bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Stratigraphy and sedimentology of lower carboniferous (Dinantian) boreholes from West Co. Meath, Ireland
Authors: Strogen Peter , Jones Gareth Li. , Somerville Ian D.
Published: February 2007

The 2‐km deep Athboy Borehole (1439/2) together with the lower part of boreholes EP30 and N915 form a standard type section for strata of Dinantian (Courceyan to Asbian) age in west Co. Meath. Above a thin basal red‐bed siliciclastic sequence, the marine Courceyan shelf succession is almost 600 m thick. It comprises the Liscartan, Meath, and Moathill Formations of the Navan Group and the Slane Castle Formation of the succeeding Boyne Group. The shallow‐water limestones include micrites, oolites, and sandy bioclastic packstones and grainstones with subordinate skeletal wackestones and shales. Lateral facies changes from north to south in the Navan area suggest deepening across a shelf towards a depocentre further to the south around Trim.

The deeper‐water Waulsortian Limestones of late Courceyan to Chadian age (Feltrim Formation, ca. 213 m thick) form a series of five sheet‐like mudbanks, interbedded with generally thin units of nodular crinoidal limestones and shales. The mudbanks are formed of bryozoan‐rich peloidal wackestones and lime‐mudstones with phase C and D components. Rare soft‐sediment breccias occur at the bottom and top of banks.

The succeeding Fingal Group commences with a thin interval (3–20 m) of black shales, laminated packstones, and micritic limestones of Chadian age, the Tober Colleen Formation. This is followed by the Lucan Formation (Chadian to Asbian) predominantly of laminated and graded calciturbidites, laminated sandstones, cherts, and black shales, which is over 1300 m thick. Ten sedimentary units have been informally defined, based on lithofacies and facies associations. The oldest unit, the Tara Member, is characterized by proximal debris‐flow breccia deposits and nodular mudstones. A thick bioturbated micrite and shale unit (Ardmulchan Member) in the middle of the formation is overlain directly by a coarse oolitic and crinoidal grainstone unit (Beauparc Member). Near the top of the formation is a distinctive unit of coarse‐grained laminated sandstones and shales (Athboy Member). The highest rocks in the Borehole are clean thickly‐bedded limestones of the Asbian Naul Formation (>90 m thick). The youngest Dinantian strata in the area, the Brigantian Loughshinny Formation, marks a return to shale‐dominant basin sedimentation.

The significance of this work lies in the fact that the Athboy borehole is the longest continuously cored borehole in the Carboniferous of Ireland and provides a continuous sedimentary and biostratigraphic record for the northern part of the Dublin Basin. Foraminiferal biozones (Cf2–Cf6) have been recognized in this and in borehole N915, and Stage boundaries identified, which can be applied throughout the Basin. The sedimentary record for the Lucan Formation indicates four tectonic pulses during the Viséan, in the late Chadian/early Arundian, mid‐Arundian, Holkerian, and late Holkerian/early Asbian.
Granitoids: Main petrogenetic classifications in relation to origin and tectonic setting
Authors: Barbarin Bernard
Published: February 2007

Comparison of the twenty most frequently used petrogenetic classifications of granitoids is summarized using petrography, nature and abundance of enclaves, mineralogy, major and trace element, and isotope geochemistry. This comparison indicates considerable agreement between most authors concerning the main divisions. Differences result either from different genetic models or from the weighting of the criteria used, such as nature of the source, relative proportions of crustal and mantle contributions, magmatic processes, and types of emplacement. In the classification proposed here, three main groups of granitoids correspond respectively to a crustal, a mantle, or a mixed (crustal and mantle) origin of the magmas. Each of these main groups is subdivided into two or three types. Distinct petrographic, mineralogical, and chemical characteristics result from differences in the origin and tectonic setting of the granitoid magmas. Consequently, granitoids with well‐defined petrographic, mineralogical, chemical features and ages may provide information on the changes of tectonic settings with space, time, or both, i.e. they may be used as geotectonic tracers.
The Flamanville Granite (Northwest France): An unequivocal example of a syntectonically expanding pluton
Authors: Brun J. P. , Gapais D. , Cogne J. P. , Ledru P. , Vigneresse J. L.
Published: February 2007

The Flamanville pluton was emplaced during the upper Carboniferous in Palaeozoic sedimentary cover forming one limb of the Siouville syncline, a Hercynian kilometre‐scale fold in Normandy, Northwest France. We review the geological environment of the pluton with special emphasis on the Siouville syncline. The features described include gravity data, metamorphic environment, fold patterns in the contact metamorphic aureole, trajectories of principal strains in and around the pluton, finite strain and anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility within the pluton, and physical and kinematic aspects of pluton fabrics. The results emphasize that (1) the Flamanville pluton is syntectonic, (2) its emplacement involves lateral expansion of magma rather than spherical ballooning, and (3) granite fabrics do not reflect magmatic flow but are strain‐controlled irrespective of grain‐scale deformation processes and rheological state.

The example of the Flamanville granite further suggests (1) that grain‐scale deformation features are not critical in distinguishing tectonic from magmatic origin of granite fabrics and (2) that pluton formation within the soft sediments of the shallow upper crust most likely results from lateral expansion of magma injected through the brittle crust rather than from ballooning of a diapiric body.
Syncompressional Emplacement of the Boulder and Tobacco Root Batholiths (Montana‐USA) by Pull‐apart along Old Fault Zones
Authors: Schmidt Christopher J. , Smedes Harry W. , MichaelO'Neill J.
Published: February 2007

The 15 major plutons comprising the 6000 km2 Late Cretaceous Boulder batholith were emplaced at mid‐ to upper‐crustal levels (<20 km) during active thrusting in the Montana thrust belt. The Tobacco Root batholith, the largest satellite pluton of the Boulder batholith (< 300 km2) was emplaced into uplifted Archean basement rocks immediately southeast of the frontal margin of the thrust belt.

