Migraine is a neurological disorder with well-established diagnostic criteria. In its current formulation, migraine is a modern-day diagnosis, whereas descriptions consistent with migraine may date back to ancient civilizations. This study aimed to investigate whether symptoms consistent with migraine without aura, as defined by criteria of ICHD-3, are present in cuneiform medical texts from ancient Mesopotamia. A total of 37 Akkadian-language cuneiform medical texts dated between the second and first millennia bce were analyzed. Texts containing references to secondary headache or aura symptoms were excluded. Each remaining text was examined for descriptions corresponding to ICHD-3 diagnostic criteria (B: duration; C: pain characteristics; D: associated symptoms). Among the 37 texts, 15 included expressions equivalent to continuous or prolonged pain, satisfying criterion B. Criterion C (unilateral, throbbing, and severe pain) was met in 37 texts (26 completely +11 partially). Criterion D (nausea, photophobia, phonophobia) was present in 21 of 37 texts. This study presents compelling evidence that the fundamental features of migraine without aura were described in Mesopotamian medical texts nearly 3000 years ago. These findings suggest that the diagnostic framework of migraine, as captured by ICHD-3, reflects the earliest documented medical traditions. Migraine is a common neurological condition, but its origins are poorly understood. In this study, we analyzed 37 ancient Mesopotamian medical texts written over 3000 years ago and found detailed descriptions of headache symptoms—such as one‐sided pain, pulsating quality, nausea, and sensitivity to light—that closely resemble what is today defined as migraine without aura. These findings suggest that migraine has been consistently recognized as a distinct pattern of symptoms for thousands of years, long before modern medical classification systems were developed.
Transposable elements (TEs) are dynamic components of eukaryotic genomes and a major source of structural and regulatory variation, yet their contribution to ecological adaptation over evolutionary time remains unresolved. This uncertainty is particularly acute in species that occupy broad environmental niches despite chronically low nucleotide diversity, where conventional models predict limited adaptive potential. Here we show that ancient TE polymorphisms underpin global ecological adaptation in Spirodela polyrhiza, one of the smallest flowering plants with low genome-wide nucleotide diversity. Most TE polymorphisms predate continental population divergence. Cold-season temperature emerges as the dominant selective axis, with adaptive signals overwhelmingly associated with TE polymorphisms rather than SNPs. These adaptive TEs bear signatures of selection on standing variation and are embedded in genomic regions shaped by relaxed selective constraint rather than recent hard sweeps. Our results reveal how ancient TE variation sustains ecological adaptation despite chronically depleted nucleotide diversity, resolving a longstanding evolutionary paradox.
Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is a hereditary hemoglobinopathy arising from a single-nucleotide transversion (GAG → GTG) at codon six of the HBB gene on chromosome 11, substituting glutamic acid with valine in the β-globin chain and producing hemoglobin S (HbS). Under hypoxic conditions, HbS polymerizes and distorts erythrocytes into the characteristic sickle shape, initiating a cascade of vaso-occlusion, chronic hemolytic anemia, and progressive multi-organ damage that defines the clinical burden of this disease. Although SCD has ancient origins in sub-Saharan Africa, the Indian subcontinent, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean, regions where it conferred heterozygous resistance to malaria, the ease of human migration has long since made it a global health concern, affecting an estimated 300,000-400,000 newborns annually. Advances in molecular and genomic research have deepened our understanding of SCD pathophysiology, revealing the central contributions of hemoglobin polymerization, oxidative stress, endothelial inflammation, and nitric oxide depletion to disease progression. Current management rests on supportive pharmacological interventions, including hydroxyurea, chronic transfusion therapy, L-glutamine, and multimodal pain management, complemented by lifestyle modifications. Curative approaches have advanced substantially: hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) remains the established standard of cure, while the regulatory approvals in late 2023 of the CRISPR/Cas9-based exagamglogene autotemcel (Casgevy) and the lentiviral vector-based lovotibeglogene autotemcel (Lyfgenia) represent the most transformative development in the history of SCD therapeutics. This review traces the disease from its ancient origins and molecular characterization through to its clinical manifestations, inheritance patterns, screening strategies, and the full spectrum of current and emerging therapies. Persistent challenges, prohibitive treatment costs, healthcare inequities, the ethical dimensions of genome editing, and the urgent need for long-term safety data, are examined critically, with a view to informing the research and policy agenda that must accompany these remarkable scientific advances.
