BACKGROUND The Antarctic continent is considered the coldest and driest place on earth with simple ecosystems, devoid of higher plants. Soils in the ice-free regions of Antarctica are known to harbor a wide range of microorganisms from primary producers to grazers, yet their ecology and particularly the role of viruses is poorly understood. In this study, we examined the virus community structu...

local site conditions have a strong effect on ground response during earthquakes. two important soil parameters that control the amplification effects of seismic motions by a soil column are the soil hysteretic damping ratio and shear wave velocity. this paper presents the results of in situ damping ratio measurements performed using continuous surface wave attenuation data at a site in semnan ...

This research combines Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and transparent soil to investigate the dynamic rigid block and soil interaction. In order to get a low viscosity pore fluid for the transparent soil, 12 different types of chemical solvents were tested and the two best-matching pore fluids were identified. Transparent soil was adopted in the research as a substitute for natural sand. To e...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Proline dehydrogenase (ProDH; 1.5.99.8) plays an important role in specific determination of plasma proline level in biosensor and diagnostic kits. The goal of this research was to isolate and characterize ProDH enzyme from Iranian soil microorganisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS Screening of L-proline degradative enzymes from soil samples was carried out employing enrichm...

Following detection of putative Francisella species in aerosol samples from Houston, Texas, we surveyed soil and water samples from the area for the agent of tularemia, Francisella tularensis, and related species. The initial survey used 16S rRNA gene primers to detect Francisella species and related organisms by PCR amplification of DNA extracts from environmental samples. This analysis indica...

[1] Groundwater recharge is likely to be affected by climate change. In semiarid regions where groundwater resources are often critical, annual recharge rates are typically small and most recharge occurs episodically. Such episodic recharge is uncertain and difficult to predict. This paper analyzes the impacts of different climate predictions on diffuse episodic recharge at a low‐relief semiari...

A modified and efficient method has been developed for extracting high molecular weight (HMW) DNA free of inhibitors (humic substances) from soil and sediment samples of Jammu and Kashmir region. The method includes precipitation of extracted soil and sediment DNA with 0.5 volumes of 50% polyethylene glycol (PEG) and 0.1 volumes of 1M NaCl (sodium chloride) followed by treatment with 2% CaCl2( ...

BACKGROUND Xylan is one of the most abundant biopolymers on Earth. Its degradation is mediated primarily by microbial xylanase in nature. To explore the diversity and distribution patterns of xylanase genes in soils, samples of five soil types with different physicochemical characters were analyzed. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Partial xylanase genes of glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 10 we...