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The combined effects of climate change and nutrient availability on Arctic vegetation growth are poorly understood. Archaeological sites in the Arctic could represent unique nutrient hotspots for studying the long-term effect of nutrient enrichment. In this study, we analysed a time-series of ring widths of Salix glauca L. collected at nine archaeological sites and in their natural surroundings along a climate gradient in the Nuuk fjord region, Southwest Greenland, stretching from the edge of the Greenlandic Ice Sheet in the east to the open sea in the west. We assessed the temperature-growth relationship for the last four decades distinguishing between soils with past anthropogenic nutrient enrichment (PANE) and without (controls). Along the East-West gradient, the inner fjord sites showed a stronger temperature signal compared to the outermost ones. Individuals growing in PANE soils had wider ring widths than individuals growing in the control soils and a stronger climate-growth relation, especially in the inner fjord sites. Thereby, the individuals growing on the archaeological sites seem to have benefited more from the climate warming in recent decades. Our results suggest that higher nutrient availability due to past human activities plays a role in Arctic vegetation growth and should be considered when assessing both the future impact of plants on archaeological sites and the general greening in landscapes with contrasting nutrient availability., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Bacteria play an important role in the degradation of bone material. However, much remains to be learnt about the structure of their communities in degrading bone, and how the depositional environment influences their diversity throughout the exposure period. We genetically profiled the bacterial community in an experimental series of pig bone fragments (femur and humeri) deposited at different well-defined environments in Denmark. The bacterial community in the bone fragments and surrounding depositional environment were studied over one year, and correlated with the bioerosion damage patterns observed microscopically in the bones. We observed that the bacterial communities within the bones were heavily influenced by the local microbial community, and that the general bone microbial diversity increases with time after exposure. We found the presence of several known collagenase producing bacterial groups, and also observed increases in the relative abundance of several of these in bones with tunneling. We anticipate that future analyses using shotgun metagenomics on this and similar datasets will be able to provide insights into mechanisms of microbiome driven bone degradation., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Climate change is expected to accelerate the microbial degradation of the many extraordinary well-preserved organic archaeological deposits found in the Arctic. This could potentially lead to a major loss of wooden artefacts that are still buried within the region. Here, we carry out the first large-scale investigation of wood degradation within archaeological deposits in the Arctic. This is done based on wooden samples from 11 archaeological sites that are located along a climatic gradient in Western Greenland. Our results show that Ascomycota fungi are causing extensive soft rot decay at all sites regardless of climate and local environment, but the group is diverse and many of the species were only found once. Cadophora species known to cause soft rot in polar environments were the most abundant Ascomycota found and their occurrence in native wood samples underlines that they are present locally. Basidiomycota fungi were also present at all sites. In the majority of samples, however, these aggressive and potentially very damaging wood degraders have caused limited decay so far, probably due to unfavorable growth conditions. The presence of these wood degrading fungi suggests that archaeological wooden artefacts may become further endangered if climate change leads to more favorable growth conditions.

Across the Arctic, microbial degradation is actively destroying irreplaceable cultural and environmental records that have been preserved within archaeological deposits for millennia. Because it is not possible to survey the many sites in this remote part of the world, new methods are urgently needed to detect and assess the potential degradation. Here, we investigate organic deposits at seven archaeological sites located along the dominating west-east climatic gradient in West Greenland. We show that, regardless of age, depositional history and environmental conditions, all organic deposits are highly vulnerable to degradation. A state-of-the-art model that simulates the effect of future climate change on degradation indicates that 30-70% of the archaeological fraction of organic carbon (OC) could disappear within the next 80 years. This range reflects the variation within the climatic gradient and the future climate scenario applied (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5). All archaeological deposits are expected to experience a substantial loss, but the most rapid degradation seems to occur in the continental inland areas of the region, dominated by dry and warm summers. This suggests that organic remains from the Norse Viking Age settlers are especially under threat in the coming years.

Climate change has irrevocable consequences for the otherwise well-preserved archaeological deposits in the Arctic. Vegetation changes are expected to impact archaeological sites, but currently the effects are poorly understood. In this article we investigate five archaeological sites and the surrounding natural areas along a climate gradient in Southwest Greenland in terms of vegetation types, above- and below-ground biomass, soil geochemistry and spectral properties. The investigations are based on data from site-sampling and optical remote sensing from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and satellites. Results show that the archaeological sites are dominated by graminoids with approximately two times more above- and below-ground biomass than the surrounding areas, where the vegetation is more heterogeneous. This difference is associated with a 2-6 times higher content of plant available phosphorus and water extractable nitrate and ammonium in the archaeological deposits compared to the surrounding soil. Furthermore, the vegetation at archaeological sites is less affected by the regional climate variations than the surrounding natural areas. This suggests that soil-vegetation interactions at archaeological sites are markedly different from the natural environment. Thus, the long-term vulnerability of buried archaeological remains cannot be assessed based on existing projections of Arctic vegetation change. Finally, the study demonstrates that vegetation within archaeological sites has distinct spectral properties, and there is a great potential for using satellite imagery for large scale vegetation monitoring of archaeological sites and for archaeological prospection in the Arctic., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the global average with overlooked consequences for the preservation of the rich cultural and environmental records that have been stored for millennia in archaeological deposits. In this article, we investigate the oxic degradation of different types of organic archaeological deposits located in different climatic zones in West and South Greenland. The rate of degradation is investigated based on measurements of O2 consumption, CO2 production and heat production at different temperatures and water contents. Overall, there is good consistency between the three methods. However, at one site the, O2 consumption is markedly higher than the CO2 production, highlighting the importance of combining several measures when assessing the vulnerability of organic deposits. The archaeological deposits are highly vulnerable to degradation regardless of age, depositional and environmental conditions. Degradation rates of the deposits are more sensitive to increasing temperatures than natural soils and the process is accompanied by a high microbial heat production that correlates significantly with their total carbon content. We conclude that organic archaeology in the Arctic is facing a critical challenge that requires international action.

