Modern behaviour in ancient South Africans: evidence for the heat treatment of stones in the Middle Stone Age

To what extent was fire used as an engineering tool by early modern humans? Kyle Brown and co-authors marshal an impressive array of evidence to show that by 72 000 years ago, and perhaps as far back as 164 000 years ago, prehistoric people prepared the stone from which they planned to make artefacts by intentionally heat-treating it to improve its flaking qualities. This practice is well known from later sites but the increased time depth reported here is remarkable, and contributes to a growing body of evidence that Middle Stone Age people in South Africa were capable of far more sophisticated behaviour than previously realised

Pulsed Laser Cutting of Magnesium-Calcium for Biodegradable Stents

There is growing interests in the use of biodegradable magnesium implants for cardiovascular and pulmonary applications such as stents. Magnesium is a metal that has the ability to gradually dissolve and absorb into the human body after implantation. There is very little work discussing the relationship between process parameters and cut quality of magnesium stents by laser cutting. The objective of this research is to determine the effect of laser cutting conditions including peak laser power and cutting speed of a millisecond range pulsed laser on kerf geometry, surface topography, surface roughness, and microstructure. An assessment on the experimental work discussing laser cutting of magnesium alloys is also presented

Stable isotope analysis of soft tissues from mummified human remains

Mummies are faunal remains that include the preservation of soft tissues, such as skin, muscle, nails and hair as well as bone. These soft tissues are generally rich in collagen or keratin proteins and thus provide potentially suitable material for stable isotope studies. When preserved, such tissues can provide high-resolution information about the diet and migration of humans in the weeks and months before death. Hair, nails and soft tissue provide short-term (months) dietary information in contrast to bone which will represent 5–20 years of dietary history prior to death, depending on the bone analysed. Such high-resolution data can answer questions on the season of death, seasonality of food resources and the movement and relocation of people. This review begins with a summary of the most common isotope techniques (13C/12C, 15N/14N) and the tissues concerned, followed by an analysis of the key questions that have been addressed using these methods. Until relatively recently work has focused on bulk protein isotope analysis, but in the last 10 years this has been expanded to on-line compound-specific amino acid analysis and to a wider variety of isotopes (18O/16O, 2H/1H and 34S/32S) and these applications are also discussed

mRNA vaccine mitigates SARS-CoV-2 infections and COVID-19

The novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was identified in December of 2019 and is responsible for millions of infections and deaths across the globe. Vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 has proven effective to contain the spread of the virus and reduce disease. The production and distribution of these vaccines occurred at a remarkable pace, largely through the employment of the novel mRNA platform. However, interruptions in supply chain and high demand for clinical grade reagents have impeded the manufacture and distribution of mRNA vaccines at a time when accelerated vaccine deployment is crucial. Furthermore, the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants across the globe continues to threaten the efficacy of vaccines encoding the ancestral virus spike protein. Here, we report results from preclinical studies on mRNA vaccines developed using a proprietary mRNA production process developed by GreenLight Biosciences. Two mRNA vaccines encoding the full-length, nonstabilized SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, GLB-COV2-042 and GLB-COV2-043, containing uridine and pseudouridine, respectively, were evaluated in rodents for their immunogenicity and protection from SARS-CoV-2 challenge with the ancestral strain and the Alpha (B.1.1.7) and Beta (B.1.351) variants. In mice and hamsters, both vaccines induced robust spike-specific binding and neutralizing antibodies, and in mice, vaccines induced significant T cell responses with a clear Th1 bias. In hamsters, both vaccines conferred significant protection following challenge with SARS-CoV-2 as assessed by weight loss, viral load, and virus replication in the lungs and nasopharynx. These results support the development of GLB-COV2-042 and GLB-COV2-043 for clinical use

