Alkali-rich replacement zones in evolved NYF pegmatites: metasomatic fluids or immiscible melts?

IMA2018 Abstract submission Pegmatite mineralogy, geochemistry, classification and origins IMA2018-1337 Alkali-rich replacement zones in evolved NYF pegmatites: metasomatic fluids or immiscible melts? Axel Muller* 1, John Spratt2, Rainer Thomas3, Ben J. Williamson4, Reimar Seltmann2 1Natural History Museum, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway, 2Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom, 3Chemistry and Physics of Earth Materials, German Research Centre for Geoscience GFZ, Potsdam, Germany, 4Camborne School of Mines, University of Exeter, Penryn, United Kingdom What is your preferred presentation method?: Oral or poster presentation : Replacement zones (RZ), which are a common feature of evolved granitic pegmatites, are irregular, commonly alkali-rich zones superimposing, cross-cutting and replacing the primary zonation in almost all consolidated pegmatite bodies. RZ are widely considered to result from late-stage metasomatism even though little is known about the melts and/or fluids involved in their formation. However, the observed textures and mineral paragenesis of RZ cannot be explained by metasomatism in a strict sense. In this study, the nature of the late stage silicate melt forming “cleavelandite” RZ is assessed from textural, mineralogical, chemical and melt inclusion studies of evolved, Proterozoic Niobium-Yttrium-Fluorine (NYF) rare metal pegmatites from Evje–Iveland, southern Norway. These were studied as they are mineralogically simple, compared with RZ in evolved Lithium-Caesium-Tantalum (LCT) pegmatites. Silicate melt inclusions in RZ-forming topaz and “cleavelandite” document high H2O contents of up to18 wt.% of the F-rich silicate melt from which the RZ crystallized. In addition, from mineral compositions (“cleavelandite”, “amazonite”, white mica, garnet, columbite group minerals, topaz, fluorite, and beryl), they must have also been strongly alkaline (Na-dominated) with enrichments in F (at least 4 wt.%), Cs, Rb, Ta, Nb, Mn, Ge, Bi, As, and in some cases also Li compared with host pegmatites. These elements are concentrated in a few RZ-forming minerals resulting in very distinctive mineral-trace element signatures. “Amazonite” is strongly enriched in Cs and Rb and often white mica and beryl in Li and Cs. To acquire these mineral compositions, the overall Li-Cs-Ta-poor Evje-Iveland original pegmatite melt must have undergone extreme internal chemical differentiation resulting in melt/melt immiscibility aiding rheology contrasts and resulting in RZ formation. The resulting RZ-forming H2O-F-rich silicate melt would have shown large differences in viscosity and density, and therefore physical flow/transport properties, to the host pegmatite melt resulting in discordant contacts. The mineralogy and melt inclusion data from the Evje-Iveland pegmatites document a gradient of crystallization temperatures within the investigated pegmatite bodies with highest temperatures at the pegmatite margin (during initial emplacement, ~680°C) and lowest temperatures within the RZ (<500°C). Considering the temperature and pressure conditions of the host rocks gneisses and amphibolites (~650°C, up to 5 kbar) at the time of pegmatite emplacement and the crystallization conditions of the RZ, the Evje- Iveland pegmatites and RZ likely formed over a period of 2.2 million years, assuming an exhumation rate of 1.5 mm per million years and a geothermal gradient of 45°C km-1. Such a long crystallization time contradicts the classical view that pegmatites represent strongly undercooled melts which crystallize relatively fast.The attached document is the authors’ submitted version of the oral presentation. You are advised to consult the publisher’s version if you wish to cite from it

