Stable oxygen isotope record and benthic foraminiferal abundances in Cretaceous sediments of Demerara Rise

During the mid-Cretaceous period, the global subsurface oceans were relatively warm, but the origins of the high temperatures are debated. One hypothesis suggests that high sea levels and the continental configuration allowed high-salinity waters in low-latitude epicontinental shelf seas to sink and form deep-water masses (Brass et al., 1982, doi:10.1038/296620a0; Arthur and Natland, 1979; Chamberlin, 1906). In another scenario, surface waters in high-latitude regions, the modern area of deep-water formation, were warmed through greenhouse forcing (Bice and Marotzke, 2001, doi:10.1029/2000JC000561), which then propagated through deep-water circulation. Here, we use oxygen isotopes and Mg/Ca ratios from benthic foraminifera to reconstruct intermediate-water conditions in the tropical proto-Atlantic Ocean from 97 to 92 Myr ago. According to our reconstruction, intermediate-water temperatures ranged between 20 and 25 °C, the warmest ever documented for depths of 500-1,000 m. Our record also reveals intervals of high-salinity conditions, which we suggest reflect an influx of saline water derived from epicontinental seas around the tropical proto-North Atlantic Ocean. Although derived from only one site, our data indicate the existence of warm, saline intermediate waters in this silled basin. This combination of warm saline intermediate waters and restricted palaeogeography probably acted as preconditioning factors for the prolonged period of anoxia and black-shale formation in the equatorial proto-North Atlantic Ocean during the Cretaceous period.

Stable organic carbon isotope record and total organic carbon content from the Cenomanian-Turonian boundary

Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 207 recovered expanded sections of organic-carbon-rich laminated shales on Demerara Rise (western tropical Atlantic). High-resolution organic carbon isotope and total organic carbon (TOC) records are presented, which span the Cenomanian-Turonian boundary interval (CTBI), including the Oceanic Anoxic Event (OAE) 2, from four sites oriented along a NW striking depth transect. These records represent the first high-resolution carbon isotope records across OAE 2 from the South American margin of the tropical Atlantic. Due to the scarcity of age significant fossils, the main purpose of this study was to develop a detailed carbon isotope stratigraphy in order to correlate the CTBI across the depth transect and to tie this to biostratigraphically well-defined sections in the Western Interior Basin (Pueblo, USA), boreal shelf seas (Eastbourne, England), and western Tethys (Oued Mellegue, Tunisia). All four sections studied document a 6 per mil increase of d13Corg values at the base of the CTBI, which is followed by an interval of elevated d13Corg values and a subsequent decrease. Our results supply an important stratigraphic base for subsequent paleoceanographic studies on Late Cenomanian to Early Turonian sediments from Demerara Rise and elsewhere.

Geochemistry of Albian to Santonian black shale sequences on the Demerara Rise, South American margin

Ocean Drilling Program Leg 207 recovered thick sequences of Albian to Santonian organic-carbon-rich claystones at five drill-sites on the Demerara Rise in the western equatorial Atlantic Ocean. Dark-colored, finely laminated, Cenomanian-Santonian black shale sequences contain between 2% and 15% organic carbon and encompass Oceanic Anoxic Events 2 and 3. High Rock-Eval hydrogen indices signify that the bulk of the organic matter in these sequences is marine in origin. However, d13Corg values lie mostly between -30 per mil and -27 per mil, and TOC/TN ratios range from 15 to 42, which both mimic the source signatures of modern C3 land plants. The contradictions in organic matter source indicators provide important implications about the depositional conditions leading to the black shale accumulations. The low d13Corg values, which are actually common in mid-Cretaceous marine organic matter, are consequences of the greenhouse climate prevailing at that time and an associated accelerated hydrologic cycle. The elevated C/N ratios, which are also typical of black shales, indicate depressed organic matter degradation associated with low-oxygen conditions in the water column that favored preservation of carbon-rich forms of marine organic matter over nitrogen-rich components. Underlying the laminated Cenomanian-Santonian sequences are homogeneous, dark-colored, lower to middle Albian siltstones that contain between 0.2% and 9% organic carbon. The organic matter in these rocks is mostly marine in origin, but it occasionally includes large proportions of land-derived material.

