La circolazione delle ceramiche del Neolitico nel medio e alto Tirreno e nell’area ligure- provenzale. Studi di provenienza

Le regioni comprese tra medio e alto Tirreno, Liguria e Provenza hanno conosciuto durante il VI millennio BCE intense attività marittime e di scambio, che hanno contribuito alla neolitizzazione del Mediterraneo occidentale, intimamente legate allo sfruttamento e alla circolazione di materie prime come l’ossidiana, la selce e le pietre verdi ; in questo contesto, la definizione della circolazione delle ceramiche costituisce evidentemente un punto centrale per la comprensione dei rapporti economici e culturali tra i differenti gruppi neolitici. Nella prospettiva di contribuire alla ricerca sul complesso quadro culturale del Neolitico antico dell’area considerata, ci si è posti l’obiettivo di definire gli scambi e le potenziali interazioni tra i diversi gruppi neolitici attraverso la caratterizzazione delle materie prime della produzione ceramica, della loro provenienza e diffusione. Si è scelto di analizzare con metodologie petrografiche (microscopio stereoscopico e/o microscopio ottico) i materiali ceramici di alcuni dei siti chiave del tecno-complesso dell’Impressa-Cardiale per la determinazione delle potenziali aree di origine delle materie prime e di particolari scelte di tecnologia produttiva, attraverso il confronto tra georisorse e ceramiche archeologiche. Sulla base dei risultati ottenuti, si è cercato di definire le produzioni ceramiche e la loro circolazione tra il medio-alto Tirreno, la Liguria e la Provenza, per ciascuna delle diverse tappe crono-culturali del Neolitico antico. Les régions de la moyenne et haute Tyrrhénienne, la Ligurie et la Provence ont connu pendant le VIème millénaire BCE d’intenses activités maritimes et d’échange, dans le contexte de la néolithisation de la Méditerranée occidentale et intimement liées à l'exploitation et à la circulation des matières premières telles que l'obsidienne, le silex et les roches vertes; dans ce contexte, la définition de la circulation céramique constitue évidement un point central pour la compréhension des rapports économiques et culturels entre les différents groupes néolithiques. Afin de contribuer à la recherche sur le complexe culturel du Néolithique ancien de la zone considérée, nous avons abordé les échanges et les interactions possibles entre les différents groupes grâce à la caractérisation de la matière première des productions céramiques, leur origine et leur diffusion. Notre méthodologie est fondée sur l'analyse pétrographique (microscope stéréoscopique et/ou microscope optique) des matériaux céramiques de certains des principaux sites du techno-complexe Impressa-Cardial afin de déterminer les potentielles zones d'origine des matières premières et les choix techniques de production, par la confrontation des données de géo-ressources et des céramiques archéologiques. Sur la base des résultats d’analyses obtenus, nous avons essayé de définir les productions céramiques et leur circulation entre la moyenne-haute Tyrrhénienne, la Ligurie et la Provence, pour les différentes étapes chrono-culturelles du Néolithique ancien. Intense seafaring and cultural/commercial exchanges took place in the region among the Central-Northern Tyrrhenian sea, Liguria and Provence during the VI millennium BCE; these contributed to the neolithisation of the western Mediterranean and were intimately linked to the exploitation and circulation of raw materials, such as obsidian, chert and greenstone. Within this framework, the assessment of ceramic circulation paths is obviously central to understand the economic and cultural relations between different Neolithic groups. Exchanges and potential interactions between different groups were assessed by characterising raw materials used in pottery production, as well as their provenance and diffusion, in order to contribute to research on the early Neolithic in the above mentioned areas. The methodology was aimed at sourcing raw materials and defining technical choices in pottery production by petrographic analyses (stereo- and / or optical microscope) of ceramic samples from some key sites of the Impressa-Cardiale Ware techno-complex, and on their comparison with geo-resources and archaeological pottery data. Pottery production and circulation among the Tyrrhenian, Liguria and Provence areas, in distinct chrono-cultural stages of Early Neolithic, was defined upon the results of these analyses

NADPH cytochrome P-450 oxidoreductase and susceptibility to ketoconazole

The H2 allele of APOC I, giving rise to increased gene expression of apolipoprotein C-I (apoC-I), is in genetic disequilibrium with the APOE4 allele and may provide a major risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD). We found that apoC-I protein is present in astrocytes and endothelial cells within hippocampal regions in both human control and AD brains. Interestingly, apoC-I colocalized with R-amyloid (A beta) in plaques in AD brains, and in vitro experiments revealed that aggregation of A beta was delayed in the presence of apoC-I. Moreover, apoC-I was found to exacerbate the soluble A beta oligomer-induced neuronal death. To establish a potential role for apoC-I in cognitive functions, we used human (h) APOC1(+/0) transgenic mice that express APOC1 mRNA throughout their brains and apoC-I protein in astrocytes and endothelial cells. The hAPOC1(+/0) mice displayed impaired hippocampal-dependent learning and memory functions compared with their wild-type litter-mates, as judged from their performance in the object recognition task (P = 0.012) and in the Morris water maze task (P = 0.010). ApoC-I may affect learning as a result of its inhibitory properties toward apoE-dependent lipid metabolism. However, no differences in brain mRNA or protein levels of endogenous apoE were detected between transgenic and wild-type mice. In conclusion, human apoC-I expression impairs cognitive functions in mice independent of apoE expression, which supports the potential of a modulatory role for apoC-I during the development of AD