bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The oldest amputation on a Neolithic human skeleton in France
Authors: Buquet-Marcon Cecile , Philippe Charlier , Anaick Samzun 
Published: July 2019

AbstractWhile 'surgical' practices such as trepanations are well attested since the first stages of the European Neolithic, the amputation of limbs in Prehistoric periods has not been well-documented until the case presented here. The particularly well-preserved remains of an aged male were recently uncovered in the Neolithic site (4900-4700 BC) of Buthiers-Boulancourt in the vicinity of Paris, France. It was already noticed in situ that the distal part of the left humerus was abnormal and this led us to the hypothesis of a partially healed 'surgical' amputation.The further investigations reported here confirm a traumatic origin and a partial cicatrisation after surgery, indicating that the patient survived. It also proves the remarkable medical skills developed during Prehistorical times. In addition, the associated grave goods are original, including the skeleton of an animal, a polished schist axe and a massive 30 cm long flint pick. Despite the serious handicap from which he suffered in this pastoral-agricultural community, the buried man obviously enjoyed some particular social status, as suggested by the remarkable and 'prestigious' accompanying grave-goods. If indeed this man benefited from some form of community care, this would indicate the level of social solidarity in Western Europe almost 7000 years ago.
IQ variations across time and race are explained by literacy differences
Authors: Marks David 
Published: July 2019

AbstractIntelligence quotient (IQ) scores are intended to assess the cognitive competences of individuals, groups and populations. A body of data collected during the last 50 years has revealed that IQ average population scores vary significantly over time, nationality, and race. The causes of these variations remain a mystery. Theories focusing on nutrition, brain size, dysgenic factors, social class and education have proved inexact or unsatisfactory. Here I describe a new explanation based on the fact that intelligence test performance requires a level of literacy not present in all people to the same degree. I show that literacy variations across time, place and race are highly associated with changes in IQ scores. These findings have widespread implications. Contemporary IQ test score differences between populations and racial groups are predicted to diminish with rises in universal literacy in the 21st century.
Bumblebees gain fitness through learning
Authors: Raine Nigel , Chittka Lars 
Published: July 2019

AbstractDespite the widespread assumption that the learning abilities of animals are adapted to the particular environments in which they operate, the quantitative effects of learning performance on fitness remain virtually unknown. Here we evaluate the learning performance of bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) from multiple colonies in an ecologically relevant associative learning task under laboratory conditions, before testing the foraging performance of the same colonies under the field conditions. We demonstrate that variation in learning speed among bumblebee colonies is directly correlated with foraging performance, a robust fitness measure, under natural conditions. Colonies vary in learning speed by a factor of nearly 5, with the slowest learning colonies collecting 40% less nectar than the fastest learning colonies. Such a steep fitness function suggests strong selection for higher learning speed in bumblebees. Demonstrating the adaptive value of differences in learning performance under the real conditions in which animals function represents a major step towards understanding how cognitive abilities of animals are tuned to their environment.
A potential role for Dkk-1 in the pathogenesis of osteosarcoma predicts novel diagnostic and treatment strategies.
Authors: Gregory Carl , Lee Narae , Smolarz Angela , Olson Scott , David Odile , Reiser Jacob , Kutner Robert , Daw Najat , Prockop Darwin , Horwitz Edwin 
Published: July 2019

