The cuticular wax composition and crystal coverage of leaves and petals differ in a consistent manner between plant species.

Both leaves and petals are covered in a cuticle, which itself contains and is covered by cuticular waxes. The waxes perform various roles in plants' lives, and the cuticular composition of leaves has received much attention. To date, the cuticular composition of petals has been largely ignored.

Increasing concentration of pure micro- and macro-LDPE and PP plastic negatively affect crop biomass, nutrient cycling, and microbial biomass.

Over the last 50 years, the intense use of agricultural plastic in the form of mulch films has led to an accumulation of plastic in soil, creating a legacy of plastic in agricultural fields. Plastic often contains additives, however it is still largely unknown how these compounds affect soil properties, potentially influencing or masking effects of the plastic itself. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of pure plastics of varying sizes and concentrations, to improve our understanding of plastic-only interactions within soil-plant mesocosms.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) as a rapid means for assessing the source of coprolites.

The odor of rehydrated coprolites can be used as an informal means of fecal identification. To date, the analysis of volatiles emitted by coprolites from different sources has not been attempted, and the possibility of utilizing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) as fecal biomarkers unexplored. VOCs released by coprolites from the Paisley Caves, were analyzed using solid-phase microextraction (SPME), to assess the variance of results from different coprolites (carnivores, herbivores, or humans).

Intestinal parasites in the Neolithic population who built Stonehenge (Durrington Walls, 2500 BCE).

Durrington Walls was a large Neolithic settlement in Britain dating around 2500 BCE, located very close to Stonehenge and likely to be the campsite where its builders lived during its main stage of construction. Nineteen coprolites recovered from a midden and associated pits at Durrington Walls were analysed for intestinal parasite eggs using digital light microscopy. Five (26%) contained helminth eggs, 1 with those of fish tapeworm (likely ) and 4 with those of capillariid nematodes.

Determination of the δ H values of high molecular weight lipids by high-temperature gas chromatography coupled to isotope ratio mass spectrometry.

Rationale: The hydrogen isotopic composition of lipids (δ H ) is widely used in food science and as a proxy for past hydrological conditions. Determining the δ H values of large, well-preserved triacylglycerides and other microbial lipids, such as glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) lipids, is thus of widespread interest but has so far not been possible due to their low volatility which prohibits analysis by traditional gas chromatography/pyrolysis/isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC/P/IRMS).

Methods: We determined the δ H values of large, polar molecules and applied high-temperature gas chromatography (HTGC) methods on a modified GC/P/IRMS system.

Pre-Clovis occupation of the Americas identified by human fecal biomarkers in coprolites from Paisley Caves, Oregon.

When and how people first settled in the Americas is an ongoing area of research and debate. The earliest sites typically only contain lithic artifacts that cannot be directly dated. The lack of human skeletal remains in these early contexts means that alternative sources of evidence are needed.

Intestinal parasites at the Late Bronze Age settlement of Must Farm, in the fens of East Anglia, UK (9th century B.C.E.).

Little is known about the types of intestinal parasites that infected people living in prehistoric Britain. The Late Bronze Age archaeological site of Must Farm was a pile-dwelling settlement located in a wetland, consisting of stilted timber structures constructed over a slow-moving freshwater channel. At excavation, sediment samples were collected from occupation deposits around the timber structures.

Lipid profiling and analytical discrimination of seven cereals using high temperature gas chromatography coupled to high resolution quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Minor lipids in cereals (such as phytosterols and alkylresorcinols) can be important for human nutrition and/or be used as biomarkers for cereal intake. However, the analysis of cereal lipids is very challenging due to the complex lipidome comprising several hundred individual compounds present over a wide range of concentrations. Here we present a method for the profiling of cereal lipids using high temperature gas chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (GC/Q-TOF MS).

Saccharomyces cerevisiae Atf1p is an alcohol acetyltransferase and a thioesterase in vitro.

The alcohol-O-acyltransferases are bisubstrate enzymes that catalyse the transfer of acyl chains from an acyl-coenzyme A (CoA) donor to an acceptor alcohol. In the industrial yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae this reaction produces acyl esters that are an important influence on the flavour of fermented beverages and foods. There is also a growing interest in using acyltransferases to produce bulk quantities of acyl esters in engineered microbial cell factories.

Fossilization of melanosomes via sulfurization.

Fossil melanin granules (melanosomes) are an important resource for inferring the evolutionary history of colour and its functions in animals. The taphonomy of melanin and melanosomes, however, is incompletely understood. In particular, the chemical processes responsible for melanosome preservation have not been investigated.

Morphological and biomolecular evidence for tuberculosis in 8th century AD skeletons from Bélmegyer-Csömöki domb, Hungary.

Macromorphological analysis of skeletons, from 20 selected graves of the 8th century AD Bélmegyer-Csömöki domb, revealed 19 cases of possible skeletal tuberculosis. Biomolecular analyses provided general support for such diagnoses, including the individual without pathology, but the data did not show coherent consistency over the range of biomarkers examined. Amplification of ancient DNA fragments found evidence for the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex DNA only in five graves.

7000 year-old tuberculosis cases from Hungary - Osteological and biomolecular evidence.

This study derives from the macroscopic analysis of a Late Neolithic population from Hungary. Remains were recovered from a tell settlement at Hódmezővásárhely-Gorzsa from graves within the settlement as well as pits, ditches, houses and as stray finds. One of the most important discoveries from these remains was evidence of tuberculosis.

