Taxonomy, biostratigraphy, and phylogeny of Oligocene and lower Miocene Dentoglobigerina and Globoquadrina

The taxonomy, phylogeny, and biostratigraphy of Oligocene and lower Miocene Dentoglobigerina and Globoquadrina are reviewed. Because of the discovery of spine holes in various species assigned to these genera, the entire group is now considered to have been fully or sparsely spinose in life and hence part of Family Globigerinidae. One new species, Dentoglobigerina eotripartita Pearson, Wade, and Olsson n. sp., is named. Dentoglobigerina includes forms with and without umbilical teeth and species for which the presence or absence of a tooth is a variable feature. A significant finding has been the triple synonymy of Globigerina tripartita Koch, Globigerina rohri Bolli, and Globoquadrina dehiscens praedehiscens Blow, which greatly simplifies part of the taxonomy. The genus Globoquadrina is restricted to its type species, Globigerina dehiscens Chapman and others. The following species from the time interval of interest are regarded as valid: Dentoglobigerina altispira (Cushman and Jarvis), Dentoglobigerina baroemoenensis (LeRoy), Dentoglobigerina binaiensis (Koch), Dentoglobigerina eotripartita Pearson, Wade, and Olsson n. sp., Dentoglobigerina galavisi (Bermúdez), Dentoglobigerina globosa (Bolli), Dentoglobigerina globularis (Bermúdez), Dentoglobigerina juxtabinaiensis Fox and Wade, Dentoglobigerina larmeui (Akers), Dentoglobigerina prasaepis (Blow), Dentoglobigerina pseudovenezuelana (Blow and Banner), Dentoglobigerina sellii (Borsetti), Dentoglobigerina taci Pearson and Wade, Dentoglobigerina tapuriensis (Blow and Banner), Dentoglobigerina tripartita (Koch), Dentoglobigerina venezuelana (Hedberg), and Globoquadrina dehiscens (Chapman, Parr, and Collins). The genus Dentoglobigerina also comprises other Neogene/Quaternary species not listed, including the living species Dentoglobigerina cf. conglomerata (Schwager)

Taxonomy, biostratigraphy, and phylogeny of Oligocene and early Miocene Paragloborotalia and Parasubbotina

The taxonomy, phylogeny, and biostratigraphy of Oligocene and early Miocene Paragloborotalia and Parasubbotina are reviewed. The two genera are closely related; Paragloborotalia was derived from Parasubbotina in the early Eocene. Parasubbotina was more diverse during the middle Eocene, while Paragloborotalia experienced considerable diversification during the mid-Oligocene and in the latest Oligocene-earliest Miocene. A significant finding has been the synonymization of Globorotalia (Tuborotalia) mendacis Blow, and Turborotalia primitiva Brӧnnimann and Resig with Globorotalia birnageae Blow. The following species from the time interval of interest are regarded as valid: Paragloborotalia acrostoma (Wezel), Paragloborotalia birnageae (Blow), Paragloborotalia continuosa (Blow), Paragloborotalia incognita (Walters) Paragloborotalia kugleri (Bolli), Paragloborotalia mayeri (Cushman and Ellisor), Paragloborotalia nana (Bolli), Paragloborotalia opima (Bolli), Paragloborotalia pseudocontinuosa (Jenkins), Paragloborotalia pseudokugleri (Blow), Paragloborotalia semivera (Hornibrook), Paragloborotalia siakensis (LeRoy), Parasubbotina hagni (Gohrbandt), and Parasubbotina varianta (Subbotina). Paragloborotalia is a long-lived group of planktonic foraminifera that spanned the early Eocene to late Miocene and provided the root stock for the evolution of multiple smooth, nonspinose, and keeled globorotaliid lineages during the Neogene. The early Oligocene forms of Paragloborotalia (nana, opima, siakensis, pseudocontinuosa) have 4 or 5 globular chambers in the final whorl with radial spiral sutures and a broadly rounded periphery. A trend from radial to curved spiral sutures is observed in late Oligocene and earliest Miocene lineages. Most species of Paragloborotalia had wide distributions, but some were more common in tropical to warm subtropical waters (e.g., siakensis, kugleri) and were especially dominant in the equatorial Pacific divergence zone (e.g., nana, opima, and pseudocontinuosa) analogous to modern tropical upwelling Neogloboquadrina. Other species thrived in cool subtropical and temperate waters (e.g., acrostoma, incognita)

The neighbourhood social environment and alcohol use among urban and rural Scottish adolescents

Funding for the Scottish Health Behaviour in School-aged Children was provided by NHS Scotland. This work was also supported by the 600th Anniversary Ph.D. Scholarship which was awarded to Gina Martin by the University of St Andrews.Objectives This research examined the relationship between neighbourhood social environmental characteristics and drinking outcomes among a sample of urban and rural adolescents. Methods From a sample of 1558 Scottish secondary schoolchildren, surveyed as part of the 2010 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study, we modelled three drinking outcomes on a variety of neighbourhood conditions, including social cohesion, disorder, alcohol outlet density, deprivation, and urban/rurality. Nested and cross-classified multilevel logistic regressions were specified. Results An urban-to-rural gradient was found with non-urban adolescents exhibiting higher odds of having ever drank. Neighbourhood social cohesion related to having ever drank. Among drinkers, those living in accessible small towns had higher odds of weekly drinking and drunkenness compared to urban areas. Higher odds of drunkenness were also found in remote rural areas. Those residing in the least deprived areas had lower odds of weekly drinking. Conclusions In Scotland, inequalities exist in adolescent alcohol use by urban/rurality and neighbourhood social conditions. Findings support regional targeting of public health efforts to address inequalities. Future work is needed to develop and evaluate intervention and prevention approaches for neighbourhoods at risk.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Role of TNFα in pulmonary pathophysiology

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) is the most widely studied pleiotropic cytokine of the TNF superfamily. In pathophysiological conditions, generation of TNFα at high levels leads to the development of inflammatory responses that are hallmarks of many diseases. Of the various pulmonary diseases, TNFα is implicated in asthma, chronic bronchitis (CB), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). In addition to its underlying role in the inflammatory events, there is increasing evidence for involvement of TNFα in the cytotoxicity. Thus, pharmacological agents that can either suppress the production of TNFα or block its biological actions may have potential therapeutic value against a wide variety of diseases. Despite some immunological side effects, anti-TNFα therapeutic strategies represent an important breakthrough in the treatment of inflammatory diseases and may have a role in pulmonary diseases characterized by inflammation and cell death