Genetic heterogeneity in populations of the Mediterranean shore crab, Carcinus aestuarii (Decapoda,Portunidae), from the Venice Lagoon

Heterogeneity in genetic composition among recruits, mostly due to a large variance in reproductive success mediated by oceanographic processes, has been reported for marine species but is less understood in coastal lagoons' organisms. Temporal genetic variation in natural populations of the Mediterranean shore crab Carcinus aestuarii was quantified over a multi-year sample. A total of 486 adult crabs were collected at eight different sites of the Venice Lagoon during the period 2005–2007 and screened for genetic variation using 11 microsatellite loci. Two additional samples (N = 115) from neighbouring sites, located approximately 100 km North and South to the Venice Lagoon, were included for the sake of comparison. Our results show significant differences in allelic frequencies at the micro-geographic scale of the Venice Lagoon, observed between sites of collection, typologies of habitat, and areas with different class of ecological risk or pattern of hemocyanin expression. However, this pattern was not constant between years, with significant differences observed mainly in 2005 and 2006, but not in 2007. Our results indicate significant temporal differences suggesting the existence of dynamic processes that act on the genetic pool of this species. Although natural selection and gene flow might play a role, we suggest that genetic drift linked to large variation in the reproductive success of individuals is the most probable scenario to explain the local genetic patterns of differentiation in the Mediterranean shore crab. Our study, by providing the first evidence for the existence of genetic differences in this species at the micro-geographic scale, suggests that a better comprehension of the link between reproduction, recruitment and oceanography is critical to understand how colonization and maintenance of genetic variation is achieved in ephemeral and vulnerable environments such as coastal lagoons.     

Understanding the vulnerability of migrants in Shanghai to typhoons

China has experienced considerable migration from inland to coastal areas since the reforms of 1978, with migrants becoming an important population in many coastal cities. Compared with non-migrants (long-term residents), migrant vulnerability to typhoons is considered high due to limited access to job opportunities, social security, information, and other resources; however, there is no research on vulnerability of this population sector to natural hazards. This initial study analysed the perceptions and personal experiences of migrants living in Shanghai of typhoon hazards. During May 2010, empirical data were collected using an online questionnaire and face–face interviews. Response data indicated that risk knowledge of migrants was significantly lower than among non- migrants; differing risk perceptions between the groups were consistent with levels of personal typhoon experience; statistically significant differences in hazard knowledge within the sample also related to education and occupation; a variety of strategies to cope with typhoon hazards was being applied by residential committees; and that migrants were not generally recognised as a vulnerable group requiring special consideration in hazard risk management. To reduce the vulnerability of migrants to typhoons, we recommend expanding the range of accessible communication technologies distributing warning information; organising more educational and training programmes, at government and corporate level, to increase community awareness of natural hazards; encouraging local residential committees to promote social networks and engagement for migrants; and providing corporate incentives to develop insurances specifically for migrant needs. Further research is necessary to assess the differences in vulnerability between different types of migrants.     

Classical and relativistic node precessional effects in WASP-33b and perspectives for detecting them

WASP-33 is a fast rotating, main sequence star which hosts a hot Jupiter moving along a retrograde and almost polar orbit with semi-major axis a=0.02 au and eccentricity provisionally set to e=0. The quadrupole mass moment J₂^*J_{2}^{\star} and the proper angular momentum S _⋆ of the star are 1900 and 400 times, respectively, larger than those of the Sun. Thus, huge classical and general relativistic non-Keplerian orbital effects should take place in such a system. In particular, the large inclination Ψ_⋆ of the orbit of WASP-33b to the star’s equator allows to consider the node precession [(W)\dot]\dot{\Omega} and the related time variation dt _d /dt of the transit duration t _d . The WASP-33b node rate due to J₂^*J_{2}^{\star} is 9×10⁹ times larger than the same effect for Mercury induced by the Sun’s oblateness, while the general relativistic gravitomagnetic node precession is 3×10⁵ times larger than the Lense-Thirring effect for Mercury due to the Sun’s rotation. We also consider the effect of the centrifugal oblateness of the planet itself and of a putative distant third body X. The magnitudes of the induced time change in the transit duration are of the order of 3×10⁻⁶,2×10⁻⁷,8×10⁻⁹ for J₂^*J_{2}^{\star}, the planet’s rotational oblateness and general relativity, respectively. A yet undiscovered planet X with the mass of Jupiter orbiting at more than 1 au would induce a transit duration variation of less than 4×10⁻⁹. A conservative evaluation of the accuracy in measuring dt _d /dt over 10 yr points towards ≈10⁻⁸. The analysis presented here will be applicable also to other exoplanets with similar features if and when they will ne discovered.     

