Ictiofaunas musterienses de la Península Ibérica : ¿Evidencias de pesca Neandertal?

Una recopilación de restos óseos de peces musteriense en la Península Ibérica es aprovechada para llevar a cabo una valoración preliminar de su importancia de cara a definir el nicho ecológico del Hombre de Neandertal. Lo limitado de estas faunas y la dificultad para determinar la procedencia de los materiales no aclara, desgarciadamente, el papel desempeñado por los Neandertales en la génesis de estos acúmulos, participación que parece, cuando menos, intuirse en el caso de una de las asocaciones, a saber, el abrigo de Cueva Millán en la provincia de Burgos. En ausencia de un modelo definido de estrategias de subsistencia para este homínido tampoco nos resulta posible valorar en que medida una eventual actividad pesquera entraría dentro de su repertorio normal de comportamientos o constituiría un hecho excepcional. En tanto no se aclare ello, consideramos más prudente alejarnos de dicotoías simplistas del tipo "Neandertal-cazador-Cromañon-cazador/pescador

Doppler Impedance Changes at the Fetal Brain Vessels in a Pregnancy Affected with a Multiple Combination of Uteroplacental Anomalies

A fetus with a very rare five-fold combination of uteroplacental anomalies, bicornuate uterus, short cervix with cervical incompetence, multilobed placenta succenturiata, accessory cotyledon within the cervical funneling, and umbilical cord insertion into the anomalous cervical cotyledon, presented an early and marked decrease at the vertebral and middle cerebral arteries Doppler resistances. This cerebral low-impedance state, usually found before labor, and considered an adaptive mechanism developed to protect the fetus at term from labor asphyxia, was present for an unknown reason at 20 weeks. After the patient was treated with vaginal progesterone, the cervix shortening improved and markedly, at the same time, the cerebral vascular resistances increased and maintained an adequate for gestational age impedance until delivery at 34 weeks. As the described uteroplacental anomalies determined a high risk of preterm delivery, due to cervical dilation, cord compresion, and placental haemorrhage, these fluctuating brain vascular changes might be the result of the fetal adaptation to the changes preceding an imminent delivery

Bicervical Normal Uterus with Normal Vagina and Anteroposterior Disposition of the Double Cervix

We report a very uncommon uterine anomaly consisting on a normal uterus, a double cervix with an anteroposterior disposition, and absence of vaginal septum. A 36-years-old woman with one child and absence of past reproductive disorders was examined for a routine checkup. Clinical and transvaginal ultrasound examinations showed a normal uterus with a double cervix disposed in an anteroposterior fashion with the absence of vaginal septum. A review of the theories concerning müllerian fusion is done, and implications of this case in relation with these theories are discussed. This is the first case of a normal uterus with a double cervix situated in an anteroposterior fashion and absence of vaginal septum. This case is in concordance with theories that consider the fusion of the caudal part of Müllerian ducts to be the result of a complex process. It proves that at least in some cases the most caudal part of müllerian ducts is fused in an anteroposterior disposition

Outcome of Fetuses with Diagnosis of Isolated Short Femur in the Second Half of Pregnancy

Objectives. To assess the outcome of fetuses with isolated short femur detected at 19–41 weeks and determine to what extent this incidental finding should be a cause of concern in fetuses with a normal previous follow-up. Methods. 156 fetuses with isolated short femur were compared with a control group of 637 fetuses with normal femur length. FL values were converted into Z-scores and classified into 4 groups: control group: Z-score over −2, group 1: Z-score between −2 and −3, group 2: Z-score between −3 and −4, and group 3: Z-score below −4. FL values were plotted with the curves representing Z-scores −2, −3, and −4. To assess fetal outcome, the frequency of SGA, IUGR, abnormal umbilical Doppler (AUD), Down's syndrome, and skeletal dysplasia was determined for each group after delivery, and the relative risk in comparison with the control group was obtained. Finally, ROC curves were drawn in order to evaluate the FL diagnostic ability for the conditions appearing with increased frequency. Results. SGA, IUGR, and AUD were more frequent in the fetuses with short femur. Conversely, none of them presented Down's syndrome or skeletal dysplasia. According to ROC analysis, FL measurement behaved as a good diagnostic test for SGA and IUGR. Conclusions. A short femur diagnosis in a fetus with an otherwise normal follow-up determines just a higher risk of being small (SGA or IUGR)

Refugia of marine fish in the northeast Atlantic during the last glacial maximum: concordant assessment from archaeozoology and palaeotemperature reconstructions

Archaeozoological finds of the remains of marine and amphihaline fish from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) ca. 21 ka ago show evidence of very different species ranges compared to the present. We have shown how an ecological niche model (ENM) based on palaeoclimatic reconstructions of sea surface temperature and bathymetry can be used to effectively predict the spatial range of marine fish during the LGM. The results indicate that the ranges of marine fish species now in northwestern Europe were displaced significantly southwards from the modern distribution, challenging an existing paradigm of marine glacial refugia. The model presents strong evidence that there was an invasion of important fish through the Straits of Gibraltar in glacial times, where they were exploited by Palaeolithic human populations around the western Mediterranean Sea. The ENM results are important for ongoing studies of molecular ecology that aim to assess marine glacial refugia from the genetic structure of living populations, and they pose questions about the genetic identity of vanished marine populations during the LGM. Economically, the approach may be used to understand how the ranges of exploited fish species may be displaced with the future climate warming. The research presents a challenge for future archaeozoological work to delimit the glacial refugia and to verify palaeoclimatic reconstructions based on deep-sea core record

Birth‐weight differences at term are explained by placental dysfunction and not by maternal ethnicity

