Stromboli and its 1975 eruption

On November 4, 1975 in the evening, an eruption took place at Mt. Stromboli. On the following day lava flowed on the Sciara del Fuoco downward to the sea, accompanied by an intense explosive activity at the crater plane. Direct observations on the volcanic activity were carried out since November 6 while a seismic survey was made from Nov. 7 to 12. The total volume of the lava outpoured during this period of activity that lasted 21 days, was estimated to be about 10⁴ m³. This paper reports the results of direct observations, and of the petrological, radioactive disequilibria and seismic activity studies performed for this eruption. The eruption was preceded by an insignificant change of seismic activity, which was monitored by a seismic station located about 2 km East of the crater. A shallow seismicity was strietly related to crater explosions accompanying the eruptive phenomenon. Radioactive disequilibria showed a lack of disequilibrium between²²⁸Ra and²³²Th explainable in terms of a fast rising of magma in the conduit. Chemical analyses of lava samples and deep seismic sounding data indicate a correspondence between the depth (10–15 km) at which crystallization pressure of phenocrysts occurs and a low velocity laver.     

Hemolytic activity and fatty acids composition in the ichthyotoxic dinoflagellate Cochlodinium polykrikoides isolated from Bahía de La Paz, Gulf of California

The hemolytic activity of the dinoflagellate Cochlodinium polykrikoides from Bahía de La Paz, Gulf of California was investigated as part of the ichthyotoxic mechanism of this microalga. Two different kinds of erythrocytes, fish and human, were tested for the hemolytic assay. Since fatty acids have been associated with hemolytic activity in C. polykrikoides, the composition of fatty acids of this dinoflagellate was also analyzed. The concentration of C. polykrikoides causing 50% hemolysis (HE₅₀) was 4.88 and 5.27 × 10⁶ cells L⁻¹, for fish and human erythrocytes, respectively. According to the standard curve of saponin, an equivalence between the hemolytic activity of saponin and the dinoflagellate concentration was found with 1 μg saponin mL⁻¹ equivalent to 1 × 10⁶ cells L⁻¹ of C. polykrikoides. The polyunsaturated fatty acids: hexadecaenoic (16:0), docosahexaenoic (22:6 n3) and octadecapentaenoic (18:5 n3) were found in an abundance of 62% of total fatty acids.