We conducted a meta-analysis of published carbon and nitrogen isotope data from archaeological human skeletal remains (n = 2448) from 128 sites cross China in order to investigate broad spatial and ...temporal patterns in the formation of staple cuisines. Between 6000-5000 cal BC we found evidence for an already distinct north versus south divide in the use of main crop staples (namely millet vs. a broad spectrum of C3 plant based diet including rice) that became more pronounced between 5000-2000 cal BC. We infer that this pattern can be understood as a difference in the spectrum of subsistence activities employed in the Loess Plateau and the Yangtze-Huai regions, which can be partly explained by differences in environmental conditions. We argue that regional differentiation in dietary tradition are not driven by differences in the conventional "stages" of shifting modes of subsistence (hunting-foraging-pastoralism-farming), but rather by myriad subsistence choices that combined and discarded modes in a number of innovative ways over thousands of years. The introduction of wheat and barley from southwestern Asia after 2000 cal BC resulted in the development of an additional east to west gradient in the degree of incorporation of the different staple products into human diets. Wheat and barley were rapidly adopted as staple foods in the Continental Interior contra the very gradual pace of adoption of these western crops in the Loess Plateau. While environmental and social factors likely contributed to their slow adoption, we explored local cooking practice as a third explanation; wheat and barley may have been more readily folded into grinding-and-baking cooking traditions than into steaming-and-boiling traditions. Changes in these culinary practices may have begun in the female sector of society.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Lipids play critical structural and functional roles in the regulation of cellular homeostasis, and it is increasingly recognized that the disruption of lipid metabolism or signaling or both is ...associated with the onset and progression of certain metabolically linked diseases. As a result, the field of lipidomics has emerged to comprehensively identify and structurally characterize the diverse range of lipid species within a sample of interest and to quantitatively monitor their abundances under different physiological or pathological conditions. Mass spectrometry (MS) has become a critical enabling platform technology for lipidomic researchers. However, the presence of isobaric (i.e., same nominal mass) and isomeric (i.e., same exact mass) lipids within complex lipid extracts means that MS-based identification and quantification of individual lipid species remains a significant analytical challenge. Ultrahigh resolution and accurate mass spectrometry (UHRAMS) offers a convenient solution to the isobaric mass overlap problem, while a range of chromatographic separation, differential extraction, intrasource separation and selective ionization methods, or tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) strategies may be used to address some types of isomeric mass lipid overlaps. Alternatively, chemical derivatization strategies represent a more recent approach for the separation of lipids within complex mixtures, including for isomeric lipids. In this Account, we highlight the key components of a lipidomics workflow developed in our laboratory, whereby certain lipid classes or subclasses, namely, aminophospholipids and O-alk-1′-enyl (i.e., plasmalogen) ether-containing lipids, are shifted in mass following sequential functional group selective chemical derivatization reactions prior to “shotgun” nano-ESI-UHRAMS analysis, “targeted” MS/MS, and automated database searching. This combined derivatization and UHRAMS approach resolves both isobaric mass lipids and certain categories of isomeric mass lipids within crude lipid extracts, with no requirement for extensive sample handling prior to analysis, with additional potential for enhanced ionization efficiencies, improved molecular level structural characterization, and multiplexed relative quantification. When integrated with a monophasic method for the simultaneous global extraction of both highly polar and nonpolar lipids, this workflow has been shown to enable the sum composition level identification and relative quantification of 500–600 individual lipid species across four lipid categories and from 36 lipid classes and subclasses, in only 1–2 min data acquisition time and with minimal sample consumption. Thus, while some analytical challenges remain to be addressed, shotgun lipidomics workflows encompassing chemical derivatization strategies have particular promise for the analysis of samples with limited availability that require rapid and unbiased assessment of global lipid metabolism.
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted both physical and mental health. This study aimed to understand whether exposure to green space buffered against stress and distress during the COVID-19 pandemic ...while taking into account significant stressors of the pandemic.
We leveraged a cross-sectional survey on green space exposure and mental health among residents of Denver, CO that ran from November 2019 through January 2021. We measured objective green space as the average NDVI (normalized difference vegetation index) from aerial imagery within 300m and 500m of the participant's residence. Perceived green space was measured through Likert scores on five questions about vegetation near the home that captured perceived abundance, visibility, access, usage, and quality of green space. We used generalized linear models to assess the relationship between each green space exposure variable and perceived stress (PSS-4), depression (CES-D-10), or anxiety (MMPI-2) adjusted for sociodemographic and COVID-19 impact variables.
