Uniparental Genetic Heritage of Belarusians: Encounter of Rare Middle Eastern Matrilineages with a Central European Mitochondrial DNA Pool

Ethnic Belarusians make up more than 80% of the nine and half million people inhabiting the Republic of Belarus. Belarusians together with Ukrainians and Russians represent the East Slavic linguistic group, largest both in numbers and territory, inhabiting East Europe alongside Baltic-, Finno-Permic- and Turkic-speaking people. Till date, only a limited number of low resolution genetic studies have been performed on this population. Therefore, with the phylogeographic analysis of 565 Y-chromosomes and 267 mitochondrial DNAs from six well covered geographic sub-regions of Belarus we strove to complement the existing genetic profile of eastern Europeans. Our results reveal that around 80% of the paternal Belarusian gene pool is composed of R1a, I2a and N1c Y-chromosome haplogroups – a profile which is very similar to the two other eastern European populations – Ukrainians and Russians. The maternal Belarusian gene pool encompasses a full range of West Eurasian haplogroups and agrees well with the genetic structure of central-east European populations. Our data attest that latitudinal gradients characterize the variation of the uniparentally transmitted gene pools of modern Belarusians. In particular, the Y-chromosome reflects movements of people in central-east Europe, starting probably as early as the beginning of the Holocene. Furthermore, the matrilineal legacy of Belarusians retains two rare mitochondrial DNA haplogroups, N1a3 and N3, whose phylogeographies were explored in detail after de novo sequencing of 20 and 13 complete mitogenomes, respectively, from all over Eurasia. Our phylogeographic analyses reveal that two mitochondrial DNA lineages, N3 and N1a3, both of Middle Eastern origin, might mark distinct events of matrilineal gene flow to Europe: during the mid-Holocene period and around the Pleistocene-Holocene transition, respectively

ВПЛИВ РІЗНИХ СИСТЕМ ОСНОВНОГО ОБРОБІТКУ ҐРУНТУ ТА УДОБРЕННЯ НА ВРОЖАЙНІСТЬ ЗЕРНА КУКУРУДЗИ В ЗРОШУВАНИХ УМОВАХ ПІВДНЯ УКРАЇНИ

The article presents the results of the research on soil bulk density and permeability as well as weediness of maize crops at the beginning and end of growing season on average for 2016-2019, applying different basic tillage and fertilizer systems. The goal of the research was to determine the effect of different methods and depth of basic tillage and fertilizers on agrophysical properties of soil and crop productivity in grain-row crop rotation when irrigating in the south of Ukraine. The objective of the research was to determine the effects of different methods and depths of basic tillage as well as fertilization on the agrophysical properties of dark chestnut soil and the productivity of corn in short crop rotation. During the experiment, field, quantitative-weight, visual, laboratory, calculation-comparative, mathematical-statistical methods and generally accepted in Ukraine methods and methodical recommendations were used. The research was conducted in the research fields of the Askanian SARS IIA NAAS of Ukraine. Based on the research results it was established that, both at the beginning and at the end of grooving season when applying the tillage up to 28-30 cm within the system of differentiated tillage bulk density was the smallest as 1,14 g/cm3 when using green manure and 1,19 g/cm3 without its use. When applying subsurface different depth tillage, bulk density increased up to 1,18 g/cm3 when using green manure and up to 1,26 g/cm3 without its use. Maximum bulk density of 1,28 g/cm3 was observed when no tillage applied without using green manure and 1,31 g/cm3 when using it that is by 12,3 and 10.1% higher compared to the reference area, respectively. The highest corn productivity was observed when applying subsurface different depth tillage, where the average values by the factor A were about 10,93 t/ha that is higher than those obtained in the reference area by 0,52 t/ha, or 5,0%. The use of zero tillage caused the obtaining of the lowest yield in the experiment as 8,71 t/ha that is less compared to the reference area by 1,7 t/ha, or 19,5%.У статті відображено результати досліджень щільності складення, водопроникності та забур’яненості посівів кукурудзи в середньому за 2016-2019 рр. за різних систем основного обробітку ґрунту та удобрення. Метою досліджень було визначення впливу різних способів та глибини основного обробітку ґрунту в сівозміні та удобрення на агрофізичні властивості ґрунту та продуктивність кукурудзи в зерно-просапній сівозміни на зрошенні півдня України. Завдання дослідження полягало у визначенні впливу різних способів і глибини основного обробітку та удобрення на агрофізичні властивості темно-каштанового ґрунту та продуктивність кукурудзи в короткоротаційній сівозміні. Під час експерименту використовували польовий, кількісно-ваговий, візуальний, лабораторний, розрахунково-порівняльний, математично-статистичний методи та загальновизнані в Україні методики і методичні рекомендації. Дослідження проводили на дослідних полях Асканійської ДСДС ІЗЗ НААН України. В результаті досліджень встановлено, що, як на початку, так і в кінці вегетації за оранки на 28-30 см, у системі диференційованого обробітку показники щільності складення були найменшими та становили 1,14 г/см3 на фоні сидерації та 1,19 г/см3 без її використання, за системи безполицевого різноглибинного розпушування показники щільності складення зросли до 1,18 г/см3 на фоні сидерату та 1,26 г/см3 без його використання. Максимальні ж показники щільності складення 1,28 г/см3 спостерігались за нульового обробітку ґрунту в сівозміні   без сидератів та 1,31 г/см3 з його використанням, що відповідно на 12,3 та на 10,1% вище порівняно з контролем. Найвищий  рівень продуктивності кукурудзи відзначився за безполицевого різноглибинного обробітку, де показники в середньому по фактору А складали 10,93 т/га, що більше контролю на 0,52 т/га, або 5,0%, а застосування нульового обробітку призвело до найменших показників в досліді 8,71 т/га, що менше порівняно з контролем на 1,7 т/га, або 19,5%

