Melatonin receptor gene expression as well as melatonin synthesis and secretion activities were examined in the pineal gland of the grass puffer, which exhibits unique lunar/tidal cycle-synchronized mass spawing: spawning occurs before high tide on the day of spring tide during spawing season. Melatonin synthesizing activity was assessed by the abundance of arylalkylamine N-acetyltransferase 2 ...

More than 130 lunar meteorites have been found in Antarc-tica and other arid regions throughout the world. Even though nearly half of all lunar meteorites are paired falls and the location from which they were launched is unknown, they sample a more extensive area of lunar crust than manned sample returns, thereby providing a vital record of lunar crust materials. To use lunar meteorites to exp...

Visible-band (e.g., 0.4-0.7 μm) satellite radiometers are used almost exclusively for daytime observations, when a significant amount of sunlight reflection is available. Silicon photodetectors offer adequate sensitivity to a broad range of daytime visible light (e.g.,10 to 10 W/m-sr-μm). Examples of such sensors include the visible channels on the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHR...

The Moon was thought to be anhydrous since the Apollo era1, but this view has been challenged by detections of water on the lunar surface2–4 and in volcanic rocks5–9 and regolith10. Part of this water is thought to have been brought through solarwind implantation2–4,7,10 and meteorite impacts2,3,7,11, long after the primary lunar crust formed from the cooling magma ocean12,13. Here we show that...

Lunar samples are not readily available for In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) studies, necessary for preparations for a return to the Moon with landers, robots, and astronauts. Lunar soil simulants have been produced as substitutes for the real thing; BUT how good are they? JSC-1 and 1A were produced only to approximate the geotechnical properties of lunar soil, with its natural glassy compon...

Background: Osteoporosis is one of the most common problems in the women, especially after menopause and at the old age. Bone densitometry of vertebrae of lumbar region and femoral neck is a non invasive and precise method for evaluation of bone mass density (BMD) and determination of fracture risk. Materials and Method: from different districts of Ahvaz city, more than 300 healthy men and wo...

Low estimated lunar volatile contents, compared with Earth, are a fundamental observation for Earth-Moon system formation and lunar evolution. Here we present zinc isotope and abundance data for lunar crustal rocks to constrain the abundance of volatiles during the final stages of lunar differentiation. We find that ferroan anorthosites are isotopically heterogeneous, with some samples exhibiti...

the chronobiology of the acute myocardial infarction (ami) is an interesting matter for recognition of the biological mechanism that might trigger ami. the present study was aimed to investigate the circadian, seasonal and circannual variation of the ami occurrence with solar, lunar, and christian months. a retrospective study of 1174 cases with diagnosis of ami was conducted. all cases include...

lunar and mars landing is a crucial part of any exploration mission. its importance is manifested by the considerable interest in the past couple of decades. solution of lunar descent can be either numerical or analytical. numerical solutions are iterative and computationally demanding and some of them might not be suitable for on-board implementation. on the other hand, analytical solutions ar...

Two demersally-spawning fishes were selected to examine the relationship between adult spawning strategies and the early life histories of larvae and juveniles. Although the Caribbean gobies, Coryphopterus glaucofraenum Gill and Gnatholepis thompsoni Jordan are common, co-occurring constituents of nearshore coral reefs, relatively little is known about the early life history and recruitment of ...