Life Styles, Death Styles, and Posthumous Portraiture: Elite Female Burials in Iron Age Europe

This dissertation analyzes the grave good assemblages in 222 burial contexts from HallstattD (c. 600-400 BCE) tumulus cemeteries in west-central Europe to test the hypothesis that certain combinations of grave goods were associated with particular categories of persons based on an intersectional marking of gender, status, age and social role. The primary data set consists of high-status graves – male, female, ungendered/pre-gendered subadults, and those of indeterminate gender – in the Heuneburg interaction sphere in southwest Germany. The results of this analysis are compared to a secondary data set of comparable burials from other west-central European locations, to determine whether discernible patterns are due to regional traditions or may reflect deeper conceptions of gender ideology. The posthumous portraiture provided by these mortuary contexts is discussed in relation to identity and role, including gender, age, kin relations, and childbearing status. The distinction between lifestyles and deathstyles in identity marking and the relevance of these costume elements for accessing gender ideology in this preliterate society are presented using a visual body mapping approach that reveals the complexity of archaeologically accessing intersectional identities in the past

Gut Microbiota Composition is Correlated to Host Hummingbird Protein Requirements

The gut microbiome shapes and is shaped by a host animal’s physiology. Avian taxa hold physiological characteristics unique from mammals and might inform novel pressures experienced by microbial communities. Further, the symbionts’ relative abundance and their abilities to adapt to available resources are of critical importance to a holobiont’s fitness in rapidly changing climates. Therefore, wild populations of hummingbirds Selasphorus rufus and Calypte anna were studied. The two systems differ in S. rufus’s annual migrations from wintering grounds to their breeding grounds in the Pacific Northwest, whereas C. anna are resident in the latter region. Previous findings have indicated host microbiome composition varied with hummingbird fat score and the month during which fecal sampling occurred. Although fat is an important resource, especially for S. rufus in their migrations, protein requirements are critical because other annual activities, pressuring the organism to access nitrogen. Three of these activities are producing an egg, replacing molted feathers, and carrying parasites. The hypothesis for this study was that birds performing these activities will have microbiota that will make nitrogen available to them. Analysis of OTUs from 16S rDNA V3-V5 amplicon sequencing showed Actinobacteria are more abundant in these hummingbird species than in mammals, replicating our lab’s previous findings. Notably, S. rufus adult females with evidence of recent or current egg production had significantly lower relative levels of Actinobacteria and significantly higher abundances of five of the other ten most abundant bacterial phyla than S. rufus males. The composition of major bacterial phyla in C. anna adults undergoing body, wing, and tail molt did not differ significantly from that of C. anna adults not undergoing molt. Tenericutes were significantly more abundant in S. rufus individuals with high numbers of Mallophaga eggs when compared with birds with few eggs. We described differences in nitrogen-limiting physiological processes and nutritional deficits in wild avian models to provide ways of understanding holobiont success in changing environments

The Preservation of the Native bird Population from Invasive Rats on the Island of Tahuna Iti, Tetiaroa, French Polynesia

Tetiaroa is a small atoll in the Society Islands in the South Pacific. Along with many places like it around the world, this atoll has an issue with invasive rats colonizing its islands. Tahuna Iti, one of the small of the atoll, is rat-free and is therefore home to thousands of nesting sea birds. An analysis of aerial photographs from 1955,2002, 2006, as well as island delineation data from 2011, found that the island of Tahuna Iti has not only changed shape, but also size and proximity to Rimatuu, one of the rat-colonized islands. analysis of the change in shoreline proximity indicates a 288m movement between 1955 and 2011, providing conditions that could potentially result in the destruction of the bird population by rats if the islands are connected via a lang bridge. From this data we were then able to suggest preventative and combative measures that could be used to save the bird population of Tahuna Iti

Bile acids at the cross-roads of gut microbiome–host cardiometabolic interactions

