Pore water geochemistry along continental slopes north of the East Siberian Sea: inference of low methane concentrations

Continental slopes north of the East Siberian Sea potentially hold large amounts of methane (CH4) in sediments as gas hydrate and free gas. Although release of this CH4 to the ocean and atmosphere has become a topic of discussion, the region remains sparingly explored. Here we present pore water chemistry results from 32 sediment cores taken during Leg 2 of the 2014 joint Swedish–Russian–US Arctic Ocean Investigation of Climate–Cryosphere–Carbon Interactions (SWERUS-C3) expedition. The cores come from depth transects across the slope and rise extending between the Mendeleev and the Lomonosov ridges, north of Wrangel Island and the New Siberian Islands, respectively. Upward CH4 flux towards the seafloor, as inferred from profiles of dissolved sulfate (SO42−), alkalinity, and the δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), is negligible at all stations east of 143° E longitude. In the upper 8 m of these cores, downward SO42− flux never exceeds 6.2 mol m−2 kyr−1, the upward alkalinity flux never exceeds 6.8 mol m−2 kyr−1, and δ13C composition of DIC (δ13C-DIC) only moderately decreases with depth (−3.6 ‰ m−1 on average). Moreover, upon addition of Zn acetate to pore water samples, ZnS did not precipitate, indicating a lack of dissolved H2S. Phosphate, ammonium, and metal profiles reveal that metal oxide reduction by organic carbon dominates the geochemical environment and supports very low organic carbon turnover rates. A single core on the Lomonosov Ridge differs, as diffusive fluxes for SO42− and alkalinity were 13.9 and 11.3 mol m−2 kyr−1, respectively, the δ13C-DIC gradient was 5.6 ‰ m−1, and Mn2+ reduction terminated within 1.3 m of the seafloor. These are among the first pore water results generated from this vast climatically sensitive region, and they imply that abundant CH4, including gas hydrates, do not characterize the East Siberian Sea slope or rise along the investigated depth transects. This contradicts previous modeling and discussions, which due to the lack of data are almost entirely based on assumption

System Identification and Tuning of Wireless Power Transfer Systems with Multiple Magnetically Coupled Resonators

We present a procedure for system identification and tuning of a wireless power transfer (WPT) system with four magnetically coupled resonators, where each resonator consists of a coil and a capacitor bank. The system-identification procedure involves three main steps: 1) individual measurement of the capacitor banks in the system; 2) measurement of the frequency-dependent two-port impedance matrix of the magnetically coupled resonators; and 3) determining the inductance of all coils and their corresponding coupling coefficients using a Bayesian approach. The Bayesian approach involves solving an optimization problem where we minimize the mismatch between the measured and simulated impedance matrix together with a penalization term that incorporates information from a direct measurement procedure of the inductance and losses of the coils. This identification procedure yields an accurate system model which we use to tune the four capacitance values to recover high system-performance and account for, e.g., manufacturing tolerances and coil displacement. For a prototype WPT system, we achieve 3.3 kW power transfer with 91 % system efficiency over an air-gap distance of approximately 20 cm

Investigation of Fracture of Spheroplastics under Static and Dynamic Loading Conditions

An experimental study of static and dynamic fracture properties of a spheroplastics (SPH) that has a matrix of polyester resin containing a filler of glass microspheres was conducted. Crack propagation was investigated under loading conditions generated by pulse magnetic field. Microstructure features of dynamic fracture were analyzed.Проведено экспериментальное исследование статического и динамического разрушения композиционного материала (сферопластика), состоящего из матрицы (полиэстер) с наполнителем в виде стеклосфер. Распространение трещины исследовано при нагружении импульсным магнитным полем. Проанализированы микроструктурные особенности динамического разрушения.Проведено експериментальне дослідження статичного і динамічного руйнування композиційного матеріалу (сферопластик), що складається з матриці (поліестер) з наповнювачем у вигляді скляних сфер. Поширення тріщини досліджувалося при навантаженні імпульсним магнітним полем. Проаналізовано мікроструктурні особливості динамічного руйнування

Indicate separate contributions of long-lived and short-lived greenhouse gases in emission targets

European Union funding: 821205, 821003, 820829. Wellcome Trust: 205212/Z/16/

Comparative Genomics of Gardnerella vaginalis Strains Reveals Substantial Differences in Metabolic and Virulence Potential

Gardnerella vaginalis is described as a common vaginal bacterial species whose presence correlates strongly with bacterial vaginosis (BV). Here we report the genome sequencing and comparative analyses of three strains of G. vaginalis. Strains 317 (ATCC 14019) and 594 (ATCC 14018) were isolated from the vaginal tracts of women with symptomatic BV, while Strain 409-05 was isolated from a healthy, asymptomatic individual with a Nugent score of 9.Substantial genomic rearrangement and heterogeneity were observed that appeared to have resulted from both mobile elements and substantial lateral gene transfer. These genomic differences translated to differences in metabolic potential. All strains are equipped with significant virulence potential, including genes encoding the previously described vaginolysin, pili for cytoadhesion, EPS biosynthetic genes for biofilm formation, and antimicrobial resistance systems, We also observed systems promoting multi-drug and lantibiotic extrusion. All G. vaginalis strains possess a large number of genes that may enhance their ability to compete with and exclude other vaginal colonists. These include up to six toxin-antitoxin systems and up to nine additional antitoxins lacking cognate toxins, several of which are clustered within each genome. All strains encode bacteriocidal toxins, including two lysozyme-like toxins produced uniquely by strain 409-05. Interestingly, the BV isolates encode numerous proteins not found in strain 409-05 that likely increase their pathogenic potential. These include enzymes enabling mucin degradation, a trait previously described to strongly correlate with BV, although commonly attributed to non-G. vaginalis species.Collectively, our results indicate that all three strains are able to thrive in vaginal environments, and therein the BV isolates are capable of occupying a niche that is unique from 409-05. Each strain has significant virulence potential, although genomic and metabolic differences, such as the ability to degrade mucin, indicate that the detection of G. vaginalis in the vaginal tract provides only partial information on the physiological potential of the organism

Indicate separate contributions of long-lived and short-lived greenhouse gases in emission targets

European Union funding: 821205, 821003, 820829. Wellcome Trust: 205212/Z/16/

Shared heritability and functional enrichment across six solid cancers

Correction: Nature Communications 10 (2019): art. 4386 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12095-8Quantifying the genetic correlation between cancers can provide important insights into the mechanisms driving cancer etiology. Using genome-wide association study summary statistics across six cancer types based on a total of 296,215 cases and 301,319 controls of European ancestry, here we estimate the pair-wise genetic correlations between breast, colorectal, head/neck, lung, ovary and prostate cancer, and between cancers and 38 other diseases. We observed statistically significant genetic correlations between lung and head/neck cancer (r(g) = 0.57, p = 4.6 x 10(-8)), breast and ovarian cancer (r(g) = 0.24, p = 7 x 10(-5)), breast and lung cancer (r(g) = 0.18, p = 1.5 x 10(-6)) and breast and colorectal cancer (r(g) = 0.15, p = 1.1 x 10(-4)). We also found that multiple cancers are genetically correlated with non-cancer traits including smoking, psychiatric diseases and metabolic characteristics. Functional enrichment analysis revealed a significant excess contribution of conserved and regulatory regions to cancer heritability. Our comprehensive analysis of cross-cancer heritability suggests that solid tumors arising across tissues share in part a common germline genetic basis.Peer reviewe