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In cancer patients, pain is one of the main symptoms and especially in the late stages of disease, these symptoms can be associated with considerable suffering. In psycho-oncology, preliminary psychological therapies targeting cancer pain have been tested; however, a systematic review of available interventions is lacking, especially considering their dissemination, evidence base, study quality, and the comparison with established treatments. Therefore, the aim of the current study is to systematically review the current research on psychological treatments for pain in cancer patients. During May 2014, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PSYNDEX, and CENTRAL databases were searched. Psychological treatments for pain in adult cancer patients studied in randomized, controlled trials (RCTs) and referring to pain as primary or secondary outcome were included. After examination for inclusion, structured data extraction and assessment followed. Data were synthesized narratively. In the review, 32 RCTs were included. Studies mainly referred to patients with breast cancer or patients in earlier stages of the disease. The methodological quality of included studies was heterogeneous. Most commonly, short interventions were delivered by nurses in out-patient settings. Interventions including education and relaxation techniques were utilized most often, followed by interventions with behavioral or cognitive components. A need for research persists regarding efficacy of current psychotherapeutic interventions, or the role of mediator variables (e. g., coping) on pain perception in cancer patients. Studies with high methodological quality which comprehensively and transparently report on interventions and designs are lacking.
The determination of the total carbon storage of peatlands is of high relevance in the context of climate-change mitigation efforts. This determination relies on data about stratigraphy and peat properties, which are conventionally collected by coring. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) can support these point data by providing subsoil information in two-dimensional cross-sections. In this study, GPR and ERI were conducted at two groundwater-fed fen sites located in the temperate zone in north-east Germany. The fens of this region are embedded in low conductive glacial sand and are characterised by thick layers of gyttja, which can be either mineral or organic. The two study sites are representative of this region with respect to stratigraphy (total thickness, peat and gyttja types) and ecological conditions (pH-value, trophic condition). The aim of this study is to assess the suitability of GPR and ERI to detect stratigraphy and peat properties under these characteristic site conditions. Results show that GPR clearly detects the interfaces between (i) Carex and brown-moss peat, (ii) brown-moss peat and organic gyttja, (iii) organic- and mineral gyttja, and (iv) mineral gyttja and the parent material (glacial sand). These layers differ in bulk density and the related organic matter content. ERI, however, does not delineate these layers; rather it delineates regions of varying properties. At our base-rich site, pore fluid conductivity and cation.exchange capacity are the main factors that determine peat electrical conductivity (reverse of resistivity), whereas organic matter and water content are most influential at the more acidic site. Thus the correlation between peat properties and electrical conductivity are driven by site-specific conditions, which are mainly determined by the solute load in the groundwater at fens. When the total organic deposits exceed a thickness of 5 m, the depth of investigation by GPR is limited due to increasing attenuation. This is not a limiting factor for ERI, where the transition from organic deposits to glacial sand is visible at both sites. Due to these specific sensitivities, a combined application of GPR and ERI meets the demand for up-to-date information on carbon storage of peatlands, which is, moreover, very site-specific because of the inherent variety of ecological conditions and stratigraphy between peatlands in general and between fens and bogs in particular. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Defining species by their climatic niche is the simple and intuitive principle underlying Bioclimatic Envelope Model (BEM) predictions for climate change effects. However, these correlative models are often criticised for neglecting many ecological processes. Here, we apply the same niche principle to entire communities within a medium/long-term climate manipulation study, where ecological processes are inherently included. In a nine generation study in Israel, we manipulated rainfall (Drought -30%; Irrigation +30%; Control natural rainfall) at two sites which differ chiefly in rainfall quantity and variability. We analysed community responses to the manipulations by grouping species based on their climatic rainfall niche. These responses were compared to analyses based on single species, total densities, and commonly used taxonomic groupings. Climate Niche Groups yielded clear and consistent results: within communities, those species distributed in drier regions performed relatively better in the drought treatment, and those from wetter climates performed better when irrigated. In contrast, analyses based on other principles revealed little insight into community dynamics. Notably, most relationships were weaker at the drier, more variable site, suggesting that enhanced adaptation to variability may buffer climate change impacts. We provide robust experimental evidence that using climatic niches commonly applied in BEMs is a valid approach for eliciting community changes in response to climate change. However, we also argue that additional empirical information needs to be gathered using experiments in situ to correctly assess community vulnerability. Climatic Niche Groups used in this way, may therefore provide a powerful tool and directional testing framework to generalise and compare climate change impacts across habitats. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier GmbH.
Die Geschichte der Landtage in der SBZ und in der frühen DDR ist weithin in Vergessenheit geraten. Obwohl die allgemeine Forschungsmeinung ihnen bislang nur die Rolle einer Fußnote der Landesgeschichte beigemessen hat, besaßen die Parlamente in Wirklichkeit für die Nachkriegszeit eine nicht zu unterschätzende Bedeutung.
Die vorliegende Studie untersucht am Beispiel der Landtage von Brandenburg und Thüringen den Wandel der Volksvertretungen von ihren Anfängen 1946 bis zur Auflösung 1952. Im Sinne einer vergleichenden Landesgeschichte werden die Parlamente nicht nur in den von der Besatzungsmacht vorgegebenen politischen und administrativen Rahmen eingeordnet, sondern es wird auch nach ihren strukturellen Gemeinsamkeiten und Besonderheiten gefragt. Das Augenmerk richtet sich zudem auf die Wandlung der Landtagsfraktionen von CDU und LDP: Pochten diese anfangs auf Eigenständigkeit und Gleichberechtigung, wurden sie rasch einem Prozess der politischen Anpassung und schließlich der Ausschaltung unterworfen. An dessen Ende stand die vollständige Unterordnung unter den Willen der Einheitspartei. Die Publikation versteht sich somit als ein Beitrag zum besseren Verständnis der Diktaturdurchsetzung in der SBZ/DDR auf Landesebene.
Gilbert et al. conclude that evidence from the Open Science Collaboration’s Reproducibility Project: Psychology indicates high reproducibility, given the study methodology. Their very optimistic assessment is limited by statistical misconceptions and by causal inferences from selectively interpreted, correlational data. Using the Reproducibility Project: Psychology data, both optimistic and pessimistic conclusions about reproducibility are possible, and neither are yet warranted.
