bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A Framework for Resolving the Transboundary Water Allocation Conflict Conundrum
Authors: Rowland Marty 
Published: September 2005

AbstractThis paper describes a methodology for resolving transboundary water disputes that arise when people/states/nations sharing a resource that crosses legal/political jurisdictions disagree about the use of the resource. Laws and treaties written in an attempt to settle disputes are frequently neither enforced nor effective, and disagreements continue. Crises, arising through resource overuse or shortages, worsen the conflict and typically result in further discord, lawsuits, depletion of the resource, and even open‐armed hostility. Many water management experts call for either private/market‐based or state/command‐and‐control resource management systems, but these eventually break down during crisis. The crises therefore necessitate the adoption of a more effective institutional arrangement to address and resolve present and future problems. A better alternative to management by private or state entities and the resolution of conflicts by the mere application of law is a cooperative approach. The Rowland‐Ostrom Framework, introduced in this paper, incorporates Ostrom's eight design principles for sustainable common pool resource management within the context of crisis that involves an urgent threat to the quantity or quality of a resource such as water, as described by the author. This paper demonstrates that although established 15 years ago, Ostrom's design principles remain applicable today for effective, sustainable transboundary water management, and the Rowland‐Ostrom Framework is a model for the equitable use of shared water resources throughout the world.
Ground Water Rights, Spatial Variation, and Transboundary Conflicts
Authors: Matthews Olen Paul 
Published: September 2005

AbstractThe goal for any property rights system is to achieve equity, efficiency, and certainty. Trying to achieve these goals for ground water is difficult because a ground water right is not exclusive. To make matters more complicated, ground water is often under the jurisdiction of more than one political unit. The result is transboundary conflicts. Two critical elements must be included in any system of ground water rights. The system must define how the ground water can be used and define the relationships that each user and each use has with the other users and uses in the system. Unfortunately, these relationships are seldom completely defined and are made more complex by the transboundary scales at which they operate. As ground water moves horizontally across boundaries, different users or different jurisdictions have sequential control, creating conflicts between the first users and subsequent ones. Other problems occur because of vertical relationships, with more than one person or entity having control over ground water at the same time. This simultaneous exercise of authority can create conflicts between an individual who possesses a right to use ground water and a state or federal agency that regulates the same water. Transboundary conflicts occur at different scales and include conflicts between neighboring property owners as well as conflicts between countries. Scale, the property rights structure, and the nature of the relationship between users influence the way transboundary ground water conflicts are resolved.
Securing the Future of Ground Water Resources in the Great Lakes Basin
Authors: Galloway Gerald , Pentland Ralph 
Published: September 2005

AbstractGround water is a vital, but underappreciated, natural resource in the Great Lakes basin. It meets many human needs and contributes significantly to the hydrology of the Great Lakes and the health of ecosystems. This paper provides an overview of ground water in the Great Lakes and the institutional and legal setting that governs the use, protection, diversion, and removal of water from the basin and proposes a citizen‐centered vision for management of ground water in the 21st century.
Transboundary Aquifers: A Global Program to Assess, Evaluate, and Develop Policy
Authors: Puri S. , Aureli A. 
Published: September 2005

AbstractTransboundary aquifers are as important a component of global water resource systems as are transboundary rivers; yet, their recognition in international water policy and legislation is very limited. Existing international conventions and agreements barely address aquifers and their resources. To rectify this deficiency, the International Association of Hydrogeologists and UNESCO's International Hydrological Programme have established the Internationally Shared (transboundary) Aquifer Resource Management (ISARM) Programme. This multiagency cooperative program has launched a number of global and regional initiatives. These are designed to delineate and analyze transboundary aquifer systems and to encourage riparian states to work cooperatively toward mutually beneficial and sustainable aquifer development. The agencies participating in ISARM include international and regional organizations (e.g., Organization of American States, United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Food and Agriculture Organization, and South African Development Community). Using outputs of case studies, the ISARM Programme is building scientific, legal, environmental, socioeconomic, and institutional guidelines and recommendations to aid sharing nations in the management of their transboundary aquifers. Since its start in 2000, the program has completed inventories of transboundary aquifers in the Americas and Africa, and several ISARM case studies have commenced.
Stochastic Study of Solute Transport in a Nonstationary Medium
Authors: Hu Bill X. 
Published: September 2005

