Incorporation of monovalent cations in sulfate green rust.

Green rust is a naturally occurring layered mixed-valent ferrous-ferric hydroxide, which can react with a range of redox-active compounds. Sulfate-bearing green rust is generally thought to have interlayers composed of sulfate and water. Here, we provide evidence that the interlayers also contain monovalent cations, using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and synchrotron X-ray scattering. For material synthesized with Na(+), K(+), Rb(+), or Cs(+), interlayer thickness derived from basal plane spacings correlates with the radius of the monovalent cation. In addition, sequential washing of the materials with water showed that Na(+) and K(+) were structurally fixed in the interlayer, whereas Rb(+) and Cs(+) could be removed, resulting in a decrease in the basal layer spacing. The incorporation of cations in the interlayer opens up new possibilities for the use of sulfate green rust for exchange reactions with both anions and cations: e.g., radioactive Cs.

Characterization of Eyjafjallajokull volcanic ash particles and a protocol for rapid risk assessment.

On April 14, 2010, when meltwaters from the Eyjafjallajökull glacier mixed with hot magma, an explosive eruption sent unusually fine-grained ash into the jet stream. It quickly dispersed over Europe. Previous airplane encounters with ash resulted in sandblasted windows and particles melted inside jet engines, causing them to fail. Therefore, air traffic was grounded for several days. Concerns also arose about health risks from fallout, because ash can transport acids as well as toxic compounds, such as fluoride, aluminum, and arsenic. Studies on ash are usually made on material collected far from the source, where it could have mixed with other atmospheric particles, or after exposure to water as rain or fog, which would alter surface composition. For this study, a unique set of dry ash samples was collected immediately after the explosive event and compared with fresh ash from a later, more typical eruption. Using nanotechniques, custom-designed for studying natural materials, we explored the physical and chemical nature of the ash to determine if fears about health and safety were justified and we developed a protocol that will serve for assessing risks during a future event. On single particles, we identified the composition of nanometer scale salt coatings and measured the mass of adsorbed salts with picogram resolution. The particles of explosive ash that reached Europe in the jet stream were especially sharp and abrasive over their entire size range, from submillimeter to tens of nanometers. Edges remained sharp even after a couple of weeks of abrasion in stirred water suspensions.

Uptake and release of cerium during Fe-oxide formation and transformation in Fe(II) solutions.

Fe-oxides are ubiquitous in soils and sediments and form during Fe(0) corrosion. Depending on redox conditions and solution composition, Fe-oxides such as ferrihydrite, goethite, magnetite, and green rust (GR) may form. These phases typically have high surface area and large affinity for adsorption of trace components. Further, Fe(II)-Fe(III) (hydr)oxides are redox active. Cerium, a member of the lanthanide family, can be used as an analogue for the tri- and tetra-valent actinides found in radioactive waste, expected to be stored in subsurface repositories. In experiments with ferrihydrite, Ce(III) was effectively scavenged from Fe(II)-bearing solutions within 5 min at pH 7. During transformation of ferrihydrite to green rust, however, all Ce(III) was released to solution. By varying initial solution Fe(II):Fe(III) ratio, magnetite and goethite formed together with GR(Na,SO(4)), resulting in decreased Ce(III) release. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed Ce(III) adsorbed on magnetite. When Fe-oxides were synthesized by air oxidation of Fe(II) solutions at pH 7, GR(Na,SO(4)) played a catalytic role in the oxidation of Ce(III) to Ce(IV) by O(2), removing more than 90% of the dissolved Ce. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that it formed discrete nanocrystals of CeO(2(s)). These results demonstrate that Fe-oxide interaction with radionuclides is likely to depend strongly on the local redox conditions. By analogy with Ce, the trivalent actinides are not expected to be sequestered by preformed GR in anoxic environments. Our results also suggest that trivalent actinides and lanthanides are released when dissimilatory iron reduction of Fe(III)-oxides leads to GR formation However, under oxidizing conditions, GR may influence radionuclide mobility by catalyzing their transformation to a higher oxidation state.

Drug-induced apoptosis in osteosarcoma cell lines is mediated by caspase activation independent of CD95-receptor/ligand interaction.

Osteosarcoma is one of the most common primary malignant tumors of bone. Treatment of this tumor with systemic chemotherapy dramatically improves the prognosis, although the molecular mechanisms involved in the drug action are poorly understood. In chemosensitive leukaemic T cells and certain solid tumors, cytotoxic drugs mediate the induction of apoptosis by activation of the CD95/APO-1/Fas system. Triggering of the corresponding signaling pathway may involve CD95-receptor/ligand interaction, activation of caspases, or alterations in mitochondrial function. The purpose of our study was to determine if similar mechanisms are involved in the chemosensitivity of osteosarcomas. We found that cytotoxic drugs induce characteristic biochemical and morphological alterations related to apoptosis in osteosarcoma cell lines, including activation of caspases and disturbance of mitochondrial function. However, drug treatment did not result in activation of CD95-receptor or CD95-ligand mRNA. In addition, drug-induced apoptosis was blocked by caspase inhibitors but not by inhibition of CD95-ligand action, indicating a CD95-receptor/ligand-independent mechanism in osteosarcoma cell lines.

CD95-induced apoptosis contributes to loss of primed/memory but not resting/naive T cells in children infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1.

Increased apoptosis of uninfected CD4+ T cells is involved in CD4+ T cell depletion in HIV-1+ individuals. Recently, a progressive loss of resting naive T cells has been shown during the asymptomatic stage of HIV infection in children and adults. The CD95 receptor/ligand system is a key regulator of T cell apoptosis. To elucidate the role of this system in the depletion of resting naive T cells, we studied expression of CD95 and sensitivity toward CD95-triggered apoptosis in T cell subsets defined by CD45 (leukocyte common antigen) isoforms and CD62L (lymphocyte homing receptor L-selectin) in a cohort of HIV-1+ children. In patients and healthy control subjects the level of CD95 expression increased from resting/naive (L-selectin(bright) CD45RA+) T cells to primed/memory (CD45RO+ CD45RA-) T cells. In HIV-1+ children the susceptibility of peripheral blood T cells for CD95-mediated apoptosis also increased with progressive differentiation toward primed/memory T cells. Resting/ naive T cells were resistant to spontaneous and anti-CD95-induced apoptosis. Loss of naive (CD45RA+ CD45RO-) T cells in HIV-1+ patients in vivo was found to be paralleled by an increase in the percentage of CD95high T cells as well as an increase in anti-CD95-induced apoptosis of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. We conclude that loss of naive unprimed T cells during the asymptomatic phase of HIV-1 infection is caused by continuous generation of primed cells that exhibit increased sensitivity toward CD95-mediated apoptotic cell death in vitro.