AbstractCanonical Wnt signaling is an osteo-inductive signal that promotes bone repair through acceleration of osteogenic differentiation by progenitors. Dkk-1 is a secreted inhibitor of canonical Wnt signaling and thus inhibits osteogenesis. To examine a potential osteo-inhibitory role of Dkk-1 in osteosarcoma (OS), we measured serum Dkk-1 in pediatric patients with OS (median age, 13.4 years) and found it to be significantly elevated. We also found that Dkk-1 was maximally expressed by the OS cells at the tumor periphery and in vitro Dkk-1 and RANKL are co-expressed by rapidly proliferating OS cells. Both Dkk-1 and conditioned media from OS cells reduces osteogenesis by human mesenchymal cells and by immuno-depletion of Dkk-1, or by adding a GSK3[beta] inhibitor, the effects of Dkk-1 were attenuated. In mice, we found that the expression of Dkk-1 from implanted tumors was similar to the human tumor biopsies in that human Dkk-1 was present in the serum of recipient animals. These data demonstrate that systemic levels of Dkk-1 are elevated in osteosarcoma. Furthermore, the expression of Dkk-1 by the OS cells at the periphery of the tumor probably contributes to its expansion by inhibiting repair of the surrounding bone. These data demonstrate that Dkk-1 may serve as a prognostic or diagnostic marker for evaluation of OS and furthermore, immuno-depletion of Dkk-1 or administration of GSK3[beta] inhibitors could represent an adjunct therapy for this disease.
Photoelectrochemical properties of melanin
Authors: Solis Arturo , Lara Maria , Rendon Luis 
Published: July 2019

AbstractMelanin is to the animal kingdom like chlorophyll to the vegetal kingdom(1). Melanin collects energy from lower-energy radiation sources, kicks electrons into excited states, initiating a process that would end up producing chemical energy, similar to the way in which photosynthesis supplies energy to plants. However, the precise roles of melanin during this process are unknown. Here we show that the increase in the electron-transfer properties of melanin is independent of the energy of the incident photons. We found in controlled in vivo assays that melanin has the remarkable capability of converting lower-energy radiation towards a more useful form of energy. Furthermore, we found that melanin can break up water molecules and giving up energy suggesting an additional behavior mode for melanin. Our results demonstrate how members of the melanin family are likely to function as transducers, oxidizing water, pushing apart water molecules, as well as recruiting back ions into molecules that are subsequently polarized again. Melanin drives the photon energy of lower-energy radiation sources by quenching electrons and initiating an ionic event independently of their relative energy contention. We anticipate our assay to be a starting point for more sophisticated photoelectrochemical applications. For example, the individual and combined action of multiple photovoltaic applications could be tested, including conducting polymers, for example poly-(phenylenevinylene) (PPV) derivatives or C60 particles. Furthermore, melanin's energy conversion ability is a major target of solar energy conversion development, and an organic-semiconductor way for photoelectrochemical applications will be relevant for such developments.</sup></sup>
Correlation between Pineal Activation and Religious Meditation Observed by Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Authors: Liou Chien-Hui , Hsieh Chang-Wei , Hsieh Chao-Hsien , Lee Si-Chen , Chen Jyh-Horng , Wang Chi-Hong 
Published: July 2019

AbstractThe human brain possesses plenty of functions but little is known about its scientific relationship with mind and spirit. Conferences^1,2^ focused on the connection between science and religion were held very recently in which neuroscientists, Buddhist scholars and Dalai Lama discussed attention, mental imagery, emotion, mind, brain functions and meditation, suggesting religious meditation offers an effective means to investigate the mystery of mind and spirit. In the past decade, scientists struggled to obtain brain mappings for various meditation styles using different brain imaging techniques and stimulating results have been observed^3-17^. In this letter we report that, together with other brain regions, pineal body exhibit significant activation during meditation process, supporting the long lasting speculation that pineal plays an important role in the intrinsic awareness which might concern spirit or soul. Pineal is known as an endocrine organ which produces substrates including melatonin and has been ascribed numerous even mysterious functions but its activation during meditation has never been observed by brain imaging technique. In seventeenth century, based on anatomic observation, Descartes ventured to suggest that pineal serves as the principal seat of the soul^18-20^. Inspired by its geometric center in the brain, physiologists, psychologists, philosophers and religionists have been speculating for centuries about pineal's function relevant to spirit and soul. In this study, we chose Chinese Original Quiet Sitting, one style of meditation, to explore this long lasting speculation by functional magnetic resonance imaging technique. Our results demonstrate a correlation between pineal activation and religious meditation which might have profound implications in physiological understanding of the intrinsic awareness.
Dissecting the mechanisms of learning-by-doing in Drosophila
Authors: Brembs Björn , Plendl Wolfgang 
Published: July 2019

