Tracing the Origin and Spread of Agriculture in Europe

The origins of early farming and its spread to Europe have been the subject of major interest for some time. The main controversy today is over the nature of the Neolithic transition in Europe: the extent to which the spread was, for the most part, indigenous and animated by imitatio (cultural diffusion) or else was driven by an influx of dispersing populations (demic diffusion). We analyze the spatiotemporal dynamics of the transition using radiocarbon dates from 735 early Neolithic sites in Europe, the Near East, and Anatolia. We compute great-circle and shortest-path distances from each site to 35 possible agricultural centers of origin—ten are based on early sites in the Middle East and 25 arehypothetical locations set at 58 latitude/longitude intervals. We perform a linear fit of distance versus age (and viceversa) for each center. For certain centers, high correlation coefficients (R . 0.8) are obtained. This implies that a steady rate or speed is a good overall approximation for this historical development. The average rate of the Neolithic spread over Europe is 0.6–1.3 km/y (95% confidence interval). This is consistent with the prediction of demic diffusion(0.6–1.1 km/y). An interpolative map of correlation coefficients, obtained by using shortest-path distances, shows thatthe origins of agriculture were most likely to have occurred in the northern Levantine/Mesopotamian area

Nous derivats del 1-1'-bisnaftalè en el camp de l'enantioreconeixement: enantiodiferenciació i síntesi enantioselectiva

La línia principal d’investigació del nostre grup de recerca es basa en la síntesi i estudi de nous agents de solvatació quirals (CSAs), és a dir, compostos enantiopurs que s’utilitzen per a determinar la puresa enantiomèrica mitjançant la Ressonància Magnètica Nuclear (RMN). Al present treball volem sintetitzar i estudiar estructuralment la dicetona racèmica 14 amb la qual, mitjançant reaccions de reducció, podem obtenir el diol 12, el nou CSA que volem sintetitzar. També forma part del present treball la resolució de la dicetona racèmica 14, és a dir, aconseguir la separació dels seus dos enantiòmers mitjançant la formació de derivats diastereoisomèrics de 14 amb un reactiu enantiopur.

A geometric mechanism of diffusion: Rigorous verification in a priori unstable Hamiltonian systems

In this paper we consider a representative a priori unstable Hamiltonian system with 2+1/2 degrees of freedom, to which we apply the geometric mechanism for diffusion introduced in the paper Delshams et al., Mem.Amer.Math. Soc. 2006, and generalized in Delshams and Huguet, Nonlinearity 2009, and provide explicit, concrete and easily verifiable conditions for the existence of diffusing orbits. The simplification of the hypotheses allows us to perform explicitly the computations along the proof, which contribute to present in an easily understandable way the geometric mechanism of diffusion. In particular, we fully describe the construction of the scattering map and the combination of two types of dynamics on a normally hyperbolic invariant manifold.

Acute Damage to the Posterior Limb of the Internal Capsule on Diffusion Tensor Tractography as an Early Imaging Predictor of Motor Outcome after Stroke

Background and Purpose Early prediction of motor outcome is of interest in stroke management. We aimed to determine whether lesion location at DTT is predictive of motor outcome after acute stroke and whether this information improves the predictive accuracy of the clinical scores. Methods We evaluated 60 consecutive patients within 12 hours of MCA stroke onset. We used DTT to evaluate CST involvement in the MC and PMC, CS, CR, and PLIC and in combinations of these regions at admission, at day 3, and at day 30. Severity of limb weakness was assessed using the m-NIHSS (5a, 5b, 6a, 6b). We calculated volumes of infarct and FA values in the CST of the pons. Results Acute damage to the PLIC was the best predictor associated with poor motor outcome, axonal damage, and clinical severity at admission (P&.001). There was no significant correlation between acute infarct volume and motor outcome at day 90 (P=.176, r=0.485). The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of acute CST involvement at the level of the PLIC for 4 motor outcome at day 90 were 73.7%, 100%, 100%, and 89.1%, respectively. In the acute stage, DTT predicted motor outcome at day 90 better than the clinical scores (R2=75.50, F=80.09, P&.001). Conclusions In the acute setting, DTT is promising for stroke mapping to predict motor outcome. Acute CST damage at the level of the PLIC is a significant predictor of unfavorable motor outcome.

Diffusion in spatially and temporarily inhomogeneous media

In this paper we consider diffusion of a passive substance C in a temporarily and spatially inhomogeneous two-dimensional medium. As a realization for the latter we choose a phase-separating medium consisting of two substances A and B, whose dynamics is determined by the Cahn-Hilliard equation. Assuming different diffusion coefficients of C in A and B, we find that the variance of the distribution function of the said substance grows less than linearly in time. We derive a simple identity for the variance using a probabilistic ansatz and are then able to identify the interface between A and B as the main cause for this nonlinear dependence. We argue that, finally, for very large times the here temporarily dependent diffusion "constant" goes like t-1/3 to a constant asymptotic value D¿. The latter is calculated approximately by employing the effective-medium approximation and by fitting the simulation data to the said time dependence.

