinting, specifically diagnostic ratio analysis, and PVA successfully separated 29 sediment

samples into two definitive categories, those containing (match) and those not containing MC-252 oil (non-match). MC-252 oil was detected in sediments collected from shorelines of known oiling, and additionally, in sediment samples collected within interior marshes where oil reconnaissance had not documented contamination. In sediment samples containing a mixture of background Dabrafenib molecular weight hydrocarbons and petrogenic content that could not be clearly designated as belonging to either the match or non-match MC-252 oil category (e.g., inconclusive), PVA provided an additional quantitative metric to separate these samples into the match or non-match category.

The effectiveness of PVA in recreating the source-fingerprinting categories and providing discrimination within each category RG7422 cell line reflects both the robust performance of PVA in identifying distinct patterns and the success of the diagnostic ratios in capturing the essential quantitative analysis information needed for evaluation of the PolSAR backscatter changes. As a result of both diagnostic ratio analysis and PVA there was a total of 13 match, 4 inconclusive, and 12 non-match samples. Even though substantial amounts of soil were removed from some shorelines during DWH clean-up activities, sediments collected for this study in June 2011 from six of eight Barataria

Bay shorelines with documented oiling contained MC-252 oil. At shoreline and nearshore locations it is likely that if MC-252 oil contamination had occurred, then it would have exceeded all other possible sources based on the size of the DWH spill, the isolation of the area, and the fact that no other large spill GABA Receptor occurred between the start of the spill and June 2011 when the sediment samples were collected. In addition, seven out of 16 nearshore and interior marsh sample sites (including tidal channels) contained MC-252 oil. The confirmed presence of MC-252 oil at these nearshore and interior marsh sites strongly supports the assertion that MC-252 oil was transported inland of oiled shorelines as surface films on persistently high tides (Ramsey et al., 2011) in many locations. The fact that six of 13 MC-252 match samples, by diagnostic ratio analysis and/or PVA, were from nearshore and interior marsh areas exhibiting PolSAR backscatter change typifying the presence of oil adds critical evidence to the ability of PolSAR to document oil contamination after an oil spill. Substantial inferential evidence including the results of this study support the connection of oil occurrence in the marsh and change in the scatter mechanism produced from PolSAR data analyses.

The contributions of Maria Amaya, Megha Desai, Shou Zhen Wang, Sh

The contributions of Maria Amaya, Megha Desai, Shou Zhen Wang, Sheng Zu Zhu, and many past students and fellows to the work done in the author’s laboratory is gratefully acknowledged. The helpful RG-7204 assistance of Amy Jones in preparation of this manuscript is most appreciated. “
“Naoaki Harada, Juan Zhao, Hiroki Kurihara, Naomi Nakagata, and Kenji Okajima Desalted deep-sea water improves cognitive function in mice by increasing the production of insulin-like growth factor-I in the hippocampus. Translational Research 2011;158:106–17 In the August 2011 issue of Translational Research, we found that figures 4A∼4I were incorrect. Thus, we

replaced these figures by correct ones. Authors regret this error and apologize for any confusion click here and inconvenience it may have caused. Figure options Download full-size image Download high-quality image (474 K) Download as PowerPoint slide “
“We wish to acknowledge the outstanding contributions of our reviewers and Editorial Advisory Board during the past year. The quality and breadth of the Journal is only made

possible by the dedicated efforts of our reviewers. Fadi Akar Ziyad Al-Aly Conrad Alano Lori Altshuler Ana Andreazza Laura Andreoli George Asare Arif Asif Veronika Bachanova Jeehyeon Bae Bryan Becker David Beer Chris Benson Lars Berglund Sangeeta Bhorade Darell Bigner Matthew Bilodeau Philip Binkley Markus Bitzer Istvan Boldogh James Bonner Carol Bradford Camille Brasselet George Brewer Nils Brunner Steve Brunwasser Roy Calne Andrew Campbell Haris Carageorgiou Jose Cavazos Edgar Charles Lee-Young Chau Jorge Chavarro Min Chen Matthew Ciorba Paolo Colombo Gyorgy Csako Massimo Cugno Glenn Cunningham

