Left Footprints Research Articles

Between cultural and ecological processes: historical plant use in communal parks in Berlin, Germany

Communal urban parks originating from the 19th and early 20th centuries are key elements of the European heritage and provide numerous ecosystem services. Here, we examine five public parks in Berlin, Germany, to evaluate whether their historical plantings have left ecological footprints. In a brief presentation, we explore why and when these parks came into being. The park design and development, original plant assortment and plant use patterns within the parks revealed continuities and discontinuities over time that influenced the vegetation, particularly woody species. In four of five parks only a few historical patterns and materials were preserved, and the original species diversity decreased significantly over the centuries. Finally, we discuss the potential spread of exotic ornamentals from the parks to their surroundings and the ecological impacts of horticultural history within the urban matrix.

Forensic and phylogeographic characterization of mtDNA lineages from northern Thailand (Chiang Mai)

The immigration of diverse ethnic groups over the past centuries from surrounding countries into Thailand left footprints in the genetic composition of Thai mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) lineages. The entire mtDNA control region (1,122 bp) was typed in 190 unrelated male volunteers from the northern Thailand province of Chiang Mai following highest quality standards. For a more precise haplogroup classification, selected single nucleotide polymorphisms from the mtDNA coding region were genotyped. We found several new, so far undescribed mtDNA lineages. Quasi-median networks were constructed for visualisation of character conflicts. The data were put into population-genetic relationships with other Southeast Asian populations. Although the frequencies of the Thai haplogroups were characteristic for Southeast Asia in terms of haplotype composition and genetic structure, the Thai population was significantly different from other Southeast Asian populations. This necessitates establishing regional databases, especially for forensic applications. The population data have been submitted to the EMPOP database (www.empop.org) and will be available on publication.

The Blues in Gray: The Civil War Journal of William Daniel Dixon and the Republican Blues Daybook

Unlike Confederate units formed during the Civil War, the Republican Blues had been an existing militia organization in Savannah, Georgia, for over fifty years -- a professional fighting unit rather than an assemblage of ragtag volunteers. The Blues had served under the U.S. flag before taking up arms against it, and after the war they continued their existence in the National Guard of the reunited nation. The Blues in Gray combines the unit's daybook with the journal of company commander William Dixon to offer a day-by-day account of many facets of the war, from the drudgery of garrison duty to the horror of the battlefield. Roger Durham has interwoven the documents to provide fresh insights from a theater of the war seldom noted by historians. The Republican Blues spent three years on the Georgia coast, where they came under seven naval attacks at Fort McAllister before joining the Army of Tennessee to defend northern Georgia against Sherman. Dixon's journal allows us to follow the course of the war and share his correspondence with family and friends, while the daybook lets us observe the unit's administration. The volume also offers unusual revelations about the final months of the war, including a moving account of the retreat of Hood's army from Nashville, where barefooted soldiers left bloody footprints in the snow. With its vivid glimpses of Civil War life in both camp and combat, The Blues in Gray provides a Confederate soldier's view of the entire conflict -- not just a segment of service -- and a rich new source of primary material. More importantly, it breaks through the stereotype of Johnny Reb to show us the trials and triumphs of professional military men in theSouth.

The luminal domain of TGN38 interacts with integrin beta 1 and is involved in its trafficking.

TGN38 luminal domain (TGN38LD) was expressed in Cos-7 cells to identify potential binding partners. The luminal domain was secreted but, surprisingly, a significant portion bound to the plasma membrane. Cells overexpressing TGN38LD or the full-length molecule detached from the substratum and left footprints positive for TGN38. Unexpectedly, in these cells, TGN38 colocalizes with integrin alpha 5 beta 1 at the Golgi, the cell surface or in the footprints and an increased amount of both integrin subunits on the plasma membrane was observed. Under physiological conditions when TGN38 is not overexpressed, it interacts with integrin beta 1. This was demonstrated by reciprocal co-immunoprecipitation of integrin beta 1 and TGN38. Functional analysis reveals that modification of the trafficking of TGN38 results in a parallel change in the distribution of integrin alpha 5 beta 1, leading to the conclusion that TGN38 is involved in the trafficking of integrin beta 1.

Three age groups of ornithopods inferred from footprints in the mid-Cretaceous Dakota Group, eastern Colorado, North America

Ornithopod population structure is inferred from a large sample of footprints from the mid-Cretaceous Dakota Group of Colorado, New Mexico and Oklahoma. Allometric analyses and size-frequency distributions suggest size (age) classes or recruitments for tracks identified as Caririchnium leonardii (Ornithopoda) from sequence 3 of the mid-Cretaceous Dakota Group of the Rocky Mountain Front Range High Plains region. Five hundred ninety-eight footprints from 284 trackways were used in the statistical analysis. Tests were conducted that revealed no significant difference between analyses of right and left footprints or between casts and molds. Allometric analysis suggests a growth curve that can be subdivided into three segments, corresponding to foot lengths of 16.5–21.7, 21.7–29.3 and 29.3–55.0 cm, respectively. These are interpreted as juvenile (possibly yearlings), subadults and adults. The former two categories may correspond to animal recruitments ( n, n+1), whereas the latter category may represent several recruitments ( n+2, n+3, n+4, etc.). Once ornithopod growth curves of the type proposed for Maiasaura are established, there is considerable potential for estimating dinosaur age from footprints. In the meantime, however, large track samples can be analyzed for the size class information they contain.