Ash Deposition Triggers Phytoplankton Blooms at Nishinoshima Volcano, Japan

Volcanoes that deposit eruptive products into the ocean can trigger phytoplankton blooms near the deposition area. Phytoplankton blooms impact the global carbon cycle, but the specific conditions and mechanisms that facilitate volcanically triggered blooms are not well understood, especially in low nutrient ocean regions. We use satellite remote sensing to analyze the chlorophyll response to an 8-month period of explosive and effusive activity from Nishinoshima volcano, Japan. Nishinoshima is an ocean island volcano in a low nutrient low chlorophyll region of the Northern Pacific Ocean. From June to August 2020, during explosive activity, satellite-derived chlorophyll-a was detectable with amplitudes significantly above the long-term climatological value. After the explosive activity ceased in mid-August 2020, these areas of heightened chlorophyll concentration decreased as well. In addition, we used aerial observations and satellite imagery to demonstrate a spatial correlation between blooms and ash plume direction. Using a sun-induced chlorophyll-a fluorescence satellite product, we confirmed that the observed chlorophyll blooms are phytoplankton blooms. Based on an understanding of the nutrients needed to supply blooms, we hypothesize that blooms of nitrogen-fixing phytoplankton led to a 1010–1012 g drawdown of carbon. Thus, the bloom could have significantly mediated the output of carbon from the explosive phase of the eruption but is a small fraction of anthropogenic CO2 stored in the ocean or the global biological pump. Overall, we provide a case study of fertilization of a nutrient-poor ocean with volcanic ash and demonstrate a scenario where multi-month scale deposition triggers continuous phytoplankton blooms across 1,000s of km2

Seasonal dynamics of dissolved organic matter in the Mackenzie Delta, Canadian Arctic waters

Increasing air temperatures and associated permafrost thaw in Arctic river watersheds, such as the Mackenzie River catchment, are directly affecting the aquatic environment. As a consequence, the quantity and the quality of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) that is transported via the Mackenzie River into the Arctic Ocean is expected to change. Particularly in these remote permafrost regions of the Arctic, monitoring of terrigenous organic carbon fluxes is insufficient and knowledge of distribution and fate of organic carbon when released to the coastal waters is remarkably lacking. Despite its poorly evaluated performance in Arctic coastal waters, Satellite Ocean Colour Remote Sensing (SOCRS) remains a powerful tool to complement monitoring of land-ocean DOC fluxes, detect their trends, and help in understanding their propagation in the Arctic Ocean. In this study, we use in situ and SOCRS data to show the strong seasonal dynamics of the Mackenzie River plume and the spatial distribution of associated terrigenous DOC on the Beaufort Sea Shelf for the first time. Using a dataset collected during an extensive field campaign in 2019, the performance of three commonly-used atmospheric correction (AC) algorithms and two available colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) retrieval algorithms were evaluated using the Ocean and Land Colour Instrument (OLCI). Our results showed that in optically-complex Arctic coastal waters the Polymer AC algorithm performed the best. For the retrieval of CDOM, the gsmA algorithm (Mean Percentage Error (MPE) = 35.7%) showed slightly more consistent results compared to the ONNS algorithm (MPE = 37.9%). By merging our measurements with published datasets, the newly-established DOC-CDOM relationship for the Mackenzie-Beaufort Sea region allowed estimations of DOC concentrations from SOCRS across the entire fluvial-marine transition zone with an MPE of 20.5%. Finally, we applied SOCRS with data from the Sentinel-3 OLCI sensor to illustrate the seasonal variation of DOC concentrations in the surface waters of the Beaufort Sea on a large spatial scales and high frequency throughout the entire open water period. Highest DOC concentrations and largest lateral extent of the plume were observed in spring right after the Mackenzie River ice break-up indicating that the freshet was the main driver of plume propagation and DOC distribution on the shelf. Satellite-derived images of surface water DOC concentration placed the in situ observations into a larger temporal and spatial context and revealed a strong seasonal variability in transport pathways of DOC in the Mackenzie- Beaufort Sea region

Ash Deposition Triggers Phytoplankton Blooms at Nishinoshima Volcano, Japan.

