Plant Taphonomy and Paleoecology of Late Pennsylvanian Intramontane Wetlands in the Graissessac-Lodève Basin (Languedoc, France)

Palaios ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 249-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
CARLES MARTÍN-CLOSAS ◽  
JEAN GALTIER

Abstract The Late Pennsylvanian Graissessac-Lodève basin is a small, fluvio-palustrine depocenter located in the southern part of the Massif Central (France). A taphonomic and sedimentologic study carried out in this area allows a reconstruction of Late Carboniferous vegetation in an intramontane context. The paleoecology of such limnic settings is poorly known, and this study permits detailed comparison with paralic basins for the first time. The Graissessac peat mires developed in abandoned fluvial channels, in floodplains, and above distal alluvial fans. The vegetation was dominated by monospecific stands of the arborescent lycopsid Sigillaria brardii, whereas the tree fern Psaronius occurred during the later stages of mire accretion. This is in contrast to coeval North American peat mires, which generally were dominated by tree ferns and pteridosperms throughout the mire profile. Stephanian floodplains and distal alluvial fans of the Graissessac-Lodève Basin were devoid of vegetation, with the exception of isolated thickets of sphenopsids that were composed of Calamites and Sphenophyllum. These plants were found growing in situ in the floodplain mudstones as well as in fine-grained sands of secondary channels. Parautochthonous foliage assemblages of ferns and pteridosperms found in floodplain mudstones represent the most diverse plant community. The plants supplying these remains were growing in exposed areas close to floodplains. Large logs attributed to cordaitaleans and monotypic assemblages of large Cordaites leaves were found in fluvial sediments, and suggest that the plants were riparian elements in the basin.

2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 401-405
Author(s):  
Bhupendra Kholia ◽  
Bipin Sinha

In present communication, based on the detailed exploration, field observation and herbarium study, the Tree Ferns of Nicobar Islands are taxonomically discussed in detail. Only two endemic species, Cyathea albosetacea (Bedd.) Copel. and Cyathea nicobarica N.P. Balakr. & Dixit were known to occur in Nicobars Islands, but based on the detailed observation on type specimens and observation of live plants growing in type locality and other part of Nicobars both are found to be conspecific. Therefore, Cyathea nicobarica is merged here into Cyathea albosetacea. During present study, an additional south east asian tree fern Cyathea contaminans (Wall.) Copel. is found growing in Great Nicobar and reported here an addition to the Nicobar Island for the first time.


Materials ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 328
Author(s):  
Dmitry Merson ◽  
Mikhail Linderov ◽  
Alexander Brilevsky ◽  
Alexey Danyuk ◽  
Alexei Vinogradov

The tensile behaviour of the biocompatible alloy Mg-1Zn-0.2Ca (in wt.%) in the fine-grained state, obtained by severe plastic deformation via multiaxial isothermal forging, has been investigated in a wide range of temperatures (20 ÷ 300) °C and strain rates (5 × 10−4 ÷ 2 × 10−2) s−1 with the measurements of acoustic emission (AE). The dependences of mechanical properties, including the yield stress, ultimate strength, ductility, and the strain-hardening rate, on the test temperature and strain rate, were obtained and discussed. It is shown for the first time that an acoustic emission method is an effective tool for in situ monitoring of the dynamic recrystallisation (DRX) process. The specific behaviour of the acoustic emission spectral density reflected by its median frequency as a function of strain at various temperatures can serve as an indicator of the DRX process’s completeness.


Author(s):  
F. Rull ◽  
A. Delgado ◽  
J. Martínez-Frías

For the first time, micro-Raman spectroscopy has been applied to the structural study of four megacryometeors (extremely large atmospheric ice conglomerations that fall in general under blue-sky atmospheric conditions) that fell in Spain. The Raman spectra taken on the megacryometeor cores have been compared with those obtained from an in situ and online study performed on the crystallization process of water in the laboratory. A detailed comparison of the band profiles obtained made it possible to place the formation of the megacryometeors within a particular range of temperatures (−10 to −20°C), which in turn can be related with the altitude of formation in the atmosphere. These results have also been compared with isotope concentrations (δ 18 O and δD) previously obtained in these cores. The two sets of results show a close correlation.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hugo K. H. Olierook ◽  
Kai Rankenburg ◽  
Stanislav Ulrich ◽  
Christopher L. Kirkland ◽  
Noreen Evans ◽  
...  