The agricultural transition profoundly changed human societies. We sequenced and analysed the first genome (1.39x) of an early Neolithic woman from Ganj Dareh, in the Zagros Mountains of Iran, a site with early evidence for an economy based on goat herding, ca. 10,000 BP. We show that Western Iran was inhabited by a population genetically most similar to hunter-gatherers from the Caucasus, but distinct from the Neolithic Anatolian people who later brought food production into Europe. The inhabitants of Ganj Dareh made little direct genetic contribution to modern European populations, suggesting those of the Central Zagros were somewhat isolated from other populations of the Fertile Crescent. Runs of homozygosity are of a similar length to those from Neolithic farmers, and shorter than those of Caucasus and Western Hunter-Gatherers, suggesting that the inhabitants of Ganj Dareh did not undergo the large population bottleneck suffered by their northern neighbours. While some degree of cultural diffusion between Anatolia, Western Iran and other neighbouring regions is possible, the genetic dissimilarity between early Anatolian farmers and the inhabitants of Ganj Dareh supports a model in which Neolithic societies in these areas were distinct.
The effect of CO2 supply is likely to play an important role in algal ecology. Since inorganic carbon (C-i) acquisition strategies are very diverse among microalgae and C-i availability varies greatly within and among habitats, we hypothesized that C-i acquisition depends on the pH of their preferred natural environment (adaptation) and that the efficiency of C-i uptake is affected by CO2 availability (acclimation). To test this, four species of green algae originating from different habitats were studied. The pH-drift and C-i uptake kinetic experiments were used to characterize C-i acquisition strategies and their ability to acclimate to high and low CO2 conditions and high and low pH was evaluated. Results from pH drift experiments revealed that the acidophile and acidotolerant Chlamydomonas species were mainly restricted to CO2, whereas the two neutrophiles were efficient bicarbonate users. CO2 compensation points in low CO2-acclimated cultures ranged between 0.6 and 1.4 mu M CO2 and acclimation to different culture pH and CO2 conditions suggested that CO2 concentrating mechanisms were present in most species. High CO2 acclimated cultures adapted rapidly to low CO2 condition during pH-drifts. C-i uptake kinetics at different pH values showed that the affinity for C-i was largely influenced by external pH, being highest under conditions where CO2 dominated the C-i pool. In conclusion, C-i acquisition was highly variable among four species of green algae and linked to growth pH preference, suggesting that there is a connection between C-i acquisition and ecological distribution.
Nutrient Induced Fluorescence Transients (NIFTs) have been shown to be a possible way of testing for the limiting nutrient in algal populations. In this study we tested the hypothesis that NIFTs can be used to detect a (co-)limitation for inorganic phosphorus (Pi) and CO2 in the green alga Chlamydomonas acidophila and that the magnitude of the NIFTs can be related to cellular P:C ratios. We show a co-limitation response for Pi and CO2 via traditional nutrient enrichment experiments in natural phytoplankton populations dominated by C. acidophila. We measured NIFT responses after a Pi- or a CO2-spike in C. acidophila batch cultures at various stages of Pi and inorganic C limitation. Significant NIFTs were observed in response to spikes in both nutrients. The NIFT response to a Pi-spike showed a strong negative correlation with cellular P:C ratio that was pronounced below 3 mmol P: mol C (equivalent to 0.2 pg P cell(-1)). Both cellular P and C content influenced the extent of the Pi-NIFT response. The NIFT response to a CO2-spike correlated to low CO2 culturing conditions and also had a negative correlation with cellular P content. A secondary response within the Pi-NIFT response was related to the CO2 concentration and potentially reflected co-limitation. In conclusion, NIFTs provided a quick and reliable method to detect the growth-limiting nutrient in an extremophile green alga, under Pi-, CO2- and Pi/CO2 (co-)limited growth conditions.
The role that climate and environmental history may have played in influencing human evolution has been the focus of considerable interest and controversy among paleoanthropologists for decades. Prior attempts to understand the environmental history side of this equation have centered around the study of outcrop sediments and fossils adjacent to where fossil hominins (ancestors or close relatives of modern humans) are found, or from the study of deep sea drill cores. However, outcrop sediments are often highly weathered and thus are unsuitable for some types of paleoclimatic records, and deep sea core records come from long distances away from the actual fossil and stone tool remains. The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP) was developed to address these issues. The project has focused its efforts on the eastern African Rift Valley, where much of the evidence for early hominins has been recovered. We have collected about 2 km of sediment drill core from six basins in Kenya and Ethiopia, in lake deposits immediately adjacent to important fossil hominin and archaeological sites. Collectively these cores cover in time many of the key transitions and critical intervals in human evolutionary history over the last 4 Ma, such as the earliest stone tools, the origin of our own genus Homo, and the earliest anatomically modern Homo sapiens. Here we document the initial field, physical property, and core description results of the 2012-2014 HSPDP coring campaign.
The role that climate and environmental history may have played in influencing human evolution has been the focus of considerable interest and controversy among paleoanthropologists for decades. Prior attempts to understand the environmental history side of this equation have centered around the study of outcrop sediments and fossils adjacent to where fossil hominins (ancestors or close relatives of modern humans) are found, or from the study of deep sea drill cores. However, outcrop sediments are often highly weathered and thus are unsuitable for some types of paleoclimatic records, and deep sea core records come from long distances away from the actual fossil and stone tool remains. The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP) was developed to address these issues. The project has focused its efforts on the eastern African Rift Valley, where much of the evidence for early hominins has been recovered. We have collected about 2 km of sediment drill core from six basins in Kenya and Ethiopia, in lake deposits immediately adjacent to important fossil hominin and archaeological sites. Collectively these cores cover in time many of the key transitions and critical intervals in human evolutionary history over the last 4 Ma, such as the earliest stone tools, the origin of our own genus Homo, and the earliest anatomically modern Homo sapiens. Here we document the initial field, physical property, and core description results of the 2012-2014 HSPDP coring campaign.
