BIOSPHERE: BIOMEMBRANE OR BIOMATRIX? http://scipeople.com/publication/99402/; S.A.Ostroumov Faculty of Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow Epigraph: …whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me. Isaac Newton (1642-1727) Key words: biosphere, V.I. Vernadsky, fundamental concepts and principles, migration of elements, immobilization, living matter, biogenic matter, components of the biosphere, chemico-biotic interactions The fundamental concept of the biosphere was a central focus of attention of the classical works by V.I. Vernadsky [1, 2 ]. Many authors contributed to the studies of the biosphere [3- 12]. The goal of this publication is to comment on some basic fundamental concepts and principles that are relevant to modern understanding of what is the biosphere. Traditionally, the biosphere is considered as one of “spheres’ around the globe. Some time ago, a number of scientific terms were coined: lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. Among them, the entity that corresponds to the concept and term ‘biosphere’ features some unique qualities: (1) The biosphere is probably the thinnest among all other ‘spheres’ except perhaps the hydrosphere. As a result, the biosphere could be considered as a thin skin or film or membrane that surrounds the hard surface of the globe. (2) The biosphere is probably the most vague entity among the other ‘spheres’ in terms of where its limits or boundaries are. There are various views on that what exactly is included into the biosphere, what exactly should be considered as components (parts, constituents) of the biosphere. In the narrow sense (sensu stricto), it includes living organisms. In the broader sense (sensu lato), it includes both living organisms and the matter that was produced or transformed by living organisms. In that latter case – if that latter broader approach is applied – the biosphere includes all types of detritus, excretions, and all type of former living matter. In latter case, in aquatic ecosystems a significant part of bottom sediments is definitely a part of the biosphere. All organic matter of the bottom sediments and soils should be considered a part of the biosphere. Our recent studies provided new facts on the high ability of living organisms and the matter produced by them (e.g., detritus) to accumulate, absorb, and immobilize some chemical elements that initially were added to the system in the form of salts dissolved in water. To be more specific, it was shown in our experiments with aquatic microcosms. Several metals as a water solution of salts were added to the water of those microcosms [13, 14, 16, 18, 19]. Continuation - see in the attached file.
BIOSPHERE: BIOMEMBRANE OR BIOMATRIX? - Ecological Studies, Hazards, Solutions, 2010, vol.15, p.13-16.

http://scipeople.ru/publication/70348/; Ostroumov S.A. Biosphere: biomembrane or biomatrix? see: http://scipeople.ru/publication/70166/; at that site the file (Text.vol.15.doc) with the all papers of the volume is attached; in the volume, the full text of the paper is on pages 13-16. Ostroumov S.A. Biosphere: biomembrane or biomatrix? Ecological Studies, Hazards, Solutions, 2010, vol.15, p. 13-16. Fragments of the text of the paper: The fundamental concept of the biosphere was a central focus of attention of the classical works by V.I. Vernadsky [1, 2 ]. Many authors contributed to the studies of the biosphere [3- 12]. The goal of this publication is to comment on some basic fundamental concepts and principles that are relevant to modern understanding of what is the biosphere. […] There are various views on that what exactly is included into the biosphere, what exactly should be considered as components (parts, constituents) of the biosphere. […] Our recent studies provided new facts on the high ability of living organisms and the matter produced by them (e.g., detritus) to accumulate, absorb, and immobilize some chemical elements that initially were added to the system in the form of salts dissolved in water. To be more specific, it was shown in our experiments with aquatic microcosms. […] It is noteworthy that several aspects of interaction of biomass and biogenic matter with chemical species are highly relevant to our analysis: […] All in all, our new data and a vast amount of data in the current literature show that living organisms and the matter that is being produced by them serve as an efficient matrix which binds and immobilize a broad range of chemical species from the aquatic medium. By the same token, organisms and biogenic material can bind some molecules and particles from the surrounding air. On that basis, the view is justified according to which the total sum of components of the biosphere serve a kind of matrix to bind chemical components and particles from water and air. As this matrix is represented by organisms (the biota) and biogenic matter, it is logical to call it ‘biomatrix’. Also, a slightly extended interpretation could be given to the term ‘biomatrix’. Many studies have shown the existence and vital role of a variety of physical fields generated by organisms. Those fields include electromagnetic, acoustic, infrared, optical (the visible range of wavelengths) ones ... Moreover, the physical space between organisms contains also an immense number of infochemicals and other molecules of biogenic origin that carry information and produce a broad range of effects on the organisms receiving them (Ostroumov, 1986) . All those factors are in accord with the vision of the surrounding of the organisms – the surrounding that is essentially packed with the matter and physical fields, - both of which may produce some profound effects on the organisms - rather as a matrix than just as ‘a space’. The answer to the question posed in the title of this publication – the biomembrane or biomatrix? - is dualistic: both the biomembrane and biomatrix.