This paper presents an overview of the latest information about the beginnings of the technology of pottery making in the area of the forest-steppe belt in Siberia and the Russian part of Eastern Europe all the way to the Ural Mountains. From a continental point of view, a brief spatiotemporal diagram presents a completely different background of the beginnings of pottery in our lands and also in corresponding parts of Southeast Europe, where the origin of pottery has traditionally been linked to the Neolithisation of Europe. The earliest pottery technology in China dates back to 20 000 BP, followed by all the subsequent data from the Far East area to Lake Baikal. The earliest pottery culture, Jomon, which had been developing in Japan for more than ten thousand years, is not included here. In the Russian part of Eastern Europe, pottery technology starts developing only after 8 000 BP. Typologically uniform and mostly unchangeable development of beaker-shaped pottery, mostly with a pointed bottom, is common for both these areas. This development continues in Scandinavia and adjacent areas of the Baltic and in Atlantic Europe. In the central parts of Europe, similar shapes only occur sporadically in the earliest period. However, the earliest Eurasian pottery had influenced the development of later prehistoric periods. Numerous settlement groups on the Eurasian continents were characterised by two traditions that are archaeologically recognisable. In simple terms, one of the traditions was agricultural, the other conservative. and Práce předkládá přehled nejnovějších informací o počátcích technologie výroby keramiky v oblastech lesostepního pásma Sibiře a ruské východní Evropy až k Uralu. Data nejstarší keramické technologie v Číně přesahují číslo 20 tis. BC. Na území ruské východní Evropy začíná vývoj keramické technologie většinou až po roce 8000 BC. Obě oblasti spojuje typologicky jednotný a málo proměnlivý vývoj kotlovitých tvarů převážně se špičatým dnem. Na tento vývoj navazuje srovnatelně kulturní posloupnost ve Skandinávii a v přilehlých oblastech Baltu i Evropského pobřeží Atlantiku. V centrálních oblastech Evropy se podobné tvary vyskytnou v nejstarším období zcela ojediněle. Eurasijská nejstarší keramika však nepochybně ovlivnila vývoj i v pozdějších pravěkých obdobích. Početné skupiny osídlení na evropském i eurasijském kontinentu se vyznačovaly dvojí tradicí hmatatelnou archeologicky nejen v keramice. Zjednodušeně řečeno, jedna byla zemědělská, druhá konzervativní.
Exposure to hyperbaric oxygen leads to increased amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that are derived from various sources. After the discovery that ROS can function as signaling molecules, the idea of ROS being hazardous to biological tissues has been challenged. The aim of this study was to examine the changes in oxidative stress parameters in diabetics undergoing hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) due to foot ulcers. Twenty patients, who received HBOT for diabetic foot ulcers, were included in the study. Blood samples were taken before HBOT and 30 min after exit from the chamber, on the day of the first and the 15th HBOT sessions. They were used for the determinations of malondialdehyde (MDA), 8-isoprostane and advanced oxidation protein products (AOPPs). 8-Isoprostane and AOPP levels were not altered significantly after the first HBOT session, while both were increased on the fifteenth day (p<0.05). MDA was significantly increased only after the first HBOT session, and remained unchanged on the fifteenth day (within-day variations). Plasma AOPP levels were lowered significantly after fifteen consecutive HBOT sessions (between-day variations). Decreased AOPP levels suggest that increased oxygenation of tissues due to HBO therapy may activate some endogenous factors that prevent hazardous effects of the disease itself., F. Gürdöl, M. Cimşit, Y. Öner-İyidoğan, Ş. Körpinar, S. Yalçinkaya, H. Koçak., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy
Rapid wound closure in extensively burned patients has remained one of the major unresolved issues of medicine. Integra® is the most widely established artificial skin, which is composed of a porous matrix of cross-linked bovine collagen and chondroitin 6-sulphate covered by a semi-permeable silicone layer. We present here a (immuno)histological study of a severely burned patient with a full-thickness burn treated with a tissue-engineered dermal template (Integra®) and split-thickness skin graft-based protocol. Immunohistochemical investigation of the artificial dermis revealed that immune cell infiltration reached its peak on day 10. Tissue immunophenotyping found an increase in CD3+ cells over the course of the study as well as CD4 and CD8 positivity on day 40, indicating remaining T-cell subpopulations. We observed weak/no infiltration of NK cells (CD56+). In conclusion, the use of bi-layer Integra® represents a feasible and safe procedure resulting in formation of non-irritating dermal substitutes.
