Permo-Carboniferous magmatism in the core of Pangaea (Southern Pyreness): a possible linkange between the Variscan and Cimmerian cycles?

In southern Europe and the western Mediterranean, Permo-Carboniferous magmatism is well represented in areas of Iberia, the Alps, Sardinia and the Balkan Peninsula. In Iberia, the magmatism that has been related to the Variscan orogeny is associated with syn-orogenic events at ca. 350-315 Ma and post-orogenic at ca. 310-295 Ma. In the southern Pyrenees there is Permo-Carboniferous sedimentary basins with a significant volume of rhyolitic ignimbrites and andesitic flows. The Erill Castell-Estac, Cadí and Castellar de n’Hug basins are spatially associated with the Boí, Montellá and Vielha granites and the Cardet dacitic dykes emplaced in Variscan basement rocks. U-Pb SHRIMP dating of zircons extracted from these granites, an andesitic flow, a dacitic dyke and six ignimbrites, revealed that magmatism was active from ca. 304 Ma to ca. 266 Ma. The scattering of zircon ages in each sample shows that the history of melt crystallization was prolonged and complex. The reported ages of the magmatic activity for the Southern Pyrenees in the range ca. 304-283 Ma (this study) fit in well with the time interval of magmatism related to the early North-dipping subduction of the Western Paleotethys Ocean, the subsequent development of Iberian orocline (Variscan cycle), and the large-scale bending and blocking of the Paleotethys Ocean subduction at East of Iberia.In paleogeographic reconstructions of the Permo-Carboniferous, Iberia is located in the core of Pangaea to the east of the probable Rheic Ocean suture and near the western end of the subduction zone of the Paleotethys Ocean. The emplacement in Iberia of granites with ca. 310-278 Ma age occurred after the collision of Laurussia and Gondwana, when the subduction of the Rheic Ocean was inactive. From a Variscan-cycle perspective, the Permo-Carboniferous magmatism of the Pyrenees has been considered as post-orogenic. However, global paleogeographic reconstructions put Iberia in between the Rheic Ocean suture and the still active subduction zone of the Western Paleotethys Ocean. Therefore, the Permo-Carboniferous magmatism of Iberia, from a Cimmerian-cycle perspective, may have accompanied the closing of the Paleotethys Ocean. During this stage of the evolution of Pangaea, the east of Iberia was geologically affected by the active subduction zone of the Paleotethys Ocean. The period ca. 310-285 Ma is marked by the development of an orocline that extends from Iberia to Armorica. The northwards subduction of the western corner of Paleotethys probably caused orocline formation and consequent large-scale bending and blocking of Paleotethys subduction immediately east of Iberia. The Permo-Carboniferous magmatism of Iberia, coeval with this tectonic evolution, shows a mixed imprint of subduction and delamination geochemical signatures. Although this may seem controversial, in our view the magmatic activity preserved in the Southern Pyrenees could provide the missing link between the development of the Iberian orocline and the continued subduction of easternmost segments of the Paleotethys Ocean (Cimmerian cycle) during the evolution of Pangaea

Multilocus Bayesian Estimates of Intra-Oceanic Genetic Differentiation, Connectivity, and Admixture in Atlantic Swordfish (Xiphias gladius L.)

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Detection of dengue virus serotype 2 in aedes aegypti in Quintana Roo, Mexico, 2011

Abstract. In October 2011, the State Health Department announced that several laboratory-confirmed cases of dengue had occurred among residents in two neighborhoods of Benito Juarez, Quintana Roo State, Mexico. To identify the dengue virus serotype(s) temporally and spatially associated with the cases, entomologic-based virus surveillance was initiated in October 2011 in both neighborhoods. Adult mosquitoes were collected from 88 houses by CDCbackpack aspirator, and all female Aedes aegypti L. (n = 419) were individually homogenized and assayed in pools of as many as 10 by reverse transcriptionpolymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using dengue virus-specific primers. Five (12%) of 41 pools were positive for dengue virus RNA. The individual mosquitoes that comprised the pools were analyzed separately by RT-PCR using dengue virus serotype-specific primers. Six mosquitoes were positive for dengue virus serotype-2 (DENV-2) RNA, three of which were collected in the same house. The mean number of female Ae. aegypti collected in each house was 4.76 ± 6.19. The overall dengue virus-infection rate in female Ae. aegypti was 1.4%. Interestingly, most (60%) of mosquito females were collected only from 15 (17%) houses. In summary, we provide evidence of recent DENV-2 transmission in Quintana Roo State

Tumor Heterogeneity: Mechanisms and Bases for a Reliable Application of Molecular Marker Design