The earliest records of Trichinellosis might be found in bibles that recommend against pork consumption due to the spread of a disease that resembles what is now identified as Trichinellosis. Parasitic nematodes (round worms) of the genus Trichinella form a complex of at least 13 species with a broad geographic range. Herein, through data mining of transcriptomic data, and re-sequencing of the transcriptome of representative isolates, we demonstrate the presence of viruses within 10 recognized Trichinella species. We provide genome sequences of four viral species of negative sense RNA viruses that belong to the Family Lispiviridae, Order Mononegavirales, and of eight novel viruses of double-stranded RNA viruses that belong to a novel sub-order within the order Ghabrivirales. The integration of viral genome fragments within encapsulated Trichinella genomes demonstrates that these parasite-virus associations are ancient. Overall, viruses show co-diversification with their parasitic hosts. Yet the phylogenetic position of viruses revealed past host jump from an ancestral encapsulated Trichinella species to the ancestral T. pseudospiralis and challenges previous dogma on the phylogeny and biogeography of Trichinella species in North America. We are witnessing the emergence of a novel field of research focusing on viruses of parasites and their role in parasite pathogenicity. Herein, we describe the characterization of viruses within 10 recognized species of Trichinella. The viruses were distantly related to known viruses which led us to propose the creation of a novel genera and a novel sub-order. We demonstrated the integration of viral genome fragments within the genome of Trichinella species and an on-going process of birth and death of viral integration. Finally, we showed that virus phylogenetic analyses can provide fine-tuned information about their parasitic host evolutionary history. This study demonstrates the ancient and close association between Trichinella and viruses and strong species specificity. Further studies are now needed to determine whether the newly discovered viruses could be targeted for the development of novel diagnostic approaches.
Sex estimation is a cornerstone of research and practice in bioarchaeology and forensic anthropology. However, morphological and metric methods are often hampered by population-specific variation, subjectivity in assessment, and taphonomy. This study compares morphological analysis and ancient DNA (aDNA)-based sex assessment in a 19th-century Portuguese sample to evaluate the accuracy of osteological (anthropological) criteria. This study analysed 37 skeletons from the Venerável Ordem Terceira da Nossa Senhora do Carmo burial grounds in Porto. Sex estimation was based on (1) the bioanthropological assessment of morphological traits of the os coxae and the skull (2) through aDNA analysis using a multi-marker approach, including real-time PCR (qPCR) targeting autosomal loci, the amelogenin locus, a Y-chromosomal INDEL, and Y-STRs. aDNA was extracted via a non-destructive protocol. Whilst anthropological analysis was possible on all 37 individuals, estimation of sex through aDNA analysis was possible for 26 individuals. A 20% discordance rate was found between morphological and aDNA results. Many individuals morphologically classified as "possible female" or "indeterminate" were genetically identified as male. Genetic analysis resolved most cases that biological anthropologists concluded were "indeterminate". The high discordance in the Carmo sub-sample may indicate reduced skeletal sexual dimorphism, with males exhibiting skeletal traits typically associated with females, suggesting a sample-specific reduction in sexual dimorphism likely influenced by environmental, nutritional, and/or genetic stressors. A limitation of this study is its small sample size: only 26 of 37 individuals yielded usable genetic results, and only a portion of these individuals provided sufficient data for a direct comparison between morphological and genetic data. Nevertheless, these findings highlight the risk that applying generalised osteological standards relying solely on morphology can lead to systematic misclassification, emphasising the need for a critical, multidisciplinary approach to sex estimation.
The Asclepieia of ancient Greece functioned as healing sanctuaries in which religious ritual and therapeutic practice were closely intertwined. They did not constitute a clear separation between religion and medicine, as they embodied one of the most structured forms of ritualized healing in the classical world, in which ritual and empirical medicine operated side by side. Drawing on archaeological, epigraphic, historical, and medical-historical evidence, this narrative review examines the therapeutic, organizational, and symbolic dimensions of the Asclepieia as early models of holistic health care. Emphasis is placed on the rituals of incubation, environmental design, psychological expectations, and practical therapeutic interventions in important healing sanctuaries, such as those of Epidaurus and Kos. The findings suggest that the Asclepieia functioned not only as sacred religious centers but also as organized healing environments that combined spiritual faith, patient experience, and empirical medical practice. From a modern perspective, the Asclepieia model can be interpreted as a historical antecedent that shares certain features with contemporary biopsychosocial and patient-centered approaches to health care, emphasizing the therapeutic importance of faith, the environment, and organized care in the healing process.
Recent research in the science of kindness in nursing, social, and biological sciences, inspired by ancient world religious wisdom and practices, is reviewed in this paper. Awareness, connectedness, insight, and a sense of purpose are explored here as a path to human flourishing for nurses. Kindness is considered for application in nursing administration, education, and practice.