Abstract. Dating multiple geological events in single samples using thermochronology and geochronology is relatively common but it is only with the recent advent of triple quadrupole LA-ICP-MS that in situ Rb-Sr dating has become a more commonly applied and powerful tool to date K- and Rb-bearing minerals. Here, we date, for the first time, two generations of mineral assemblages in individual thin sections using the in situ Rb-Sr method. Two distinct mineral assemblages, both probably associated with Au mineralization, are identified in samples from the Tropicana gold mine in the Albany–Fraser Orogen, Western Australia. For Rb-Sr purposes, the key dateable minerals are two generations of biotite, and additional phengite associated with the second assemblage. Our results reveal that the first, coarse-grained generation of biotite grains records a minimum age of 2535 ± 18 Ma, coeval with previous 40Ar/39Ar biotite, Re-Os pyrite and U-Pb rutile results. The second, fine-grained and recrystallized generation of biotite grains record an age of 1207 ± 12 Ma across all samples. Phengite and muscovite yielded broadly similar results at ca. 1.2 Ga but data is overdispersed for a single coeval population of phengite and shows elevated age uncertainties for muscovite. We propose that the ca. 2530 Ma age recorded by various geochronometers represents cooling and exhumation, and that the age of ca. 1210 Ma is related to major shearing associated with the regional deformation associated with Stage II of the Albany–Fraser Orogeny. This is the first time that an age of ca. 1210 Ma has been identified in the Tropicana Zone, which may have ramifications for constraining the timing of mineralization in the region. The in situ Rb-Sr technique is currently the only tool capable of resolving both geological events in these rocks.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine A. Kelly ◽  
Judith E. Houston ◽  
Rachel Evans

Understanding the dynamic self-assembly behaviour of azobenzene photosurfactants (AzoPS) is crucial to advance their use in controlled release applications such as<i></i>drug delivery and micellar catalysis. Currently, their behaviour in the equilibrium <i>cis-</i>and <i>trans</i>-photostationary states is more widely understood than during the photoisomerisation process itself. Here, we investigate the time-dependent self-assembly of the different photoisomers of a model neutral AzoPS, <a>tetraethylene glycol mono(4′,4-octyloxy,octyl-azobenzene) </a>(C<sub>8</sub>AzoOC<sub>8</sub>E<sub>4</sub>) using small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). We show that the incorporation of <i>in-situ</i>UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy with SANS allows the scattering profile, and hence micelle shape, to be correlated with the extent of photoisomerisation in real-time. It was observed that C<sub>8</sub>AzoOC<sub>8</sub>E<sub>4</sub>could switch between wormlike micelles (<i>trans</i>native state) and fractal aggregates (under UV light), with changes in the self-assembled structure arising concurrently with changes in the absorption spectrum. Wormlike micelles could be recovered within 60 seconds of blue light illumination. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time the degree of AzoPS photoisomerisation has been tracked <i>in</i><i>-situ</i>through combined UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy-SANS measurements. This technique could be widely used to gain mechanistic and kinetic insights into light-dependent processes that are reliant on self-assembly.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yaroslav Boyko ◽  
Christopher Huck ◽  
David Sarlah

<div>The first total synthesis of rhabdastrellic acid A, a highly cytotoxic isomalabaricane triterpenoid, has been accomplished in a linear sequence of 14 steps from commercial geranylacetone. The prominently strained <i>trans-syn-trans</i>-perhydrobenz[<i>e</i>]indene core characteristic of the isomalabaricanes is efficiently accessed in a selective manner for the first time through a rapid, complexity-generating sequence incorporating a reductive radical polyene cyclization, an unprecedented oxidative Rautenstrauch cycloisomerization, and umpolung 𝛼-substitution of a <i>p</i>-toluenesulfonylhydrazone with in situ reductive transposition. A late-stage cross-coupling in concert with a modular approach to polyunsaturated side chains renders this a general strategy for the synthesis of numerous family members of these synthetically challenging and hitherto inaccessible marine triterpenoids.</div>


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 1762
Author(s):  
Artur Maciej ◽  
Natalia Łatanik ◽  
Maciej Sowa ◽  
Izabela Matuła ◽  
Wojciech Simka

One method of creating a brass coating is through electrodeposition, which is most often completed in cyanide galvanic baths. Due to their toxicity, many investigations focused on the development of more environmentally friendly alternatives. The purpose of the study was to explore a new generation of non-aqueous cyanide-free baths based on 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ionic liquids. The study involved the formation of copper, zinc, and brass coatings. The influence of the bath composition, cathodic current density, and temperature was determined. The obtained coatings were characterized in terms of their morphology, chemical composition, phase composition, roughness, and corrosion resistance. It was found that the structure of the obtained coatings is strongly dependent on the process parameters. The three main structure types observed were as follows: fine-grained, porous, and olive-like. To the best knowledge of the authors, it is the first time the olive-like structure was observed in the case of an electrodeposited coating. The Cu-Zn coatings consisted of 19–96 at. % copper and exhibited relatively good corrosion resistance. A significant improvement of corrosion properties was found in the case of copper and brass coatings with the olive-like structure.


