Plumage variability and taxonomy of the Capped Seedeater Sporophila bouvreuil (Aves: Passeriformes: Emberizidae)

The species Sporophila bouvreuil comprises four subspecies: S. b. bouvreuil, S. b. pileata, S. b. saturata and S. b. crypta. The males of each subspecies differ in plumage whereas the females and juveniles are very similar and difficult to identify to subspecies. Here we use external morphological characters, mostly plumage, to examine the validity of the subspecies. A total of 209 specimens was examined (131 S. b. bouvreuil, 29 S. b. crypta, 43 S. b. pileata and 6 S. b. saturata). Although morphological measurements did not separate any taxa, plumage patterns support recognition of two taxonomic units, one of birds having reddish brown male plumage and the other of birds with grayish to white male plumage. Discrete diagnostic characters and sympatry in SE Brazil allow separation of Sporophila pileata (Sclater 1864) from S. bouvreuil (Muller 1776). On the other hand, S. b. saturata Hellmayr 1904 and S. b. crypta Sick 1968 should be considered synonyms of S. bouvreuil.

Taxonomy of ""Mouse-colored Tapaculos"". I. On the application of the name Malacorhynchus speluncae Menetries, 1835 (Aves: Passeriformes: Rhinocryptidae)

The type specimen of Malacorhynchus speluncae was described and illustrated as being ""mouse gray with a bluish luster"" on the upperparts and as having a ""lighter color on the lower side of the body"" which ""becomes whitish towards the middle of the throat and breast"". It represents a taxon presently placed in the genus Scytalopus. Since 1907, the name Scytalopus speluncae has been attributed to the predominantly dark-gray species from the southeastern coastal Brazilian mountains. Recently, it was suggested that the name S. speluncae should be applied to a species that is light-gray with whitish belly and extensive barring on the flanks and that occurs predominantly in the Espinhaco Range, Minas Gerais state, to the west of the range of the dark-gray taxon. As a consequence, the dark-gray species, presumably without any available name, was described as a new species, S. notorius. However, on the basis of a critical analysis of the available information on the type specimen of S. speluncae, including the original description and illustration (Menetries 1835), and our examination of large series of museum specimens, we demonstrate that the type of S. speluncae falls within the known plumage variation of the dark-gray species and that it does not show the diagnostic characters of the light-gray form. Thus, we propose that the name S. speluncae be applied only to the dark-gray species. Consequently, S. notorius must be regarded a junior-synonym of S. speluncae. Because of problems related to the exact collecting sites of Menetries, and taking into consideration the distribution of the dark-gray species, we suggest ""Serra dos Orgaos"", in Rio de Janeiro state, as the type-locality of S. speluncae.

TAXONOMY OF THE SOUTH AMERICAN DWARF BOAS OF THE GENUS TROPIDOPHIS BIBRON, 1840, WITH THE DESCRIPTION OF TWO NEW SPECIES FROM THE ATLANTIC FOREST (SERPENTES: TROPIDOPHIIDAE)

A taxonomic study on the South American dwarf boas of the genus Tropidophis revealed the existence of two new species in the Atlantic Forest bionic. As a result, we recognize five mainland species, three in the Atlantic Forest and two in northwestern South America. Based on general distribution and morphological orientation, the type locality of T. paucisquamis is restricted to Estacao Biologica de Boraceia (EBB), municipality of Salesopolis, state of Sao Paulo, Brazil; furthermore, a lectotype for T. taczanowskyi is designated. We provide data on the hemipenial morphology of two South American Tropidophis, showing that the quadrifurcate condition described for West Indian taxa also occurs in mainland congeners. The distributions of the three Atlantic Forest species are congruent with patterns of diversification of other vertebrate taxa associated with cold climates prevalent at high elevations. Refugial isolation and riverine barriers may account for such speciation events.

New species of Pseudanos Winterbottom, 1980 (Characiformes: Anostomidae), with notes on the taxonomy of P. gracilis and P. trimaculatus

A new species of Pseudanos (Characiformes, Anostomidae) is described from the Rio Negro in Brazil, and the Rio Casiquiare and Rio Atabapo, in Venezuela. Specimens of the new species were previously mistakenly identified as Pseudanos gracilis. The new species is diagnosed by having three branchiostegal rays (vs. four in P. gracilis and most specimens of P. winterbottomi), dark transversal bars on dorsum absent (vs. present in P. trimaculatus), dark spots present on the center of each body scale, forming conspicuous, straight dark lines (vs. dark spots absent in P. gracilis and in some specimens of P. trimaculatus), four midlateral dark blotches on body (vs. usually two, sometimes three or four in P. trimaculatus, or body lacking midlateral blotches and presenting instead a broad midlateral stripe in P. winterbottomi), angle of dorsal and ventralmost radii of body scales between 40 degrees and 90 degrees (vs. angle between 110 degrees and 180 degrees in P. gracilis and P. trimaculatus), and cranial fontanel opened along its entire length (vs. cranial fontanel partially closed in P. trimaculatus). Type specimens and extensive additional material of Pseudanos gracilis and P. trimaculatus were examined and comments on the taxonomy of both species are provided. Pseudanos irinae is herein considered a junior synonym of P. trimaculatus. In addition, an updated key to identification of valid species of Pseudanos is presented.