A migration-driven model for the historical spread of leprosy in medieval Eastern and Central Europe.

Leprosy was rare in Europe during the Roman period, yet its prevalence increased dramatically in medieval times. We examined human remains, with paleopathological lesions indicative of leprosy, dated to the 6th-11th century AD, from Central and Eastern Europe and Byzantine Anatolia. Analysis of ancient DNA and bacterial cell wall lipid biomarkers revealed Mycobacterium leprae in skeletal remains from 6th-8th century Northern Italy, 7th-11th century Hungary, 8th-9th century Austria, the Slavic Greater Moravian Empire of the 9th-10th century and 8th-10th century Byzantine samples from Northern Anatolia.

The yeast enzyme Eht1 is an octanoyl-CoA:ethanol acyltransferase that also functions as a thioesterase.

Fatty acid ethyl esters are secondary metabolites that are produced during microbial fermentation, in fruiting plants and in higher organisms during ethanol stress. In particular, volatile medium-chain fatty acid ethyl esters are important flavour compounds that impart desirable fruit aromas to fermented beverages, including beer and wine. The biochemical synthesis of medium-chain fatty acid ethyl esters is poorly understood but likely involves acyl-CoA:ethanol O-acyltransferases.

Osteological and biomolecular evidence of a 7000-year-old case of hypertrophic pulmonary osteopathy secondary to tuberculosis from neolithic hungary.

Seventy-one individuals from the late Neolithic population of the 7000-year-old site of Hódmezővásárhely-Gorzsa were examined for their skeletal palaeopathology. This revealed numerous cases of infections and non-specific stress indicators in juveniles and adults, metabolic diseases in juveniles, and evidence of trauma and mechanical changes in adults. Several cases showed potential signs of tuberculosis, particularly the remains of the individual HGO-53.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex lipid virulence factors preserved in the 17,000-year-old skeleton of an extinct bison, Bison antiquus.

Tracing the evolution of ancient diseases depends on the availability and accessibility of suitable biomarkers in archaeological specimens. DNA is potentially information-rich but it depends on a favourable environment for preservation. In the case of the major mycobacterial pathogens, Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium leprae, robust lipid biomarkers are established as alternatives or complements to DNA analyses.

Isotope effects associated with the preparation and methylation of fatty acids by boron trifluoride in methanol for compound-specific stable hydrogen isotope analysis via gas chromatography/thermal conversion/isotope ratio mass spectrometry.

Rationale: Compound-specific stable hydrogen isotope analysis of fatty acids is being used increasingly as a means of deriving information from a diverse range of materials of archaeological, geological and environmental interest. Preparative steps required prior to isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) analysis have the potential to alter determined δD values and hence must be accounted for if accurate δD values for target compounds are to be obtained.

Methods: Myristic, palmitic, stearic, arachidic and behenic saturated fatty acids were derivatised to their respective fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs), using 14% (w/v) boron trifluoride in methanol then analysed by gas chromatography/thermal conversion/IRMS (GC/TC/IRMS).

Gas chromatographic mass spectrometric detection of dihydroxy fatty acids preserved in the 'bound' phase of organic residues of archaeological pottery vessels.

A methodology is presented for the determination of dihydroxy fatty acids preserved in the 'bound' phase of organic residues preserved in archaeological potsherds. The method comprises saponification, esterification, silica gel column chromatographic fractionation, and analysis by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The electron ionisation mass spectra of the trimethylsilyl ether methyl ester derivatives are characterised by fragment ions arising from cleavage of the bond between the two vicinal trimethylsiloxy groups.

In situ polar organic chemical integrative sampling (POCIS) of steroidal estrogens in sewage treatment works discharge and river water.

A passive sampler (the polar organic chemical integrative sampler; POCIS) was assessed for its ability to sample natural estrogens (17β-estradiol, E2; estrone, E1 and estriol, E3) and the synthetic estrogen (17α-ethynylestradiol, EE2) in the outlet of a sewage treatment works over several weeks. The performance of the POCIS was investigated and optimised in the laboratory before field deployment with high recoveries (66-99%) were achieved for all estrogens. Moreover, it was shown that POCIS does not exhibit any preferential selectivity towards any of the target compounds.

Forest contraction in north equatorial Southeast Asia during the Last Glacial Period.

Today, insular Southeast Asia is important for both its remarkably rich biodiversity and globally significant roles in atmospheric and oceanic circulation. Despite the fundamental importance of environmental history for diversity and conservation, there is little primary evidence concerning the nature of vegetation in north equatorial Southeast Asia during the Last Glacial Period (LGP). As a result, even the general distribution of vegetation during the Last Glacial Maximum is debated.

Applications of stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry in cattle dung carbon cycling studies.

Understanding the fate of dung carbon (C) in soils is challenging due to the ubiquitous presence of the plant-derived organic matter (OM), the source material from which both dung-derived OM and soil organic matter (SOM) predominantly originate. A better understanding of the fate of specific components of this substantial source of OM, and thereby its contribution to C cycling in terrestrial ecosystems, can only be achieved through the use of labelled dung treatments. In this short review, we consider analytical approaches using bulk and compound-specific stable carbon isotope analysis that have been utilised to explore the fate of dung-derived C in soils.