bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Mediterranean Neogene stratigraphy: development and evolution through the centuries
Authors: CITA MARIA BIANCA 
Published: December 2008

AbstractThe Mediterranean area, in general, and Italy, in particular, played an important role in developing the principles of stratigraphy since the early days of geological thinking. In the middle of the 19th Century there was a rush to name all the intervals of the stratigraphic column. At that time, when invertebrate palaeontology was the principal source of information on the relative age of the rock units, dozens of stage names were created for the Neogene. Only a few of these stage names survive and are accepted worldwide as Langhian, Serravallian, Tortonian, Messinian, Zanclean and Piacenzian. In the later part of the 19th Century and in the first decades of the 20th Century, a wealth of new data was made available by extensive palaeontological studies but the correlation potential of the fossil faunas was constrained poorly, and understood less, leading to the development of a ‘floating’ stratigraphy. The situation improved after World War II, when micropalaeontology underwent a fast development. The creation of common stratigraphic guidelines, the introduction of the ‘stratotype’ concept followed by the ‘Golden Spike’ concept (global stratotype section and point), combined with the application of multiple stratigraphic methodologies (especially palaeomagnetic stratigraphy or magnetic polarity time scale, astrocyclostratigraphy or astronomical time scale) resulted in new scenarios. A turning point may be located around 1970, soon after the beginning of the Deep Sea Drilling Project, which greatly contributed to the development of a new approach to Neogene Stratigraphy. Now all the global stratotype sections and points for the Neogene stages are being defined by multiple criteria, with precise definitions in terms of magnetic polarity time scale and astronomical time scale. The Rossello composite section in Southern Sicily is the template for the Late Neogene stratigraphy, with the best time resolution provided by astronomical forcing. To complete the planned study, the same criteria have to be applied downwards and upwards.
Tethyan–Mediterranean organic carbon‐rich sediments from Mesozoic black shales to sapropels
Authors: EMEIS KAY‐CHRISTIAN , WEISSERT HELMUT 
Published: December 2008

AbstractThe Jurassic to Holocene record of black shale deposition in the Tethys‐Mediterranean region is unrivalled by that of any other ocean basin, either in land sections or drill cores. The term ‘black shale’ is used here broadly for sediments with elevated organic carbon concentrations (> 1%), including the Pliocene to Recent sapropels. Most of the black shales are devoid of benthonic organisms, are laminated, and were deposited in distinct rhythms during periods when the deep waters of the ocean basins were anoxic or dysoxic. The Tethyan black shale records have become essential in studies of the transfer of organic carbon into the sediment record and for astronomical tuning and geological time scales. These records have been central in understanding climate control on ocean dynamics and biogeochemical cycles. The Mesozoic black shales were deposited within well‐defined time envelopes of around 0·5 to 1 Myr. These black shales, which were confined to certain chronostratigraphic intervals in the Jurassic and Cretaceous, were recognized as expressions of global Oceanic Anoxic Events in the mid‐1970s and subsequently named after prominent researchers (Bonarelli, Selli, Goguel). The black shale episodes were dated by biostratigraphic methods and by high‐resolution chemostratigraphy and cyclostratigraphy. Mesozoic black shales are now interpreted as the oceanographic expression of major perturbations of the global carbon cycle and climate. Research into younger (Pliocene to Pleistocene) sedimentary cycles (including black shales, termed sapropels) exposed in land sections, or found in pelagic and hemipelagic marine sediment cores of Late Quaternary age, started in the 1950s. Main threads pursued from this end of the record were the climatic control of oceanic processes that permitted the development of highly detailed and precise time scales tuned to the astronomical clock of insolation changes, palaeoclimate evolution of the circum‐Mediterranean area and biogeochemical dynamics in anoxic basins. After 50 years of intensive research, the Tethyan and Mediterranean black shales remain subjects of fascination in Earth Science. Tracing the origins and building upon recent progress, the current hypotheses on their formation are reviewed here. It is a panorama of complex interplays between global and regional tectonics, climate dynamics during both Ice House and Greenhouse states of global and regional climate, oceanographic responses to these climate changes, and biogeochemical adaptations that were all needed to shape an extraordinary archive of global change in the absence of human activity.
Dolomite Mountains and the origin of the dolomite rock of which they mainly consist: historical developments and new perspectives
Authors: MCKENZIE JUDITH A. , VASCONCELOS CRISOGONO 
Published: December 2008