Louis D’Alecy Hiranmoy Das Yvonne Datta Daniel De Backer Elfride De Baere Hiram Dokainish Nicholas Donato J. Downey Liqin Du Warwick Dunn Richard Effros Oliver Eickelberg Scott Ely Philip Factor Susan Fagan Denis Feliers Aaron Fischer Steven Fisher Aime Franco Nikolaos Frangogiannis Sophia Frangou Ken Freedland Panfeng Fu Crystal Gadegbeku Luciano Gattinoni Lois J. Geist Phospholipase D1 Jian-Guo Geng Jon George Ioannis Georgiou William Gerthoffer Sourav Ghosh Don Gibbons Scott Gitlin Ben Glaser Harry Goldsmith Dmitry Gregoryev Thomas Gremmel David Gretch Helena Gylling Joel F. Habener Pavel Hamet Anne Hamik Jean Hartley Khaled Hassan Derek Hausenloy Charles Heilig J. F. Hejtmancik Donald Henderson Norah Henry Pedro Hernandez-Cortes Chaim Hershko Helen Heslop Jay Hess Karen Hirschi Jacqueline Ho Walter Horl Joanna-Marie Howes C. P. Hu Richard Hurwitz Allan Jaffe Edward N. Janoff Eijiro Jimi Min Joo Ravi Kalhan Mike Kapiloff Yousuf Karim Reena Kartha B. S.

A description of the phenomenon with the volume scattering functi

A description of the phenomenon with the volume scattering function assumes

the single scattering model (a particular photon does not interact with more than one particle of emulsion). The correctness of such a description of a real phenomenon has been tested for light scattering at right angles in a Baltic crude oil – seawater emulsion ( Stelmaszewski et al. 2009). The spectral dependence of the calculated function for wavelengths from 380 nm to 730 nm was compared with the measured scattering spectrum. This test has shown that the scattering function β corresponds to experimental results and that the single scattering model does provide an adequate description of the phenomenon. Application of this model under natural conditions to the scattering of solar radiation in polluted seawater needs to take into consideration the fluorescence of the emulsions. Quizartinib cell line This is important because petroleum is a fluorescent medium. Emulsion particles are fluorescent objects

and, moreover, dissolving the fluorescent compounds can accompany emulsifying oil in water. The test mentioned above was carried out for monochromatic radiation (the scattered light measured had the same wavelength as the illuminating radiation), and fluorescence remained undetected in these measurements. In the case MK0683 of polychromatic radiation like natural sunlight, the separation of fluorescence from scattering appears Low-density-lipoprotein receptor kinase to be impossible. The foregoing indicates that any investigation of light scattering in an oil-in-water emulsion should be supplemented by a study of its fluorescence properties. This is the subject of this paper: it discusses the fluorescence of emulsions of seven different oils representing the main petroleum types. These emulsions were tested in the spectral range from 220 nm to 720 nm. The important question was to determine how photoluminescence can influence light scattering measurements. To this end, fluorescence and scattering

spectra were measured and the intensities of these phenomena compared. The test was carried out on seven different types of petroleum: two crude oils of differing properties (Baltic and Romashkino), two fuels, as well as lubricating, hydraulic and transformer oils. Samples of each oil were emulsified in seawater. Because the water should be assumed to be a non- fluorescent and fully transparent medium, it was prepared by dissolving the principal sea salts in demineralized water to achieve an ionic composition similar to that of natural water of salinity 7.5 PSU. The emulsion was prepared as follows. An aliquot of oil (3 cm 3) was dissolved in n-hexane (2 cm 3), and this solution was stirred with water (3 dm3) in a stainless steel vessel at 600 rpm for 3 hours. The emulsion was then allowed to stabilize at 20°C for 24 hours.

The plastic debris gets encrusted with foulants, increasing in de

The plastic debris gets encrusted with foulants, increasing in density as fouling progresses. Once the density exceeds that of sea water it can sink well

