Laurus nobilis, commonly known as bay, is used in folk medicine a remedy for many ailments. The present study investigates the protective effect of L. nobilis leaves extract against high fat diet-induced type 2 diabetes rats. Animals were divided into group 1 (control), groups 2, 3, and 4 (bay aqueous (AQ) extracts; 50, 100, 250 mg/kg body weight, respectively), 5, 6, 7 methanol/acetone (MeAc) ...

The objective of this study was to determine the upper thermal limits of Arctic cod Boreogadus saida by measuring the response of maximum heart rate (f(Hmax)) to acute warming. One set of fish were tested in a field laboratory in Cambridge Bay (CB), Nunavut (north of the Arctic Circle), and a second set were tested after air transport to and 6 month temperature acclimation at the Vancouver Aqua...

Near- and off-shore fresh groundwater resources become increasingly important with the social and economic development in coastal areas. Although large scale (hundreds of km) submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) to the ocean has been shown to be of the same magnitude order as river discharge, submarine fresh groundwater discharge (SFGD) with magnitude comparable to large river discharge is nev...

Spatial properties of landscapes modify the abundance and diversity of most animal assemblages in ways that need to be understood to plan and implement conservation initiatives, and evaluate their effectiveness. Seascape context (i.e. the spatial arrangement of ecosystems) mediates the effects of reserves on fish abundance, species richness and ecological processes in shallow coral reef and man...

With the yearly increasing marine culture activities in floating cages in Daya Bay, China, the effects of pollution may overlap and lead to more severe water environmental problems. In order to track the impacts of the marine culture in floating cages on water environment, sediments and overlying water were sampled by cylindrical samplers at three representative aquaculture areas of Daya Bay. T...

We investigated if the differences in density and nematode communities of intertidal sediments from two Brazilian sheltered sandy beaches were related to environmental characteristics. The upper tide level (UTL) and the low tide level (LTL) of both beaches were surveyed in January (austral summer) and June 2001 (austral winter) during low-spring tides, by collecting samples of nematodes and sed...

Rapid decline in Arctic sea ice cover in the 21st century may have wide-reaching effects on the Arctic climate system, including the Greenland ice sheet mass balance. Here, we investigate whether local changes in sea ice around the Greenland ice sheet have had an impact on Greenland surface melt. Specifically, we investigate the relationship between sea ice concentration, the timing of melt ons...

AIMS To determine the effects of heat and composting treatments on the viability of the plant pathogen Phytophthora ramorum grown on both artificial and various natural substrates. METHODS AND RESULTS Phytophthora ramorum was grown on V8 agar, inoculated on bay laurel leaves (Umbellularia californica) and on woody tissues of coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia). Effects on growth, viability and...

Linear alkylbenzenes (LABs) were used to assess the fates of hydrophobic organic compounds (HOCs) released to a large urban harbor and the adjoining offshore waters. We found that particulate concentrations of the individual C12 LAB isomers in 1996 summertime surface waters decreased from 1 pM in Boston Harbor to 20-200 fM in coastal Massachusetts and Cape Cod Bays. Levels fell to only a few fM...