AbstractBeginning in the late 18th Century, the Dolomite Mountains in Northern Italy have been the location for major sedimentological developments, from the discovery of the mineral dolomite to the formulation of the coral‐reef hypothesis to explain the origin of the massive dolomite structures that define the splendid scenery of the region. Further, the Dolomite Mountains have inspired voluminous research into the origin of dolomite, questioning whether dolomite is a primary precipitate or a secondary replacement product. Recently, with the recognition that microbes can mediate dolomite precipitation, a new geomicrobiological approach, combining the study of modern natural environments with bacterial culture experiments, is now being used to calibrate or interpret microbial evidence derived from the dolomite rock record. This three‐pronged methodology applied to the study of dolomite formation holds great promise for future research into the ‘Dolomite Problem’ and provides a new impetus to revisit the Dolomite Mountains in the 21st Century.
Decoding the Mediterranean salinity crisis
Authors: RYAN WILLIAM B. F. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractThis historical narrative traces the steps to unravel, over a span of 40 years, an extraordinary event in which 5% of the dissolved salt of the oceans of the world was extracted in a fraction of a million years to form a deposit more than 1 million km3in volume. A buried abyssal salt layer was identified with reflection profiling and sampled during the Deep Sea Drilling Project, Leg 13. The dolomite, gypsum, anhydrite and halite in the drill cores paint a surprising picture of a Mediterranean desert lying more than 3 km below the Atlantic Ocean with brine pools that shrank and expanded by the evaporative power of the sun. The desert drowned suddenly when the Gibraltar barrier gave way. The explanation of ‘deep‐basin, shallow‐water’ desiccation and the notion of a catastrophic Zanclean flood had a mixed reception. However, the hypothesis became broadly accepted following subsequent drilling expeditions. Nevertheless, as experts examined the evaporate facies and sequences of equivalent age in the terrestrial outcrops, weaknesses appeared in the concept of repeated flooding and drying to account for the magnitude of the deposits. The ‘Rosetta Stone’, used to decipher conflicting interpretations, turns out not to be the deposits but the erosion surfaces that enclose them. These surfaces and their detritus – formed in response to the drop in base level during evaporative drawdown – extend to the basin floor. Evaporative drawdown began halfway through the salinity crisis when influx from the Atlantic no longer kept up with evaporation. Prior to that time, a million years passed as a sea of brine concentrated towards halite precipitation. During the later part of this interval, more than 14 cyclic beds of gypsum accumulated along shallow margins, modulated by orbital forcing. The thick salt on the deep seabed precipitated in just the next few cycles when drawdown commenced and the brine volume shrank. Upon closure of the Atlantic spillway, the remnants of the briny sea transformed into salt pans and endorheic lakes fed from watersheds of Eurasia and Africa. The revised model of evaporative concentration now has shallow‐margin, shallow‐water and deep‐basin, deep‐water precursors to desiccation.
Persistence of costly novel genes in the absence of positive selection
Authors: ESCOBAR‐PÁRAMO P. , FAIVRE N. , BUCKLING A. , GOUGAT‐BARBERA C. , HOCHBERG M. E. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractMany genetic changes that ultimately lead to adaptive evolution come with a short‐term cost expressed in terms of reduced survival and reproduction. In the absence of genetic drift, it is unclear how such costly mutations may persist. Here we experimentally demonstrate that parasites can promote the persistence of costly genetic variants. We employed a genetically engineered strain (GMMO) of the bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens as a model of the acquisition of a new gene either through a major mutation or through horizontal transfer, and examined its persistence in different evolving communities comprising an ancestral strain and a lytic bacteriophage. Whereas competition resulted in the elimination of the GMMO, inclusion of the phage promoted GMMO persistence. We provide evidence for why this effect is due to the differential susceptibility of GMMO and ancestral bacteria to phage.
Phosphite impact on the in vitro production and viability of selfed oospores by Phytophthora cinnamomi
Authors: McCarren K. L. , McComb J. A. , Shearer B. L. , Hardy G. E. St J. 
Published: December 2008