Emplacement of the Boulder batholith and its satellite plutons was controlled principally by three long‐lived and deeply penetrating regional fault sets. Two of these sets (a NE‐trending set and an E‐trending set) appear to have controlled the emplacement of the main mass of the batholith (Butte pluton). A third (NW‐trending) fault set controlled the emplacement of the Tobacco Root batholith and many of the smaller plutons of the Boulder batholith. The intersecting fault sets give the Butte pluton a distinctly rhomboid shape, elongate in a northeasterly direction. Geophysical data suggest that the pluton may have a flat floor at the level of the basal décollement of the thrust belt (∼17km).

One mode of pluton emplacement consistent with a rhomboid pattern and with a compressional tectonic setting is the filling of the pull‐apart regions of shear zones. We propose that the main mass of the Boulder batholith was emplaced along a pull‐apart within a segment of a thin‐skinned thrust sheet during ENE translation in the thrust belt. Sinistral slip on the E‐trending faults at the north and south margins allowed the rhomboid‐shaped cavity to form within the thrust sheet above the basal décollement and to progressively fill with magma below a roof of cogenetic volcanic rocks.

Late Cretaceous movement on the NW‐trending fault set was oblique with roughly equal components of sinistral slip and reverse slip. The main mass of the Tobacco Root batholith is elongate in a northwesterly direction between two of these faults and has a crudely rhomboid map pattern. We suggest that it, too, was emplaced by filling a sinistral pull‐apart between these faults.
The genesis of tin–uranium granites in the Scottish Caledonides: Implications for metallogenesis
Authors: Plant J. A. , Henney P. J. , Simpson P. R.
Published: February 2007

The genesis of granites enriched in Sn and U and their role in the formation of Sn–U deposits is reviewed with particular reference to studies of geochemical, geophysical, and geological data sets from the Scottish Caledonides based on image analysis studies.

The chemistry and tectonic setting of radioelement‐enriched granites some of which are also enriched in Sn (e.g. Cairngorm intrusion) is distinct from that of the more commonly occurring calc‐alkaline granites. On mantle‐normalized diagrams they are enriched in U, Th, Rb, Nb, Ta, Li, F, Be, B, and Sn with marked depletion of Sr, Ba, Ti, and P; and on chondrite normalized REE diagrams they have high REE with LaN/LuNvalues of 1·8–6 and marked negative Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu* 0·3). These features are characteristic of Sn–U granites from S.W. England (Dartmoor) and elsewhere. Geophysical data indicate that the Caledonian Sn–U granites are the high points of a buried batholith (the East Grampian batholith) with a length of approximately 100km, breadth of about 40km, and depth of approximately 7–8km. The batholith is discordant to the Caledonian structural grain and was emplaced post‐orogenically, probably in tensional pull‐apart structures.

Petrogenetic models and isotopic data for the Cairngorm granite preclude ‘S’‐type crustal melting models for its genesis; instead the preferred model involves combined assimilation and fractional crystallization (AFC) as the result of the addition of dioritic magma to the lower crust followed by up to 50 per cent fractional crystallization. The concentration of Sn, F, and radioelements in the granite magmas, the release of heat as the result of protracted fractionation, the large volumes of the intrusions, and their emplacement into fault systems are factors favouring the formation of Sn and U deposits. The high calculated heat production of such intrusions and their emplacement into faults along which reactivation can occur may explain the association of such granites with hydrothermal ore deposits formed long after magmatic cooling.

Overall the role of granites in ore formation is complex and reflects such factors as the chemistry, heat production (contents of U, Th, and K), density, permeability, and response to deformation of intrusions as well as the availability of water in the rocks into which they are emplaced.
The Millstone Grit (namurian) of the southern pennines viewed in the light of eustatically controlled sequence stratigraphy
Authors: Read W. A.
Published: February 2007

The overall lithological succession in the Millstone Grit of the southern Pennines was most probably controlled by glacial‐eustatic sea‐level oscillations and may be interpreted in terms of the systems tracts of sequence stratigraphy. Bands containing thick‐shelled goniatites represent ‘condensed sections’ formed at times of maximum flooding. Turbidite‐fronted deltas, marking major basin‐filling episodes, resemble ‘lowstand systems tracts’. However all sand influxes did not necessarily occur during lowstands. Millstone Grit sheet deltas and elongate deltas resemble lobate and birdfoot deltas in Recent ‘highstand systems tracts’. The prograding fluviodeltaic complexes at the tops of some major turbidite‐fronted deltas were braid deltas. So was the sheet‐like channel complex of the Rough Rock at the top of the Millstone Grit, but this was probably part of a ‘highstand systems tract’.
The biostratigraphy and formational relationships of the upper aeronian and lower telychian (llandovery, silurian) formations of western mid‐wales
Authors: Loydell David K.
Published: February 2007

The stratigraphical relationships of the upper Aeronian‐lower Telychian formations in the Aberystwyth area are examined in the light of a new biostratigraphical subdivision of this interval based on graptolites, in which part of the Monograptus turriculatus Biozone is divided into six subzones and the Stimulograptus halli Biozone is resurrected.