We report the detection of extended Ly alpha emission around individual star-forming galaxies at redshifts z = 3-6 in an ultradeep exposure of the Hubble Deep Field South obtained with MUSE on the ESO-VLT. The data reach a limiting surface brightness (1 sigma) of similar to 1 x 10(-19) erg s(-1) cm(-2) arcsec(-2) in azimuthally averaged radial profiles, an order of magnitude improvement over previous narrowband imaging. Our sample consists of 26 spectroscopically confirmed Ly alpha-emitting, but mostly continuum-faint (m(AB) greater than or similar to 27) galaxies. In most objects the Ly alpha emission is considerably more extended than the UV continuum light. While five of the faintest galaxies in the sample show no significantly detected Ly alpha haloes, the derived upper limits suggest that this is due to insufficient S/N. Ly alpha haloes therefore appear to be ubiquitous even for low-mass (similar to 10(8)-10(9) M-circle dot) star-forming galaxies at z > 3. We decompose the Ly alpha emission of each object into a compact component tracing the UV continuum and an extended halo component, and infer sizes and luminosities of the haloes. The extended Ly alpha emission approximately follows an exponential surface brightness distribution with a scale length of a few kpc. While these haloes are thus quite modest in terms of their absolute sizes, they are larger by a factor of 5-15 than the corresponding rest-frame UV continuum sources as seen by HST. They are also much more extended, by a factor similar to 5, than Ly alpha haloes around low-redshift star-forming galaxies. Between similar to 40% and greater than or similar to 90% of the observed Ly alpha flux comes from the extended halo component, with no obvious correlation of this fraction with either the absolute or the relative size of the Ly alpha halo. Our observations provide direct insights into the spatial distribution of at least partly neutral gas residing in the circumgalactic medium of low to intermediate mass galaxies at z > 3.
Herein we present an efficient synthesis of a biomimetic probe with modular construction that can be specifically bound by the mannose binding FimH protein - a surface adhesion protein of E. coli bacteria. The synthesis combines the new and interesting DBD dye with the carbohydrate ligand mannose via a Click reaction. We demonstrate the binding to E. coli bacteria over a large concentration range and also present some special characteristics of those molecules that are of particular interest for the application as a biosensor. In particular, the mix-and-measure ability and the very good photo-stability should be highlighted here.
Venomous snakes often display extensive variation in venom composition both between and within species. However, the mechanisms underlying the distribution of different toxins and venom types among populations and taxa remain insufficiently known. Rattlesnakes (Crotalus, Sistrurus) display extreme inter-and intraspecific variation in venom composition, centered particularly on the presence or absence of presynaptically neurotoxic phospholipases A2 such as Mojave toxin (MTX). Interspecific hybridization has been invoked as a mechanism to explain the distribution of these toxins across rattlesnakes, with the implicit assumption that they are adaptively advantageous. Here, we test the potential of adaptive hybridization as a mechanism for venom evolution by assessing the distribution of genes encoding the acidic and basic subunits of Mojave toxin across a hybrid zone between MTX-positive Crotalus scutulatus and MTX-negative C. viridis in southwestern New Mexico, USA. Analyses of morphology, mitochondrial and single copy-nuclear genes document extensive admixture within a narrow hybrid zone. The genes encoding the two MTX subunits are strictly linked, and found in most hybrids and backcrossed individuals, but not in C. viridis away from the hybrid zone. Presence of the genes is invariably associated with presence of the corresponding toxin in the venom. We conclude that introgression of highly lethal neurotoxins through hybridization is not necessarily favored by natural selection in rattlesnakes, and that even extensive hybridization may not lead to introgression of these genes into another species.
Venomous snakes often display extensive variation in venom composition both between and within species. However, the mechanisms underlying the distribution of different toxins and venom types among populations and taxa remain insufficiently known. Rattlesnakes (Crotalus, Sistrurus) display extreme inter-and intraspecific variation in venom composition, centered particularly on the presence or absence of presynaptically neurotoxic phospholipases A2 such as Mojave toxin (MTX). Interspecific hybridization has been invoked as a mechanism to explain the distribution of these toxins across rattlesnakes, with the implicit assumption that they are adaptively advantageous. Here, we test the potential of adaptive hybridization as a mechanism for venom evolution by assessing the distribution of genes encoding the acidic and basic subunits of Mojave toxin across a hybrid zone between MTX-positive Crotalus scutulatus and MTX-negative C. viridis in southwestern New Mexico, USA. Analyses of morphology, mitochondrial and single copy-nuclear genes document extensive admixture within a narrow hybrid zone. The genes encoding the two MTX subunits are strictly linked, and found in most hybrids and backcrossed individuals, but not in C. viridis away from the hybrid zone. Presence of the genes is invariably associated with presence of the corresponding toxin in the venom. We conclude that introgression of highly lethal neurotoxins through hybridization is not necessarily favored by natural selection in rattlesnakes, and that even extensive hybridization may not lead to introgression of these genes into another species.
Ancient DNA studies have revolutionized the study of extinct species and populations, providing insights on phylogeny, phylogeography, admixture and demographic history. However, inferences on behaviour and sociality have been far less frequent. Here, we investigate the complete mitochondrial genomes of extinct Late Pleistocene cave bears and middle Holocene brown bears that each inhabited multiple geographically proximate caves in northern Spain. In cave bears, we find that, although most caves were occupied simultaneously, each cave almost exclusively contains a unique lineage of closely related haplotypes. This remarkable pattern suggests extreme fidelity to their birth site in cave bears, best described as homing behaviour, and that cave bears formed stable maternal social groups at least for hibernation. In contrast, brown bears do not show any strong association of mitochondrial lineage and cave, suggesting that these two closely related species differed in aspects of their behaviour and sociality. This difference is likely to have contributed to cave bear extinction, which occurred at a time in which competition for caves between bears and humans was likely intense and the ability to rapidly colonize new hibernation sites would have been crucial for the survival of a species so dependent on caves for hibernation as cave bears. Our study demonstrates the potential of ancient DNA to uncover patterns of behaviour and sociality in ancient species and populations, even those that went extinct many tens of thousands of years ago.