AbstractAt the heart of learning-by-doing lies a well-known psychological phenomenon: information will be remembered better if it is actively generated rather than passively read or heard. First described in humans, this generation effect can also be observed in various animal models. However, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the generation effect are unknown. Here we show that two reciprocal interactions between its active and passive components contribute to the generation effect in flies. One interaction consists of the active (skill-learning) component facilitating the passive (fact-learning) component. Fact-learning, on the other hand, inhibits skill-learning. Experiments with adenylyl cyclase I deficient rutabaga mutant flies revealed that the fact- but not the skill-learning component requires this evolutionarily conserved learning gene. Using mushroom-body deficient transgenic flies we observed that the mushroom-bodies mediate the inhibition of skill-learning. This inhibition also enables generalization and prevents premature habit formation. Extended training in wildtype flies produced a phenocopy of mushroom-body impaired flies, such that generalization was abolished and goal-directed actions were transformed into habitual responses. Thus, our results identify various neural processes underlying learning-by-doing, delineate some of their synergisms and provide a framework for further dissecting them in a genetically tractable model system.
Vocal Bursts Communicate Discrete Emotions: Evidence for New Displays
Authors: Simon-Thomas Emiliana , Sauter Disa , Sinicropi-Yao Lara , Abramson Anna , Keltner Dacher 
Published: July 2019

AbstractStudies of emotion signaling have proven critical to scientific advances in understanding emotion, informing claims about the evolutionary origins of different emotions1, the central and peripheral nervous system correlates of emotion 2 3 and even which states warrant consideration in emotion taxonomies 4. An initial wave of empirical studies of emotion-related facial expression5 and vocalization 6 7 has concentrated almost exclusively on a limited set of emotions - anger, disgust, fear, sadness, surprise, happiness, and tenderness. More recent work on emotional facial expressions has expanded this framework, documenting reliable displays of other emotions like embarrassment and shame 8, pride 9, and love and desire 10 . Here, we present two studies that evaluate the voice's ability to communicate 22 different emotions, including positive emotions like awe, love and sensory pleasure as well as self-conscious emotions like embarassment and guilt. These studies show that vocal bursts signal a greater number of discrete emotions than has been previously documented and that some emotions are better identified within families of related emotions.
ChIP-on-chip significance analysis reveals large-scale binding and regulation by human transcription factor oncogenes
Authors: Margolin Adam , Palomero Teresa , Sumazin Pavel , Califano Andrea , Ferrando Adolfo , Stolovitzky Gustavo 
Published: July 2019

AbstractChIP-on-chip has emerged as a powerful tool to dissect the complex network of regulatory interactions between transcription factors and their targets. However, most ChIP-on-chip analysis methods use conservative approaches aimed to minimize false-positive transcription factor targets. We present a model with improved sensitivity in detecting binding events from ChIP-on-chip data. Biochemically validated analysis in human T-cells reveals that three transcription factor oncogenes, NOTCH1, MYC, and HES1, bind one order of magnitude more promoters than previously thought. Gene expression profiling upon NOTCH1 inhibition shows broad-scale functional regulation across the entire range of predicted target genes, establishing a closer link between occupancy and regulation. Finally, the resolution of a more complete map of transcriptional targets reveals that MYC binds nearly all promoters bound by NOTCH1. Overall, these results suggest an unappreciated complexity of transcriptional regulatory networks and highlight the fundamental importance of genome-scale analysis to represent transcriptional programs.
To every man his own language: Are we all Darwin’s children?
Authors: Ghosh Shantanu 
Published: July 2019

AbstractAlthough current theories of language evolution have examined both molecular evolution as well as functional connectivity of the cortex in humans as well as other primates, a description of language as pre-adaptation open to natural selection has eluded us so far. Here I review the evidence in favor of natural selection that trigger growth and plasticity of the prefrontal cortex in humans and its links to the mirror neuron system. Evolvability of recursive mechanisms as the hallmark of evolution of symbolic communication in humans is also investigated. The polymorphism of genes like ASPM, Microcephalin and FOXP2 in the evolution of language as an emergent property has also been examined.
Face Cognition: A Set of Distinct Mental Abilities
Authors: Wilhelm Oliver , Herzmann Grit , Kunina Olga , Sommer Werner 
Published: July 2019

