Stratigraphy, Paleontology and Paleobiogeography of Lower Vertebrates from the Cedar Mountain Formation (Lower Cretaceous), Emery County, Utah

Where present, the basal Buckhorn Member of the Cedar Mountain Formation (Aptian-Albian) separates the overlying main member from the mudrocks of the Tithonian Brushy Basin Member of the Morrison Formation. Without the Buckhorn, the mudrocks of the Cedar Mountain Formation appear to grade into those of the Morrison, so one is apt to call the entire sequence Morrison. Where the Cedar Mountain Formation appears to grade in to the Morrison, use of lower vertebrate teeth can provide an additional means to separate the Morrison from the Cedar Mountain Formation. Lower vertebrate teeth and associated microvertebrate remains (eggshell and bone fragments) occur in variable concentrations throughout the exposure of the Cedar Mountain Formation main member. Most of the lithologies exhibit varying degrees of paleosol development with siliceous tubules and calcareous tubules and nodules. The greatest concentration of microvertebrate remains occur in calcareous paleosols containing spindle nodules developed in natural levee siltstones at the Robinson Eggshell Quarry (REQ). Lesser concentrations occur in paleosols developed in overbank mudstones and claystones that contain chalcedony tubules at REQ and contain calcareous tubules and nodules at the Dave Hunter BS Quarry (DHBS) sections. The DHBS Quarry is found in an overbank carbonaceous mudstone lacking also occur in a lens of carbonaceous shale thought to represent a back swamp at the Rough Road Quarry. Until recently, the microvertebrate-carbonaceous shale association was thought to be the typical mode of occurrence within the Cedar Mountain Formation. Thus, microvertebrate remains may occur with sufficient frequency to have a stratigraphic application in the separation of the Morrison and Cedar Mountain formations. Lower vertebrates found in the DHBS and REQ sections of the Cedar Mountain Formation include teeth of the fish Lepidotes (Semiontiformes, Actinopterygii), a stingray (Dasyatidae, Batoidea), immature crocodilians: Bernissartia (Bernissartidae), Goniopholis (Goniopholididae), Pholidosauridae, Polydectes (?Goniopholididae), Machimosaurus (Teleosauridae), and Theriosuchus (Atoposauridae); and a theropod dinosaur (Coeluridae). The dimensions of the crocodilian teeth rarely exceeded 3.50 mm and probably belonged to nestlings and immature individuals. Furthermore, the association of dinosaur eggshell and tiny crocodilian teeth at all three locales suggests the proximity of reptilian nesting grounds to the channels that deposited the Cedar Mountain Formation. Periodic floods encroached on the nesting grounds and the teeth became sedimentary particles subject to transportation. However, fluvial transportation fluvial did not overtly damage the teeth. Most of the cracking and chipping of tooth enamel occurred during predation, or the teeth developed vertical cracks because of drying. The reptiles and fish of the Cedar Mountain Formation occupied various niches. Bernissartids, Lepidotes, and the dasyatid ray had low crowned teeth for eating mollusks. Polydectes had sharp, piercing teeth for eating fish. Goniopholids, pholidosaurids, and teleosaurids crunching teeth for eating crustaceans and ganoid fish. Finally, atoposaurids had a specialized, shearing dentition and probably ate fish or acted as scavengers. Finally, the association of theropod teeth with the crocodilian teeth may indicate a predator -prey relationship. Such diversity in lower vertebrates, especially crocodilians, depositional contrasts nature, that with have two units, presumed of similar shortages of crocodilians: the Cloverly Formation (Lower Cretaceous) and the Morrison. The scar city in crocodilians in these units may result from the lack of a concerted effort to recover tiny crocodilian teeth. Once such an effort is mounted, I predict the Cedar Mountain and Cloverly formations to have greater faunal similarity, whereas the Cedar Mountain fauna will contrast with that of the Morrison Formation in the types of crocodilians found. Two such crocodilians, bernissartids and pholidosaurids, are at present limited to the Cretaceous in North America and lack counterparts in the Late Jurassic. The above distinction is made because atopossaurids, goniopholids, and teleosaurids are known from the Jurassic of North America. During the Jurassic and Early Cretaceous, North America and Europe were joined and crocodilians dispersed between these continents. Because of the favorable plate configuration, pholidosaurs, Machimosaurus, and Theriosuchus display a pattern of Late Jurassic occurrence in Europe and Early Cretaceous appearance in North America. In addition, the crocodilian Bernissartia, known in the Barremian-Aptian beds at Galve (Province of Teruel), Spain, reached Texas in the lower Albian and arrived in Utah late in the Albian

