Indigenous American Fishing Traditions at the First Spanish Capital of La Florida: Santa Elena (1566–1587 CE), South Carolina, USA

Abstract Few studies of post-Columbian animal economies in the Americas elaborate on the influence of traditional Indigenous knowledge on colonial economies. A vertebrate collection from Santa Elena (1566–87 CE, South Carolina, USA), the original Spanish capital of La Florida, offers the opportunity to examine that influence at the first European-sponsored capital north of Mexico. Santa Elena’s animal economy was the product of dynamic interactions among multiple actors, merging preexisting traditional Indigenous practices, particularly traditional fishing practices, with Eurasian animal husbandry to produce a new cultural form. A suite of wild vertebrates long used by Indigenous Americans living on the southeastern North Atlantic coast contributes 87% of Santa Elena’s noncommensal individuals and 63% of the noncommensal biomass. Examples of this strategy are found in vertebrate collections from subsequent Spanish and British settlements. This suggests the extent to which colonists at the Spanish-sponsored colony adopted some Indigenous animal-use practices, especially those related to fishing, and the speed with which this occurred. The new cultural form persisted into the nineteenth century and continues to characterize local cuisines

Dieta y alimentación hispano-americana en el Caribe y la Florida en el siglo XVI

European colonizing efforts were more successful in those places where European plants and animals adapted more easily. This would seem to indicate that Old World domesticated plants and animals either flourished or did not, but in fact the animals went through a period of adaptation to their new locations, influencing in turn the ways in which colonists adapted to their new environment. Examples of the degrees of adaptation of settlers and animals have been taken from the Spanish sixteenth-century colonization of Hispaniola, Cubagua and Florida, and show that in all cases European animals were present but that their importance in human diet varied considerably.Los esfuerzos coloniales europeos alcanzaron un mayor éxito en aquellas zonas americanas donde se arraigaron las plantas y los animales que los españoles llevaron consigo. Esta afirmación parece indicar que las plantas domesticadas y los animales del Viejo Mundo triunfaron o no, pero en realidad los animales europeos pasaron por un periodo de adaptación a las nuevas situaciones, influyendo según la forma en que los pobladores se adaptaban a las nuevas situaciones. Ejemplos de los grados de adaptación de colonos y animales se han tomado de las experiencias españolas del siglo XVI en La Española, Cubagua y Florida. Ejemplos que demuestran que los animales europeos se encontraban en caso, aunque su importancia en la dieta humana variara considerablemente

El Precerámico medio de Huarmey: historia de un sitio (pv35-106)

PV35-106 es el único sitio correspondiente al Precerámico medio que se ha podido ubicar en el área de Huarmey. Presenta la característica de tener una industria lítica muy particular, compuesta fundamentalmente por piezas astilladas y guijarros con golpe bipolar. El fechado radiocarbónico calibrado nos da para este yacimiento un lapso de tiempo que oscila entre cal. 5750 y cal. 4950 años a.C. A juzgar por los restos recuperados en las excavaciones, se trata de un grupo humano sedentario cuya economía básica fueron los recursos marinos. Pero hay indicios que ya se estaba iniciando un proceso hortícola. Las características culturales del sitio tienen parecido con las de la cultura Mongoncillo del vecino valle de Casma. Por todas las evidencias, parece que PV35-106 representa la transición entre la cultura Paijanense (Complejo Chivateros) y el Precerámico final.PV35-106 est le seul site correspondant au Précéramique moyen qui a pu être localisé dans la région de Huarmey. Le site se caractérise pour avoir une industrie lithique très particulière, composée fondamentalement par des pièces esquillées et des galets avec taille bipolaire. La datation radiocarbone date le site entre environ cal. 5750 et cal. 4950 av. J.C. D’après les restes récupérés dans les fouilles, il s’agirait d’un groupe humain sédentaire ayant une économie basée sur les ressources marines. Mais il y a aussi des indices qui montrent qu’un processus d’horticulture était en train de se développer. Les caractéristiques culturelles du site ressemblent à celle de la culture Mongoncillo de la vallée voisine de Casma. En accord avec les évidences, on peut conclure que le site PV35-106 représente la transition entre la culture Paijanienne (Complexe Chivateros) et le Précéramique final.PV35-106 is the only site found in the area of Huarmey that belongs to the Middle Preceramic. The principal characteristic of this site is that it displays a very particular lithic industry, which consists mainly of splintered pieces of stone and pebbles with bipolar percussion. The radiocarbon date situates the site between cal. 5750 and cal. 4950 BC. According to the remains found in the excavations, the site would have been inhabited by a sedentary human group with a marine-based economy. But there are also indications that a horticultural process was developing. The cultural characteristics of the site are similar to the Mongoncillo culture of the neighbouring valley of Casma. All the evidence leads us to conclude that PV35-106 represents the transition between the Paijanense Culture (Chivateros Complex) and that of the Late Preceramic