Diffusion in spatially and temporarily inhomogeneous media

In this paper we consider diffusion of a passive substance C in a temporarily and spatially inhomogeneous two-dimensional medium. As a realization for the latter we choose a phase-separating medium consisting of two substances A and B, whose dynamics is determined by the Cahn-Hilliard equation. Assuming different diffusion coefficients of C in A and B, we find that the variance of the distribution function of the said substance grows less than linearly in time. We derive a simple identity for the variance using a probabilistic ansatz and are then able to identify the interface between A and B as the main cause for this nonlinear dependence. We argue that, finally, for very large times the here temporarily dependent diffusion "constant" goes like t-1/3 to a constant asymptotic value D¿. The latter is calculated approximately by employing the effective-medium approximation and by fitting the simulation data to the said time dependence.

Stochastic delay differential equations driven by fractional Brownian motion with Hurst parameter H 1/2

We consider the Cauchy problem for a stochastic delay differential equation driven by a fractional Brownian motion with Hurst parameter H>¿. We prove an existence and uniqueness result for this problem, when the coefficients are sufficiently regular. Furthermore, if the diffusion coefficient is bounded away from zero and the coefficients are smooth functions with bounded derivatives of all orders, we prove that the law of the solution admits a smooth density with respect to Lebesgue measure on R.

Effect of drift on segregation in two-component diffusion-limited aggregation

An effect of drift is investigated on the segregation pattern in diffusion-limited aggregation (DLA) with two components (A and B species). The sticking probability PAB (=PBA) between the different species is introduced into the DLA model with drift, where the sticking probability PAA (=PBB) between the same species equals 1. By using computer simulation it is found that the drift has an important effect on not only the morphology but also the segregation pattern. Under the drift and the small sticking probability, a characteristic pattern appears where elongated clusters of A species and of B species are periodically dispersed. The period decreases with increasing drift. The periodic structure of the deposits is characterized by an autocorrelation function. The shape of the cluster consisting of only A species (or B species) shows a vertically elongated filamentlike structure. Each cluster becomes vertically longer with decreasing sticking probability PAB. The segregation pattern is distinctly different from that with no drift and a small sticking probability PAA. The effect of the concentration on the segregation pattern is also shown.

Concentrative nucleoside transporter 1 (hCNT1) promotes phenotypic changes relevant to tumor biology in a translocation independent manner

Nucleoside transporters (NTs) mediate the uptake of nucleosides and nucleobases across the plasma membrane, mostly for salvage purposes. The canonical NTs belong to two gene families, SLC29 and SLC28. The former encode equilibrative nucleoside transporter proteins (ENTs), which mediate the facilitative diffusion of natural nucleosides with broad selectivity, whereas the latter encode concentrative nucleoside transporters (CNTs), which are sodium-coupled and show high affinity for substrates with variable selectivity. These proteins are expressed in most cell types, exhibiting apparent functional redundancy. This might indicate that CNTs play specific roles in the physiology of the cell beyond nucleoside salvage. Here, we addressed this possibility using adenoviral vectors to restore tumor cell expression of hCNT1 or a polymorphic variant (hCNT1S546P) lacking nucleoside translocation ability. We found that hCNT1 restoration in pancreatic cancer cells significantly altered cell-cycle progression and phosphorylation status of key signal-transducing kinases, promoted poly-(ADP ribose) polymerase hyperactivation and cell death, and reduced tumor growth and cell migration. Importantly, the translocation-defective transporter triggered these same effects on cell physiology. These data predict a novel and totally unexpected biological role for the nucleoside transporter protein hCNT1 that appears to be independent of its role as mediator of nucleoside uptake by cells, thereby suggesting a transceptor function. Cell Death & Disease Anastasis Stephanou Receiving Editor Cell Death & Disease 19th Apr 2013 Dr Perez-Torras Av/ Diagonal 643. Edif. Prevosti, Pl -1 Barcelona 08028 Spain RE: Manuscript CDDIS-13-0136R, 'CDDIS-13-0136R' Dear Dr Perez-Torras, It is a pleasure to inform you that your manuscript has been evaluated at the editorial level and has now been officially accepted for publication in Cell Death & Disease, pending you meet the following editorial requirements: 1) the list of the abbreviations is missing please include Could you send us the revised text as word file via e-mail and we will proceed and transfer the paper onto our typesetters. Please download, print, sign, and return the Licence to Publish Form using the link below. This must be returned via FAX to ++ 39 06 7259 6977 before your manuscript can be published:

Protein oligomers studied by solid-state NMR the case of the full-length nucleoid-associated protein histone-like nucleoid structuring protein

