Sulfate reducing communities in aquifer systems can be reliably stimulated by addition of complex nutrients

The disseration presented below is the summation of research into the potential roles of microbial communities associated with aquifers of Bangladesh contaminated with naturally occuring arsenic. These investigations also included experimental microcosm experiments to assess the role of nutrients supplementation of complex carbon sources (molasses), and inorganic sulfate (MgSO4), on both the solubility of arsenic to determine the feasibility of this method for the goal of performing in situ bioremediation. Community structure and functional gene profiling was performed on all samples, as well as detection of community shifts following amendments predicted to encourage the growth of sulfate reducting microorganisms (SRM). This included community profiling via 16S analysis, as well as presence and quantification of a number of genes involved in respiratory sulfate reduction and genes involved in arsenic cycling. Investigation of samples gathered from contaminated aquifers seems to indicate that even in a community with relatively simple distribution of organisms, there is no distinct linkage between examined functional genes and concentrations of any detected elements in the aquifers. Examination of the effects of nutrient supplementation on sediments gathered from one impacted aquifer shows that stimulation of the system with either nutrient tested is sufficient to stimulate growth of sulfate reducing microbes, as indicated by conserved genes in the respiratory sulfate reduction pathway. These shifts can be closely associated with an initial decrease in detectable soluble arsenic levels, as well as a commensurate decrease in soluble metals. However, only the addition of both a complex carbon source and magnesium sulfate in equal molar portions seemed to show prolonged removal of these elements from the soluble phase. Community shifts appear to have occurred by 14 days of incubation, and were coupled with expected changes in the color and consistency of sediment as black particulate can serve as an indicator of sulfidic minerals formed as a result of excess sulfides produced by SRM. Increased SRM numbers were maintained through 96 days of incubation. Due to the ability of any perturbation of a microcosm system to produce increased density of SRM in the samples, a bioinformatic investigation of the identified subsystems encoded by all sequenced and finished bacteria capable of carrying out the most conserved steps in sulfate reduction was performed. These analyses indicated that there are a number of SRM capable of directly reducing complex carbon sources, both in syntrophic communities, as well as without additional aid from the environment. These results indicate that sulfate reducing microbes are present, detectable and easily stimulated to grow in aquifer sediment, and that these communities of SRM are able to create conditions capable of removing arsenic from the soluble phase. The rate of growth and ability to maintain this immobilization supports the theory that SRM detected in the environment are capable of growth on complex nutrients, and require additional nutrients to successfully remediate arsenic for long periods of time

The rotation-magnetic field relation

Today, the generation of magnetic fields in solar-type stars and its relation to activity and rotation can coherently be explained, although it is certainly not understood in its entirety. Rotation facilitates the generation of magnetic flux that couples to the stellar wind, slowing down the star. There are still many open questions, particularly at early phases (young age), and at very low mass. It is vexing that rotational braking becomes inefficient at the threshold to fully convective interiors, although no threshold in magnetic activity is seen, and the generation of large scale magnetic fields is still possible for fully convective stars. This article briefly outlines our current understanding of the rotation-magnetic field relation.Comment: 8 pages, splinter summary of the session "The rotation-magnetic field relation" at Cool Stars 15 in St Andrew

Draft Genome Sequences of Three Cellulolytic Bacillus licheniformis Strains Isolated from Imperial Geyser, Amphitheater Springs, and Whiterock Springs inside Yellowstone National Park

Novel cellulolytic microorganisms are becoming more important for rapidly growing biofuel industries. This paper reports the draft genome sequences of Bacillus licheniformis strains YNP2-TSU, YNP3-TSU, and YNP5-TSU. These cellulolytic isolates were collected from several hydrothermal features inside Yellowstone National Park

The Value of Sharing Information: A Neural Account of Information Transmission

Humans routinely share information with one another. What drives this behavior? We used neuroimaging to test an account of information selection and sharing that emphasizes inherent reward in self-reflection and connecting with other people. Participants underwent functional MRI while they considered personally reading and sharing New York Times articles. Activity in neural regions involved in positive valuation, self-related processing, and taking the perspective of others was significantly associated with decisions to select and share articles, and scaled with preferences to do so. Activity in all three sets of regions was greater when participants considered sharing articles with other people rather than selecting articles to read themselves. The findings suggest that people may consider value not only to themselves but also to others even when selecting news articles to consume personally. Further, sharing heightens activity in these pathways, in line with our proposal that humans derive value from self-reflection and connecting to others via sharing

Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus altitudinis YNP4-TSU, Isolated from Yellowstone National Park

