Heart rate is a prognostic risk factor for myocardial infarction: a post hoc analysis in the PERFORM (Prevention of cerebrovascular and cardiovascular Events of ischemic origin with teRutroban in patients with a history oF ischemic strOke or tRansient ischeMic attack) study population

BACKGROUND Elevated resting heart rate is known to be detrimental to morbidity and mortality in cardiovascular disease, though its effect in patients with ischemic stroke is unclear. We analyzed the effect of baseline resting heart rate on myocardial infarction (MI) in patients with a recent noncardioembolic cerebral ischemic event participating in PERFORM. METHODS We compared fatal or nonfatal MI using adjusted Cox proportional hazards models for PERFORM patients with baseline heart rate <70 bpm (n=8178) or ≥70 bpm (n=10,802). In addition, heart rate was analyzed as a continuous variable. Other cerebrovascular and cardiovascular outcomes were also explored. RESULTS Heart rate ≥70 bpm was associated with increased relative risk for fatal or nonfatal MI (HR 1.32, 95% CI 1.03-1.69, P=0.029). For every 5-bpm increase in heart rate, there was an increase in relative risk for fatal and nonfatal MI (11.3%, P=0.0002). Heart rate ≥70 bpm was also associated with increased relative risk for a composite of fatal or nonfatal ischemic stroke, fatal or nonfatal MI, or other vascular death (excluding hemorrhagic death) (P<0001); vascular death (P<0001); all-cause mortality (P<0001); and fatal or nonfatal stroke (P=0.04). For every 5-bpm increase in heart rate, there were increases in relative risk for fatal or nonfatal ischemic stroke, fatal or nonfatal MI, or other vascular death (4.7%, P<0.0001), vascular death (11.0%, P<0.0001), all-cause mortality (8.0%, P<0.0001), and fatal and nonfatal stroke (2.4%, P=0.057). CONCLUSION Elevated heart rate ≥70 bpm places patients with a noncardioembolic cerebral ischemic event at increased risk for MI.

Dissection of floral pollination syndromes in petunia

Animal-mediated pollination is essential in the reproductive biology of many flowering plants and tends to be associated with pollination syndromes, sets of floral traits that are adapted to particular groups of pollinators. The complexity and functional convergence of various traits within pollination syndromes are outstanding examples of biological adaptation, raising questions about their mechanisms and origins. In the genus Petunia, complex pollination syndromes are found for nocturnal hawkmoths (P. axillaris) and diurnal bees (P. integrifolia), with characteristic differences in petal color, corolla shape, reproductive organ morphology, nectar quantity, nectar quality, and fragrance. We dissected the Petunia syndromes into their most important phenotypic and genetic components. They appear to include several distinct differences, such as cell-growth and cell-division patterns in the basal third of the petals, elongation of the ventral stamens, nectar secretion and nectar sugar metabolism, and enzymatic differentiation in the phenylpropanoid pathway. In backcross-inbred lines of species-derived chromosome segments in a transposon tagging strain of P. hybrida, one to five quantitative trait loci were identified for each syndrome component. Two loci for stamen elongation and nectar volume were confirmed in introgression lines and showed large allelic differences. The combined data provide a framework for a detailed understanding of floral syndromes from their developmental and molecular basis to their impact on animal behavior. With its molecular genetic tools, this Petunia system provides a novel venue for a pattern of adaptive radiation that is among the most characteristic of flowering plants.

Microstructural, chemical and isotopic evidence for the origin of late neolithic leather recovered from an ice field in the Swiss Alps

Archaeological leather samples recovered from the ice field at the Schnidejoch Pass (altitude 2756 m amsl) in the western Swiss Alps were studied using optical, chemical molecular and isotopic (δ13C and δ15N of the bulk leather, and compound-specific δ13C analyses of the organic-solvent extracted fatty acids) methods to obtain insight into the origin of the leather and ancient tanning procedures. For comparison, leathers from modern native animals in alpine environment (red deer, goat, sheep, chamois, and calf/cow) were analyzed using the same approach. Optical and electron microscopically comparisons of Schnidejoch and modern leathers showed that the gross structure (pattern of collagen fibrils and intra-fibrils material) of archaeological leather had survived essentially intact for five millennia. The SEM studies of the hairs from the most important archaeological find, a Neolithic leather legging, show a wave structure of the hair cuticle, which is a diagnostic feature for goatskins. The variations of the bulk δ13C and δ15N values, and δ13C values of the main fatty acids are within the range expected for pre-industrial temperate C3 environment. The archaeological leather samples contain a mixture of indigenous (from the animal) and exogenous plant/animal lipids. An important amount of waxy n-alkanes, n-alkan-1-ols and phytosterols (β-sitosterol, sitostanol) in all samples, and abundant biomarker of conifers (nonacosan-10-ol) in the legging leathers clearly indicate that the Neolithic people were active in a subalpine coniferous forest, and that they used an aqueous extract of diverse plant material for tanning leather.