Board gender diversity and firm performance: the UK evidence

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version.open access articleThis paper examines the relationship between gender diversity, selected female attributes and financial performance of FTSE 100 firms in the UK. Drawing on critical mass theory by measuring gender diversity as levels of female representation in the boardroom, this study finds a positive and significant relationship between gender diversity and firm performance. However, the results become highly significant and unequivocal when three or more females are appointed to the board compared to the appointment of two or less females. Further analysis reveals that post-appointment financial performance is positively related to female age, level of education and where female board members also hold executive director positions. The results remain unchanged after accounting for endogeneity concerns and employing alternative measures of firm performance, namely, return on assets and Tobin’s Q

Integrating isotopes and documentary evidence : dietary patterns in a late medieval and early modern mining community, Sweden

We would like to thank the Archaeological Research Laboratory, Stockholm University, Sweden and the Tandem Laboratory (Ångström Laboratory), Uppsala University, Sweden, for undertaking the analyses of stable nitrogen and carbon isotopes in both human and animal collagen samples. Also, thanks to Elin Ahlin Sundman for providing the δ13C and δ15N values for animal references from Västerås. This research (Bäckström’s PhD employment at Lund University, Sweden) was supported by the Berit Wallenberg Foundation (BWS 2010.0176) and Jakob and Johan Söderberg’s foundation. The ‘Sala project’ (excavations and analyses) has been funded by Riksens Clenodium, Jernkontoret, Birgit and Gad Rausing’s Foundation, SAU’s Research Foundation, the Royal Physiographic Society of Lund, Berit Wallenbergs Foundation, Åke Wibergs Foundation, Lars Hiertas Memory, Helge Ax:son Johnson’s Foundation and The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

A novel role for p120 catenin in E-cadherin function

Îndirect evidence suggests that p120-catenin (p120) can both positively and negatively affect cadherin adhesiveness. Here we show that the p120 gene is mutated in SW48 cells, and that the cadherin adhesion system is impaired as a direct consequence of p120 insufficiency. Restoring normal levels of p120 caused a striking reversion from poorly differentiated to cobblestone-like epithelial morphology, indicating a crucial role for p120 in reactivation of E-cadherin function. The rescue efficiency was enhanced by increased levels of p120, and reduced by the presence of the phosphorylation domain, a region previously postulated to confer negative regulation. Surprisingly, the rescue was associated with substantially increased levels of E-cadherin. E-cadherin mRNA levels were unaffected by p120 expression, but E-cadherin half-life was more than doubled. Direct p120–E-cadherin interaction was crucial, as p120 deletion analysis revealed a perfect correlation between E-cadherin binding and rescue of epithelial morphology. Interestingly, the epithelial morphology could also be rescued by forced expression of either WT E-cadherin or a p120-uncoupled mutant. Thus, the effects of uncoupling p120 from E-cadherin can be at least partially overcome by artificially maintaining high levels of cadherin expression. These data reveal a cooperative interaction between p120 and E-cadherin and a novel role for p120 that is likely indispensable in normal cells

Discovery and Characterization of Bukakata orbivirus (\u3ci\u3eReoviridae:Orbivirus\u3c/i\u3e), a Novel Virus from a Ugandan Bat

While serological and virological evidence documents the exposure of bats to medically important arboviruses, their role as reservoirs or amplifying hosts is less well-characterized. We describe a novel orbivirus (Reoviridae:Orbivirus) isolated from an Egyptian fruit bat (Rousettus aegyptiacus leachii) trapped in 2013 in Uganda and named Bukakata orbivirus. This is the fifth orbivirus isolated from a bat, however genetic information had previously only been available for one bat-associated orbivirus. We performed whole-genome sequencing on Bukakata orbivirus and three other bat-associated orbiviruses (Fomede, Ife, and Japanaut) to assess their phylogenetic relationship within the genus Orbivirus and develop hypotheses regarding potential arthropod vectors. Replication kinetics were assessed for Bukakata orbivirus in three different vertebrate cell lines. Lastly, qRT-PCR and nested PCR were used to determine the prevalence of Bukakata orbivirus RNA in archived samples from three populations of Egyptian fruit bats and one population of cave-associated soft ticks in Uganda. Complete coding sequences were obtained for all ten segments of Fomede, Ife, and Japanaut orbiviruses and for nine of the ten segments for Bukakata orbivirus. Phylogenetic analysis placed Bukakata and Fomede in the tick-borne orbivirus clade and Ife and Japanaut within the Culicoides/phlebotomine sandfly orbivirus clade. Further, Bukakata and Fomede appear to be serotypes of the Chobar Gorge virus species. Bukakata orbivirus replicated to high titers (106–107 PFU/mL) in Vero, BHK-21 [C-13], and R06E (Egyptian fruit bat) cells. Preliminary screening of archived bat and tick samples do not support Bukakata orbivirus presence in these collections, however additional testing is warranted given the phylogenetic associations observed. This study provided complete coding sequence for several bat-associated orbiviruses and in vitro characterization of a bat-associated orbivirus. Our results indicate that bats may play an important role in the epidemiology of viruses in the genus Orbivirus and further investigation is warranted into vector-host associations and ongoing surveillance efforts