PROFESSIONAL SPEECH-COGNITIVE ACTIVITY OF EDUCATION SUBJECTS

В статье описывается важность развития профессиональной речемыслительной деятельности субъектов обучения. Приводятся данные исследования речевых нарушений, параметров мыслительной деятельности и уровня субъектности у студентов-логопедовThe article describes the importance of developing professional speech-cognitive activity of education subjects. The research data presents of speech disorders for speech therapists, the parameters of mental activity and the level of subjectivit

Mitochondrial echoes of first settlement and genetic continuity in El Salvador

Background: From Paleo-Indian times to recent historical episodes, the Mesoamerican isthmus played an important role in the distribution and patterns of variability all around the double American continent. However, the amount of genetic information currently available on Central American continental populations is very scarce. In order to shed light on the role of Mesoamerica in the peopling of the New World, the present study focuses on the analysis of the mtDNA variation in a population sample from El Salvador. Methodology/Principal Findings: We have carried out DNA sequencing of the entire control region of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome in 90 individuals from El Salvador. We have also compiled more than 3,985 control region profiles from the public domain and the literature in order to carry out inter-population comparisons. The results reveal a predominant Native American component in this region: by far, the most prevalent mtDNA haplogroup in this country (at ~90%) is A2, in contrast with other North, Meso- and South American populations. Haplogroup A2 shows a star-like phylogeny and is very diverse with a substantial proportion of mtDNAs (45%; sequence range 16090–16365) still unobserved in other American populations. Two different Bayesian approaches used to estimate admixture proportions in El Salvador shows that the majority of the mtDNAs observed come from North America. A preliminary founder analysis indicates that the settlement of El Salvador occurred about 13,400±5,200 Y.B.P.. The founder age of A2 in El Salvador is close to the overall age of A2 in America, which suggests that the colonization of this region occurred within a few thousand years of the initial expansion into the Americas. Conclusions/Significance: As a whole, the results are compatible with the hypothesis that today's A2 variability in El Salvador represents to a large extent the indigenous component of the region. Concordant with this hypothesis is also the observation of a very limited contribution from European and African women (~5%). This implies that the Atlantic slave trade had a very small demographic impact in El Salvador in contrast to its transformation of the gene pool in neighbouring populations from the Caribbean facade

Spatio-temporal dynamics of quantum-well excitons

We investigate the lateral transport of excitons in ZnSe quantum wells by using time-resolved micro-photoluminescence enhanced by the introduction of a solid immersion lens. The spatial and temporal resolutions are 200 nm and 5 ps, respectively. Strong deviation from classical diffusion is observed up to 400 ps. This feature is attributed to the hot-exciton effects, consistent with previous experiments under cw excitation. The coupled transport-relaxation process of hot excitons is modelled by Monte Carlo simulation. We prove that two basic assumptions typically accepted in photoluminescence investigations on excitonic transport, namely (i) the classical diffusion model as well as (ii) the equivalence between the temporal and spatial evolution of the exciton population and of the measured photoluminescence, are not valid for low-temperature experiments.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure

Complete Mitochondrial Genomes Reveal Neolithic Expansion into Europe

The Neolithic transition from hunting and gathering to farming and cattle breeding marks one of the most drastic cultural changes in European prehistory. Short stretches of ancient mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from skeletons of pre-Neolithic hunter-gatherers as well as early Neolithic farmers support the demic diffusion model where a migration of early farmers from the Near East and a replacement of pre-Neolithic hunter-gatherers are largely responsible for cultural innovation and changes in subsistence strategies during the Neolithic revolution in Europe. In order to test if a signal of population expansion is still present in modern European mitochondrial DNA, we analyzed a comprehensive dataset of 1,151 complete mtDNAs from present-day Europeans. Relying upon ancient DNA data from previous investigations, we identified mtDNA haplogroups that are typical for early farmers and hunter-gatherers, namely H and U respectively. Bayesian skyline coalescence estimates were then used on subsets of complete mtDNAs from modern populations to look for signals of past population expansions. Our analyses revealed a population expansion between 15,000 and 10,000 years before present (YBP) in mtDNAs typical for hunters and gatherers, with a decline between 10,000 and 5,000 YBP. These corresponded to an analogous population increase approximately 9,000 YBP for mtDNAs typical of early farmers. The observed changes over time suggest that the spread of agriculture in Europe involved the expansion of farming populations into Europe followed by the eventual assimilation of resident hunter-gatherers. Our data show that contemporary mtDNA datasets can be used to study ancient population history if only limited ancient genetic data is available

