Le site Paléolithique supérieur de Yudinovo : résultats des recherches archéologiques des années 2004–2016

The Upper Palaeolithic site of Yudinovo is one of the reference sites, located in the Desna River Basin. Multidisciplinary field studies, organized by the Desna mission (MAE RAS) and conducted between 2004 and 2016, have changed the vision existed so far on the structure and character of the Yudinovo site as well as on the duration of its occupations. The researchers found an ancient ford used by mammoths and other big mammals to cross the river, and a water source was one of the main factors in explaining the location of the Yudinovo site. The site has been occupied in a cyclical way for stays of varied duration. It was frequented by Prehistoric Men during the different seasons, and periods of occupation were apparently of different duration. The stratigraphy of the Yudinovo site reveals two major episodes in the evolution of the site. The dating of the lower archaeological layer dates back to 15,000–13,500 BC. J.C., while the upper layer is attributed to the period of 12,500–12,000 BC. The lower layer, which was formed during the major episode of occupation of the site, is rather thin and shows the complex stratigraphic structure. Various areas of activities, evacuation structures, storage areas with mammoth bones are discovered. Some elements of the lower archaeological layer are perfectly correlated with different episodes of sporadic occupation.     

L’exploitation de la faune par les groupes humains du Pléniglaciaire supérieur à Eliseevichi 1 (Russie)

The archaeological site of Eliseevichi 1, located in the Dnieper River Basin, was discovered in 1930 by K.M. Polikarpovich. It is contemporary of Epigravettian occupations of the end of the second half of the upper Pleniglacial (20,000–14,000 years BP). As for the sites of the culture of Mezine (Mezine, Mezhirich, Gontsy and Dobranitchevka), it was interpreted as a specialized camp of hunters, mainly for slaughtering woolly mammoths and fur exploitation. Moreover, mammoth bones have been used to build larger structures than in mezinian sites associated with storage pits, as in Timonovka I, Yudinovo, Yourevitchi, Suponevo and Chulatovo. However, Eliseevichi 1 differs from all other sites by the presence of ivory engraved pieces with zigzag patterns and multiple linear features and the presence of platelets with decorations in the form of fish scales (“churingas”) and the high number of chisels. These features make it a unique case in the Desna Valley. To better understand the activities that have been implemented within the site by human groups, particularly the role of different species, we processed to the zooarchaeological study of the faunal remains from the 1935–1936 excavations. The faunal spectrum is restricted, typical of a cold and dry environment, with Mammuthus primigenius, Rangifer tarandus, Canis lupus, Alopex lagopus rossicus and Ursus arctos. Two skulls were previously identified as being those of dogs. According to the taphonomical study we highlighted a quick and deep burying of bones, which were affected by freeze-thaw alternating, without being highly altered and moved by phenomena of cryoturbation. The woolly mammoth was used for its meat and for its ivory. The many remains of canids are characterized by skinning marks and long bones were sawed. The presence of ocher, ashy areas, crude lithic fragments, could be linked to the treatment of skins. The site of Eliseevichi 1 was probably occupied during winter and summer seasons, several times during a long period. It could have two main functions, not as a habitat but as a specialized site of furskin and bone production.     

Humanizing European Paleolithic art: A new visual evidence of human/bird interactions at L’Hort de la Boquera site (Margalef de Montsant,Tarragona, Spain)

This paper reports the discovery of a new example of portable art in North-eastern Iberia dating to the Late Upper Palaeolithic (12.250 ± 60 BP). The piece is analysed in relation to the European Palaeolithic art assemblage to determine its significance and how it contributes to our understandings of Palaeolithic artistic practices. Both the motifs depicted (birds and humans) and the patterns of composition (a narrative scene) are unusual in Palaeolithic assemblages. In addition, this new find contributes to filling a geographic gap in the artistic record as evidence of Palaeolithic art is rare in Catalonia. The anatomical features of one of the birds suggest that it is a crane, a species that has been depicted in a limited number of sites, as summarized in this paper. Moreover, there are only three known example of birds and humans interacting in a narrative scene in Palaeolithic art. Exhibiting innovations in media, subject matter and compositional norms, this new find has the potential to change the classic definition of European Upper Palaeolithic art and integrate the region in the artistic trends circulating along Mediterranean Iberia during the Upper Magdalenian.     

The multifaceted role of TMEM16A in cancer

The calcium-activated chloride channel TMEM16A is intimately linked to cancers. Over decades, TMEM16A over-expression and contribution to prognosis have been widely studied for multiple cancers strengthening the idea that TMEM16A could be a valuable biomarker and a promising therapeutic target. Surprisingly, from the survey of the literature, it appears that TMEM16A has been involved in multiple cancer-related functions and a large number of molecular targets of TMEM16A have been proposed. Thus, TMEM16A appears to be an ion channel with a multifaceted role in cancers.In this review, we summarize the latest development regarding TMEM16A contribution to cancers. We will survey TMEM16A contribution in cancer prognosis, the origins of its over-expression in cancer cells, the multiple biological functions and molecular pathways regulated by TMEM16A. Then, we will consider the question regarding the molecular mechanism of TMEM16A in cancers and the possible basis for the multifaceted role of TMEM16A in cancers.     

