Analyses archéométriques dans la grotte ornée Mayenne-Sciences (Thorigné-en-Charnie, Mayenne)

Since 1998, a multidisciplinary team works on the study of the representations in the cave Mayenne-Sciences (Thorigné-en-Charnie, Mayenne). Particularly, there are trials for U-TH (TIMH) datations of the speleothems recovering the drawings and fossils of the bats; this would help to know at what date the decorated cave was closed. The studies already allowed to know better the black drawings, executed with a wooden charcoal crayon. Thus, it was possible to make removals which gave two dates from the Gravettian phase; this feeds again the discussion about the chronocultural position of this cave, on of the most septentrional caves we know.     

Online Parallel Accumulation–Serial Fragmentation (PASEF) with a Novel Trapped Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometer

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Highlights

• •Online PASEF achieves greater than 100 MS/MS per second at full sensitivity.
• •Accurate label-free quantification of over 6000 proteins in 2 h.
• •High throughput demonstrated on 50 ng digests measured in 5 min.
• •High-precision determination of 100,000 peptide collisional cross sections.

     

High-precision U-series dating of Locality 1 at Zhoukoudian, China

Thermal ionization mass spectrometric(230)Th/(234)U dating has been carried out on intercalated speleothem samples from the limestone cave occupied by Homo erectus at Zhoukoudian, China. The samples were recently collected in proper stratigraphic context after detailed field examinations. The results show that the age of the No. 5 Skull from Layer 3 is >400 ka, possibly in the range of about 400-500 ka, and that the hominid fossils from the lower strata are at least 600 ka and possibly >800 ka, much older than previously thought. The near-equilibrium(230)Th/(234)U ratios and internal consistency of the dates and stratigraphy lend credence to the results and allow us to comment on their important implications for human evolution.     

Oxonium Ion–Guided Optimization of Ion Mobility–Assisted Glycoproteomics on the timsTOF Pro

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Synchro-PASEF Allows Precursor-Specific Fragment Ion Extraction and Interference Removal in Data-Independent Acquisition

Data-independent acquisition (DIA) methods have become increasingly popular in mass spectrometry–based proteomics because they enable continuous acquisition of fragment spectra for all precursors simultaneously. However, these advantages come with the challenge of correctly reconstructing the precursor–fragment relationships in these highly convoluted spectra for reliable identification and quantification. Here, we introduce a scan mode for the combination of trapped ion mobility spectrometry with parallel accumulation—serial fragmentation (PASEF) that seamlessly and continuously follows the natural shape of the ion cloud in ion mobility and peptide precursor mass dimensions. Termed synchro-PASEF, it increases the detected fragment ion current several-fold at sub-second cycle times. Consecutive quadrupole selection windows move synchronously through the mass and ion mobility range. In this process, the quadrupole slices through the peptide precursors, which separates fragment ion signals of each precursor into adjacent synchro-PASEF scans. This precisely defines precursor–fragment relationships in ion mobility and mass dimensions and effectively deconvolutes the DIA fragment space. Importantly, the partitioned parts of the fragment ion transitions provide a further dimension of specificity via a lock-and-key mechanism. This is also advantageous for quantification, where signals from interfering precursors in the DIA selection window do not affect all partitions of the fragment ion, allowing to retain only the specific parts for quantification. Overall, we establish the defining features of synchro-PASEF and explore its potential for proteomic analyses.     

论南京直立人化石的年代

根据南京直立人洞穴钙板方解石的ＴＩＭＳ测年,南京直立人化石的年代应早于距今５０万年。南京猿人洞穴堆积所含哺乳动物化石和孢粉分析,表明含人类化石的堆积形成于冷期;哺乳动物化石的比较分析和聚类分析认为含南京直立人化石层可对比于北京猿人洞穴堆积的第６层和深海岩芯氧同位素记录的１４阶段,从而进一步支持南京直立人化石时代早于５０万年的Ｔ＾ＩＭＳ测年结果。     

Continuity or colonization in Anglo‐Saxon England? Isotope evidence for mobility,subsistence practice,and status at West Heslerton

The adventus Saxonum is a crucial event in English protohistory. Scholars from a range of disciplines dispute the scale and demographic profile of the purported colonizing population. The 5th-7th century burial ground at West Heslerton, North Yorkshire, is one of the few Anglian cemeteries where an associated settlement site has been identified and subjected to extensive multidisciplinary postexcavation study. Skeletal and grave good evidence has been used to indicate the presence of Scandinavian settlers. A small, preliminary study using lead and strontium isotope analysis of tooth enamel, mineralized in early childhood, from Neolithic/Early Bronze Age (n = 8), Iron Age (n = 2), and Early Anglo-Saxon (n = 32) skeletons, was carried out to directly investigate this hypothesis. Results suggest that lead provides dissimilar types of information in different time periods. In post-Roman England, it appears to reflect the level of exposure to circulated anthropogenic rather than natural geological lead, thus being a cultural rather than geographical marker. Consequently, only strontium provides mobility evidence among the Anglian population, whereas both isotope systems do so in pre-Roman periods. Strontium data imply the presence of two groups: one of "local" and one of "nonlocal" origin, but more work is required to define the limits of local variation and identify immigrants with confidence. Correlations with traditional archaeological evidence are inconclusive. While the majority of juveniles and prehistoric individuals fall within the "local" group, both groups contain juveniles, and adults of both sexes. There is thus no clear support for the exclusively male, military-elite invasion model at this site.     

高精度热电离质谱铀系法测定北京猿人遗址年代初步结果

热电离质谱法可用比经典的α能谱法少一个数量级的样品,实现高一个数量级的测量精度。本文报道了用这一新技术测定北京猿人遗址１－２层钙板样ＢＺＣ－３的铀系年代。     

Ion mobility-resolved phosphoproteomics with dia-PASEF and short gradients

Mass spectrometry-based phosphoproteomics has identified >150,000 post-translational phosphorylation sites in the human proteome. To disentangle their functional relevance, complex experimental designs that require increased throughput are now coming into focus. Here, we apply dia-PASEF on a trapped ion mobility (TIMS) mass spectrometer to analyze the phosphoproteome of a human cancer cell line in short liquid chromatography gradients. At low sample amounts equivalent to ∼20 ug protein digest per analysis, we quantified over 13,000 phosphopeptides including ∼8700 class I phosphosites in 1 h without a spectral library. Decreasing the gradient time to 15 min yielded virtually identical coverage of the phosphoproteome, and with 7 min gradients we still quantified about 80% of the class I sites with a median coefficient of variation <10% in quadruplicates. We attribute this in part to the increased peak capacity, which effectively compensates for the higher peptide density per time unit in shorter gradients. Our data show a five-fold reduction in the number of co-isolated peptides with TIMS. In the most extreme case, these were positional isomers of nearby phosphosites that remained unresolved with fast liquid chromatography. In summary, our study demonstrates how key features of dia-PASEF translate to phosphoproteomics.