Investigating the global dispersal of chickens in prehistory using ancient mitochondrial dna signatures

Data from morphology, linguistics, history, and archaeology have all been used to trace the dispersal of chickens from Asian domestication centers to their current global distribution. Each provides a unique perspective which can aid in the reconstruction of prehistory. This study expands on previous investigations by adding a temporal component from ancient DNA and, in some cases, direct dating of bones of individual chickens from a variety of sites in Europe, the Pacific, and the Americas. The results from the ancient DNA analyses of forty-eight archaeologically derived chicken bones provide support for archaeological hypotheses about the prehistoric human transport of chickens. Haplogroup E mtDNA signatures have been amplified from directly dated samples originating in Europe at 1000 B.P. and in the Pacific at 3000 B.P. indicating multiple prehistoric dispersals from a single Asian centre. These two dispersal pathways converged in the Americas where chickens were introduced both by Polynesians and later by Europeans. The results of this study also highlight the inappropriate application of the small stretch of D-loop, traditionally amplified for use in phylogenetic studies, to understanding discrete episodes of chicken translocation in the past. The results of this study lead to the proposal of four hypotheses which will require further scrutiny and rigorous future testingExcavations in Fais by MI were made possible by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. DB gratefully acknowledges support from the Marsden Fund, and the Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution. During the course of this research AS was supported by a Postgraduate Scholarship from the University of Auckland and a Fellowship from the Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolutio

Historia de un campamento del Horizonte Medio de Huarmey, Perú (PV35-4)

Se presenta el estudio de un campamento temporal del Horizonte Medio situado en el desierto costero peruano al norte del valle de Huarmey. Se ha excavado la parte central del mismo pues presentaba la mayor cantidad de basura y dos fogones. Se ha podido establecer a base de la cerámica encontrada, que el sitio corresponde al Horizonte Medio 3. Los artefactos hallados son muy pocos, lo que es lógico dada la corta ocupación del sitio. Sin embargo se ha podido estudiar los abundantes restos botánicos y animales así como los fecales de llama que estaban acumulados en el lugar. También se ha encontrado coprolitos humanos. De ambos se ha realizado el examen polínico. Además de los excrementos humanos se ha efectuado el análisis del contenido de plantas y animales así como el parasitológico.Cet article étudie un campement temporaire de l’Horizon Moyen situé dans le désert côtier péruvien au nord de la vallée de Huarmey. La partie centrale du site a été choisie pour les fouilles car elle offrait la plus grande quantité de déchets ainsi que deux foyers. Il a été établi que le site correspondait à l’Horizon Moyen 3 grâce à la céramique qui y fut trouvée. Peu d’outillage a été trouvé en raison de la courte occupation du site, mais les restes abondants d’animaux et botaniques ainsi que les restes fécaux de llamas et humains accumulés sur le site ont fourni de précieuses indications. Les résultats des examens polliniques des coprolithes ainsi que les analyses du contenu de plantes, animaux et parasytes présents dans les coprolithes humains sont présentés ici.This is a study of a Middle Horizon temporary campsite located in the peruvian north coastal desert of the Huarmey Valley. The excavation was undertaken in the central part of the site since it contained the largest quantity debris and evidence of two bonfires. Its age was established using pieces of ceramic found on the site. A few artifacts were founded, probably due to the brief occupancy of the site, but were able to study the abundant botanical and animal remains, as well as llama and human coprolites. We present the results of tests for pollen in both the llama and human coprolites, as well as of tests for plant, animal, and parasite content in the human fecal remains are presented here