AbstractPerceiving, learning, and recognizing faces swiftly and accurately is of paramount importance to humans as a social species. Though established functional models of face cognition<sup>1,2</sup> suggest the existence of multiple abilities in face cognition, the number of such abilities and the relationships among them and to other cognitive abilities can only be determined by studying individual differences. Here we investigated individual differences in a broad variety of indicators of face cognition and identified for the first time three component abilities: face perception, face memory, and the speed of face cognition. These component abilities were replicated in an independent study and were found to be robustly separable from established cognitive abilities, specifically immediate and delayed memory, mental speed, general cognitive ability, and object cognition. The analysis of individual differences goes beyond functional and neurological models of face cognition by demonstrating the difference between face perception and face learning, and by making evident the distinction between speed and accuracy of face cognition. Our indicators also provide a means to develop tests and training programs for face cognition that are broader and more precise than those currently available).<sup>3,4</sup>
Statistical Modeling of Epistasis and Linkage Decay using Logic Regression
Authors: Parker Thomas , Szűcs P , Mahaffee W , Henning John 
Published: July 2019

AbstractLogic regression has been recognized as a tool that can identify and model non-additive genetic interactions using Boolean logic groups. Logic regression, TASSEL-GLM and SAS-GLM were compared for analytical precision using a previously characterized model system to identify the best genetic model explaining epistatic interaction for vernalization-sensitivity in barley. A genetic model containing two molecular markers identified in vernalization response in barley was selected using logic regression while both TASSEL-GLM and SAS-GLM included spurious associations in their models. The results also suggest the logic regression can be used to identify dominant/recessive relationships between epistatic alleles through its use of conjugate operators.
Interleukin-10 containing normal human serum inhibits granzyme B release but not perforin release from alloreactive and EBV-specific T cell clones
Authors: Nishimura Motoko , Sato Hideya , Okazaki Hitoshi , Satake Masahiro , Tadokoro Kenji 
Published: July 2019

AbstractInterleukin-10 (IL-10), also known as cytokine synthesis inhibitory factor, has pleiotropic effects in immunoregulation and inflammation. It is capable of inhibiting synthesis of pro-inflammatory cytokines like interferon [gamma] (IFN[gamma]), IL-2, IL-3, tumor necrosis factor [alpha] (TNF[alpha]) and granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) made by cells such as macrophages and T helper Type 1 cells. We observed that normal human serum, derived from a healthy individual but containing large amounts of IL-10 (arbitrarily designated as "IL-10 serum"), inhibited cytotoxic activity and interfered with granzyme B release from alloreactive cytotoxic T cell clones in vitro, but did not affect perforin release. The addition of normal human serum containing high levels of anti-IL-10 IgG (arbitrarily designated as "anti-IL-10 IgG serum") neutralized the inhibitory effects of IL-10 serum. Moreover, we have identified that cytotoxic activity and granzyme B release from an Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-specific cytotoxic T cell clone was similarly inhibited in the presence of IL-10 serum, while perforin release was unaffected. Anti-IL-10 IgG serum also appeared to neutralize the inhibitory effect of IL-10 serum on an EBV-specific T cell clone. When anti-IL-10 IgG was depleted from anti-IL-10 IgG containing serum (arbitrarily designated as "anti-IL10 IgG free serum"), the neutralizing effect disappeared for both alloreactive and an EBV-specific T cell clone.
Molecular mechanisms of the regulation of ATPase cycle in striated muscle
Authors: Borovikov Yuri , Karpicheva Olga , Redwood Charles 
Published: July 2019

