Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Anders Bergstrom, Chris Stringer, Mateja Hajdinjak, Eleanor M. L. Scerri, Pontus Skoglund
Summary: New findings in palaeoanthropological and genomic records have reshaped our understanding of the origins of modern human ancestry. The article outlines three key phases in the evolution of modern human ancestry, from the global expansion of modern humans to their interactions with Neanderthals and Denisovans, the African origin of modern human diversity, and the complex separation of modern human ancestors from archaic human groups. It argues that there is no single point in time when modern human ancestry was limited to a specific birthplace, and that the appearances of defining traits of Homo sapiens align with a variety of evolutionary histories.
Article
Immunology
Irina Maljkovic Berry, Melanie C. Melendrez, Simon Pollett, Katherine Figueroa, Darunee Buddhari, Chonticha Klungthong, Ananda Nisalak, Michael Panciera, Butsaya Thaisomboonsuk, Tao Li, Tyghe G. Vallard, Louis Macareo, In-Kyu Yoon, Stephen J. Thomas, Timothy Endy, Richard G. Jarman
Summary: Researchers used phylogenomic analysis to study household transmissions of dengue virus in Kamphaeng Phet, Thailand, finding that on average, dengue disperses 70 meters per day between households in the community. This approach provides a framework for public health tools to inform control approaches and track dengue transmissions accurately.
EMERGING INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Marcela Sandoval-Velasco, Anuradha Jagadeesan, Jazmin Ramos-Madrigal, Maria C. Avila-Arcos, Cesar A. Fortes-Lima, Judy Watson, Erna Johannesdottir, Diana I. Cruz-Davalos, Shyam Gopalakrishnan, J. Victor Moreno-Mayar, Jonas Niemann, Gabriel Renaud, Katharine A. Robson Brown, Helena Bennett, Andrew Pearson, Agnar Helgason, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Hannes Schroeder
Summary: This article highlights the crucial role of St Helena in suppressing the transatlantic slave trade. The study conducted ancient DNA analyses on 20 individuals whose remains were recovered on the island, revealing that they most likely originated from different source populations between northern Angola and Gabon. The majority of the individuals were male, supporting documented gender bias in the latter phase of the transatlantic slave trade.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN GENETICS
(2023)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Hongju (Daisy) Chen, Bin Yi, Qiang Liu, Xia Xu, Lin Dai, Zhanshan (Sam) Ma
Summary: The study utilized DAR analysis to uncover the diversity scaling along the digestive tract and inter-individual heterogeneities of the human gut microbiome. Most digestive tract sites have different potential diversities, and individual microbiomes primarily differ in the composition of bacterial species.
FRONTIERS IN GENETICS
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Peipei Tian, Hongwei Lu, Heijungs Reinout, Dan Li, Keli Zhang, Yiyang Yang
Summary: This study explores the water-energy-carbon nexus in China through a multiregional input-output analysis and finds significant consistency in water, energy, and carbon in production and consumption processes. Different categories of provinces show varying trends in virtual WEC transfers, which could assist the government in reducing environmental footprints and achieving sustainable development.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Martin Corcoran, Mark Chernyshev, Marco Mandolesi, Sanjana Narang, Mateusz Kaduk, Kewei Ye, Christopher Sundling, Anna Farnert, Taras Kreslavsky, Carolina Bernhardsson, Maximilian Larena, Mattias Jakobsson, Gunilla B. Karlsson Hedestam
Summary: Detailed analysis of TCR genes in 45 donors from four human populations revealed 175 additional TCR variable and junctional alleles, with coding changes and different frequencies among populations. The study also identified Neanderthal-derived TCR regions and a highly divergent TRGV4 variant that is frequent in modern Eurasian population groups. These findings highlight the remarkable variation in TCR genes and suggest the inclusion of allelic variation in studies of TCR function.