Genesis of the hydrothermal gold deposits in the Canan area,Lepaguare District,Honduras

The Canan area (Honduras) is characterized by a gold-bearing ore deposit that is associated with quartz-veined shear zones. Gold mineralization occurs in low-to medium-grade metamorphic host-rocks (graphitic and sericitic schists). Hydrothermal fluids, which are associated with the emplacement of Cretaceous-Tertiary granodioritic intrusions, are responsible for the formation of quartz veins and the hydrothermal alteration of wall-rocks. Three main altered zones have been detected in the wall-rocks as far as 150 cm from the quartz veins. The distal zone (up to 50-cm thick) contains quartz, chlorite and illite. The intermediate zone is the thickest (up to 80 cm) and is marked by quartz, muscovite, sulphides, kaolinite and native elements such as Au and Ag. The proximal zone, which is close to the quartz veins, is rather thin (up to 25 cm) and contains clay minerals, Al-oxides-hydroxides and sulphides. The transition from the distal to the proximal zone is accompanied by the enrichment of SiO₂ and the depletion of all other major elements, except for Fe₂O_3(tot). Precious metals occur in the highest concentrations in the intermediate zone (Au up to 7.6 ppm and Ag up to 11 ppm). We suggest that gold was transported as a reduced sulphur complex and was precipitated from the hydrothermal solution by the reaction of the sulphur complexes with Fe²⁺ from the alteration of the mafic minerals of the host-rock. Fluid–wall-rock interactions seem to be the main cause of gold mineralization. Genetic relationships with a strike-slip fault system, hydrothermal alteration zones within the metamorphic wall-rocks, and an entire set of geochemical anomalies are consistent with orogenic-type gold deposits of the epizonal class.     

The role of pre-existing faults in the structural evolution of thrust systems: Insights from the Ligurian Alps (Italy)

New structural and stratigraphic data for a selected area of the Ligurian Alps are combined in order to assess and discuss the role played by extensional structures in the southernmost segment of the Western Alps during thrusting. Restored cross-sections and field data suggest that the structural style in the external sector of the chain may depend upon the presence of pre-orogenic normal faults ascribed to three extensional events linked to different geodynamic contexts: (i) Permian post-Variscan plate reorganisation, (ii) Mesozoic rifting–drifting phases leading to the opening of the Alpine Tethys, and (iii) Eocenic development of the European foreland basins. During positive inversion in Eocene times, a thin-skinned thrust system developed in this area, followed by a thick-skinned phase. In both situations the inherited extensional structures played fundamental roles: during the thin-skinned phase they conditioned the thrusting sequence, also producing large-scale buckle folds and partial reactivations; during the thick-skinned phase the strain was compartmentalized and partitioned by pre-existing faults.The kinematic model of the external sectors of the Ligurian chain also allows the re-assessment of the Alpine evolution of the front-foreland transition, including: (i) indirect confirmation that in the Eocene the Ligurian Briançonnais and Dauphinois domains were not separated by the Valais-Pyrenean oceanic basin; (ii) that the thin-skinned phase progressively changed into thick-skinned; (iii) the assertion that there were no significant deformations from the Oligocene to the present-day, and the Corsica–Sardinia block rotation only produced a change in orientation of previously formed structures and normal fault system development.     

Semi-empirical proton binding constants for natural organic matter

Average proton binding constants (K_H,i) for structure models of humic (HA) and fulvic (FA) acids were estimated semi-empirically by breaking down the macromolecules into reactive structural units (RSUs), and calculating K_H,i values of the RSUs using linear free energy relationships (LFER) of Hammett. Predicted log K_H,COOH and log K_H,Ph-OH are 3.73 ± 0.13 and 9.83 ± 0.23 for HA, and 3.80 ± 0.20 and 9.87 ± 0.31 for FA. The predicted constants for phenolic-type sites (Ph-OH) are generally higher than those derived from potentiometric titrations, but the difference may not be significant in view of the considerable uncertainty of the acidity constants determined from acid-base measurements at high pH. The predicted constants for carboxylic-type sites agree well with titration data analyzed with Model VI (4.10 ± 0.16 for HA, 3.20 ± 0.13 for FA; Tipping, 1998), the Impermeable Sphere model (3.50-4.50 for HA; Avena et al., 1999), and the Stockholm Humic Model (4.10 ± 0.20 for HA, 3.50 ± 0.40 for FA; Gustafsson, 2001), but differ by about one log unit from those obtained by Milne et al. (2001) with the NICA-Donnan model (3.09 ± 0.51 for HA, 2.65 ± 0.43 for FA), and used to derive recommended generic values. To clarify this ambiguity, 10 high-quality titration data from Milne et al. (2001) were re-analyzed with the new predicted equilibrium constants. The data are described equally well with the previous and new sets of values (R² ? 0.98), not necessarily because the NICA-Donnan model is overparametrized, but because titration lacks the sensitivity needed to quantify the full binding properties of humic substances. Correlations between NICA-Donnan parameters are discussed, but general progress is impeded by the unknown number of independent parameters that can be varied during regression of a model fit to titration data. The high consistency between predicted and experimental K_H,COOH values, excluding those of Milne et al. (2001), gives faith in the proposed semi-empirical structural approach, and its usefulness to assess the plausibility of proton stability constants derived from simulations of titration data.     

