A spectroscopic study of the microorganism model of interstellar grains

The microorganism model of interstellar grains is investigated by spectroscopy from the infrared (IR), visible to the ultraviolet (UV) wave regions.E. coli, yeast and spores ofBacillus subtilis exhibit absorption bands at =3.1 and 9.7 m; they also exhibit several absorptions at 68 m which are in agreement with the observed IS extinction curves.To obtain the extinction curves in the visible and UV regions, dry films of microorganism are prepared on a MgF₂ plate or synthesized quartz plate and their spectra measured. In the wavelength region 190400 nm, conventional spectrophotometers are adopted for the measurement. The extinction curve of the film ofE. coli is similar to the observed IS curve.For the wave-range 100<<400 nm, a vacuum UV spectrometer is adopted to avoid absorptions due to O₂ in the atmosphere. The extinction spectra by this method are in agreement with the result obtained by the conventional method where comparison is possible. The extinction curves ofE. coli and yeast are such that they incrase towards the short wavelength and exhibit a peak at -190 nm, which is different from the well-known IS peak at =220 nm. It remains to be seen whether interstellar low temperatures (1040 K) can shift the peak position in the extinction curve of biochemical materials.     

Preservation of the shell matrix protein dermatopontin in 1500 year old land snail fossils from the Bonin islands

Organic molecules such as proteins can be preserved in certain fossils. The bulk properties of fossil proteins of both vertebrates and invertebrates have been studied for over half a century. Named proteins have so far been identified, however, only in vertebrate fossils, such as collagen from mammoth bones. Using immunological assays, we examined 1500 year old fossils of the extinct land snail Mandarina luhuana from the Bonin islands for the presence of dermatopontin, a molluscan shell matrix protein. First, we examined the shell microstructure and mineralogy of the fossil shells using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) in order to estimate the extent of diagenetic alteration. The results suggest that the original microstructure and mineralogy of the shells are preserved. Antiserum raised against the Type-1 dermatopontin fragment of the living land snail Euhadra brandtii showed significant immunological reactivity with the extracts from the fossil shells of M. luhuana. Immunological binding curves drawn for the shell extracts of extant M. aureola and the extinct M. luhuana confirmed the presence of dermatopontin in the fossil shells and provided an estimate that about 75–98% of the original dermatopontin was lost from the M. luhuana fossils. This is the first report of a named protein being identified in invertebrate fossils.     

Co-oscillating and independent tides of the Japan Sea

The generation of tides in the Japan Sea is investigated with relation to the tidal volume fluxes at the attached straits, which are estimated with the observed tidal current data. After the tides are separated into the co-oscillating tides induced by the tidal volume fluxes and the independent tide by the tide-generating force, their contributions to the Japan Sea tides are clarified using a one-dimensional tidal model.For the semidiurnal tide, the co-oscillating tide by the Tusima Strait is dominated in all of the area except the gulf of Tartary, and those by the Tugaru and Soya Straits are not effective anywhere. In the gulf of Tartary, the amplitude of the independent tide is the same as that of the co-oscillating tide attributed to the Tusima Strait.For the diurnal tide, the independent tide is not effective anywhere. The co-oscillating tide by the Tusima Strait is largest and those by the Tugaru and Soya Straits are also influential. In particular, the shifting of the diurnal amphidromic point to the Korean side is caused by the latter.     

Cycladophora davisiana (Radiolaria) in the Okhotsk Sea: A key for reconstructing glacial ocean conditions

Cycladophora davisiana, a radiolarian species dwelling at mesopelagic depths, is known as a representative glacial fauna due to its unique distribution during glacial periods. In the present ocean, abundant production of C. davisiana is only observed in the Okhotsk Sea, indicating an adaptation of C. davisiana for seasonal sea-ice covered conditions. We found pronounced abundant production of C. davisiana during the early to middle Holocene in the Okhotsk Sea, suggesting more favorable conditions for C. davisiana than the present Okhotsk Sea. In order to clarify the reason, oceanographic conditions during the Holocene were reconstructed based on biomarkers, lithogenic grains including ice-rafted debris (IRD), biogenic opal, and total organic carbon (TOC) in two sediment cores from the Okhotsk Sea. These indicators suggest that the pronounced C. davisiana production may be attributed to: 1) a supply to mesopelagic depths under intensified stratification of fine organic particles derived from coccolithophorids, bacteria, and detrital materials; and 2) cold, well-ventilated intermediate water formation.     