SummaryFour isolates of Phytophthora cinnamomi were able to produce selfed oospores when cultured in vitro on modified Ribeiro’s minimal medium. Phosphite inhibited the production of selfed oospores at 100 μg phosphite/ml, lower concentrations had no effect. Selfed oospores were considered dormant as 16–47% of selfed oospores were found viable using viability staining techniques such as thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide and 4′,6‐diamidino‐2‐phenylindole·2HCl yet they did not germinate on a range of media. Phosphite up to 100 μg/ml did not change the proportion of viable selfed oospores. This study shows that phosphite does not affect the production of selfed oospores.
In vitro influence of phosphite on chlamydospore production and viability of Phytophthora cinnamomi
Authors: McCarren K. L. , McComb J. A. , Shearer B. L. , Hardy G. E. St J. 
Published: December 2008

SummaryChlamydospores of four isolates of Phytophthora cinnamomi were produced on mycelium grown on medium with or without 100 μg phosphite/ml, then tested for germination on medium containing no phosphite or 100 or 160 μg phosphite/ml. For each isolate when spores were produced on medium without phosphite, there was no effect of phosphite on germination. However, chlamydospores produced in the presence of 100 μg phosphite/ml showed significantly lower germination on media with no phosphite, 100 or 160 μg phosphite/ml than those produced in the absence of phosphite. For isolates known to be phosphite sensitive, the level of viable non‐germinated chlamydospores was higher amongst those produced on medium containing phosphite than amongst the controls, suggesting phosphite induces chlamydospore dormancy in some isolates of P. cinnamomi. Chlamydospores were produced uniformly across the radius of colonies on solid or liquid control media, but on media containing 100 μg phosphite/ml, chlamydospore production was lower in the centre of the colony and peaked at a point where mycelial morphology changed from tightly packed to sparse. This change in mycelial morphology and the peak in chlamydospore numbers did not occur when the pathogen was grown on liquid medium renewed every few days. In renewed medium, chlamydospores were evenly distributed across the radius of the colony.
Pre‐PCR Processes in the Molecular Detection of Blackleg and Soft Rot Erwiniae in Seed Potatoes
Authors: Degefu Yeshitila , Virtanen Elina , Väyrynen Tiina 
Published: December 2008

AbstractThe polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based detection of blackleg and soft rot erwiniae involves pre‐PCR processing steps which may compromise the sensitivity of detection. The aim of this study was to standardize these various steps to develop reproducible diagnostic PCR protocol for the detection of the three known soft rot erwiniae as they occur in the tuber, singly or in combination. Comparison of tuber peel and stolon end tissue as a starting material for enrichment of the bacteria indicated that tuber peel samples resulted in more representative and sensitive detection of the strains than extract from stolon end tissues. Substances of potato origin in the peel extract were found to be highly inhibitory to the PCR. Addition of the antioxidant Dethiotreitol to the samples before enrichment did not have any significant effect on detection during the 24 h period incubation of the peel extract at room temperature. Bulk washing of tubers with one rotten tuber included with the working sample caused surface contamination on 67–91% of the healthy tubers. Washing tubers individually circumvents the problem. The optimum temperature for enrichment of all the three strains was 27°C. At 37°C, Pectobacterium carotovorum failed to be detected while PCR on Pectobacterium atrosepticum and isolates of Dickeya spp. always produced amplification of the specific DNA fragments. Viability test on Nutrient Agar showed that only Dickeya isolates were viable after 48 h of incubation at 37°C suggesting that the detection of P. atrosepticum at 37°C was from dead or non‐viable cells. Post cell death detection experiment further confirmed that DNA was amplified from dead cells of all the strains at 27°C and 33°C whereas at 37°C, only DNA from dead cells of isolates of Dickeya and P. atrosepticum were amplified. There was no amplification from the dead cells of all isolates of P. carotovorum following the 48 h post death incubation at 37°C. The reason for this difference in post death longevity is not clear at this stage.
Fungicide Effectiveness during the Various Developmental Stages of Peronophythora litchii In Vitro
Authors: Wang Hancheng , Sun Haiyan , Ma Jianxia , Stammler Gerd , Zhou Mingguo 
Published: December 2008