In the Aberystwyth area (B.G.S. 1:50 000 Sheet 163 (1984)) there is shown to be greater diachroneity of formational —boundaries than previously recognized. Notably, the Cwmsymlog Formation facies persisted in the northeast of the area far longer than anywhere else, due to the persistence of a bathymetric high into the lower Telychian. Also, the basal beds of the Aberystwyth Grits in the west of the area are shown to be of the same age as the uppermost beds of the Devil's Bridge Formation in the east. Thus for a short period the area was subject to turbiditic incursions from two sources.

The degree of diachroneity of the base of the Aberystwyth Grits Formation as a whole is less than previously thought — the oldest beds are approximately one subzone older in the south than in the north. The core of the in the clinal pericline responsible for the crescentic outcrop pattern of the Aberystwyth Grits is demonstrated to lie in the vicinity of Llanrhystud, rather than at Aberarth as previously suggested.

Four new graptolite species are described and one new genus is erected.
Geochemical correlation of Ordovician flow tuffs in North Wales
Authors: Orton Geoff
Published: February 2007

Ordovician rhyolitic tuffs in North Wales are correlated on the basis of their whole‐rock trace element composition. Multivariate statistics verify that major ignimbrite sheets are chemically unique, with Zr, Y and Nb being the most useful elements to characterize individual deposits. Fractionation processes during transport and emplacement of the pyroclastic flows results in little lateral variation in the whole‐rock geochemistry of deposits; different diagenetic histories in subaerial and subaqueous environments did not mask recognition of primary ignimbrite units. A partially welded vitric ash flow tuff is correlated with the Pitts Head Tuff ash flow sheet, and a tuff horizon previously assumed to be reworked Pitts Head Tuff is shown to be chemically most similar to the fourth member of the Capel Curig Volcanic Formation. Validity of these correlations is upheld by biostratigraphic and sedimentological evidence. The new correlations necessitate a revision of the stratigraphy in North Wales and indicate a significant lapse of time (perhaps one million years) between emplacement of the Pitts Head Tuff and eruption of the Lower Rhyolitic Tuff of the overlying Snowdon Volcanic Group.
A Rhuddanian (Silurian, lower llandovery) pelmatozoan fauna from south‐west Wales
Authors: Donovan Stephen K.
Published: February 2007

Only two crinoid faunas of Rhuddanian or early Aeronian age have been described hitherto, both from North America. A Rhuddanian pelmatozoan fauna from Haverfordwest, Dyfed, south‐west Wales includes the cheirocrinid rhombiferan cystoidHomocystites? sp., plus the following crinoid species: the calceocrinid disparidsCalceocrinus turnbullisp. nov. andCalceocrinus? sp.; the dendrocrinid cladidDendrocrinus?gasworksensissp. nov.; the patelliocrinid monobathridMacrostylocrinus? sp. indet.; columnals of the rhodocrinitid(?) diplobathridFloricolumnus(col.) sp. cf.F.(col.)girvanensisDonovan and Clark; the rhodocrinitid diplobathridChaosocrinus ornatussp. nov.; and two indeterminate crinoid species. At the familial level this fauna shows strong similarities with coeval, but more diverse, crinoid assemblages from North America, suggesting that endemism did not develop until later in the Silurian.
Stratigraphy and structure of Devonian fluvial sediments, western Beara Peninsula, south‐west Ireland
Authors: James Andrea , Graham John R.
Published: February 2007

A stratigraphic and structural summary of 5 km of Upper Devonian strata of south‐west Beara, part of the Munster Basin, south‐west Cork is presented. Five formations are recognized on the basis of lithofacies geometries and associations. The lowest Caherkeen Formation comprises rapidly alternating sheet‐like, plane‐bedded, low‐angle, cross‐bedded sandstones and laminated, rippled or desiccated mudrocks. The incoming of thin lenticular sandstone packages, commonly with high‐angle cross‐bedding, distinguishes the overlying Eagle Hill Formation. The succeeding Reen Point Formation comprises thicker bedsets of plane‐bedded, low‐angle and high‐angle cross‐bedded sandstones, separated by thick, massive mudrocks. Intraformational breccias and calcareous nodular siltrocks are distinctive features. The Tholane Formation is characterized by thick massive red‐green mudrocks and a general absence of coarser grained lithologies. This sequence was deposited in a terminal fluvial fan in a basin characterized by decreasing subsidence rates and gradient with time. The overlying Toe Head Formation represents the deposits of a fluvial coastal plain. It has siltrocks that are predominantly green, often with preserved fish and plant debris. There is a relative absence of high‐angled cross‐bedded sandstones and an abundance of flat‐laminated and inclined parallel‐laminated sandstones.

The structure of the Beara Peninsula comprises a WSW plunging anticlinorium with a single cleavage formed during the Variscan orogeny. Evidence from locally transecting cleavages and from mapping indicates dextral transpression. Development of the three main fault trends was contemporaneous with the folding. The well‐known copper mineralization of the Allihies area is associated with east‐west fault trends, a pattern observed elsewhere in the western Munster Basin. Basement involvement during both basin development and deformation is likely, but is difficult to test.
Controls on the nucleation and growth of porphyroblasts: Kinetics from natural textures and numerical models
Authors: Carlson William D. , Denison Cambria , Ketcham Richard A.
Published: February 2007