A Gross Anatomy Ontology for Hymenoptera

Hymenoptera is an extraordinarily diverse lineage, both in terms of species numbers and morphotypes, that includes sawflies, bees, wasps, and ants. These organisms serve critical roles as herbivores, predators, parasitoids, and pollinators, with several species functioning as models for agricultural, behavioral, and genomic research. The collective anatomical knowledge of these insects, however, has been described or referred to by labels derived from numerous, partially overlapping lexicons. The resulting corpus of information—millions of statements about hymenopteran phenotypes—remains inaccessible due to language discrepancies. The Hymenoptera Anatomy Ontology (HAO) was developed to surmount this challenge and to aid future communication related to hymenopteran anatomy. The HAO was built using newly developed interfaces within mx, a Web-based, open source software package, that enables collaborators to simultaneously contribute to an ontology. Over twenty people contributed to the development of this ontology by adding terms, genus differentia, references, images, relationships, and annotations. The database interface returns an Open Biomedical Ontology (OBO) formatted version of the ontology and includes mechanisms for extracting candidate data and for publishing a searchable ontology to the Web. The application tools are subject-agnostic and may be used by others initiating and developing ontologies. The present core HAO data constitute 2,111 concepts, 6,977 terms (labels for concepts), 3,152 relations, 4,361 sensus (links between terms, concepts, and references) and over 6,000 text and graphical annotations. The HAO is rooted with the Common Anatomy Reference Ontology (CARO), in order to facilitate interoperability with and future alignment to other anatomy ontologies, and is available through the OBO Foundry ontology repository and BioPortal. The HAO provides a foundation through which connections between genomic, evolutionary developmental biology, phylogenetic, taxonomic, and morphological research can be actualized. Inherent mechanisms for feedback and content delivery demonstrate the effectiveness of remote, collaborative ontology development and facilitate future refinement of the HAO

Sources of fluids and metals and evolution models of skarn deposits in the Qimantagh metallogenic belt: A case study from the Weibao deposit, East Kunlun Mountains, northern Tibetan Plateau.

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record.The Weibao Cu-Pb-Zn deposit is typical of skarn deposits in the Qimantagh metallogenic belt (QMB), EastKunlun Mountains, northern Tibetan Plateau. It comprises three ore blocks from west to east, known as Weixi,Main and Weidong. Mineralization in the Weibao deposit is intimately related to Late Triassic intrusions oc-curring at Weixi and Weidong, and orebodies are predominantly hosted by the Langyashan Formation (marinecarbonate rocks), and to a lesser extent the Devonian volcanic rocks. Skarns from Weixi and Weidong arecharacterized by a high garnet/pyroxene ratio and diopside- and andradite-rich composition of pyroxenes andgarnets, indicating a proximal, oxidized type. In contrast, skarn mineralogy of Main indicates a slightly reducedcondition, typical of Pb-Zn skarn deposits. At least five hydrothermal mineralization stages can be identified andthe microthermometric study indicates a general trend of cooling and dilution of the magmatic-hydrothermalfluids. Significant precipitation of Cu-Fe sulfides commenced from the fluid with the temperature of 340–448 °Cand the salinity of 2.1–15.0 wt% NaCl equiv. Pb-Zn sulfides however mainly precipitated when the temperaturesdeclined to < 370 °C and the salinity declined to < 7.6 wt% NaCl equiv. Carbon, hydrogen and oxygen isotopiccomposition of the fluids suggests a predominantly igneous source for the initial fluids, which were modifiedoutward by fluid-rock interaction and mixing with meteoric waters. Both sulfur and lead isotope composition ofsulfides supports a mixed sulfur and metal reservoir consisting of Triassic intrusive rocks and wall rocks.Compared to early skarn-forming and late quartz-carbonate stages, two ore-forming stages show clear evidenceof fluid boiling and fluid-rock interaction. Combined with microthermometric data of ore-forming stages, it canbe deduced that fluid cooling, boiling and fluid-rock interaction were responsible for the significant metalprecipitation. The Weibao deposit shows many similarities with skarn deposits in the QMB, and its genetic modeltherefore can be extrapolated to other skarn deposits in this region.This study was financially supported by the Geological Survey Program (Grant 1212011085528) of the China Geological Survey; the Program of High-level Geological Talents (201309) and Youth Geological Talents (201112) of the China Geological Survey; and the IGCP–592 project sponsored by IUGS–UNESCO. SZ appreciates the co-operation with the Natural History Museum (RS, AD) and the Camborne School of Mines, University of Exeter (JA) for hosting his skarn re-search. This is a contribution to their research on mineralized skarn systems funded by the EU Horizon 2020 project “FAME” (grant# 641650) and the Chinese Scholarship Council (fellowship to SZ). Dr. Hongying Qu, Jiannan Liu, Hui Wang and Jianhou Zhou from the CAGSare acknowledged for their assistance during the fieldwork