The origin of the low-spin character of the resting state of cytochrome P450cam investigated by means of active site analogues

Crown-capped iron(S−) porphyrins 1·H2O and 2·H2O and their corresponding Ba2+ complexes have been prepared as active site analogues of the resting state of cytochrome P450cam. cw-EPR studies and electronic structure calculations at the density functional theory (DFT) level of model systems suggest a functional role of the water cluster of P450cam.

Ultrastructural mitochondrial alterations in Equine myopathies of unknown origin.

Background: Very few mitochondrial myopathies have been described in horses. Objective: To examine the ultrastructure of muscle mitochondria in equine cases of myopathy of unknown origin. Materials & methods: Biopsies of vastus lateralis of the Musculus quadriceps femoris were taken predominantly immediately post mortem and processed for transmission electron microscopy. As a result, electron micrographs of 90 horses in total were available for analysis comprising 4 control horses, 16 horses suffering from myopathy and 70 otherwise diseased horses. Results: Following a thorough clinical and laboratory work-up, four out of five patients that did not fit into the usual algorithm to detect known causes of myopathy showed ultrastructural mitochondrial alterations. Small mitochondria with zones with complete disruption of cristae associated with lactic acidemia were detected in a 17-year-old pony mare, extremely long and slender mitochondria with longitudinal cristae in a 5-year-old Quarter horse stallion, a mixture of irregular extremely large mitochondria (measuring 2500 by 800 nm) next to smaller ones in an 8-year-old Hanoverian mare and round mitochondria with only few cristae in a 11-year-old pony gelding. It remains uncertain whether the subsarcolemmal mitochondrial accumulations observed in the fifth patient have any pathological significance. Conclusions: Ultrastructural alterations in mitochondria were detected in at least four horses. To conclude that these are due to mitochondrial dysfuntions, biochemical tests should be performed. Practical applications: The possibility of a mitochondrial myopathy should be included in the differential diagnosis of muscle weakness.

Courses in the language and culture of origin and their impact on youth development in cultural transition: A study among immigrant and dual heritage youth in Switzerland

Elena Makarova traces how the concept of intercultural education in German-speaking European countries promotes the inclusion of courses in the Language and Culture of Origin (LCO) for immigrant youth in the school curriculum of host countries. Such courses are assumed to have positive effects on the development of immigrant youth in the host country. Particularly, it has been suggested that participation in LCO courses increases the self-esteem of immigrant youth, facilitates the development of their bicultural identity and improves their integration in the host society. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence on the nature of the effects of LCO course attendance on the acculturation of immigrant youth and their cultural identity. Accordingly, the aim of the study detailed in the chapter is to examine the impact of immigrant youth’s attitudes towards LCO courses and of their attendance of such courses on their acculturation and cultural identity.

Using 18O/2H, 3H/3He, 85Kr and CFCs to determine mean residence times and water origin in the Grazer and Leibnitzer Feld groundwater bodies (Austria)

Two groundwater bodies, Grazer Feld and Leibnitzer Feld, with surface areas of 166 and 103 km2 respectively are characterised for the first time by measuring the combination of d18O/d2H, 3H/3He, 85Kr, CFC-11, CFC-12 and hydrochemistry in 34 monitoring wells in 2009/2010. The timescales of groundwater recharge have been characterised by 131 d18O measurements of well and surface water sampled on a seasonal basis. Most monitoring wells show a seasonal variation or indicate variable contributions of the main river Mur (0–30%, max. 70%) and/or other rivers having their recharge areas in higher altitudes. Combined d18O/d2H-measurements indicate that 65–75% of groundwater recharge in the unusual wet year of 2009 was from precipitation in the summer based on values from the Graz meteorological station. Monitoring wells downstream of gravel pit lakes show a clear evaporation trend. A boron–nitrate differentiation plot shows more frequent boron-rich water in the more urbanised Grazer Feld and more frequent nitrate-rich water in the more agricultural used Leibnitzer Feld indicating that a some of the nitrate load in the Grazer Feld comes from urban sewer water. Several lumped parameter models based on tritium input data from Graz and monthly data from the river Mur (Spielfeld) since 1977 yield a Mean Residence Time (MRT) for the Mur-water itself between 3 and 4 years in this area. Data from d18O, 3H/3He measurements at the Wagna lysimeter station supports the conclusion that 90% of the groundwaters in the Grazer Feld and 73% in the Leibnitzer Feld have MRTs of <5 years. Only in a few groundwaters were MRTs of 6–10 or 11–25 years as a result of either a long-distance water inflow in the basins or due to longer flow path in somewhat deeper wells (>20 m) with relative thicker unsaturated zones. The young MRT of groundwater from two monitoring wells in the Leibnitzer Feld was confirmed by 85Kr-measurements. Most CFC-11 and CFC-12 concentrations in the groundwater exceed the equilibration concentrations of modern concentrations in water and are therefore unsuitable for dating purposes. An enrichment factor up to 100 compared to atmospheric equilibrium concentrations and the obvious correlation of CFC-12 with SO4, Na, Cl and B in the ground waters of the Grazer Feld suggest that waste water in contact with CFC-containing material above and below ground is the source for the contamination. The dominance of very young groundwater (<5 years) indicates a recent origin of the contamination by nitrate and many other components observed in parts of the groundwater bodies. Rapid measures to reduce those sources are needed to mitigate against further deterioration of these waters.

