Distinguishing African bovids using Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS): new peptide markers and insights into Iron Age economies in Zambia

Assessing past foodways, subsistence strategies, and environments depends on the accurate identification of animals in the archaeological record. The high rates of fragmentation and often poor preservation of animal bones at many archaeological sites across sub-Saharan Africa have rendered archaeofaunal specimens unidentifiable beyond broad categories, such as “large mammal” or “medium bovid”. Identification of archaeofaunal specimens through Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS), or peptide mass fingerprinting of bone collagen, offers an avenue for identification of morphologically ambiguous or unidentifiable bone fragments from such assemblages. However, application of ZooMS analysis has been hindered by a lack of complete reference peptide markers for African taxa, particularly bovids. Here we present the complete set of confirmed ZooMS peptide markers for members of all African bovid tribes. We also identify two novel peptide markers that can be used to further distinguish between bovid groups. We demonstrate that nearly all African bovid subfamilies are distinguishable using ZooMS methods, and some differences exist between tribes or sub-tribes, as is the case for Bovina (cattle) vs. Bubalina (African buffalo) within the subfamily Bovinae. We use ZooMS analysis to identify specimens from extremely fragmented faunal assemblages from six Late Holocene archaeological sites in Zambia. ZooMS-based identifications reveal greater taxonomic richness than analyses based solely on morphology, and these new identifications illuminate Iron Age subsistence economies c. 2200–500 cal BP. While the Iron Age in Zambia is associated with the transition from hunting and foraging to the development of farming and herding, our results demonstrate the continued reliance on wild bovids among Iron Age communities in central and southwestern Zambia Iron Age and herding focused primarily on cattle. We also outline further potential applications of ZooMS in African archaeology.Introduction Faunal identifications and key research questions ZooMS in African archaeology Materials & methods Collagen extraction and digestion Peptide mass fingerprinting LC-MS/MS Biomarker identification and confirmation Identification of archaeological samples Results and discussion - Data quality control - Distinguishing among bovid groups Comparison with published markers ZooMS analysis and archaeofaunal identifications Herding economies and the persistence of hunting in Iron Age Zambia Conclusio

Stable isotope analysis of carnivores from the Turkana Basin, Kenya: evidence for temporally-mixed fossil assemblages

Stable isotope palaeoecology of fossil mammals is a key research tool for understanding the environmental context of hominin evolution in the Plio-Pleistocene of Africa. Well studied mammal groups include bovids, suids, equids, proboscideans and primates, but to date there has been no in-depth study of modern and fossil carnivores. Here we produce an Africa-wide oxygen and carbon enamel isotope dataset for modern carnivores and compare it with fossil carnivore data sampled from the Plio-Pleistocene Omo Group of the Turkana Basin, Kenya. Comparison of modern carnivore carbon isotopes with satellite images of land cover indicates that carnivore δ13C is related to the proportion of woody cover in the local environment. Modern carnivore oxygen isotopes are strongly influenced by the δ18O of meteoric water, through drinking from standing water and through prey body fluids. Carbon isotope data from fossil carnivores shows close agreement with palaeovegetation reconstructions from δ13C of palaeosol carbonates from the same geological Members, and a similar long-term trend in δ13C values through time (4 Ma to 1 Ma), reflecting a gradual increase in the proportion of C4 grasses in the Turkana Basin. This increase in the δ13C of large carnivores is consistent with the evidence from other mammalian groups for an increase in the proportion of grazers compared to browsers and mixed feeders during this time interval. Two distinct trends within oxygen versus carbon isotope space indicates that the fossil carnivores lived during two distinct climatic regimes – one in which palaeo-lake Turkana was freshwater, and one in which the lake resembled its modern-day hyperalkaline state. These two climatic states most likely represent the end-members of precessionally-driven rainfall extremes over the Ethiopian Highlands. This indicates that each studied faunal assemblage from the Omo Group is a time- and climate-averaged palimpsest; this has significant implications for the interpretation of environmental signals and community palaeoecology derived from Turkana Basin fossil mammals, including early hominins

Efficacy and safety of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose compared with oral iron for the treatment of iron deficiency anaemia in women after childbirth in Tanzania: a parallelgroup, open-label, randomised controlled phase 3 trial