Members of the histone-like nucleoid structuring protein (H-NS) family play roles both as architectural proteins and as modulators of gene expression in Gram-negative bacteria. The H-NS protein participates in modulatory processes that respond to environmental changes in osmolarity, pH, or temperature. H-NS oligomerization is essential for its activity. Structural models of different truncated forms are available. However, high-resolution structural details of full-length H-NS and its DNA-bound state have largely remained elusive. We report on progress in characterizing the biologically active H-NS oligomers with solid-state NMR. We compared uniformly ((13)C,(15)N)-labeled ssNMR preparations of the isolated N-terminal region (H-NS 1-47) and full-length H-NS (H-NS 1-137). In both cases, we obtained ssNMR spectra of good quality and characteristic of well-folded proteins. Analysis of the results of 2D and 3D (13)C-(13)C and (15)N-(13)C correlation experiments conducted at high magnetic field led to assignments of residues located in different topological regions of the free full-length H-NS. These findings confirm that the structure of the N-terminal dimerization domain is conserved in the oligomeric full-length protein. Small changes in the dimerization interface suggested by localized chemical shift variations between solution and solid-state spectra may be relevant for DNA recoginition.

Cultural Diffusion Was the Main Driving Mechanism of the Neolithic Transition in Southern Africa

It is well known that the Neolithic transition spread across Europe at a speed of about 1 km/yr. This result has been previously interpreted as a range expansion of the Neolithic driven mainly by demic diffusion (whereas cultural diffusion played a secondary role). However, a long-standing problem is whether this value (1 km/yr) and its interpretation (mainly demic diffusion) are characteristic only of Europe or universal (i.e. intrinsic features of Neolithic transitions all over the world). So far Neolithic spread rates outside Europe have been barely measured, and Neolithic spread rates substantially faster than 1 km/yr have not been previously reported. Here we show that the transition from hunting and gathering into herding in southern Africa spread at a rate of about 2.4 km/yr, i.e. about twice faster than the European Neolithic transition. Thus the value 1 km/yr is not a universal feature of Neolithic transitions in the world. Resorting to a recent demic-cultural wave-of-advance model, we also find that the main mechanism at work in the southern African Neolithic spread was cultural diffusion (whereas demic diffusion played a secondary role). This is in sharp contrast to the European Neolithic. Our results further suggest that Neolithic spread rates could be mainly driven by cultural diffusion in cases where the final state of this transition is herding/pastoralism (such as in southern Africa) rather than farming and stockbreeding (as in Europe)

Azolium-based systems: application of an anion exchange resin (A- form) method and 1H NMR analysis of the charged-assisted (CH)+·anion hydrogen bonds

The counteranion exchange of quaternary 1,2,3-triazolium salts was examined using a simple method that permitted halide ions to be swap for a variety of anions using an anion exchange resin (A¯ form). The method was applied to 1,2,3-triazolium-based ionic liquids and the iodideto- anion exchange proceeded in excellent to quantitative yields, concomitantly removing halide impurities. Additionally, an anion exchange resin (N3¯ form) was used to obtain the benzyl azide from benzyl halide under mild reaction. Likewise, following a similar protocol, bis(azidomethyl)arenes were also synthesized in excellent yields. The results of a proton NMR spectroscopic study of simple azolium-based ion pairs are discussed, with attention focused on the significance of the charged-assisted (CH)+···anion hydrogen bonds of simple azolium systems such as 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium and 1-benzyl-3-methyl-1,2,3-triazolium salts.

Azolium-based systems: application of an anion exchange resin (A- form) method and 1H NMR analysis of the charged-assisted (CH)+·anion hydrogen bonds

The counteranion exchange of quaternary 1,2,3-triazolium salts was examined using a simple method that permitted halide ions to be swap for a variety of anions using an anion exchange resin (A¯ form). The method was applied to 1,2,3-triazolium-based ionic liquids and the iodideto- anion exchange proceeded in excellent to quantitative yields, concomitantly removing halide impurities. Additionally, an anion exchange resin (N3¯ form) was used to obtain the benzyl azide from benzyl halide under mild reaction. Likewise, following a similar protocol, bis(azidomethyl)arenes were also synthesized in excellent yields. The results of a proton NMR spectroscopic study of simple azolium-based ion pairs are discussed, with attention focused on the significance of the charged-assisted (CH)+···anion hydrogen bonds of simple azolium systems such as 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium and 1-benzyl-3-methyl-1,2,3-triazolium salts.

Azolium-based systems: application of an anion exchange resin (A- form) method and 1H NMR analysis of the charged-assisted (CH)+·anion hydrogen bonds

The counteranion exchange of quaternary 1,2,3-triazolium salts was examined using a simple method that permitted halide ions to be swap for a variety of anions using an anion exchange resin (A¯ form). The method was applied to 1,2,3-triazolium-based ionic liquids and the iodideto- anion exchange proceeded in excellent to quantitative yields, concomitantly removing halide impurities. Additionally, an anion exchange resin (N3¯ form) was used to obtain the benzyl azide from benzyl halide under mild reaction. Likewise, following a similar protocol, bis(azidomethyl)arenes were also synthesized in excellent yields. The results of a proton NMR spectroscopic study of simple azolium-based ion pairs are discussed, with attention focused on the significance of the charged-assisted (CH)+···anion hydrogen bonds of simple azolium systems such as 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium and 1-benzyl-3-methyl-1,2,3-triazolium salts.