below the water surface (Costerton and Cheng, 1987, Andrady and Song, 1991 and Railkin, 2003). Subsequent de-fouling in the water column due to foraging of foulants by other organisms or other mechanisms, can decrease its density causing Dasatinib the debris to return back to the surface. A slow cyclic ‘bobbing’ motion of floating plastic debris attributed to this cyclic change in density on submersion below a certain depth of water, was proposed by Andrady and Song (1991) and later confirmed (Stevens and Gregory, 1996 and Stevens, 1992). Fouled debris may increase in density enough to ultimately reach benthic regions; plastics do occur commonly in the benthos (Stefatos and Charalampakis, check details 1999, Katsanevakis et al., 2007 and Backhurst and Cole, 2000). Even an extensively weathered, embrittled plastic material (that falls apart on handling) still has an average molecular weight in the tens of thousands g/mol. The logarithmic plot of the tensile extensibility (%) versus the number-average molecular weight for LDPE that had undergone weathering shown in Fig. 3 illustrates this. Even for the data points at the very left of the plot (corresponding to extensively

degraded or embrittled plastic) the values of Mn ∼ 103–104 g/mol. Even at these lower molecular weights plastics do not undergo ready biodegradation. Ready microbial biodegradability has been observed in oligomers of about Mn ∼ 500 g/mol polyethylenes. Reduction in particle size by light-induced oxidation does is Sirolimus research buy no guarantee of subsequent biodegradability of the meso- or microplastic fragments. High molecular weight plastics used in common applications do not biodegrade at an appreciable rate as microbial species that can metabololize polymers are rare in nature. This

is particularly true of the marine environment, with the exception of biopolymers such as cellulose and chitin. Recent work, however, has identified several strains of microbes capable of biodegrading polyethylene (Sivan, 2011) and PVC (Shah et al., 2008). In concentrated liquid culture in the laboratory, Actinomycetes Rhodococcus ruber (strain C208) resulted in a reduction of ca. 8% in the dry weight of the polyolefin within 30 days of incubation ( Gilan et al., 2004). Laccases secreted by the species reduced the average molecular weight of polymer as demonstrated by GPC indicating degradation via scission of main chains. However, this process does not occur in soil or marine environments as the candidate microbes are not available in high enough native concentration and competing easily-assimilable nutrient sources are always present. There is virtually no data on kinetics of mineralisation of plastics in the marine environment. However, biopolymers such as chitins (Poulicek and Jeuniaux, 1991 and Seki and Taga, 1963), chitosan (Andrady et al.

In addition, there are some gaps in the data for technical reason

In addition, there are some gaps in the data for technical reasons: from 16 August 1989 to 7 November 1991, from 15 December 1992 to 14 September 1994, and from 10 November 1994 to 4 October 1995. The shore at CRS Lubiatowo has a gently sloping beach from several to tens of metres wide. The dune toe lies from 1 to 2 m above the mean water level, whereas all points of the dune crest are at least 2 m higher than the dune toe

(adjacent to the landward edge of the beach). Locally, there is a small beach berm near the shoreline. Both the beach and dunes consist of fine quartz sand with a median grain diameter of around d50 ≈ 0.22 mm. Since there are practically no tides (a maximum of 6 cm), swell and wind waves are the only drivers of water motion in the nearshore Trichostatin A research buy zone. The complex shape of the sea bed (see the example of a multi-bar cross-shore transect in Figure 2) causes multiple wave breaking and

the find more dissipation of much wave energy over the bars. According to investigations by Pruszak et al. (2008), only about 40% of the wave energy actually reaches the immediate proximity of the shoreline. The sea bed on the shore section of interest is characterized by bars, of which there may be from 3 to 5. The first stable bar is located at about 100–120 m, the second bar about 250 m and the third one 400–450 m from the shoreline; the fourth and fifth bars occur (sometimes as a single morphological entity) at a distance of 650–850 m offshore. In addition, there is often one more irregular sea bed form very close to the shoreline – a flat shoal that migrates in

various directions and disappears periodically. The shoreface has a mean slope of tan β = 0.015 (locally, at the shoreline, with a maximum of 0.04). The complicated nature of this coastal area, implying complex hydrodynamic and lithodynamic processes, is illustrated in Figure 3. Since 1983, geodesic surveys of the dunes and beach have been carried out every month along the 2.6 km section of shore. The tachymetry comprises cross-shore profiles every 100 m along the shore. This gives 27 measured transects. The results of the field investigations described above are plotted in Figure 4. The data comprising, by way of example, a short-term annual period from Cediranib (AZD2171) September 2006 to September 2007 are shown in Figure 4a, whereas the data collected during the entire 25 year time span (1983–2007) are shown in Figure 4b. The shoreline position, interpreted as the distance of the shoreline point from a certain geodesic baseline, is denoted by ys, while the dune toe position, interpreted as the distance of the dune toe point from the geodesic baseline, is denoted by yd. Figure 4 shows that the range of shoreline migration ys is much larger than the range of changes of dune toe position.