Background: Iron deficiency anaemia is of major concern in low-income settings, especially for women of childbearing age. Oral iron substitution efficacy is limited by poor compliance and iron depletion severity. We aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose versus oral iron substitution following childbirth in women with iron deficiency anaemia in Tanzania. Methods: This parallel-group, open-label, randomised controlled phase 3 trial was done at Bagamoyo District Hospital and Mwananyamala Hospital, Tanzania. Eligible participants were close to delivery and had iron deficiency anaemia defined as a haemoglobin concentration of less than 110 g/L and a ferritin concentration of less than 50 μg/L measured within 14 days before childbirth. Participants were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive intravenous ferric carboxymaltose or oral iron, stratified by haemoglobin concentration and site. Intravenous ferric carboxymaltose was administered at a dose determined by the haemoglobin concentration and bodyweight (bodyweight 35 kg to <70 kg and haemoglobin ≥100 g/L: 1000 mg in one dose; bodyweight 35 kg to <70 kg and haemoglobin <100 g/L, or bodyweight ≥70 kg and haemoglobin ≥100 g/L: 1500 mg in two doses at least 7 days apart; bodyweight ≥70 kg and haemoglobin 115 g/L) at 6 weeks. Follow-up visits were at 6 weeks, and 3, 6, and 12 months. Analyses were done in the modified intention-totreat population of participants who had a 6-week haemoglobin concentration result, using logistic and linear regression models for binary and continuous outcomes, adjusted for baseline haemoglobin concentration and site. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02541708. Findings: Between Oct 8, 2015, and March 14, 2017, 533 individuals were screened and 230 were enrolled and randomly assigned to a study group (114 to intravenous iron, 116 to oral iron). At 6 weeks, 94 (82%) participants in the intravenous iron group and 92 (79%) in the oral iron group were assessed for the primary outcome. 75 (80%) participants in the intravenous iron group and 47 (51%) in the oral iron group had normalised haemoglobin (odds ratio 4·65, 95% CI 2·33-9·27). There were two mild to moderate infusion-related adverse events; and five serious adverse events (three in the intravenous iron group, two in the oral iron group), unrelated to the study medication. Interpretation: Intravenous iron substitution with ferric carboxymaltose was safe and yielded a better haemoglobin response than oral iron. To our knowledge, this is the first study to provide evidence of the benefits and safety of intravenous iron substitution in a low-income setting

Taphonomic Criteria for Identifying Iberian Lynx Dens in Quaternary Deposits

For decades, taphonomists have dedicated their efforts to assessing the nature of the massive leporid accumulations recovered at archaeological sites in the northwestern Mediterranean region. Their interest lying in the fact that the European rabbit constituted a critical part of human subsistence during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. However, rabbits are also a key prey in the food webs of Mediterranean ecosystems and the base of the diet for several specialist predators, including the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus). For this reason, the origin of rabbit accumulations in northwestern Mediterranean sites has proved a veritable conundrum. Here, we present the zooarchaeological and taphonomic study of more than 3000 faunal and 140 coprolite remains recovered in layer IIIa of Cova del Gegant (Catalonia, Spain). Our analysis indicates that this layer served primarily as a den for the Iberian lynx. The lynxes modified and accumulated rabbit remains and also died at the site creating an accumulation dominated by the two taxa. However, other agents and processes, including human, intervened in the final configuration of the assemblage. Our study contributes to characterizing the Iberian lynx fossil accumulation differentiating between the faunal assemblages accumulated by lynxes and hominins

Evaluating the photo-catalytic application of Fenton’s reagent augmented with TiO2 and ZnO for the mineralization of an oil-water emulsion

In the present work, homogenous (photo-Fenton) and heterogeneous photo-assisted systems (Fenton/TiO2/UV, Fenton/ZnO/UV and Fenton/TiO2/UV/Air) were investigated for the treatment of a diesel-oil wastewater emulsion. The augmentation of the photo-Fenton process by heterogeneous TiO2 increased the reaction rate, in terms of COD reduction efficiency from 61% to 71%. Furthermore, the COD removal efficiency was increased to 84% when air was bubbled through the reactants. However, if the Fenton/TiO2/UV/Air process is to be utilized as a treatment for this wastewater, the separation of the TiO2 from the treated effluent would need further consideration.Not applicabl