AbstractA Lagrangian stochastic approach is applied to develop a method of moment for solute transport in a physically and chemically nonstationary medium. Stochastic governing equations for mean solute flux and solute covariance are analytically obtained in the first‐order accuracy of log conductivity and/or chemical sorption variances and solved numerically using the finite‐difference method. The developed method, the numerical method of moments (NMM), is used to predict radionuclide solute transport processes in the saturated zone below the Yucca Mountain project area. The mean, variance, and upper bound of the radionuclide mass flux through a control plane 5 km downstream of the footprint of the repository are calculated. According to their chemical sorption capacities, the various radionuclear chemicals are grouped as nonreactive, weakly sorbing, and strongly sorbing chemicals. The NMM method is used to study their transport processes and influence factors. To verify the method of moments, a Monte Carlo simulation is conducted for nonreactive chemical transport. Results indicate the results from the two methods are consistent, but the NMM method is computationally more efficient than the Monte Carlo method. This study adds to the ongoing debate in the literature on the effect of heterogeneity on solute transport prediction, especially on prediction uncertainty, by showing that the standard derivation of solute flux is larger than the mean solute flux even when the hydraulic conductivity within each geological layer is mild. This study provides a method that may become an efficient calculation tool for many environmental projects.
Towards a Genome-Based Taxonomy for Prokaryotes
Authors: Konstantinidis Konstantinos T. , Tiedje James M. 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACT

The ranks higher than the species in the prokaryotic taxonomy are primarily designated based on phylogenetic analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequences, but no definite standards exist for the absolute relatedness (measured by 16S rRNA or other means) between the ranks. Accordingly, it remains unknown how comparable the ranks are between different organisms. To gain insights into this question, we studied the relationship between shared gene content and genetic relatedness for 175 fully sequenced strains, using as a robust measure of relatedness the average amino acid identity (AAI) of the shared genes. Our results reveal that adjacent ranks (e.g., phylum versus class) frequently show extensive overlap in terms of genetic and gene content relatedness of the grouped organisms, and hence, the current system is of limited predictive power in this respect. The overlap between nonadjacent ranks (e.g., phylum versus family) is generally limited and attributable to clear inconsistencies of the taxonomy. In addition to providing means for standardizing taxonomy, our AAI-based approach provides a means to evaluate the robustness of alternative genetic markers for phylogenetic purposes. For instance, the 23S rRNA gene was found to be as good a marker as the 16S rRNA gene, while several of the widely distributed protein-coding genes, such as the RNA polymerase and gyrase subunits, show a strong phylogenetic signal, albeit less strong than the rRNA genes (0.78 >
R
2
> 0.69 for the protein-coding genes versus
R
2
= 0.84 for the rRNA genes). The AAI approach outlined here could contribute significantly to a genome-based taxonomy for all microbial organisms.
Differential Roles of the Universal Stress Proteins of
Escherichia coli
in Oxidative Stress Resistance, Adhesion, and Motility
Authors: Nachin Laurence , Nannmark Ulf , Nyström Thomas 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACT

The universal stress protein (UspA) superfamily encompasses a conserved group of proteins that are found in bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes.
Escherichia coli
harbors six
usp
genes—
uspA
, -
C
, -
D
, -
E
, -
F
, and -
G
—the expression of which is triggered by a large variety of environmental insults. The
uspA
gene is important for survival during cellular growth arrest, but the exact physiological role of the Usp proteins is not known. In this work we have performed phenotypic characterization of mutants with deletions of the six different
usp
genes. We report on hitherto unknown functions of these genes linked to motility, adhesion, and oxidative stress resistance, and we show that
usp
functions are both overlapping and distinct. Both UspA and UspD are required in the defense against superoxide-generating agents, and UspD appears also important in controlling intracellular levels of iron. In contrast, UspC is not involved in stress resistance or iron metabolism but is essential, like UspE, for cellular motility. Electron microscopy demonstrates that
uspC
and
uspE
mutants are devoid of flagella. In addition, the function of the
uspC
and
uspE
genes is linked to cell adhesion, measured as FimH-mediated agglutination of yeast cells. While the UspC and UspE proteins promote motility at the expense of adhesion, the UspF and UspG proteins exhibit the exact opposite effects. We suggest that the Usp proteins have evolved different physiological functions that reprogram the cell towards defense and escape during cellular stress.
Modulation of the Sensitivity of FimB Recombination to Branched-Chain Amino Acids and Alanine in
Escherichia coli
K-12
Authors: Lahooti Maryam , Roesch Paula L. , Blomfield Ian C. 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACT

Phase variation of type 1 fimbriae of
Escherichia coli
requires the site-specific recombination of a short invertible element. Inversion is catalyzed by FimB (switching in either direction) or FimE (inversion mainly from on to off) and is influenced by auxiliary factors integration host factor (IHF) and leucine-responsive regulatory protein (Lrp). These proteins bind to sites (IHF site II and Lrp sites 1 and 2) within the invertible element to stimulate recombination, presumably by bending the DNA to enhance synapses. Interaction of Lrp with a third site (site 3) cooperatively with sites 1 and 2 (termed complex 1) impedes recombination. Inversion is stimulated by the branched-chain amino acids (particularly leucine) and alanine, and according to a current model, the amino acids promote the selective loss of Lrp from site 3 (complex 2). Here we show that the central portion of the
fim
invertible element, situated between Lrp site 3 and IHF site II, is dispensable for FimB recombination but that this region is also required for full amino acid stimulation of inversion. Further work reveals that the region is likely to contain multiple regulatory elements. Lrp site 3 is shown to bind the regulatory protein with low affinity, and a mutation that enhances binding to this element is found both to diminish the stimulatory effects of IVLA on FimB recombination and to inhibit recombination in the absence of the amino acids. The results obtained emphasize the importance of Lrp site 3 as a control element but also highlight the complexity of the regulatory system that affects this site.
Mutant Analysis Reveals a Specific Requirement for Protein P30 inMycoplasma pneumoniaeGliding Motility
Authors: Hasselbring Benjamin M. , Jordan Jarrat L. , Krause Duncan C. 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACTThe cell-wall-less prokaryoteMycoplasma pneumoniae, long considered among the smallest and simplest cells capable of self-replication, has a distinct cellular polarity characterized by the presence of a differentiated terminal organelle which functions in adherence to human respiratory epithelium, gliding motility, and cell division. Characterization of hemadsorption (HA)-negative mutants has resulted in identification of several terminal organelle proteins, including P30, the loss of which results in developmental defects and decreased adherence to host cells, but their impact onM. pneumoniaegliding has not been investigated. Here we examined the contribution of P30 to gliding motility on the basis of satellite growth and cell gliding velocity and frequency.M. pneumoniaeHA mutant II-3 lacking P30 was nonmotile, but HA mutant II-7 producing a truncated P30 was motile, albeit at a velocity 50-fold less than that of the wild type. HA-positive revertant II-3R producing an altered P30 was unexpectedly not fully wild type with respect to gliding. Complementation of mutant II-3 with recombinant wild-type and mutant alleles confirmed the correlation between gliding defect and loss or alteration in P30. Surprisingly, fusion of yellow fluorescent protein to the C terminus of P30 had little impact on cell gliding velocity and significantly enhanced HA. Finally, while quantitative examination of HA revealed clear distinctions among these mutant strains, gliding defects did not correlate strictly with the HA phenotype, and all strains attached to glass at wild-type levels. Taken together, these findings suggest a role for P30 in gliding motility that is distinct from its requirement in adherence.
Function of the Cytochrome
bc
1
-
aa
3
Branch of the Respiratory Network in Mycobacteria and Network Adaptation Occurring in Response to Its Disruption
Authors: Matsoso Limenako G. , Kana Bavesh D. , Crellin Paul K. , Lea-Smith David J. , Pelosi Assunta , Powell David , Dawes Stephanie S. , Rubin Harvey , Coppel Ross L. , Mizrahi Valerie 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACT

The aerobic electron transport chain in
Mycobacterium smegmatis
can terminate in one of three possible terminal oxidase complexes. The structure and function of the electron transport pathway leading from the menaquinol-menaquinone pool to the cytochrome
bc
1
complex and terminating in the
aa
3
-type cytochrome
c
oxidase was characterized.
M. smegmatis
strains with mutations in the
bc
1
complex and in subunit II of cyctochome
c
oxidase were found to be profoundly growth impaired, confirming the importance of this respiratory pathway for mycobacterial growth under aerobic conditions. Disruption of this pathway resulted in an adaptation of the respiratory network that is characterized by a marked up-regulation of
cydAB
, which encodes the bioenergetically less efficient and microaerobically induced cytochrome
bd
-type menaquinol oxidase that is required for the growth of
M. smegmatis
under O
2
-limiting conditions. Further insights into the adaptation of this organism to rerouting of the electron flux through the branch terminating in the
bd
-type oxidase were revealed by expression profiling of the
bc
1
-deficient mutant strain using a partial-genome microarray of
M. smegmatis
that is enriched in essential genes. Although the expression profile was indicative of an increase in the reduced state of the respiratory chain, blockage of the
bc
1
-
aa
3
pathway did not induce the sentinel genes of
M. smegmatis
that are induced by oxygen starvation and are regulated by the DosR two-component regulator.
Roles of the Regulatory Proteins FlhF and FlhG in the
Vibrio cholerae
Flagellar Transcription Hierarchy
Authors: Correa Nidia E. , Peng Fen , Klose Karl E. 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACT

Vibrio cholerae
, the causative agent of the human diarrheal disease cholera, is a motile bacterium with a single polar flagellum, and motility has been inferred to be an important aspect of virulence. The
V. cholerae
flagellar hierarchy is organized into four classes of genes. The expression of each class of genes within a flagellar hierarchy is generally tightly regulated in other bacteria by both positive and negative regulatory elements. To further elucidate flagellar biogenesis in
V. cholerae
, we characterized the roles of the three putative regulatory genes,
flhF
,
flhG
, and VC2061.
V. cholerae flhF
and
flhG
mutants appeared nonmotile in a soft agar assay. Electron microscopy revealed that the
flhF
mutant lacked a polar flagellum, while interestingly, the
flhG
mutant possessed multiple (8 to 10) polar flagella per cell. The transcriptional activity of class III and class IV gene promoters in the
flhF
mutant was decreased, suggesting that FlhF acts as a positive regulator of class III gene transcription. The transcription of all four classes of flagellar promoters was increased in the
flhG
mutant, suggesting that FlhG acts as a negative regulator of class I gene transcription. Additionally, the ability to colonize the infant mouse intestine was reduced for the
flhG
mutant (∼10-fold), indicating that the negative regulation of class I flagellar genes enhances virulence. The
V. cholerae
VC2061 mutant was motile and produced a polar flagellum indistinguishable from that of the wild type, and the transcriptional activities of the four classes of flagellar promoters were similar to that of the wild type. Our results indicate that FlhG and FlhF regulate class I and class III flagellar transcription, respectively, while VC2061 plays no detectable role in
V. cholerae
flagellar biogenesis.
Transcriptional Response ofEscherichia colito External Zinc
Authors: Yamamoto Kaneyoshi , Ishihama Akira 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACTTranscriptional response ofEscherichia colito extracellular zinc was studied using DNA microarray and S1 mapping assays. Addition of external zinc induced the expression of zinc exporter ZntA and inhibited the expression of zinc importer ZnuC. In the continuous presence of zinc, ZnuC repression took place at lower zinc concentrations than ZntA induction. The microarray assay indicated that the addition of excess external zinc induces the expression of many genes that are organized in the regulon for cysteine biosynthesis, implying that cysteine plays a role in transient trapping of free zinc for maintenance of zinc homeostasis. Besides the RpoE regulon, other genes were also induced by zinc, suggesting that periplasmic proteins denatured by zinc induce the genes for protein repair. The microarray data of the newly identified zinc-responsive promoters were confirmed by S1 mapping.
Three Chymotrypsin Genes Are Members of the AdpA Regulon in the A-Factor Regulatory Cascade in
Streptomyces griseus
Authors: Tomono Ayami , Tsai Yisan , Ohnishi Yasuo , Horinouchi Sueharu 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACT

AdpA is a key transcriptional activator in the A-factor regulatory cascade in
Streptomyces griseus
, activating a number of genes required for secondary metabolism and morphological differentiation. Of the five chymotrypsin-type serine protease genes,
sprA
,
sprB
, and
sprD
were transcribed in response to AdpA, showing that these protease genes are members of the AdpA regulon. These proteases were predicted to play the same physiological role, since these protease genes were transcribed in a similar time course during growth and the matured enzymes showed high end-to-end similarity to one another. AdpA bound two sites upstream of the
sprA
promoter approximately at positions −375 and −50 with respect to the transcriptional start point of
sprA
. Mutational analysis of the AdpA-binding sites showed that both AdpA-binding sites were essential for transcriptional activation. AdpA bound a single site at position −50 in front of the
sprB
promoter and greatly enhanced the transcription of
sprB
. The AdpA-binding site at position −40 was essential for transcription of
sprD
, although there was an additional AdpA-binding site at position −180. Most chymotrypsin activity excreted by
S. griseus
was attributed to SprA and SprB, because mutant Δ
sprAB
, having a deletion in both
sprA
and
sprB
, lost almost all chymotrypsin activity, as did mutant Δ
adpA
. Even the double mutant Δ
sprAB
and triple mutant Δ
sprABD
grew normally and developed aerial hyphae and spores over the same time course as the wild-type strain.
Independent and Interchangeable Multimerization Domains of the AbrB, Abh, and SpoVT Global Regulatory Proteins
Authors: Yao Fude , Strauch Mark A. 
Published: September 2005

ABSTRACT
The global regulators AbrB, Abh, and SpoVT are paralogous proteins showing their most extensive sequence homologies in the DNA-binding amino-terminal regions (about 50 residues). The carboxyl-terminal portion of AbrB has been hypothesized to be a multimerization domain with little if any role in DNA-binding recognition or specificity. To investigate the multimerization potentials of the carboxyl-terminal portions of AbrB, Abh, and SpoVT we utilized an in vivo multimerization assay system based upon fusion of the domains to the DNA binding domain of the λ cI repressor protein. The results indicate that the N and C domains of all three paralogues are independent dimerization modules and that the intact Abh and SpoVT proteins are most probably tetramers. Chimeric proteins consisting of the AbrB N-terminal DNA-binding domain fused to the C domain of either Abh or SpoVT are indistinguishable from wild-type AbrB in their ability to regulate an AbrB target promoter in vivo.