Constraints on the application of carbon isotope thermometry in high- to ultrahigh-temperature metamorphic terranes

Nine marble horizons from the granulite facies terrane of southern India were examined in detail for stable carbon and oxygen isotopes in calcite and carbon isotopes in graphite. The marbles in Trivandrum Block show coupled lowering of δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values in calcite and heterogeneous single crystal δ¹³C values (? 1 to ? 10‰) for graphite indicating varying carbon isotope fractionation between calcite and graphite, despite the granulite facies regional metamorphic conditions. The stable isotope patterns suggest alteration of δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values in marbles by infiltration of low δ¹³C–δ¹⁸O‐bearing fluids, the extent of alteration being a direct function of the fluid‐rock ratio. The carbon isotope zonation preserved in graphite suggests that the graphite crystals precipitated/recrystallized in the presence of an externally derived CO₂‐rich fluid, and that the infiltration had occurred under high temperature and low f_O2 conditions during metamorphism. The onset of graphite precipitation resulted in a depletion of the carbon isotope values of the remaining fluid+calcite carbon reservoir, following a Rayleigh‐type distillation process within fluid‐rich pockets/pathways in marbles resulting in the observed zonation. The results suggest that calcite–graphite thermometry cannot be applied in marbles that are affected by external carbonic fluid infiltration. However, marble horizons in the Madurai Block, where the effect of fluid infiltration is not detected, record clear imprints of ultrahigh temperature metamorphism (800–1000 °C), with fractionations reaching <2‰. Zonation studies on graphite show a nominal rimward lowering δ¹³C on the order of 1 to 2‰. The zonation carries the imprint of fluid deficient/absent UHT metamorphism. Commonly, calculated core temperatures are > 1000 °C and would be consistent with UHT metamorphism.     

Candidate precursors: pulse-like geoelectric signals possibly related to recent seismic activity in Japan

Telemetric network observations of pulse-like geoelectric charge signals using a vertical dipole buried under the ground were undertaken at various observation sites over a wide area in Japan from April 1996. From continuous records of the signals during the six months following that, we attempted to select anomalous signals, possibly related to seismic electric activity. Special attention was paid to the elimination of noise resulting from industrial and meteorological electric activity, comparison with other electromagnetic signals in the VLF band and the relation between the precursor period and the distance from the eventual main shock that occurred in Japan. Four candidate precursor electric signals, which were not contaminated by industrial and meteorological electric activity, were then selected, of which the second appeared before the Akita-ken Nairiku-nanbu earthquake swarm, for which the maximum M = 5.9 occurred on 1996 August 11, and the third and fourth before the Chiba-ken Toho-oki earthquake, M = 6.6, on 1996 September 11. A tentative qualitative model explaining why the candidate precursory signal is related to stress building up before an earthquake is presented in terms of the electrification of gases released from fracturing rocks immediately prior to the main shock.     

Temperatures and Oxygen Isotopic Compositions of Hydrothermal Fluids for the Takatori Tungsten-copper Deposit, Japan