Preface
(2016)
We investigate the influence of the Coriolis force on mass motion related to the Rheasilvia impact on asteroid Vesta. Observations by the NASA Dawn mission revealed a pattern of curved radial ridges, which are related to Coriolis-deflected mass-wasting during the initial modification stage of the crater. Utilizing the projected curvature of the mass-wasting trajectories, we developed a method that enabled investigation of the initial mass wasting of the Rheasilvia impact by observational means. We demonstrate that the Coriolis force can strongly affect the crater formation processes on rapidly rotating objects, and we derive the material's velocities (28.9 ± 22.5 m/s), viscosities (1.5–9.0 × 106 Pa s) and coefficients of friction (0.02–0.81) during the impact modification stage. The duration of the impact modification stage could be estimated to (1.1 ± 0.5) h. By analyzing the velocity distribution with respect to the topography, we deduce that the Rheasilvia impactor hit a heterogeneous target and that the initial crater walls were significantly steeper during the modification stage.
Subsurface microbial communities undertake many terminal electron-accepting processes, often simultaneously. Using a tritium-based assay, we measured the potential hydrogen oxidation catalyzed by hydrogenase enzymes in several subsurface sedimentary environments (Lake Van, Barents Sea, Equatorial Pacific, and Gulf of Mexico) with different predominant electron-acceptors. Hydrogenases constitute a diverse family of enzymes expressed by microorganisms that utilize molecular hydrogen as a metabolic substrate, product, or intermediate. The assay reveals the potential for utilizing molecular hydrogen and allows qualitative detection of microbial activity irrespective of the predominant electron-accepting process. Because the method only requires samples frozen immediately after recovery, the assay can be used for identifying microbial activity in subsurface ecosystems without the need to preserve live material. We measured potential hydrogen oxidation rates in all samples from multiple depths at several sites that collectively span a wide range of environmental conditions and biogeochemical zones. Potential activity normalized to total cell abundance ranges over five orders of magnitude and varies, dependent upon the predominant terminal electron acceptor. Lowest per-cell potential rates characterize the zone of nitrate reduction and highest per-cell potential rates occur in the methanogenic zone. Possible reasons for this relationship to predominant electron acceptor include (i) increasing importance of fermentation in successively deeper biogeochemical zones and (ii) adaptation of H(2)ases to successively higher concentrations of H-2 in successively deeper zones.
In a network with a mixture of different electrophysiological types of neurons linked by excitatory and inhibitory connections, temporal evolution leads through repeated epochs of intensive global activity separated by intervals with low activity level. This behavior mimics "up" and "down" states, experimentally observed in cortical tissues in absence of external stimuli. We interpret global dynamical features in terms of individual dynamics of the neurons. In particular, we observe that the crucial role both in interruption and in resumption of global activity is played by distributions of the membrane recovery variable within the network. We also demonstrate that the behavior of neurons is more influenced by their presynaptic environment in the network than by their formal types, assigned in accordance with their response to constant current.
A gelatin-poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), PLGA, composite scaffold, featuring a highly oriented pore channel structure, was developed as a template for articular cartilage regeneration. As a design principle the composite scaffold was optimized to contain only medical grade educts and accordingly no chemical cross linking agents or other toxicological relevant substances or methods were used. Scaffolds were synthesized using a freeze structuring method combined with an electrochemical process followed by freeze-drying. Finally, cross linking was performed using dehydrothermal treatment, which was simultaneously used for sterilization purposes. These composite scaffolds were analyzed in regard to structural and biomechanical properties, and to their degradation behavior. Furthermore, cell culture performance was tested using chondrocytes originated from joint articular cartilage tissue from 6 to 10 months old domestic pigs. Finally, the scaffolds were tested for tissue biocompatibility and their ability for tissue integration in a rat model. The scaffolds showed both excellent functional performance and high biocompatibility in vitro and in vivo. We expect that these gelatin-PLGA scaffolds can effectively support chondrogenesis in vivo demonstrating great potential for the use in cartilage defect treatment. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
In this article, we examined to what extent parental offending influences the timing of entry into parenthood of children. Based on a literature review, we hypothesized that children of delinquent parents would be more likely to enter into parenthood at a relatively young age, and that part of that association could be explained by differences between children of delinquent and non-delinquent parents in the timing of entry into marriage and in their own delinquent behaviour. Using data from a five-generation study of high risk families in the Netherlands, we found that parental delinquency increases the chance of early childbearing among daughters, but not among sons. Among sons, parental delinquency increased son's delinquency, suggesting that parental delinquency has different consequences for the life courses of their sons and daughters.
The main scope of the InterPACIFIC (Intercomparison of methods for site parameter and velocity profile characterization) project is to assess the reliability of in-hole and surface-wave methods, used for estimating shear wave velocity. Three test-sites with different subsurface conditions were chosen: a soft soil, a stiff soil and a rock outcrop. This paper reports the surface-wave methods results. Specifically 14 teams of expert users analysed the same experimental surface-wave datasets, consisting of both passive and active data. Each team adopted their own strategy to retrieve the dispersion curve and the shear-wave velocity profile at each site. Despite different approaches, the dispersion curves are quite in agreement with each other. Conversely, the shear-wave velocity profiles show a certain variability that increases in correspondence of major stratigraphic interfaces. This larger variability is mainly due to non-uniqueness of the solution and lateral variability. As expected, the observed variability in V-s,V-30 estimatesis small, as solution non-uniqueness plays a limited role. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
This paper extends the multilevel Monte Carlo variance reduction technique to nonlinear filtering. In particular, multilevel Monte Carlo is applied to a certain variant of the particle filter, the ensemble transform particle filter (EPTF). A key aspect is the use of optimal transport methods to re-establish correlation between coarse and fine ensembles after resampling; this controls the variance of the estimator. Numerical examples present a proof of concept of the effectiveness of the proposed method, demonstrating significant computational cost reductions (relative to the single-level ETPF counterpart) in the propagation of ensembles.