Rates of oxygen consumption have been measured over extended time periods for 29 whole samples of conserved, archaeological wood and four samples of fresh, unconserved wood, at 50% relative humidity and room temperature. Samples from the Swedish Warship Vasa and the Danish Skuldelev Viking ships are included. Most rates were close to 1 μg O2 (g wood)(-1) day(-1) and the process persisted for several years at least. Consumption of oxygen is related to change in chemical composition, which is, in turn, related to degradation. It is thus demonstrated that despite conservation, waterlogged archaeological wood continues to degrade in a museum climate.

An acute disorder of the lower abdomen requires early clarification, whether or not it is of gynaecological or surgical origin. With non-gynaecological affections, beside diverticulitis, Crohn's disease, perforations, bowel obstructions, yersiniosis, vascular diseases (acute embolism, thrombosis or dissection), urological disorders or hernias, acute appendicitis has firstly to be considered. The systematic use of the different diagnostic instruments is discussed.

Besides typical gynaecological tumours colorectal neoplasms, Crohn's disease, dystopic kidneys, mesenteric cysts, tumours of the small bowel, perityphlitic abscesses, retroperitoneal sarcomas, lymphomas of the ileocoecal region and, in aged patients, aneurysmatic lesions of the iliac arteries have to be considered as source of the symptoms. The systematic use of various diagnostic procedures is discussed.

The effectiveness and tolerance of therapeutic local anesthesia (TLA) with lidocaine was compared with those of oral diclofenac in a controlled, open, randomized study involving 76 patients with gonalgia due to gonarthrosis or patellar chondropathy. During the course of the three-week (maximum) treatment, the summed score of pain at rest, pain on movement, and restricted mobility, taken as the target parameter of effectiveness, decreased significantly more markedly (p = 0.008) under TLA, than under diclofenac. Side effects involving mainly the gastrointestinal tract occurred significantly more frequently in the diclofenac group (p = 0.012). The results of this study indicate that in the treatment of localized joint pain of degenerative genesis, TLA with lidocaine is superior to NSAID treatment in terms of effectiveness and tolerance.

The utility of 4-hydro-peroxy-cyclophosphamide for testing the selectivity of human tumours cells against cyclophosphamide in vitro was studied. 4-hydro-peroxy-cyclophosphamide in aqueous solution spontaneously decomposes to 4-hydroxy-cyclophosphamide, the primary product of metabolic activation of cyclophosphamide thus representing a new form of "activated" cyclophosphamide. From 31 human tumours including 21 mammarian-, 4 ovarial-, 2 uterine-carcinomas, 2 seminomas, 1 hypernephroma and 1 rectum-carcinoma cell suspensions were made and the effect on the 3H-Uridine- and the 3H-Thymidine-incorporation into the nucleic acids after short time incubation with the effect of 4-hydro-peroxy-cyclophosphamide and 4-hydroxy-cyclophosphamide. 7 malignomas showed high sensitivity both against 4-hydro-peroxy-cyclophosphamide and against 4-hydroxy-cyclophosphamide. No additional inhibitory effect of the peroxyde function besides of that of the alkylating moiety of the molecule was found. Accordingly 4-hydro-peroxy-cyclophosphamide because of its better availibility and stability may be used as "activated" cyclophosphamide in screening tests for cyclophosphamide-sensivity of human tumours in vitro.

A new in vitro assay for screening the sensitivity of human tumour cells against Cyclophosphamide has been developed. While biologically activated Cyclophosphamide was unsuitable because of unpurities in the material, synthetic 4-Hydroxycyclophosphamide was shown to inhibit the incorporation of tritiated uridine and thymidine into the nucleic acids of human tumour cells in vitro. 29 tumours including 14 mammarial carcinomas, 8 ovarial carcinomas and 7 other malignant tumours were tested. While 12 tumours showed a significant and 5 only a slight inhibition of the 3H-uridine incorporation in vitro. 12 tumours showed no effect. Histologically none-differentiated tumours were more sensitive against 4-Hydroxycyclophosphamide as compared with the more differentiated ones. First observations point to 4-Hydroperoxycyclophosphamide instead of 4-Hydroxycyclophosphamide as a more suitable form of activated Cyclophosphamid for the in vitro assay of Cyclophosphamide sensitiveness because of the higher stability and better availability of this compound.

