National Library of Israel

Abstract Complex behavioral tasks increasingly rely on autonomous training paradigms that enable high-throughput learning in naturalistic settings. Such approaches offer a scalable route for preparing animals for subsequent head-fixed recordings required for high-resolution neural measurements. However, how animals adapt their behavioral strategies across these distinct contexts remains poorly understood. Here, we examine how mice trained autonomously in a group-housed home-cage system reorganize their behavior when transitioned to a head-fixed version of the same delayed-response task. Although overall success rates were comparable across contexts, mice exhibited a striking shift in behavioral policy. Freely behaving home-cage performance was characterized by high engagement and premature responses, whereas head-fixed performance showed a progressive emergence of selective, cue-intensity-dependent responding accompanied by increased omission errors. This selective strategy was strongly associated with improved performance and sustained engagement under head-fixed conditions, reflecting a trade-off between sensitivity to low-intensity cues and suppression of premature actions. Importantly, selectivity did not arise immediately upon head fixation but developed gradually with experience across sessions, indicating learned adaptation rather than a spontaneous response to restraint. Our findings demonstrate that behavioral policy is not solely determined by task rules or sensory demands, but is strongly shaped by task architecture, temporal constraints, and opportunity cost. These results highlight the need to account for context-dependent strategy shifts when interpreting neural activity following transfer from autonomous training to controlled recording environments, and establish a framework for studying adaptive behavior across experimental contexts.

Glycosylation is among the most common post-translational modifications of proteins. There is a great synthetic and practical difficulty in the assembly and deprotection of glycopeptides. State-of-the-art methods for glycopeptide synthesis are wasteful of glycosylated amino acids, are slow, and suffer from low yields. These shortcomings hamper accessibility to multiply glycosylated peptides. We report the accelerated, high-shear stirring-assisted synthesis of multiply O-glycosylated peptides. The equimolar assembly was streamlined with deacetylation to provide multiglycosylated peptides at high purity. Cadherin-derived multiglycosylated peptides synthesized in large quantities provided selective Listeria monocytogenes electrochemical biosensing.

The medieval wall and trench system of China and Mongolia covers ∼4000 km and consists of a series of rammed-earth walls, ditches, and hundreds of associated structures. This was not a unified system but rather different sections that were built by different political entities and perhaps for different purposes between ca. 1000 to 1220 CE. Among those lines, the earliest is the northernmost section dated to the period of the Liao empire (916–1125 CE). It is located deep in the sparsely populated steppe of today's northeastern Mongolia (Dornod Province) as well as in parts of China and Russia. Recent excavations at Site 23 along the northern line revealed a rich and well-preserved faunal assemblage from a midden pit dated towards the end of the Liao empire (ca. 1050 CE). Common Mongolian domesticates sheep, goat, horse, cow, and dog were identified, as well as wild species: gazelle, rabbit, mustelids, large raptors, and fish, including Amur catfish. Based on bone fusion, size, and teeth eruption, many of the sheep/goat bones and dogs belong to very young animals under six months. Historical texts, such as the Liaoshi (Liao history) and Qidan guozhi (Records of the Kitan empire), were the only source of knowledge available regarding human-animal relations, as very little is known of subsistence practices during the Liao period from faunal analysis in itself. The historical record documents aspects of Liao-era animal husbandry, hunting, fishing, and imperial diplomatic/tributary animal exchange between the Liao governors and local tribes. Through integration of textual evidence and the excavated faunal material, we can interpret the subsistence activities of a distinct Liao frontier garrison for the first time, going beyond the often-generic descriptions of the historical record which pertain more to the elite than the common people. This analysis allows us a glimpse behind the texts at the varied and flexible economic practices taking place deep in the Mongolian steppe.

Horses have inhabited Iberia (present-day Spain and Portugal) since the Middle Pleistocene, shaping a complex history in the region. Iberia has been proposed as a potential domestication centre and is renowned for producing world-class bloodlines. Here, we generate genome-wide sequence data from 87 ancient horse specimens (median coverage = 0.97X) from Iberia and the broader Mediterranean to reconstruct their genetic history over the last ~26,000 years. Here, we report that wild horses of the divergent IBE lineage inhabited Iberia from the Late Pleistocene, while domesticated DOM2 horses, native from the Pontic-Caspian steppes, already arrived ~1850 BCE. Admixture dating suggests breeding practices involving continued wild restocking until at least ~350 BCE, with IBE disappearing shortly after. Patterns of genetic affinity highlight the far-reaching influence of Iberian bloodlines across Europe and north Africa during the Iron Age and Antiquity, with continued impact extending thereafter, particularly during the colonization of the Americas.

