Central Africa is currently peopled by numerous sedentary agriculturalist populations neighboring the largest group of mobile hunter-gatherers, the Pygmies [1-3]. Although archeological remains attest to Homo sapiens' presence in the Congo Basin for at least 30,000 years, the demographic history of these groups, including divergence and admixture, remains widely unknown [4-6]. Moreover, it is still debated whether common history or convergent adaptation to a forest environment resulted in the short stature characterizing the pygmies [2, 7]. We genotyped 604 individuals at 28 autosomal tetranucleotide microsatellite loci in 12 nonpygmy and 9 neighboring pygmy populations. We found a high level of genetic heterogeneity among Western Central African pygmies, as well as evidence of heterogeneous levels of asymmetrical gene flow from nonpygmies to pygmies, consistent with the variable sociocultural barriers against intermarriages. Using approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) methods [8], we compared several historical scenarios. The most likely points toward a unique ancestral pygmy population that diversified approximately 2800 years ago, contemporarily with the Neolithic expansion of nonpygmy agriculturalists [9, 10]. Our results show that recent isolation, genetic drift, and heterogeneous admixture enabled a rapid and substantial genetic differentiation among Western Central African pygmies. Such an admixture pattern is consistent with the various sociocultural behaviors related to intermariages between pygmies and nonpygmies.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2008.12.049 | DOI Listing |
Nat Commun
December 2024
Shanghai Key Laboratory of Anesthesiology and Brain Functional Modulation, Clinical Research Center for Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, Shanghai Fourth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.
Penetrating orocutaneous or oropharyngeal fistulas (POFs), severe complications following unsuccessful oral or oropharyngeal reconstruction, remain complex clinical challenges due to lack of supportive tissue, contamination with saliva and chewed food, and dynamic oral environment. Here, we present a Janus hydrogel adhesive (JHA) with asymmetric functions on opposite sides fabricated via a facile surface enzyme-initiated polymerization (SEIP) approach, which self-entraps surface water and blood within an in-situ formed hydrogel layer (RL) to effectively bridge biological tissues with a supporting hydrogel (SL), achieving superior wet-adhesion and seamless wound plugging. The tough SL hydrogel interlocked with RL dissipates energy to withstand external mechanical stimuli from continuous oral motions like chewing and swallowing, thus reducing stress-induced damage.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
December 2024
Hebei Provincial Key Laboratory of Orthopaedic Biomechanics, Hebei Orthopaedic Research Institute, No. 139 Ziqiang Road, Shijiazhuang, 050051, China.
To investigate the population distribution characteristics of elderly osteoporosis fracture patients in Hebei Province and analyze the effects of air pollutants on elderly osteoporosis fractures, We retrospectively collected 18,933 cases of elderly osteoporosis fractures from January 1, 2019, to December 31, 2022, from four hospitals in Hebei Province. The average age was 76.44 ± 7.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGlob Chang Biol
January 2025
University of Münster, Institute of Landscape Ecology, Münster, Germany.
Temperate forests cover 25% of the world's forest area and most of them are managed for timber production. To increase yields, native deciduous trees have been commonly replaced by fast-growing conifers, especially in Western and Central Europe. Despite the importance of forest soils for a variety of ecosystem functions, the effects of forest management intensity on soil biological processes have not yet been sufficiently understood.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChem Biodivers
December 2024
Xi'an Jiaotong University, pathology, No.76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, China, 710061, Xian, CHINA.
Vascular dementia (VaD) is a type of dementia that results from brain injury caused by cerebrovascular disease or vascular risk factors. Accumulating evidence from clinical studies has found that Xixin decoction can effectively improve the cognitive function of patients with VaD and improve their daily living ability. However, the pathogenesis of VaD is not fully understood, and the therapeutic mechanism of Xixin decoction is also unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Immunol
December 2024
College of Chinese Materia Medica, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
The cGAS-STING signaling pathway is a critical component of the innate immune response, playing a significant role in various diseases. As a central element of this pathway, STING responds to both endogenous and exogenous DNA stimuli, triggering the production of interferons and pro-inflammatory cytokines to enhance immune defenses against tumors and pathogens. However, dysregulated activation of the STING pathway is implicated in the pathogenesis of multiple diseases, including autoinflammation, viral infections, and cancer.
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