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De Luca F, Pasini A, Scianò F, Zedda N, Guarnieri C, Masotti S, Bramanti B, Gualdi-Russo E, Rinaldo N. "Heal the sick": Health status and caregiving during the 17th-18th century in Northern Italy (St. Biagio cemetery, Ravenna). Am J Biol Anthropol 2024; 183:125-140. [PMID: 37830270 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 09/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The study of health-related care provision in archeology gives important indications on the culture and community organization of past populations. This study aims to assess the health status of the skeletal assemblage recovered from the burial site of St. Biagio (Ravenna, 17th-18th Centuries); next, we identified likely instances of need for and receipt of caregiving in response to the condition, to examine evidence of community attitudes toward disease and disability. MATERIALS AND METHODS The skeletal assemblage is composed of 133 individuals in a generally good state of preservation. Sex and age-at-death were estimated through classical anthropological methods. Health status was inferred through the biological index of frailty (BIF) and paleopathological analysis was performed through macroscopic and radiographic investigations. The "bioarcheology of care" approach was applied to individuals who showed evidence of impairment and disability. RESULTS The skeletal assemblage of St. Biagio was equally represented by males and females (50% males), with a higher percentage of adults (83.4%) than subadults (10.5%), and this is reflected in the high life expectancy at birth (40.3 years). No significant differences in health status emerged between age groups and sexes, with a generally high percentage of joint diseases, antemortem trauma, and infectious diseases. Evidence of care and compassion was found in some individuals with a high degree of impairment or disability, as in the case of probable Angelman syndrome. DISCUSSION This study provided important insights into the biological and social aspects of an Early Modern population in Northern Italy, showing that people with functional and/or visible abnormalities were probably cared for in life and were presumably considered full members of the society.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federica De Luca
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Alba Pasini
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Filippo Scianò
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
- UOC Gastroenterologia, Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Modena, Modena, Italy
| | - Nicoletta Zedda
- Department of Environmental and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Chiara Guarnieri
- Archaeological Heritage Office, Superintendence SABAP Bologna, Modena, Reggio Emilia, Ferrara, Bologna, Italy
| | - Sabrina Masotti
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Environmental and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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Pasini A, Rinaldo N, Bramanti B, Gualdi-Russo E. Technical note: Application and potentiality of quantitative ultrasonometry for the evaluation of bone mineral density status. Am J Biol Anthropol 2023; 181:140-154. [PMID: 36824053 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24711] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Revised: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023]
Abstract
The evaluation of bone mineral density (BMD) is an important task in paleopathology. Techniques commonly applied in bone quantity assessment, such as DXA or radiogrammetry (XR), suffer from several limitations when applied to skeletal remains. In recently published research, we developed a new methodology and new reference curves for the evaluation of BMD on human skeletal remains, applying for the first time Quantitative Ultrasonometry (QUS), a user-friendly, portable, and reliable clinical technique. This study aims to apply this new methodology to an archeological sample and to compare the results with those obtained through XR. We apply QUS and XR to a sample of 104 adults from Medieval Italian cemeteries. Fragility fractures were recorded. Descriptive statistics and comparisons between sexes, age-at-death cohorts, and individuals with and without fragility fractures were performed. Moreover, univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used to define the parameters most predictive of fracture risk in past populations. The comparison between sexes showed no significant results concerning BMD parameters, whereas a decrease in BMD with increasing age is confirmed. The comparison between fracture and non-fracture individuals and the logit model demonstrated that QUS parameters, especially UBPI, are more reliable predictors of fracture risk in comparison to XR. Our results confirmed that QUS is a valuable technique that can be efficiently applied to archeological remains, also considering its portability. We also propose a modification of the previously published QUS standard curves, to easily assess osteopenia and osteoporosis in archeological material.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alba Pasini
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Environmental and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.,University Center for Studies on Gender Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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Mongillo J, Vescovo G, Bramanti B. Belly fat or bloating? New insights into the physical appearance of St Anthony of Padua. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0260505. [PMID: 34932567 PMCID: PMC8691610 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the centuries, iconographic representations of St Anthony of Padua, one of the most revered saints in the Catholic world, have been inspired by literary sources, which described the Saint as either naturally corpulent or with a swollen abdomen due to dropsy (i.e. fluid accumulation in the body cavities). Even recent attempts to reconstruct the face of the Saint have yielded discordant results regarding his outward appearance. To address questions about the real appearance of St Anthony, we applied body mass estimation equations to the osteometric measurements taken in 1981, during the public recognition of the Saint’s skeletal remains. Both the biomechanical and the morphometric approach were employed to solve some intrinsic limitations in the equations for body mass estimation from skeletal remains. The estimated body mass was used to assess the physique of the Saint with the body mass index. The outcomes of this investigation reveal interesting information about the body type of the Saint throughout his lifetime.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Mongillo
- Department of Environmental and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara c.so Ercole I d’Este n.32, Ferrara, Italy
- * E-mail:
| | - Giulia Vescovo
- Department of Environmental and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara c.so Ercole I d’Este n.32, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Environmental and Prevention Sciences, University of Ferrara c.so Ercole I d’Este n.32, Ferrara, Italy
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Guellil M, Rinaldo N, Zedda N, Kersten O, Gonzalez Muro X, Stenseth NC, Gualdi-Russo E, Bramanti B. Bioarchaeological insights into the last plague of Imola (1630-1632). Sci Rep 2021; 11:22253. [PMID: 34782694 PMCID: PMC8593082 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-98214-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The plague of 1630-1632 was one of the deadliest plague epidemics to ever hit Northern Italy, and for many of the affected regions, it was also the last. While accounts on plague during the early 1630s in Florence and Milan are frequent, much less is known about the city of Imola. We analyzed the full skeletal assemblage of four mass graves (n = 133 individuals) at the Lazaretto dell'Osservanza, which date back to the outbreak of 1630-1632 in Imola and evaluated our results by integrating new archival sources. The skeletons showed little evidence of physical trauma and were covered by multiple layers of lime, which is characteristic for epidemic mass mortality sites. We screened 15 teeth for Yersinia pestis aDNA and were able to confirm the presence of plague in Imola via metagenomic analysis. Additionally, we studied a contemporaneous register, in which a friar recorded patient outcomes at the lazaretto during the last year of the epidemic. Our multidisciplinary approach combining historical, osteological and genomic data provided a unique opportunity to reconstruct an in-depth picture of the last plague of Imola through the city's main lazaretto.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meriam Guellil
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, 0316, Oslo, Norway.