P-wave polarization at the Grafenberg array (GRF) in southern Germany is analysed in terms of azimuthal deviations and deviations in the vertical polarization using 20 yr of broad-band recordings. An automated procedure for estimating P-wave polarization parameters is suggested, based on the definition of a characteristic function, which evaluates the polarization angles and their time variability as well as the amplitude, linearity and the signal-to-noise ratio of the P wave. P-wave polarization at the GRF array is shown to depend mainly on frequency and backazimuth and only slightly on epicentral distance indicating depth-dependent local anisotropy and lateral heterogeneity. A harmonic analysis is applied to the azimuthal anomalies to analyse their periodicity as a function of backazimuth. The dominant periods are 180A degrees A and 360A degrees. At low frequencies, between 0.03 and 0.1 Hz, the observed fast directions of azimuthal anisotropy inferred from the 180A degrees A periodicity are similar across the array. The average fast direction of azimuthal anisotropy at these frequencies is N20A degrees E with an uncertainty of about 8A degrees A and is consistent with fast directions of Pn-wave propagation. Lateral velocity gradients determined for the low-frequency band are compatible with the Moho topography of the area. A more complex pattern in the horizontal fast axis orientation beneath the GRF array is observed in the high-frequency band between 0.1 and 0.5 Hz, and is attributed to anisotropy in the upper crust. A remarkable rotation of the horizontal fast axis orientation across the suture between the geological units Moldanubicum and Saxothuringicum is observed. In contrast, the 360A degrees A periodicity at high frequencies is rather consistent across the array and may either point to lower velocities in the upper crust towards the Bohemian Massif and/or to anisotropy dipping predominantly in the NE-SW direction. Altogether, P-wave polarization analysis indicates the presence of layered lithospheric anisotropy in the area of the GRF array. Seismic anisotropy is more variable in the brittle upper crust compared to lower crustal and subcrustal depths.
Air pollution is the number one environmental cause of premature deaths in Europe. Despite extensive regulations, air pollution remains a challenge, especially in urban areas. For studying summertime air quality in the Berlin–Brandenburg region of Germany, the Weather Research and Forecasting Model with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) is set up and evaluated against meteorological and air quality observations from monitoring stations as well as from a field campaign conducted in 2014. The objective is to assess which resolution and level of detail in the input data is needed for simulating urban background air pollutant concentrations and their spatial distribution in the Berlin–Brandenburg area. The model setup includes three nested domains with horizontal resolutions of 15, 3 and 1 km and anthropogenic emissions from the TNO-MACC III inventory. We use RADM2 chemistry and the MADE/SORGAM aerosol scheme. Three sensitivity simulations are conducted updating input parameters to the single-layer urban canopy model based on structural data for Berlin, specifying land use classes on a sub-grid scale (mosaic option) and downscaling the original emissions to a resolution of ca. 1 km × 1 km for Berlin based on proxy data including traffic density and population density. The results show that the model simulates meteorology well, though urban 2 m temperature and urban wind speeds are biased high and nighttime mixing layer height is biased low in the base run with the settings described above. We show that the simulation of urban meteorology can be improved when specifying the input parameters to the urban model, and to a lesser extent when using the mosaic option. On average, ozone is simulated reasonably well, but maximum daily 8 h mean concentrations are underestimated, which is consistent with the results from previous modelling studies using the RADM2 chemical mechanism. Particulate matter is underestimated, which is partly due to an underestimation of secondary organic aerosols. NOx (NO + NO2) concentrations are simulated reasonably well on average, but nighttime concentrations are overestimated due to the model's underestimation of the mixing layer height, and urban daytime concentrations are underestimated. The daytime underestimation is improved when using downscaled, and thus locally higher emissions, suggesting that part of this bias is due to deficiencies in the emission input data and their resolution. The results further demonstrate that a horizontal resolution of 3 km improves the results and spatial representativeness of the model compared to a horizontal resolution of 15 km. With the input data (land use classes, emissions) at the level of detail of the base run of this study, we find that a horizontal resolution of 1 km does not improve the results compared to a resolution of 3 km. However, our results suggest that a 1 km horizontal model resolution could enable a detailed simulation of local pollution patterns in the Berlin–Brandenburg region if the urban land use classes, together with the respective input parameters to the urban canopy model, are specified with a higher level of detail and if urban emissions of higher spatial resolution are used.
We present new experimental data of the low-temperature metastable region of liquid water derived from high-density synthetic fluid inclusions (996-916 kg m(-3)) in quartz. Microthermometric measurements include: (i) prograde (upon heating) and retrograde (upon cooling) liquid-vapour homogenisation. We used single ultrashort laser pulses to stimulate vapour bubble nucleation in initially monophase liquid inclusions. Water densities were calculated based on prograde homogenisation temperatures using the IAPWS-95 formulation. We found retrograde liquid-vapour homogenisation temperatures in excellent agreement with IAPWS-95. (ii) Retrograde ice nucleation. Raman spectroscopy was used to determine the nucleation of ice in the absence of the vapour bubble. Our ice nucleation data in the doubly metastable region are inconsistent with the low-temperature trend of the spinodal predicted by IAPWS-95, as liquid water with a density of 921 kg m(-3) remains in a homogeneous state during cooling down to a temperature of -30.5 degrees C, where it is transformed into ice whose density corresponds to zero pressure. (iii) Ice melting. Ice melting temperatures of up to 6.8 degrees C were measured in the absence of the vapour bubble, i.e. in the negative pressure region. (iv) Spontaneous retrograde and, for the first time, prograde vapour bubble nucleation. Prograde bubble nucleation occurred upon heating at temperatures above ice melting. The occurrence of prograde and retrograde vapour bubble nucleation in the same inclusions indicates a maximum of the bubble nucleation curve in the R-T plane at around 40 degrees C. The new experimental data represent valuable benchmarks to evaluate and further improve theoretical models describing the p-V-T properties of metastable water in the low-temperature region.
Species diversity is changing globally and locally, but the complexity of ecological communities hampers a general understanding of the consequences of animal species loss on ecosystem functioning. High animal diversity increases complementarity of herbivores but also increases feeding rates within the consumer guild. Depending on the balance of these counteracting mechanisms, species-rich animal communities may put plants under top-down control or may release them from grazing pressure. Using a dynamic food-web model with body-mass constraints, we simulate ecosystem functions of 20,000 communities of varying animal diversity. We show that diverse animal communities accumulate more biomass and are more exploitative on plants, despite their higher rates of intra-guild predation. However, they do not reduce plant biomass because the communities are composed of larger, and thus energetically more efficient, plant and animal species. This plasticity of community body-size structure reconciles the debate on the consequences of animal species loss for primary productivity.
