CO2 storage risk minimization through systematic identification and assessment of faults: a Williston Basin case study

AbstractThe Williston Basin is considered a tectonically stable area with only a few major inactive faults. Over the last 50 years, extensive hydrocarbon exploration in the basin has demonstrated that smaller faults do exist and closer evaluation is necessary to determine the nature of this faulting. An area near the town of Dickinson, North Dakota, has been identified as a potential location for CO2 storage/enhanced oil recovery. A thorough geologic assessment of the area has identified structural anomalies that may indicate the presence of faulting, which, in turn, may affect precise CO2 storage site selection

Correction to : Prevalence and novel risk factors for vitamin D insufficiency in elite athletes: systematic review and meta-analysis

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake. Author name Alexandra Mavroeidi was incorrectly written as Alexandra Mavroedi. ORCID id for author Alexandra Mavroeidi should be 0000-0001-5213-1596

Model development of the Aquistore CO2 storage project

AbstractThe Plains CO2 Reduction (PCOR) Partnership, through the Energy & Environmental Research Center, is collaborating with Petroleum Technology Research Centre in site characterization; risk assessment; public outreach; and monitoring, verification, and accounting activities at the Aquistore project. The PCOR Partnership constructed a static geological model to assess the potential volumetric storage capacity of the Aquistore site and provide the foundation for dynamic simulation for the dynamic CO2 storage capacity. Results of the predictive simulations will be used in the risk assessment process to define an overall monitoring plan and assure stakeholders that the injected CO2 will remain safely stored

Prioritizing Conservation of Ungulate Calving Resources in Multiple-Use Landscapes

BACKGROUND: Conserving animal populations in places where human activity is increasing is an ongoing challenge in many parts of the world. We investigated how human activity interacted with maternal status and individual variation in behavior to affect reliability of spatially-explicit models intended to guide conservation of critical ungulate calving resources. We studied Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus elaphus) that occupy a region where 2900 natural gas wells have been drilled. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We present novel applications of generalized additive modeling to predict maternal status based on movement, and of random-effects resource selection models to provide population and individual-based inference on the effects of maternal status and human activity. We used a 2×2 factorial design (treatment vs. control) that included elk that were either parturient or non-parturient and in areas either with or without industrial development. Generalized additive models predicted maternal status (parturiency) correctly 93% of the time based on movement. Human activity played a larger role than maternal status in shaping resource use; elk showed strong spatiotemporal patterns of selection or avoidance and marked individual variation in developed areas, but no such pattern in undeveloped areas. This difference had direct consequences for landscape-level conservation planning. When relative probability of use was calculated across the study area, there was disparity throughout 72-88% of the landscape in terms of where conservation intervention should be prioritized depending on whether models were based on behavior in developed areas or undeveloped areas. Model validation showed that models based on behavior in developed areas had poor predictive accuracy, whereas the model based on behavior in undeveloped areas had high predictive accuracy. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: By directly testing for differences between developed and undeveloped areas, and by modeling resource selection in a random-effects framework that provided individual-based inference, we conclude that: 1) amplified selection or avoidance behavior and individual variation, as responses to increasing human activity, complicate conservation planning in multiple-use landscapes, and 2) resource selection behavior in places where human activity is predictable or less dynamic may provide a more reliable basis from which to prioritize conservation action

Perfluoroalkylated substances (PFASs) and legacy persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in halibut and shrimp from coastal areas in the far north of Norway:small survey of important dietary foodstuffs for coastal communities

Halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus) and shrimps (Pandalus borealis) are regular foodstuffs for communities in northern Norway and important species for the coastal fishing industry. This is the first study to present a comprehensive overview of the contaminant status of these species, with emphasis on unregulated perfluoroalkylated substances (PFAS). The contaminant concentrations were low and within tolerable levels for human dietary exposure. Median Σpolychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) were 4.9 and 2.5 ng/g ww for halibut and unpeeled shrimps, respectively. Concentrations of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) – the most abundant PFASs – were 0.9 and 2.7 ng/g ww in halibut and shrimp, respectively. The halibut fillets were dominated by PCBs, which contributed to 50% of the total POPs load, followed by ΣDDTs; 26% and PFASs (18%), whereas shrimps were dominated by PFASs (74%). ΣPBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers) contributed to 1–4% of the total POP load. Local sources are not contributing significantly to the contaminant burden in these species