Quantitative textural analysis of garnetiferous rocks from diverse metamorphic environments has demonstrated that diffusionally influenced nucleation and thermally accelerated diffusion‐controlled growth are commonly among the dominant controls on porphyroblast crystallization. A new numerical model of diffusion‐controlled nucleation and growth that incorporates time as an explicit variable is capable of replicating the essential features of many of these natural porphyroblastic textures using geologically reasonable values for the kinetic parameters governing crystallization. This model has been used to interpret quantitative textural data from four rocks in which garnet grew during prograde regional metamorphism, by assuming constant heating rates and by accepting a previously published estimate for the activation energy for intergranular diffusion. From fits of the model to natural textures, estimates have been extiacted for three previously undetermined kinetic quanities that control the nucleation and growth of garnet porphyroblasts, namely the activation energy for nucleation and the pre‐exponential rate constants for nucleation and intergranular diffusion. The uncertainty in derived values for the pre‐exponential rate constant for intergranular diffusion is probably not much larger than a factor of two because it is proportional to the uncertainty in prograde heating rates, given a defined temperature interval over which crystallization occurs. The uncertainty in estimates of the activation energy and pre‐exponential rate constant for nucleation is larger, perhaps a factor of ten, because values for these quantities are derived from fits of the model to natural crystal size distributions; the precision of these estimates appears to be limited by the fact that the crystal size distributions are affected by factors not encompassed within the model (probably variable heating rates and inhomogeneity in the distribution of nutrients in the rock's precursor).
Mechanistic interactions between deformation and metamorphism
Authors: Rutter E. H. , Brodie K. H.
Published: February 2007

The deformability of rocks, i.e. the resistance to deformation and the mode of failure, may be strongly influenced by syn‐tectonic metamorphic reactions. Such mechanistic interactions can often be inferred from studies on naturally deformed tectonites or from suitably designed experiments. The localized nature of retrograde reactions sometimes means that the particular interaction can be inferred as a result of the preservation of both the deformed rock and its protolith, but in prograde situations recrystallization at the metamorphic peak tends to destroy microstructural evidence of the deformation mechanism.

Syn‐metamorphic mechanistic interaction can be classified according to the effects of: (a) elevated fluid pressure produced during dehydration or decarbonation reactions; (b) transient grain size changes with a possible transition to grain size sensitive flow; (c) effects of changes in pore fluid chemistry and recrystallization on the resistance to plastic flow of silicates (e.g. quartz); (d) enhancement of chemical potential gradients driving diffusive creep; and (e) enhancement of plasticity through the effects of solid phase volume changes. The first three of these effects are expected to be the most important. A soil mechanics approach to the description of the flow of porous rocks provides a basis for understanding deformation during regional prograde reactions, but simple, steady‐state constitutive laws of the type used to describe plastic flow of monomineralic rocks are unlikely to be able to be applied to syn‐metamorphic deformation.
Are reaction textures reliable guides to metamorphic histories? Timing constraints from garnet Sm‐Nd chronology for ‘decompression’ textures in granulites from Søstrene Island, Prydz Bay, Antarctica
Authors: Hensen B. J. , Zhou B. , Thost D. E.
Published: February 2007

Reaction textures are often used to derive pressure‐temperature‐time (P‐T‐t) paths for metamorphic rocks. However, because dry rocks in particular react very little unless P‐T changes are accompanied by deformation and/or fluid influx, it is possible that mineral assemblages and reaction textures in polycyclic rocks record segments of P‐T paths that are unrelated in time. Such a case is documented, by garnet Sm‐Nd chronology, for a mafic granulite with well‐developed two‐stage garnet breakdown textures from SøHstrene Island, Prydz Bay, Antarctica. The combined geothermobaro‐metric‐geochronological evidence shows that the garnet formed during M1 at ca. 1000 Ma, ca. 850–900°C and 10 kbar. The garnet breakdown reactions producing symplectites of (1) orthopyroxene and plagioclase and (2) orthopyroxene, plagioclase and spinel occurred, respectively, during post‐M1 decompression and during a second granulite facies metamorphic episode (M2), in response to heating and decompression at ca. 500 Ma, ca. 750°C and 6 kbar. The date for the latter event derives from a nearby garnet‐sillimanite gneiss and corresponds to garnet ages which provide evidence for a regional granulite episode extending further north‐east along Prydz Bay. These data demonstrate that, in the absence of reliable criteria for heating and cooling and without age constraints, reaction textures cannot be assumed to record pressure or temperature changes in a single thermo‐tectonic event. Preservation of the ca. 1000 Ma age of garnet in rocks that have been reheated to ca. 700–750°C indicates that the closure temperature for Sm and Nd in garnet is at least 100°C higher than suggested for slowly cooled terranes.
Palaeogene K‐Ar ages from the Kamuikotan metamorphic rocks, southern area of the Kamuikotan Gorge, central Hokkaido, northern Japan
Authors: Iwasaki Ichiro , Watanabe Teruo , Itaya Tetsumaru , Yamazaki Makoto , Takigami Yutaka
Published: February 2007

Mica separates from 44 metamorphic rocks (mostly pelitic) from the southern area of Kamuikotan Gorge, central block of the Kamuikotan zone were dated using the K‐Ar method. The ages of white micas, separated from pelitic schists, range from 51 to 74 Ma. The Palaeogene K‐Ar ages are supported by 40Ar‐39Ar dating. Judging from mineral paragenesis and X‐ray diffraction studies (RM values) of white micas, most of the pelitic schists belong to the intermediate pressure type. In the Orowen River district, the northern part of the study area, biotite from metavolcanic rocks of a lower pressure assemblage yields the youngest K‐Ar ages (45–50 Ma). Although the Kamuikotan zone was considered to have been a subduction‐related metamorphic belt along a Mesozoic consuming margin, the time span of the metamorphism and the lowering of metamorphic pressure in younger rocks suggest that: (1) exhumation of the younger Kamuikotan rocks accompanied the erosion of forearc basin sediments (the Yezo Supergroup); (2) the increase in the thermal gradient was probably related to the approach of the Kula‐Pacific ridge to the subduction zone; and (3) the main stage of exhumation of the Kamuikotan rocks ceased before westward movement of the Pacific plate, which induced the collision of the Hidaka‐Nemuro belts (palaeo‐Kurile arc‐trench system) with the Kamuikotan zone.
Tissue engineered prefabricated vascularized flaps
Authors: Kian Kwan Oo Kenneth , Chen Ong Wei , Hui Chi Ang Annette , Hutmacher Dietmar W. , Kim Siang Tan Luke
Published: February 2007

Background.

