Batch experiments to remove ammonia from food waste digestate were set up, and preliminary runs undertaken. These experiments were based on gas stripping in a heated column reactor; the effects of different temperatures (35, 55 and 70 degrees C) and gas flow rates (0.125, 0.250 and 0.375 L(biogas)L(digestate)(-1)min(-1)) were considered using biogas as the stripping gas. At 35 degrees C, an inc...

NH3 movement across plasma membranes has traditionally been ascribed to passive, lipid-phase diffusion. However, ammonia-specific transporters, Mep/Amt proteins, are present in primitive organisms and mammals express orthologs of Mep/Amt proteins, the Rh glycoproteins. These findings suggest that the mechanisms of NH3 movement in mammalian tissues should be reexamined. Rh C glycoprotein (Rhcg) ...

The freshwater snakehead Channa asiatica is an obligatory air-breather that resides in slow-flowing streams and in crevices near riverbanks in Southern China. In its natural habitat, it may encounter bouts of aerial exposure during the dry seasons. In the laboratory, the ammonia excretion rate of C. asiatica exposed to terrestrial conditions in a 12 h:12 h dark:light regime was one quarter that...

The survival of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in soil and water microhabitats may be affected by the environmental production and release of free ammonia. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of increasing free ammonia concentrations and times of exposure on oocyst viability. Wild-type oocysts were obtained from naturally infected calf feces by chemical (continuous-flow) ce...

Goldfish acclimated to cold water (e.g. 7°C) experience a marked reduction in functional lamellar surface area owing to the proliferation of an interlamellar cell mass (ILCM), a phenomenon termed gill remodelling. The goal of the present study was to assess the consequences of the reduced functional surface area on the capacity of goldfish to excrete ammonia. Despite the expected impact of ambi...

Remediation of aquaculture water using microorganisms like Bacillus species is a burgeoning trend for the sustainable development of aquaculture industries. In this work, a Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strain (namely B. amyloliquefaciens HN), isolated from activated sludge of a polluted river, was evaluated for its potential in water remediation using simulated aquaculture water. B. amyloliquefac...

A simple,rapidmethod was developed foraccurate determinationof ammonia inwhole blood.Blood proteins were precipitated with perchioric acid (8 g/dl) and the free ammonia liberatedinthe supernateon alkalinization was measured directlywithan ammonia-specific electrode after adjusting the sample temperature to 25 #{176}C. Some variablesaffectingprecision,accuracy, and electrodeperformance were stud...

Ammonia-oxidizing bacteria were immobilized by polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and sodium alginate. The immobilization conditions and ammonia oxidation ability of the immobilized bacteria were investigated. The following immobilization conditions were observed to be optimal: PVA, 12%; sodium alginate, 1.1%; calcium chloride, 1.0%; inoculum concentration, 1.3 immobilized balls/mL of immobilized medium; ...

Ammonia has received increasing attention over the past few years as a potentially important pollutant. The metabolic changes and potentialities of ammonia in high concentration are reported in all groups of animals as ammonia toxicity and stress. However, at high levels, ammonia is toxic, leading to functional disturbances of the central nervous system that can lead to coma and death. The pres...

Ammonia is the chief excretory product in fishes. However, non-availability of enough of water in the habitat, may lead to the formation of urea, in fishes. In the present study, the possible role of urea formation to avoid the toxicity of ammonia under water-restricted condition was tested in Channa gachua. Circulatory urea and ammonia were estimated in the blood of the fishes and glu...