- Institute of Genomics, Estonian Biocentre, University of Tartu, 51010, Tartu, Estonia.
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121, Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Nicoletta Zedda
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Oliver Kersten
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, 0316, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Nils Chr Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, 0316, Oslo, Norway
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, 0316, Oslo, Norway.
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121, Ferrara, Italy.
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Bramanti B, Wu Y, Yang R, Cui Y, Stenseth NC. Assessing the origins of the European Plagues following the Black Death: A synthesis of genomic, historical, and ecological information. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2101940118. [PMID: 34465619 PMCID: PMC8433512 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2101940118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The second plague pandemic started in Europe with the Black Death in 1346 and lasted until the 19th century. Based on ancient DNA studies, there is a scientific disagreement over whether the bacterium, Yersinia pestis, came into Europe once (Hypothesis 1) or repeatedly over the following four centuries (Hypothesis 2). Here, we synthesize the most updated phylogeny together with historical, archeological, evolutionary, and ecological information. On the basis of this holistic view, we conclude that Hypothesis 2 is the most plausible. We also suggest that Y. pestis lineages might have developed attenuated virulence during transmission, which can explain the convergent evolutionary signals, including pla decay, that appeared at the end of the pandemics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
- Department of Neuroscience and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Yarong Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Ruifu Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Yujun Cui
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing 100071, China;
| | - Nils Chr Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
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Zedda N, Bramanti B, Gualdi-Russo E, Ceraico E, Rinaldo N. The biological index of frailty: A new index for the assessment of frailty in human skeletal remains. Am J Phys Anthropol 2021; 176:459-473. [PMID: 34418072 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2021] [Revised: 06/29/2021] [Accepted: 07/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Frailty is the physiological stress that individuals suffer during their life. In past populations, frailty is conventionally assessed through the occurrence of different biomarkers of biological stress. Some efforts have been made to propose indexes that combine all biomarkers. However, these indices have some critical limitations: they cannot be used on incomplete skeletons, do not consider the severity and/or healing of lesions, and assign equal importance to different biomarkers. To address these limitations, we propose a new index to assess frailty in skeletal individuals. MATERIAL AND METHODS By statistically analyzing a large amount of osteological data available from the Museum of London, and using a Logit model, we were able to define a different weight for each reported biomarker of frailty, based on their importance in increasing the risk of premature death for the individuals. RESULTS The biological index of frailty (BIF) is the weighted mean of all biomarkers scored on the individuals, according to a different degree of importance assigned to each one. It also considers the severity and healing of the biomarkers when this is relevant to diagnose frailty. We applied BIF on a sample of Monastics and Non-Monastics from medieval England and compared it with the skeletal index of frailty (SFI). DISCUSSION BIF is the first frailty index that gives a different weight to each skeletal biomarker of stress, considers both severity and healing of the lesions, and can be applied on partial skeletal remains. The comparison with SFI showed that BIF is applicable to a larger number of skeletal individuals, revealing new differences between the Monastic and the Non-Monastic groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicoletta Zedda
- Department of Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Elena Ceraico
- Department of Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Neurosciences and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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Zaccagni L, Toselli S, Bramanti B, Gualdi-Russo E, Mongillo J, Rinaldo N. Handgrip Strength in Young Adults: Association with Anthropometric Variables and Laterality. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020; 17:ijerph17124273. [PMID: 32549283 PMCID: PMC7345833 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17124273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2020] [Revised: 06/10/2020] [Accepted: 06/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The measurement of handgrip strength (HGS) is an indicator of an individual's overall strength and can serve as a predictor of morbidity and mortality. This study aims to investigate whether HGS is associated with handedness in young adults and if it is influenced by anthropometric characteristics, body composition, and sport-related parameters. We conducted a cross-sectional study on a sample of 544 young Italian adults aged 18-30 years. We measured HGS using a dynamometer and collected data on handedness and physical activity, along with anthropometric measurements. In both sexes, the HGS of the dominant side was significantly greater than that of the non-dominant side. Furthermore, in ambidextrous individuals, the right hand was stronger than the left. A comparison between the lowest and the highest tercile of HGS highlighted its significant association with anthropometric and body composition parameters in both sexes. Moreover, sex, dominant upper arm muscle area, arm fat index, fat mass, and fat-free mass were found to be significant predictors of HGS by multiple regression analysis. Our findings suggest that HGS is especially influenced by body composition parameters and handedness category. Therefore, HGS can be used as a proxy for unhealthy conditions with impairment of muscle mass, provided that the dominance in the laterality of the subject under examination is taken into account.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luciana Zaccagni
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (L.Z.); (J.M.); (N.R.)
- Biomedical Sport Studies Center, University of Ferrara, 44123 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Stefania Toselli
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Science, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy
- Correspondence: (S.T.); (B.B.); (E.G.-R.)
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (L.Z.); (J.M.); (N.R.)
- University Center for Studies on Gender Medicine, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
- Correspondence: (S.T.); (B.B.); (E.G.-R.)
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (L.Z.); (J.M.); (N.R.)
- Correspondence: (S.T.); (B.B.); (E.G.-R.)
| | - Jessica Mongillo
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (L.Z.); (J.M.); (N.R.)
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (L.Z.); (J.M.); (N.R.)