Microvascular free tissue transfer has become increasingly popular in the reconstruction of head and neck defects, but it also has its disadvantages. Tissue engineering allows the generation of neo‐tissue for implantation, but these tissues are often avascular. We propose to combine tissue‐engineering techniques together with flap prefabrication techniques to generate a prefabricated vascularized soft tissue flap.

Methods.

Human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) labeled with fluorescein diacetate were static seeded onto polylactic‐co‐glycolic acid‐collagen (PLGA‐c) mesh. Controls were plain PLGA‐c mesh. The femoral artery and vein of the nude rat was ligated and used as a vascular carrier for the constructs. After 4 weeks of implantation, the constructs were assessed by gross morphology, routine histology, Masson trichrome, and cell viability determined by green fluorescence.

Results.

All the constructs maintained their initial shape and dimensions. Angiogenesis was evident in all the constructs with neo‐capillary formation within the PLGA‐c mesh seen. HDFs proliferated and filled the interyarn spaces of the PLGA‐c mesh, while unseeded PLGA‐c mesh remained relatively acellular. Cell tracer study indicated that the seeded HDFs remained viable and closely associated to remaining PLGA‐c fibers. Collagen formation was more abundant in the constructs seeded with HDFs.

Conclusions.

PLGA‐c, enveloped by a cell sheet composed of fibroblasts, can serve as a suitable scaffold for generation of a soft tissue flap. A ligated arteriovenous pedicle can serve as a vascular carrier for the generation of a tissue engineered vascularized flap. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 2007
Using a pore‐scale model to quantify the effect of particle re‐arrangement on pore structure and hydraulic properties
Authors: Dikinya Oagile , Lehmann Peter , Hinz Christoph , Aylmore Graham
Published: February 2007

A pore‐scale model based on measured particle size distributions has been used to quantify the changes in pore space geometry of packed soil columns resulting from a dilution in electrolyte concentration from 500 to 1 mmol l−1 NaCl during leaching. This was applied to examine the effects of particle release and re‐deposition on pore structure and hydraulic properties. Two different soils, an agricultural soil and a mining residue, were investigated with respect to the change in hydraulic properties. The mining residue was much more affected by this process with the water saturated hydraulic conductivity decreasing to 0·4% of the initial value and the air‐entry value changing from 20 to 50 cm. For agricultural soil, there was little detectable shift in the water retention curve but the saturated hydraulic conductivity decreased to 8·5% of the initial value. This was attributed to localized pore clogging (similar to a surface seal) affecting hydraulic conductivity, but not the microscopically measured pore‐size distribution or water retention. We modelled the soil structure at the pore scale to explain the different responses of the two soils to the experimental conditions. The size of the pores was determined as a function of deposited clay particles. The modal pore size of the agricultural soil as indicated by the constant water retention curve was 45 µm and was not affected by the leaching process. In the case of the mining residue, the mode changed from 75 to 45 µm. This reduction of pore size corresponds to an increase of capillary forces that is related to the measured shift of the water retention curve. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
An assessment of water reserve changes in Salt Lake, Turkey, through multi‐temporal Landsat imagery and real‐time ground surveys
Authors: Ormeci Cankut , Ekercin Semih
Published: February 2007

This paper focuses mainly on the investigation of water reserve changes in Salt Lake, Turkey, using remote‐sensing data. The study is performed in two stages: (1) correlation analysis for real‐time ground and satellite data and (2) assessment of water reserve changes using multi‐temporal Landsat imagery. First, correlation analysis is conducted to investigate the relationship between digital data from Landsat‐5 TM and spectral (in situ) measurements collected using a field spectroradiometer on the same day and time. A radiometric correction procedure, including conversions from digital numbers to radiance and from radiance to at‐satellite reflectance, is executed to make satellite data comparable to in situ measurements. This procedure show that simultaneous ground and satellite remote‐sensing data are highly correlated (0·84 > R2 > 97) and the near‐infrared region (for this study TM4‐Landsat‐5 TM, band 4) is the best spectral range to distinguish salt and water on the satellite data for the multi‐temporal analysis of the water reserve in Salt Lake. It also shows that the use of shortwave infrared band(s) will result in confusion for the determination of the water reserve in this water‐covered study area. In a second and last phase, the water reserve change in the lake is examined using multi‐temporal Landsat imagery collected in 1990, 2001 and 2005. The remotely sensed, sampled and treated data show that the water reserve in the lake has decreased markedly between 1990 and 2005 due to drought and uncontrolled water usage. It is suggested that the use of water supplies around Salt Lake should be controlled and that the lake should regularly be monitored by up‐to‐date remote‐sensing data (at least annually) for better management of water resources. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Downregulation of erbB3 abrogates erbB2‐mediated tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer cells
Authors: Liu Bolin , Ordonez‐Ercan Dalia , Fan Zeying , Edgerton Susan M. , Yang XiaoHe , Thor Ann D.
Published: February 2007