Eastern hunter-gatherers (EHG) contributed varying proportions of genetic ancestry to many modern Europeans. However, how this contribution shaped the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) gene diversity remains unexplored. Sakhtysh in western Russia comprises one of the largest EHG-affiliated burial complexes. The site's continuous use offers a rare opportunity to investigate the genetic history, immune-gene diversity, and pathogen exposure within a hunter-gatherer population. Genome-wide data from 36 individuals (spanning Lyalovo-Volosovo traditions, 6800-4800 cal BP) place the Sakhtysh population within the EHG cluster, with high genetic affinity to contemporaneous groups across northwestern Russia and the eastern Baltic. This genetic composition remained stable for over two millennia and there is no evidence of admixture with neighboring western hunter-gatherer or farmer groups. We report HLA genotypes for 27 Sakhtysh individuals, representing the first true HLA calls from ancient hunter-gatherers. HLA diversity is low in the Sakhtysh population, likely due to their small population size. Specific alleles like B*27:05 are observed at high frequencies (~ 50%), despite being relatively rare in modern populations, suggesting shifts in selective pressures. Pathogen screening identified a restricted spectrum of causal agents including possible zoonoses with Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae and chronic infections with hepatitis B virus and parvovirus B19. The Sakhtysh community shows genetic continuity across cultural transitions. This population exhibits limited HLA diversity and unexpectedly high frequency of certain alleles. These patterns were likely influenced by low pathogen diversity and possible adaptation to specific environmental factors.
In avocado and certain wild relatives in Lauraceae, a highly synchronized daily rhythm of floral sex timing promotes cross-pollination between two hermaphroditic flowering types. A-type plants present female-phase flowers in the morning and male-phase flowers in the afternoon, while B-types show the complementary pattern-a form of heterodichogamy. We mapped this dimorphism to a pair of dominant and recessive haplotypes at SDMYB, which belongs to a subgroup of R2R3 MYB transcription factors established as key regulators of floral maturation with links to circadian hormone signaling. Rhythmic diel SDMYB expression is associated with biphasic floral anthesis, and the dominant allele, which contains nonsynonymous changes in conserved functional domains, exhibits a cis-regulated phase delay, corresponding to the delayed second anthesis of A-type flowers. The SDMYB haplotypes form an ancient trans-species polymorphism, maintained by negative frequency-dependent balancing selection over 42 My, and they segregate in at least 26 nonavocado species, including in a genus where this mating system has not been reported. Although exceptionally old, the polymorphism is absent in other magnoliids with highly similar mating systems, suggesting daily forms of heterodichogamy can convergently evolve when rhythmic floral movements are coupled with the temporal separation of sexes.
Long-term changes in phytoplankton communities are key to understanding and predicting ecosystem responses to climate-driven circulation change. By analyzing sedimentary ancient DNA from two sediment cores in the Yellow Sea, we reconstructed mid-late Holocene phytoplankton dynamics during the intensification of the Yellow Sea Warm Current (YSWC). We found that phytoplankton communities differed significantly between sites, with stronger spatial differentiation in eukaryotes than in cyanobacteria. Dinoflagellates and chlorophytes dominated overall, while Dictyochophyceae (silicoflagellates) were unexpectedly abundant relative to diatoms. Phylogenetic reconstruction recovered diverse Dictyochophyceae lineages (two orders, six genera) dominated by Pseudopedinella, indicating greater regional diversity than previously recognized. The cyanobacterial assemblages comprised SIO2C1, UCYN-A, and PCC-6307 lineages. Following the intensification of the YSWC since ~3 ka BP, eukaryotic community structure shifted in the central basin. 18S rRNA gene abundance increased, whereas diversity and silicifier-to-dinoflagellate ratios declined. Although the absolute age of core B07 remains tentative, a pronounced stratigraphic turnover occurred in the frontal zone around 100 cmbsf, with a shift from chlorophyte to dinoflagellate dominance, consistent with reduced freshwater influence and an enhanced YSWC impact. Numerous indicator species exhibited contrasting abundance patterns before and after these transitions. These findings demonstrate the sensitivity of coastal phytoplankton to circulation-driven regime shifts.
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Why does research on Neanderthals attract public attention far beyond its immediate scientific relevance? Such fascination may reflect more than intellectual curiosity; it may involve the activation of deep symbolic structures that Carl Jung termed the collective unconscious. Integrating evolutionary biology, genomics, paleoanthropology, and psychology, I address a question Jung did not explicitly pose: when, along the human evolution, did the collective unconscious originate? I argue that this structure emerged gradually rather than suddenly. Homo erectus established a cognitive floor characterized by basic schemas of fear, group cohesion, and hierarchy, without evidence of symbolic elaboration. Homo heidelbergensis, the common ancestor of Neanderthals and Homo sapiens, is proposed as the strongest candidate for the emergence of proto-archetypal cognition, given its enlarged brain, social complexity, and possible forms of mortuary behavior. The symbolic system was operational in Neanderthals and archaic H. sapiens and became fully visible with the symbolic expression of the Upper Paleolithic. I further introduce the concept of the "incorporated other" to explain the distinctive psychological salience of Neanderthals and Denisovans. Unlike other extinct organisms, these archaic humans remain present in contemporary populations through genetic introgression, collapsing boundaries between self and other, past and present. I propose that this condition contributes to public fascination in ways not fully explained by resemblance, category ambiguity, intuitive essentialism, or the uncanny. The "incorporated other" predicts that genetic incorporation itself increases perceived self-relevance and engagement, even when similarity is held constant. Neanderthals are therefore psychologically salient because they are simultaneously extinct and biologically present.