We found significantly higher depression scores for all covid periods compared to the "before covid" period, and significantly higher anxiety scores during the "fall wave" compared to earlier periods. Adjusted for sociodemographic and pandemic stressors, we found that spending a lot of time in green space (usage) was significantly associated with lower anxiety and depression. We also observed significantly lower depression scores associated with NDVI in both buffers (objective abundance) and significantly lower anxiety scores with perceived abundance of green space. There was some evidence of lower anxiety scores for people reporting having high quality green spaces near the home (quality). We did not observe significant associations for any green space metric and perceived stress after adjustment for confounding variables.
Our work provides further evidence of mental health benefits associated with green space exposure during the COVID-19 pandemic even after adjustment for sociodemographic variables and significant pandemic-related stressors.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Wildfire activity is predicted to increase in many parts of the world due to changes in temperature and precipitation patterns from global climate change. Wildfire smoke contains numerous hazardous ...air pollutants and many studies have documented population health effects from this exposure.
We aimed to assess the evidence of health effects from exposure to wildfire smoke and to identify susceptible populations.
We reviewed the scientific literature for studies of wildfire smoke exposure on mortality and on respiratory, cardiovascular, mental, and perinatal health. Within those reviewed papers deemed to have minimal risk of bias, we assessed the coherence and consistency of findings.
Consistent evidence documents associations between wildfire smoke exposure and general respiratory health effects, specifically exacerbations of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Growing evidence suggests associations with increased risk of respiratory infections and all-cause mortality. Evidence for cardiovascular effects is mixed, but a few recent studies have reported associations for specific cardiovascular end points. Insufficient research exists to identify specific population subgroups that are more susceptible to wildfire smoke exposure.
Consistent evidence from a large number of studies indicates that wildfire smoke exposure is associated with respiratory morbidity with growing evidence supporting an association with all-cause mortality. More research is needed to clarify which causes of mortality may be associated with wildfire smoke, whether cardiovascular outcomes are associated with wildfire smoke, and if certain populations are more susceptible.
Reid CE, Brauer M, Johnston FH, Jerrett M, Balmes JR, Elliott CT. 2016. Critical review of health impacts of wildfire smoke exposure. Environ Health Perspect 124:1334-1343; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1409277.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
CEKLJ, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VSZLJ
Grasslands are one of the world's most extensive terrestrial biomes and are central to the survival of herders, their livestock and diverse communities of large wild mammals
. In Africa, tropical ...soils are predominantly nutrient-limited
but productive grassy patches in wooded grassland savannah ecosystems
grow on fertile soils created by geologic and edaphic factors, megafauna, fire and termites
. Mobile pastoralists also create soil-fertility hotspots by penning their herds at night, which concentrates excrement-and thus nutrients-from grazing of the surrounding savannahs
. Historical anthropogenic hotspots produce high-quality forage, attract wildlife and increase spatial heterogeneity in African savannahs
. Archaeological research suggests this effect extends back at least 1,000 years
but little is known about nutrient persistence at millennial scales. Here we use chemical, isotopic and sedimentary analyses to show high nutrient and
N enrichment in on-site degraded dung deposits relative to off-site soils at five Pastoral Neolithic
sites (radiocarbon dated to between 3,700 and 1,550 calibrated years before present (cal. BP)). This study demonstrates the longevity of nutrient hotspots and the long-term legacy of ancient herders, whose settlements enriched and diversified African savannah landscapes over three millennia.
Uncommon carriage Reid, Blake E
Stanford law review,
01/2024, Letnik:
76, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
As states have begun regulating the carriage of speech by "Big Tech" internet platforms, scholars, advocates, and policymakers have increasingly focused their attention on the law of common carriage. ...Legislators have invoked common carriage to defend social media regulations against First Amendment challenges, making arguments set to take center stage in the Supreme Court's impending consideration of the 'NetChoice' saga. This article challenges the coherence of common carriage as a field and its utility for assessing the constitutionality and policy wisdom of internet regulation. Evaluating the post-Civil War history of common carriage regimes in telecommunications law, this article illustrates that conceptions of common carriage and its treatment by the courts vary significantly and are contingent on specific historical and technological circumstances. The article observes that common carriage is an attractive nuisance for policymakers and judges. The doctrine distracts from difficult normative questions about the permissibility of government interventions into speech and the editorial discretion of internet platforms. The article disentangles talismanic invocations of "common carriage" by isolating three distinct issues: (1) the classification of "common carriers"; (2) the imposition of "common carriage" rules on those carriers; and (3) the First Amendment problems that flow from the imposition. Applying this novel three-part framework, this article argues for a context-sensitive approach to internet regulations. This approach evaluates the designation of carriers, the imposition of rules, and the role of the First Amendment at a granular level to more robustly account for the complexity of contemporary internet platforms.
