| 1. |
- Bergström, Anders, et al.
(författare)
-
Grey wolf genomic history reveals a dual ancestry of dogs
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 607:7918, s. 313-320
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The grey wolf (Canis lupus) was the first species to give rise to a domestic population, and they remained widespread throughout the last Ice Age when many other large mammal species went extinct. Little is known, however, about the history and possible extinction of past wolf populations or when and where the wolf progenitors of the present-day dog lineage (Canis familiaris) lived. Here we analysed 72 ancient wolf genomes spanning the last 100,000 years from Europe, Siberia and North America. We found that wolf populations were highly connected throughout the Late Pleistocene, with levels of differentiation an order of magnitude lower than they are today. This population connectivity allowed us to detect natural selection across the time series, including rapid fixation of mutations in the gene IFT88 40,000–30,000 years ago. We show that dogs are overall more closely related to ancient wolves from eastern Eurasia than to those from western Eurasia, suggesting a domestication process in the east. However, we also found that dogs in the Near East and Africa derive up to half of their ancestry from a distinct population related to modern southwest Eurasian wolves, reflecting either an independent domestication process or admixture from local wolves. None of the analysed ancient wolf genomes is a direct match for either of these dog ancestries, meaning that the exact progenitor populations remain to be located.
|
|
| 2. |
- Kilpeläinen, Tuomas O, et al.
(författare)
-
Genome-wide meta-analysis uncovers novel loci influencing circulating leptin levels
- 2016
-
Ingår i: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 7
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Leptin is an adipocyte-secreted hormone, the circulating levels of which correlate closely with overall adiposity. Although rare mutations in the leptin (LEP) gene are well known to cause leptin deficiency and severe obesity, no common loci regulating circulating leptin levels have been uncovered. Therefore, we performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of circulating leptin levels from 32,161 individuals and followed up loci reaching P<10(-6) in 19,979 additional individuals. We identify five loci robustly associated (P<5 × 10(-8)) with leptin levels in/near LEP, SLC32A1, GCKR, CCNL1 and FTO. Although the association of the FTO obesity locus with leptin levels is abolished by adjustment for BMI, associations of the four other loci are independent of adiposity. The GCKR locus was found associated with multiple metabolic traits in previous GWAS and the CCNL1 locus with birth weight. Knockdown experiments in mouse adipose tissue explants show convincing evidence for adipogenin, a regulator of adipocyte differentiation, as the novel causal gene in the SLC32A1 locus influencing leptin levels. Our findings provide novel insights into the regulation of leptin production by adipose tissue and open new avenues for examining the influence of variation in leptin levels on adiposity and metabolic health.
|
|
| 3. |
- Leduc, Jennifer, et al.
(författare)
-
Electronically-Coupled Phase Boundaries in α‑Fe2O3/Fe3O4 Nanocomposite Photoanodes for Enhanced Water Oxidation
- 2019
-
Ingår i: ACS APPLIED NANO MATERIALS. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 2574-0970. ; 2:1, s. 334-342
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splittingreactions are promising for sustainable hydrogen productionfrom renewable sources. We report here, the preparation of α-Fe2O3/Fe3O4 composite films via a single-step chemical vapordeposition of [Fe(OtBu)3]2 and their use as efficient photoanode materials in PEC setups. Film thickness and phase segregation was controlled by varying the deposition time and corroborated through cross-section Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The highest water oxidationactivity (0.48 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V vs RHE) using intermittent AM 1.5 G (100 mW/cm2) standard illumination was found forhybrid films with a thickness of 11 μm. This phenomenon is attributed to an improved electron transport resulting from ahigher magnetite content toward the substrate interface and an increased light absorption due to the hematite layer mainly located at the top surface of the film. The observed high efficiency of α-Fe2O3/Fe3O4 nanocomposite photoanodes is attributed to the close proximity and establishment of 3D interfaces between the weakly ferro- (Fe2O3) and ferrimagnetic (Fe3O4) oxides, which in view of their differential chemical constitution andvalence states of Fe ions (Fe2+/Fe3+) can enhance the charge separation and thus the overall electrical conductivity of the layer.
|
|
| 4. |
- LeDuc, Stephen D., et al.
(författare)
-
Nitrogen and Sulfur Deposition Reductions Projected to Partially Restore Forest Soil Conditions in the US Northeast, While Understory Composition Continues to Shift with Future Climate Change
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Water, Air and Soil Pollution. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0049-6979 .- 1573-2932. ; 233:9
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Human activities have dramatically increased nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) deposition, altering forest ecosystem function and structure. Anticipating how changes in deposition and climate impact forests can inform decisions regarding these environmental stressors. Here, we used a dynamic soil-vegetation model (ForSAFE-Veg) to simulate responses to future scenarios of atmospheric deposition and climate change across 23 Northeastern hardwood stands. Specifically, we simulated soil percent base saturation, acid neutralizing capacity (ANC), nitrate (NO3−) leaching, and understory composition under 13 interacting deposition and climate change scenarios to the year 2100, including anticipated deposition reductions under the Clean Air Act (CAA) and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change–projected climate futures. Overall, deposition affected soil responses more than climate did. Soils recovered to historic conditions only when future deposition returned to pre-industrial levels, although anticipated CAA deposition reductions led to a partial recovery of percent base saturation (60 to 72%) and ANC (65 to 71%) compared to historic values. CAA reductions also limited NO3− leaching to 30 to 66% above historic levels, while current levels of deposition resulted in NO3− leaching 150 to 207% above historic values. In contrast to soils, understory vegetation was affected strongly by both deposition and climate. Vegetation shifted away from historic and current assemblages with increasing deposition and climate change. Anticipated CAA reductions could maintain current assemblages under current climate conditions or slow community shifts under increased future changes in temperature and precipitation. Overall, our results can inform decision-makers on how these dual stressors interact to affect forest health, and the efficacy of deposition reductions under a changing climate.
|
|
| 5. |
- Yaghootkar, Hanieh, et al.
(författare)
-
Genetic Studies of Leptin Concentrations Implicate Leptin in the Regulation of Early Adiposity
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Diabetes. - : American Diabetes Association. - 0012-1797 .- 1939-327X. ; 69:12, s. 2806-2818
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Leptin influences food intake by informing the brain about the status of body fat stores. Rare LEP mutations associated with congenital leptin deficiency cause severe early-onset obesity that can be mitigated by administering leptin. However, the role of genetic regulation of leptin in polygenic obesity remains poorly understood. We performed an exome-based analysis in up to 57,232 individuals of diverse ancestries to identify genetic variants that influence adiposity-adjusted leptin concentrations. We identify five novel variants, including four missense variants, in LEP, ZNF800, KLHL31, and ACTL9, and one intergenic variant near KLF14. The missense variant Val94Met (rs17151919) in LEP was common in individuals of African ancestry only, and its association with lower leptin concentrations was specific to this ancestry (P = 2 × 10-16, n = 3,901). Using in vitro analyses, we show that the Met94 allele decreases leptin secretion. We also show that the Met94 allele is associated with higher BMI in young African-ancestry children but not in adults, suggesting that leptin regulates early adiposity.
|
|
