Project description:Protein analysis of Bronze Age Cauldron residues. Found blood from ruminant caprines, and milk proteins from bovids, including yak (Bos mutus).
Project description:Characterization of Middle Pleistocene rhinoceros proteins and the phylogenetic relationships between extinct and extanct rhinoceros was investigated by obtaining ancient protein data for two extinct rhinoceros genera (Coelodonta antiquitatis and Stephanorhinus sp.).
Project description:When either Panc-1 or MiaPaCa-2 were plated as a discrete clump of cells in the middle of a plate, two morphologically distinct populations could be created. The cells on the periphery of the cell cluster migrated away from the region of high cell density and took on a classical mesenchymal phenotype with spindle like projections and loss of cell to cell adhesion. Cells that remained in the highly populated center showed greater intercellular adhesion and were more rounded in appearance. This model was included to provide information about whether glyco-gene expression changes observed in models of the epithelial to mesenchymal transition also are involved in migration. Radial Migration Assay comparing two populations (Migrating vs. Non Migrating) in two pancreatic cancer cell lines (Panc-1 and MiaPaCa-2)
Project description:Aging signatures developed from a longitudinal study design are dominated by reduced transcription of genes involved in protein synthesis Aging is a multifactorial process where the impact of singular components still remains unclear. Furthermore, previous studies were focused on measuring specific traits such as DNA -methylation and used categorical group-wise designs, unable to capture intra-individual signature changes. Here we have developed a new method for a longitudinal, age-related analysis combining the merits of a pair-wise design with the statistical power of gene set enrichment analysis. We present an integrated analysis, including transcriptional changes and genome-wide epigenetic changes in DNA- methylation, H3K4- and H3K27- histone methylation in promoter regions. We tested our method on a rare collection of paired skin fibroblast samples from male middle age to old age transitions and obtained functional, age-related clusters. By using a set of only ten individuals, we could demonstrate a high overlap of functional terms to previously established tissue-independent age signatures including extracellular matrix, apoptosis and oxidative stress. Importantly, we identify protein translation-related processes as the main cluster of age-driven, specific down regulation. Evaluation of transcriptional changes in matched sample pairs of primary skin fibroblasts from middle and old age.
Project description:Genetic and limited palaeoanthropological data suggest that Denisovans, a sister group to Neanderthals, were once widely distributed in eastern Eurasia, likely stretching from high-latitude Siberia, to the high-altitude Tibetan Plateau, to the low-latitude subtropical regions of southeast Asia. This suggests that Denisovans were capable of adapting to a highly diverse range of environments, but archaeological evidence for this is currently limited. As a result, we know little about their behaviours, including subsistence strategies, across the vast areas they likely occupied. Here, we describe the late Middle to Late Pleistocene faunal assemblage from Baishiya Karst Cave on the Tibetan Plateau, where the Xiahe Denisovan mandible and Denisovan sedimentary mtDNA were found, by integrating proteomic screening into traditional zooarchaeological analysis. The results indicate that the faunal assemblage consists of a diverse range of animals, including megafauna, large mammals, small mammals and birds, but is dominated by medium-sized herbivores. Frequent cut marks and percussion traces on bone surfaces throughout the assemblage, even on carnivore bones, indicate that Denisovan activities in Baishiya Karst Cave from at least 190 to 30 thousand years are responsible for the fauna assemblage accumulation. Thorough utilization of acquired animal resources, even perhaps the fur, too, might have helped Denisovans to survive through the last two glacial-interglacial cycles on the cold high-altitude Tibetan Plateau. Our results shed new light on Denisovan behaviours and their adaptations to the diverse and fluctuated environments in the Middle and Late Pleistocene eastern Eurasia.