Amud and Kebara caves (northern Israel) are two broadly contemporaneous Middle Paleolithic sites dated to ca. 70–50 Ka BP, both located in the Mediterranean realm of the southern Levant. Neanderthal occupations at these sites are represented by considerable amounts of lithic artifacts, combustion features and abundant faunal material as well as human remains. As similar mammalian taxonomic distributions were observed in these two Neanderthal cave sites, we explore the complexity and diversity of their animal resources processing techniques by comparing cut-marks characteristics and patterns. A total of 344 animal bone fragments bearing cut-marks were selected from specific stratigraphic contexts from both sites, and studied using macroscopic and microscopic techniques (i.e., Focus Variation microscopy) to quantify, characterize, and measure the cut-marks left on the bones. The observations were compared across the stratigraphic units and between the sites. Despite comparable taxonomic distributions, there are notable differences in the density and layout of cut-marks between the two caves. The micro-morphometric characteristics of these marks also highlight intra- and inter-site differences and similarities. This evidence might suggest distinctive butchering strategies between the Neanderthal populations in Amud and Kebara caves despite comparable occupation intensities, similar lithic technologies, and access to similar food resources. Such discrepancies could possibly reflect inter-group cultural differences related to carcass processing preferences, organization of tasks within the group, or socially transmitted traditions.

Chemical cross-linking is frequently used in structural biology for protein stabilization and probing protein structures, often in combination with mass spectrometry (XL-MS). These applications assume that chemical cross-linking does not significantly perturb the protein structure. Here, we directly tested this assumption by monitoring the time course of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) signals from cross-linked protein samples. We investigated two common cross-linking reagents, bis(sulfosuccinimidyl)suberate (BS3) and formaldehyde (FA), with several protein systems ranging from large microtubule filaments down to globular proteins. Across all the measured protein systems, the results consistently showed that BS3 did not significantly change the protein structures, whereas FA induced rapid and substantial changes, including aggregation. Notably, the impact of FA was dose-dependent, with milder structural effects at the lower concentration of 0.1 wt %. Accompanying XL-MS analyses were consistent with the SAXS observations. Overall, the results recommend that in-solution cross-linking based on NHS ester chemistry should be preferred in structural studies over FA wherever possible. In cases where FA cross-linking is used, lowering the FA concentration is of clear importance, and SAXS could be used to verify the integrity of the structure.

Fingerprints provide indisputable forensic evidence for establishing identity. Latent fingerprints, often visualized with black magnetic powder and recovered with adhesive tape, can be matched to police databases for identification. However, determining the time since deposition (TSD) is crucial to temporally tie the fingerprints to the crime. Despite extensive efforts, no reliable method exists for determining TSD. This study presents a workflow for directly dating fingerprints using ultrafast 2-dimensional desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (DESI-MS). The fingerprints are analyzed directly from a forensic tape after development with magnetic powder. This method aims to enable dating of fingerprints collected from virtually any non-porous surface. The study involved 744 fingerprints from 330 volunteers, aged up to 15 days under various conditions. Data analysis using the XGBoost and SMOTE algorithms achieved a correlation of 0.54 (p-value < 1e−5) between TSD prediction and true TSD, achieving 83.3% accuracy in distinguishing between 0-4 days and 10–15 days old prints. Key imaging parameters, such as DESI-MS scan rate, mass range, scan area, spatial resolution, and imaging mode, were optimized to enhance age determination precision and support rapid processing within forensic workflows. This research, conducted in collaboration between police forensic units and an academic institution, integrates seamlessly into practical forensic applications.

Coral reefs are biodiversity hotspots, where new species continue to be discovered. Stylophora pistillata, a depth-generalist coral, is widely distributed throughout the Indo-Pacific and has long been considered the poster child for phenotypic plasticity. It occupies a wide range of reef habitats and exhibits a myriad of gross morphologies. Here, we used reduced representation genome sequencing (nextRAD) to assess the genetic structure of adults and recruits of S. pistillata across shallow and mesophotic populations in the northern Red Sea (Gulf of Aqaba). Across analytical approaches, we observed a complex genetic structure with at least four genetically divergent lineages occurring sympatrically with little to no admixture and structured by depth. Morphological and physiological differences previously documented suggest that the long-considered ecological opportunism of S. pistillata in the Red Sea may, in fact, have a genetic basis. Assessment of both adult colonies and recruits within each of the lineages also revealed the prevalence of local recruitment and genetic structuring across the eight-kilometer section of the Israeli Red Sea coastline. Overall, the observed patterns confirm the presence of undescribed diversity within this model organism for coral physiology and corroborate a broader pattern of extensive undescribed diversity within scleractinian corals.

Litter decomposition is expected to be positively associated with precipitation despite evidence that decomposers of varying sizes have different moisture dependencies. We hypothesized that higher tolerance of macro-decomposers to aridity may counterbalance the effect of smaller decomposers, leading to similar decomposition rates across climatic gradients. We tested this hypothesis by placing plant litter baskets of different mesh sizes in seven sites along a sharp precipitation gradient, and by characterizing the macro-decomposer assemblages using pitfall trapping. We found that decomposers responded differently to precipitation levels based on their size. Microbial decomposition increased with precipitation in the winter while macro-decomposition peaked in arid sites during the summer. This led to similar overall decomposition rates across the gradient except in hyper-arid sites. Macro-decomposer richness, abundance, and biomass peaked in arid environments. Our findings highlight the importance of macro-decomposition in arid-lands, possibly resolving the dryland decomposition conundrum, and emphasizing the need to contemplate decomposer size when investigating zoogeochemical processes.