Nucleotide and phylogenetic analysis of human papillomavirus types 6 and 11 isolated from recurrent respiratory papillomatosis in Brazil

There are few studies about the distribution of natural molecular variants of low-risk HPVs. Our aim was to evaluate the E6 early gene variability among HPV-6 and HPV-11 isolates detected in recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) samples obtained in a cohort of Brazilian patients. We also performed a phylogenetic analysis in order to compare nucleotide sequences identified in our study with previously reported isolates from different anatomic sites (laryngeal papillomas, genital warts, cervical cancer and anal swabs) obtained from other parts of the world to determine the phylogenetic relationships of variants detected in Brazil. The complete coding region of the E6 gene of 25 samples was cloned and sequenced: 18 isolates of HPV-6 (72%) and 7 isolates of HPV-11 (28%). A total of four different HPV-6 genomic variants and two HPV-11 genomic variants was identified. It was not possible to correlate specific variants with disease severity. Phylogenetic trees for both HPV types were constructed enclosing both E6 sequences detected in our study and formerly published sequences. In both phylogenetic trees, the sequences from Brazil did not group together. We could not establish a geographical association between HPV-6 or HPV-11 variants, unlike HPV-16 and HPV-18. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

Well, what about intraspecific variation? Taxonomic and phylogenetic characters in the genus Synoeca de Saussure (Hymenoptera, Vespidae)

Cely and Sarmiento (2011) took issue with the cladistic analysis of relationships among species of the genus Synoeca by Andena et al. (2009a), and presented a reanalysis. They claimed that intraspecific variation in the genus is meaningful, and proper consideration yields a conclusion different from that of Andena et al. Both their critique and reanalysis are vitiated by numerous errors, as is shown in the present paper. © 2013 Magnolia Press.

An assessment approach for application of spermatic data in phylogenetic analyses: Within the genus Moenkhausia Eigenmann, 1903 (Characiformes: Characidae)

Spermiogenesis and sperm ultrastructure from 21 species of Moenkhausia and others related genera are described. To evaluate the phylogenetic signals, 18 unordered characters were utilized in implied weighting analysis through the program TNT 1.1. Four variations of spermiogenesis were found. In the earliest spermatids, the nucleus can be positioned lateral, eccentric, strongly eccentric or nearly medial in relation to the distal centriole. The nuclear rotation can be present or absent. These spermiogenesis processes are related or intermediate to Type I and Type III. Taking into account the degrees of nuclear rotation during the spermiogenesis and other characteristics, distinct forms of spermatozoa are observed among the species analyzed. The phylogenetic analysis yielded a single most parsimonious tree with fit value 2.70000 and the topology obtained founds Moenkhausia as non-monophyletic. However, some hypothesis of relationships previously proposed viz the clade 20, which contains the type species Moenkhausia xinguensis, is recovered herein. This clade is supported by five synapomorphies, and it allows the supposition that these species constitute a monophyletic group. The whole topology is presented and discussed. © 2012 The Authors. Acta Zoologica © 2012 The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Comparative cytogenetic analysis of some species of the Dendropsophus microcephalus group (Anura, Hylidae) in the light of phylogenetic inferences

Background: Dendropsophus is a monophyletic anuran genus with a diploid number of 30 chromosomes as an important synapomorphy. However, the internal phylogenetic relationships of this genus are poorly understood. Interestingly, an intriguing interspecific variation in the telocentric chromosome number has been useful in species identification. To address certain uncertainties related to one of the species groups of Dendropsophus, the D. microcephalus group, we carried out a cytogenetic analysis combined with phylogenetic inferences based on mitochondrial sequences, which aimed to aid in the analysis of chromosomal characters. Populations of Dendropsophus nanus, Dendropsophus walfordi, Dendropsophus sanborni, Dendropsophus jimi and Dendropsophus elianeae, ranging from the extreme south to the north of Brazil, were cytogenetically compared. A mitochondrial region of the ribosomal 12S gene from these populations, as well as from 30 other species of Dendropsophus, was used for the phylogenetic inferences. Phylogenetic relationships were inferred using maximum parsimony and Bayesian analyses.Results: The species D. nanus and D. walfordi exhibited identical karyotypes (2n = 30; FN = 52), with four pairs of telocentric chromosomes and a NOR located on metacentric chromosome pair 13. In all of the phylogenetic hypotheses, the paraphyly of D. nanus and D. walfordi was inferred. D. sanborni from Botucatu-SP and Torres-RS showed the same karyotype as D. jimi, with 5 pairs of telocentric chromosomes (2n = 30; FN = 50) and a terminal NOR in the long arm of the telocentric chromosome pair 12. Despite their karyotypic similarity, these species were not found to compose a monophyletic group. Finally, the phylogenetic and cytogenetic analyses did not cluster the specimens of D. elianeae according to their geographical occurrence or recognized morphotypes.Conclusions: We suggest that a taxonomic revision of the taxa D. nanus and D. walfordi is quite necessary. We also observe that the number of telocentric chromosomes is useful to distinguish among valid species in some cases, although it is unchanged in species that are not necessarily closely related phylogenetically. Therefore, inferences based on this chromosomal character must be made with caution; a proper evolutionary analysis of the karyotypic variation in Dendropsophus depends on further characterization of the telocentric chromosomes found in this group. © 2013 Medeiros et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