Mitochondrial DNA haplogroup T is associated with coronary artery disease and diabetic retinopathy: a case control study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is strong and consistent evidence that oxidative stress is crucially involved in the development of atherosclerotic vascular disease. Overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mitochondria is an unifying mechanism that underlies micro- and macrovascular atherosclerotic disease. Given the central role of mitochondria in energy and ROS production, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is an obvious candidate for genetic susceptibility studies on atherosclerotic processes. We therefore examined the association between mtDNA haplogroups and coronary artery disease (CAD) as well as diabetic retinopathy.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study of Middle European Caucasians included patients with angiographically documented CAD (n = 487), subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus with (n = 149) or without (n = 78) diabetic retinopathy and control subjects without clinical manifestations of atherosclerotic disease (n = 1527). MtDNA haplotyping was performed using multiplex PCR and subsequent multiplex primer extension analysis for determination of the major European haplogroups. Haplogroup frequencies of patients were compared to those of control subjects without clinical manifestations of atherosclerotic disease.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Haplogroup T was significantly more prevalent among patients with CAD than among control subjects (14.8% vs 8.3%; p = 0.002). In patients with type 2 diabetes, the presence of diabetic retinopathy was also significantly associated with a higher prevalence of haplogroup T (12.1% vs 5.1%; p = 0.046).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our data indicate that the mtDNA haplogroup T is associated with CAD and diabetic retinopathy in Middle European Caucasian populations.</p

East Eurasian ancestry in the middle of Europe: Genetic footprints of Steppe nomads in the genomes of Belarusian Lipka Tatars

Medieval era encounters of nomadic groups of the Eurasian Steppe and largely sedentary East Europeans had a variety of demographic and cultural consequences. Amongst these outcomes was the emergence of the Lipka Tatars-a Slavic-speaking Sunni-Muslim minority residing in modern Belarus, Lithuania and Poland, whose ancestors arrived in these territories via several migration waves, mainly from the Golden Horde. Our results show that Belarusian Lipka Tatars share a substantial part of their gene pool with Europeans as indicated by their Y-chromosomal, mitochondrial and autosomal DNA variation. Nevertheless, Belarusian Lipkas still retain a strong genetic signal of their nomadic ancestry, witnessed by the presence of common Y-chromosomal and mitochondrial DNA variants as well as autosomal segments identical by descent between Lipkas and East Eurasians from temperate and northern regions. Hence, we document Lipka Tatars as a unique example of former Medieval migrants into Central Europe, who became sedentary, changed language to Slavic, yet preserved their faith and retained, both uni-and bi-parentally, a clear genetic echo of a complex population interplay throughout the Eurasian Steppe Belt, extending from Central Europe to northern China

Age of the Association between Helicobacter pylori and Man

When modern humans left Africa ca. 60,000 years ago (60 kya), they were already infected with Helicobacter pylori, and these bacteria have subsequently diversified in parallel with their human hosts. But how long were humans infected by H. pylori prior to the out-of-Africa event? Did this co-evolution predate the emergence of modern humans, spanning the species divide? To answer these questions, we investigated the diversity of H. pylori in Africa, where both humans and H. pylori originated. Three distinct H. pylori populations are native to Africa: hpNEAfrica in Afro-Asiatic and Nilo-Saharan speakers, hpAfrica1 in Niger-Congo speakers and hpAfrica2 in South Africa. Rather than representing a sustained co-evolution over millions of years, we find that the coalescent for all H. pylori plus its closest relative H. acinonychis dates to 88–116 kya. At that time the phylogeny split into two primary super-lineages, one of which is associated with the former hunter-gatherers in southern Africa known as the San. H. acinonychis, which infects large felines, resulted from a later host jump from the San, 43–56 kya. These dating estimates, together with striking phylogenetic and quantitative human-bacterial similarities show that H. pylori is approximately as old as are anatomically modern humans. They also suggest that H. pylori may have been acquired via a single host jump from an unknown, non-human host. We also find evidence for a second Out of Africa migration in the last 52,000 years, because hpEurope is a hybrid population between hpAsia2 and hpNEAfrica, the latter of which arose in northeast Africa 36–52 kya, after the Out of Africa migrations around 60 kya