Volcanic eruptions can cause organisms known as phytoplankton to multiply and form what is known as a phytoplankton bloom in the ocean. Phytoplankton blooms can impact the life cycle of carbon in the earth system, but it is not always obvious why phytoplankton blooms happen. Using different satellite data, we observe phytoplankton blooms by viewing chlorophyll concentration in the ocean. Nishinoshima is a remote volcano in an area of the Pacific that lacks nutrients necessary for phytoplankton blooms. Nishinoshima erupted in 2019–2020 and deposited lava and ash into the ocean at different times. By looking at the chlorophyll concentration during the time periods lava and ash were deposited into the ocean, we found that chlorophyll concentration increased when ash was deposited into the ocean. These increases in chlorophyll concentration were determined to be phytoplankton blooms. These phytoplankton blooms may utilize nutrients from volcanic ash and the atmosphere, leading to a drawdown of atmospheric carbon

Interleukin 7 from Maternal Milk Crosses the Intestinal Barrier and Modulates T- Cell Development in Offspring

Background Breastfeeding protects against illnesses and death in hazardous environments, an effect partly mediated by improved immune function. One hypothesis suggests that factors within milk supplement the inadequate immune response of the offspring, but this has not been able to account for a series of observations showing that factors within maternally derived milk may supplement the development of the immune system through a direct effect on the primary lymphoid organs. In a previous human study we reported evidence suggesting a link between IL-7 in breast milk and the thymic output of infants. Here we report evidence in mice of direct action of maternally-derived IL-7 on T cell development in the offspring. Methods and Findings  We have used recombinant IL-7 labelled with a fluorescent dye to trace the movement in live mice of IL-7 from the stomach across the gut and into the lymphoid tissues. To validate the functional ability of maternally derived IL- 7 we cross fostered IL-7 knock-out mice onto normal wild type mothers. Subsets of thymocytes and populations of peripheral T cells were significantly higher than those found in knock-out mice receiving milk from IL-7 knock-out mothers. Conclusions/Significance Our study provides direct evidence that interleukin 7, a factor which is critical in the development of T lymphocytes, when maternally derived can transfer across the intestine of the offspring, increase T cell production in the thymus and support the survival of T cells in the peripheral secondary lymphoid tissue

New Mediterranean Biodiversity Records (December 2017)

The “New Mediterranean Biodiversity Records” series includes new records of marine species found in the Mediterranean basin and/or information on the spatial distribution of already established species of particular interest. The current article presents information on 20 marine taxa classified per country according to their geographic position in the Mediterranean, from west to east. The new records per ecoregion are as follows: Algeria: the first record of the fish Etrumeus golanii is reported along the Algerian coast. Tunisia: the alien jellyfish Phyllorhiza punctata is reported for the first time in the Gulf of Gabès. Italy: the first record of Siganus rivulatus in the Strait of Sicily and a new record of Katsuwonus pelamis from the central Tyrrhenian Sea are reported. The establishment of the isopod of the genus Mesanthura in the northern Tyrrhenian with some notes on its ecology are also included. Croatia: signs of establishment of the Lessepsian Siganus luridus and the occurrence of the alien mollusc Rapana venosa are reported. Albania: the first record of the elasmobranch Alopias superciliosus and a recent sighting of the rare monk seal Monachus monachus in Albanian waters are given. Greece: signs of the establishment of the fish Parupeneus forsskali and of the ascidian Hermania momus in Hellenic Aegean waters are reported. Turkey: a new record of the fish P. forsskali and of the Acarea of the genus Acaromantis and Simognathus are given, while the first case of Remora australis in association with delphinids and the occurrence of the sea star Coscinasterias tenuispina are reported. Also, the establishment of the two alien species Isognomon legumen and Viriola sp. [cf. corrugata] are presented. Egypt: the fish Bathygobius cyclopterus is reported for the first time in Mediterranean Sea waters. Also, a new record of Pagellus bogaraveo and a first record of Seriola fasciata in Egyptian Mediterranean waters are reported. Lebanon: the first record of Dondice banyulensis is presented

