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Despite the elaborative nature of Theodotionic Susanna, it is not merely an expansion. The narrative details of the different versions betray consistent institutional differences. One notable difference is the near elimination of the public synagogue as a place of assembly, and instead this source speaks of a more generalized, associational assembly that meets in Joachim's house. The Theodotionic version's associational, domestic assembly space is closer to the polity of a diasporic collegia assembly. Conversely, in the Old Greek, the perverse elders preside over an assembly building, which is at one point designated as "the synagogue of the city" (OG Sus 28). The Old Greek's emphasis on a civic synagogue is closer to Palestinian Jewish texts, despite the exilic setting of this story. While such institutional designations are more of a spectrum than a binary difference, such difference in outlook offers invaluable data regarding the contexts of the two versions of this Danielic composition and the parallel presentation of these two different types of synagogues at such an early date is significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Columns 3-4 of the Qumran War Scroll contain a series of prescriptions for inscriptions on trumpets and banners. These have traditionally been read as entirely metaphorical or literary inventions. However, these lists depict an impetus to materiality similar to certain Second Temple Period inscribed metal and papyrus amulets, and they contain many elements in common with what has often been termed the Qumran apotropaic tradition. We should thus question whether these inscriptions might be depicting the manufacture of apotropaic devices for a more mundane usage. That these inscriptions are highly structured and can be grouped into statements of either praise or divine election, both of which are common apotropaic elements, indicates some apotropaic efficacy for the Ya?ad movement. As with the various Qumran tefillin and mezuzot, we should also question whether these inscriptions would have a performative element that would relate them to prayer or incantation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Astronauts in space experience a unique environment that causes the concomitant loss of bone and muscle. However, the interaction between these tissues and how osteopenia and sarcopenia affect each other is unclear. We explored this relationship by exaggerating unloading-induced muscle loss using a unilateral casting model in conjunction with hindlimb suspension (HLS). Five-month-old, male C57Bl/6J mice subjected to HLS for 2 weeks displayed a significant decrease in gastrocnemius and quadriceps weight (−9–10%), with a two-fold greater decrease in muscle mass observed in the HLS + casted limb. However, muscle from casted limbs had a higher rate of protein synthesis (+16%), compared to HLS alone, with coordinated increases in S6K1 (+50%) and 4E-BP1 (+110%) phosphorylation. Increased protein content for surrogate markers of autophagy, including LC3-II (+75%), Atg7 (+10%), and Atg5-12 complex (+20%) was only detected in muscle from the casted limb. In proximal tibias, HLS resulted in significant decreases in bone volume fraction (−24% vs −8%), trabecular number (−6% vs +0.3%), trabecular thickness (−10% vs −2%), and trabecular spacing (+8.4% vs +2%) compared to ground controls. There was no further bone loss in casted limbs compared to HLS alone. In tibia midshafts, HLS resulted in decreased total area (−2% vs +1%) and increased bone mineral density (+1% vs −0.3%) compared to ground controls. Cortical bone from casted limbs showed an increase in cortical thickness (+9% vs +2%) and cortical area/total area (+1% vs −0.6%) compared to HLS alone. Our results suggest that casting exacerbates unloading-induced muscle loss via activation of autophagy. Casting did not exacerbate bone loss suggesting that the unloading-induced loss of muscle and bone can be temporally dissociated and the effect of reduced muscle activity plays a relatively minor role compared to reduced load bearing on trabecular bone structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1QS 2 recounts a ritual in which the community convenes and shares in the annual recitation of blessings and curses for the purpose of reaffirming its communal, ritual boundaries as it is beset on all sides by darkness and transgressive ways. This group needs purifying through the ejection of the morally impure, those whose actions are judged to be ‘out of place.’ Conversely, in 4QBerakhot, the entirety of divinely ordered creation is cited in the blessing of God by the performative community in the heavenly throne room. This latter tradition understands those capable of this heavenly benediction as being sufficiently pure to stand in God’s presence, while Belial and those of his lot are already consigned to their fate in the pit. Thus, given the entirely different ideals and resultant construction of figural space in these two traditions, we are forced to question the equation of their performative contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deep space travel exposes astronauts to extended periods of space radiation and mechanical unloading, both of which may induce significant muscle and bone loss. Astronauts are exposed to space radiation from solar particle events (SPE) and background radiation referred to as galactic cosmic radiation (GCR). To explore interactions between skeletal muscle and bone under these conditions, we hypothesized that decreased mechanical load, as in the microgravity of space, would lead to increased susceptibility to space radiation-induced bone and muscle loss. We evaluated changes in bone and muscle of mice exposed to hind limb suspension (HLS) unloading alone or in addition to proton and high (H) atomic number (Z) and energy (E) (HZE) (16O) radiation. Adult male C57Bl/6J mice were randomly assigned to six groups: No radiation ± HLS, 50 cGy proton radiation ± HLS, and 50 cGy proton radiation + 10 cGy 16O radiation ± HLS. Radiation alone did not induce bone or muscle loss, whereas HLS alone resulted in both bone and muscle loss. Absolute trabecular and cortical bone volume fraction (BV/TV) was decreased 24% and 6% in HLS-no radiation vs the normally loaded no-radiation group. Trabecular thickness and mineral density also decreased with HLS. For some outcomes, such as BV/TV, trabecular number and tissue mineral density, additional bone loss was observed in the HLS+proton+HZE radiation group compared to HLS alone. In contrast, whereas HLS alone decreased muscle mass (19% gastrocnemius, 35% quadriceps), protein synthesis, and increased proteasome activity, radiation did not exacerbate these catabolic outcomes. Our results suggest that combining simulated space radiation with HLS results in additional bone loss that may not be experienced by muscle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars have long believed that the "ancestral customs" of the Pharisees mentioned in texts such as Antiquitates judaicae 13.297 and Matt 15:1-9 were proto-rabbinic oral tradition, based on apparently corroborating readings of Rabbinic works. However, in this article, I will show that this terminology should be understood within the context of the codes of Graeco-Roman associations. Such language is consistent with both the use of association terminology elsewhere in Josephus, as well as with the corpus of association-related inscriptions and papyri presently extant. The idea of the Pharisees as a semi-private association is not unique, though this terminology provides further corroboration that the Pharisees were understood as a semi-private, itinerant association by contemporary Jewish writers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanical loading is essential for the maintenance of musculoskeletal homeostasis. Cartilage has been demonstrated to be highly mechanoresponsive, but the mechanisms by which chondrocytes respond to mechanical stimuli are not clearly understood. The goal of the study was to determine how LRP4, LRP5, and LRP6 within canonical Wnt-signaling are regulated in simulated microgravity and cyclic hydrostatic pressure, and to investigate the potential role of LRP 4/5/6 in cartilage degeneration. Rat chondrosacroma cell (RCS) pellets were stimulated using either cyclic hydrostatic pressure (1Hz, 7.5 MPa, 4hr/day) or simulated microgravity in a rotating wall vessel (RWV) bioreactor (11RPM, 24hr/day). LRP4/5/6 mRNA expression was assessed by RT-qPCR and LRP5 protein expression was determined by fluorescent immunostaining. To further evaluate our in vitro findings in vivo, mice were subjected to hindlimb suspension for 14 days and the femoral heads stained for LRP5 expression. We found that, in vitro, LRP4/5/6 mRNA expression is modulated in a time-dependent manner by mechanical stimulation. Additionally, LRP5 protein expression is upregulated in response to both simulated microgravity and cyclic hydrostatic pressure. LRP5 is also upregulated in vivo in the articular cartilage of hindlimb suspended mice. This is the first study to examine how LRP4/5/6, critical receptors within musculoskeletal biology, respond to mechanical stimulation. Further elucidation of this mechanism could provide significant clinical benefit for the identification of pharmaceutical targets for the maintenance of cartilage health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]