A Reconnaissance Study of Herbicides and Their Metabolites in Surface Water of the Midwestern United States Using Immunoassay and Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry

Preemergent herbicides and their metabolites, particularly atrazine, deethylatrazine, and metolachlor, persisted from 1989 to 1990 in the majority of rivers and streams in the midwestern United States. In spring, after the application of herbicides, the concentrations of atrazine, alachlor, and simazine were frequently 3-10 times greater than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency maximum contaminant level (MCL). The concentration of herbicides exceeded the MCLs both singly and in combination. Two major degradation products of atrazine (deisopropylatrazine and deethylatrazine) also were found in many of the streams. The order of persistence of the herbicides and their metabolites in surface water was atrazine \u3e deethylatrazine \u3e metolachlor \u3e alachlor \u3e deisopropylatrazine \u3e cyanazine. Storm runoff collected at several sites exceeded the MCL multiple times during the summer months as a function of stream discharge, with increased concentrations during times of increased streamflow. It is proposed that metabolites of atrazine may be used as indicators of surface-water movement into adjacent alluvial aquifers

Reconnaissance Data for Selected Herbicides, Two Atrazine Metabolites, and Nitrate in Surface Water of the Midwestern United States, 1989-90

Water-quality data were collected from 147 rivers and streams during 1989-90 to determine the temporal and geographic distribution of selected preemergent herbicides, two atrazine metabolites, and nitrate in 10 Midwestern States. This report includes a description of the sampling design, data-collection techniques, laboratory and analytical methods, and a compilation of constituent concentrations and quality-assurance data. All water samples were collected by depth-integrating techniques at three to five locations across the wetted perimeter of each stream. Sites were sampled three times in 1989~before application of herbicides, during the first major runoff after application of herbicides, and in the fall during a low-flow period when most of the streamflow was derived from ground water. About 50 sites were selected by a stratified random procedure and resampled for both pre- and post-application herbicide concentrations in 1990 to verify the 1989 results. Laboratory analyses consisted of both enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and confirmation by gas chromatography/ mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The data have been useful in studying herbicide transport, in comparison of the spatial distribution of the post-application concentrations of 11 herbicides and 2 atrazine metabolites (deethylatrazine and deisopropylatrazine) in streams and rivers at a regional scale, in examination of the annual persistence of herbicides and two atrazine metabolites in surface water, and in assessment of atrazine metabolites as indicators of surface- and ground-water interaction

EAACI Molecular Allergology User's Guide 2.0

Since the discovery of immunoglobulin E (IgE) as a mediator of allergic diseases in 1967, our knowledge about the immunological mechanisms of IgE-mediated allergies has remarkably increased. In addition to understanding the immune response and clinical symptoms, allergy diagnosis and management depend strongly on the precise identification of the elicitors of the IgE-mediated allergic reaction. In the past four decades, innovations in bioscience and technology have facilitated the identification and production of well-defined, highly pure molecules for component-resolved diagnosis (CRD), allowing a personalized diagnosis and management of the allergic disease for individual patients. The first edition of the "EAACI Molecular Allergology User's Guide" (MAUG) in 2016 rapidly became a key reference for clinicians, scientists, and interested readers with a background in allergology, immunology, biology, and medicine. Nevertheless, the field of molecular allergology is moving fast, and after 6 years, a new EAACI Taskforce was established to provide an updated document. The Molecular Allergology User's Guide 2.0 summarizes state-of-the-art information on allergen molecules, their clinical relevance, and their application in diagnostic algorithms for clinical practice. It is designed for both, clinicians and scientists, guiding health care professionals through the overwhelming list of different allergen molecules available for testing. Further, it provides diagnostic algorithms on the clinical relevance of allergenic molecules and gives an overview of their biology, the basic mechanisms of test formats, and the application of tests to measure allergen exposure.Peer reviewe