Colonial coral resilience by decreasing size: reaction to increased detrital influx during onset of the late Palaeozoic Ice Age.

Modern coral reefs and associated biodiversity are severely threatened by increasing terrestrial runoff. Similar scenarios could be suspected for geological times, but reef coral resilience is still an enigma. In late Visean-Serpukhovian (Mississippian foraminiferal zones/MFZ 14-16) times, a major glaciation phase of the late Palaeozoic Ice Age (LPIA) associated with enhanced terrestrial weathering and runoff coincides with a biodiversity crisis and coral reef decline.

Global microbial carbonate proliferation after the end-Devonian mass extinction: Mainly controlled by demise of skeletal bioconstructors.

Microbial carbonates commonly flourished following mass extinction events. The end-Devonian (Hangenberg) mass extinction event is a first-order mass extinction on the scale of the 'Big Five' extinctions. However, to date, it is still unclear whether global microbial carbonate proliferation occurred after the Hangenberg event.

On the in situ impedance measurement with pu-probes--simulation of the measurement setup.

High-quality numerical simulations in room acoustics require a detailed knowledge of the acoustic reflection characteristics of the materials in the room, in order to realistically model the interferences between multiple sound reflections at the room boundaries. While different standardized measurement methods exist for the determination of the absorption coefficient and reflection factor these methods can generally not be applied in situ. Thus time-consuming laboratory measurements and the supply of material samples are required.

Metabolic programming of MEST DNA methylation by intrauterine exposure to gestational diabetes mellitus.

Epigenetic processes are primary candidates when searching for mechanisms that can stably modulate gene expression and metabolic pathways according to early life conditions. To test the effects of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) on the epigenome of the next generation, cord blood and placenta tissue were obtained from 88 newborns of mothers with dietetically treated GDM, 98 with insulin-dependent GDM, and 65 without GDM. Bisulfite pyrosequencing was used to compare the methylation levels of seven imprinted genes involved in prenatal and postnatal growth, four genes involved in energy metabolism, one anti-inflammatory gene, one tumor suppressor gene, one pluripotency gene, and two repetitive DNA families.

Congenital hydrocephalus internus and aqueduct stenosis: aetiology and implications for genetic counselling.

Unlabelled: Genetic counselling in families with congenital hydrocephalus internus (CHI) in combination with aqueduct stenosis (AS) is often difficult due to an uncertain aetiology. We present a series of 35 patients with CHI and AS focusing on the aetiology and presumed recurrence risk for siblings. In 13 patients (37.