Receptor tyrosine kinase activity is essential for erbB2 (HER2/neu) promotion of breast carcinogenesis, metastasis and therapeutic resistance. erbB2 kinase can be activated by dimerization with another erbB receptor, most of which bind ligands. Of these, the erbB2/erbB3 heterodimer is the most potent oncogenic complex. erbB2 reportedly requires erbB3 to promote cellular proliferation, although this may occur without changes in erbB2 tyrosine kinase activity in some model systems. Our investigations focus on the role(s) of erbB3 in erbB2‐associated kinase activity and tamoxifen resistance. Using tumor‐derived cell lines from wild type rat c‐neutransgenic mice and human breast cancers, we demonstrate that erbB3 plays a critical role in the activation of erbB2 tyrosine kinase activity and erbB2‐associated tumorigenesis. Mechanistically, downregulation of erbB3 by specific siRNA reduces erbB2 tyrosine phosphorylation, decreases the PI‐3K/Akt signaling, and inhibits mammary/breast cancer cell proliferation and colony formation. Specific erbB3 siRNA sensitizeserbB2transfected MCF‐7 cells (MCF‐7/erbB2) to tamoxifen‐associated inhibition of both cell growth and colony formation and enhances tamoxifen‐induced apoptosis, in contrast to control siRNA transfected MCF‐7/erbB2 cells which are tamoxifen‐resistant. Our data indicates that erbB2/erbB3 heterodimerization is a prerequisite for erbB2 tyrosine kinase activation in mammary/breast cancer cells and that downregulation of erbB3 inhibits erbB2‐associated procarcinogenic activityviainactivation of the PI‐3K/Akt pathway. Furthermore, erbB3 also contributes to erbB2‐mediated tamoxifen resistance and therefore may be a clinically relevant therapeutic target in addition to erbB2. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The transcription factor ATF5 is widely expressed in carcinomas, and interference with its function selectively kills neoplastic, but not nontransformed, breast cell lines
Authors: Monaco Sara E. , Angelastro James M. , Szabolcs Matthias , Greene Lloyd A.
Published: February 2007

ATF5, a transcription factor important in differentiation, proliferation and survival, has been found to be highly expressed in neural progenitor cells and in certain tumors including glioblastomas (GBMs), but its expression in other normal and neoplastic tissues has not been extensively investigated. A tissue microarray immunostained for ATF5 showed diffuse nuclear expression (as defined by the presence in greater than 25% of cells) in 63% (117/186) of neoplastic samples, when compared to only 32% (20/62) in nonneoplastic tissues. When analyzed by histologic subtype, a significantly greater proportion of adenocarcinomas, transitional cell carcinomas, squamous cell carcinomas and metastatic carcinomas of various tissue origins had nuclear staining when compared to nonneoplastic tissues. There was no significant difference in ATF5 expression in renal cell carcinomas, lymphomas and seminomas, when compared to nonneoplastic tissues. An expanded series of nonarray breast resection specimens revealed a significantly greater proportion of ATF5 positivity in ductal and lobular carcinomas, when compared to normal breast tissue. Past work found that loss of ATF5 function triggers death of GBM cells, but not of normal activated astrocytes. Here, we observed that loss of ATF5 function caused significant apoptotic death of neoplastic breast cell lines, but not of nonneoplastic breast cell lines. Our data demonstrate elevated ATF5 expression in a wide variety of neoplasms and that interference with ATF5 function selectively triggers death of breast carcinoma cells. Such findings may have potential therapeutic application. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The 8‐epimer of prostaglandin F2α, a marker of lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress, is decreased in the nipple aspirate fluid of women with breast cancer
Authors: Mannello Ferdinando , Tonti Gaetana A.M. , Pagliarani Silvia , Benedetti Serena , Canestrari Franco , Zhu Weizhu , Qin Wenyi , Sauter Edward R.
Published: February 2007

Breast cancer (BC), a worldwide disease with increasing incidence, develops from ductal/lobular epithelium. Nipple aspirate fluid (NAF), secreted from the breast ducts and lobules, can be analyzed to assess breast metabolic activity. Whether lipid peroxidation in the mammary gland promotes or prevents tumorigenesis is unclear. Malondialdehyde (MDA) and the 8‐epimer of Prostaglandin F2α (8‐iso‐PGF2α), two lipid peroxidation markers, were studied in milk (n = 10), NAF (n = 140) and plasma (n = 35) samples. MDA was detected in all plasma, in 80% of milk samples and in 95% of NAF samples. MDA levels in NAF and plasma were significantly higher than in milk (p = 0.016 and p = 0.029, respectively). We found no significant difference between levels of MDA in NAF samples from BC patients compared to healthy controls. 8‐iso‐PGF2α was detectable in all samples. 8‐iso‐PGF2α median levels in NAF were significantly higher than in both milk and plasma (p < 0.0001). The highest 8‐iso‐PGF2α levels were found in NAF from healthy women, significantly higher than in women with BC (p < 0.0001). No significant differences were found in both markers after the age‐adjustment. High levels of lipid peroxidation products in NAF suggest their in situ production in the nonlactating breast. Active lipid peroxidation may have a physiologic role in the normal mammary gland. Lower levels of 8‐iso‐PGF2α in NAF from BC patients suggest altered production of arachidonic acid metabolites during breast carcinogenesis. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Involvement of aminopeptidase N in enhanced chemosensitivity to paclitaxel in ovarian carcinoma in vitro and in vivo
Authors: Yamashita Mamoru , Kajiyama Hiroaki , Terauchi Mikio , Shibata Kiyosumi , Ino Kazuhiko , Nawa Akihiro , Mizutani Shigehiko , Kikkawa Fumitaka
Published: February 2007