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Kairan Zhao, Meng Zhang, Rongxing Lu, Chao Shen
Summary: This article presents a novel Secure iNtra-regional-Inter-regional P2P Electricity Trading System (SNIPPETS) for electric vehicles (EVs). It proposes a trading information prediction model based on Ensemble Learning and an intra-regional-inter-regional trading mechanism to maximize overall social welfare. The introduction of blockchain enhances transaction payments, data security, and privacy. Case studies validate the effectiveness and computational efficiency of SNIPPETS compared to traditional and existing trading systems.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON VEHICULAR TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Raihaan Patel, Clare E. Mackay, Michelle G. Jansen, Gabriel A. Devenyi, M. Clare O'Donoghue, Mika Kivimaeki, Archana Singh-Manoux, Eniko Zsoldos, Klaus P. Ebmeier, M. Mallar Chakravarty, Sana Suri
Summary: This study examines the relationship between cognitive decline and brain structure in older age. By analyzing cognitive performance assessments and brain magnetic resonance images of a group of older individuals, the study identifies two distinct brain-cognition associations and highlights the complex relationship between cortical structure and cognitive abilities.
Article
Geography
Kent Eliasson, Mika Haapanen, Olle Westerlund
Summary: This paper examines the long-term patterns of geographical disparities in human capital and income in Finland and Sweden from 1987 to 2015. Contrary to many other developed economies, there are indications of inter-regional convergence in per capita earnings in both countries after 2000, but small and peripheral regions have not fully recovered from the macroeconomic shocks in the 1990s. Disparities in human capital and earnings at the intra-regional scale are relatively large and persistent, especially within metropolitan labor markets.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Xiaoyue Huang, Minghui Chang, Lei Han, Jie Li, Shi-Wei Li, Hong-Bo Li
Summary: This study assessed the bioaccessibility of lead (Pb) in 4 commonly used standard reference materials (SRMs). The results showed that the measurements of Pb bioaccessibility were repeatable and reproducible within and between laboratories. The use of these SRMs as quality control samples is reliable for Pb bioaccessibility analysis.
Article
Plant Sciences
Ruben Milla, Colin P. Osborne
Summary: Analysis of 866 crops showed that historical processes affect crop relevance, with crops originating from seasonally dry environments having the greatest agricultural relevance and older crops tending to be globally important compared to crops of recent origin.
Article
Economics
He Li, Juan Lu, Feiyu Guo
Summary: This study examines the impact of high-speed rail (HSR) on corporate social responsibility (CSR) using the difference-in-differences (DID) model and cross-effect model. The findings suggest that HSR promotes CSR and there is a positive correlation between HSR characteristics such as urban HSR kilometers, number of directly connected cities, number of HSR stations, and CSR. Moreover, HSR specifically promotes monetary capital responsibility, human capital responsibility, and social capital responsibility through various mechanisms.
Article
Geography, Physical
Dafne Koutamanis, Georgia L. Roberts, Anthony Dosseto
Summary: This study investigates the Ca isotope composition of modern Tasmanian bare-nosed wombats, providing insight into their herbivorous diet and seasonal dietary variations. The findings suggest that the variations in Ca isotope compositions may be influenced by changes in the proportions of different types of plants in the wombats' diet. Additionally, the study indicates that Ca isotopes in marsupials could be used to trace nursing and weaning behavior, highlighting the potential applications of Ca isotope analysis in understanding the feeding ecology of extinct Australian megafauna.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Derek E. Kelly, Shweta Ramdas, Rong Ma, Renata A. Rawlings-Goss, Gregory R. Grant, Alessia Ranciaro, Jibril B. Hirbo, William Beggs, Meredith Yeager, Stephen Chanock, Thomas B. Nyambo, Sabah A. Omar, Dawit Woldemeskel, Gurja Belay, Hongzhe Li, Christopher D. Brown, Sarah A. Tishkoff
Summary: By mapping expression and splicing QTLs in a diverse cohort of 162 Africans, we found that the gene regulatory architecture is broadly shared between African and non-African populations, but individual loci show significant variation across populations. QTL mapping in Africans improves the detection and fine-mapping of expression QTLs compared to European Americans. Integrating QTL scans with signatures of natural selection revealed genes related to immunity, metabolism, and pigmentation that are highly differentiated between Africans and non-Africans.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Venera Timiryanova, Dina Krasnoselskaya, Irina Lakman, Denis Popov
Summary: This study used hierarchical linear modeling to investigate the differences in economic growth factors among 2239 municipalities within 85 regions in Russia, finding that regional factors greatly influence the differences in impact on municipal growth.