Odin observations of H2O in the Galactic Centre

The Odin satellite has been used to detect emission and absorption in the 557-GHz H2O line in the Galactic Centre towards the Sgr A* Circumnuclear Disk (CND), and the Sgr A +20 km/s and +50 km/s molecular clouds. Strong broad H2O emission lines have been detected in all three objects. Narrow H2O absorption lines are present at all three positions and originate along the lines of sight in the 3-kpc Spiral Arm, the -30 km/s Spiral Arm and the Local Sgr Spiral Arm. Broad H2O absorption lines near -130 km/s are also observed, originating in the Expanding Molecular Ring. A new molecular feature (the ``High Positive Velocity Gas'' - HPVG) has been identified in the positive velocity range of ~ +120 to +220 km/s, seen definitely in absorption against the stronger dust continuum emission from the +20 km/s and +50 km/s clouds and possibly in emission towards the position of Sgr A* CND. The 548-GHz H2_18O isotope line towards the CND is not detected at the 0.02 K (rms) level.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, accepted by A&A, special Odin Letters issu

Systematic documentation and analysis of human genetic variation in hemoglobinopathies using the microattribution approach

We developed a series of interrelated locus-specific databases to store all published and unpublished genetic variation related to hemoglobinopathies and thalassemia and implemented microattribution to encourage submission of unpublished observations of genetic variation to these public repositories. A total of 1,941 unique genetic variants in 37 genes, encoding globins and other erythroid proteins, are currently documented in these databases, with reciprocal attribution of microcitations to data contributors. Our project provides the first example of implementing microattribution to incentivise submission of all known genetic variation in a defined system. It has demonstrably increased the reporting of human variants, leading to a comprehensive online resource for systematically describing human genetic variation in the globin genes and other genes contributing to hemoglobinopathies and thalassemias. The principles established here will serve as a model for other systems and for the analysis of other common and/or complex human genetic diseases

Genome-wide association study of colorectal cancer identifies six new susceptibility loci

El document inclou una pàgina final amb una correcció (corrigendum). Aquesta, per si sola, té el següent DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9739 i es va publicar al mateix vol. 6.Genetic susceptibility to colorectal cancer is caused by rare pathogenic mutations and common genetic variants that contribute to familial risk. Here we report the results of a two-stage association study with 18,299 cases of colorectal cancer and 19,656 controls, with follow-up of the most statistically significant genetic loci in 4,725 cases and 9,969 controls from two Asian consortia. We describe six new susceptibility loci reaching a genome-wide threshold of P<5.0E-08. These findings provide additional insight into the underlying biological mechanisms of colorectal cancer and demonstrate the scientific value of large consortia-based genetic epidemiology studies

Psychosis Endophenotypes:A Gene-Set-Specific Polygenic Risk Score Analysis

BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESIS: Endophenotypes can help to bridge the gap between psychosis and its genetic predispositions, but their underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. This study aims to identify biological mechanisms that are relevant to the endophenotypes for psychosis, by partitioning polygenic risk scores into specific gene sets and testing their associations with endophenotypes. STUDY DESIGN: We computed polygenic risk scores for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder restricted to brain-related gene sets retrieved from public databases and previous publications. Three hundred and seventy-eight gene-set-specific polygenic risk scores were generated for 4506 participants. Seven endophenotypes were also measured in the sample. Linear mixed-effects models were fitted to test associations between each endophenotype and each gene-set-specific polygenic risk score. STUDY RESULTS: After correction for multiple testing, we found that a reduced P300 amplitude was associated with a higher schizophrenia polygenic risk score of the forebrain regionalization gene set (mean difference per SD increase in the polygenic risk score: -1.15 µV; 95% CI: -1.70 to -0.59 µV; P = 6 × 10-5). The schizophrenia polygenic risk score of forebrain regionalization also explained more variance of the P300 amplitude (R2 = 0.032) than other polygenic risk scores, including the genome-wide polygenic risk scores. CONCLUSIONS: Our finding on reduced P300 amplitudes suggests that certain genetic variants alter early brain development thereby increasing schizophrenia risk years later. Gene-set-specific polygenic risk scores are a useful tool to elucidate biological mechanisms of psychosis and endophenotypes, offering leads for experimental validation in cellular and animal models