Running across the Silurian/Devonian Boundary along Northern Gondwana: A Conodont Perspective

The Global Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) of the Silurian/Devonian boundary, Lower Devonian Series and Lochkovian Stage was formally placed in 1977 at Klonk, in the Czech Republic, at the first appearance of the graptolite Uncinatograptus uniformis uniformis (Přibyl). However, since then, correlation of this limit has been often hampered in carbonate facies where graptolites are uncommon or totally absent. A large calcareous deposition occurred at the Silurian/Devonian boundary along the northern and peri-Gondwana margin, thus representing an ideal location to select and test a possible additional biostratigraphic marker of the limit among conodonts. The first appearance of Caudicriodus hesperius almost simultaneously at the base of the Devonian in Bohemia, the Carnic Alps, Sardinia, Morocco and elsewhere indicates that this taxon is the conodont that best approximates the beginning of the Period. The first or last appearance of other species (e.g., Ozarkodina confluens, Zieglerodina klonkensis, Z. remscheidensis and Caudicriodus woschmidti) may help to recognise the boundary as well

Prasinophyte bloom and putative fungi abundance near the Kačák event (Middle Devonian) from the Odivelas Limestone, Southwest Iberia

The Kačák Event is one of the several prominent Devonian climatic and biotic perturbations with a supra-regional to global extent. Its record can be traced in the litho- and biostratigraphy of uppermost Eifelian-lowermostGivetian strata and with multiple geochemical and geophysical proxies. In southwest Iberia, within southwestern Ossa-Morena Zone domains, there are rare, scattered Early-Middle Devonian limestone occurrences. One of these occurrences—the Odivelas Limestone type locality—is revisited in terms of conodont biostratigraphy and palynology and the results compared with previous data on reef macrofauna and magnetic susceptibility stratigraphy. The new data show that this locality is probably within the Polygnathus hemiansatus zone, i.e. of the earliest Givetian age. The palynological content of a ca. 2 m of black, organic-rich, fine grained limestone section is dominated, in varied proportions, by amorphous organic matter, putative fungal hyphae, and prasinophycean algae. The results are interpreted as an indication of high organic productivity and deposition in hypoxic to anoxic settings and probable biotic crisis, in both marine and terrestrial realms, connected with the Middle Devonian Kačák Event. The similarity of this record with other Devonian events is discussed

Long‐Term Responses Of The Kuparuk River Ecosystem To Phosphorus Fertilization

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/117218/1/ecy2004854939.pd

Alpha oscillations related to self-other integration and distinction during live orchestral performance: a naturalistic case study

Ensemble music performance requires musicians to achieve precise interpersonal coordination while maintaining autonomous control over their own actions. To do so, musicians dynamically shift between integrating other performers’ actions into their own action plans and maintaining a distinction between their own and others’ actions. Research in laboratory settings has shown that this dynamic process of self-other integration and distinction is indexed by sensorimotor alpha oscillations. The purpose of the current descriptive case study was to examine oscillations related to self-other integration and distinction in a naturalistic performance context. We measured alpha activity from four violinists during a concert hall performance of a 60-musician orchestra. We selected a musical piece from the orchestra’s repertoire and, before analyzing alpha activity, performed a score analysis to divide the piece into sections that were expected to strongly promote self-other integration and distinction. In line with previous laboratory findings, performers showed suppressed and enhanced alpha activity during musical sections that promoted self-other integration and distinction, respectively. The current study thus provides preliminary evidence that findings from carefully controlled laboratory experiments generalize to complex real-world performance. Its findings also suggest directions for future research and potential applications of interest to musicians, music educators, and music therapists

Use of quaternary ammonium compounds to remove salmonella contamination from meat products

A composition and method for removing and preventing Salmonella contamination of meat products, in particular poultry, is disclosed. The composition comprises an effective amount of a quaternary ammonium compound in an aqueous solution. The quaternary ammonium compound are selected from the group consisting of alkylpyridinium, tetra-alkylammonium, and alkylalicyclic ammonium salts. Preferably, the quaternary ammonium compounds are cetylpyridinium chloride and cetylpyridinium bromide. Mutagenicity studies are also disclosed

A machine vision system using circular autoregressive models for rapid recognition of salmonella typhimurium

The objective of this research was to develop a machine vision system using image processing and statistical modeling techniques to identify and enumerate bacteria on slides containing Salmonella typhimurium. Pictures of bacterial cells were acquired with a CCD camera attached to a motorized fluorescence microscope. A shape boundary modeling technique, based on the use of circular autoregressive model parameters, was used. A feature weighting classifier was trained with ten images belonging to each shape class (rod shape and circle shape). In order to enhance the discrimination of circular shapes, a size range was added to the recognition algorithm. Experimental results showed that the model parameters could be used as descriptors of shape boundaries detected in digitized binary images of bacterial cells. The introduction of the rotated coordinate method and the circular size restriction, reduced the differences between automated and manual recognition/enumeration from 7% to less than 1%. The computer analyzed each image in approximately 5 s (a total of 2 h including sample preparation), while the bacteriologist spent an average of 1 min for each image

Method for reducing or eliminating microorganisms in substances by electric stimulation

Describes a method for the reduction or elimination of microbes in liquid or food products. The passage of a waveform, such as a DC square-wave, of a specific amplitude, duty cycle and current through the liquid or food product for a specific time period, allows for the elimination of microbes such as Salmonella Typhimurium from a variety of substances, including water, milk and solid food products

Combination of optison with ultrasound and electroporation increases albumin and thrompoietin transgene expression whilst elongation factor promoter prolongs its duration

Hypoalbuminaemia and thrombocytopaenia are two clinical problems frequently encountered in patients with chronic liver failure or cancer following treatment with chemotherapy. The current study was designed to assess the magnitude and duration of thrombopoietin and albumin transgene expression hoping to increase the production of albumin and platelets. Immunocompetent and immunocompromised (nude) mice were injected intramuscularly with plasmids expressing either human serum albumin or human thrombopoietin. The therapeutic expression cassette of the plasmids was driven by either CMV or elongation factor 1- promoters respectively. In order to achieve muscle specific expression both gene constructs included the myosin light chain enhancer. The experiment was conducted in a group of mice which were injected with the transgene plasmid either in normal saline or plasmid followed by electroporation, ultrasound, optison and a combination of all three to increase transgene expression. The result showed that plasmids with the CMV promoter induced the highest transgenic expression lasting for one week whilst plasmids with the elongation factor 1-alpha promoter produced a weaker expression lasting for a longer and more stable duration of expression up to 3 months in both immunocompetent and nude mice. The combination of electroporation and ultrasound with Optison TM provided the highest transgene expression. We concluded that it would be possible to increase albumin and platelets production by an intramuscular injection of plasmids expressing human albumin and thromopoietin. A combination of electroporation and ultrasound with Optison TM can increase their expression