2021 ◽  
pp. 089331892199807
Author(s):  
Jonathan Clifton ◽  
Fernando Fachin ◽  
François Cooren

To date there has been little work that uses fine-grained interactional analyses of the in situ doing of leadership to make visible the role of non-human as well as human actants in this process. Using transcripts of naturally-occurring interaction as data, this study seeks to show how leadership is co-achieved by artefacts as an in-situ accomplishment. To do this we situate this study within recent work on distributed leadership and argue that it is not only distributed across human actors, but also across networks that include both human and non-human actors. Taking a discursive approach to leadership, we draw on Actor Network Theory and adopt a ventriloquial approach to sociomateriality as inspired by the Montreal School of organizational communication. Findings indicate that artefacts “do” leadership when a hybrid presence is made relevant to the interaction and when this presence provides authoritative grounds for influencing others to achieve the group’s goals.


Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 54
Author(s):  
Christine Landlinger ◽  
Lenka Tisakova ◽  
Vera Oberbauer ◽  
Timo Schwebs ◽  
Abbas Muhammad ◽  
...  

Bacterial vaginosis is characterized by an imbalance of the vaginal microbiome and a characteristic biofilm formed on the vaginal epithelium, which is initiated and dominated by Gardnerella bacteria, and is frequently refractory to antibiotic treatment. We investigated endolysins of the type 1,4-beta-N-acetylmuramidase encoded on Gardnerella prophages as an alternative treatment. When recombinantly expressed, these proteins demonstrated strong bactericidal activity against four different Gardnerella species. By domain shuffling, we generated several engineered endolysins with 10-fold higher bactericidal activity than any wild-type enzyme. When tested against a panel of 20 Gardnerella strains, the most active endolysin, called PM-477, showed minimum inhibitory concentrations of 0.13–8 µg/mL. PM-477 had no effect on beneficial lactobacilli or other species of vaginal bacteria. Furthermore, the efficacy of PM-477 was tested by fluorescence in situ hybridization on vaginal samples of fifteen patients with either first time or recurring bacterial vaginosis. In thirteen cases, PM-477 killed the Gardnerella bacteria and physically dissolved the biofilms without affecting the remaining vaginal microbiome. The high selectivity and effectiveness in eliminating Gardnerella, both in cultures of isolated strains as well as in clinically derived samples of natural polymicrobial biofilms, makes PM-477 a promising alternative to antibiotics for the treatment of bacterial vaginosis, especially in patients with frequent recurrence.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Melquizedec Luiz Silva Pinheiro ◽  
Cleusa Yoshiko Nagamachi ◽  
Talita Fernanda Augusto Ribas ◽  
Cristovam Guerreiro Diniz ◽  
Patricia Caroline Mary O´Brien ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The Scolopacidae family (Suborder Scolopaci, Charadriiformes) is composed of sandpipers and snipes; these birds are long-distance migrants that show great diversity in their behavior and habitat use. Cytogenetic studies in the Scolopacidae family show the highest diploid numbers for order Charadriiformes. This work analyzes for the first time the karyotype of Actitis macularius by classic cytogenetics and chromosome painting. Results The species has a diploid number of 92, composed mostly of telocentric pairs. This high 2n is greater than the proposed 80 for the avian ancestral putative karyotype (a common feature among Scolopaci), suggesting that fission rearrangements have formed smaller macrochromosomes and microchromosomes. Fluorescence in situ hybridization using Burhinus oedicnemus whole chromosome probes confirmed the fissions in pairs 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 of macrochromosomes. Conclusion Comparative analysis with other species of Charadriiformes studied by chromosome painting together with the molecular phylogenies for the order allowed us to raise hypotheses about the chromosomal evolution in suborder Scolopaci. From this, we can establish a clear idea of how chromosomal evolution occurred in this suborder.


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