In this trial involving black male barbershop patrons with uncontrolled hypertension, health promotion by barbers resulted in larger blood-pressure reduction when coupled with medication management ...in barbershops by specialty-trained pharmacists.
Our aim was to update global lung cancer epidemiology and describe changing trends and disparities.
We presented country-specific incidence and mortality from GLOBOCAN 2012 by region and ...socioeconomic factors via the Human Development Index (HDI). Between- and within-country incidence by histological type was analyzed by using International Agency for Research on Cancer data on cancer incidence on five continents. Trend analyses including data from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, cancer registries, and the WHO mortality database were conducted using joinpoint regression. Survival was compared between and within countries and by histological type.
In 2012, there were 1.82 and 1.59 million new lung cancer cases and deaths worldwide, respectively. Incidence was highest in countries with a very high HDI and lowest in countries with a low HDI (42.2 versus 7.9 in 100,000 for males and 21.8 versus 3.1 in 100,000 for females, respectively). In most countries with a very high HDI, as incidence in males decreased gradually (ranging from –0.3% in Spain to –2.5% in the United States each year), incidence in females continued to increase (with the increase ranging from 1.4% each year in Australia to 6.1% in recent years in Spain). Although histological type varied between countries, adenocarcinoma was more common than squamous cell carcinoma, particularly among females (e.g., in Chinese females, the adenocarcinoma-to–squamous cell carcinoma ratio was 6.6). Five-year relative survival varied from 2% (Libya) to 30% (Japan), with substantial within-country differences.
Lung cancer will continue to be a major health problem well through the first half of this century. Preventive strategies, particularly tobacco control, tailored to populations at highest risk are key to reducing the global burden of lung cancer.
Sterols are a class of lipid molecules that include cholesterol, oxysterols, and sterol esters. Sterol lipids play critical functional roles in mammalian biology, including the dynamic regulation of ...cell membrane fluidity, as precursors for the synthesis of bile acids, steroid hormones and vitamin D, as regulators of gene expression in lipid metabolism, and for cholesterol transport and storage. The most common method employed for sterol analysis is high performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). However, conventional collision induced dissociation (CID) methods used for ion activation during MS/MS typically fail to provide sufficient structural information for unambiguous assignment of sterol species based on their fragmentation behaviour alone. This places a significant burden on the efficiency of the chromatographic separation methods for the effective separation of isomeric sterols. Here, toward developing an improved analysis strategy for sterol lipids, we have explored the novel use of 213 nm photodissociation MS/MS and hybrid multistage-MS/MS (i.e., MSn) data acquisition approaches for the improved structural characterization of cholesterol, representative isomeric oxysterols, and cholesteryl esters. Most notably, UVPD-MS/MS of ammoniated, lithiated and sodiated adducts of cholesterol, several representative oxysterol species, and an oxosterol lipid, are shown to give rise to abundant M+. radical cation products, that subsequently fragment during collision induced MS3 to yield extensive structurally informative product ions, similar to those observed by Electron Ionization, and that enable their unambiguously assignment, including isomeric differentiation of oxysterols. For cholesterol esters, a reversed hybrid collision induced-MS/MS and UVPD-MS3 approach is shown to enable assignment of the sterol backbone, and localization of the site(s) of unsaturation within esterified fatty acyl chains.
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•Hybrid UV photodissociation and multistage tandem mass spectrometry is a novel analysis strategy for sterol lipids.•213 nm UVPD-MS/MS of cholesterol and oxysterols produces abundant M+. radical cation product ions.•HCD-MS3 of these products enables unambiguously structural assignment, including for differentiation of isomeric oxysterols.•HCD-MS/MS and UVPD-MS3 enables detailed structural assignment of cholesterol esters, including site(s) of unsaturation.
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