Erythrocyte NADH-methemoglobin reductase activity in experimental riboflavin deficiency

Zusammenfassung Bei Ratten mit Riboflavin-Mangel wurde eine normale Aktivität der NADH-abhängigen Methämoglobinreduktase festgestellt.     

Evidence for recycled Archaean oceanic mantle lithosphere in the Azores plume

The compositional differences between mid-ocean-ridge and ocean-island basalts place important constraints on the form of mantle convection. Also, it is thought that the scale and nature of heterogeneities within plumes and the degree to which heterogeneous material endures within the mantle might be reflected in spatial variations of basalt composition observed at the Earth's surface. Here we report osmium isotope data on lavas from a transect across the Azores archipelago which vary in a symmetrical pattern across what is thought to be a mantle plume. Many of the lavas from the centre of the plume have lower 187Os/188Os ratios than most ocean-island basalts and some extend to subchondritic 187Os/188Os ratios-lower than any yet reported from ocean-island basalts. These low ratios require derivation from a depleted, harzburgitic mantle, consistent with the low-iron signature of the Azores plume. Rhenium-depletion model ages extend to 2.5 Gyr, and we infer that the osmium isotope signature is unlikely to be derived from Iberian subcontinental lithospheric mantle. Instead, we interpret the osmium isotope signature as having a deep origin and infer that it may be recycled, Archaean oceanic mantle lithosphere that has delaminated from its overlying oceanic crust. If correct, our data provide evidence for deep mantle subduction and storage of oceanic mantle lithosphere during the Archaean era.     

Evidence for magmatic evolution and diversity on Mars from infrared observations

Compositional mapping of Mars at the 100-metre scale with the Mars Odyssey Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) has revealed a wide diversity of igneous materials. Volcanic evolution produced compositions from low-silica basalts to high-silica dacite in the Syrtis Major caldera. The existence of dacite demonstrates that highly evolved lavas have been produced, at least locally, by magma evolution through fractional crystallization. Olivine basalts are observed on crater floors and in layers exposed in canyon walls up to 4.5 km beneath the surface. This vertical distribution suggests that olivine-rich lavas were emplaced at various times throughout the formation of the upper crust, with their growing inventory suggesting that such ultramafic (picritic) basalts may be relatively common. Quartz-bearing granitoid rocks have also been discovered, demonstrating that extreme differentiation has occurred. These observations show that the martian crust, while dominated by basalt, contains a diversity of igneous materials whose range in composition from picritic basalts to granitoids rivals that found on the Earth.     

Initial sequencing and analysis of the human genome

The human genome holds an extraordinary trove of information about human development, physiology, medicine and evolution. Here we report the results of an international collaboration to produce and make freely available a draft sequence of the human genome. We also present an initial analysis of the data, describing some of the insights that can be gleaned from the sequence.     

Spider fauna of selected wild sunflower species sites in the southwest United States

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Ecology of flannelmouth sucker in the Lee's Ferry tailwater, Colorado River, Arizona

We investigated ecology of flannelmouth sucker ( Catostomus latipinnis ) from 1992 to 1997 in the 26-km Lee's Ferry reach of the Colorado River immediately below Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona. We captured by electrofishing a total of 212 fish and recaptured 52 previously tagged by others. Flannelmouth sucker were captured throughout the tailwater but tended to aggregate about 5 km of the dam, possibly reflecting blockage of historic migration routes. Catch per hour of electrofishing did not differ among years but was greater from November to February than other periods, suggesting seasonal movements of flannelmouth sucker into the tailwater: Mean lengths and weights of fish did not differ among years or seasons. Length frequency analyses also indicated there were no significantly yearly trends in proportion of catch within size classes of fish. Mean condition differed only among seasons and was greatest in February, lowest in August, coinciding respectively with pre- and post-spawning periods of flannelmouth sucker in tributary just down from Lee's Ferry. Recaptured fish migrated from initial tagging locations 1.4-23.1 km downstream from Lee's Ferry. Fifty-nine percent of recaptured fish with known initial tagging locations increased in length, and fish tagged initially as subadults or adults, respectively, grew an average of 45.9 mm and 5.5 mm per year.     

Butterfly wing antineoplastic agents

Zusammenfassung Eine Voruntersuchung der Insektengruppe Lepidoptera auf anti-tumor-aktive Stoffe führte zu einer detaillierten chemischen Prüfung der aus Asien stammenden SchmetterlingeCatopsilia crocale Cramer (Pieridae) undPieris rapae cruavora. Ein bedeutender Teil der Anti-Tumor-Aktivität scheint ihren Ursprung in der chemischen Substanz Isoxanthopterin zu besitzen.

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The present contribution represents Part XXVII of the series Antineoplastic Agents. For Part XXVI refer toG. R. Pettit, J. F. Day, J. L. Hartwell andH. B. Wood, Nature, Lond.227, 962 (1970).

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This investigation was supported by Public Health Service Research Grants No. CA-10612-01 to No. CA-10612-04 from the National Cancer Institute, and was presented in part at the American Chemical Society Meeting, Washington, D.C., September 1971. We are also grateful to the National Science Foundation for financial assistance (Grant numbers GB-4939 and GB-6979) used in obtaining the Atlas CH-4B and SM-1B mass spectrometers employed in this study.     

Disparity curvature and the perception of three-dimensional surfaces

BINOCULAR stereopsis provides information about the relative distance of objects from the differences in the horizontal position of their images on the two retinas. Because the size of the disparity between two points is inversely related to the square of the viewing distance, it is usually assumed that disparities have to be scaled according to distance using the vergence angle of the eyes, or by using the small vertical disparities that also exist between corresponding points of the two images. Here we present evidence that the visual system could extract information about the shapes of surfaces (without the need for scaling) by using the second spatial derivative of disparity--disparity curvature--which remains invariant with viewing distance. Rather than computing the second derivative, we suggest that an approximation to disparity curvature could be derived from the differences in curvature of corresponding line elements in the two eyes.