Flagellin is the principal component of bacterial flagellum and a major target of the host immune system. To provide new insights into the role of flagellin in fish immune responses to flagellated microorganisms, a recombinant flagellin from Yersinia ruckeri (rYRF) was produced and its bioactivity investigated in the trout macrophage cell line RTS-11 and head kidney cells. rYRF is a potent activator of pro-inflammatory cytokines, acute phase proteins, antimicrobial peptides and subunits of the IL-12 cytokine family. This and the synergy seen with IFN-γ to enhance further expression of specific IL-12 and TNF-α isoforms may suggest that flagellin could be a useful immune stimulant or adjuvant for use in aquaculture. Gene paralogues were often differentially modulated, highlighting the need to study all of the paralogues of immune genes in fish to gain a full understanding of the effects of PAMPs or other stimulants, and the potential immune responses elicited.

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Traits in Upper Palaeolithic art which are also seen in the work of talented artists with autism, including most obviously an exceptional realism, remain to be explained. However any association between the famously evocative animal depictions created in the European Upper Palaeolithic and what is commonly seen as a 'disorder' has always been contentious. Debate over these similarities has been heated, with explanations ranging from famous works of Upper Palaeolithic art having been created by individuals with autism spectrum conditions, to being influenced by such individuals, to being a product of the use of psychotropic drugs. Here we argue that 'autistic traits' in art, such as extreme realism, have been created by individuals with a cognitive extreme of local processing bias, or detail focus. The significance of local processing bias, which is found both as a feature of autism spectrum conditions and in artists with exceptional talent at realistic depiction who aren't autistic, has implications for our understanding of Upper Palaeolithic society in general, as well as of the roles played by individuals with autism spectrum conditions.

IL-22 is a critical cytokine which is involved in modulating tissue responses during inflammation, and is produced mainly by T cells and innate leucocytes. In mammals, IL-22 is a key component in mucosal defences, tissue repair, epithelial cell survival and proliferation. In teleosts, IL-22 has been cloned and studied in several species, and the transcript is highly expressed in mucosal tissues and induced by pathogen associated molecular patterns (PAMPs), suggesting IL-22 also functions as an important component of the innate immune response in fish. To investigate these immune responses further, we have validated and characterised two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) which were raised against two different peptide immunogens of salmonid IL-22. Our results show that both mAbs specifically react to their own peptide immunogens and recombinant IL-22, and are able to detect the induction of native protein expression after stimulation. In flow cytometry, an increase in IL-22 positive cells was detected after stimulation in vitro with cytokines and PAMPs and in vivo after bacterial challenge. The immunohistochemistry results showed that IL-22 is highly upregulated in the gills after challenge, both in cells within the gill filaments and in the interbranchial lymphoid tissue. Such results suggest IL-22 may have a role in triggering local antimicrobial defences in fish that may facilitate efficient microbial clearance. Hence monitoring IL-22 producing cells/protein secretion may provide an alternative mean to assess the effectiveness of mucosal vaccines.

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Although autism has been characterised as a disorder certain selective advantages of autism have been identified which may represent a selective trade-off for reduced 'folk psychology' and provide a potential explanation for the incorporation of autism genes in the human evolutionary past. Such potential trade-off skills remain to be explored in terms of selectively advantageous or disadvantageous behaviours in the distant past however. Here we present the results of an analysis of the relationship between AQ (autism quotient) and attitudes to valued personal possessions on the basis of a study of 550 participants. We find that individuals with autism have a reduced tendency to value and preserve objects as reminders of relationships/attachment figures and place a greater value on the direct practical function of their personal possessions. The latter strategy may have been more selectively advantageous in certain contexts whilst less advantageous in others in the distant evolutionary past.

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This paper presents contemporary archaeology as a novel framework for investigating environmental pollution, specifically marine pollution, which comprises a global “toxic assemblage” of an estimated 5.25 trillion plastic artefacts. The ideas behind this approach were developed in 2018 during a multidisciplinary “Science to Solutions” workshop held in Galápagos (Ecuador), led by the Galápagos National Park and Galapagos Conservation Trust and hosted by the Galapagos Science Center and the Charles Darwin Research Station. These ideas informed two studies which began separately but became increasingly aligned within a contemporary archaeology framework, in effect tackling the same problem from two very different perspectives: the first involving surface mapping, designed to inform an understanding of how plastic items enter the environment, including the marine environment, in the first place; and the second comprising utilization-focused evaluation, designed to better understand people’s behaviours and aspirations. Both of the studies centred on a specific and ubiquitous type of item or artefact: the disposable plastic bag. We conclude that the two studies together demonstrate that, through giving primacy to material culture, contemporary archaeology can (1) serve as a cross-disciplinary framework for tackling environmental pollution, and (2) provide a basis for shaping practice and informing policy.