Using bioinformatic methods we have detected the genes of 40 keratin-associated beta-proteins (KAbetaPs) (beta-keratins) from the first available draft genome sequence of a reptile, the lizard Anolis carolinensis (Broad Institute, Boston). All genes are clustered in a single but not yet identified chromosomal locus, and contain a single intron of variable length. 5'-RACE and RT-PCR analyses using RNA from different epidermal regions show tissue-specific expression of different transcripts. These results were confirmed from the analysis of the A. carolinensis EST libraries (Broad Institute). Most deduced proteins are 12-16 kDa with a pI of 7.5-8.5. Two genes encoding putative proteins of 40 and 45 kDa are also present. Despite variability in amino acid sequences, four main subfamilies can be described. The largest subfamily includes proteins high in glycine, a small subfamily contains proteins high in cysteine, a third large subfamily contains proteins high in cysteine and glycine, and the fourth, smallest subfamily comprises proteins low in cysteine and glycine. An inner region of high amino acid identity is the most constant characteristic of these proteins and maps to a region with two to three close beta-folds in the proteins. This beta-fold region is responsible for the formation of filaments of the corneous material in all types of scales in this species. Phylogenetic analysis shows that A. carolinensis KAbetaPs are more similar to those of other lepidosaurians (snake, lizard, and gecko lizard) than to those of archosaurians (chick and crocodile) and turtles.

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This chapter focuses on slavery in the Mediterranean region from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century, and especially in the Northern Mediterranean basin, including the Italian states, France, Spain, and Portugal. Comparing the situation in Southern European states to that in the Ottoman Empire and its satellite states enables an analysis of the forms of reciprocity and the commonalities inherent in slave trade practices around the Mediterranean. The Mediterranean was at the center of larger slave trading networks whose slaves originated from all over the world. More specifically, this chapter examines various forms of enslavement and types of work performed by slaves, along with the different levels of coercion involved in them. In its conclusion, the chapter details some of the exit strategies that enabled slaves to become free—both in socio-economic terms and from a legal perspective.

This article presents a group portrait of captives and slaves and a picture of some individual slaves’ lives in the Bagno of Leghorn and Pisa and in the House of Catechumens of Florence in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany during the period 1702-1826. This research is based on Leghorn government papers, the archive of Florence’s Ginori family and the records of the Magistrato del Bigallo.The study follows two lines of inquiry corresponding to two different scales of analysis. The first draws a group portrait from a list of slaves living at the Bagno of Leghorn and released in 1747. This portrait reveals a uniform and collective life and provides quantitative information on the latter, particularly concerning the question of the time of their captivity or their enslavement. The second line of investigation explores the experiences and individual trajectories of several slaves between Livorno, Pisa and Florence and raises questions about conclusive interpretations concerning the level of homogeneity in their living and working conditions. The presence of slaves and captives in galleys or prisons has been the subject of much research based on the many documents produced in these places, including lists of slaves that allow scholars to build a group portrait. The realization of this type of portrait requires, however, consideration of individual trajectories and differences. This is made possible by sources such as the supplications of slaves living in these places of detention as well as those resident in the House of Catechumens of Florence. The petitions of slaves, in both Pisa and Livorno, reveal the diversity of living conditions in the same place of detention. While historiography has emphasized a standardization of conditions in different environments—such as galleys and prisons—the study sheds light on how differences in physical qualities (health, physical strength, skin colour), geographical origin, professional skills or religion of captives and slaves had an impact on access to freedom, their agency, and their treatment by their owners. In addition, the sources of the Magistrato del Bigallo allow for a very subtle approach, making it possible to show for example the different experiences of a brother and a sister, both slaves and from Sub-Saharan Africa, in the House of Catechumens of Florence.These sources, less explored, bring to light formerly invisible stories of enslaved people from the Mediterranean and outside with singular trajectories that complicate existing interpretations. The two approaches, that of the group portrait and that concentrating on the individual experiences of the captives and slaves, are fundamental to developing a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon of slavery in Tuscany.