Geochemistry and P and Fe fractionation in anoxic sediments

We investigated the phosphorus (P) and iron (Fe) fractionation in four cores with anoxic sediments, deposited during the mid-Cretaceous oceanic anoxic event 2 (~94 Ma) and the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (?55 Ma), that were exposed to oxygen after core recovery. Surprisingly, P associated with iron oxyhydroxides (Fe-bound P) was a major P phase in these laminated sediments deposited under euxinic conditions. A significant fraction of total Fe was present as (poorly) crystalline ferric Fe. This fraction increased with increasing storage time of the investigated cores. In carbonate-poor samples, Fe-bound P accounted for up to 99% of total P and its abundance correlated with pyrite contents. In samples with higher CaCO3 contents (>5 wt% in the investigated samples), P was mostly present in authigenic Ca-P minerals, irrespective of pyrite contents. We conclude that the P fractionation in anoxic, carbonate-poor, sediments is strongly affected by pyrite oxidation that occurs when these sediments are exposed to oxygen. Pyrite oxidation produces sulfuric acid and iron oxyhydroxides. The abundance of poorly crystalline Fe oxyhydroxides provides further evidence that these were indeed formed through recent (post-recovery) oxidation rather than in situ tens of millions of years ago. The acid dissolves apatite and the released phosphate is subsequently bound in the freshly formed iron oxyhydroxides. Pyrite oxidation thus leads to a conversion of authigenic Ca-P to Fe-bound P. In more calcareous samples, CaCO3 can act as an effective buffer against acidic dissolution of Ca-P minerals. The results indicate that shielding of sediments from atmospheric oxygen is vital to preserve the in situ P fractionation and to enable a valid reconstruction of marine phosphorus cycling based on sediment records.

Orbitally tuned time scale and astronomical forcing in the middle Eocene to early Oligocene determined on ODP and IODP sediment cores

Deciphering the driving mechanisms of Earth system processes, including the climate dynamics expressed as paleoceanographic events, requires a complete, continuous, and high-resolution stratigraphy that is very accurately dated. In this study, we construct a robust astronomically calibrated age model for the middle Eocene to early Oligocene interval (31-43 Ma) in order to permit more detailed study of the exceptional climatic events that occurred during this time, including the Middle Eocene Climate Optimum and the Eocene/Oligocene transition. A goal of this effort is to accurately date the middle Eocene to early Oligocene composite section cored during the Pacific Equatorial Age Transect (PEAT, IODP Exp. 320/321). The stratigraphic framework for the new time scale is based on the identification of the stable long eccentricity cycle in published and new high-resolution records encompassing bulk and benthic stable isotope, calibrated XRF core scanning, and magnetostratigraphic data from ODP Sites 171B-1052, 189-1172, 199-1218, and 207-1260 as well as IODP Sites 320-U1333, and -U1334 spanning magnetic polarity Chrons C12n to C20n. Subsequently we applied orbital tuning of the records to the La2011 orbital solution. The resulting new time scale revises and refines the existing orbitally tuned age model and the Geomagnetic Polarity Time Scale from 31 to 43 Ma. Our newly defined absolute age for the Eocene/Oligocene boundary validates the astronomical tuned age of 33.89 Ma identified at the Massignano (Italy) global stratotype section and point. Our compilation of geochemical records of climate-controlled variability in sedimentation through the middle-to-late Eocene and early Oligocene demonstrates strong power in the eccentricity band that is readily tuned to the latest astronomical solution. Obliquity driven cyclicity is only apparent during very long eccentricity cycle minima around 35.5 Ma, 38.3 Ma and 40.1 Ma.