A multi-tracer study of groundwater origin and transit-time in the aquifers of the Venice region (Italy)

Located in the northeastern region of Italy, the Venetian Plain (VP) is a sedimentary basin containing an extensively exploited groundwater system. The northern part is characterised by a large undifferentiated phreatic aquifer constituted by coarse grain alluvial deposits and recharged by local rainfalls and discharges from the rivers Brenta and Piave. The southern plain is characterised by a series of aquitards and sandy aquifers forming a well-defined artesian multi-aquifer system. In order to determine origins, transit times and mixing proportions of different components in groundwater (GW), a multi tracer study (H, He/He, C, CFC, SF, Kr, Ar, Sr/Sr, O, H, cations, and anions) has been carried out in VP between the rivers Brenta and Piave. The geochemical pattern of GW allows a distinction of the different water origins in the system, in particular based on View the MathML source HCO3-,SO42-,Ca/Mg,NO3-, O, H. A radiogenic Sr signature clearly marks GW originated from the Brenta and Tertiary catchments. End-member analysis and geochemical modelling highlight the existence of a mixing process involving waters recharged from the Brenta and Piave rivers, from the phreatic aquifer and from another GW reservoirs characterised by very low mineralization. Noble gas excesses in respect to atmospheric equilibrium occur in all samples, particularly in the deeper aquifers of the Piave river, but also in phreatic water of the undifferentiated aquifers. He–H ages in the phreatic aquifer and in the shallower level of the multi-aquifer system indicate recharge times in the years 1970–2008. The progression of H–He ages with the distance from the recharge areas together with initial tritium concentration (H + Hetrit) imply an infiltration rate of about 1 km/y and the absence of older components in these GW. SF and Kr data corroborate these conclusions. H − He ages in the deeper artesian aquifers suggest a dilution process with older, tritium free waters. C Fontes–Garnier model ages of the old GW components range from 1 to 12 ka, yielding an apparent GW velocity of about 1–10 m/y. Increase of radiogenic He follows the progression of C ages. Ar, radiogenic He and C tracers yield model-dependent age-ranges in overall good agreement once diffusion of C from aquitards, GW dispersion, lithogenic Ar production, and He production-rate heterogeneities are taken into account. The rate of radiogenic He increase with time, deduced by comparison with C model ages, is however very low compared to other studies. Comparison with C and C data obtained 40 years ago on the same aquifer system shows that exploitation of GW caused a significant loss of the old groundwater reservoir during this time.

Radar investigations of Apollinaris Mons on Mars: Exploring the origin of the fan deposits

Apollinaris Mons is an isolated volcano on Mars straddling the boundary between the southern highlands and the northern plains. One of its most distinctive features is its massive fan-shaped deposit that extends from a breach on its summit to distances of more than 150 km and drapes its entire southern flank. The composition and formation mechanism of these deposits remains controversial. We investigate the radar properties of the fan deposits (FD) of Apollinaris Mons using low-frequency sounding radar data in combination with high-resolution images and crater-size frequency analysis to constrain their inner shape and bulk composition. Our analysis indicates that the FD attains an irregular thickness and is gradually thinner towards their lateral margins. The crater-size frequency analysis shows that they may have undergone repeated resurfacing, which is suggestive of long-term evolution. Our analysis of Shallow Radar (SHARAD) radargrams traversing different sections of the FD reveals multiple and different subsurface interfaces among the radargrams crossing the thinnest part, which suggests a layered and complex inner shape. Our estimates for the bulk real part of the dielectric constant of the FD ranges from 3 to 5, which is consistent with an icy-silicate mixture or pyroclastic composition. Therefore, we conclude that lahars or pyroclastic flows are the most likely mechanism that created the FD, yet we cannot rule out additional contributions from lava flows. A combination of multiple processes is also possible since the deposits appear to have been modified by fluvial processes at a later stage of their formation.