Description and phylogenetic relationships of a new species of treefrog of the Dendropsophus leucophyllatus group (Anura: Hylidae) from the Amazon basin of Colombia and with an exceptional color pattern

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Introducing the biogeographic species pool

The species pool concept has played a central role in the development of ecological theory for at least 60 yr. Surprisingly, there is little consensus as to how one should define the species pool, and consequently, no systematic approach exists. Because the definition of the species pool is essential to infer the processes that shape ecological communities, there is a strong incentive to develop an ecologically realistic definition of the species pool based on repeatable and transparent analytical approaches. Recently, several methodological tools have become available to summarize repeated patterns in the geographic distribution of species, phylogenetic clades and taxonomically broad lineages. Here, we present three analytical approaches that can be used to define what we term 'the biogeographic species pool': distance-based clustering analysis, network modularity analysis, and assemblage dispersion fields. The biogeographic species pool defines the pool of potential community members in a broad sense and represents a first step towards a standardized definition of the species pool for the purpose of comparative ecological, evolutionary and biogeographic studies. © 2013 The Authors.

Biochemical, functional, structural and phylogenetic studies on Intercro, a new isoform phospholipase A2 from Crotalus durissus terrificus snake venom

Crotoxin is a neurotoxin from Crotalus durissus terrificus venom that shows immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antitumor and analgesic activities. Structurally, this toxin is a heterodimeric complex composed by a toxic basic PLA2 (Crotoxin B or CB) non-covalently linked to an atoxic non-enzymatic and acidic component (Crotapotin, Crotoxin A or CA). Several CA and CB isoforms have been isolated and characterized, showing that the crotoxin venom fraction is, in fact, a mixture of different molecules derived from the combination of distinct subunit isoforms. Intercro (IC) is a protein from the same snake venom which presents high similarity in primary structure to CB, indicating that it could be an another isoform of this toxin. In this work, we compare IC to the crotoxin complex (CA/CB) and/or CB in order to understand its functional aspects. The experiments with IC revealed that it is a new toxin with different biological activities from CB, keeping its catalytic activity but presenting low myotoxicity and absence of neurotoxic activity. The results also indicated that IC is structurally similar to CB isoforms, but probably it is not able to form a neurotoxic active complex with crotoxin A as observed for CB. Moreover, structural and phylogenetic data suggest that IC is a new toxin with possible toxic effects not related to the typical CB neurotoxin. © 2013.

Multilocus molecular phylogeny of Gasteropelecidae (Ostariophysi: Characiformes) reveals the existence of an unsuspected diversity

The characiform family Gasteropelecidae, the so-called freshwater hatchetfishes, is comprised of three genera and nine species found in Panama and all South American countries except Chile. Our goal was to investigate the molecular characteristics, phylogenetic relationships among the species and genera of Gasteropelecidae and phylogenetic relationships between the Gasteropelecidae family with other Characiformes. DNA fragments from two mitochondrial (16S rRNA and Cytochrome B) and three nuclear genes (Rag1, Rag2 and Myh6) were sequenced. Our results corroborate the morphology-based hypothesized monophyly of the Gasteropelecidae family and most of the relationships among its genera. However, the genus Gasteropelecus is polyphyletic because G. maculatus is placed as the sister group to all other gasteropelecids, whereas G. sternicla is more closely related to species of Carnegiella. Similarly, the species Carnegiella strigata is not monophyletic, which suggests that the family needs a taxonomic review. Moreover, the species Thoracocharax stellatus was composed by four distinct lineages suggesting the this species may represents a species complex. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

Similaridade ecológica em comunidades de girinos: o papel de componentes históricos (filogenéticos) e contemporâneos (ecológicos)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Evidências moleculares dos padrões evolutivos e filogeográficos de populações de Astyanax paranae (Pisces : Characidae) com base em caracteres do DNA mitocondrial

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Caracterização antigênica e genotípica de isolados do vírus rábico, de quirópteros da cidade de Botucatu-SP e região

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Diferenças moleculares entre citótipos de Mazama americana (Artiodactyla: Cervidae)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Revisão cladística-filogenética e considerações paleobiogeográficas sobre sebecosuchia (metasuchia, crocodylomorpha), do cretáceo superior ao mioceno

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Análise filogenética correlacionada com a distribuição do vírus rábico em quirópteros naturalmente infectados

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Filogenia molecular de Atta sexdens (Myrmicinae : Attini) e investigação de pseudogenes em formigas da tribo Attini

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)