Objective To investigate the influence of ethnicity, fetal gender and placental dysfunction on birth weight (BW) in term fetuses of South Asian and Caucasian origin. Methods This was a retrospective study of 627 term pregnancies assessed at two public tertiary hospitals in Spain and Sri Lanka. All fetuses underwent biometry and Doppler examinations within 2 weeks of delivery. The influences of fetal gender and ethnicity, gestational age (GA) at delivery, cerebroplacental ratio (CPR) and maternal age, height, weight and parity on BW were evaluated by multivariable regression analysis. Results Fetuses born in Sri Lanka were smaller than those born in Spain (mean BW = 3026 ± 449 g vs 3295 ± 444 g; P < 0.001). Multivariable regression analysis demonstrated that GA at delivery, maternal weight, CPR, maternal height and fetal gender (estimates = 0.168, P < 0.001; 0.006, P < 0.001; 0.092, P = 0.003; 0.009, P = 0.002; 0.081, P = 0.01, respectively) were associated significantly with BW. Conversely, no significant association was noted for maternal ethnicity, age or parity (estimates = −0.010, P = 0.831; 0.005, P = 0.127; 0.035, P = 0.086, respectively). The findings were unchanged when the analysis was repeated using INTERGROWTH‐21st fetal weight centiles instead of BW (log odds, −0.175, P = 0.170 and 0.321, P < 0.001, respectively for ethnicity and CPR). Conclusion Fetal BW variation at term is less dependent on ethnic origin and better explained by placental dysfunction. Copyright © 2018 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd

The fishes from Cova Fosca (Castellón, Spain): ¿Lost signatures of a hunter gatherer tradition?

The small collection of marine fish remains retrieved at the Epipaleolithic-Neolithic site of Cova Fosca is presented. The relevance of these presumably food items is not quantitative but qualitatively, as it reveals a movement of people between the mountains and the shore taking place for at least 6 millennia rather than a movement of objects, a phenomenon that is discussed from the standpoint of the characteristics of the fish remains themselves but also their ecology and taphonomy, in the context of the archaeological sequenceEn este trabajo se detalla la minúscula colección de peces recuperados en el yacimiento Epipaleolítico-Neolítico de Cova Fosca. La importancia de estos presumibles restos de comida no es tanto cuantitativa como cualitativa dado que creemos evidencia un movimiento regular de gente, y no sólo de restos animales, entre la costa y la montaña que se prolongó durante, cuando menos, seis milenios. El fenómeno se valora desde la perspectiva de las características de los restos ícticos, así como de la ecología de los peces, su tafonomía y el contexto de la secuencia arqueológic

Las Náyades (Mollusca, Unionoida) del Calcolítico de Camino de las Yeseras (San Fernando de Henares, Madrid)

[ES] El registro pretérito de las náyades o almejas de agua dulce ibéricas continúa siendo muy pobre a pesar del auge de los análisis arqueomalacológicos en la Península durante la pasada década. Las náyades recuperadas en el yacimiento de Camino de Las Yeseras representan, por ello, una importante aportación que proporciona información sobre tres aspectos independientes: (i) el uso dado a estas náyades, que presumiblemente abarcaba tanto actividades utilitarias como rituales, (ii) la paleobiogeografía de estas especies y (iii) la calidad de las aguas en el entorno del yacimiento durante el Calcolítico. El estudio valora la presencia de los peces recuperados en Camino de las Yeseras desde la perspectiva de potenciales hospedadores de las larvas (gloquidios) de las náyades.[EN] The ancient record of the Iberian naiads is still poorly documented despite the development of archaeomalacological research that has taken place over the past decade in the peninsula. The naiad remains retrieved at Camino de las Yeseras thus constitute a welcome addition that provides information concerning three diferent aspects, namely: (i) the use given to these molluscs, which apparently was of both utilitarian and ritual connotations, (ii) the paleobiogeography of the group, and (iii) the quality of the waters close to the site during the Chalcolithic period. The study discusses the presence of the fish taxa documented at Camino de las Yeseras from the standpoint of their role as hosts of the naiads’ larval stages (glochidia).Peer reviewe

Is it possible to predict late antepartum stillbirth by means of cerebroplacental ratio and maternal characteristics?.

Objective: To examine the potential value of fetal ultrasound and maternal characteristics in the prediction of antepartum stillbirth after 32 weeks’ gestation. Methods: This was a retrospective multicenter study in Spain. In 29 pregnancies, umbilical artery pulsatility index (UA PI), middle cerebral artery pulsatility index (MCA PI), cerebroplacental ratio (CPR), estimated fetal weight (EFW), and maternal characteristics were recorded within 15 days prior to a stillbirth. The values of UA PI, MCA PI, and CPR were converted into multiples of the normal median (MoM) for gestational age and the EFW was expressed as percentile according to a Spanish reference range for gestational age. Data from the 29 pregnancies with stillbirths and 2298 control pregnancies resulting in livebirths were compared and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine significant predictors of stillbirth. Results: The only significant predictor of stillbirth was CPR (OR ¼ 0.161, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.035, 0.654; p¼.014); the area under the receiver operating characteristics curve was 0.663 (95% CI 0.545, 0.782) and the detection rate (DR) was 32.14% at a 10% false-positive rate (FPR). In addition, when we included MCA and UA PI MoM instead of CPR, only MCA PI MoM was significant (OR¼0.104, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.013, 0.735; p¼.029), with similar prediction abilities (area under the curve (AUC) 0.645, DR 28.6%, FPR 10%). Conclusions: The CPR and MCA PI are predictors of late stillbirth but the performance of prediction is poor.pre-print401 K