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Gemmati D, Bramanti B, Serino ML, Secchiero P, Zauli G, Tisato V. COVID-19 and Individual Genetic Susceptibility/Receptivity: Role of ACE1/ACE2 Genes, Immunity, Inflammation and Coagulation. Might the Double X-chromosome in Females Be Protective against SARS-CoV-2 Compared to the Single X-Chromosome in Males? Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E3474. [PMID: 32423094 PMCID: PMC7278991 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21103474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 238] [Impact Index Per Article: 59.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2020] [Revised: 05/09/2020] [Accepted: 05/11/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
In December 2019, a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) from a new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) was recognized in the city of Wuhan, China. Rapidly, it became an epidemic in China and has now spread throughout the world reaching pandemic proportions. High mortality rates characterize SARS-CoV-2 disease (COVID-19), which mainly affects the elderly, causing unrestrained cytokines-storm and subsequent pulmonary shutdown, also suspected micro thromboembolism events. At the present time, no specific and dedicated treatments, nor approved vaccines, are available, though very promising data come from the use of anti-inflammatory, anti-malaria, and anti-coagulant drugs. In addition, it seems that males are more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 than females, with males 65% more likely to die from the infection than females. Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Chinese scientists show that of all cases about 1.7% of women who contract the virus will die compared with 2.8% of men, and data from Hong Kong hospitals state that 32% of male and 15% of female COVID-19 patients required intensive care or died. On the other hand, the long-term fallout of coronavirus may be worse for women than for men due to social and psychosocial reasons. Regardless of sex- or gender-biased data obtained from WHO and those gathered from sometimes controversial scientific journals, some central points should be considered. Firstly, SARS-CoV-2 has a strong interaction with the human ACE2 receptor, which plays an essential role in cell entry together with transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2); it is interesting to note that the ACE2 gene lays on the X-chromosome, thus allowing females to be potentially heterozygous and differently assorted compared to men who are definitely hemizygous. Secondly, the higher ACE2 expression rate in females, though controversial, might ascribe them the worst prognosis, in contrast with worldwide epidemiological data. Finally, several genes involved in inflammation are located on the X-chromosome, which also contains high number of immune-related genes responsible for innate and adaptive immune responses to infection. Other genes, out from the RAS-pathway, might directly or indirectly impact on the ACE1/ACE2 balance by influencing its main actors (e.g., ABO locus, SRY, SOX3, ADAM17). Unexpectedly, the higher levels of ACE2 or ACE1/ACE2 rebalancing might improve the outcome of COVID-19 in both sexes by reducing inflammation, thrombosis, and death. Moreover, X-heterozygous females might also activate a mosaic advantage and show more pronounced sex-related differences resulting in a sex dimorphism, further favoring them in counteracting the progression of the SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donato Gemmati
- Department of Morphology, Surgery and Experimental Medicine and Centre Haemostasis & Thrombosis, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
- University Centre for Studies on Gender Medicine, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy;
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- University Centre for Studies on Gender Medicine, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy;
- Department of Biomedical & Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Maria Luisa Serino
- Department of Medical Sciences and Centre Haemostasis & Thrombosis, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy;
| | - Paola Secchiero
- Department of Morphology, Surgery and Experimental Medicine and LTTA Centre, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (P.S.); (G.Z.); (V.T.)
| | - Giorgio Zauli
- Department of Morphology, Surgery and Experimental Medicine and LTTA Centre, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (P.S.); (G.Z.); (V.T.)
| | - Veronica Tisato
- Department of Morphology, Surgery and Experimental Medicine and LTTA Centre, University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (P.S.); (G.Z.); (V.T.)
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Zaccagni L, Rinaldo N, Bramanti B, Mongillo J, Gualdi-Russo E. Body image perception and body composition: assessment of perception inconsistency by a new index. J Transl Med 2020; 18:20. [PMID: 31937320 PMCID: PMC6961355 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-019-02201-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background A correct perception of the body image, as defined by comparison with actual anthropometric analyses, is crucial to ensure the best possible nutritional status of each individual. Bioimpedance analysis (BIA) represents a leading technique to assess body composition parameters and, in particular, the fat mass. This study examined the self-perception of body image at various levels of adiposity proposing a new index. Methods We investigated 487 young Italian adults (mean age of males: 21.9 ± 2.4 years; mean age of females: 21.0 ± 2.2 years). Each subject could choose, on the Contour Drawing Rating Scale, the silhouette that he/she considered most resembling his/her perceived body image as well as his/her ideal body image. On each subject, we performed anthropometric measurements and determined the values of Fat mass and %Fat with BIA. A new index, FAIFAT (Feel fat status minus Actual fat status Inconsistency), was developed to evaluate possible fat status perception inconsistencies by BIA. Results Based on ideal and feel body image comparison, women showed higher dissatisfaction than men and preferred slimmer silhouettes. FAIFAT values indicated that the fat status perception was correct in the majority of the examined individuals and only three subjects showed a serious misperception. Conclusions Our findings suggest that FAIFAT is an appropriate index for assessing the perceived fat status from the body image when compared with data obtained by BIA. In a population, the use of this index will allow the correct identification of groups at risk for eating disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luciana Zaccagni
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, 44121, Ferrara, Italy.,Biomedical Sport Studies Center, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, 44121, Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, 44121, Ferrara, Italy. .,University Center for Studies on Gender Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Jessica Mongillo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, 44121, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I d'Este 32, 44121, Ferrara, Italy.,Biomedical Sport Studies Center, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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Ottoni C, Guellil M, Ozga AT, Stone AC, Kersten O, Bramanti B, Porcier S, Van Neer W. Metagenomic analysis of dental calculus in ancient Egyptian baboons. Sci Rep 2019; 9:19637. [PMID: 31873124 PMCID: PMC6927955 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-56074-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/06/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Dental calculus, or mineralized plaque, represents a record of ancient biomolecules and food residues. Recently, ancient metagenomics made it possible to unlock the wealth of microbial and dietary information of dental calculus to reconstruct oral microbiomes and lifestyle of humans from the past. Although most studies have so far focused on ancient humans, dental calculus is known to form in a wide range of animals, potentially informing on how human-animal interactions changed the animals' oral ecology. Here, we characterise the oral microbiome of six ancient Egyptian baboons held in captivity during the late Pharaonic era (9th-6th centuries BC) and of two historical baboons from a zoo via shotgun metagenomics. We demonstrate that these captive baboons possessed a distinctive oral microbiome when compared to ancient and modern humans, Neanderthals and a wild chimpanzee. These results may reflect the omnivorous dietary behaviour of baboons, even though health, food provisioning and other factors associated with human management, may have changed the baboons' oral microbiome. We anticipate our study to be a starting point for more extensive studies on ancient animal oral microbiomes to examine the extent to which domestication and human management in the past affected the diet, health and lifestyle of target animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudio Ottoni
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316, Oslo, Norway.
