Quaternary Research Association

The Late Pleistocene of Northern Eurasia remains a subject of active scientific debate, particularly in the context of climate change. This study presents a palaeoenvironmental analysis for the interval of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5 (approximately 130 to 70 ka), including the first warming phase of interglacial rank. Special attention is given to a detailed study of the Voka key section on the south-eastern coast of the Gulf of Finland. This section is remarkable for the completeness of its geological and palaeontological record, which allows a deeper understanding of the Late Pleistocene palaeogeographic history, especially during the latter half of MIS 5. Climatic and stratigraphic analysis was carried out using the palynological method, while the chronological framework of palaeoclimatic events was established by infrared optically stimulated luminescence (IR-OSL) dating. This allowed the dynamics of the first Late Pleistocene warming of interglacial rank to be traced, correlating with the Mikulino interglacial in the Eastern European Plain. Comparison of the results with electron spin resonance (ESR) dating of mollusc shells from palaeoshelf deposits in climatically highly sensitive regions of Eurasian North confirmed the synchronicity of major palaeogeographic events in both terrestrial and marine ecosystems during MIS 5. Our interdisciplinary research provides new data that contribute to reconstructions of Late Pleistocene palaeogeographic events and refine our understanding of climate dynamics during MIS 5.

The BRG/Brahma-associated factors (BAF or mSWI/SNF) family of chromatin remodeling complexes are critical regulators of gene expression and are major determinants of cancer and other diseases. Two paralog ATPases, SMARCA4 and SMARCA2 (BRG1 and BRM, respectively), provide the enzymatic activity required for chromatin remodeling. Here, we discover and characterize a novel series of compounds that potently and selectively inhibit SMARCA4/SMARCA2. Mutational and biochemical studies demonstrate that these inhibitors act through a unique mode of inhibition, distinct from reported SMARCA4/SMARCA2 inhibitors. Across a range of cancer cell lines, SMARCA4/SMARCA2 inhibition resulted in lineage-specific changes in chromatin accessibility at binding sites for key transcription factors (TFs). In uveal melanoma (UM), BAF inhibition resulted in loss of enhancer occupancy of SOX10 and MITF, two essential TFs, leading to down-regulation of the melanocytic gene expression program. In a mouse xenograft model of UM, SMARCA4/SMARCA2 inhibition was well tolerated and resulted in dose-dependent tumor regression correlating with pharmacodynamic modulation of BAF-target gene expression. These data provide the foundation for first-in-human studies of BAF ATPase inhibition as a novel therapeutic to treat TF-dependent cancers.

Since prehistoric times, the northern part of Bourgogne/Franche-Comté (east central France) has been an attractive transition area for populations and fauna, allowing movement from central to western Europe (and vice versa) via the Upper Danube Basin and the Belfort Gap. It also constitutes a North-South and South-North transition area via the main river valleys (Saône, Rhône, Rhine, Meuse, Moselle). In this region, the topography is varied and defined by hills that rise to between 300 and 600 m asl, including the Morvan and Côte-d’Or mountains, the Vosges hills and mountains and the foothill plateaux of the Jura. Prehistoric populations settled here at different times and for different durations. The late Middle Paleolithic and the Upper Paleolithic are the best represented prehistoric periods in the region. Since 2005, our research on the Middle Paleolithic has revealed that the lithic assemblages have many affinities with those of central Europe (Alth-mülian, Micoquien, Eastern Mousterian) including with facies dating to the transition with the Upper Paleolithic (Szélétien, Jankovichien, etc.). A spatio-temporal study shows that while topographical, geological (including raw material availability) and environmental factors facilitated the movement of and/or occupation by people and animals, this scenario cannot be applied in a blanket manner, varying locally and over time. Recent integrated scientific research, encompassing absolute dating, paleoenvironmental work, zooarchaeological studies and in-depth techno-typological analyses, sheds new light on the occupation of this part of France and Europe.

Abstract Ancient Martian orogenesis remains controversial, ranging from mantle plumes to continental-scale gravity sliding to plate tectonism. Here, we consider Claritas Rise, an ancient, complex, Martian orogeny, as a case study in mountain building resulting from mobile lithospheric activity, using a geologic synthesis of comparative planetology. Claritas's juxtaposed serpentine and carbonate rocks, along a structurally controlled margin, compares to Earth's serpentine mélanges (e.g., Altai) that result from continental collisional processes. A less dense, older, deformed felsic/feldspathic crust may cause Claritas's gravity lows, as occurs in Earth's convergent plate boundary settings (e.g., Himalayas, Japan, Andes). This geochemically matches its regionally elevated incompatibles, potassium and thorium, relative to younger embaying lava flows. Claritas’ tectonic structures geometrically resemble the transtensional-extensional features of the Baikal Rift System located in southeastern Russia. Steeply dipping beds along a northeast-oriented ridge of Claritas also contain blocks resembling Earth's olistostromes. A mega-geomorphological pattern of landforms, including Claritas at its center, approximates that of the Western United States (i.e., where denser mafic Farallon Plate subducted beneath the buoyant, mafic/felsic North American Plate). An ancient mobile lithosphere offers a unifying explanation for these Earth counterparts on Mars while also addressing other features of interest, including crustal thickness differences across the topographic dichotomy and andesite-granite detections.