Relationship between heavy metal accumulation and genetic variability decrease in the intertidal crab Pachygrapsus marmoratus (Decapoda; Grapsidae)

The “genetic erosion” hypothesis posits that heavy metal stress is related to a loss of genetic diversity at the population level. The genetic diversity of natural populations can, however, be affected by natural processes as well as by human impact. We studied the relationship between heavy metal bioaccumulation and genetic variability in the intertidal crab Pachygrapsus marmoratus. Tissue samples were collected from 40 individuals inhabiting four polluted and four unpolluted sites along the Tuscan coast (Mediterranean basin), and were examined for four heavy metals (arsenic, As, cadmium, Cd, lead, Pb, and copper, Cu). We also assessed the genetic variability of 235 crabs from the same localities using six microsatellite loci.Our results show that the bioaccumulation levels of these individuals accurately reflect the levels of pollution in their immediate environment, and that heavy metals accumulate more in the hepatopancreas than in the gills. Moreover, populations from polluted sites have significantly less genetic variability, measured as mean standardized d², and a significantly lower percentage of unrelated individuals, than populations from unpolluted sites. This evidence supports the “genetic erosion” hypothesis for metal heavy exposure in natural environments.     

Inhomogeneous viscous fluids in FRW universe and finite-future time singularities

We consider inhomogeneous viscous fluids in flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker universe. We analyze different kinds of such fluids and investigate the possibility to reproduce the current cosmic acceleration providing a different future evolution with respect to the Cosmological Constant case. In particular, we study the presence of finite-future time singularities. We also discuss a general class of “integrable” viscous fluid models whose bulk viscosities obey to a common differential equation.     

Speciation and solubility of heavy metals in contaminated soil using X-ray microfluorescence, EXAFS spectroscopy, chemical extraction, and thermodynamic modeling

Synchrotron-based X-ray radiation microfluorescence (μ-SXRF) and micro-focused and powder extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy measurements, combined with desorption experiments and thermodynamic calculations, were used to evaluate the solubility of metal contaminants (Zn, Cu, Pb) and determine the nature and fractional amount of Zn species in a near-neutral pH (6.5-7.0) truck-farming soil contaminated by sewage irrigation for one hundred years. Zn is the most abundant metal contaminant in the soil (1103 mg/kg), followed by Pb (535 mg/kg) and Cu (290 mg/kg). The extractability of Zn, Pb, and Cu with citrate, S,S-ethylenediaminedisuccinic acid (EDDS), and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) was measured as a function of time (24 h, 72 h, 144 h), and also as a function of the number of applications of the chelant (5 applications each with 24 h of contact time). Fifty-three percent of the Zn was extracted after 144 h with citrate, 51% with EDDS and 46% with EDTA, compared to 69, 87, and 61% for Cu, and 24, 40, and 34% for Pb. Renewing the extracting solution removed more of the metals. Seventy-nine, 65, and 57% of the Zn was removed after five cycles with citrate, EDDS and EDTA, respectively, compared to 88, 100, and 72% for Cu, and 91, 65, and 47% for Pb. Application to the untreated soil of μ-SXRF, laterally resolved μ-EXAFS combined with principal component analysis, and bulk averaging powder EXAFS with linear least-squares combination fit of the data, identified five Zn species: Zn-sorbed ferrihydrite, Zn phosphate, Zn-containing trioctahedral phyllosilicate (modeled by the Zn kerolite, Si₄(Mg_1.65Zn_1.35)O₁₀(OH)₂ · nH₂O), willemite (Zn₂SiO₄), and gahnite (ZnAl₂O₄), in proportions of ∼30, 28, 24, 11, and less than 10%, respectively (precision: 10% of total Zn). In contrast to Cu and Pb, the same fractional amount of Zn was extracted after 24 h contact time with the three chelants (40-43% of the initial content), suggesting that one of the three predominant Zn species was highly soluble under the extraction conditions. Comparison of EXAFS data before and after chemical treatment revealed that the Zn phosphate component was entirely and selectively dissolved in the first 24 h of contact time. Preferential dissolution of the Zn phosphate component is supported by thermodynamic calculations. Despite the long-term contamination of this soil, about 79% of Zn, 91% of Pb, and 100% of Cu can be solubilized in the laboratory on a time scale of a few days by chemical complexants. According to metal speciation results and thermodynamic calculations, the lower extraction level measured for Zn is due to the Zn phyllosilicate component, which is less soluble than Zn phosphate and Zn ferrihydrite.