AbstractNew data on the molecular mechanism of the regulation of ATPase cycle by troponin-tropomyosin system have been obtained in reconstructed muscle fibers by using the polarized fluorescence technique, which allowed us following the azimuthal movements of tropomyosin, actin subdomain-1 and myosin SH1 helix motor domain during the sequential steps of ATPase cycle. We found that tropomyosin strands "rolling" on thin filament surface from periphery to center at ATPase cycle increases the amplitudes of multistep changes in special arrangement of SH1 helix and subdomain-1 at force generation states. These changes seem to convey to actin monomers and to myosin "lever arm", resulting in enhance of the effectiveness of each cross-bridge work. At high-Ca^2+^ troponin, a shift of tropomyosin strands further to center at strong-binding states increases this effect. At low-Ca^2+^ troponin "freezes" tropomyosin and actin in states typical for weak-binding states, resulting in disturbing the teamwork of actin and myosin.
Predicting species abundance distributions by simultaneously using number and biomass as units of measurement
Authors: Henderson Peter , Magurran Anne 
Published: July 2019

AbstractThe universal observation that some species in an ecological community are common, but many more are rare, is neatly encapsulated in a species abundance distribution (SAD)1. However, the shape of the distribution can depend on the currency used to measure abundance 2. Here we show how the SADs for numerical abundance and biomass are related and how this relationship can be used to predict the form of the SAD. When plotted in log numerical abundance, log biomass space, species points lie within an approximately triangular area the limits of which are set by body size range, and the upper limit of abundance in both metrics. Under the simplifying, but reasonable, assumption that the observed scatter of species within this region is random, the shape of the SAD is immediately derived from simple geometrical considerations. For the SAD of numerical abundance this is a power curve. The biomass SAD can be either a power curve or, more frequently, a unimodal curve, which can approximate a log normal. This log triangular random placement model serves as a null hypothesis against which actual communities can be compared. Data from two intensively surveyed local communities indicate that it can give a good approximation, with species scattered within a triangle. Further, we can predict the consequences, for the SAD, of size-selective sampling protocols. We argue that mechanistic models of SADs must be able to account for the relative abundance of species in alternative currencies. Moreover, this approach will shed light on niche packing and may have application in environmental monitoring.
Cell Adhesion: A surprising cohesive force
Authors: Vasseur Hugues 
Published: July 2019

AbstractWhen an experimentalist or a biological mechanism applies an external force onto a cell chemically sticking to its substrate, a reacting "suction" force, due to the slow penetration of the surrounding fluid between the cell and the substrate, opposes to the dissociation. This force can overcome other known adhesive forces when the process is sufficiently violent (typically 10^5^ pN). Its maximal contribution to the total adhesive energy of the cell can then be estimated to 2 10^-3^ J/m2. The physical origin of this effect is quite simple, and it may be compared with that leaning a "suction-cup" against a bathroom wall. We address the consequences of this effect on (i) the separation energy, (ii) the motion of the fluid surrounding the cell, more especially, on the pumping of the fluid by moving cells, and (iii) the inhibition of cell motion.
Koffka's Ring Effect Depends on Thickness, Not Continuity
Authors: Huang Abigail , Hon Alice , Altschuler Eric 
Published: July 2019

AbstractMore than 70 years ago Gestalt psychologist Kurt Koffka described a fascinating effect1,2: When a contiguous grey ring is placed on a background half of one shade of grey (different from the ring) and half of another shade of grey, the ring appears to be a homogenous. However, if the ring is slightly divided, now the two halves of the ring appear different shades of grey with the half of the ring on the darker background appearing lighter than the half of the ring on the darker background. The Gestalt principle of continuity in visual perception is invoked to explain this effect. Here we show that in fact when the ring is made thinner it appears heterogeneous even when contiguous. Furthermore, when viewing a thick ring after first viewing a thin ring, the thick ring now too appears heterogenous! These effects are also demonstrated with a colored background and backgrounds with more than two regions. We show that standard simultaneous brightness and color contrast weaken with larger test patches. Thus, Koffka's ring effect is due to vanishingly weak simultaneous contrast for a sufficiently thick ring, not continuity.