Classification and characterisation of magmatic-hydrothermal tourmaline by combining field observations and microanalytical techniques

Tourmaline from the St. Byron lobe of the Land’s End granite, SW England, was assessed by macroscopic, optical and quantitative microanalytical methods. In total, seven types of tourmaline were distinguished. The seven types reflect different crystallisation environments and stages in the magmatic-hydrothermal transition. Types 1-3 are interpreted to represent a gradual transition from tourmaline crystallising from a silicate melt to precipitation from magmatic aqueous fluids. Types 5-7 crystallised at subsolidus conditions from a different fluid generation than types 1-3. These fluids may be magmatic or mixed with other fluids (e.g., meteoric or formation waters). The Sn-mineralisation in the area is mostly related to the latter fluid generation, and the mineralising potential is reflected by the tourmaline composition.This is an open access article, available to all readers online, published under a creative commons licensing Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI. Published under licence by IOP Publishing Lt

Mineralogical study of the Gonçalo Li-pegmatite deposit, Portugal

Beside the Scandinavian countries and Serbia, Portugal is among the European countries with the most significant lithium resources. The Li-rich occurrences in Portugal are mainly associated with aplite-pegmatite dykes and sills intruded in granitic and metasedimentary rocks of the Central Iberian and Galicia – Trás-os-Montes geotectonic zones (Carvalho & Farinha, 2004). The Gonçalo Li-pegmatites in the Guarda district (currently only used as decorative stone) have significant economic importance. Among other deposits, Gonçalo is a reference site in the focus of the EU FAME project (www.fame-project.eu) that aims to unlock the development potential of the most promising European Sn-W-Li ore types. Results of optical microscopy, QEMSCAN©, Raman and electron-probe microanalysis of the Gonçalo Li-pegmatite deposit have been employed to determine the mineralogical variability of the pegmatites with the aim to determine the deportment of lithium and potential rare-metal by-products and to guide enhanced mineral processing technologies.Available to download freely and reproduced here with permission of the publisher. The attached file is the published pdf

Interaction of the NRF2 and p63 transcription factors promotes keratinocyte proliferation in the epidermis

Epigenetic regulation of cell and tissue function requires the coordinated action of transcription factors. However, their combinatorial activities during regeneration remain largely unexplored. Here, we discover an unexpected interaction between the cytoprotective transcription factor NRF2 and p63-a key player in epithelial morphogenesis. Chromatin immunoprecipitation combined with sequencing and reporter assays identifies enhancers and promoters that are simultaneously activated by NRF2 and p63 in human keratinocytes. Modeling of p63 and NRF2 binding to nucleosomal DNA suggests their chromatin-assisted interaction. Pharmacological and genetic activation of NRF2 increases NRF2-p63 binding to enhancers and promotes keratinocyte proliferation, which involves the common NRF2-p63 target cyclin-dependent kinase 12. These results unravel a collaborative function of NRF2 and p63 in the control of epidermal renewal and suggest their combined activation as a strategy to promote repair of human skin and other stratified epithelia

X-Ray Photoabsorption of Density-sensitive Metastable States in Ne VII, Fe XXII, and Fe XXIII