In-vitro sensitivity to cystostatic agents was tested in 137 cases of breast carcinoma, with 125 tests being analysable. Inhibition of in-vitro incorporation of 3H-uridine or 3H-thymidine into RNA or DNA of the original tumour cells after incubation with antineoplastic substances was used as the index for the in-vivo sensitivity of the tumour. 30% of the carcinoma cells were sensitive in-vitro, 70% resistant. About 75% of sensitive cancers were sensitive against several agents. Cyclophosphamide proved to be most effective in-vitro: it was tested via 4-hydroxycyclophosphamide or 4-hydroperoxycyclophosphamide. There was a correlation between histological type and in-vitro sensitivity of the cancer, as well as between proliferative activity and in-vitro sensitivity in that proliferation-active tumours were more frequently sensitive in-vitro than proliferation-poor ones. Primary tumours and metastases of the same patient frequently showed different sensitivity. In some cases the development of resistance against cytostatic drugs was demonstrated during treatment. Testing tumours against combinations of cytostatic drugs demonstrated an additive effect of the antineoplastic substances in-vitro.

When the causes and pathophysiology of the various types of ileus are known there are numerous possibilities of preventing them and logical therapeutic approaches, in particular in the case of functional ileus. Careful postoperative monitoring is obligatory! With regard to stimulation of bowel function, the principle of elimination of inhibition of motility by sympathicolysis has a place alongside the well-known nonspecific measures and direct stimulation. If conservative measures fail laparotomy must be repeated as soon as possible to procure relief. In the treatment of ileus associated with peritonitis the numerous new methods of flushing the abdomen, the involvement of anaerobes in some cases, and the possibilities offered by new antibiotics should be kept in mind. The involvement or predominance of mechanical ileus factors in the clinical picture must be recognized early and surgery performed without delay. Early consultation of an abdominal surgeon is recommended.

Of 150 human breast cancers, 90 (60%) were successfully transplanted onto thymusaplastic nude mice without the use of adjunctive immunosuppressive therapy. Four months after transplantation, 12 rapidly growing tumors had diameters of 2.5-3.5 cm. Investigations revealed a high correlation between the histology of original tumors and xenografts. We conclude that the nude mouse may be used as an animal model for studies such as this, or in determining the sensitivity of transplanted tumors to cytostatic drugs, steroid hormones, and radiation.

This is a report on 120 cases of vulvar cancer. The mean age at diagnosis was 66.5 years. 25% were younger than 60, and 10% younger than 50 years. 95% were squamous cell carcinoma. The main site of the primary lesion were the labia (71%). 55 patients had palpable nodes in the groins. 12% of all women (=28% of those treated by radical vulvectomyl) had metastases in the groins. 54 (45%) were treated by radical vulvectomy, of which 23 (43%) received postsurgical radiation. 63 patients had minor operation with consecutive radiation in 51 (81%) of them. The overall 5 year survival rate was 43%. It was 65% in the group treated by radical surgery and 24% in the group of minor surgery and radiation. The radical vulvectomy with bilateral inguinal and femoral lymphonodectomy is recommended as treatment of choice in all suitable cases. The radiation cannot replace radical surgery.

The heterotransplantation of minced human fetal pituitaries into adult thymus-aplastic nude mice is described. Development and growth of such grafts were observed in 16 of 21 recipient mice. Histological examinations of the transplants showed typical adenohypophyseal cells. Neurohypophyseal cells could never be detected. The levels of human growth hormone (hGH) varied between 0.8 and 42.0 ng/ml in the plasma of the hosts (mean value 7.2 ng/ml, by radioimmunoassay).

In 30 cases of breast-cancer, including 24 primary cases, the tumor-associted fibrinolysis was investigated using agar plate method. In 60% of the tissue sample fibrinolytic activity was found. No activity could be detected in the remaining 40%. There was evidence of a positive correlation between tumor-associated fibrinolysis and tumor size as well as the rate of axilla metastases. Among the fibrinolytic active cases there was a disproporionate number of adenocarcinoma, whereas in the inactive collective the solid and scirrhous carcinoma prevailed. There was no relation between the tumor-associated fibrinolysis and the percentage of tumor cells in the tissue. The firbinolytic inactive tumors showed a better histopathological adaptation to the surrounding tissue than the active ones. There was less small-cell infiltrate in the stroma of the fibrinolytic active tumors than in the inactive cases. No significant difference was found in the form of growth and the occurence of fibre structure. For clinical assessment a longer period of observation and a larger study are necessary.

37 (85%) of 44 human breast cancers are successfully transplanted on thymus-aplastic nu/nu-mice without adjunctive immunotherapy. 16 weeks after transplantation 4 rapidly growing tumours are showing human, female karyotypes. Subsequent investigations proved a good correlation between original tumour and transplant: histology, 3H-thymidine marking index and receptors of androgen and estorgen.