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Sciences, Diet and Ancient Technology Laboratory (DANTE), Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.
| | - Meriam Guellil
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316, Oslo, Norway
- University of Tartu, Institute of Genomics, Estonian Biocentre, 51010, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Andrew T Ozga
- Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
- Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA
| | - Anne C Stone
- School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
- Institute of Human Origins, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Oliver Kersten
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316, Oslo, Norway
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 35-441221, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Stéphanie Porcier
- Laboratoire CNRS ASM ≪ Archéologie des Sociétés Méditerranéennes (UMR 5140), Université Paul-Valéry, LabEx Archimede, F-34199, Montpellier, France
| | - Wim Van Neer
- Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, B-1000, Brussels, Belgium.
- KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Department of Biology, Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics, Center of Archaeological Sciences, B-3000, Leuven, Belgium.
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11
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Scianò F, Bramanti B, Manzon VS, Gualdi-Russo E. An investigative strategy for assessment of injuries in forensic anthropology. Leg Med (Tokyo) 2019; 42:101632. [PMID: 31759328 DOI: 10.1016/j.legalmed.2019.101632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2019] [Revised: 07/17/2019] [Accepted: 09/29/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
In a forensic context, identification of skeletal injuries' and traumas' timing may be of fundamental relevance to understand the events related to the life and death of an individual. In this study, we propose a new evaluation form to facilitate the detection of traumas and interpret them as ante-, peri- or post-mortem injuries. We describe the use of this form with the analysis of two skeletonized individuals. Bone injuries on their skeletons were caused by diverse sharp weapons and differed for the timing they have occurred, as revealed by macroscopic, radiographic and microscopic assays. Thanks to its completeness and user-friendly approach, the evaluation form here proposed may greatly facilitate the analysis and interpretation of injuries found on skeletons under forensic investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Filippo Scianò
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Italy.
| | | | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Italy
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12
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Xu L, Stige LC, Leirs H, Neerinckx S, Gage KL, Yang R, Liu Q, Bramanti B, Dean KR, Tang H, Sun Z, Stenseth NC, Zhang Z. Historical and genomic data reveal the influencing factors on global transmission velocity of plague during the Third Pandemic. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:11833-11838. [PMID: 31138696 PMCID: PMC6584904 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1901366116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Quantitative knowledge about which natural and anthropogenic factors influence the global spread of plague remains sparse. We estimated the worldwide spreading velocity of plague during the Third Pandemic, using more than 200 years of extensive human plague case records and genomic data, and analyzed the association of spatiotemporal environmental factors with spreading velocity. Here, we show that two lineages, 2.MED and 1.ORI3, spread significantly faster than others, possibly reflecting differences among strains in transmission mechanisms and virulence. Plague spread fastest in regions with low population density and high proportion of pasture- or forestland, findings that should be taken into account for effective plague monitoring and control. Temperature exhibited a nonlinear, U-shaped association with spread speed, with a minimum around 20 °C, while precipitation showed a positive association. Our results suggest that global warming may accelerate plague spread in warm, tropical regions and that the projected increased precipitation in the Northern Hemisphere may increase plague spread in relevant regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management on Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100101 Beijing, China
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
- State Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 102206 Beijing, China
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Leif C Stige
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Herwig Leirs
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Simon Neerinckx
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Kenneth L Gage
- Bacterial Diseases Branch, Division of Vector-Borne Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, CO 80523
| | - Ruifu Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, 100071 Beijing, China
| | - Qiyong Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 102206 Beijing, China
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Katharine R Dean
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Hui Tang
- Department of Geosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Zhe Sun
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Nils Chr Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Zhibin Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management on Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100101 Beijing, China;
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13
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Pasini A, Donati R, Bramanti B, Salzani L, Gualdi-Russo E. New Evidence of Prehistoric Neurosurgery in Italy: The Case of Castello Del Tartaro. World Neurosurg 2019; 128:556-561. [PMID: 31121362 DOI: 10.1016/j.wneu.2019.05.096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2019] [Revised: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 05/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Archaeological evidence of trepanation during the European Bronze Age is numerous and testifies a wide application of neurosurgical practices during prehistory. In some particular cases, trepanation may be associated with other peculiar evidence concerning funerary practices. The aim of this paper is to present the case of a woman from the Recent Bronze Age site of Castello del Tartaro (Verona, Italy), who was buried in a prone position and whose skeletal remains presented evidence of probable frontal trepanation. The association between a deviant burial and trepanation could be of interest in better understanding the history and perception of neurosurgical practices during prehistory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alba Pasini
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Roberta Donati
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Luciano Salzani
- Superintendence of Archaeological Heritage of Veneto, Padua, Italy
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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14
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Abstract
Plague has a long history on the European continent, with evidence of the disease dating back to the Stone Age. Plague epidemics in Europe during the First and Second Pandemics, including the Black Death, are infamous for their widespread mortality and lasting social and economic impact. Yet, Europe still experienced plague outbreaks during the Third Pandemic, which began in China and spread globally at the end of the nineteenth century. The digitization of international records of notifiable diseases, including plague, has enabled us to retrace the introductions of the disease to Europe from the earliest reported cases in 1899, to its disappearance in the 1940s. Using supplemental literature, we summarize the potential sources of plague in Europe and the transmission of the disease, including the role of rats. Finally, we discuss the international efforts aimed at prevention and intervention measures, namely improved hygiene and sanitation, that ultimately led to the disappearance of plague in Europe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Katharine R. Dean
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Lars Walløe
- Division of Physiology, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Nils Chr. Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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15
