Bioturbation and particle transport in Carolina slope sediments: A radiochemical approach

In situ tracer experiments investigated short-term sediment mixing processes at two Carolina continental margin sites (water depth = 850 m) characterized by different organic C fluxes, 234Th mixing coefficients (Db) and benthic assemblages. Phytoplankton, slope sediment, and sand-sized glass beads tagged with 210Pb, 113Sn, and 228Th, respectively, were placed via submersible at the sediment-water interface at both field sites (Site I off Cape Fear, and Site III off Cape Hatteras). Experimental plots were sampled at 0, 1.5 days, and 90 days after tracer emplacement to examine short-term, vertical transport. Both sites are initially dominated by nonlocal mixing. Transport to the bottom of the surface mixed layer at both sites occurs more rapidly than 234Th-based Db values predict; after 1.5 days, tagged particles were observed 5 cm below the sediment-water interface at Site I and 12 cm below at Site III. Impulse tracer profiles after 90 days at Site III exhibit primarily diffusive distributions, most likely due to a large number of random, nonlocal mixing events. The Db values determined from 90-day particle tagging experiments are comparable to those obtained from naturally occurring 234Th profiles (~100-day time scales) from nearby locations. The agreement between impulse tracer mixing coefficients and steady-state natural tracer mixing coefficients suggests that the diffusive analogue for bioturbation on monthly time scales is a realistic and useful approach. Tracer profiles from both sites exhibit some degree of particle selective mixing, but the preferential transport of the more labile carbon containing particles only occurred 30% of the time. Consequently, variations in the extent to which age-dependent mixing occurs in marine sediments may depend on factors such as faunal assemblage and organic carbon flux

Evaluation of excess 234Th activity in sediments as an indicator of food quality for deep-sea deposit feeders

Deep-sea deposit feeders selectively ingest large volumes of sediment. Knowledge of the nature of this selectivity will help to elucidate the limiting nutritional requirements and geochemical impacts of these abundant animals. Shallow-water and theoretical studies suggest that deep-sea deposit feeders should select particles rich in protein, bacterial biomass, and/or chloropigment concentrations. Recent studies indicate that deep-sea megafaunal deposit feeders exhibit strong gut enrichment of excess (xs) 234Th activity, even though 234Thxs lacks nutritional value. To explore the significance of selective ingestion of 234Thxs activity, we evaluated the correlations between 234Thxs activity and three potential tracers of deposit feeder food quality: chlorophyll a (chl a), enzymatically hydrolyzable amino acids (EHAA), and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Surface sediments from three quiescent bathyal basins off Southern California (San Nicolas, Santa Catalina, and San Clemente) were collected by a multiple corer and analyzed for 234Thxs activity, chl a, EHAA, ATP, and total organic carbon and nitrogen. 234Thxs activity was positively correlated with chl a and phaeopigment concentrations and negatively correlated with EHAA concentrations. Excess 234Th was not linearly correlated with concentrations of ATP, organic carbon, or total nitrogen. The results suggest that deep-sea deposit feeders select sediments with high 234Thxs activity because it is associated with recently settled phytodetrital material. There is no evidence that this 234Thxs-rich material has particularly high concentrations of labile amino acids or microbial biomass. Phytodetrital material may be an important source of some other limiting nutrient to deep-sea deposit feeders, e.g., polyunsaturated fatty acids, labile organic carbon and/or vitamins

Rapid subduction of organic matter by maldanid polychaetes on the North Carolina slope

In situ tracer experiments conducted on the North Carolina continental slope reveal that tube-building worms (Polychaeta: Maldanidae) can, without ingestion, rapidly subduct freshly deposited, algal carbon (13C-labeled diatoms) and inorganic materials (slope sediment and glass beads) to depths of 10 cm or more in the sediment column. Transport over 1.5 days appears to be nonselective but spatially patchy, creating localized, deep hotspots. As a result of this transport, relatively fresh organic matter becomes available soon after deposition to deep-dwelling microbes and other infauna, and both aerobic and anaerobic processes may be enhanced. Comparison of tracer subduction with estimates from a diffusive mixing model using 234Th-based coefficients, suggests that maldanid subduction activities, within 1.5 d of particle deposition, could account for 25–100% of the mixing below 5 cm that occurs on 100-day time scales. Comparisons of community data from the North Carolina slope for different places and times indicate a correlation between the abundance of deep-dwelling maldanids and the abundance and the dwelling depth in the sediment column of other infauna. Pulsed inputs of organic matter occur frequently in margin environments and maldanid polychaetes are a common component of continental slope macrobenthos. Thus, the activities we observe are likely to be widespread and significant for chemical cycling (natural and anthropogenic materials) on the slope. We propose that species like maldanids, that rapidly redistribute labile organic matter within the seabed, probably function as keystone resource modifiers. They may exert a disproportionately strong influence (relative to their abundance) on the structure of infaunal communities and on the timing, location and nature of organic matter diagenesis and burial in continental margin sediments