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This study explores the relationship between the Majos of Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, Spain and the sea using ichthyoarchaeological analyses at Punta del Mallorquín, Llano del Sombrero, and Cueva de Villaverde. These sites provide data on fishing practices among the Majos. Combined with existing research, our results allow us to identify the taxonomic frequency of 27 species, offering an initial insight into the use of marine resources in indigenous times. Parrotfish (Sparisoma cretense) is the most frequent taxon identified. Based on available data, we propose both a specific fishing technique for parrotfish and a model of marine exploration linked to settlement patterns. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11457-026-09535-0.
" Landmark" paper finds European contact introduced the disease.
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This study evaluates osseous changes suggestive of ear inflammation in three individuals from a Classic Period (250-900 CE) Maya skeletal assemblage. Isolated left temporal bones from two adults and one juvenile from the Cueva de Sangre, Dos Pilas, Guatemala were examined. The temporal bones were inspected macroscopically, microscopically, and radiographically. Each individual presented with pathological bone remodeling on the tympanic part, mastoid region, sigmoid sulcus, and temporomandibular joint, and altered pneumatization in the mastoid process. The bony modifications observed in each individual are consistent with chronic or recurrent inflammatory processes affecting the temporal bone. Possible etiologies include otitis externa, otitis media, and mastoid involvement. The presence of remodeled bone and the severity and intratemporal extent of osseous changes suggest recurrent infection and inflammation. Otopathology may have been more common in ancient Maya populations than currently recognized. The individuals described here contribute to our understanding of health challenges faced by the ancient Maya. Because these conditions primarily affect soft tissues, the osseous changes observed here are not pathognomonic and must be interpreted within a broad differential diagnosis. The commingled and fragmentary nature of the assemblage precluded attempts to estimate a biological profile, assess bilaterality, and identify comorbidities. Paleo-otopathological investigations have the potential to inform reconstructions of health, sensory impairment, and lived experience. Temporal bones from Maya assemblages should be carefully examined to better understand the health challenges the ancient Maya faced and their resilience to such health stressors.
The traditional paradigm of natural science treats the laws of nature as eternal and immutable. This review examines a powerful alternative tradition that views these laws as historically evolving and constructed entities, tracing this shift from ancient roots to evolutionary epistemology, radical constructivism and physics. Specifically, it provides a chronological analysis of how ideas about the variability of laws developed from ancient Greek philosophy through Enlightenment thinkers to contemporary physicists like Ilya Prigogine and Lee Smolin. We address the resulting methodological crisis-where different branches of science optimize their own laws and isolate from one another-by proposing a strict hierarchical framework. Under this method, invariant basic concepts are strictly separated from flexible models. Crucially, the Entropic Measure of Time (EMT) is presented as the central operational tool. By defining time through entropy production, EMT enables the deductive derivation of physical laws from specific models, restoring a unified, cohesive structure to modern science and offering a robust strategy to counteract the fragmentation of scientific disciplines.
Silphion, a ferulaceous plant endemic to the Libyan steppe, produced the most valuable spice of the Greco-Roman world, and is considered the first case of man-related plant extinction in written history. Based on ancient sources and iconographic documentation, Silphion was identified as a plant from one of the genera Ferula, Margotia, Thapsia or Cachrys, and has been at the center of recent debates on its controversial use as a contraceptive and its alleged rediscovery in a remote Anatolian area. The identification of Silphion will be discussed combining botanical considerations with current knowledge on the phytochemistry and bioactivity of its various modern candidates. Ambiguities and inconsistencies in the ancient sources complicate the identification of Silphion with a modern plant species. Based on morphological fit, Margotia gummifera (Desf.) Lange seems its closest living relative, as suggested already in the early 19th century by the German botanist Link. A greedy land management policy, presumably exacerbated by previous overexploitation, was blamed by historical sources as the ultimate cause of extinction of Silphion in the first century AD. The pre-extinction documentation does not support its use as a contraceptive or as an aphrodisiac, rather showing that Silphion was basically a luxury culinary delicacy, only occasionally used for medicinal purposes. Later references to an abortifacient activity could actually refer to asafoetida (Silphium parthicum), its culinary post-extinction replacement from various Ferula species, for which ethnopharmacological association with sexuality could have a foundation, due to the occurrence of the powerful estrogenic compound ferutinin (35a).