Aminopeptidase N (APN/CD13), a 150‐kDa metalloproteinase, is a multifunctional cell surface aminopeptidase with ubiquitous expression. Recent studies have suggested that APN/CD13 plays an important role in tumor progression in several human malignancies. In the current study, we investigated the role of APN/CD13 in paclitaxel (PAC)‐resistance of ovarian carcinoma (OVCA) cells. We first examined the correlation between APN/CD13 expression and IC50 values of PAC in a variety of OVCA cell lines. Next we investigated whether suppression of APN/CD13 using bestatin, an inhibitor of APN/CD13 activity or the siRNA technique influenced PAC‐sensitivity in ES‐2 cells, which highly express APN/CD13. Moreover, we investigated the effect of bestatin on peritoneal metastasis using nude mice. We found a negative correlation between APN/CD13 expression and chemosensitivity to PAC in various carcinoma cell lines. Subsequently, we found a significant increase in PAC‐sensitivity of APN/CD13 expressing OVCA cells by suppression of this enzyme, using the addition of bestatin or the siRNA technique. Furthermore, in a peritoneal metastasis model using nude mice, combination treatment with PAC and bestatin caused a synergistic increase of survival time compared with PAC alone treatment. (mean survival time: 37.7 ± 7.0 s and 27.1 ± 6.6 days, respectively). The present findings showed that APN/CD13 may be involved in decreased sensitivity to PAC in OVCA cells and that the mechanism of this effect involves its enzyme activity at least in part. APN/CD13 may be a therapeutic target for the treatment of OVCA in combination with chemotherapy. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Human papillomavirus genotype in cervical cancer: A population‐based study
Authors: Lai Chyong‐Huey , Huang Huei‐Jean , Hsueh Swei , Chao Angel , Lin Cheng‐Tao , Huang Shang‐Lang , Chao Fang‐Yu , Qiu Jian‐Tai , Hong Ji‐Hong , Chou Hung‐Hsueh , Chang Ting‐Chang , Chang Chee‐Jen
Published: February 2007

Our aim was to investigate the human papillomavirus (HPV) genotype distribution and correlation between HPV parameters and clinicopathological variables in cervical carcinoma treated in a large tertiary referral medical center in Taiwan. Consecutive patients treated for cervical carcinoma (Stages I–IV according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics) between 1993 and 2000 were included. HPV genotyping using SPF1/GP6+ PCR was performed, followed by hybridization with a genechip (Easychip® HPV Blot, King Car, Taiwan). E6 type‐specific PCR was performed to validate multiple‐type. HPV‐negative samples were further verified by type‐specific PCR and a repeat HPV Blot. A total of 2,118 patients were eligible for analysis. HPV DNA sequences were detected in 96.6% (95% CI, 95.8–97.4%) of the specimens, among which 82% harbored single‐type and 18% contained multiple‐type HPV sequences. Thirty‐five types of HPV were identified and the leading 8 were HPV16 (50.0%), HPV18 (17.8%), HPV58 (16.3%), HPV33 (8.7%), HPV52 (6.8%), HPV39 (3.0%), HPV45 (2.5%) and HPV31 (2.3%). HPV58 or 33 or 52 was detected in 30.3% (641/2,118). By multivariate analysis, HPV58‐ or 33‐ or 52‐infection was significantly associated with older age (p < 0.001) and primary radiotherapy or concurrent chemoradiation (RT/CCRT) (p < 0.001). Among HPV‐positive cases, multiple‐type was more frequently seen in those receiving primary RT/CCRT (p < 0.001). The knowledge of HPV genotype distribution will form a basis for guidelines in HPV‐based cervical cancer screening and cost‐effective multivalent HPV vaccine policy in Taiwan and in the world. The association between HPV parameters and clinicopathological variables warrants further investigations. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Analysis of molecular pathways in sporadic neuroendocrine tumors of the gastro‐entero‐pancreatic system
Authors: Arnold Christian N. , Sosnowski Andrea , Schmitt‐Gräff Annette , Arnold Rudolf , Blum Hubert E.
Published: February 2007

Little is known about the molecular pathogenesis of neuroendocrine tumors (NET) of the gastro‐entero‐pancreatic (GEP) system. We analyzed genetic and epigenetic alterations as well as the CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP). The study comprised 118 well‐differentiated fore‐ and mid‐gut GEP‐NET from 71 patients. In addition to loss of heterozygosity (LOH), microsatellite instability (MSI) and the methylation status of various tumor associated genes were examined. The expression profile of p16, APC and MENIN was investigated by immunohistochemistry. None of the tumors was highly microsatellite unstable, LOH was found in 22.2%. Significant differences in promoter hypermethylation were identified in the RUNX3 and the O6‐MGMT genes. We found a significant loss of p16 expression in insulinomas (p = 0.05) and functional NET (p = 0.01), respectively. APC was expressed less in gastrinomas (p = 0.01) and functional GEP‐NET (p = 0.05) vs. nonfunctional tumors. MENIN expression was reduced in pancreatic vs. extrapancreatic NET (p = 0.008) and in insulinomas vs. nonfunctional GEP‐NET (p = 0.019) and NET associated with the carcinoid syndrome (p = 0.029). Further CIMP and a Ki‐67 index >10% showed a close correlation. Outcome analysis of 19 patients showed a better survival for CIMP‐negative patients. The analyses identified significant genetic and epigenetic alterations in well‐differentiated fore‐ and mid‐gut NET. CIMP, similar to Ki‐67, might turn out to be of prognostic relevance. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Soluble isoforms but not the transmembrane form of coxsackie‐adenovirus receptor are of clinical relevance in epithelial ovarian cancer
Authors: Reimer Daniel , Steppan Ilona , Wiedemair Annemarie , Concin Nicole , Marth Gerda Hofstetter Christian , Müller‐Holzner Elisabeth , Zeimet Alain G.
Published: February 2007