This work is supported in part by the APC Microbiome Institute (under Science Foundation Ireland [SFI] Grant Number: SFI/12/RC/2273) and by Enterprise Ireland Commercialization Fund (Contract Reference: CF/2013/3030A/B).peer-reviewedWhile basic and clinical research over the last several decades has recognized a number of modifiable risk factors associated with cardiometabolic disease progression, additional and alternative biological perspectives may offer novel targets for prevention and treatment of this disease set. There is mounting preclinical and emerging clinical evidence indicating that the mass of metabolically diverse microorganisms which inhabit the human gastrointestinal tract may be implicated in initiation and modulation of cardiovascular and metabolic disease outcomes. The following review will discuss this gut microbiome–host metabolism axis and address newly proposed bile-mediated signaling pathways through which dysregulation of this homeostatic axis may influence host cardiovascular risk. With a central focus on the major nuclear and membrane-bound bile acid receptor ligands, we aim to review the putative impact of microbial bile acid modification on several major phenotypes of metabolic syndrome, from obesity to heart failure. Finally, attempting to synthesize several separate but complementary hypotheses, we will review current directions in preclinical and clinical investigation in this evolving field.Enterprise IrelandScience Foundation Irelan

The Gut Microbiota Composition in Dichorionic Triplet Sets Suggests a Role for Host Genetic Factors

peer-reviewedMonozygotic and dizygotic twin studies investigating the relative roles of host genetics and environmental factors in shaping gut microbiota composition have produced conflicting results. In this study, we investigated the gut microbiota composition of a healthy dichorionic triplet set. The dichorionic triplet set contained a pair of monozygotic twins and a fraternal sibling, with similar pre- and post-natal environmental conditions including feeding regime. V4 16S rRNA and rpoB amplicon pyrosequencing was employed to investigate microbiota composition, and the species and strain diversity of the culturable bifidobacterial population was also examined. At month 1, the monozygotic pair shared a similar microbiota distinct to the fraternal sibling. By month 12 however, the profile was more uniform between the three infants. Principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) of the microbiota composition revealed strong clustering of the monozygotic pair at month 1 and a separation of the fraternal infant. At months 2 and 3 the phylogenetic distance between the monozygotic pair and the fraternal sibling has greatly reduced and by month 12 the monozygotic pair no longer clustered separately from the fraternal infant. Pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) analysis of the bifidobacterial population revealed a lack of strain diversity, with identical strains identified in all three infants at month 1 and 12. The microbiota of two antibiotic-treated dichorionic triplet sets was also investigated. Not surprisingly, in both triplet sets early life antibiotic administration appeared to be a major determinant of microbiota composition at month 1, irrespective of zygosity. By month 12, early antibiotic administration appeared to no longer exert such a strong influence on gut microbiota composition. We hypothesize that initially host genetics play a significant role in the composition of an individual’s gut microbiota, unless an antibiotic intervention is given, but by month 12 environmental factors are the major determinant.This study was performed as part of the INFANTMET project (10/RD/Infantmet/MFRC/705) and was funded by the Government of Ireland's Department of Agriculture Fisheries and in part by Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre. KM is a Teagasc Walsh Fellow. CS, RPR and PWOT are members of The Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, which is a Centre for Science and Technology (CSET) funded by the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), through the Irish Government’s National Development Plan (Grant no. 02/CE/B124 and 07/CE/B1368)

Microbial therapeutics designed for infant health

Acknowledgment of the gut microbiome as a vital asset to health has led to multiple studies attempting to elucidate its mechanisms of action. During the first year of life, many factors can cause fluctuation in the developing gut microbiome. Host genetics, maternal health status, mode of delivery, gestational age, feeding regime, and perinatal antibiotic usage, are known factors which can influence the development of the infant gut microbiome. Thus, the microbiome of vaginally born, exclusively breastfed infants at term, with no previous exposure to antibiotics, either directly or indirectly from the mother, is to be considered the “gold standard.” Moreover, the use of prebiotics as an aid for the development of a healthy gut microbiome is equally as important in maintaining gut homeostasis. Breastmilk, a natural prebiotic source, provides optimal active ingredients for the growth of beneficial microbial species. However, early life disorders such as necrotising enterocolitis, childhood obesity, and even autism have been associated with an altered/disturbed gut microbiome. Subsequently, microbial therapies have been introduced, in addition to suitable prebiotic ingredients, which when administered, may aid in the prevention of a microbial disturbance in the gastrointestinal tract. The aim of this mini-review is to highlight the beneficial effects of different probiotic and prebiotic treatments in early life, with particular emphasis on the different conditions which negatively impact microbial colonisation at birth