Stable oxygen and carbon isotope ratios of foraminifera and test results after different sample cleaning procedures from ODP Leg 207 sediments

We report oxygen and carbon stable isotope analyses of foraminifers, primarily planktonic, sampled at low resolution in the Cretaceous and Paleogene sections from Sites 1257, 1258, and 1260. Data from two samples from Site 1259 are also reported. The very low resolution of the data only allows us to detect climate-driven isotopic events on the timescale of more than 500 k.y. A several million-year-long interval of overall increase in planktonic 18O is seen in the Cenomanian at Site 1260. Before and after this interval, foraminifers from Cenomanian and Turonian black shales have d18O values in the range -4.2 per mil to -5.0 per mil, suggestive of upper ocean temperatures higher than modern tropical values. The d18O values of upper ocean dwelling Paleogene planktonics exhibit a long-term increase from the early Eocene to the middle Eocene. During shipboard and postcruise processing, it proved difficult to extract well-preserved foraminifer tests from black shales by conventional techniques. Here, we report results of a test of procedures for cleaning foraminifers in Cretaceous organic-rich mudstone sediments using various combinations of soaking in bleach, Calgon/hydrogen peroxide, or Cascade, accompanied by drying, repeat soaking, or sonication. A procedure that used 100% bleach, no detergent, and no sonication yielded the largest number of clean, whole individual foraminifers with the shortest preparation time. We found no significant difference in d18O or d13C values among sets of multiple samples of the planktonic foraminifer Whiteinella baltica extracted following each cleaning procedure.

Human CD141(+) (BDCA-3)(+) dendritic cells (DCs) represent a unique myeloid DC subset that cross-presents necrotic cell antigens

The characterization of human dendritic cell (DC) subsets is essential for the design of new vaccines. We report the first detailed functional analysis of the human CD141(+) DC subset. CD141(+) DCs are found in human lymph nodes, bone marrow, tonsil, and blood, and the latter proved to be the best source of highly purified cells for functional analysis. They are characterized by high expression of toll-like receptor 3, production of IL-12p70 and IFN-beta, and superior capacity to induce T helper 1 cell responses, when compared with the more commonly studied CD1c(+) DC subset. Polyinosine-polycytidylic acid (poly I:C)-activated CD141(+) DCs have a superior capacity to cross-present soluble protein antigen (Ag) to CD8(+) cytotoxic T lymphocytes than poly I:C-activated CD1c(+) DCs. Importantly, CD141(+) DCs, but not CD1c(+) DCs, were endowed with the capacity to cross-present viral Ag after their uptake of necrotic virus-infected cells. These findings establish the CD141(+) DC subset as an important functionally distinct human DC subtype with characteristics similar to those of the mouse CD8 alpha(+) DC subset. The data demonstrate a role for CD141(+) DCs in the induction of cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses and suggest that they may be the most relevant targets for vaccination against cancers, viruses, and other pathogens.

Sapientia, 2000, Vol. LV, nº 207 (número completo)

Contenido: Il Dio dei filosofi e il Dio dei teologi in Guglielmo di Ockham / Alessandro Ghisalberti – La Trinidad divina y la deificación del hombre por el nacimiento del hijo en el alma, según los escritos del maestro Eckhart / Brian J. Farrelly – Suárez y Descartes sobre la noción de verdades eternas y su relación con Dios / Bernardo Cantens – Interacción mente-cuerpo y libre arbitrio en Descarles / Enrique Chávez-Arvizo – Razón y verdad : Hobbes y el Aquinate / María L. Lukac de Stier – Pascal y la crisis de la razón / Francisco Leocata – La contribución de Jacques Maritain a la teología natural / Juan J. Álvarez – Ontología de lo social / Abelardo Pithod – Réflexions sur une introduction à la métaphysique / Yves Floucat – El conocimiento divino del ente futuro contingente / Gabriel Delgado – Insegnamento sociale cristiano : magistero e scienze umane / Enrique Colom – Aquinas on Aristotle and creation : use or misuse? / Timothy L. Smith – La verdad, raíz de la libertad / Gustavo Eloy Ponferrada – Besoin de Dieu et désir de Dieu : l’illusion d’une mort / Michel Mahé – El ser a merced de la afectividad / Mario Enrique Sacchi – Notas y comentarios -- Bibliografía

