Reconstructing the detailed dietary behaviour of extinct hominins is challenging-particularly for a species such as Australopithecus africanus, which has a highly variable dental morphology that suggests a broad diet. The dietary responses of extinct hominins to seasonal fluctuations in food availability are poorly understood, and nursing behaviours even less so; most of the direct information currently available has been obtained from high-resolution trace-element geochemical analysis of Homo sapiens (both modern and fossil), Homo neanderthalensis and living apes. Here we apply high-resolution trace-element analysis to two A. africanus specimens from Sterkfontein Member 4 (South Africa), dated to 2.6-2.1 million years ago. Elemental signals indicate that A. africanus infants predominantly consumed breast milk for the first year after birth. A cyclical elemental pattern observed following the nursing sequence-comparable to the seasonal dietary signal that is seen in contemporary wild primates and other mammals-indicates irregular food availability. These results are supported by isotopic evidence for a geographical range that was dominated by nutritionally depauperate areas. Cyclical accumulation of lithium in A. africanus teeth also corroborates the idea that their range was characterized by fluctuating resources, and that they possessed physiological adaptations to this instability. This study provides insights into the dietary cycles and ecological behaviours of A. africanus in response to food availability, including the potential cyclical resurgence of milk intake during times of nutritional challenge (as observed in modern wild orangutans). The geochemical findings for these teeth reinforce the unique place of A. africanus in the fossil record, and indicate dietary stress in specimens that date to shortly before the extinction of Australopithecus in South Africa about two million years ago.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1370-5 | DOI Listing |
BMC Res Notes
December 2024
Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, Graduate School of Infection Control Sciences and Ōmura Satoshi Memorial Institute, Kitasato University, 5-9-1 Shirokane, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-8641, Japan.
Objective: We aimed to characterize integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) in antimicrobial resistant Streptococcs uberis isolates from bovine milk in Chiba, Japan, based on whole-genome sequence (WGS) data.
Results: Of the 101 isolates, we found the 36 isolates harboring erm(B)-tet(O), showing resistance to macrolides-lincosamides-tetracyclines. The 22 isolates were randomly selected and subject to WGS determination.
Br J Nutr
December 2024
School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Ultra-processed foods (UPF), defined using the Nova classification system, are associated with increased chronic disease risk. More recently, evidence suggests the UPF subgroup of whole-grain breads and cereals is in fact linked with reduced chronic disease risk. This study aimed to explore associations of cardiometabolic risk measures with Nova UPF intake versus when foods with ≥25% or ≥50% whole grain are excluded from the definition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe Atlantic wolffish (Anarhichas lupus) is a cold-water fish with potential for aquaculture diversification. To unveil the mechanisms underlying the compromised growth in Atlantic wolffish when reared at higher temperatures, we investigated the relationship between temperature, growth rate, aerobic capacity, stress biomarkers, and gut barrier function. Juveniles acclimated to 10°C were maintained at 10°C (control) or exposed to 15°C for either 24 h (acute exposure) or 50 days (chronic exposure).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Biol Macromol
December 2024
School of Food and Biological Engineering, Chengdu University, No. 2025 Chengluo Avenue, Chengdu 610106, China. Electronic address:
Owing to the limited availability of biocompatible, edible and natural emulsifiers, the development of Pickering emulsions applicable to the food industry still confronts challenges. Moreover, Honokiol (HNK), due to its poor stability and susceptibility to oxidation, most of the existing delivery systems are centered on injection administration routes and relatively complex in preparation, posing significant challenges for industrialization. In this research, a Pickering emulsion system stabilized by gliadin and konjac glucomannan composite particles (GKPs) was constructed using the pH cycling method and was employed for the delivery of HNK.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClin Nutr ESPEN
December 2024
Department of Community Medicine and Global Health, Institute of Health and Society, University 7 of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Background: Child overweight and obesity is associated with an increased risk of non-communicable diseases. The present work aimed to explain the global trends of overweight in children under 5 years during the last two decades in comparison to the global nutrition targets.
Methods: We analysed secondary data from the Global Nutrition Report 2020 report for the years 2000 to 2020 from 194 countries, distributed in 23 sub-regions to examine the changes in prevalence and trends of overweight and obesity in children under five years of age.
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