In vitro alternatives to whole animal testing. Comparative cytotoxicity studies of divalent metals in established cell lines derived from tropical and temperate water fish species in a neutral red assay

A simple vital dye (neutral red) uptake method for investigation of the acute toxicity of seven divalent metal cations to cell lines derived from the turbot (TF) and bluegill (BF-2) was evaluated. The method was extremely reproducible between replicate experiments on a week to week basis as well as being reproducible between different laboratories. Whilst there were some species-dependent differences in the relative toxicities of the metals there were good correlations between toxicity and the chemical softness (Σp) of the metal ions and also between in vivo and in vitro toxicities. These studies demonstrate that this simple and relatively inexpensive technique carried out in 96-well microplates may be extremely useful for evaluation of structure-toxicity relationships between related groups of compounds.     

U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) Prelease Geological and Geophysical (G & G) Data Acquisition: A 20-Year Retrospective, 1976-1996

Since 1976, the Minerals Management Service (MMS) has administered its prelease geological and geophysical (G & G) data acquisition program through Title 30, Part 251, of the Code of Federal Regulations, which govern permitting, acquisitions, and data release. Leading indicators of offshore oil and gas activity are the number of permits issued to industry, associated mileage, and expenditures. Over the last 20 years, permit activity has indicated that most of the oil and gas surveying has been in the Gulf of Mexico, where 80 % of all permits have been issued, followed by Alaska (10 %), the Pacific (7 %), and the Atlantic (3 %). These statistics correlate with the dominant position of the central and western Gulf of Mexico areas in oil and gas activity. More than 95 % of all permits were issued for geophysical exploration, mostly for two-dimensional (2-D) common-depth-point (CDP) seismic data. However, over the last 10 years, permits for three-dimensional (3-D) seismic data have averaged 25 % of all geophysical permits and, by 1996, made up approximately half of all geophysical permits offshore-wide. Between 1976 and the early 1990s, industry shot approximately 500,000 linemiles of 2-D CDP data each year on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Of that total, MMS acquired approximately50,000 line-miles annually. In the 1990s, parallel with industry, MMS increased its acquisition of 3-D seismic data in concert with the development and use of interactive workstations. The majority of 2-D and 3-D data have been acquired in the Gulf of Mexico by a ratio of 2:1 over Alaska, the next largest data inventory. With regard to MMS expenditures for G & G data, from 1976 through the 1980s, Alaska, having more offshore area than the other three regions combined, had the largest portion. However, in the 1900s, the vast majority of expenditures have been in the Gulf of Mexico. Over the years, permit totals, mileage acquired, and expenditures for data reflect trends of oil and gas pricing, limitations of offshore moratoria, and a shift of industry emphasis to foreign theaters.     

A critical review of three methods used for the measurement of mercury (Hg)-dissolved organic matter stability constants

Three experimental techniques – ion exchange, liquid–liquid extraction with competitive ligand exchange, and solid-phase extraction with competitive ligand exchange (CLE–SPE) – were evaluated as methods for determining conditional stability constants (K) for the binding of mercury (Hg²⁺) to dissolved organic matter (DOM). To determine the utility of a given method to measure stability constants at environmentally relevant experimental conditions, experimental results should meet three criteria: (1) the data must be experimentally valid, in that they were acquired under conditions that meet all the requirements of the experimental method, (2) the Hg:DOM ratio should be determined and it should fall within levels that are consistent with environmental conditions, and (3) the stability constants must fall within the detection window of the method. The ion exchange method was found to be limited by its detection window, which constrains the method to stability constants with log K values less than about 14. The liquid–liquid extraction method was found to be complicated by the ability of Hg–DOM complexes to partition into the organic phase. The CLE–SPE method was found to be the most suitable of these methods for the measurement of Hg–DOM stability constants. Stability constants for DOM isolates measured using the CLE–SPE method at environmentally relevant Hg:DOM ratios were log K = 25–30 (M⁻¹). These values are consistent with the strong Hg²⁺ binding expected for reduced S-containing binding sites.     

