Earliest Probable Case of Mueller-Weiss Disease From Ancient Egypt.

Mueller-Weiss disease is an alteration of the tarsal navicular that is primarily due to anomalous ossification of the bone and lateral deviation of the talar head associated with screw-like movement through the axis of the subtalar joint. This syndrome tends to be associated with various degrees of flatfoot and hindfoot valgus combined with subtalar joint varus. Ancient cases of Mueller-Weiss disease have not been described in specialized literature. We present the case of an adult male from the Hellenistic period (Ptolemaic dynasty; fourth to first century BC), the skeleton for which was found inside a sarcophagus in the archaeological site of Sharuna (middle Egypt) with Mueller-Weiss disease. The specimen is, in all likelihood, the earliest case of this type of foot pathology in the archaeological record.

Influence of the submarine volcanic eruption off El Hierro (Canary Islands) on the mesopelagic cephalopod's metal content.

This work investigates whether a submarine volcanic eruption off El Hierro (Canary Islands) in October 2011 influenced the metal contents of two deep water cephalopod species: Abraliopsis morisii and Pyroteuthis margaritifera. This was assessed by comparing metal contents in specimens collected off the island of El Hierro and in the neighbouring islands of La Palma and Tenerife during an experimental deep water fishing trip. The concentration of 20 heavy metals was analyzed in 180 specimens of A. morisii and P. margaritifera collected around the three islands to test for inter-island differences for each species and metal. While both species showed geographical differences in metal concentrations, the main finding was that A. morisii could be a bioindicator species for metals such as Li, Sr and Ca.