The coxsackie‐adenovirus receptor (hCAR) has been extensively studied in context of adenoviral‐based gene therapy for cancer. However, there is strong evidence that besides its decisive role in coxsackie and adenovirus cell‐entry, hCAR is a component of epithelial tight junctions and involved in cell‐cell adhesions in normal and cancer cells. Furthermore, this adhesion molecule behaves like a cell surface receptor endowed with tumor suppressive properties via signal transduction. Moreover, 3 truncated soluble isoforms of hCAR were recently identified. We investigated the quantitative expression of all known CAR isoforms in a training set of 140 ovarian cancer samples and 21 controls by RT‐PCR. The expression levels of the various isoforms were compared with clinicopathologic parameters and their prognostic significance was assessed. Expression levels of all CAR isoforms were elevated in ovarian carcinomas as compared with those of non‐malignant controls. mRNA‐expression correlated with protein levels. Moreover, expression of the soluble isoforms CAR 3/7 and CAR 4/7 but not that of hCAR was significantly increased in advanced ovarian cancer as revealed by a highly significant correlation with FIGO stage and residual disease > 2 cm in diameter after debulking surgery. High expression of CAR 3/7 and 4/7 was shown to be of independent prognostic relevance for progression‐free (CAR 4/7) and overall survival (CAR 3/7 and CAR 4/7). In conclusion, soluble CAR isoforms 3/7 and 4/7 may play a pivotal role in ovarian cancer biology, possibly by counteracting migration‐ and growth‐inhibitory properties of the membranous hCAR and thus favoring cancer cell dissemination throughout the peritoneal cavity. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Insulin resistance is inversely related to prostate cancer: A prospective study in Northern Sweden
Authors: Stocks Tanja , Lukanova Annekatrin , Rinaldi Sabina , Biessy Carine , Dossus Laure , Lindahl Bernt , Hallmans Göran , Kaaks Rudolf , Stattin Pär
Published: February 2007

Factors related to insulin resistance have been implicated in prostate cancer development, however, few analytical studies support such an association. We performed a case control study on 392 prostate cancer cases and 392 matched controls nested in a prospective cohort in Northern Sweden. Plasma concentrations of C‐peptide, leptin, glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and fasting and post‐load glucose were analysed and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA‐IR) was calculated. Conditional logistic regression analyses were used to calculate odds ratios (OR) of prostate cancer. High levels of C‐peptide, HOMA‐IR, leptin and HbA1c were associated with significant decreases in risk of prostate cancer, with ORs for top vs. bottom quartile for C‐peptide of 0.59 (95% Confidence Interval [CI], 0.40–0.89; ptrend = 0.008), HOMA‐IR 0.60 (95% CI, 0.38–0.94; ptrend = 0.03), leptin 0.55 (95% CI, 0.36–0.84; ptrend = 0.006) and HbA1c 0.56 (95% CI, 0.35–0.91; ptrend = 0.02). All studied factors were strongly inversely related to risk among men less than 59 years of age at blood sampling, but not among older men, with a significant heterogeneity between the groups for leptin (pheterogeneity = 0.006) and fasting glucose (pheterogeneity = 0.03). C‐peptide and HOMA‐IR were strongly inversely related to non‐aggressive cancer but were non‐significantly positively related to risk of aggressive disease (pheterogeneity = 0.007 and 0.01, respectively). Our data suggest that androgens, which are inversely associated with insulin resistance, are important in the early prostate cancer development, whereas insulin resistance related factors may be important for tumour progression. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Folate coupled poly(ethyleneglycol) conjugates of anionic poly(amidoamine) dendrimer for inflammatory tissue specific drug delivery
Authors: Chandrasekar Durairaj , Sistla Ramakrishna , Ahmad Farhan J. , Khar Roop K. , Diwan Prakash V.
Published: February 2007

Folate receptor is overexpressed on the activated (but not quiescent) macrophages in both animal models and human patients with naturally occurring rheumatoid arthritis. The aim of this study was to prepare folate targeted poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) conjugates of anionic dendrimer (G3.5 PAMAM) as targeted drug delivery systems to inflammation and to investigate its biodistribution pattern in arthritic rats. Folate‐PEG‐PAMAM conjugates, with different degrees of substitution were synthesized by a two‐step reaction through a carbodiimide‐mediated coupling reaction and loaded with indomethacin. Folate‐PEG conjugation increased the drug loading efficiency by 10‐ to 20‐fold and the in vitro release profile indicated controlled release of drug. The plasma pharmacokinetic parameters indicated an increased AUC, circulatory half‐life and mean residence time for the folate‐PEG conjugates. The tissue distribution studies revealed significantly lesser uptake by stomach for the folate‐PEG conjugates, thereby limiting gastric‐related side effect. The time‐averaged relative drug exposure (re) of the drug in paw for the folate‐PEG conjugates ranged from 1.81 to 2.37. The overall drug targeting efficiency (Te) was highest for folate‐PEG conjugate (3.44) when compared to native dendrimer (1.72). The folate‐PEG‐PAMAM conjugates are the ideal choice for targeted delivery of antiarthritic drugs to inflammation with reduced side‐effects and higher targeting efficiency. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 2007