Anthracycline cardiotoxicity represents a serious risk of anticancer chemotherapy. The aim of the present pilot study was to compare the potential of both the left ventricular (LV) filling pattern evaluation and cardiac troponin T (cTnT) plasma levels determination for the early detection of daunorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity in rabbits. The echocardiographic measurements of transmitral LV inflow as well as cTnT determinations were performed weekly for 10 weeks in daunorubicin (3 mg/kg weekly) and control groups (n=5, each). Surprisingly, no significant changes in LV-filling pattern were observed through the study, most likely due to the xylazine-containing anesthesia, necessary for appropriate resolving of the E and A waves. In contrast to the echographic measurement, the dP/dt min index obtained invasively at the end of the study revealed a significant im pairment in LV relaxation, which was further supported by observed disturbances in myocardial collagen content and calcium homeostasis. However, at the same time cTnT plasma levels were progressively rising in the daunorubicin-treated animals from the 5th week (0.024±0.008 μg/l) until the end of the experiment (0.186±0.055 μg/l). Therefore, in contrast to complicated non-invasive evaluation of diastolic function, cTnT is shown to be an early and sensitive marker of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity in the rabbit model., M. Štěrba, T. Šimůnek, O. Popelová, A. Potáčová, M. Adamcová, Y. Mazurová, M. Holečková, V. Geršl., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy
We undertook a detailed ultrastructural investigation to gain insight into the early stages of development of the vermiform myxozoan, Buddenbrockia plumatellae Schröder, 1910 in two bryozoan hosts. Early cell complexes arise in the peritoneum after division and migration of isolated cells in the host body wall. The development of cell junctions linking the outer (mural) cells of the complex then produces a sac enclosing a mass of inner cells. Elongation to the vermiform stage (myxoworm) occurs during multiplication and reorganisation of the inner cells as a central core within the single-layered sac wall. The core cells develop into muscle and sporogonic cells separated from the mural cells by a basal lamina. Myogenesis occurs along the length of the myxoworm from cells that differentiate from the central core, and is independent of elongation. Four primary sporogonic cells maintain positions close to the basal lamina, between muscle cells, while giving rise to secondary sporogonic cells that eventually become free in the central cavity. At least some secondary sporogonic cells undergo meiosis. In view of the recent confirmation of the phylogenetic affinity of Buddenbrockia with the Cnidaria, we postulate how features observed in Buddenbrockia may be homologous with cnidarian structures. Finally we propose a new family name, Buddenbrockiidae, to replace Saccosporidae which was proposed previously in breach of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.
