Igneous origin for the Na in the cloud of Io

We heated mixtures of sulfur and Na-bearing silicates in evacuated silica glass capsules to temperatures between 600°C and 950°C. At or above 850°C, Na-silicate glass reacts with elemental S to form a (Na,K) sulfide. Mobilization of this phase may account for the presence of Na and K on the surface of Io, and hence in the material sputtered into the Jovian magnetosphere

SO_2-rock interaction on Io 2. Interaction with pure SO_2

A Na-S mineral on the surface of Io is required to be the source of the famous atomic cloud. SO_2 is a confirmed atmospheric and surface constituent, and because of the rapid volcanic resurfacing rate, the SO_2 is buried within the crust, where at least occasionally, over many cycles of burial and eruption, it must contact silicate materials at midlevel crustal temperatures. Surface interaction experiments were performed for a wide variety of silicate compositions showing that interaction products of these with SO_2 could be observed at 1123 K on laboratory timescales, even in the absence of external redox agents. Not all experiments produced deposits that could be studied by scanning electron microscopy; some required the greater sensitivity of photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Characterization of the alteration products by XPS showed that both oxidized and reduced sulfur species were formed, indicating that a disproportionation mechanism producing a sulfate and a reduced S species although smaller amounts of interaction leading to Na_2SO_3 formation cannot be ruled out. The reduced sulfur species is best explained as elemental S which was independently documented for two compositions. Scanning electron microscopy studies for those compositions where reaction was extensive enough to be observed showed (1) Na_2SO_4 for a soda-lime composition, (2) a mixed Na-Ca-sulfate liquid and CaSO_4 for AbAnDi and a chondrule glass composition, and (3) Fe-sulfate for a natural obsidian. Infrared spectroscopy for the soda-lime glass composition showed peaks best explained by Na_2SO_4. We conclude that SO_2 disproportionation as well as direct formation from SO_3 under oxidizing conditions can produce Na_2SO_4 by interaction of SO_2 with silicates on Io, but Ca and Fe sulfates may form preferentially in more basaltic compositions. As highly oxidizing conditions may be unlikely for Io, the disproportionation mechanism may be more competitive on Io than it is in laboratory experiments. Very low rates of Na_2SO_4 production are required to supply the Io atomic cloud, so the interaction processes can be very inefficient

Spatial variations in ambient ultrafine particle concentrations and risk of congenital heart defects.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular malformations account for nearly one-third of all congenital anomalies, making these the most common type of birth defects. Little is known regarding the influence of ambient ultrafine particles (<0.1 μm) (UFPs) on their occurrence. OBJECTIVE: This population-based study examined the association between prenatal exposure to UFPs and congenital heart defects (CHDs). METHODS: A total of 158,743 singleton live births occurring in the City of Toronto, Canada between April 1st 2006 and March 31st 2012 were identified from a birth registry. Associations between exposure to ambient UFPs between the 2nd and 8th week post conception when the foetal heart begins to form and CHDs identified at birth were estimated using random-effects logistic regression models, adjusting for personal- and neighbourhood-level covariates. We also investigated multi-pollutant models accounting for co-exposures to PM2.5, NO2 and O3. RESULTS: A total of 1468 CHDs were identified. In fully adjusted models, UFP exposures during weeks 2 to 8 of pregnancy were not associated with overall CHDs (Odds Ratio (OR) per interquartile (IQR) increase = 1.02, 95% CI: 0.96-1.08). When investigating subtypes of CHDs, UFP exposures were associated with ventricular septal defects (Odds Ratio (OR) per interquartile (IQR) increase = 1.13, 95% CI: 1.03-1.33), but not with atrial septal defect (Odds Ratio (OR) per interquartile (IQR) increase = 0.89, 95% CI: 0.74-1.06). CONCLUSION: This is the first study to evaluate the association between prenatal exposure to UFPs and the risk of CHDs. UFP exposures during a critical period of embryogenesis were associated with an increased risk of ventricular septal defect

Vocal Accuracy and Neural Plasticity Following Micromelody-Discrimination Training

Recent behavioral studies report correlational evidence to suggest that non-musicians with good pitch discrimination sing more accurately than those with poorer auditory skills. However, other studies have reported a dissociation between perceptual and vocal production skills. In order to elucidate the relationship between auditory discrimination skills and vocal accuracy, we administered an auditory-discrimination training paradigm to a group of non-musicians to determine whether training-enhanced auditory discrimination would specifically result in improved vocal accuracy.We utilized micromelodies (i.e., melodies with seven different interval scales, each smaller than a semitone) as the main stimuli for auditory discrimination training and testing, and we used single-note and melodic singing tasks to assess vocal accuracy in two groups of non-musicians (experimental and control). To determine if any training-induced improvements in vocal accuracy would be accompanied by related modulations in cortical activity during singing, the experimental group of non-musicians also performed the singing tasks while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Following training, the experimental group exhibited significant enhancements in micromelody discrimination compared to controls. However, we did not observe a correlated improvement in vocal accuracy during single-note or melodic singing, nor did we detect any training-induced changes in activity within brain regions associated with singing.Given the observations from our auditory training regimen, we therefore conclude that perceptual discrimination training alone is not sufficient to improve vocal accuracy in non-musicians, supporting the suggested dissociation between auditory perception and vocal production

Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor Romidepsin Induces HIV Expression in CD4 T Cells from Patients on Suppressive Antiretroviral Therapy at Concentrations Achieved by Clinical Dosing

Persistent latent reservoir of replication-competent proviruses in memory CD4 T cells is a major obstacle to curing HIV infection. Pharmacological activation of HIV expression in latently infected cells is being explored as one of the strategies to deplete the latent HIV reservoir. In this study, we characterized the ability of romidepsin (RMD), a histone deacetylase inhibitor approved for the treatment of T-cell lymphomas, to activate the expression of latent HIV. In an in vitro T-cell model of HIV latency, RMD was the most potent inducer of HIV (EC50 = 4.5 nM) compared with vorinostat (VOR; EC50 = 3,950 nM) and other histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors in clinical development including panobinostat (PNB; EC50 = 10 nM). The HIV induction potencies of RMD, VOR, and PNB paralleled their inhibitory activities against multiple human HDAC isoenzymes. In both resting and memory CD4 T cells isolated from HIV-infected patients on suppressive combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), a 4-hour exposure to 40 nM RMD induced a mean 6-fold increase in intracellular HIV RNA levels, whereas a 24-hour treatment with 1 μM VOR resulted in 2- to 3-fold increases. RMD-induced intracellular HIV RNA expression persisted for 48 hours and correlated with sustained inhibition of cell-associated HDAC activity. By comparison, the induction of HIV RNA by VOR and PNB was transient and diminished after 24 hours. RMD also increased levels of extracellular HIV RNA and virions from both memory and resting CD4 T-cell cultures. The activation of HIV expression was observed at RMD concentrations below the drug plasma levels achieved by doses used in patients treated for T-cell lymphomas. In conclusion, RMD induces HIV expression ex vivo at concentrations that can be achieved clinically, indicating that the drug may reactivate latent HIV in patients on suppressive cART