Extinct megafaunal mammals in the Americas are often linked to seed-dispersal mutualisms with large-fruiting tree species, but large-fruiting species in Europe and Asia have received far less attention. Several species of arboreal Maloideae (apples and pears) and Prunoideae (plums and peaches) evolved large fruits starting around nine million years ago, primarily in Eurasia. As evolutionary adaptations for seed dispersal by animals, the size, high sugar content, and bright colorful visual displays of ripeness suggest that mutualism with megafaunal mammals facilitated the evolutionary change. There has been little discussion as to which animals were likely candidate(s) on the late Miocene landscape of Eurasia. We argue that several possible dispersers could have consumed the large fruits, with endozoochoric dispersal usually relying on guilds of species. During the Pleistocene and Holocene, the dispersal guild likely included ursids, equids, and elephantids. During the late Miocene, large primates were likely also among the members of this guild, and the potential of a long-held mutualism between the ape and apple clades merits further discussion. If primates were a driving factor in the evolution of this large-fruit seed-dispersal system, it would represent an example of seed-dispersal-based mutualism with hominids millions of years prior to crop domestication or the development of cultural practices, such as farming.

Resumo-Neste artigo, amplia-se o escopo usual do processamento de sinais sobre grafos, considerando sinais quaterniônicos sobre grafos com pesos de arestas também quaterniônicos. A abordagem proposta parte da definição de uma transformada quaterniônica de Fourier sobre grafos (QGFT), cujo cálculo envolve o encadeamento de vários resultados da álgebra dos quatérnios. O ferramental introduzido permite tratar holisticamente sinais multivariados sobre grafos, em vez de tratá-los como sinais reais independentes. Por meio de experimentos envolvendo a compressão de dados do mundo real, demonstra-se que o uso da QGFT na aplicação em questão pode prover vantagens em comparação com o uso de sua versão não-quaterniônica. Palavras-Chave-Processamento de sinais sobre grafos, quatérnios, transformada de Fourier, compressão de dados.

In the distribution channel of frozen vegetables, the relationship between developmental importers and domestic manufacturers is not necessarily considered important. However, recently leading developmental importers have served as major market channels for those manufactures handling domestic products. Under these circumstances, in the present study, we clarified the cooperation among them. Moreover, through this discussion, we also found the fact that developmental importers have a positive impact on the performance of domestic manufacturers.

Recently, nanosized metal-oxides have been extensively investigated for their ability to remove metal ions from aqueous media. However, the activity and capacity of these nanosized metal-oxides for removing metal ions decrease owing to their agglomeration in aqueous media. Herein, we synthesized a highly stable and magnetically separable rosin-biochar-coated (RBC) TiO2@C nanocomposite through a facile and environment-friendly wet chemical coating process, followed by a one-step heating route (pyrolysis) for efficient removal of Cr(vi) from aqueous solution. An array of techniques, namely, TEM, HRTEM, TEM-EDS, XRD, FTIR, VSM, BET and TGA, were used to characterize the prepared nanocomposite. The pyrolysis of rosin into biochar and the fabrication of Fe onto the RBC-TiO2@C nanocomposite were confirmed by FTIR and XRD examination, respectively. Moreover, TEM and HRTEM images and elemental mapping using TEM-EDS showed good dispersion of iron and carbon on the surface of the RBC-TiO2@C nanocomposite. Sorption of Cr(vi) ions on the surface of the RBC-TiO2@C nanocomposite was very fast and efficient, having a removal efficiency of ∼95% within the 1st minute of reaction. Furthermore, thermodynamic analysis showed negative values of Gibb's free energy at all five temperatures, indicating that the adsorption of Cr(vi) ions on the RBC-TiO2@C nanocomposite was favorable and spontaneous. Conclusively, our results indicate that the RBC-TiO2@C nanocomposite can be used for efficient removal of Cr(vi) from aqueous media due to its novel synthesis and extraordinary adsorption efficacy during a short time period.

Clast weathering rinds, formed over varying lengths of time (10(2) -10(6) years) in terrestrial environments, are measured to provide relative ages for deposits in glacial sequences, specifically to differentiate between glaciations, occasionally within glaciations. Other studies have sought to reveal weathering rates in non-glacial environments using microscopic techniques and isotopes. Recent analyses of clast rinds from tropical, mid-latitude and polar areas reveal an astounding corpus of organic and inorganic paleoenvironmental data derived from atmospheric and biospheric elements active in weathering clasts in glacial deposits over varying lengths of time. In some cases, extreme biochemical products, observed within the rind matrix, are seen to play a role in adjusting redox potentials important in the production of oxides and hydroxides and biominerals with variable compositions. Up to recently, rind analysis has been limited to use of the light microscope and SEM/EDS, which has greatly advanced our understanding of compositional inter-linkages of minerals and biotic elements, but only along horizontal axes within the rind. A test involving rind surface composition using vertical axis nanospaced layer analysis within rinds using focused ion beam (FIB) and TEM/STEM/EDX imagery and chemistry illustrates the power of data acquisition within the three-dimensional weathered archive. SCANNING 38:202-212, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.