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Namouchi A, Guellil M, Kersten O, Hänsch S, Ottoni C, Schmid BV, Pacciani E, Quaglia L, Vermunt M, Bauer EL, Derrick M, Jensen AØ, Kacki S, Cohn SK, Stenseth NC, Bramanti B. Integrative approach using Yersinia pestis genomes to revisit the historical landscape of plague during the Medieval Period. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:E11790-E11797. [PMID: 30478041 PMCID: PMC6294933 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1812865115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the last few years, genomic studies on Yersinia pestis, the causative agent of all known plague epidemics, have considerably increased in numbers, spanning a period of about 5,000 y. Nonetheless, questions concerning historical reservoirs and routes of transmission remain open. Here, we present and describe five genomes from the second half of the 14th century and reconstruct the evolutionary history of Y. pestis by reanalyzing previously published genomes and by building a comprehensive phylogeny focused on strains attributed to the Second Plague Pandemic (14th to 18th century). Corroborated by historical and ecological evidence, the presented phylogeny, which includes our Y. pestis genomes, could support the hypothesis of an entry of plague into Western European ports through distinct waves of introduction during the Medieval Period, possibly by means of fur trade routes, as well as the recirculation of plague within the human population via trade routes and human movement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amine Namouchi
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
| | - Meriam Guellil
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Oliver Kersten
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Stephanie Hänsch
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Claudio Ottoni
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Boris V Schmid
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Elsa Pacciani
- Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio di Firenze, Pistoia e Prato, 50125 Florence, Italy
| | - Luisa Quaglia
- Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio di Firenze, Pistoia e Prato, 50125 Florence, Italy
| | - Marco Vermunt
- Department of Monuments and Archaeology, Municipality of Bergen op Zoom, 4611BT-59 Bergen op Zoom, The Netherlands
| | - Egil L Bauer
- Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, N-0155 Oslo, Norway
| | - Michael Derrick
- Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, N-0155 Oslo, Norway
| | - Anne Ø Jensen
- Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, N-0155 Oslo, Norway
| | - Sacha Kacki
- Department of Archaeology, Durham University, DH1 3LE Durham, United Kingdom
- UMR 5199 De la Préhistoire à l'Actuel: Culture, Environnement et Anthropologie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, University of Bordeaux, 33615 Pessac, France
| | - Samuel K Cohn
- School of Humanities, University of Glasgow, G12 8QQ Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Nils C Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
- Key Laboratory for Earth System Modeling, Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Ministry of Education, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 35-441221 Ferrara, Italy
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16
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Bramanti B, Zedda N, Rinaldo N, Gualdi-Russo E. A critical review of anthropological studies on skeletons from European plague pits of different epochs. Sci Rep 2018; 8:17655. [PMID: 30518882 PMCID: PMC6281611 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-36201-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2017] [Accepted: 11/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
In historical times, plague epidemics intermittently ravaged Europe for more than 1,400 years, and still represent a threat in many countries all over the world. A debate is ongoing about the past plague, if it killed randomly in a population or discriminated among persons on the basis of their biological features. To address questions of plague lethality, we reviewed a large number of anthropological studies published in the last twenty years on victims of the past pestilences in Europe. In particular, we focused on data concerning demography (age at death and sex determination), and health status (skeletal biomarkers). We applied to these data a model system based on Multiple Linear Regression, which aimed to discern among possible predictors of sex-selective plague lethality in entire populations, in different periods and regions. Based on available data, we lack evidence for general trends of association between biological features. Differences in sex ratio are more likely due to the original population compositions or to distinct cultural behaviours of the two genders. We concluded that generalizations on biological evidence are not feasible for ancient plagues if we exclude that the infection possibly killed primarily persons between 5-10 and 20-35 years of age.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Bramanti
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- University Center for Studies on Gender Medicine, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - N Zedda
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.
| | - N Rinaldo
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.
| | - E Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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17
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Guellil M, Kersten O, Namouchi A, Bauer EL, Derrick M, Jensen AØ, Stenseth NC, Bramanti B. Genomic blueprint of a relapsing fever pathogen in 15th century Scandinavia. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:10422-10427. [PMID: 30249639 PMCID: PMC6187149 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1807266115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Louse-borne relapsing fever (LBRF) is known to have killed millions of people over the course of European history and remains a major cause of mortality in parts of the world. Its pathogen, Borrelia recurrentis, shares a common vector with global killers such as typhus and plague and is known for its involvement in devastating historical epidemics such as the Irish potato famine. Here, we describe a European and historical genome of Brecurrentis, recovered from a 15th century skeleton from Oslo. Our distinct European lineage has a discrete genomic makeup, displaying an ancestral oppA-1 gene and gene loss in antigenic variation sites. Our results illustrate the potential of ancient DNA research to elucidate dynamics of reductive evolution in a specialized human pathogen and to uncover aspects of human health usually invisible to the archaeological record.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meriam Guellil
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
| | - Oliver Kersten
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Amine Namouchi
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Egil L Bauer
- Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, N-0155 Oslo, Norway
| | - Michael Derrick
- Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, N-0155 Oslo, Norway
| | - Anne Ø Jensen
- Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, N-0155 Oslo, Norway
| | - Nils C Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 35-441221 Ferrara, Italy
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18
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Gualdi-Russo E, Bramanti B, Rinaldo N. Stature estimation from tibia percutaneous length: New equations derived from a Mediterranean population. Sci Justice 2018; 58:441-446. [PMID: 30446073 DOI: 10.1016/j.scijus.2018.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2018] [Revised: 07/23/2018] [Accepted: 08/05/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Stature is a fundamental anthropometric character to trace the biological profile of a person. In some cases, when dismembered or mutilated bodies are discovered in a forensic context, it is essential to estimate stature from single districts of the body. Nevertheless, to date and worldwide, there are only few population-specific studies on stature estimation from leg length and none of them concerns modern populations in southern Europe. We attempted to fill this gap, focusing on the estimation of stature from the length of the tibia in a Mediterranean population (Italians). We carried out the current study on a sample of 374 Italian university students of both sexes (age range: 19.9-34.4). Both, actual stature and percutaneous length of tibia were measured and new equations were developed for stature estimation. We tested separate regression equations for each sex, as well as an equation for remains, whose sex is unknown. To assess their reliability, the equations were tested on a holdout sample of 30 individuals from the same population. Moreover, results of new specific linear regression equations were compared to others from the literature. We demonstrated that the newly proposed formulae (for males and combined sexes) and the ones by Olivier (for females) provided the most reliable estimations of stature for southern Europeans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I D'Este 32, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I D'Este 32, 44121 Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Corso Ercole I D'Este 32, 44121 Ferrara, Italy.