Adaptation to physical activity and mental stress in the context of pain. Psychobiological aspects
(2016)
The genesis of chronic pain is predominantly explained by a multidimensional pain model approach that is based on the dysfunctional influence of biological, psychological and social variables as key risk factors inducing aberrant long-term changes. Biological facets comprise adaptation processes on the neuronal, musculoskeletal and (psycho) biological level that can be influenced by physical training or psychosocial factors, such as stress. These factors can play a causative role in developing dysfunctional adaptation mechanisms, which in turn prepare the biological ground to facilitate negative long-term changes in the peripheral and central nervous systems. Hence, these processes can be assumed to be fundamentally involved in the transition from acute to chronic and persistent pain. The aim of this review article is to discuss hypotheses for the genesis of chronic pain and possible treatment strategies. Selected research results about maladaptive processes in chronic pain due to psychological stress and physical activity are presented in order to inspire discussions about the ideal dose-response relationship of physical activity and the combination of different therapeutic concepts.
Deglaciation of Fennoscandia
(2016)
To provide a new reconstruction of the deglaciation of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet, in the form of calendar-year time-slices, which are particularly useful for ice sheet modelling, we have compiled and synthesized published geomorphological data for eskers, ice-marginal formations, lineations, marginal meltwater channels, striae, ice-dammed lakes, and geochronological data from radiocarbon, varve, optically-stimulated luminescence, and cosmogenic nuclide dating. This is summarized as a deglaciation map of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet with isochrons marking every 1000 years between 22 and 13 cal kyr BP and every hundred years between 11.6 and final ice decay after 9.7 cal kyr BP. Deglaciation patterns vary across the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet domain, reflecting differences in climatic and geomorphic settings as well as ice sheet basal thermal conditions and terrestrial versus marine margins. For example, the ice sheet margin in the high-precipitation coastal setting of the western sector responded sensitively to climatic variations leaving a detailed record of prominent moraines and other ice-marginal deposits in many fjords and coastal valleys. Retreat rates across the southern sector differed between slow retreat of the terrestrial margin in western and southern Sweden and rapid retreat of the calving ice margin in the Baltic Basin. Our reconstruction is consistent with much of the published research. However, the synthesis of a large amount of existing and new data support refined reconstructions in some areas. For example, the LGM extent of the ice sheet in northwestern Russia was located far east and it occurred at a later time than the rest of the ice sheet, at around 17-15 cal kyr BP. We also propose a slightly different chronology of moraine formation over southern Sweden based on improved correlations of moraine segments using new LiDAR data and tying the timing of moraine formation to Greenland ice core cold stages. Retreat rates vary by as much as an order of magnitude in different sectors of the ice sheet, with the lowest rates on the high-elevation and maritime Norwegian margin. Retreat rates compared to the climatic information provided by the Greenland ice core record show a general correspondence between retreat rate and climatic forcing, although a close match between retreat rate and climate is unlikely because of other controls, such as topography and marine versus terrestrial margins. Overall, the time slice reconstructions of Fennoscandian Ice Sheet deglaciation from 22 to 9.7 cal kyr BP provide an important dataset for understanding the contexts that underpin spatial and temporal patterns in retreat of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet, and are an important resource for testing and refining ice sheet models. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
X-ray Raman scattering spectroscopy is an emerging method in the study of low and intermediate Z elements' core-electron excitations at extreme conditions in order to reveal information on local structure and electronic state of matter in situ. We discuss the capabilities of this method to address questions in Earth materials' science and demonstrate its sensitivity to detect changes in the oxidation state, electronic structure, coordination, and spin state. Examples are presented for the study of the oxygen K-, silicon L- and iron M-edges. We assess the application of both temperature and pressure in such investigations exploiting diamond anvil cells in combination with resistive or laser heating which is required to achieve realistic conditions of the Earth's crust, mantle, and core.
We review recent progress in studying structural properties of liquids using X-ray absorption spectroscopy coupled with the Paris-Edinburgh press at third-generation synchrotron facilities. This experimental method allows for detecting subtle changes in atomic arrangements of melts over a wide pressure-temperature range. It has been also employed to monitor variations of the local coordination environment of diluted species contained in glasses, liquids and crystalline phases as a function of the pressure and temperature. Such information is of great importance for gaining deeper insights into the physico-chemical properties of liquids at extreme condition, including the understanding of such phenomena as liquid-liquid phase transitions, viscosity drops and various transport properties of geological melts. Here, we describe the experimental approach and discuss its potential in structural characterization on selected scientific highlights. Finally, the current ongoing instrumental developments and future scientific opportunities are discussed.
Using femtosecond time-resolved resonant magnetic x-ray diffraction at the Ho L-3 absorption edge, we investigate the demagnetization dynamics in antiferromagnetically ordered metallic Ho after femtosecond optical excitation. Tuning the x-ray energy to the electric dipole (E1, 2p -> 5d) or quadrupole (E2, 2p -> 4f) transition allows us to selectively and independently study the spin dynamics of the itinerant 5d and localized 4f electronic subsystems via the suppression of the magnetic (2 1 3-tau) satellite peak. We find demagnetization time scales very similar to ferromagnetic 4f systems, suggesting that the loss of magnetic order occurs via a similar spin-flip process in both cases. The simultaneous demagnetization of both subsystems demonstrates strong intra-atomic 4f-5d exchange coupling. In addition, an ultrafast lattice contraction due to the release of magneto-striction leads to a transient shift of the magnetic satellite peak.