Essential thrombocythemia

Essential thrombocythemia (ET) is an acquired myeloproliferative disorder (MPD) characterized by a sustained elevation of platelet number with a tendency for thrombosis and hemorrhage. The prevalence in the general population is approximately 30/100,000. The median age at diagnosis is 65 to 70 years, but the disease may occur at any age. The female to male ratio is about 2:1. The clinical picture is dominated by a predisposition to vascular occlusive events (involving the cerebrovascular, coronary and peripheral circulation) and hemorrhages. Some patients with ET are asymptomatic, others may experience vasomotor (headaches, visual disturbances, lightheadedness, atypical chest pain, distal paresthesias, erythromelalgia), thrombotic, or hemorrhagic disturbances. Arterial and venous thromboses, as well as platelet-mediated transient occlusions of the microcirculation and bleeding, represent the main risks for ET patients. Thromboses of large arteries represent a major cause of mortality associated with ET or can induce severe neurological, cardiac or peripheral artery manifestations. Acute leukemia or myelodysplasia represent only rare and frequently later-onset events. The molecular pathogenesis of ET, which leads to the overproduction of mature blood cells, is similar to that found in other clonal MPDs such as chronic myeloid leukemia, polycythemia vera and myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia of the spleen. Polycythemia vera, myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia of the spleen and ET are generally associated under the common denomination of Philadelphia (Ph)-negative MPDs. Despite the recent identification of the JAK2 V617F mutation in a subset of patients with Ph-negative MPDs, the detailed pathogenetic mechanism is still a matter of discussion. Therapeutic interventions in ET are limited to decisions concerning the introduction of anti-aggregation therapy and/or starting platelet cytoreduction. The therapeutic value of hydroxycarbamide and aspirin in high risk patients has been supported by controlled studies. Avoiding thromboreduction or opting for anagrelide to postpone the long-term side effects of hydrocarbamide in young or low risk patients represent alternative options. Life expectancy is almost normal and similar to that of a healthy population matched by age and sex

Green process innovation: Where we are and where we are going

Environmental pollution has worsened in the past few decades, and increasing pressure is being put on firms by different regulatory bodies, customer groups, NGOs and other media outlets to adopt green process innovations (GPcIs), which include clean technologies and end-of-pipe solutions. Although considerable studies have been published on GPcI, the literature is disjointed, and as such, a comprehensive understanding of the issues, challenges and gaps is lacking. A systematic literature review (SLR) involving 80 relevant studies was conducted to extract seven themes: strategic response, organisational learning, institutional pressures, structural issues, outcomes, barriers and methodological choices. The review thus highlights the various gaps in the GPcI literature and illuminates the pathways for future research by proposing a series of potential research questions. This study is of vital importance to business strategy as it provides a comprehensive framework to help firms understand the various contours of GPcI. Likewise, policymakers can use the findings of this study to fill in the loopholes in the existing regulations that firms are exploiting to circumvent taxes and other penalties by locating their operations to emerging economies with less stringent environmental regulations.publishedVersio

Arctic land-ocean organic carbon flux variability and its drivers monitored using ESA CCI ECVs

Dramatically changing climate in the Arctic is changing the hydrology and the biogeochemistry of rivers. Vice versa, river water can be a powerful indicator for the impact of climate change since river biogeochemistry and discharge integrate upstream terrestrial and aquatic environmental processes over a defined watershed. In Arctic catchments, permafrost is warming and thawing, releasing much organic carbon that was previously frozen, thus inactive in the carbon cycle. Long-term global Climate Change Initiative (CCI) remote sensing based datasets are a powerful tool to observe changes across terrestrial, coastal and marine environments in high frequency and throughout long time series. In this study, we show the potential of CCI Ocean Color data to retrieve the optical properties of the dissolved organic matter (CDOM) and relate them to riverine organic carbon fluxes on a pan-Arctic scale for the last 23 years. Further, we relate riverine discharge and terrestrial CCI and ERA5 Essential Climate Variables (ECVs) to environmental processes that drive the seasonal and interannual variability as well as long-term trends. Arctic river water is optically dominated by coloured dissolved organic matter allowing rather simple band ratio retrievals a better performance compared to complex retrieval algorithms (e.g. semi-analytical & neural networks). Here, we use a ratio between 665nm and 512 nm and calibrate this with an extensive in situ dataset. The results show that extraction of CCI Ocean Color band ratio in the fluvial-marine transition zones, in combination with known relationships between optical properties of organic matter and its concentrations, provides excellent estimates for dissolved organic carbon (DOC) when compared to in situ data. The seasonal and interannual variability in DOC export by Arctic rivers is dominantly driven by large-scale precipitation anomalies within the river catchments. CCI Permafrost ECVs such as permafrost extent, active layer thickness and ground temperature show alarming trends of thaw for 1997 to 2018, whose influence on the long-term export of OC from land to the Arctic Ocean is unexplored so far. Continuing degradation of permafrost in the catchments in conjunction with projected increases in river discharge will have an impact on the global carbon cycle, aquatic ecosystems and the global climate that is currently difficult to assess due to the lack of time series and process studies. Long-term global ECVs constitute a cornerstone of such assessments and will help quantifying impacts of thawing terrestrial permafrost on aquatic ecosystems and the Arctic Ocean in particular