DNH deoxyribonucleohelicates: self assembly of oligonucleosidic double-helical metal complexes

Nucleic acids, because of their key biological role, are prime targets for the design of either analogues that may mimic some of their features or of complementary ligands that may selectively bind to and react with them for regulation or reaction. Whereas there has been much work on the latter topic since the elucidation of the double-helical structure of DNA, comparatively little has been done on structural and/or functional models, probably owing to the lack of self-organizing molecular systems. Here we present a class of artificial systems, the nucleohelicates, which are of interest from both points of view because they combine the double-helical structure of the double-stranded metal complexes, the helicates, with the selective interaction features of nucleic-acid bases. These functionalized species allow the study of structural effects on the formation of the double helix and on the binding to other entities, in particular to nucleic acids.     

Evidence from three-dimensional seismic reflectivity images for enhanced melt supply beneath mid-ocean-ridge discontinuities

Quantifying the melt distribution and crustal structure across ridge-axis discontinuities is essential for understanding the relationship between magmatic, tectonic and petrologic segmentation of mid-ocean-ridge spreading centres. The geometry and continuity of magma bodies beneath features such as overlapping spreading centres can strongly influence the composition of erupted lavas and may give insight into the underlying pattern of mantle flow. Here we present three-dimensional images of seismic reflectivity beneath a mid-ocean ridge to investigate the nature of melt distribution across a ridge-axis discontinuity. Reflectivity slices through the 9 degrees 03' N overlapping spreading centre on East Pacific Rise suggest that it has a robust magma supply, with melt bodies underlying both limbs and ponding of melt beneath large areas of the overlap basin. The geometry of melt distribution beneath this offset is inconsistent with large-scale, crustal redistribution of melt away from centres of upwelling. The complex distribution of melt seems instead to be caused by a combination of vertical melt transport from the underlying mantle and subsequent focusing of melt beneath a magma freezing boundary in the mid-crust.     

Episodic fresh surface waters in the Eocene Arctic Ocean

It has been suggested, on the basis of modern hydrology and fully coupled palaeoclimate simulations, that the warm greenhouse conditions that characterized the early Palaeogene period (55-45 Myr ago) probably induced an intensified hydrological cycle with precipitation exceeding evaporation at high latitudes. Little field evidence, however, has been available to constrain oceanic conditions in the Arctic during this period. Here we analyse Palaeogene sediments obtained during the Arctic Coring Expedition, showing that large quantities of the free-floating fern Azolla grew and reproduced in the Arctic Ocean by the onset of the middle Eocene epoch (approximately 50 Myr ago). The Azolla and accompanying abundant freshwater organic and siliceous microfossils indicate an episodic freshening of Arctic surface waters during an approximately 800,000-year interval. The abundant remains of Azolla that characterize basal middle Eocene marine deposits of all Nordic seas probably represent transported assemblages resulting from freshwater spills from the Arctic Ocean that reached as far south as the North Sea. The termination of the Azolla phase in the Arctic coincides with a local sea surface temperature rise from approximately 10 degrees C to 13 degrees C, pointing to simultaneous increases in salt and heat supply owing to the influx of waters from adjacent oceans. We suggest that onset and termination of the Azolla phase depended on the degree of oceanic exchange between Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas.     

Seismic reflection images of the Moho underlying melt sills at the East Pacific Rise

The determination of melt distribution in the crust and the nature of the crust-mantle boundary (the 'Moho') is fundamental to the understanding of crustal accretion processes at oceanic spreading centres. Upper-crustal magma chambers have been imaged beneath fast- and intermediate-spreading centres but it has been difficult to image structures beneath these magma sills. Using three-dimensional seismic reflection images, here we report the presence of Moho reflections beneath a crustal magma chamber at the 9 degrees 03' N overlapping spreading centre, East Pacific Rise. Our observations highlight the formation of the Moho at zero-aged crust. Over a distance of less than 7 km along the ridge crest, a rapid increase in two-way travel time of seismic waves between the magma chamber and Moho reflections is observed, which we suggest is due to a melt anomaly in the lower crust. The amplitude versus offset variation of reflections from the magma chamber shows a coincident region of higher melt fraction overlying this anomalous region, supporting the conclusion of additional melt at depth.