Tumor heterogeneity is a confusing finding in the assessment of neoplasms, potentially resulting in inaccurate diagnostic, prognostic and predictive tests. This tumor heterogeneity is not always a random and unpredictable phenomenon, whose knowledge helps designing better tests. The biologic reasons for this intratumoral heterogeneity would then be important to understand both the natural history of neoplasms and the selection of test samples for reliable analysis. The main factors contributing to intratumoral heterogeneity inducing gene abnormalities or modifying its expression include: the gradient ischemic level within neoplasms, the action of tumor microenvironment (bidirectional interaction between tumor cells and stroma), mechanisms of intercellular transference of genetic information (exosomes), and differential mechanisms of sequence-independent modifications of genetic material and proteins. The intratumoral heterogeneity is at the origin of tumor progression and it is also the byproduct of the selection process during progression. Any analysis of heterogeneity mechanisms must be integrated within the process of segregation of genetic changes in tumor cells during the clonal expansion and progression of neoplasms. The evaluation of these mechanisms must also consider the redundancy and pleiotropism of molecular pathways, for which appropriate surrogate markers would support the presence or not of heterogeneous genetics and the main mechanisms responsible. This knowledge would constitute a solid scientific background for future therapeutic planning

Performance of aquatic plant species for phytoremediation of arsenic-contaminated water

This study investigates the effectiveness of aquatic macrophyte and microphyte for phytoremediation of water bodies contaminated with high arsenic concentration. Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) and two algae (Chlorodesmis sp. and Cladophora sp.) found near arsenic-enriched water bodies were used to determine their tolerance toward arsenic and their effectiveness to uptake arsenic thereby reducing organic pollution in arsenic-enriched wastewater of different concentrations. Parameters like pH, chemical oxygen demand (COD), and arsenic concentration were monitored. The pH of wastewater during the course of phytoremediation remained constant in the range of 7.3–8.4, whereas COD reduced by 50–65 % in a period of 15 days. Cladophora sp. was found to survive up to an arsenic concentration of 6 mg/L, whereas water hyacinth and Chlorodesmis sp. could survive up to arsenic concentrations of 2 and 4 mg/L, respectively. It was also found that during a retention period of 10 days under ambient temperature conditions, Cladophora sp. could bring down arsenic concentration from 6 to <0.1 mg/L, Chlorodesmis sp. was able to reduce arsenic by 40−50 %; whereas, water hyacinth could reduce arsenic by only 20 %. Cladophora sp. is thus suitable for co-treatment of sewage and arsenic-enriched brine in an algal pond having a retention time of 10 days. The identified plant species provides a simple and cost-effective method for application in rural areas affected with arsenic problem. The treated water can be used for irrigation

Higgs lepton flavour violation: UV completions and connection to neutrino masses

We study lepton violating Higgs (HLFV) decays, first from the effective field theory (EFT) point of view, and then analysing the different high-energy realizations of the operators of the EFT, highlighting the most promising models. We argue why two Higgs doublet models can have a BR(h → τ μ) ∼ 0.01, and why this rate is suppressed in all other realizations including vector-like leptons. We further discuss HLFV in the context of neutrino mass models: in most cases it is generated at one loop giving always BR(h → τ μ) < 10−4 and typically much less, which is beyond experimental reach. However, both the Zee model and extended left-right symmetric models contain extra SU(2) doublets coupled to leptons and could in principle account for the observed excess, with interesting connections between HLFV and neutrino parameters

Psychometric properties of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) across cross-cultural subgroups, genders, and sexual orientations: Findings from the International Sex Survey (ISS)

© 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/4.0/).INTRODUCTION: Despite being a widely used screening questionnaire, there is no consensus on the most appropriate measurement model for the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Furthermore, there have been limited studies on its measurement invariance across cross-cultural subgroups, genders, and sexual orientations. AIMS: The present study aimed to examine the fit of different measurement models for the AUDIT and its measurement invariance across a wide range of subgroups by country, language, gender, and sexual orientation. METHODS: Responses concerning past-year alcohol use from the participants of the cross-sectional International Sex Survey were considered (N = 62,943; M age: 32.73; SD = 12.59). Confirmatory factor analysis, as well as measurement invariance tests were performed for 21 countries, 14 languages, three genders, and four sexual-orientation subgroups that met the minimum sample size requirement for inclusion in these analyses. RESULTS: A two-factor model with factors describing 'alcohol use' (items 1-3) and 'alcohol problems' (items 4-10) showed the best model fit across countries, languages, genders, and sexual orientations. For the former two, scalar and latent mean levels of invariance were reached considering different criteria. For gender and sexual orientation, a latent mean level of invariance was reached. CONCLUSIONS: In line with the two-factor model, the calculation of separate alcohol-use and alcohol-problem scores is recommended when using the AUDIT. The high levels of measurement invariance achieved for the AUDIT support its use in cross-cultural research, capable also of meaningful comparisons among genders and sexual orientations.Peer reviewe