Ancient genomes reveal social and genetic structure of Late Neolithic Switzerland

Genetic studies of Neolithic and Bronze Age skeletons from Europe have provided evidence for strong population genetic changes at the beginning and the end of the Neolithic period. To further understand the implications of these in Southern Central Europe, we analyze 96 ancient genomes from Switzerland, Southern Germany, and the Alsace region in France, covering the Middle/Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age. Similar to previously described genetic changes in other parts of Europe from the early 3rd millennium BCE, we detect an arrival of ancestry related to Late Neolithic pastoralists from the Pontic-Caspian steppe in Switzerland as early as 2860-2460 calBCE. Our analyses suggest that this genetic turnover was a complex process lasting almost 1000 years and involved highly genetically structured populations in this region

The Myxobacterial Antibiotic Myxovalargin: Biosynthesis, Structural Revision, Total Synthesis, and Molecular Characterization of Ribosomal Inhibition

Resistance of bacterial pathogens against antibiotics is declared by WHO as a major global health threat. As novel antibacterial agents are urgently needed, we re-assessed the broad-spectrum myxobacterial antibiotic myxovalargin and found it to be extremely potent against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. To ensure compound supply for further development, we studied myxovalargin biosynthesis in detail enabling production via fermentation of a native producer. Feeding experiments as well as functional genomics analysis suggested a structural revision, which was eventually corroborated by the development of a concise total synthesis. The ribosome was identified as the molecular target based on resistant mutant sequencing, and a cryo-EM structure revealed that myxovalargin binds within and completely occludes the exit tunnel, consistent with a mode of action to arrest translation during a late stage of translation initiation. These studies open avenues for structure-based scaffold improvement toward development as an antibacterial agent

Cognitive behavioral therapy of socially phobic children focusing on cognition: a randomised wait-list control study

BACKGROUND: Although literature provides support for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as an efficacious intervention for social phobia, more research is needed to improve treatments for children. METHODS: Forty four Caucasian children (ages 8-14) meeting diagnostic criteria of social phobia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; APA, 1994) were randomly allocated to either a newly developed CBT program focusing on cognition according to the model of Clark and Wells (n = 21) or a wait-list control group (n = 23). The primary outcome measure was clinical improvement. Secondary outcomes included improvements in anxiety coping, dysfunctional cognitions, interaction frequency and comorbid symptoms. Outcome measures included child report and clinican completed measures as well as a diagnostic interview. RESULTS: Significant differences between treatment participants (4 dropouts) and controls (2 dropouts) were observed at post test on the German version of the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children. Furthermore, in the treatment group, significantly more children were free of diagnosis than in wait-list group at post-test. Additional child completed and clinician completed measures support the results. DISCUSSION: The study is a first step towards investigating whether CBT focusing on cognition is efficacious in treating children with social phobia. Future research will need to compare this treatment to an active treatment group. There remain the questions of whether the effect of the treatment is specific to the disorder and whether the underlying theoretical model is adequate. CONCLUSION: Preliminary support is provided for the efficacy of the cognitive behavioral treatment focusing on cognition in socially phobic children. Active comparators should be established with other evidence-based CBT programs for anxiety disorders, which differ significantly in their dosage and type of cognitive interventions from those of the manual under evaluation (e.g. Coping Cat)

Hydraulically based stomatal oscillations and stomatal patchiness in Gossypium hirsutum

Slow stomatal oscillations (70-95 min), associated with feedback within the plant hydraulic systems, were studied in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). Oscillations were only evident when the whole plant was exposed to light, and were not influenced by reductions in intercellular CO 2 concentrations (C i) in intact, attached leaves. Oscillations were synchronised among different leaves of the same plant, even when the leaf-to-air vapour pressure difference (VPD) was reduced in a cuvette enclosing one of the leaves. In the trough phase of stomatal oscillations the apparent C i was higher than expected from the combination of the observed assimilation rate and the A(C i) relationship measured in the absence of oscillations. Using chlorophyll fluorescence imaging we found evidence of stomatal heterogeneity in this phase. Finally, we found that stomatal oscillations appeared to be correlated with xylem embolism, with more vessels filled with gas at the peak than at the troughs of stomatal oscillations. © CSIRO 2006