Discovery and Characterization of Bukakata orbivirus (\u3ci\u3eReoviridae:Orbivirus\u3c/i\u3e), a Novel Virus from a Ugandan Bat

While serological and virological evidence documents the exposure of bats to medically important arboviruses, their role as reservoirs or amplifying hosts is less well-characterized. We describe a novel orbivirus (Reoviridae:Orbivirus) isolated from an Egyptian fruit bat (Rousettus aegyptiacus leachii) trapped in 2013 in Uganda and named Bukakata orbivirus. This is the fifth orbivirus isolated from a bat, however genetic information had previously only been available for one bat-associated orbivirus. We performed whole-genome sequencing on Bukakata orbivirus and three other bat-associated orbiviruses (Fomede, Ife, and Japanaut) to assess their phylogenetic relationship within the genus Orbivirus and develop hypotheses regarding potential arthropod vectors. Replication kinetics were assessed for Bukakata orbivirus in three different vertebrate cell lines. Lastly, qRT-PCR and nested PCR were used to determine the prevalence of Bukakata orbivirus RNA in archived samples from three populations of Egyptian fruit bats and one population of cave-associated soft ticks in Uganda. Complete coding sequences were obtained for all ten segments of Fomede, Ife, and Japanaut orbiviruses and for nine of the ten segments for Bukakata orbivirus. Phylogenetic analysis placed Bukakata and Fomede in the tick-borne orbivirus clade and Ife and Japanaut within the Culicoides/phlebotomine sandfly orbivirus clade. Further, Bukakata and Fomede appear to be serotypes of the Chobar Gorge virus species. Bukakata orbivirus replicated to high titers (106–107 PFU/mL) in Vero, BHK-21 [C-13], and R06E (Egyptian fruit bat) cells. Preliminary screening of archived bat and tick samples do not support Bukakata orbivirus presence in these collections, however additional testing is warranted given the phylogenetic associations observed. This study provided complete coding sequence for several bat-associated orbiviruses and in vitro characterization of a bat-associated orbivirus. Our results indicate that bats may play an important role in the epidemiology of viruses in the genus Orbivirus and further investigation is warranted into vector-host associations and ongoing surveillance efforts

Carbon stable isotope analysis of cereal remains as a way to reconstruct water availability: preliminary results

Reconstructing past water availability, both as rainfall and irrigation, is important to answer questions about the way society reacts to climate and its changes and the role of irrigation in the development of social complexity. Carbon stable isotope analysis of archaeobotanical remains is a potentially valuable method for reconstructing water availability. To further define the relationship between water availability and plant carbon isotope composition and to set up baseline values for the Southern Levant, grains of experimentally grown barley and sorghum were studied. The cereal crops were grown at three stations under five different irrigation regimes in Jordan. Results indicate that a positive but weak relationship exists between irrigation regime and total water input of barley grains, but no relationship was found for sorghum. The relationship for barley is site-specific and inter-annual variation was present at Deir ‘Alla, but not at Ramtha and Khirbet as-Samra