Research Professor of Ecology, Systems Ecology Research Group, San Diego State University, San Diego, California 92182 Abstract: The objective of this paper is to assess the role of mineralization processes (pyrolysis, decomposition, and weathering) on nutrient (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and S) release in mediterranean-type ecosystems. Decomposition is the most important process for N release. Decomposi...

Matrix mineralization is a terminal process in osteoblast differentiation, and several approaches have been introduced to characterize the process in tissues or cultured cells. However, an analytical technique that quantitates in vitro matrix mineralization of live cells without any labeling or complex treatments is still lacking. In this study, we investigate a simple and enhanced optical meth...

Isotopic analyses of tooth enamel from fossil equids are increasingly being used to reconstruct paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental conditions. However, the accuracy of these reconstructions is currently limited, partly because the precise timing and spatial patterns of enamel mineralization in equids have not been documented. We used radiographic analyses of mandibles collected from modern ju...

Matrix GLA protein (MGP), a gamma-carboxyglutamic acid (GLA)-rich, vitamin K-dependent and apatite-binding protein, is a regulator of hypertrophic cartilage mineralization during development. However, MGP is produced by both hypertrophic and immature chondrocytes, suggesting that MGP's role in mineralization is cell stage-dependent, and that MGP may have other roles in immature cells. It is als...

X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH) is characterized by hypophosphatemia and impaired mineralization caused by mutations of the PHEX endopeptidase (phosphate-regulating gene with homologies to endopeptidases on the X chromosome), which leads to the overproduction of the phosphaturic fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) in osteocytes. The mechanism whereby PHEX mutations increase FGF23 expression and...

In order to apply manure or compost to fulfill the nutrient requirements of a crop, knowledge of the amount of nutrients mineralized following application is needed. Nutrient mineralization from applied manure depends on temperature, soil moisture, soil properties, manure characteristics, and microbial activity. Since these factors cannot be accurately predicted, nutrient mineralization from ap...

The Caledonian orogenic belt of northern Britain hosts some significant quartz vein-hosted gold deposits. However, as in orogenic belts worldwide, the relationship between gold mineralization and regional tectonics, magmatism, and metamorphism is a matter of debate. This is primarily due to the absence of precise temporal constraints for the mineralization. Here we report high-precision 40Ar/39...

Mineralization of 2,4-dichlorophenol (DCP) was studied by ozone with Mn(2+) as an ozonation catalyst. Laboratory scale semi-batch ozonation experiments were conducted at room temperature. The results showed that trace amount of Mn(2+) accelerated the mineralization of DCP. Total organic carbon removal rate was independent on Mn(2+) dosage at its range of 0.1-0.5 mgL(-1). Dissolved ozone concent...

The external surface of the plant virus Cowpea mosaic virus (CPMV) can be chemically modified with peptides that direct specific mineralization processes. Subsequent mineralization of the peptide-CPMV conjugates produces monodisperse nanoparticles of ca. 32 nm diameter coated with, for example, cobalt-platinum, iron-platinum or zinc sulfide, which cannot be readily prepared by other methods. Th...

Surface waters from a eutrophic lake in northern Georgia were incubated with C-labeled 2,4,5-trichloroaniline to study the disappearance of the parent compound and production of CO(2). There was no degradation of the compound in the dark. Under 12 h of sunlight and 12 h of darkness, 28% of the trichloroaniline was degraded in both poisoned and untreated samples. Mineralization after 24 h in poi...