AbstractLitchi downy blight caused by Peronophythora litchii is one of the most destructive diseases suffered by litchi in China. This study has evaluated the activities of the fungicides dimethomorph (DMM), azoxystrobin (AZB), famoxadone (FMD), metalaxyl (MTL), cymoxanil (CYX) and mancozeb (MCB) on the mycelial growth, sporulation, zoospores release, and germination of sporangia as well as of cystospores of P. litchii. Dimethomorph and MTL inhibited mycelial growth more effectively than the other fungicides tested. Mycelial growth was affected less by MCB, and only weakly by AZB, FMD and CYX. Sporangia production was more strongly reduced by DMM and MTL than by AZB, FMD, CYX or MCB. Zoospore release from the sporangia was most sensitive to AZB and FMD, less sensitive to MCB and insensitive to DMM, MTL and CYX. Direct germination of sporangia of P. litchii was the most strongly inhibited by AZB and FMD, followed by DMM and MCB, whilst the sensitivity of this life stage to MTL and CYX was relatively low. Germination of encysted zoospores of P. litchii was the most sensitive to AZB and FMD, followed by DMM. Mancozeb was moderately active, while MTL and CYX did not inhibit this development stage. This is the first report on the in vitro response of the litchi pathogen, P. litchii, to fungicides. These findings can be valuable tools in setting up efficient disease management programmes to control litchi downy blight.
Aldosterone induces collagen synthesis via activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1 and 2 in renal proximal tubules
Authors: XU GUOSHUANG , LIU AN , LIU XIAOWEI 
Published: December 2008

SUMMARY:Aim: Aldosterone plays a crucial role in renal fibrosis by inducing mesangial cell proliferation and promoting collagen synthesis in renal fibroblasts. However, renal proximal tubule involvement in aldosterone‐induced collagen synthesis has not yet been identified. The aim of this study was to examine the potential role of aldosterone in collagen expression and its possible mineralocorticoid receptor (MR)‐dependent pathway, mediated by activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) in cultured human renal proximal tubular epithelial (HKC) cells.Methods: After HKC cells were stimulated by aldosterone with different concentrations for various time and periods, the gene expression and protein synthesis of collagen I, II, III and IV were measured by real‐time polymerase chain reaction and western blot, respectively. ERK1/2 activation, α‐smooth muscle actin (α‐SMA), and E‐cadherin were also detected by western blot.Results: Aldosterone can increase ERK1/2 phosphorylation of human renal proximal tubular epithelial cells in a time‐ and dose‐dependent manner. Although aldosterone had no effect on collagen I and II expression, it increased expression of α‐SMA and collagen III and IV and decreased that of E‐cadherin in HKC cells after 48 h. These effects could be prevented by a ERK pathway inhibitor, U0126, or by a selective MR antagonist, spironolactone.Conclusion: The results suggest that aldosterone plays a pivotal role in tubulointerstitial fibrosis by promoting tubular epithelial–mesenchymal transition and collagen synthesis in proximal tubular cells. The process is MR‐dependent, and mediated by ERK1/2 mitogen‐activated protein kinase pathway.
Comparison of the Mayo Clinic Quadratic Equation with the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease equation and radionuclide glomerular filtration rate in a clinical setting
Authors: SALEEM MOHAMED , FLORKOWSKI CHRISTOPHER M , GEORGE PETER M 
Published: December 2008

SUMMARY:Background:  Recent guidelines recommend automatic reporting of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) using the abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) equation with every request for plasma creatinine. The Mayo Clinic Quadratic Equation (MCQE) has been put forwards as a potentially more accurate alternative. We therefore evaluated its accuracy compared with radionuclide GFR in a clinical setting.Method:  Data were collected on 601 patients aged 16–85 years who had undergone radionuclide GFR, and eGFR was calculated using MCQE and MDRD. Calculations of bias, correlation coefficients and percentage estimates within 30% and 50% of radionuclide GFR were used in comparisons.Results:  The MCQE had a significant positive bias in the overall population but no significant bias in individuals with normal renal function defined as measured GFR > 90 mL/min per 1.73 m2. There was no significant difference in the performance of MCQE and MDRD eGFR in patients with measured GFR > 90 mL/min per 1.73 m2. However, in the overall group and in subjects with radionuclide GFR < 90 mL/min per 1.73 m2, the accuracy of MDRD eGFR with respect to the proportion of patients within 30% and 50% of radionuclide GFR was better than MCQE.Conclusion:  MCQE compared moderately well with radionuclide GFR, although its overall bias and accuracy were inferior when compared with the MDRD equation in a clinical setting.
Function of dynamically stimulated endothelium and renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system in normotensive subjects with a family history of hypertension
Authors: USALAN CELALETTIN , BUYUKHATIPOGLU HAKAN , TIRYAKI OZLEM , SAHIN AYSE 
Published: December 2008