Distribution of diagenetic alterations within depositional facies and sequence stratigraphic framework of fluvial sandstones: Evidence from the Petrohan Terrigenous Group,Lower Triassic,NW Bulgaria

Sequence stratigraphy of fluvial deposits is a controversial topic because changes in relative sea level will eventually have indirect impact on the spatial and temporal distribution of depositional facies. Changes in the relative sea level may influence the accommodation space in fluvial plains, and hence have impact on types of fluvial system, frequency of avulsion, and style of vertical and lateral accretion. This study aims to investigate whether depositional facies and changes in the fluvial system of the Lower Triassic Petrohan Terrigenous Group sandstones (NW Bulgaria) in response to changes in the relative sea level have an impact on the spatial and temporal distribution of diagenetic alterations.     

Stable isotope constraints on the fluid source of hydrothermal breccia pipes in the Tankwa Karoo depocentre,South Africa: Breakdown of authigenic minerals during sill intrusion

The Karoo Basin covers much of South Africa and is an area of prospective shale gas exploration, with the Whitehill Formation the target shale unit. However, the sedimentary succession, including the Whitehill, has been intruded by a series of sills and dykes associated with the Karoo Large Igneous Province (~183 Ma), which are expected to have modified the thermal history of the basin dramatically. Here, we investigate a secondary effect of these intrusions: a series of hydrothermal vent complexes, or breccia pipes, focusing on using O, H, and C isotopes to constrain the origin and evolution of fluids produced during the intrusion of basaltic sills. A cluster of breccia pipes have been eroded down to the level of the Ecca Group at Luiperdskop on the western edge of the Karoo basin; a small isolated pipe of similar appearance crops out 13 km to the east. The Luiperdskop pipes are underlain by a Karoo dolerite sill that is assumed to provide the heat driving fluidization. The pipes consist of fine‐grained matrix and about 8% clasts, on average, of mostly sedimentary material; occasional large rafts of quartzite and dolerite are also present. The presence of clasts apparently from the Dwyka Group is consistent with the depth of formation of the pipes being at, or near, the base of the Karoo Supergroup, between 400 and 850 m below present surface. The presence of chlorite as the dominant hydrous mineral is consistent with an emplacement temperature between 300 and 350°C. The major and trace element, and O‐ and H‐isotope composition of the Tankwa breccias is homogenous, consistent with them being derived from the same source. The δ¹⁸O values (vsVSMOW) of the breccias are relatively uniform (7.1‰–8.7‰), and are similar to that of the country rock shale, and both are lower than expected for shale. The water content of the breccia is between 2.7 and 3.1 wt.% and the δD values range from ?109‰ to ?144‰. Calcite in vesicles has δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O (VSMOW) values of ?4.2‰ and 24.0‰, respectively. The low δD value of the breccia rocks does not appear to be due to the presence of methane in the fluid. Instead, it is proposed that low δD and δ¹⁸O values are the result of the fluid being derived from the breakdown of clay minerals that formed and were deposited at a time of cold climate at ~290 Ma.     

Alfven Wave Reflection model of field-aligned currents at Mercury

An Alfven Wave Reflection (AWR) model is proposed that provides closure for strong field-aligned currents (FACs) driven by the magnetopause reconnection in the magnetospheres of planets having no significant ionospheric and surface electrical conductance. The model is based on properties of the Alfven waves, generated at high altitudes and reflected from the low-conductivity surface of the planet. When magnetospheric convection is very slow, the incident and reflected Alfven waves propagate along approximately the same path. In this case, the net field-aligned currents will be small. However, as the convection speed increases, the reflected wave is displaced relatively to the incident wave so that the incident and reflected waves no longer compensate each other. In this case, the net field-aligned current may be large despite the lack of significant ionospheric and surface conductivity. Our estimate shows that for typical solar wind conditions at Mercury, the magnitude of Region 1-type FACs in Mercury’s magnetosphere may reach hundreds of kilo-Amperes. This AWR model of field-aligned currents may provide a solution to the long-standing problem of the closure of FACs in the Mercury’s magnetosphere.     