Diário da Constituinte [gravação de vídeo] : [programa n. 207 A]

O Grupo do Consenso e o Grupo dos 32 apresentarão conjuntamente emendas ao substitutivo do Relator Bernardo Cabral (PMDB-AM) sobre saúde, comunicação, educação e sistema tributário. O Deputado Fernando Bezerra Coelho (PMDB-PE) declara que só mediante autorização do Congresso haverá aumento de carga tributária. O Senador Almir Gabriel (PMDB-PA) esclarece que se pretende fazer prevalecer a criação do Sistema Único de Saúde e a institucionalização da seguridade social com recursos próprios. Os dois Grupos não conseguiram chegar ao consenso em relação aos seguintes pontos: Reforma Agrária, Tribunal Constitucional, mandato presidencial, sistema eleitoral, destinação constitucional das Forças Armadas e sistema de governo. O Senador José Fogaça (PMDB-RS) acredita que não se pode produzir um sistema de governo que seja dos vencedores contra os vencidos, sendo necessário o debate até atingir o consenso da totalidade ou de uma grande maioria dos constituintes. Foram apresentadas cerca de 2.400 emendas ao substitutivo do Relator Bernardo Cabral. O Senador Marco Maciel (PFL-PE) solicita a prorrogação do prazo de entrega das emendas, visando estender as negociações e criar entendimentos sobre os pontos de divergência na Assembleia Nacional Constituinte (ANC). Na Sessão Plenária da Comissão de Sistematização da ANC, continua a discussão de emendas populares com propostas para a criação de novos Estados. O Deputado Virgílio Galassi (PDS-MG) defende a subdivisão territorial do país, em especial a criação do Estado do Triângulo.

Diário da Constituinte [gravação de vídeo] : [programa n. 207]

O prazo para emendas ao substitutivo está terminando. O Deputado Inocêncio Oliveira (PFL-PE) acredita que o texto atual não representa a maioria da Assembleia Nacional Constituinte (ANC). O Deputado José Carlos Coutinho (PL-RJ) informa que os direitos do povo são prioridade, antes das questões relativas ao Estado. A Deputada Beth Azize (PSB-AM) declara que há questões confusas e que o texto constitucional deve ser claro e entendido por todos os brasileiros. O Grupo dos 32 (Trinta e dois) sugere ao Relator que estabeleça um período de transição entre o presidencialismo e o parlamentarismo. O Deputado Israel Pinheiro Filho (PMDB-MG) esclarece que, no corpo da Constituição, seria colocado um parlamentarismo puro e nas disposições transitórias se discriminariam as etapas de implantação do sistema. Membros do Grupo dos 32 se posicionam em relação a Reforma Agrária. O Deputado Israel Pinheiro Filho (PMDB-MG) informa que a questão da imissão de posse virou tabu. O Deputado José Sarney Filho (PFL-MA) declara ser a favor da criação da justiça agrária. Os Deputados Ricardo Izar (PFL-SP) e José Elias Moreira (PTB-MS) são contrários à imissão de posse imediata. O Deputado Ronaro Corrêa (PFL-MG) defende a criação do Banco Nacional do Hectare. O Deputado Doreto Campanari (PMDB-SP) informa que o governo tem vários meios de aumentar a tributação para ter condições de comprar terras e entregá-las a quem precise. No Plenário da Assembleia Nacional Constituinte, continua a discussão de emendas populares sobre liberdade para o espiritismo, eleições diretas e monarquia. O Deputado Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT-SP) defende a emenda popular que estabelece eleições diretas para presidente em 1988.