Efficient degradation of damaged D1 during the repair of PSII is carried out by a set of dedicated FtsH proteases in the thylakoid membrane. Here we investigated whether the evolution of FtsH could hold clues to the origin of oxygenic photosynthesis. A phylogenetic analysis of over 6000 FtsH protease sequences revealed that there are three major groups of FtsH proteases originating from gene duplication events in the last common ancestor of bacteria, and that the FtsH proteases involved in PSII repair form a distinct clade branching out before the divergence of FtsH proteases found in all groups of anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria. Furthermore, we showed that the phylogenetic tree of FtsH proteases in phototrophic bacteria is similar to that for Type I and Type II reaction centre proteins. We conclude that the phylogeny of FtsH proteases is consistent with an early origin of photosynthetic water oxidation chemistry., S. Shao, T. Cardona, P. J. Nixon., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
Přirozená teologie se dá defi novat jako pokus o dokázání existence Boha pozorováním přírodního světa a užíváním rozumu, aniž by bylo bráno v potaz zjevení. Mnoho teologů si patrně myslí, že rané luteránství úplně popíralo možnost přirozené teologie, a opírají se v tom o názor samotného Luthera, podle nějž lidská přirozenost byla bytostně porušena hříchem a může se naučit vědět o Bohu pouze vírou. Ani Luther, ani jeho následovníci ovšem nebyli přesvědčeni, že je třeba zcela zavrhnout přirozenou teologii. Luther si je jist, že „všichni lidé přirozeně chápou a uznávají, že Bůh je nějakým druhem dobročinné božské moci.“ Přirozené vědění získávané rozumem je porušené hříchem a je pouze „zákonným“ věděním, ale toto vědění přesto odhaluje existenci Boha a vede nás k hledání spasitelského vědění, jehož může být dosaženo vírou poskytnutou Bohem., Natural theology can be defined as an attempt of proving the existence of God through the observation of the natural world and the use of reason, without appealing to divine revelation. Many theologians seem to think that early Lutheranism completely rejected the possibility of natural theology, based largely on the view of Luther himself that the human nature has been totally corrupted by sin and can only learn to know God through faith. It was, however, neither the understanding of Luther nor his successors to completely dismiss natural theology. Indeed, Luther is sure that “all men naturally understand and come to the conclusion that God is some kind of beneficent divine power.” Surely, the natural knowledge acquired by reason is distorted by sin and is only “legal” knowledge, but this knowledge still reveals the existence of God and leads us to look for the saving knowledge that can only be attained by faith bestowed by God., and Juuso Loikkanen.
This study concerns glazed objects from two major centres in Silesia: Wrocław and Opole. All the glazed items from layers dated from the late 10th to the first half of the 13th century are appraised, i.e. ceramic and stone Easter eggs, knobbed rattles, ‘stars’ and pottery. Each category of artefacts is appraised separately as they differ from each other in terms of the production technique and presumably their provenance. Therefore, the locations of the workshops that produced these items is considered. Based on the collections from Wrocław and Opole, a different frequency of individual glazed items is observed, which is related to their specific distribution and most likely the different role of both centres. A separate issue is determining the value and social function of the glazed vessels, Easter eggs and rattles. In contrast, less emphasis is placed on their symbolic function, as this issue has been widely discussed by other researchers.
Archaeological excavations at Zamárdi (Hungary) revealed one of the largest early medieval iron smelting centres in Central Europe with about a hundred ore-roasting pits, twenty bloomery furnaces, reheating furnaces and a forge. In addition, a related Avar settlement dating from the 7th to 9th centuries was also unearthed, with remains of carriage roads, about twenty houses with stone furnaces and a number of open-air furnaces. The bloomery remains fit into the series of furnaces of the 7th and 8th centuries found previously on other sites in former Pannonia. As a part of a complex research project, more than a hundred slag samples from Zamárdi were examined by XRF, ICP, XRD and SEM-EDS. Different slag types and their metallurgical roles were identified. We concluded that the nature of archaeometallurgical sites can be confidently determined by the typological examination of several kinds of slag. and Během archeologických výzkumů v Zamárdi (Maďarsko) bylo odkryto jedno z největších středověkých středisek hutnictví železa ve střední Evropě s asi sto jámami na pražení rudy, dvaceti železářskými pecemi, vyhřívacími pecemi a kovárnou. Kromě toho bylo objeveno související avarské sídliště z 7.–9. století s pozůstatky vozových cest, asi dvaceti domy s kamennými pecemi a řadou venkovních pecí. Pozůstatky železářské výroby zapadají do série nálezů pecí ze 7. a 8. století, které byly objeveny na jiných místech někdejší Panonie. V rámci komplexního výzkumného projektu bylo analyzováno více než sto struskových vzorků ze Zamárdi, a to pomocí XRF, ICP, XRD a SEM-EDS. Identifikovány byly různé druhy strusky a jejich vztah k hutnímu pochodu. Dospěli jsme k závěru, že základní rysy archeometalurgických lokalit mohou být spolehlivě stanoveny typologickou klasifikací několika druhů strusky.