Understanding prehistoric maritime adaptations in northern Japan: Indirect evidence from ancient DNA and histological observations of albatross (Aves: Diomedeidae) bones

2016 ◽  
Vol 419 ◽  
pp. 159-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masaki Eda ◽  
Hiroko Koike ◽  
Hiroyoshi Higuchi
2012 ◽  
Vol 367 (1585) ◽  
pp. 88-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Barney ◽  
Sandra Martelli ◽  
Antoine Serrurier ◽  
James Steele

Scientists seek to use fossil and archaeological evidence to constrain models of the coevolution of human language and tool use. We focus on Neanderthals, for whom indirect evidence from tool use and ancient DNA appears consistent with an adaptation to complex vocal-auditory communication. We summarize existing arguments that the articulatory apparatus for speech had not yet come under intense positive selection pressure in Neanderthals, and we outline some recent evidence and analyses that challenge such arguments. We then provide new anatomical results from our own attempt to reconstruct vocal tract (VT) morphology in Neanderthals, and document our simulations of the acoustic and articulatory potential of this reconstructed Neanderthal VT. Our purpose in this paper is not to polarize debate about whether or not Neanderthals were human-like in all relevant respects, but to contribute to the development of methods that can be used to make further incremental advances in our understanding of the evolution of speech based on fossil and archaeological evidence.


2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iain Mathieson ◽  
Iosif Lazaridis ◽  
Nadin Rohland ◽  
Swapan Mallick ◽  
Nick Patterson ◽  
...  

The arrival of farming in Europe around 8,500 years ago necessitated adaptation to new environments, pathogens, diets, and social organizations. While indirect evidence of adaptation can be detected in patterns of genetic variation in present-day people, ancient DNA makes it possible to witness selection directly by analyzing samples from populations before, during and after adaptation events. Here we report the first genome-wide scan for selection using ancient DNA, capitalizing on the largest genome-wide dataset yet assembled: 230 West Eurasians dating to between 6500 and 1000 BCE, including 163 with newly reported data. The new samples include the first genome-wide data from the Anatolian Neolithic culture, who we show were members of the population that was the source of Europe's first farmers, and whose genetic material we extracted by focusing on the DNA-rich petrous bone. We identify genome-wide significant signatures of selection at loci associated with diet, pigmentation and immunity, and two independent episodes of selection on height.


Crisis ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 78-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Reisch ◽  
Petra Schlatter ◽  
Wolfgang Tschacher

This study assesses the efficacy of the treatment approach implemented in the Bern Crisis Intervention Program, where particular emphasis is placed on the remediation of suicide ideation and suicidal behavior, and depression, fear, and phobia are generally considered to be contributing factors. Four questionnaires addressing psychopathology, emotional well-being, social anxiety, and personality were administered prior to and after the treatment of 51 patients over a period of 2 to 3 weeks. The reduction of symptoms contributing to suicidal ideation and behavior was interpreted as indirect evidence of an antisuicidal effect of the program. Significant improvements were found in the psychopathology ratings, with depression and anxiety showing the largest reductions. The impact on personality and social phobia, however, was only moderate, and on average patients still exhibited symptoms after attending the program. This residual symptomatology points to the necessity of introducing a two-step therapy approach of intensive intervention targeted at the precipitating causes of the crisis, augmented by long-term therapy to treat underlying problems.


1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (02) ◽  
pp. 329-331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guglielmina Pepe ◽  
Olga Rickards ◽  
Olga Camacho Vanegas ◽  
Tamara Brunelli ◽  
Anna Maria Gori ◽  
...  

SummaryA difference in the prevalence of venous thromboembolism (TE) in major human groups has been described and an uneven distribution of FV Leiden mutation over the world has recently been reported.We investigated FV Leiden mutation in 584 apparently healthy sub#jects mostly from populations different from those previously investi#gated: 170 Europeans (Spanish, Italians), 101 sub-saharan Africans (Fon, Bariba, Berba, Dendi), 115 Asians (Indonesians, Chinese, Tharus), 57 Amerindians (Cayapa), 84 Afroamericans (Rio Cayapa, Viche), and 57 Ethiopians (Amhara, Oromo).The mutation was detected in only 1/115 Asian (Tharu) and in 5/170 Europeans (4 Italians, 1 Spanish).These data confirm that in non-Europeans the prevalence of FV mutation is at least 7 times lower than in Europeans and provide indirect evidence of a low prevalence not only of the FV Leiden gene but also of other genes leading to more severe thrombophilia. Finally, findings from the literature together with those pertaining to this study clearly show a marked heterogeneity among Europeans.


1979 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Palareti ◽  
M. Poggi ◽  
G. Fortunato ◽  
S. Coccheri

A series of 40 patients with TIA (25 males and 15 females) was thoroughly investigated by means of angiography and computerized tomography, and divided into a group (A) of 15 “sine materia”, and a group (B) of 25 with direct or indirect evidence of vascular occlusive or stenotic changes. Blood viscosity at 230 sec-1 37° was cp 4.2 ± 0.3 in the controls, cp 4.7 ± 0.7 in all patients (p < 0.05) cp 4.98 ± 0.7 in all male patients (p < 0.01 versus male controls), and cp 4.75 ± 0.8 in group B (p < 0.02). Haematocrit and Fibrinogen were also significantly increased in all male patients and in group B. Circulating platelet aggregates (CPA) were increased in 40% of the patients. Almost all patients with elevated CPA were males, with a slight prevalence in group B. Changes in blood viscosity parameters and in platelet aggregation in TIA patients were therefore related both to evidence of vascular lesions, and to sex, since they were found to prevail in male patients of both groups.


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