Upper Cenomanian bivalves from the Guir Basin (southwestern Algeria): Order Veneroida

The Upper Cretaceous rocks are widely distributed and well exposed in south Algeria and consist in beds rich in macrofauna. For the first time, twenty veneroid species (Bivalvia) are systematically described from the upper Cenomanian deposits of the Guir Basin. While three species were reported since long before [Granocardium desvauxi (Coquand), G. productum (J. de C. Sowerby) and Glossus aquilinus (Coquand)]; Lucina fallax Forbes, Crassatella (Rochella) tenuicostata (Seguenza), Protocardia hillana (J. Sowerby), G. productum (J. de C. Sowerby) var. byzacenica (Pervinquière), Arctica cordata (Sharpe), A. humei (Cox), A. inornata (d’Orbigny), A. picteti (Coquand), Tenea delettrei (Coquand), Paraesa faba (J. de C. Sowerby), Meretrix desvauxi (Coquand) were previously unknown from the Cretaceous of Algerian Sahara. Because of reduced degree of preservation, Sphaera cf. corrugata J. Sowerby, Maghrebella cf. forgemoli (Coquand), Maghrebella sp., Granocardium cf. carolinum (d’Orbigny), Protocardia sp. and Meretrix sp. are tentatively determined. The studied material, found in the lower part of the “Calcaires de Sidi Mohamed Ben Bouziane” Formation, evidences palaeobiogeographic affinities occurring over a wide geographical area: from North Africa, southern Europe to Middle East and India. The present study provides new information to the knowledge of the upper Cenomanian palaeobiology of the studied region.     

circRNA and gastrointestinal cancer

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a novel class of endogenous noncoding RNAs that form covalently closed continuous loops without 3′ end poly (A) tails and 5′ end caps. circRNAs are more conservative and stable than linear RNA. circRNAs can specifically bind to microRNAs as competing endogenous RNA, thereby directly or indirectly regulating the expression of related genes. circRNAs have been implicated in several cancers including gastrointestinal (GI) cancers. Some circRNAs have the potential to become biological biomarkers and therapeutic targets of GI cancers. However, the multiple functional roles of circRNAs in GI cancers remain largely unclear.     

青海曲麻莱-治多地区巴颜喀拉山群(上三叠统)遗迹化石

首次对青海南部曲麻莱-治多地区巴颜喀拉山群上部(上三叠统)遗迹化石进行了系统采集,共采获遗迹化石33属54种。据遗迹化石的形态、习性、水深等环境成因特征,可划分为两类组合:一类以Cosmorhaphe,Helminthopsis,Helminthoida,Megagrapton,Paleodictyon等为主,产生于浊流事件前;另一类以Chondrites,Neo-nereites,Palaeophycus,Phycosiphon,Planolites,Zoophycos等为主,产生于浊流事件后,两者均为半深海-深海Nereites遗迹相的典型代表,反映晚三叠世研究区应为浊流沉积发育的复理石相沉积。     

A new species of the marattialean fern Scolecopteris (Zenker) Millay from the uppermost Permian of Guizhou Province, south-western China

Several isolated marattialean synangia and sporangia are reported from coal balls collected from Coal Seam No.1 (C605) in the uppermost Permian Wangjiazhai Formation in Guizhou Province, south-western China. The synangia are radially symmetrical with diameters between 0.8 and 1.2 mm and are 1.7 mm long, consisting of 3–4 elongate sporangia that are fused basally, free distally and possess a pointed apex. The outer-facing sporangial wall is 4–5 cells thick and conspicuously differentiated. Spores are trilete, have a granular ornamentation and are nearly round equatorially with a diameter of 55–60 µm. Comparisons with other anatomically preserved Palaeozoic marattialean synangia from the Euramerican and Cathaysian floras permit their assignment to the genus of Scolecopteris (Zenker) Millay. In this species the thick, outer-facing sporangial walls and large trilete spores are features consistent with those of the Oliveri Group within Scolecopteris , a group that has previously been considered primitive within this genus. Distinctions from all other previously recognized species within the Oliveri Group lead to the creation of a new species, S. guizhouensis sp. nov. This species is the youngest of the reported species of Scolecopteris recognized from the Euramerican and Cathaysian floras, and provides important evidence on the organization of marattialean ferns from the Upper Permian strata of south China.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 151 , 279–288.     

Associations of physical activity with gut microbiota in pre-adolescent children

[Purpose] To determine whether physical activity (PA), primarily the recommended 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA, is associated with gut bacterial microbiota in 10-year-old children.[Methods] The Block Physical Activity Screener, which provides minutes/day PA variables, was used to determine whether the child met the PA recommendations. 16S rRNA sequencing was performed on stool samples from the children to profile the composition of their gut bacterial microbiota. Differences in alpha diversity metrics (richness, Pielou’s evenness, and Faith’s phylogenetic diversity) by PA were determined using linear regression, whereas beta diversity (unweighted and weighted UniFrac) relationships were assessed using PERMANOVA. Taxon relative abundance differentials were determined using DESeq2.[Results] The analytic sample included 321 children with both PA and 16S rRNA sequencing data (mean age [SD] =10.2 [0.8] years; 54.2% male; 62.9% African American), where 189 (58.9%) met the PA recommendations. After adjusting for covariates, meeting the PA recommendations as well as minutes/day PA variables were not significantly associated with gut richness, evenness, or diversity (p ≥ 0.19). However, meeting the PA recommendations (weighted UniFrac R² = 0.014, p = 0.001) was significantly associated with distinct gut bacterial composition. These compositional differences were partly characterized by increased abundance of Megamonas and Anaerovorax as well as specific Christensenellaceae_R-7_group taxa in children with higher PA.[Conclusion] Children who met the recommendations of PA had altered gut microbiota compositions. Whether this translates to a reduced risk of obesity or associated metabolic diseases is still unclear.