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Pheromones are water-soluble chemicals released and sensed by individuals of the same species to elicit social and reproductive behaviors or physiological changes; they are perceived primarily by the vomeronasal organ (VNO) in terrestrial vertebrates. Humans and some related primates possess only vestigial VNOs and have no or significantly reduced ability to detect pheromones, a phenomenon not well understood at the molecular level. Here we show that genes encoding the TRP2 ion channel and V1R pheromone receptors, two components of the vomeronasal pheromone signal transduction pathway, have been impaired and removed from functional constraints since shortly before the separation of hominoids and Old World monkeys ≈23 million years ago, and that the random inactivation of pheromone receptor genes is an ongoing process even in present-day humans. The phylogenetic distribution of vomeronasal pheromone insensitivity is concordant with those of conspicuous female sexual swelling and male trichromatic color vision, suggesting that a vision-based signaling-sensory mechanism may have in part replaced the VNO-mediated chemical-based system in the social/reproductive activities of hominoids and Old World monkeys (catarrhines).

The density and utility of the molecular genetic linkage map of cultivated sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) has been greatly increased by the development and mapping of several hundred simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Of 1089 public SSR markers described thus far, 408 have been mapped in a recombinant inbred line (RIL) mapping population (RHA280 × RHA801). The goal of the present research was to increase the density of the sunflower map by constructing a new RIL map (PHA × PHB) based on SSRs, adding loci for newly developed SSR markers to the RHA280 × RHA801 RIL map, and integrating the restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and SSR maps of sunflower. The latter was accomplished by adding 120 SSR marker loci to a backbone of 80 RFLP marker loci on the HA370 × HA372 F2 map. The map spanned 1275.4 centimorgans (cM) and had a mean density of 6.3 cM per locus. The PHA × PHB SSR map was constructed from 264 SSR marker loci, spanned 1199.4 cM, and had a mean density of 4.5 cM per locus. The RHA280 × RHA801 map was constructed by adding 118 new SSR and insertion–deletion (INDEL) marker loci to 459 previously mapped SSR marker loci. The 577‐locus map spanned 1423.0 cM and had a mean density of 2.5 cM per locus. The three maps were constructed from 1044 DNA marker loci (701 unique SSR and 89 unique RFLP or INDEL marker loci) and supply a dense genome‐wide framework of sequence‐based DNA markers for molecular breeding and genomics research in sunflower.

Objective:Intrathecal drug delivery systems (IT-DDSs) have gained more widespread use in patients with non-cancer-related pain, notably failed back surgery syndrome and spinal arachnoiditis. Secondary to the longer life spans of these patients, more complications have been discovered with IT-DDSs. With an estimated incidence of 1% to 3%, an uncommon but serious complication is that of granuloma formation.Case Report:We describe a case of a 38-year-old woman with a malfunctioning IT-DDS containing morphine and bupivacaine. The device had stopped providing relief for several months because of presumed leakage from the connection site between the pump and the proximal catheter. The IT-DDS spontaneously resumed functioning. The IT-DDS was explanted for low battery life, upon which we discovered that the leakage site had been encapsulated by drug concretion and granuloma formation, thus providing a sealed conduit that reestablished drug flow between the pump and the catheter.Conclusions:This case report reinforces the view that the infusate is the causal agent of this lesion.

Environments, landscapes, and ecological systems are often seen as fundamental by archaeologists, but how they relate to society is understood in very different ways. The chapters in this book take environment, culture, and technology together. All have been the focus of much attention; often one or other has been seen as the starting point for analysis, but this volume argues that it is the study of the inter-relationships between these three factors that offers a way forward. The contributions to this book pick up different strands within the tangled web of intersections between environment, technology, and society, providing a series of case studies which explore facets of this common theme in different settings and circumstances and from different perspectives. As well as addressing themes of theoretical and methodological interest, these case studies draw on primary research dealing with time periods from the late Pleistocene glacial maximum to the very recent past, and involve societies of very different types. Running through all the contributions, however, is a concern with the archaeological record and the ways in which scales of observation and availability of evidence affect the development of questions and explanations. The diversity of the chapters in this volume demonstrates the inherent weakness in any attempt to prioritise environment, technology, or society. These three factors are all embedded in any human activity, as change in one will result in change in the others: social and technical changes alter relations with the environment-and indeed the environment itself-and as environmental change drives changes in society and technology. As this book shows, it is possible to consider the relationship between the three factors from different perspectives, but any attempt to consider one or even two in isolation will mean that valuable insights will be missed.

The HKMA's [Hong Kong Monetary Authority] intervention in the equity markets is, in my view, extremely damaging to the markets'...

The announcement on Wednesday that Cheung Kong Infrastructure (CKI) is to join the Hang Seng Index represents a strange move for a stock which is 84.6 per...

Your article \"Tax loophole to stay\" (South China Morning Post, September 24) contains a number of inaccuracies.