| 1. |
- Dredge, Ian, et al.
(author)
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Elevated flux of cosmic spherules (micrometeorites) in Ordovician rocks of the Durness Group, NW Scotland
- 2010
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In: Scottish Journal of Geology. - : Geological Society of London. - 0036-9276 .- 2041-4951. ; 46, s. 7-16
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Limestone samples from the Cambro-Ordovician Durness Group were crushed, acid-digested and searched for evidence of micrometeorites. Eleven melted micrometeorites were extracted from the magnetic fraction of samples from the Balnakeil and Croisaphuill formations near the top of the group. Other formations in the Durness Group did not yield micrometeorites. Only melted spherules with a distinctive dendroidal crystalline structure (I-type cosmic spherules) were accepted as definite micrometeorites. They represent a flux of micrometeorites one to two orders of magnitude greater than at present. The micrometeorite-bearing formations are of Arenig age, coincident with the onset of an enhanced flux of extraterrestrial material identified by the occurrence of fossil meteorites in Sweden.
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| 2. |
- Lindgren, Paula, et al.
(author)
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A demonstration of an affinity between pyrite and organic matter in a hydrothermal setting
- 2011
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In: Geochemical Transactions. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1467-4866. ; 12, s. 3-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- One of the key-principles of the iron-sulphur world theory is to bring organic molecules close enough to interact with each other, using the surface of pyrite as a substrate in a hydrothermal setting. The present paper explores the relationship of pyrite and organic matter in a hydrothermal setting from the geological record; in hydrothermal calcite veins from Carboniferous limestones in central Ireland. Here, the organic matter is accumulated as coatings around, and through, pyrite grains. Most of the pyrite grains are euhedral-subhedral crystals, ranging in size from ca 0.1-0.5 mm in diameter, and they are scattered throughout the matrix of the vein calcite. The organic matter was deposited from a hydrothermal fluid at a temperature of at least 200 degrees C, and gives a Raman signature of disordered carbon. This study points to an example from a hydrothermal setting in the geological record, demonstrating that pyrite can have a high potential for the concentration and accumulation of organic materials.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Lindgren, Paula, et al.
(author)
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Putative fossil life in a hydrothermal system of the Dellen impact structure, Sweden
- 2010
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In: International Journal of Astrobiology. - Cambridge : Cambridge University Press. - 1473-5504 .- 1475-3006. ; 9:3, s. 137-146
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The role of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs) in regulating glucose uptake in L6 skeletal muscle cells was investigated. [H-3]-2-Deoxyglucose uptake was increased in differentiated L6 cells by insulin, acetylcholine, oxotremorine-M and carbachol. mAChR-mediated glucose uptake was inhibited by the AMPK inhibitor Compound C. Whole cell radioligand binding using [H-3]-N-methyl scopolamine chloride identified mAChRs in differentiated but not undifferentiated L6 cells and M-3 mAChR mRNA was detected only in differentiated cells. M-3 mAChRs are Gq-coupled, and cholinergic stimulation by the rnAChR agonists acetylcholine, oxotremorine-M and carbachol increased Ca2+ in differentiated but not undifferentiated L6 cells. This was due to muscarinic but not nicotinic activation as responses were antagonised by the muscarinic antagonist atropine but not the nicotinic antagonist tubocurarine. Western blotting showed that both carbachol and the AMPK activator AICAR increased phosphorylation of the AMPK alpha subunit at Thr172, with responses to carbachol blocked by Compound C and the CaMKK inhibitor STO609 but not by the PI3K inhibitor wortmannin. AICAR-stimulated AMPK phosphorylation was not sensitive to STO-609, confirming that this compound inhibits CaMKK but not the classical AMPK kinase LKB1. The TAK1 inhibitor (5Z)-7-oxozeaenol and the G(i) inhibitor pertussis toxin both failed to block AMPK phosphorylation in response to carbachol. Using CHO-K1 cells stably expressing each of the mAChR subtypes (M-1-M-4), it was determined that only the M-1 and M-3 mAChRs phosphorylate AMPK, confirming a G(q)-dependent mechanism. This study demonstrates that activation of M-3 mAChRs in L6 skeletal muscle cells stimulates glucose uptake via a CaMKK-AMPK-dependent mechanism, independent of the insulin-stimulated pathway.
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| 5. |
- Parnell, John, et al.
(author)
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Sulfur isotope signatures for rapid colonization of an impact crater by thermophilic microbes
- 2010
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In: Geology. - 0091-7613 .- 1943-2682. ; 38:3, s. 271-274
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In the 23-km-diameter Haughton impact structure, Canadian High Arctic, in sulfate-rich bedrock, widespread hydrothermal sulfide mineralization occurred in breccias formed during the impact. The sulfides exhibit extreme sulfur isotopic fractionation relative to the original sulfate, requiring microbial sulfate reduction by thermophiles throughout the crater. This evidence of widespread microbial activity demonstrates that colonization could occur within the lifetime of a moderately sized, impact-induced hydrothermal system. The pyrite was subsequently oxidized to jarosite, which may also have been microbially mediated. The successful detection of evidence for microbial life suggests that it would be a valuable technique to deploy in sulfate-rich impact terrain on Mars.
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