Investigation on the competing effects of clay dispersion and matrix plasticisation for polypropylene/clay nanocomposites. Part II: Crystalline structure and thermo-mechanical behaviour

In view of the structure–property relationship, the mechanical property enhancement of polypropylene (PP)/clay nanocomposites can also be associated with the alterations of their crystalline structures and behaviour in addition to the general interpretation of intercalation/exfoliation level and uniform dispersion of more rigid clay platelets with higher aspect ratios in the PP matrix. Wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) was utilised to evaluate the effects of clay content, maleated PP (MAPP) content (MAPP as the compatibiliser) on PP crystalline structures of nanocomposites. Furthermore, the melting and crystallisation behaviour of PP/clay nanocomposites was also investigated by conducting differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The thermo-mechanical properties were characterised via dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA). It is observed that enhancement of mechanical properties are mainly affected by the preferred orientation of PP crystals, the growth of α-PP phase and effective nucleating agent role of additional clay while the excessive amount of MAPP becomes detrimental to these crucial aspects, which is also evidently revealed in DMTA measurements

Human germline heterozygous gain-of-function STAT6 variants cause severe allergic disease

sharma et al. define a new primary atopic disorder caused by heterozygous gain-of-function variants in STAT6. this results in severe, early-onset allergies, and is seen in 16 patients from 10 families. Anti-IL-4R & alpha; antibody and JAK inhibitor treatment were highly effective.STAT6 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 6) is a transcription factor that plays a central role in the pathophysiology of allergic inflammation. we have identified 16 patients from 10 families spanning three continents with a profound phenotype of early-life onset allergic immune dysregulation, widespread treatment-resistant atopic dermatitis, hypereosinophilia with esosinophilic gastrointestinal disease, asthma, elevated serum IgE, IgE-mediated food allergies, and anaphylaxis. the cases were either sporadic (seven kindreds) or followed an autosomal dominant inheritance pattern (three kindreds). all patients carried monoallelic rare variants in STAT6 and functional studies established their gain-of-function (GOF) phenotype with sustained STAT6 phosphorylation, increased STAT6 target gene expression, and T(H)2 skewing. Precision treatment with the anti-IL-4R & alpha; antibody, dupilumab, was highly effective improving both clinical manifestations and immunological biomarkers. this study identifies heterozygous GOF variants in STAT6 as a novel autosomal dominant allergic disorder. We anticipate that our discovery of multiple kindreds with germline STAT6 GOF variants will facilitate the recognition of more affected individuals and the full definition of this new primary atopic disorder

Human germline heterozygous gain-of-function STAT6 variants cause severe allergic disease

STAT6 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 6) is a transcription factor that plays a central role in the pathophysiology of allergic inflammation. We have identified 16 patients from 10 families spanning three continents with a profound phenotype of early-life onset allergic immune dysregulation, widespread treatment-resistant atopic dermatitis, hypereosinophilia with esosinophilic gastrointestinal disease, asthma, elevated serum IgE, IgE-mediated food allergies, and anaphylaxis. The cases were either sporadic (seven kindreds) or followed an autosomal dominant inheritance pattern (three kindreds). All patients carried monoallelic rare variants in STAT6 and functional studies established their gain-of-function (GOF) phenotype with sustained STAT6 phosphorylation, increased STAT6 target gene expression, and TH2 skewing. Precision treatment with the anti-IL-4Rα antibody, dupilumab, was highly effective improving both clinical manifestations and immunological biomarkers. This study identifies heterozygous GOF variants in STAT6 as a novel autosomal dominant allergic disorder. We anticipate that our discovery of multiple kindreds with germline STAT6 GOF variants will facilitate the recognition of more affected individuals and the full definition of this new primary atopic disorder