Air pollution and heart failure: Relationship with the ejection fraction

AIM: To study whether the concentrations of particulate matter in ambient air are associated with hospitaladmission due to heart failure in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction and reduced ejection fraction. METHODS: We studied 353 consecutive patients admitted into a tertiary care hospital with a diagnosis of heart failure. Patients with ejection fraction of ≥ 45% were classified as having heart failure with preserved ejection fraction and those with an ejection fraction of < 45% were classified as having heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. We determined the average concentrations of different sizes of particulate matter (< 10, < 2.5, and < 1 μm) and the concentrations of gaseous pollutants (carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and ozone) from 1 d up to 7 d prior to admission. RESULTS: The heart failure with preserved ejection fraction population was exposed to higher nitrogen dioxide concentrations compared to the heart failure with reduced ejection fraction population (12.95 ± 8.22 μg/m 3 vs 4.50 ± 2.34 μg/m 3 , P < 0.0001). Multivariate analysis showed that nitrogen dioxide was a significant predictor of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (odds ratio ranging from (1.403, 95%CI: 1.003-2.007, P = 0.04) to (1.669, 95%CI: 1.043-2.671, P = 0.03). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that shortterm nitrogen dioxide exposure is independently associated with admission in the heart failure with preserved ejection fraction population.

Origin and evolution of the genera Lonsdaleia and Actinocyathus:Insights for the Mississippian palaeogeography from the western Palaeotethys

Representatives of the subfamily Lonsdaleiinae Chapman,1893 are common in the Mississippian of the western Palaeotethys.A general analysis of the origin,distribution and evolution of that subfamily has been undertaken.The most probable hypothesis for the origin of the genus Lonsdaleia McCoy,1849 is to acquire colonialism via the genus Axophyllum Milne Edwards and Haime,1851.Actinocyathus d'Orbigny,1849 would be a descendant of Lonsdaleia by increasing integration in the colonies.The first occurrences of Lonsdaleia have been recorded in the lower Visean from northern Britain and northern Tianshan Mountains of northwestern China,but the diversification and migration to the whole Palaeotethys only happened in the late Visean.Three hypotheses are proposed on that matter.The Serpukhovian was also a period of migrations and diversification for these genera.Both Lonsdaleia and Actinocyathus have been recorded in Bashkirian refuges,the Sverdrup Basin in northern Laurasia and the Tindouf Basin in northern Africa,respectively.The division of the western Palaeotethys into six subprovinces based on the distribution of corals is proposed.

Palaeobiogeographical constraints on the distribution of foraminifers and rugose corals in the Carboniferous Tindouf Basin,South Morocco

The northern flank of the Tindouf Syncline in southern Morocco exhibits a continuous, well exposed Carboniferous succession with limestones of Late Asbian to Early Bashkirian age containing rich and diverse foraminiferal and rugose coral assemblages. Analysis of these assemblages provides new data on the relatively poorly known Saharan basins. The palaeobiogeographical relationship of the Tindouf Basin with other Palaeotethyan basins is complex. Although there is a predominance of cosmopolitan taxa for the Palaeotethys, it is recognized that there was an influence of basins from NW Europe, such as the UK and Ireland. Some taxa are recorded in both NW Europe and Tindouf without any characteristic contributions from intermediate basins in northern Morocco. The neighbouring Béchar Basin in Algeria presents distinct assemblages. The bulk of the data analyzed suggest that this sector of the western Palaeotethys can be subdivided into four palaeobiogeographical subprovinces: the Atlantic Subprovince (UK, Ireland, N France and Belgium), the Mediterranean Subprovince (Pyrenees, Montagne Noire, Betic Cordillera, Rif (N Morocco) and Balearic Islands), and the Saharan Subprovince (Béchar, Reggan, Ahnet-Mouydir and Tindouf). In between, mobile belts of mixed faunal assemblage characteristics are observed (e.g., SW Spain and Central Meseta) forming the West peri-Gondwanan Subprovince.Analysis of the Tindouf Basin faunas shows that, as in other Saharan basins, there is a high diversity and abundance of foraminiferal taxa, with a higher proportion of survivors and longer stratigraphic ranges; these features also are mirrored by rugose corals. This emphasizes the longevity of the carbonate platform in a tropical setting, where periodic transgressions introduced new assemblages, and oceanic currents are interpreted as one of the main controlling factors for the distribution of the taxa in these subprovinces. Moreover, not only were water temperatures on the platform higher, but also tectonic stability greater. It is considered that the effects of the first phases of the Gond-wanan glaciation were minimal on the Tindouf faunas.

A new early Visean coral assemblage from Azrou-Khenifra Basin,central Morocco and palaeobiogeographic implications

A new early Visean coral assemblage has been recorded from turbidite facies in the southern part of the AzrouKhenifra Basin,northwest of Khenifra,central Morocco.The newly discovered Ba Moussa West(BMW)coral fauna includes Siphonophyllia khenifrense sp.nov.,Sychnoelasma urbanowitschi,Cravenia lamellata,Cravenia tela,Cravenia rhytoides,Turnacipora megastoma and Pleurosiphonella crustosa.The early Visean age of the coral assemblage is supported by foraminiferal and conodont data,with the recognition of the basal Visean MFZ9 Zone.This confirms that the first transgression in the Azrou-Khenifra Basin was during the earliest Visean.The allochthonous coral assemblage was recovered from coarse-grained proximal limestone debris flow and turbidite beds within a faultbounded unit,lying to the west of a thrust syncline containing upper Visean limestones.No evidence exists of the former early Visean shallow-water platform from which the corals were derived.All other in situ platform carbonate rocks around the southern margin of the Azrou-Khenifra Basin are probably of late Visean(Asbian–Brigantian)age.The early Visean Ba Moussa West coral fauna can be compared with that at Tafilalt in eastern Morocco,as well as in other Saharian basins of Algeria.Many of the genera and species in the Ba Moussa West assemblage are identical to those in NW Europe,with which it must have had marine connections.The new rugose species described,Siphonophyllia khenifrense,is probably endemic to North Africa.Its ecological niche in NW Europe was occupied by S.cylindrica or S.aff.garwoodi.