Short Communication: Simultaneous Identification of Five κ-Casein (CSN3) Alleles in Domestic Goat by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Single Strand Conformation Polymorphism

Until now, a total of nine polymorphic sites corresponding to six different alleles have been described at the kappa-casein (CSN3) locus in the domestic goat (Capra hircus). A protocol for the rapid and simultaneous genotyping of five goat CSN3 alleles by using polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) technique was developed. Moreover, the developed test was validated by screening the CSN3 variability in four Italian breeds, Garganica, Jonica, Maltese, and Camosciata. Seven different patterns were readily identifiable. These corresponded to five known alleles and two newly identified variants. The G/A substitution at nucleotide position 471, which is not identifiable at the protein level but was found to be very frequent in the typed breeds, is easily detectable by the protocol developed. The PCR-SSCP analysis is a powerful tool for the genetic study of CSN3 variability in domestic goats, allowing both the simultaneous identification of different alleles, and the detection of new variants

Bathymetric map of the Gulf of Cadiz, NE Atlantic Ocean: The SWIM multibeam compilation

Marine Technology Workshop (Martech05), 17-18 November 2005, Vilanova i la Geltrú, Barcelona.-- 2 pages, 1 figurePeer Reviewe

Active tectonics of the western Mediterranean: Geodetic evidence for roll back of a delaminated subcontinental lithospheric slab beneath the Rif Mountains, Morocco

Copyright 2006, Geological Society of America. See also: http://www.geosociety.org; http://atlas.geo.cornell.edu/morocco/publications/fadil2006.htmSurface deformation in Morocco derived from five years of GPS survey observations of a 22-station network, four continuously recording GPS stations, and four IGS stations in Iberia indicate roughly southward motion (~3 mm/yr) of the Rif Mountains, Morocco relative to stable Africa. Motion of the Rif is approximately normal to the direction of Africa-Eurasia relative motion, which is predominantly strike slip, and results in shortening of the Rif and subsequent crustal extension of the adjacent Alboran Sea region. The sense, and the N-S asymmetry of the observed deformation (i.e., no evidence for north-directed shortening in the Betic Mountains north of the Alboran Sea) cannot be easily explained in terms of crustal plate interactions suggesting that dynamic processes below the crust are driving the recent geologic evolution of the western Mediterranean. The model that best fits the observations involves delamination and southward roll back of the African lithospheric mantle under the Alboran and Rif domains

The size of plume heterogeneities constrained by Marquesas isotopic stripes

International audienceThe scale and geometry of chemical and isotopic heterogeneities in the source of plumes have important scientific implications on the nature, composition and origin of plumes and on the dynamics of mantle mixing over time. Here, we address these issues through the study of Marquesas Islands, one of the Archipelagoes in Polynesia. We present new Sr, Nd, Pb, Hf isotopes as well as trace element data on lavas from several Marquesas Islands and demonstrate that this archipelago consists of two adjacent and distinct rows of islands with significantly different isotopic compositions. For the entire 5.5 Ma construction period, the northern islands, hereafter called the Ua Huka group, has had systematically higher 87Sr/86Sr and lower 206Pb/204Pb ratios than the southern Fatu Hiva group at any given 143Nd/144Nd value. The shape and curvature of mixing arrays preclude the ambient depleted MORB mantle as one of the mixing end-members. We believe therefore that the entire isotopic heterogeneity originates in the plume itself. We suggest that the two Marquesas isotopic stripes originate from partial melting of two adjacent filaments contained in small plumes or "plumelets" that came from a large dome structure located deep in the mantle under Polynesia. Low-degree partial melting under Marquesas and other "weak" Polynesian hot spot chains (Pitcairn-Gambier, Austral-Cook, Society) sample small areas of the dome and preserve source heterogeneities. In contrast, more productive hot spots build up large islands such as Big Island in Hawaii or Réunion Island, and the higher degrees of melting blur the isotopic variability of the plume source

Reply to Comment on “The earthquakes of 29 July 2003, 12 February 2007, and 17 December 2009 in the region of Cape Saint Vincent (SW Iberia) and their relation with the 1755 Lisbon earthquake

Indeed, the Lisbon earthquake is a very unusual seismic event and an exception to the rule because most great tsunami-generating earth- quakes are related to well-defined subduction zones. The epicentral region, focal mechanism and the structures involved at the origin of this earthquake are still a matter of debate, with several models having been proposed (e.g. Baptista et al., 2003; Grandin et al., 2007a,b; Gutscher et al., 2006; Ribeiro et al., 2006; Vilanova et al., 2003; Zitellini et al., 2001)

Source of the 1693 Catania earthquake and tsunami (southern Italy): New evidence from tsunami modeling of a locked subduction fault plane,

The 1693 Catania earthquake, which caused 60000 deaths in eastern Sicily and generated a 5–10 m high tsunami, is investigated. GPS data indicate ESE‐WNW convergence in the Calabrian arc at 4–5 mm/yr. New high‐resolution seismic data image active compression at the toe of the accretionary wedge. The lack of instrumentally recorded thrust earthquakes suggests the presence of a locked subduction fault plane. Thermal modeling is applied to calculate the limits of the seismogenic zone. Tsunami modeling is performed to test the hypothesis that the 1693 earthquake occurred on the subduction fault plane (160 × 120 km in size) with 2 m of mean co‐seismic slip. This source successfully reproduces historical observations with regard to polarity and predicts 1–3 m high amplitudes. It is likely that only the SW segment of the subduction fault plane ruptured in 1693 and 1169, implying a recurrence interval of roughly 500 years for similar events

Deep crustal faults and the origin and long-term flank stability of Mt. Etna : first results from the CIRCEE cruise (Oct. 2013)

The relation between deep crustal faults and the origin of Mount Etna, the largest and most active volcano in Europe has long been suspected due to its unusual geodynamic location. Results from a new marine geophysical survey offshore Eastern Sicily reveal the detailed geometry (location, length, dip and orientation) of a two-branched 200-km long, lithospheric scale fault system, long sought for as being the cause of Mount Etna. Using high-resolution bathymetry and seismic profiling, we image a 60-km long, previously unidentified, NW trending fault with evidence of recent displacement at the seafloor, offsetting Holocene sediments. This newly identified fault connects NE of Catania, to a known 40-km long, offshore-onshore fault system dissecting the southeastern flank of Mount Etna, generally interpreted as purely gravitational collapse structures.peer-reviewe