Multivariate Protein Signatures of Pre-Clinical Alzheimer's Disease in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) Plasma Proteome Dataset

Background: Recent Alzheimer's disease (AD) research has focused on finding biomarkers to identify disease at the pre-clinical stage of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), allowing treatment to be initiated before irreversible damage occurs. Many studies have examined brain imaging or cerebrospinal fluid but there is also growing interest in blood biomarkers. The Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) has generated data on 190 plasma analytes in 566 individuals with MCI, AD or normal cognition. We conducted independent analyses of this dataset to identify plasma protein signatures predicting pre-clinical AD. Methods and Findings: We focused on identifying signatures that discriminate cognitively normal controls (n = 54) from individuals with MCI who subsequently progress to AD (n = 163). Based on p value, apolipoprotein E (APOE) showed the strongest difference between these groups (p = 2.3×10−13). We applied a multivariate approach based on combinatorial optimization ((α,β)-k Feature Set Selection), which retains information about individual participants and maintains the context of interrelationships between different analytes, to identify the optimal set of analytes (signature) to discriminate these two groups. We identified 11-analyte signatures achieving values of sensitivity and specificity between 65% and 86% for both MCI and AD groups, depending on whether APOE was included and other factors. Classification accuracy was improved by considering “meta-features,” representing the difference in relative abundance of two analytes, with an 8-meta-feature signature consistently achieving sensitivity and specificity both over 85%. Generating signatures based on longitudinal rather than cross-sectional data further improved classification accuracy, returning sensitivities and specificities of approximately 90%. Conclusions: Applying these novel analysis approaches to the powerful and well-characterized ADNI dataset has identified sets of plasma biomarkers for pre-clinical AD. While studies of independent test sets are required to validate the signatures, these analyses provide a starting point for developing a cost-effective and minimally invasive test capable of diagnosing AD in its pre-clinical stages

Common genetic variants in the CLDN2 and PRSS1-PRSS2 loci alter risk for alcohol-related and sporadic pancreatitis

Pancreatitis is a complex, progressively destructive inflammatory disorder. Alcohol was long thought to be the primary causative agent, but genetic contributions have been of interest since the discovery that rare PRSS1, CFTR, and SPINK1 variants were associated with pancreatitis risk. We now report two significant genome-wide associations identified and replicated at PRSS1-PRSS2 (1×10-12) and x-linked CLDN2 (p < 1×10-21) through a two-stage genome-wide study (Stage 1, 676 cases and 4507 controls; Stage 2, 910 cases and 4170 controls). The PRSS1 variant affects susceptibility by altering expression of the primary trypsinogen gene. The CLDN2 risk allele is associated with atypical localization of claudin-2 in pancreatic acinar cells. The homozygous (or hemizygous male) CLDN2 genotype confers the greatest risk, and its alleles interact with alcohol consumption to amplify risk. These results could partially explain the high frequency of alcohol-related pancreatitis in men – male hemizygous frequency is 0.26, female homozygote is 0.07

Rare coding variants in PLCG2, ABI3, and TREM2 implicate microglial-mediated innate immunity in Alzheimer's disease