The VIRTIS (Visible, Infrared and Thermal Imaging Spectrometer) instrument aboard the Rosetta spacecraft has performed extensive spectral mapping of the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in the range 0.3-5 mu m. The reflectance spectra collected across the surface display a low reflectance factor over the whole spectral range, two spectral slopes in the visible and near-infrared ranges and a broad absorption band centered at 3.2 mu m. The first two of these characteristics are typical of dark small bodies of the Solar System and are difficult to interpret in terms of composition. Moreover, solar wind irradiation may modify the structure and composition of surface materials and there is no unequivocal interpretation of these spectra devoid of vibrational bands. To circumvent these problems, we consider the composition of cometary grains analyzed in the laboratory to constrain the nature of the cometary materials and consider results on surface rejuvenation and solar wind processing provided by the OSIRIS and ROSINA instruments, respectively. Our results lead to five main conclusions: (i) The low albedo of comet 67P/CG is accounted for by a dark refractory polyaromatic carbonaceous component mixed with opaque minerals. VIRTIS data do not provide direct insights into the nature of these opaque minerals. However, according to the composition of cometary grains analyzed in the laboratory, we infer that they consist of Fe-Ni alloys and FeS sulfides. (ii) A semi-volatile component, consisting of a complex mix of low weight molecular species not volatilized at T similar to 220 K, is likely a major carrier of the 3.2 p.m band. Water ice contributes significantly to this feature in the neck region but not in other regions of the comet. COOH in carboxylic acids is the only chemical group that encompasses the broad width of this feature. It appears as a highly plausible candidate along with the NH4+ ion. (iii) Photolytic/thermal residues, produced in the laboratory from interstellar ice analogs, are potentially good spectral analogs. (iv) No hydrated minerals were identified and our data support the lack of genetic links with the CI, CR and CM primitive chondrites. This concerns in particular the Orgueil chondrite, previously suspected to have been of cometary origin. (v) The comparison between fresh and aged terrains revealed no effect of solar wind irradiation on the 3.2 mu m band. This is consistent with the presence of efficient resurfacing processes such as dust transport from the interior to the surface, as revealed by the OSIRIS camera. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Carboniferous metagranites with U-Pb zircon crystallization ages of 331-315 Ma crop out in the Afyon zone in the northern margin of the Anatolide-Tauride Block, which is commonly regarded as part of Gondwana during the Late Palaeozoic. They are peraluminous, calc-alkaline and are characterized by increase in Rb and Ba, decrease in Nb-Ta, and enrichment in Sr and high LILE/HFSE ratios compatible with a continental arc setting. The metagranites intrude a metasedimentary sequence of phyllite, metaquartzite and marble; both the Carboniferous metagranites and metasedimentary rocks are overlain unconformably by Lower Triassic metaconglomerates, metavolcanics and Upper Triassic to Cretaceous recrystallized limestones. The low-grade metamorphism and deformation occurred at the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary. There is no evidence for Carboniferous deformation and metamorphism in the region. Carboniferous arc-type granites and previously described Carboniferous subduction-accretion complexes on the northern margin of the Anatolide-Tauride Block suggest southward subduction of Paleotethys under Gondwana during the Carboniferous. Considering the Variscan-related arc granites in Pelagonian and Sakarya zones on the active southern margin of Laurasia, a dual subduction of Paleotethys can be envisaged between Early Carboniferous and Late Permian. However, the southward subduction was short-lived and by the Late Permian the Gondwana margin became passive. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
This study analyses some hydrological driving forces and their interrelation with surface-flow initiation in a semiarid Caatinga basin (12km(2)), Northeastern Brazil. During the analysis period (2005 - 2014), 118 events with precipitation higher than 10mm were monitored, providing 45 events with runoff, 25 with negligible runoff and 49 without runoff. To verify the dominant processes, 179 on-site measurements of saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat) were conducted. The results showed that annual runoff coefficient lay below 0.5% and discharge at the outlet has only occurred four days per annum on average, providing an insight to the surface-water scarcity of the Caatinga biome. The most relevant variables to explain runoff initiation were total precipitation and maximum 60-min rainfall intensity (I-60). Runoff always occurred when rainfall surpassed 31mm, but it never occurred for rainfall below 14mm or for I-60 below 12mmh(-1). The fact that the duration of the critical intensity is similar to the basin concentration time (65min) and that the infiltration threshold value approaches the river-bank saturated hydraulic conductivity support the assumption that Hortonian runoff prevails. However, none of the analysed variables (total or precedent precipitation, soil moisture content, rainfall intensities or rainfall duration) has been able to explain the runoff initiation in all monitored events: the best criteria, e.g. failed to explain 27% of the events. It is possible that surface-flow initiation in the Caatinga biome is strongly influenced by the root-system dynamics, which changes macro-porosity status and, therefore, initial abstraction. Copyright (c) 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effects of solvent additive on "s-shaped" curves in solution-processed small molecule solar cells
(2016)
A novel molecular chromophore, p-SIDT(FBTThCA8)(2), is introduced as an electron-donor material for bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells with broad absorption and near ideal energy levels for the use in combination with common acceptor materials. It is found that films cast from chlorobenzene yield devices with strongly s-shaped current-voltage curves, drastically limiting performance. We find that addition of the common solvent additive diiodooctane, in addition to facilitating crystallization, leads to improved vertical phase separation. This yields much better performing devices, with improved curve shape, demonstrating the importance of morphology control in BHJ devices and improving the understanding of the role of solvent additives.
A SEARCH FOR VERY HIGH ENERGY GAMMA RAYS FROM THE MISSING LINK BINARY PULSAR J1023+0038 WITH VERITAS
(2016)
The binary millisecond radio pulsar PSR J1023+0038 exhibits many characteristics similar to the gamma-ray binary system PSR B1259-63/LS 2883, making it an ideal candidate for the study of high-energy nonthermal emission. It has been the subject of multiwavelength campaigns following the disappearance of the pulsed radio emission in 2013 June, which revealed the appearance of an accretion disk around the neutron star. We present the results of very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray observations carried out by the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System before and after this change of state. Searches for steady and pulsed emission of both data sets yield no significant gamma-ray signal above 100 GeV, and upper limits are given for both a steady and pulsed gamma-ray flux. These upper limits are used to constrain the magnetic field strength in the shock region of the PSR J1023+0038 system. Assuming that VHE gamma rays are produced via an inverse Compton mechanism in the shock region, we constrain the shock magnetic field to be greater than similar to 2 G before the disappearance of the radio pulsar and greater than similar to 10 G afterward.
Methods. In most cases, the given orientation of the ecliptic is used to set up the heliographic coordinate system for the drawings. Positions and sizes are measured manually on screen. Very early drawings have no indication of their orientation. A rotational matching using common spots of adjacent days is used in some cases, while in other cases, the assumption that images were aligned with a zenith-horizon coordinate system appeared to be the most probable.