Abstract. Fluid inclusion and oxygen isotope studies are performed to obtain temperatures and oxygen isotopic compositions of hydrothermal fluids for the vein-type tungsten-copper deposit at Takatori in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. Temperatures of the hydrothermal fluids are calculated from fluid inclusion data. The calculation incorporates the effects of the salinity, gas concentration, and fluid pressure. The fluid temperatures range from 370 to 460C. For these calculations, this study obtains a density equation for H₂O-NaCl-CO₂ solution at the vapor-liquid two-phase boundary. Then the present study combines the obtained equation with the equation of state by Bowers and Helgeson (1983).
The fluid temperatures determined in this study are applied to the calculation of oxygen isotopic compositions of the hydrothermal fluids. The calculation of the oxygen isotopic compositions is based on the oxygen isotope analyses of vein quartz. The oxygen isotopic compositions of vein quartz range from +13.5 to +14.4 % relative to SMOW. Then, the oxygen isotopic compositions of the hydrothermal fluids in equilibrium with the vein quartz are calculated to be from +9.7 to +10.5 %. These δ¹⁸O_fluid values agree with those of magmatic fluids derived from the ilmenite-series granitic rock, which is related to the mineralization. Keywords: Takatori tungsten-copper deposit, fluid inclusion, oxygen isotope, vein quartz, H₂O-NaCl-CO₂ solution, density     

Geological and geophysical studies of the Agoudal impact structure (Central High Atlas,Morocco): New evidence for crater size and age

Since the discovery of shatter cones (SCs) near the village of Agoudal (Morocco, Central High Atlas Mountains) in 2013, the absence of one or several associated circular structures led to speculation about the age of the impact event, the number, and the size of the impact crater or craters. Additional constraints on the crater size, age, and erosion rates are obtained here from geological, structural, and geophysical mapping and from cosmogenic nuclide data. Our geological maps of the Agoudal impact site at the scales of 1:30,000 (6 km²) and 1:15,000 (2.25 km²) include all known occurrences of SCs in target rocks, breccias, and vertical to overturned strata. Considering that strata surrounding the impact site are subhorizontal, we argue that disturbed strata are related to the impact event. Three types of breccias have been observed. Two of them (br1‐2 and br2) could be produced by erosion–sedimentation–consolidation processes, with no evidence for impact breccias, while breccia (br1) might be impact related. The most probable center of the structure is estimated at 31°59′13.73?N, 5°30′55.14?W using the concentric deviation method applied to the orientation of strata over the disturbed area. Despite the absence of a morphological expression, the ground magnetic and electromagnetic surveys reveal anomalies spatially associated with disturbed strata and SC occurrences. The geophysical data, the structural observations, and the area of occurrence of SCs in target rocks are all consistent with an original size of 1.4–4.2 km in diameter. Cosmogenic nuclide data (³⁶Cl) constrain the local erosion rates between 220 ± 22 m Ma^?1 and 430 ± 43 m Ma^?1. These erosion rates may remove the topographic expression of such a crater and its ejecta in a time period of about 0.3–1.9 Ma. This age is older than the Agoudal iron meteorite age (105 ± 40 kyr). This new age constraint excludes the possibility of a genetic relationship between the Agoudal iron meteorite fall and the formation of the Agoudal impact site. A chronolgy chart including the Atlas orogeny, the alternation of sedimentation and erosion periods, and the meteoritic impacts is presented based on all obtained and combined data.     

Habitability analyses of aquatic bacteria

Habitability is defined as an ability of an organism to inhabit different environments. Habitability of organisms, however, cannot be inferred from analyses such as a whole genome or community structures. A recently developed database, the MetaMetaDB, gives us information from what kind of environments one particular 16S rRNA sequence data has ever been obtained, and thus enables us to infer the habitability of the bacterium in question. In order to check the applicability of this database to study the habitability of aquatic bacteria, samples collected at two Naka River stations, one estuarine station from Naka River Estuary, two coastal stations at Oarai in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan and one station in the Kuroshio Current of the western North Pacific were examined. The phylotypes were tracked against the MetaMetaDB and it was reasonably found that the low-salinity stations were dominated by sequences with “freshwater and groundwater”, “human” and “wastewater” habitat identities, while the high-salinity stations were dominated by those with a “marine” identity. The phylotypes of low-salinity stations with a particular habitat identity were absent or rare in the high-salinity stations and vice versa. The MetaMetaDB also showed that sequences of Cyanobacteria or related phylogenetic groups may be present in the human gut, as well as the probable distribution of the relatives (ancestors/descendants/siblings) of some bacteria. These overall findings proved that the MetaMetaDB is useful as a new tool to infer microbial habitability and it gives us new information on the possible origin and ecology of microorganisms in the environments.