We identified rare coding variants associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in a 3-stage case-control study of 85,133 subjects. In stage 1, 34,174 samples were genotyped using a whole-exome microarray. In stage 2, we tested associated variants (P<1×10-4) in 35,962 independent samples using de novo genotyping and imputed genotypes. In stage 3, an additional 14,997 samples were used to test the most significant stage 2 associations (P<5×10-8) using imputed genotypes. We observed 3 novel genome-wide significant (GWS) AD associated non-synonymous variants; a protective variant in PLCG2 (rs72824905/p.P522R, P=5.38×10-10, OR=0.68, MAFcases=0.0059, MAFcontrols=0.0093), a risk variant in ABI3 (rs616338/p.S209F, P=4.56×10-10, OR=1.43, MAFcases=0.011, MAFcontrols=0.008), and a novel GWS variant in TREM2 (rs143332484/p.R62H, P=1.55×10-14, OR=1.67, MAFcases=0.0143, MAFcontrols=0.0089), a known AD susceptibility gene. These protein-coding changes are in genes highly expressed in microglia and highlight an immune-related protein-protein interaction network enriched for previously identified AD risk genes. These genetic findings provide additional evidence that the microglia-mediated innate immune response contributes directly to AD development

Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain

ience, this issue p. eaap8757 Structured Abstract INTRODUCTION Brain disorders may exhibit shared symptoms and substantial epidemiological comorbidity, inciting debate about their etiologic overlap. However, detailed study of phenotypes with different ages of onset, severity, and presentation poses a considerable challenge. Recently developed heritability methods allow us to accurately measure correlation of genome-wide common variant risk between two phenotypes from pools of different individuals and assess how connected they, or at least their genetic risks, are on the genomic level. We used genome-wide association data for 265,218 patients and 784,643 control participants, as well as 17 phenotypes from a total of 1,191,588 individuals, to quantify the degree of overlap for genetic risk factors of 25 common brain disorders. RATIONALE Over the past century, the classification of brain disorders has evolved to reflect the medical and scientific communities' assessments of the presumed root causes of clinical phenomena such as behavioral change, loss of motor function, or alterations of consciousness. Directly observable phenomena (such as the presence of emboli, protein tangles, or unusual electrical activity patterns) generally define and separate neurological disorders from psychiatric disorders. Understanding the genetic underpinnings and categorical distinctions for brain disorders and related phenotypes may inform the search for their biological mechanisms. RESULTS Common variant risk for psychiatric disorders was shown to correlate significantly, especially among attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder (MDD), and schizophrenia. By contrast, neurological disorders appear more distinct from one another and from the psychiatric disorders, except for migraine, which was significantly correlated to ADHD, MDD, and Tourette syndrome. We demonstrate that, in the general population, the personality trait neuroticism is significantly correlated with almost every psychiatric disorder and migraine. We also identify significant genetic sharing between disorders and early life cognitive measures (e.g., years of education and college attainment) in the general population, demonstrating positive correlation with several psychiatric disorders (e.g., anorexia nervosa and bipolar disorder) and negative correlation with several neurological phenotypes (e.g., Alzheimer's disease and ischemic stroke), even though the latter are considered to result from specific processes that occur later in life. Extensive simulations were also performed to inform how statistical power, diagnostic misclassification, and phenotypic heterogeneity influence genetic correlations. CONCLUSION The high degree of genetic correlation among many of the psychiatric disorders adds further evidence that their current clinical boundaries do not reflect distinct underlying pathogenic processes, at least on the genetic level. This suggests a deeply interconnected nature for psychiatric disorders, in contrast to neurological disorders, and underscores the need to refine psychiatric diagnostics. Genetically informed analyses may provide important "scaffolding" to support such restructuring of psychiatric nosology, which likely requires incorporating many levels of information. By contrast, we find limited evidence for widespread common genetic risk sharing among neurological disorders or across neurological and psychiatric disorders. We show that both psychiatric and neurological disorders have robust correlations with cognitive and personality measures. Further study is needed to evaluate whether overlapping genetic contributions to psychiatric pathology may influence treatment choices. Ultimately, such developments may pave the way toward reduced heterogeneity and improved diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders