One sea but many routes to Sail. The early maritime dispersal of Neolithic crops from the Aegean to the western Mediterranean.

This paper explores the first maritime westward expansion of crops across the Adriatic and the northern coast of the western Mediterranean. Starting in Greece at c.6500 cal BC and following the coastline to the Andalusian region of Spain to c.4500 cal BC, the presence of the main cereal, pulse, oil and fibre crops are recorded from 122 sites. Patterns in the distribution of crops are explored through ubiquity scores, correspondence analysis and Simpson's diversity index. Our findings reveal changes in the frequencies of crops as farming regimes developed in Europe, and show how different crops followed unique trajectories. Fluctuations in the diversity of the crop spectrum between defined areas are also evident, and may serve to illustrate how founder effects can explain some of the patterns evident in large-scale spatio-temporal evaluations. Within the broader westward expansion of farming, regionalism and multi-directional maritime networks described through archaeological materials are also visible in the botanical records

Analysis of correlation and ionization from pair distributions in many-electron systems

This work was supported in part by the Spanish MINECO project FIS2014-59311-P (cofinanced by FEDER). A.L.M., J.C.A. and J.A. belong to the Andalusian research group FQM-020, and S.L.R. to FQM-239.Jensen–Shannon divergence is used to quantify the discrepancy between the Hartree–Fock pair density and the product of its marginals for different N-electron systems, enclosing neutral atoms (with nuclear charge Z = N) and singly-charged ions (N = Z ±1). This divergence measure is applied to determine the interelectronic correlation in atomic systems. A thorough study was carried out, by considering (i) both position and momentum conjugated spaces, and (ii) systems with a nuclear charge as far as Z = 103. The correlation among electrons was measured by comparing, for an arbitrary system, the double-variable electron-pair density with the product of the respective one-particle densities. A detailed analysis throughout the Periodic Table highlights the relevance not only of weightiness for the systems considered, but also of their shell structure. Besides, comparative computations between two-electron densities of different atomic systems (neutrals, cations, anions) quantify their dissimilarities, patently governed by shell-filling patterns throughout the Periodic Table.Spanish MINECO (FEDER) FIS2014-59311-

Characterization of phenolic composition of Vitis vinifera L. ‘Tempranillo’ and ‘Graciano’ subjected to deficit irrigation during berry development

The response of phenolic composition of skins from Vitis vinifera L. ‘Tempranillo’ and ‘Graciano’ grapes to water-deficit irrigation during berry growth and ripening was evaluated. The study was carried out using container-grown grapevines grown under controlled conditions in a greenhouse. Two irrigation treatments were imposed: control (well-watered) and sustained deficit irrigation (SDI). Twenty-eight phenolic compounds, including anthocyanins, flavonols and monomeric flavan-3-ols (catechins) as well as phenolic acids derivatives have been identified in the extracts prepared from the berry skins at physiological maturity. For both varieties, water deficit reduced leaf area and leaf area to crop mass ratio, and decreased berry size. However, there were no changes in juice total soluble solids, pH or total polyphenolic content. Water deficit resulted in decreased must titratable acidity in ‘Graciano’ berries. In ‘Tempranillo’, water limitation reduced total anthocyanins and flavonols, and increased hydroxycinnamic acids. In ‘Graciano’, water deficit resulted in increased flavonols and reduced catechins. Altogether, we concluded that under water-deficit irrigation, ‘Graciano’ grapes presented a differential composition of phenolic compounds that could result in improved fruit quality

An infrared view of (candidate accretion) disks around massive young stars

Near-infrared surveys of high-mass star-forming regions start to shed light onto their stellar content. A particular class of objects found in these regions, the so-called massive Young Stellar Objects (YSOs) are surrounded by dense circumstellar material. Several near- and mid-infrared diagnostic tools are used to infer the physical characteristics and geometry of this circumstellar matter. Near-infrared hydrogen emission lines provide evidence for a disk-wind. The profiles of the first overtone of the CO band-heads, originating in the inner 10 AU from the central star, are well fitted assuming a Keplerian rotating disk. The mid-infrared spectral energy distribution requires the presence of a more extended envelope containing dust at a temperature of about 200 K. CRIRES observations of CO fundamental absorption lines confirm the presence of a cold envelope. We discuss the evolutionary status of these objects

Management of Invasive Fungal Disease in Neonates and Children.

Invasive fungal diseases (IFD) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in premature neonates and immunocompromised pediatric patients. Their diagnostic and therapeutic management remains a challenge. A nationwide survey was conducted among 13 of the largest pediatric units in the United Kingdom, to obtain insight in the current management of IFD in neonates and children. All responding centers were tertiary teaching centers. The use of fungal diagnostic tools and imaging modalities varied among centers. Antifungal prophylaxis was prescribed in most centers for extreme-low birth weight (LBW) infants and high-risk hemato-oncologic patients, but with a huge variety in antifungals given. An empirical treatment was favored by most centers in case of febrile neutropenia. First line therapy for candidemia consists of either fluconazole or liposomal amphotericin B, with voriconazole being first-line therapy for invasive aspergillosis. Disseminated invasive aspergillosis was most often mentioned as a reason to prescribe combination antifungal therapy. In conclusion, this survey reinforces the fact that there are still important aspects in the management of pediatric IFD which should ideally be addressed in pediatric clinical trials. Attention needs to be given the knowledge gaps as observed in the results of our survey to optimize the management of IFD in children and neonates

Triggering antitumoural drug release and gene expression by magnetic hyperthermia

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) are promising tools for a wide array of biomedical applications. One of their most outstanding properties is the ability to generate heat when exposed to alternating magnetic fields, usually exploited in magnetic hyperthermia therapy of cancer. In this contribution, we provide a critical review of the use of MNPs and magnetic hyperthermia as drug release and gene expression triggers for cancer therapy. Several strategies for the release of chemotherapeutic drugs from thermo-responsive matrices are discussed, providing representative examples of their application at different levels (from proof of concept to in vivo applications). The potential of magnetic hyperthermia to promote in situ expression of therapeutic genes using vectors that contain heat-responsive promoters is also reviewed in the context of cancer gene therapy

Middle Neolithic farming of open-air sites in SE France: new insights from archaeobotanical investigations of three wells found at Les Bagnoles (L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, Dépt. Vaucluse, France)

Previous reviews of Middle Neolithic agricultural practice (4400–3500 cal bc) in southern France have highlighted a change in crop assemblages after 4000 cal bc, with a reduction of naked wheat and an increase of emmer and partly of einkorn. The recent investigation of three wells from the site of Les Bagnoles (4250–3800 cal bc) in the periphery of the southern Rhône valley yielded an unprecedented amount of waterlogged uncharred and charred plant macro remains that offer new insights into crop diversity and its changes over time. The results from the wells at Les Bagnoles were compared with other dated sunken features from open-air sites (in contrast to caves and rock shelters), with the aim of identifying patterns sug-gesting changes in the crop spectra between the early (MN1) and late (MN2) Middle Neolithic phases from taphonomically comparable contexts. The results from Les Bagnoles demonstrate that oil crops and pulses are underrepresented in dry sites and that they were a significant part of Middle Neolithic agriculture. They also indicate an increase in the representation of einkorn (instead of emmer) during MN2 that is also visible in other open-air sites. The comparison of the archaeobotani-cal results with silo storage capacity values as a proxy for average production capacity per household leads us to propose a possible drop in naked wheat productivity and opens new questions in factors affecting crop choice at the beginning of the 4th millennium cal bc