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Barley is one of the founder crops of the Neolithic transition in West Asia. While recent advances in genomics have provided a rather detailed picture of barley domestication, there are contradictory views on how the domestication process affected genetic diversity. We set out to revisit this question by integrating public DNA sequencing data from ancient barley and wide collections of extant wild and domesticated accessions. Using two previously overlooked approaches – analyses of chloroplast genomes and genome‐wide proportions of private variants – we found that the barley cultivated six millennia ago was genetically unique and more diverse when compared to extant landraces and cultivars. Moreover, the chloroplast genomes revealed a link between the ancient barley, an obscure wild genotype from north‐eastern Libya, and a distinct population of barley cultivated in Ethiopia/Eritrea. Based on these results, we hypothesize past existence of a wider North African population that included both wild and cultivated types and suffered from genetic erosion in the past six millennia, likely due to a rapid desertification that ended the Holocene African humid period. Besides providing clues about the origin of Ethiopian landraces, the hypothesis explains the post‐domestication loss of diversity observed in barley. Analyses of additional samples will be necessary to resolve the history of African barley and its contribution to the extant cultivated gene pool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Nonsuicidal self‐injury (NSSI) is associated with high levels of distress, co‐morbid mental health issues, and elevated risk of suicide. Previous literature indicates that emotion regulation is the most endorsed function of NSSI. Experience Sampling Methodology (ESM) provides a powerful tool for investigating the moment‐to‐moment associations between emotional states and NSSI thoughts and behaviours. The aim of the current study was to systematically review and evaluate ESM research concerning the relationship between momentary emotional states and NSSI. Methods: A systematic search of electronic databases from date of inception to 16th April 2021 was conducted. This was supplemented through backwards citation tracking. A risk of bias assessment was completed prior to data synthesis. Results: Nineteen eligible studies were identified for inclusion in the review. Heightened negative affect was found to typically precede instances of NSSIT thoughts and behaviour. Results were less consistent for positive affect. Limitations: Sample sizes across studies were often small, meaningful effect sizes were not always reported, and non‐validated measures of NSSI thoughts and behaviour were used during ESM assessments. Conclusions: The results support affect regulation models of NSSI, and demonstrate the value of ESM studies, specifically those sampling more than once per day, in plotting the temporal, "in‐the‐moment" characteristics of these processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nonbrittle rachis, resulting in a seed head which does not shatter at maturity, is one of the key phenotypes that distinguishes domesticated barley from its wild relatives. The phenotype is associated with two loci, Btr1 and Btr2, with all domesticated barleys thought to have either a 1 bp deletion in Btr1 or an 11 bp deletion in Btr2., We used a PCR genotyping method with 380 domesticated barley landraces to identify those with the Btr1 deletion and those with the Btr2 deletion., We discovered two landraces, from Serbia and Greece, that had neither deletion. Instead these landraces possess a novel point mutation in Btr1, changing a leucine to a proline in the protein product. We confirmed that plants carrying this mutation have the nonbrittle phenotype and identified wild haplotypes from the Gaziantep region of southeast Turkey as the closest wild relatives of these two landraces., The presence of a third mutation conferring the nonbrittle phenotype of domesticated barley shows that the origin of this trait is more complex than previously thought, and is consistent with recent models that view the transition to agriculture in southwest Asia as a protracted and multiregional process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The introduction of next-generation sequencing methods has broadened the scope and utility of ancient DNA (aDNA) research, and is opening up exciting new applications in Quaternary science. Palaeogenomes - partial or complete genome sequences for extinct taxa - are now available for Neanderthals and Denisovans, various megafauna, and preserved microorganisms. The analysis of aDNA in sediments, including cores in which there are no visible macro- or microfossils, is helping to reconstruct past ecosystems, especially in Arctic regions where aDNA preservation is relatively good. In this review we follow the development of aDNA research over the last 30 years, showing how the problems caused by contamination of ancient samples with modern DNA have gradually been overcome, and highlighting those technical challenges that still exist. We then survey the current standing of palaeogenomics and sedimentary aDNA studies, and indicate how these fields might be developed further in coming years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Tuberculosis is known to have afflicted humans throughout history and re-emerged towards the end of the 20th century, to an extent that it was declared a global emergency in 1993. The aim of this study was to apply a rigorous analytical regime to the detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) DNA in 77 bone and tooth samples from 70 individuals from Britain and continental Europe, spanning the 1st-19th centuries AD. We performed the work in dedicated ancient DNA facilities designed to prevent all types of modern contamination, we checked the authenticity of all products obtained by the polymerase chain reaction, and we based our conclusions on up to four replicate experiments for each sample, some carried out in an independent laboratory. We identified 12 samples that, according to our strict criteria, gave definite evidence for the presence of MTBC DNA, and another 22 that we classified as 'probable' or 'possible.' None of the definite samples came from vertebrae displaying lesions associated with TB. Instead, eight were from ribs displaying visceral new bone formation, one was a tooth from a skeleton with rib lesions, one was taken from a skeleton with endocranial lesions, one from an individual with lesions to the sacrum and sacroiliac joint and the last was from an individual with no lesions indicative of TB or possible TB. Our results add to information on the past temporal and geographical distribution of TB and affirm the suitability of ribs for studying ancient TB. Am J Phys Anthropol 153:178-189, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present n method to distinguish authentic ancient DNA from contaminating DNA in a human bone. This is achieved by taking account of the spatial distribution of the various sequence families within the bone and the extent of degradation of the template DNAs, as revealed by the error content of the sequences. To demonstrate the veracity of the method, we handled two ancient human tibiae in order to contaminate them with modern DNA, and then subjected segments of the bones to various decontaminating treatments, including removal of the outer 1-2 mm, before extracting DNA, cloning, and obtaining a total of 107 mitochondrial DNA sequences. Sequences resulting from the deliberate contamination were located exclusively in the outer 1-2 mm of the bones, and only one of these 27 sequences contained an error that could be ascribed to DNA degradation. A second, much smaller set of relatively error-free sequences, which we ascribe to contamination during excavation or curation, was also located exclusively in the outer 1-2 mm. In contrast, a family of 72 sequences, displaying extensive degradation products but identifiable as haplogroup U5ala, was distributed throughout one of the bones and represents the authentic ancient DNA content of this specimen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article introduces the topic on Efficient Consumer Response (ECR), a food industry strategy. In the ECR, distributors and suppliers work together to increase value for the consumer. To accomplish its goal, the ECR uses the strategies such as efficient store assortment, efficient replenishment, efficient promotion and efficient product information. A challenging and time costuming task, the implementation of ECR requires information technology and expertise. In the grocery supply chain under ECR, Wholesalers and retailers are tied to each other with information systems.

This article describes the mechanisms of action of adrenocorticosteroids, anti-fungal, anti-psoriatic and antibiotic agents. This presentation will make dermatologists more aware of the complicated, and in some cases, potentially dangerous, agents that they are called upon to use in their clinical practice. Dermatologists have now entered a new era and they must, therefore, be more aware of the biochemical changes, as well as the pharmacologic effects, which accompany the use of these newer compounds.