Latest Carbonic acid Stories

By Ferreira, Fernando J Guo, Cathy; Coleman, John R Carbonic anhydrase (CA; EC 4.2.1.1) catalyzes the interconversion of CO^sub 2^ and HCO^sub 3^^sup -^ and is a major protein constituent of the C^sub 3^ higher plant chloroplast where it is presumed to play a role in photosynthetic carbon assimilation. In this study, we have used both RNA antisense and gene knockout lines to specifically reduce the activity of the chloroplast betaCA1 polypeptide (At3g01500) in the model plant Arabidopsis...

By Carr, Herman Axelsson, Lennart When Zostera marina was irradiated after a period of darkness, initiation of photosynthetic O2 evolution occurred in two phases. During a lag phase, lasting 4 to 5 min, photosynthesis was supported by a diffusive entry of CO2. Photosynthesis then rapidly increased to its full rate. Tris buffer, at a concentration of 50 mM, completely inhibited this increase without affecting CO2-supported photosynthesis during the lag phase. These results verify that the...

A team of UK scientists has documented the affects of carbon dioxide on marine life.By studying naturally occurring carbon dioxide vents in the sea floor, researchers believe they were able to gauge how CO2 will impact marine life.Writing in the journal Nature, the scientists noted a declining number of species as well as snails with their shells disintegrating. They imply that these impacts could occur worldwide with the increasing levels of CO2 in the atmosphere.The team investigated these...

By Chow, Judith C Doraiswamy, Prakash; Watson, John G; Chen, L-W Antony; Ho, Steven Sai Hang; Sodeman, David A ABSTRACT Recent improvements in integrated and continuous PM^sub 2.5^ mass and chemical measurements from the Supersite program and related studies in the past decade are summarized. Analytical capabilities of the measurement methods, including accuracy, precision, interferences, minimum detectable levels, comparability, and data completeness are documented. Upstream denuders...

Stanford - Increased carbon dioxide emissions are rapidly making the world's oceans more acidic and, if unabated, could cause a mass extinction of marine life similar to one that occurred 65 million years ago when the dinosaurs disappeared. Ken Caldeira of the Carnegie Institution's Department of Global Ecology will present this research at the AGU/ASLO Ocean Sciences meeting in Honolulu, HI on Monday, Feb 20. Caldeira's computer models have predicted that the oceans will become far more...