Commercial software NASTRAN is used to perform the eigenvalue ana

Commercial software NASTRAN is used to perform the eigenvalue analysis. The bulkheads completely constrain the in-plane deformation of the cross-section. This leads to changes in the stress–strain relationship of shell elements on the hull. The original relationship is expressed as equation(69) σxσyτxy=E1−ν2[1ν0ν1000(1−ν)/2]εxεyγxy check details Let us consider an element

exposed to tensile loading in the x  -direction. If there is no constraint, the y  -direction strain is induced, the amount of which makes the normal stress zero in the y  -direction. On the other hand, if the bulkheads of the model completely suppress the strain in the y  -direction, an additional normal stress in the x  -direction is induced. It is derived by substituting Eq. (69) into Eq. (70). equation(70) εy={−νεxw/obulkhead0withbulkheadBy

integrating the normal stress in DNA Synthesis inhibitor the x  -direction over the distance from the neutral axis on the cross-section, so-called bending rigidity is obtained as in Eq. (71). The bending rigidity is increased by 1/1−2ν(=1.09)1/1−ν2(=1.09) times when the Poisson ratio is 0.3. Axial rigidity is also calculated in the same manner and the same coefficient is derived. equation(71) M=(11−ν2)EI∂θ∂x Warping distortion of the cross-section is shown in Fig. 8. The bulkheads completely suppress the distortion, and the Saint-Venant torsional modulus becomes equal to the polar moment of inertia. Consequently, the torsional modulus is increased by the bulkheads. Timoshenko beam theory assumes Non-specific serine/threonine protein kinase constant shear stress along the cross-section contour and requires calculation of the effective shear factor. These are calculated based on the classical energy approach as equation(72) Ky=1A∫τsy2tds The shear stress is obtained by the 2-D analysis of the cross-section. The flows of shear stress of the cross-section with and without bulkheads are shown in Fig. 9. The shear stress is constant on the side walls and zero on the top and bottom walls because the bulkheads are very stiff. The stiffness

properties with and without the bulkheads are compared in Table 2. All the rigidities are increased by the bulkhead except warping, and the increments are not negligible. Natural frequencies and mode shapes in dry mode are compared. Table 3 shows that the bulkheads play a role in the torsional rigidity and the assumption about the bulkheads is adequate. Slight differences are found in the higher modes but will vanish if the number of beam elements increases. In this case, the beam model consists of 31 uniform beam elements. Eigenvectors of the 3-D FE model are recalculated at nodes of the beam model and compared to each other. Fig. 10 shows the eigenvectors at the reference axis on the mass center. Here, capital T and R mean translational and rotational displacements, respectively, and subscripts denote the directions of the displacements. The displacements are generalized to make diagonal components of modal mass matrix one.

ABA caused an increase in the concentration of the enzyme asparta

ABA caused an increase in the concentration of the enzyme aspartate aminotransferase (AST) in serum in vivo and an increase in the concentration of AST and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in vitro, which are used as indicators of damage to the hepatic parenchymal cells ( Klaassen and Eaton, 1991). We previously demonstrated that ABA inhibits the activity of FoF1-ATPase and adenine nucleotide translocator (ANT) when added at micromolar concentrations to isolated rat liver mitochondria, an effect associated with significantly reduced ATP synthesis ( Castanha Zanoli et al., 2012). FoF1-ATPase is an enzyme present in the inner

mitochondrial membrane that is responsible by ATP synthesis driven by the proton electrochemical gradient generated in the respiratory chain. The main components of the enzyme are Fo, an integral membrane protein that works as a proton channel, and F1, a hydrophilic moiety which buy Natural Product Library contains the catalytic and

