Swine Herd Health.

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Mineral inclusions in diamonds from Karowe Mine, Botswana: super-deep sources for super-sized diamonds?

Mineral inclusions in diamonds play a critical role in constraining the relationship between diamonds and mantle lithologies. Here we report the first major and trace element study of mineral inclusions in diamonds from the Karowe Mine in north-east Botswana, along the western edge of the Zimbabwe Craton. From a total of 107 diamonds, 134 silicate, 15 oxide, and 22 sulphide inclusions were recovered. The results reveal that 53% of Karowe inclusion-bearing diamonds derived from eclogitic sources, 44% are peridotitic, 2% have a sublithospheric origin, and 1% are websteritic. The dominant eclogitic diamond substrates sampled at Karowe are compositionally heterogeneous, as reflected in wide ranges in the CaO contents (4–16 wt%) of garnets and the Mg# (69–92) and jadeite contents (14–48 mol%) of clinopyroxenes. Calculated bulk rock REEN patterns indicate that both shallow and deep levels of the subducted slab(s) were sampled, including cumulate-like protoliths. Peridotitic garnet compositions largely derive from harzburgite/dunite substrates (~90%), with almost half the garnets having CaO contents <1.8 wt%, consistent with pyroxene-free (dunitic) sources. The highly depleted character of the peridotitic diamond substrates is further documented by the high mean and median Mg# (93.1) of olivine inclusions. One low-Ca garnet records a very high Cr2O3 content (14.7 wt%), implying that highly depleted cratonic lithosphere at the time of diamond formation extended to at least 220 km depth. Inclusion geothermobarometry indicates that the formation of peridotitic diamonds occurred along a 39–40 mW/m2 model geotherm. A sublithospheric inclusion suite is established by three eclogitic garnets containing a majorite component, a feature so far unique within the Orapa cluster. These low- and high-Ca majoritic garnets follow pyroxenitic and eclogitic trends of majoritic substitution, respectively. The origin of the majorite-bearing diamonds is estimated to be between 330 to 420 km depth, straddling the asthenosphere–transition zone boundary. This new observation of superdeep mineral inclusions in Karowe diamonds is consistent with a sublithospheric origin for the exceptionally large diamonds from this mine

Actors that Unify Threads and Events

There is an impedance mismatch between message-passing concurrency and virtual machines, such as the JVM. VMs usually map their threads to heavyweight OS processes. Without a lightweight process abstraction, users are often forced to write parts of concurrent applications in an event-driven style which obscures control flow, and increases the burden on the programmer. In this paper we show how thread-based and event-based programming can be unified under a single actor abstraction. Using advanced abstraction mechanisms of the Scala programming language, we implemented our approach on unmodified JVMs. Our programming model integrates well with the threading model of the underlying VM

Null Mutations for Triadin and Junctin Reveal Triadin Anchors and the Requirement for Triadin-Junctin-CASQ Complexes in Stablizing RyR Resting Leak

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An affordable methodology for quantifying waterborne microplastics - an emerging contaminant in inland-waters

The occurrence of microplastics in marine habitats is well documented and of growing concern. The presence of these small (<5 mm) pieces of plastic is less well recorded in inland water systems. In this paper, we determine a cost-efficient and straightforward method for the collection and identification of microplastics in UK inland waters. We found pieces of microplastic from all sample sites ranging from over 1000 L-1 in the River Tame, to 2.4 L-1 in Loch Lomond. The presence of microplastics in all waters tested suggest it should now be classed as an emergent contaminant, with routine monitoring required

Comparative susceptibility of mosquito populations in North Queensland, Australia to oral infection with dengue virus.

Dengue is the most prevalent arthropod-borne virus, with at least 40% of the world's population at risk of infection each year. In Australia, dengue is not endemic, but viremic travelers trigger outbreaks involving hundreds of cases. We compared the susceptibility of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes from two geographically isolated populations to two strains of dengue virus serotype 2. We found, interestingly, that mosquitoes from a city with no history of dengue were more susceptible to virus than mosquitoes from an outbreak-prone region, particularly with respect to one dengue strain. These findings suggest recent evolution of population-based differences in vector competence or different historical origins. Future genomic comparisons of these populations could reveal the genetic basis of vector competence and the relative role of selection and stochastic processes in shaping their differences. Lastly, we show the novel finding of a correlation between midgut dengue titer and titer in tissues colonized after dissemination