SUMMARY:Aim:  Genetic influences on the acute stimulation of the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system (RAAS) and on endothelial activation were studied by examining healthy blood donors with and without hypertensive parents.Methods:  Healthy blood donors were assigned to two groups, according to the presence or absence of a parental history of hypertension. Plasma levels of renin, nitric oxide (NO) and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI‐1) were studied before and after acute alterations in renal perfusion induced by phlebotomy, and the two groups compared. During phlebotomy, 400–500 mL of blood was extracted from each subject, with that volume varying relative to each subject's body surface area (m2).Results:  No statistically significant inter‐group differences were observed between the baseline mean levels of plasma renin, NO or PAI‐1. After phlebotomy, significant increases were detected in mean plasma renin activity (PRA) and NO levels and in PAI‐1 activity (P < 0.001). However, the increases in mean PRA (P < 0.05) level and PAI‐1 activity (P < 0.05) were more pronounced in those with hypertensive parents than those without; conversely, the increase in NO levels was more pronounced in the latter group. No statistically or clinically significant difference was found between the mean body mass indices of these two groups. Only two subjects were overweight, and none were obese; the remainder had weights that were normal. We found no significant correlation between body mass index and either NO or PAI‐1 level.Conclusion:  Post‐phlebotomy, PRA and PAI‐1 responses were more dramatic, but the NO response less in normotensive subjects having a parental history of hypertension, suggesting that these changes may represent familial, possibly genetic influences before overt hypertension occurs.
FYN is overexpressed in human prostate cancer
Authors: Posadas Edwin M. , Al‐Ahmadie Hikmat , Robinson Victoria L. , Jagadeeswaran Ramasamy , Otto Kristen , Kasza Kristen E. , Tretiakov Maria , Siddiqui Javed , Pienta Kenneth J. , Stadler Walter M. , Rinker‐Schaeffer Carrie , Salgia Ravi 
Published: December 2008

OBJECTIVETo test the hypothesis that FYN, a member of the SRC family of kinases (SFKs), is up‐regulated in prostate cancer, as FYN is functionally distinct from other SFKs, and interacts with FAK and paxillin (PXN), regulators of cell morphology and motility.MATERIALS AND METHODSThrough data‐mining in Oncomine (http://www.oncomine.org), cell‐line profiling with immunoblotting, quantitative reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) and immunohistochemical analysis, we described FYN expression in prostate cancer. The analysis included 32 cases of prostate cancer, nine of prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) and 19 normal prostates. Samples were scored for the percentage of stained glands and intensity of staining (from 0 to 3). Each sample was assigned a composite score generated by multiplying percentage and intensity.RESULTSData‐mining showed an eight times greater FYN expression in prostate cancer than in normal tissue; this was specific to FYN and not present for other SFKs. Expression of FYN in prostate cancer cell lines (LNCaP, 22Rv1, PC3, DuPro) was detected using quantitative RT‐PCR and immunoblotting. Expression of FYN and its signalling partners FAK and PXN was detected in human tissue. Comparing normal with cancer samples, there was a 2.1‐fold increase in median composite score for FYN (P < 0.001) 1.7‐fold increase in FAK (P < 0.001), and a doubling in PXN (P < 0.05). There was a 1.7‐fold increase in FYN (P < 0.05) and a 1.6‐fold increase in FAK (P < 0.01) in cancer compared with PIN.CONCLUSIONSThese studies support the hypothesis that FYN and its related signalling partners are up‐regulated in prostate cancer, and support further investigation into the role of the FYN as a therapeutic target.