regulatory sites (Hatefi, 1993 and Pedersen, Ivacaftor price 1996). ANT is other important component of the mitochondrial machinery of ATP synthesis because of its intrinsic adenine nucleotide translocase activity. ANT has been involved in both pathological (mitochondrial permeability transition formation/regulation and cell death) and physiological (adenine nucleotide exchange) mitochondrial events, making it a prime target for drug-induced toxicity (Oliveira and Wallace, 2006). The xenobiotic metabolism in the liver is accomplished by cytochrome P450 and its main almost function is to increase the polarity of these substances, so excretion occurs more easily (Oga, 2008). However, this process is responsible for the toxic effects of numerous chemical compounds. The metabolites may cause adverse effects in the animal (Ioannides and Lewis, 2004, Mingatto et al., 2007 and Maioli et al., 2011) by changing a fundamental cellular component (mitochondria, for example) at the cellular and molecular level, thus modulating its function (Meyer and Kulkarni, 2001). Due to the important functions of the liver in animals and previous studies that indicated the occurrence of liver damage after the use of ABA, this study aims to characterize the mechanisms of

ABA toxicity on parameters related to bioenergetics and cell death and determine whether the toxicity induced by the compound is due to a possible activation following its metabolism in the liver. Abamectin, containing 92% avermectin B1a and 8% avermectin B1b, was kindly supplied by the company Ourofino Agribusiness (Cravinhos, SP, Brazil), proadifen was purchased from Sigma–Aldrich (St. Louis, MO, USA), and sodium pentobarbital was a gift from Cristália (Itapira, SP, Brazil). All other reagents were of the highest commercially available grade. Abamectin and proadifen were dissolved in anhydrous dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). All stock solutions were prepared using glass-distilled deionized water. Male Wistar rats aged 7–8 weeks and weighing approximately 200 g, were used in this study.

The slurry was homogenized by shaking the tube, and a 200 μl aliq

The slurry was homogenized by shaking the tube, and a 200 μl aliquot

was transferred to a new test tube. This new aliquot was made up with filtered sea water to a total volume of 10 ml and poured into an Utermöhl-type sedimentation chamber ( Utermöhl 1958). To prevent their germination, the cysts were counted and identified within 8 hours at magnifications of 200x, 400x and 1000x under a Zeiss inverted microscope. A minimum of 100 cysts were identified and counted in each sample. The cyst concentration in each sample was given as cysts per gram (cysts/g) of dry weight sediment. Cysts were identified to species level whenever possible based on the literature listed in the References section; Mitomycin C images were obtained from Dino-Atlas at http://www.pangaea.de/Projects/Dino-Atlas/dinoflagellates.html (Marret & Zonneveld 2003). Additional taxonomic references for dinoflagellate this website cysts, including those of Rochon et al., 1999, Matsuoka and Fukuyo, 2003 and Fensome and Williams, 2004, were also used. The biological taxonomy system was used throughout this study. Photographs were taken

with an Olympus OM4 camera connected to the relevant microscope. Changes in cyst assemblages were described by the total cyst concentration, species richness (number of taxa), the proportion of cysts of heterotrophic and autotrophic dinoflagellates, as well as the value of the Shannon-Weaver diversity index (H) (Shannon & Weaver 1949). To study the viability of the

cysts from the sediments collected and to confirm their original species (identification), germination experiments were conducted. Single cysts (20) were isolated with a glass micropipette and transferred to 96-well tissue culture plates containing 100 μl f/2 ( Guillard 1975) or filtered seawater (Millipore, 0.22 μm). Plates were incubated at 15 and 25°C using a 12:12 h light:dark cycle provided by cool white illumination tubes at 80 μmol m−2 s−1. The germination experiment was carried out in triplicate for each cyst species. Cysts were monitored every 2 days for germination and growth for a maximum of one month, and the percentage germination was 4��8C calculated for each cyst type. Differences in cyst abundance among the study sites were determined by one-way ANOVA (P < 0.05). Spearman rank correlation coefficients were used to measure the degree of association between the cyst abundance, and the contents of organic matter, silt, clay and sand in the sediments collected. A total of 19 taxa of dinoflagellate cysts representing 9 genera and 19 species were identified from all sites during the present study (Table 2, Figure 2 and Figure 3). These dinoflagellate assemblages comprised 2 species of Gonyaulacales (19% of the total number of dinoflagellate cysts in all samples), 6 species of Gymnodinales (33%), 9 species of Peridiniales (16%), 1 species of Prorocentrales (18%) and 1 species of Dinophysiales (13%).