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19
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Dean KR, Krauer F, Walløe L, Lingjærde OC, Bramanti B, Stenseth NC, Schmid BV. Human ectoparasites and the spread of plague in Europe during the Second Pandemic. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:1304-1309. [PMID: 29339508 PMCID: PMC5819418 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1715640115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, can spread through human populations by multiple transmission pathways. Today, most human plague cases are bubonic, caused by spillover of infected fleas from rodent epizootics, or pneumonic, caused by inhalation of infectious droplets. However, little is known about the historical spread of plague in Europe during the Second Pandemic (14-19th centuries), including the Black Death, which led to high mortality and recurrent epidemics for hundreds of years. Several studies have suggested that human ectoparasite vectors, such as human fleas (Pulex irritans) or body lice (Pediculus humanus humanus), caused the rapidly spreading epidemics. Here, we describe a compartmental model for plague transmission by a human ectoparasite vector. Using Bayesian inference, we found that this model fits mortality curves from nine outbreaks in Europe better than models for pneumonic or rodent transmission. Our results support that human ectoparasites were primary vectors for plague during the Second Pandemic, including the Black Death (1346-1353), ultimately challenging the assumption that plague in Europe was predominantly spread by rats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharine R Dean
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
| | - Fabienne Krauer
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Lars Walløe
- Department of Physiology, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Oslo, N-0317 Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway
- Department of Biomedical and Specialty Surgical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Pharmacy and Prevention, University of Ferrara, 35-441221 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Nils Chr Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
| | - Boris V Schmid
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway;
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20
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Zaccagni L, Rinaldo N, Bramanti B, Gualdi-Russo E. Relation between lifestyle behaviors and body composition patterns among healthy young Italians: a cross-sectional study. J Sports Med Phys Fitness 2017; 58:1652-1656. [PMID: 29072035 DOI: 10.23736/s0022-4707.17.07871-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Negative lifestyle factors affect health outcomes adversely. The aim of the study was to assess body composition parameters and their relationship to several lifestyle behaviors among young Italian adults. METHODS A cross-sectional study was carried out on a sample of university students (N.=200; 50% males; 21.9±2.0 years). Anthropometric and bio-impedance traits were directly measured. Behavioral data (physical activity, alcohol consumption and smoking data) were collected by a self-administered questionnaire. Quantitative and qualitative data were used to characterize and compare across participants by univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS The prevalence of subjects at risk (above the cut-points) was 3% in men and 2% in women for generalized obesity (BMI); 1% in women for centralized obesity (waist circumference); 12% in men and 5% in women for obesity (fat percentage). Unhealthy behaviors were infrequent in our sample. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that percentage of fat mass and fat-free mass were closely related to sex and structured physical activity: fat percentage decreased and fat free mass increased with the increasing of sport practice. CONCLUSIONS Our findings highlight new evidence on the particular impact of structured physical activity on body composition in young adults. Interventions should focus on the optimization of youth health behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luciana Zaccagni
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Natascia Rinaldo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy -
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Emanuela Gualdi-Russo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Surgical Specialties, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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21
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Abstract
Plague caused by Yersinia pestis is a zoonotic infection, i.e., it is maintained in wildlife by animal reservoirs and on occasion spills over into human populations, causing outbreaks of different entities. Large epidemics of plague, which have had significant demographic, social, and economic consequences, have been recorded in Western European historical documents since the sixth century. Plague has remained in Europe for over 1400 years, intermittently disappearing, yet it is not clear if there were reservoirs for Y. pestis in Western Europe or if the pathogen was rather reimported on different occasions from Asian reservoirs by human agency. The latter hypothesis thus far seems to be the most plausible one, as it is sustained by both ecological and climatological evidence, helping to interpret the phylogeny of this bacterium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Nils Chr Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Lars Walløe
- Department of Physiology, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Xu Lei
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 102206, Changping, Beijing, People's Republic of China
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22
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Hänsch S, Cilli E, Catalano G, Gruppioni G, Bianucci R, Stenseth NC, Bramanti B, Pallen MJ. The pla gene, encoding plasminogen activator, is not specific to Yersinia pestis. BMC Res Notes 2015; 8:535. [PMID: 26438258 PMCID: PMC4593223 DOI: 10.1186/s13104-015-1525-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2015] [Accepted: 09/24/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Here we present evidence to show that the pla gene, previously thought to be specific to Yersinia pestis, occurs in some strains of Citrobacter koseri and Escherichia coli. This means that detection of this gene on its own can no longer be taken as evidence of detection of Y. pestis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie Hänsch
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Elisabetta Cilli
- Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Bologna, Ravenna Campus, Bologna, Italy.
| | - Giulio Catalano
- Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Bologna, Ravenna Campus, Bologna, Italy.
| | - Giorgio Gruppioni
- Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Bologna, Ravenna Campus, Bologna, Italy.
| | - Raffaella Bianucci
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Nils C Stenseth
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Barbara Bramanti
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Mark J Pallen
- Microbiology and Infection Unit, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK.