Undisturbed hot springs inside Yellowstone National Park remain a dynamic biome for novel cellulolytic thermophiles. We report here the draft genome sequence of one of these isolates, Bacillus altitudinis YNP4-TSU

Spatial marine zoning for fisheries and conservation

Protected areas are an effective tool for reducing biodiversity loss. Current legislation distinguishes various types of marine protected areas, each allowing different levels of resource extraction. However, almost all of the theory for spatial conservation planning is focused on identifying no-take reserves. The current approaches to zoning for multiple types of protected areas could result in suboptimal plans in terms of protecting biodiversity and minimizing negative socioeconomic impacts. We overcame these limitations in the first application of the multizone planning tool, Marxan with Zones, to design a network of four types of protected areas in the context of California's Marine Life Protection Act. We have produced a zoning configuration that entails mean value losses of less than 9% for every fishery, without compromising conservation goals. We also found that a spatial numerical optimization tool that allows for multiple zones outperforms a tool that can identify one zone (ie marine reserves) in two ways: first, the overall impact on the fishing industry is reduced, and second, a more equitable impact on different fishing sectors is achieved. Finally, we examined the tradeoffs between representing biodiversity features and impacting fisheries. Our approach is applicable to both marine and terrestrial conservation planning, and delivers an ecosystem-based management outcome that balances conservation and industry objectives

Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus licheniformis Strain YNP1-TSU Isolated from Whiterock Springs in Yellowstone National Park

Novel cellulolytic microorganisms can potentially influence second-generation biofuel production. This paper reports the draft genome sequence of Bacillus licheniformis strain YNP1-TSU, isolated from hydrothermal-vegetative microbiomes inside Yellowstone National Park. The assembled sequence contigs predicted 4,230 coding genes, 66 tRNAs, and 10 rRNAs through automated annotation

A neural model of valuation and information virality

Information sharing is an integral part of human interaction that serves to build social relationships and affects attitudes and behaviors in individuals and large groups. We present a unifying neurocognitive framework of mechanisms underlying information sharing at scale (virality). We argue that expectations regarding self-related and social consequences of sharing (e.g., in the form of potential for self-enhancement or social approval) are integrated into a domain-general value signal that encodes the value of sharing a piece of information. This value signal translates into population-level virality. In two studies (n = 41 and 39 participants), we tested these hypotheses using functional neuroimaging. Neural activity in response to 80 New York Times articles was observed in theory-driven regions of interest associated with value, self, and social cognitions. This activity then was linked to objectively logged population-level data encompassing n = 117,611 internet shares of the articles. In both studies, activity in neural regions associated with self-related and social cognition was indirectly related to population-level sharing through increased neural activation in the brain’s value system. Neural activity further predicted populationlevel outcomes over and above the variance explained by article characteristics and commonly used self-report measures of sharing intentions. This parsimonious framework may help advance theory, improve predictive models, and inform new approaches to effective intervention. More broadly, these data shed light on the core functions of sharing—to express ourselves in positive ways and to strengthen our social bonds

Gravitational fragmentation and the formation of brown dwarfs in stellar clusters

We investigate the formation of brown dwarfs and very low-mass stars through the gravitational fragmentation of infalling gas into stellar clusters. The gravitational potential of a forming stellar cluster provides the focus that attracts gas from the surrounding molecular cloud. Structures present in the gas grow, forming filaments flowing into the cluster centre. These filaments attain high gas densities due to the combination of the cluster potential and local self-gravity. The resultant Jeans masses are low, allowing the formation of very low-mass fragments. The tidal shear and high velocity dispersion present in the cluster preclude any subsequent accretion thus resulting in the formation of brown dwarfs or very low-mass stars. Ejections are not required as the brown dwarfs enter the cluster with high relative velocities, suggesting that their disc and binary properties should be similar to that of low-mass stars. This mechanism requires the presence of a strong gravitational potential due to the stellar cluster implying that brown dwarf formation should be more frequent in stellar clusters than in distributed populations of young stars. Brown dwarfs formed in isolation would require another formation mechanism such as due to turbulent fragmentation.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures. MNRAS, in pres

The toll-like receptor 3 pathway in homeostasis, responses to injury and wound repair

In addition to their established roles in host defence, Toll-like Receptors (TLRs) have emerging roles in control of homeostasis, injury and wound repair. The dsRNA-sensing receptor, TLR3, has been particularly implicated in such processes in several different tissues including the skin, intestine and liver, as well as in the control of reparative mechanisms in the brain, heart and kidneys, following ischemia reperfusion injury. In this review, we provide an overview of TLR3 signalling and functions in inflammation, tissue damage and repair processes, as well as therapeutic opportunities that may arise in the future from knowledge of such pathways