Uplift and submarine formation of some Melanesian porphyry copper deposits: Stable isotope evidence

Hydrogen and oxygen isotope analyses of sericites and kaolinites from four young porphyry copper deposits (Ok Tedi (1.2 Ma) and Yandera (6.5 Ma), Papua New Guinea; Koloula (1.5 Ma), Solomon Islands; and Waisoi (<5 Ma), Fiji) indicate that the fluids from which these minerals precipitated were of mixed magmatic and non-magmatic sources. The non-magmatic component of the fluid from the island arc deposits (Koloula, Waisoi) was ocean water.For Ok Tedi, the non-magmatic component was a meteoric water with an isotopic composition different from that of the present meteoric water in the region. The isotopic signature of the former meteoric water is consistent with a surface elevation of 200 m a.s.l. or less at the time of mineralization. The deposit was later exposed and supergene kaolinitization commenced at approximately 1200 m a.s.l. Uplift and erosion has continued to the present at which time the elevation of the exposed deposit is 1800 m a.s.l. This rate of uplift is consistent with that known from other geological evidence. If the rate of uplift were approximately constant during the last 1.2 Ma, the age of supergene enrichment can be dated at approximately 0.4 Ma B.P.Similarly, influx of meteoric water at Yandera occurred when the ground surface above the deposit was at an elevation of approximately 600 m a.s.l. The deposit's present elevation is 1600 m a.s.l. In this case a total uplift of approximately 2.2 km is indicated, with removal of 1.2 km of overburden by erosion.     

One- and multi-component models of the upper photosphere based on molecular spectra

Non-LTE synthetic spectra derived from a detailed analysis of the formation of the CN (0, 0) λ13883 Å spectrum are compared with center-limb photoelectric spectra taken at Kitt Peak National Observatory. Kitt Peak National Observatory is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under contract with the National Science Foundation. Significant non-LTE effects are found and the Kurucz, Altrock-Cannon, Mount-Linsky II, and HSRA models are compared. We derive a solar carbon abundance of A _c =8.30±0.10 for the Mount-Linsky model and A _c =8.40±0.10 for the Altrock-Cannon model, compared to the HSRA value of A _c =8.55±0.10, assuming a nitrogen abundance of logA _N=7.93. In addition we specify the regions of formation for the CN(0, 0) 3883.35 Å bandhead at disc center and limb.     

Indications of a climate effect on Mediterranean fisheries

Using the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Mediterranean capture fisheries production dataset in conjunction with global and Mediterranean sea surface temperatures, we investigated trends in fisheries landings and landings per unit of effort of commercially important marine organisms, in relation to temperature oscillations. In addition to the overall warming trend, a temperature shift was detected in the Mediterranean Sea in the late 1990s. Fisheries landings fluctuations were examined for the most abundant commercial species (59 species) and showed significant year-to-year correlations with temperature for nearly 60 % of the cases. From these, the majority (~70 %) were negatively related and showed a reduction of 44 % on average. Increasing trends were found, mainly in the landings of species with short life spans, which seem to have benefited from the increase in water temperature. Τhe effect of oceanic warming is apparent in most species or groups of species sharing ecological (e.g. small and medium pelagic, demersal fish) or taxonomic (e.g. cephalopods, crustaceans) traits. A landings-per-unit-of-effort (LPUE) proxy, using data from the seven Mediterranean European Union member states, also showed significant correlation with temperature fluctuations for six out of the eight species examined, indicating the persistence of temperature influence on landings when the fishing effect is accounted for. The speed of response of marine landings to the warming of the Mediterranean Sea possibly shows both the sensitivity and the vulnerable state of the fish stocks and indicates that climate should be examined together with fisheries as a factor shaping stock fluctuations.