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Haensch S, Bianucci R, Signoli M, Rajerison M, Schultz M, Kacki S, Vermunt M, Weston DA, Hurst D, Achtman M, Carniel E, Bramanti B. Distinct clones of Yersinia pestis caused the black death. PLoS Pathog 2010; 6:e1001134. [PMID: 20949072 PMCID: PMC2951374 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1001134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 213] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2010] [Accepted: 09/07/2010] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
From AD 1347 to AD 1353, the Black Death killed tens of millions of people in Europe, leaving misery and devastation in its wake, with successive epidemics ravaging the continent until the 18(th) century. The etiology of this disease has remained highly controversial, ranging from claims based on genetics and the historical descriptions of symptoms that it was caused by Yersinia pestis to conclusions that it must have been caused by other pathogens. It has also been disputed whether plague had the same etiology in northern and southern Europe. Here we identified DNA and protein signatures specific for Y. pestis in human skeletons from mass graves in northern, central and southern Europe that were associated archaeologically with the Black Death and subsequent resurgences. We confirm that Y. pestis caused the Black Death and later epidemics on the entire European continent over the course of four centuries. Furthermore, on the basis of 17 single nucleotide polymorphisms plus the absence of a deletion in glpD gene, our aDNA results identified two previously unknown but related clades of Y. pestis associated with distinct medieval mass graves. These findings suggest that plague was imported to Europe on two or more occasions, each following a distinct route. These two clades are ancestral to modern isolates of Y. pestis biovars Orientalis and Medievalis. Our results clarify the etiology of the Black Death and provide a paradigm for a detailed historical reconstruction of the infection routes followed by this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie Haensch
- Institute for Anthropology, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Raffaella Bianucci
- Laboratory of Criminalistic Sciences Department of Anatomy, Pharmacology and Legal Medicine, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
- Unité d'Anthropologie Bioculturelle, Faculté de Medecine, University of Mediterranean-CNRS-EFS, Marseille, France
| | - Michel Signoli
- Unité d'Anthropologie Bioculturelle, Faculté de Medecine, University of Mediterranean-CNRS-EFS, Marseille, France
- Centre d'Études Préhistoire, Antiquité, Moyen-âge, UMR 6130 CNRS–250 University of Nice, Valbonne, France
| | - Minoarisoa Rajerison
- Center for Plague, Institute Pasteur de Madagascar, World Health Organization Collaborating, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | - Michael Schultz
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology Medical Faculty, Georg-August University, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sacha Kacki
- Inrap, Villeneuve-d'Ascq Archaeological Center, Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France
- Laboratoire d'Anthropologie des Populations du Passé, Université Bordeaux 1, Talence, France
| | - Marco Vermunt
- Department of Monuments and Archaeology, Municipality of Bergen op Zoom, Bergen op Zoom, The Netherlands
| | - Darlene A. Weston
- Barge's Anthropologica, Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Division of Archaeological Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom
- Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Derek Hurst
- Worcestershire Historic Environment and Archaeology Service, Worcestershire County Council, Worcester, United Kingdom
| | - Mark Achtman
- Environmental Research Institute, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
| | | | - Barbara Bramanti
- Institute for Anthropology, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany
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Bramanti B, Thomas MG, Haak W, Unterlaender M, Jores P, Tambets K, Antanaitis-Jacobs I, Haidle MN, Jankauskas R, Kind CJ, Lueth F, Terberger T, Hiller J, Matsumura S, Forster P, Burger J. Genetic discontinuity between local hunter-gatherers and central Europe's first farmers. Science 2009; 326:137-40. [PMID: 19729620 DOI: 10.1126/science.1176869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 372] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
After the domestication of animals and crops in the Near East some 11,000 years ago, farming had reached much of central Europe by 7500 years before the present. The extent to which these early European farmers were immigrants or descendants of resident hunter-gatherers who had adopted farming has been widely debated. We compared new mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences from late European hunter-gatherer skeletons with those from early farmers and from modern Europeans. We find large genetic differences between all three groups that cannot be explained by population continuity alone. Most (82%) of the ancient hunter-gatherers share mtDNA types that are relatively rare in central Europeans today. Together, these analyses provide persuasive evidence that the first farmers were not the descendants of local hunter-gatherers but immigrated into central Europe at the onset of the Neolithic.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Bramanti
- Institute for Anthropology, University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
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Burger J, Kirchner M, Bramanti B, Haak W, Thomas MG. Absence of the lactase-persistence-associated allele in early Neolithic Europeans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2007; 104:3736-41. [PMID: 17360422 PMCID: PMC1820653 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0607187104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 308] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Lactase persistence (LP), the dominant Mendelian trait conferring the ability to digest the milk sugar lactose in adults, has risen to high frequency in central and northern Europeans in the last 20,000 years. This trait is likely to have conferred a selective advantage in individuals who consume appreciable amounts of unfermented milk. Some have argued for the "culture-historical hypothesis," whereby LP alleles were rare until the advent of dairying early in the Neolithic but then rose rapidly in frequency under natural selection. Others favor the "reverse cause hypothesis," whereby dairying was adopted in populations with preadaptive high LP allele frequencies. Analysis based on the conservation of lactase gene haplotypes indicates a recent origin and high selection coefficients for LP, although it has not been possible to say whether early Neolithic European populations were lactase persistent at appreciable frequencies. We developed a stepwise strategy for obtaining reliable nuclear ancient DNA from ancient skeletons, based on (i) the selection of skeletons from archaeological sites that showed excellent biomolecular preservation, (ii) obtaining highly reproducible human mitochondrial DNA sequences, and (iii) reliable short tandem repeat (STR) genotypes from the same specimens. By applying this experimental strategy, we have obtained high-confidence LP-associated genotypes from eight Neolithic and one Mesolithic human remains, using a range of strict criteria for ancient DNA work. We did not observe the allele most commonly associated with LP in Europeans, thus providing evidence for the culture-historical hypothesis, and indicating that LP was rare in early European farmers.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Burger
- Johannes Gutenberg University, Institute of Anthropology, Saarstrasse 21, D-55099 Mainz, Germany.
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Haak W, Forster P, Bramanti B, Matsumura S, Brandt G, Tänzer M, Villems R, Renfrew C, Gronenborn D, Alt KW, Burger J. Ancient DNA from the first European farmers in 7500-year-old Neolithic sites. Science 2005; 310:1016-8. [PMID: 16284177 DOI: 10.1126/science.1118725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 245] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The ancestry of modern Europeans is a subject of debate among geneticists, archaeologists, and anthropologists. A crucial question is the extent to which Europeans are descended from the first European farmers in the Neolithic Age 7500 years ago or from Paleolithic hunter-gatherers who were present in Europe since 40,000 years ago. Here we present an analysis of ancient DNA from early European farmers. We successfully extracted and sequenced intact stretches of maternally inherited mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from 24 out of 57 Neolithic skeletons from various locations in Germany, Austria, and Hungary. We found that 25% of the Neolithic farmers had one characteristic mtDNA type and that this type formerly was widespread among Neolithic farmers in Central Europe. Europeans today have a 150-times lower frequency (0.2%) of this mtDNA type, revealing that these first Neolithic farmers did not have a strong genetic influence on modern European female lineages. Our finding lends weight to a proposed Paleolithic ancestry for modern Europeans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wolfgang Haak
- Institut für Anthropologie, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Saarstrasse 21, D-55099 Mainz, Germany.