Metastable states of ions can be sufficiently populated in absorbing and emitting astrophysical media, enabling spectroscopic plasma-density diagnostics. Long-lived states appear in many isoelectronic sequences with an even number of electrons, and can be fed at large rates by various photonic and electronic mechanisms. Here, we experimentally investigate beryllium-like and carbon-like ions of neon and iron that have been predicted to exhibit detectable features in astrophysical soft X-ray absorption spectra. An ion population generated and excited by electron impact is subjected to highly monochromatic X-rays from a synchrotron beamline, allowing us to identify Kα transitions from metastable states. We compare their energies and natural line widths with state-of-the-art theory and benchmark level population calculations at electron densities of 1010.5 cm-3

A keratin scaffold regulates epidermal barrier formation, mitochondrial lipid composition, and activity.

Keratin intermediate filaments (KIFs) protect the epidermis against mechanical force, support strong adhesion, help barrier formation, and regulate growth. The mechanisms by which type I and II keratins contribute to these functions remain incompletely understood. Here, we report that mice lacking all type I or type II keratins display severe barrier defects and fragile skin, leading to perinatal mortality with full penetrance. Comparative proteomics of cornified envelopes (CEs) from prenatal KtyI(-/-) and KtyII(-/-)(K8) mice demonstrates that absence of KIF causes dysregulation of many CE constituents, including downregulation of desmoglein 1. Despite persistence of loricrin expression and upregulation of many Nrf2 targets, including CE components Sprr2d and Sprr2h, extensive barrier defects persist, identifying keratins as essential CE scaffolds. Furthermore, we show that KIFs control mitochondrial lipid composition and activity in a cell-intrinsic manner. Therefore, our study explains the complexity of keratinopathies accompanied by barrier disorders by linking keratin scaffolds to mitochondria, adhesion, and CE formation

Imaging Molecular Structure through Femtosecond Photoelectron Diffraction on Aligned and Oriented Gas-Phase Molecules

This paper gives an account of our progress towards performing femtosecond time-resolved photoelectron diffraction on gas-phase molecules in a pump-probe setup combining optical lasers and an X-ray Free-Electron Laser. We present results of two experiments aimed at measuring photoelectron angular distributions of laser-aligned 1-ethynyl-4-fluorobenzene (C8H5F) and dissociating, laseraligned 1,4-dibromobenzene (C6H4Br2) molecules and discuss them in the larger context of photoelectron diffraction on gas-phase molecules. We also show how the strong nanosecond laser pulse used for adiabatically laser-aligning the molecules influences the measured electron and ion spectra and angular distributions, and discuss how this may affect the outcome of future time-resolved photoelectron diffraction experiments.Comment: 24 pages, 10 figures, Faraday Discussions 17

Thermochronological constraints on the exhumation history of the Carboniferous Katebasu gold deposit, western Tianshan Gold Belt, NW China

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the Geological Society of London via the DOI in this recordThe western Tianshan Gold Belt hosts numerous giant and large gold deposits that have been formed during the late Paleozoic amalgamation of the Tianshan orogen. However, little is known about their exhumation histories during the Mesozoic to Cenozoic intracontinental evolution of the orogen. The Carboniferous Katebasu orogenic gold deposit in northwestern China is a new gold discovery within the western Tianshan Gold Belt, and it shares many similarities with other orogenic gold deposits in the belt. In this contribution, new 40Ar/39Ar and (U-Th)/He ages were combined with previous geochronology and numerical modeling to quantify its post-Carboniferous cooling and exhumation history. The results revealed a three-phase cooling history and two phases of post-mineralization exhumation. We suggest that a large volume (∼0.8 km) of the mineralized roof parts of the Katebasu deposit might have been removed during uplift and erosion, whereas significant ore reserves could still exist at depth. The large erosion depth of the Katebasu gold deposit in the Nalati Range of the Chinese western Tianshan also signifies that shallow-emplaced porphyry and epithermal systems that formed prior to Permo-Triassic uplift might have been largely eroded.Natural Environment Research Council (NERC