The interplay between soil structure, roots, and microbiota as a determinant of plant-soil feedback
(2016)
Plant-soil feedback (PSF) can influence plant community structure via changes in the soil microbiome. However, how these feedbacks depend on the soil environment remains poorly understood. We hypothesized that disintegrating a naturally aggregated soil may influence the outcome of PSF by affecting microbial communities. Furthermore, we expected plants to differentially interact with soil structure and the microbial communities due to varying root morphology. We carried out a feedback experiment with nine plant species (five forbs and four grasses) where the training phase consisted of aggregated versus disintegrated soil. In the feedback phase, a uniform soil was inoculated in a fully factorial design with soil washings from conspecific- versus heterospecific-trained soil that had been either disintegrated or aggregated. This way, the effects of prior soil structure on plant performance in terms of biomass production and allocation were examined. In the training phase, soil structure did not affect plant biomass. But on disintegrated soil, plants with lower specific root length (SRL) allocated more biomass aboveground. PSF in the feedback phase was negative overall. With training on disintegrated soil, conspecific feedback was positively correlated with SRL and significantly differed between grasses and forbs. Plants with higher SRL were likely able to easily explore the disintegrated soil with smaller pores, while plants with lower SRL invested in belowground biomass for soil exploration and seemed to be more susceptible to fungal pathogens. This suggests that plants with low SRL could be more limited by PSF on disintegrated soils of early successional stages. This study is the first to examine the influence of soil structure on PSF. Our results suggest that soil structure determines the outcome of PSF mediated by SRL. We recommend to further explore the effects of soil structure and propose to include root performance when working with PSF.
The new generation of solar instruments provides better spectral, spatial, and temporal resolution for a better understanding of the physical processes that take place on the Sun. Multiple-component profiles are more commonly observed with these instruments. Particularly, the He i 10830 triplet presents such peculiar spectral profiles, which give information on the velocity and magnetic fine structure of the upper chromosphere. The purpose of this investigation is to describe a technique to efficiently fit the two blended components of the He i 10830 triplet, which are commonly observed when two atmospheric components are located within the same resolution element. The observations used in this study were taken on 2015 April 17 with the very fast spectroscopic mode of the GREGOR Infrared Spectrograph (GRIS) attached to the 1.5-m GREGOR solar telescope, located at the Observatorio del Teide, Tenerife, Spain. We apply a double-Lorentzian fitting technique using Levenberg-Marquardt least-squares minimization. This technique is very simple and much faster than inversion codes. Line-of-sight Doppler velocities can be inferred for a whole map of pixels within just a few minutes. Our results show sub-and supersonic downflow velocities of up to 32 km s(-1) for the fast component in the vicinity of footpoints of filamentary structures. The slow component presents velocities close to rest. (C) 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH& Co. KGaA, Weinheim
Improved measurements of the photospheric and chromospheric three-dimensional magnetic and flow fields are crucial for a precise determination of the origin and evolution of active regions. We present an illustrative sample of multi-instrument data acquired during a two-week coordinated observing campaign in August 2015 involving, among others, the GREGOR solar telescope (imaging and near-infrared spectroscopy) and the space missions Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS). The observations focused on the trailing part of active region NOAA 12396 with complex polarity inversion lines and strong intrusions of opposite polarity flux. The GREGOR Infrared Spectrograph (GRIS) provided Stokes IQUV spectral profiles in the photospheric Si i.1082.7 nm line, the chromospheric He I lambda 1083.0 nm triplet, and the photospheric Ca I lambda 1083.9 nm line. Carefully calibrated GRIS scans of the active region provided maps of Doppler velocity and magnetic field at different atmospheric heights. We compare quick-look maps with those obtained with the " Stokes Inversions based on Response functions" (SIR) code, which furnishes deeper insight into the magnetic properties of the region. We find supporting evidence that newly emerging flux and intruding opposite polarity flux are hampering the formation of penumbrae, i.e., a penumbra fully surrounding a sunspot is only expected after cessation of flux emergence in proximity to the sunspots. (C) 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH& Co.KGaA, Weinheim
We utilized femtosecond time-resolved resonant inelastic X-ray scattering and ab initio theory to study the transient electronic structure and the photoinduced molecular dynamics of a model metal carbonyl photocatalyst Fe(CO)(5) in ethanol solution. We propose mechanistic explanation for the parallel ultrafast intra-molecular spin crossover and ligation of the Fe(CO)(4) which are observed following a charge transfer photoexcitation of Fe(CO)(5) as reported in our previous study [ Wernet et al., Nature 520, 78 (2015)]. We find that branching of the reaction pathway likely happens in the (1)A(1) state of Fe(CO)(4). A sub-picosecond time constant of the spin crossover from B-1(2) to B-3(2) is rationalized by the proposed B-1(2) -> (1)A(1) -> B-3(2) mechanism. Ultrafast ligation of the B-1(2) Fe(CO)(4) state is significantly faster than the spin-forbidden and diffusion limited ligation process occurring from the B-3(2) Fe(CO)(4) ground state that has been observed in the previous studies. We propose that the ultrafast ligation occurs via B-1(2) -> (1)A(1) -> (1)A'Fe(CO)(4)EtOH pathway and the time scale of the (1)A(1) Fe(CO)(4) state ligation is governed by the solute-solvent collision frequency. Our study emphasizes the importance of understanding the interaction of molecular excited states with the surrounding environment to explain the relaxation pathways of photoexcited metal carbonyls in solution. (C) 2016 Author(s).
The subduction of hydrated slab mantle is the most important and yet weakly constrained factor in the quantification of the Earth's deep geologic water cycle. The most critical unknowns are the initial hydration state and the dehydration behavior of the subducted oceanic mantle. Here we present a combined thermomechanical, thermodynamic, and geochemical model of the Kamchatka subduction zone that indicates significant dehydration of subducted slab mantle beneath Kamchatka. Evidence for the subduction of hydrated oceanic mantle comes from across-arc trends of boron concentrations and isotopic compositions in arc volcanic rocks. Our thermodynamic-geochemical models successfully predict the complex geochemical patterns and the spatial distribution of arc volcanoes in Kamchatka assuming the subduction of hydrated oceanic mantle. Our results show that water content and dehydration behavior of the slab mantle beneath Kamchatka can be directly linked to compositional features in arc volcanic rocks. Depending on hydration depth of the slab mantle, our models yield water recycling rates between 1.1 × 103 and 7.4 × 103 Tg/Ma/km corresponding to values between 0.75 × 106 and 5.2 × 106 Tg/Ma for the entire Kamchatkan subduction zone. These values are up to one order of magnitude lower than previous estimates for Kamchatka, but clearly show that subducted hydrated slab mantle significantly contributes to the water budget in the Kamchatkan subduction zone.