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Abstract
When working with highly degraded DNA, validating the results of a slightly polymorphic system always complicates the analysis because of the difficulties in recognizing contamination and artifacts. Recognition can be greatly simplified by employing a multiplex reaction that coamplifies the fragments together with several highly polymorphic markers, for instance, short tandem repeats. In this work, we successfully included newly designed oligonucleotide primers for the detection of delta F508, the most frequent mutation causing cystic fibrosis, in the commercial AmpFlSTR Profiler Plus PCR Amplification Kit (PE Applied Biosystems). This coamplification enabled us to test the hypothesis of a heterozygote advantage associated with cystic fibrosis-specifically, higher resistance to toxin-mediated diarrheas--in a Sicilian skeletal sample of individuals who died in a cholera epidemic in 1837. The proposed method should also be suitable for the genetic characterization of other slightly polymorphic loci tested on human and animal ancient DNA; it should permit simple authentication of results by comparing the fingerprints obtained from independent amplifications repeated several times.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Bramanti
- Historical Anthropology and Human Ecology, University of Göttingen, Germany
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Hummel S, Bramanti B, Schultes T, Kahle M, Haffner S, Herrmann B. Megaplex DNA typing can provide a strong indication of the authenticity of ancient DNA amplifications by clearly recognizing any possible type of modern contamination. anthranz 2000. [DOI: 10.1127/anthranz/58/2000/15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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Hummel S, Bramanti B, Finke T, Herrmann B. Evaluation of morphological sex determinations by molecular analyses. Anthropol Anz 2000; 58:9-13. [PMID: 10816780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
The study presents an evaluation of morphological sex determinations of adult skeletal individuals based on traits of the ossa coxae and the cranium. The evaluation criterion was genetic analysis of the amelogenine gene, which represents parts of the X- and the Y-chromosome (Mannucci et al. 1994). The study was carried out on 33 human skeletons from an early modern burial site in Lower Saxony. In this skeletal series, 88% of the morphological sex determinations matched the genetic sex. The percentage of matches was further improved, if only those morphological determinations were taken into account that were classified as unambiguous by a self-evaluation. In the reverse case, a significant number of non-matching determinations (33%) resulted from those cases in which a sex determination still seemed possible but was classified as "ambiguous" in the self-evaluation. At least within this skeletal series, no clear connection could be detected between the number of matching results and the presence or absence of the ossa coxae. This might be due to a strong cranial dimorphism within this particular skeletal series.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Hummel
- Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, University of Göttingen.
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Bramanti B, Hummel S, Schultes T, Herrmann B. STR allelic frequencies in a German skeleton collection. Anthropol Anz 2000; 58:45-9. [PMID: 10816785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
Chromosomal DNA was isolated from bones from a German skeleton collection (Goslar, 18th century) and detected by PCR. Nine microsatellite regions were amplified by multiplex reactions using the AmpFlSTR Profiler Plus kit and analysed to obtain their allelic distribution. A statistical evaluation of the results revealed no allelic differentiation between the historic sample and a modern German one at each locus.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Bramanti
- Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, University of Göttingen, Germany.
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Hummel S, Bramanti B, Schultes T, Kahle M, Haffner S, Herrmann B. Megaplex DNA typing can provide a strong indication of the authenticity of ancient DNA amplifications by clearly recognizing any possible type of modern contamination. Anthropol Anz 2000; 58:15-21. [PMID: 10816781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
Recent experiments revealed the perfect applicability of megaplex typing by autosomal short tandem repeats (STRs) to degraded DNA. The advantages of megaplex approaches lie in reduced amounts of sample material that are necessary and in remarkable time saving. Furthermore, megaplex typing clearly recognizes possible contaminations and thus has a large potential for indicating authenticity in ancient DNA analysis. This is demonstrated by three examples in which various types of contaminations could clearly be identified as such and even traced back to their origin. This would have been impossible using control samples, due to the sporadic nature of these types of contaminations.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Hummel
- Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, University of Göttingen.
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Abstract
Simultaneous amplification of nine human short tandem repeat (STR) DNA sequences and the amelogenin locus allows reducing to an absolute minimum the amount of sample material that is necessary for genetic identification or kinship analysis. Valuable remains can be studied this way without any visible damage, as is demonstrated by typing the DNA of a tooth root from the Saxon warrior Widukind, who died about 1200 years ago. The broad applicability of the megaplex approach is shown by typing bone and teeth specimens ranging from a few months to 3000 years of age employing AmpFISTR Profiler Plus. Additionally, megaplex STR typing is the method of choice for proving the authenticity of molecular results derived from ancient degraded DNA.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Hummel
- Historic Anthropology and Human Ecology, University of Goettingen, Germany.
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Ardito G, Bramanti B, Bigatti P, Lamberti L, Dolara P. Cytogenetic effect of thiabendazole and diphenylammine on cultured human lymphocytes: sister chromatid exchanges and cell cycle delay. Boll Soc Ital Biol Sper 1996; 72:171-8. [PMID: 9009055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The two fungicides analysed in this paper, Thiabendazole (TBZ) and Diphenylammine (DPA), are among the pesticides found in higher concentration in fruits and vegetables sold in Tuscany. These compounds were tested in "in vitro" lymphocyte cultures at different concentrations and using 3 protocols; protocol 1: the cultures were treated with the fungicides for 48 h; protocols 2 and 3: the cultures were treated with fungicides for 4 h in the presence or absence of the metabolic activator S9 mix. Both fungicides produced a slight increase in the SCE frequency in the 48 h treatment, at the higher non-toxic concentrations tested, but not when exposed for only 4 h, with or without S9 mix. As far as concerns the Proliferation Rate Index (i.e. the number of first, second and third mitoses), Thiabendazole also produced a significant decrease in the replication rate of the treated cultures, while Diphenylammine did not produce any effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Ardito
- Institute of Anthropology, University of Florence
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Meduri M, Bramanti B, Di Perri R, Volpe A, Oliva A, Baviera G. [Antiepileptic drugs and oral contraceptives. Preliminary note]. Boll Soc Ital Biol Sper 1978; 54:2462-7. [PMID: 756744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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