Phylogenetic identification of marine bacteria isolated from deep-sea sediments of the eastern South Atlantic Ocean

The deep-sea environments of the South Atlantic Ocean are less studied in comparison to the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. With the aim of identifying the deep-sea bacteria in this less known ocean, 70 strains were isolated from eight sediment samples (depth range between 1905 to 5560 m) collected in the eastern part of the South Atlantic, from the equatorial region to the Cape Abyssal Plain, using three different culture media. The strains were classified into three phylogenetic groups, Gammaproteobacteria, Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, by the analysis of 16s rRNA gene sequences. Gammaproteobacteria and Firmicutes were the most frequently identified groups, with Halomonas the most frequent genus among the strains. Microorganisms belonging to Firmicutes were the only ones observed in all samples. Sixteen of the 41 identified operational taxonomic units probably represent new species. The presence of potentially new species reinforces the need for new studies in the deep-sea environments of the South Atlantic.

Molecular phylogeny, morphology and their implications for the taxonomy of Eriocaulaceae

The pantropical family Eriocaulaceae includes ten genera and c. 1,400 species, with diversity concentrated in the New World. The last complete revision of the family was published more than 100 years ago, and until recently the generic and infrageneric relationships were poorly resolved. However, a multi-disciplinary approach over the last 30 years, using morphological and anatomical characters, has been supplemented with additional data from palynology, chemistry, embryology, population genetics, cytology and, more recently, molecular phylogenetic studies. This led to a reassessment of phylogenetic relationships within the family. In this paper we present new data for the ITS and trnL-F regions, analysed separately and in combination, using maximum parsimony and Bayesian inference. The data confirm previous results, and show that many characters traditionally used for differentiating and circumscribing the genera within the family are homoplasious. A new generic key with characters from various sources and reflecting the current taxonomic changes is presented.

Evaluation of rhamnolipid and surfactin to reduce the adhesion and remove biofilms of individual and mixed cultures of food pathogenic bacteria

Biofilms represent a great concern for food industry, since they can be a source of persistent contamination leading to food spoilage and to the transmission of diseases. To avoid the adhesion of bacteria and the formation of biofilms, an alternative is the pre-conditioning of surfaces using biosurfactants, microbial compounds that can modify the physicochemical properties of surfaces changing bacterial interactions and consequently adhesion. Different concentrations of the biosurfactants, surfactin from Bacillus subtilis and rhamnolipids from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, were evaluated to reduce the adhesion and to disrupt biofilms of food-borne pathogenic bacteria. Individual cultures and mixed cultures of Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella Enteritidis were studied using polystyrene as the model surface. The pre-conditioning with surfactin 0.25% reduced by 42.0% the adhesion of L monocytogenes and S. Enteritidis, whereas the treatment using rhamnolipids 1.0% reduced by 57.8% adhesion of L monocytogenes and by 67.8% adhesion of S. aureus to polystyrene.Biosurfactants were less effective to avoid adhesion of mixed cultures of the bacteria when compared with individual cultures. After 2 h contact with surfactin at 0.1% concentration, the pre-formed biofilms of S. aureus were reduced by 63.7%, L. monocytogenesby 95.9%, S. Enteritidis by 35.5% and the mixed culture biofilm by 58.5%. The rhamnolipids at 0.25% concentration removed 58.5% the biofilm of S. aureus, 26.5% of L monocytogenes, 23.0% of S. Enteritidis and 24.0% the mixed culture after 2 h contact. In general, the increase in concentration of biosurfactants and in the time of contact decreased biofilm removal percentage. These results suggest that surfactin and rhamnolipids can be explored to control the attachment and to disrupt biofilms of individual and mixed cultures of the food-borne pathogens. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Diversity of Polyketide Synthase Genes from Sugarcane-Derived Fungi

The chemical ecology and biotechnological potential of metabolites from endophytic and rhizosphere fungi are receiving much attention. A collection of 17 sugarcane-derived fungi were identified and assessed by PCR for the presence of polyketide synthase (PKS) genes. The fungi were all various genera of ascomycetes, the genomes of which encoded 36 putative PKS sequences, 26 shared sequence homology with beta-ketoacyl synthase domains, while 10 sequences showed homology to known fungal C-methyltransferase domains. A neighbour-joining phylogenetic analysis of the translated sequences could group the domains into previously established chemistry-based clades that represented non-reducing, partially reducing and highly reducing fungal PKSs. We observed that, in many cases, the membership of each clade also reflected the taxonomy of the fungal isolates. The functional assignment of the domains was further confirmed by in silico secondary and tertiary protein structure predictions. This genome mining study reveals, for the first time, the genetic potential of specific taxonomic groups of sugarcane-derived fungi to produce specific types of polyketides. Future work will focus on isolating these compounds with a view to understanding their chemical ecology and likely biotechnological potential.

GENETIC VARIABILITY OF SUGARCANE-ASSOCIATED DIAZOTROPHIC BACTERIA CAPABLE OF INORGANIC PHOSPHATE SOLUBILIZING

The sugarcane is a culture of great importance for the Brazilian agriculture. Every year this culture consumes great amounts of nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers. However, the use of plant growth-promoting bacteria can reduce the use of the chemical fertilizers, contributing to the economy and the environment conservation. So, the goal of this study was to select sugarcane-associated diazotrophic bacteria able to solubilize inorganic phosphate and to evaluate the genetic diversity of these bacteria. A total of 68 diazotrophic bacteria, leaf and root endophytic and rizoplane, of three sugarcane varieties. The selection of inorganic phosphate solubilizing diazotrophic bacteria was assayed by the solubilization index (SI) in solid medium containing insoluble phosphate. The genetic variability was analyzed by the BOX-PCR technique. The results showed that 74% of the diazotrophic strains were able to solubilize inorganic phosphate, presenting classes of different SI. The results showed that the vegetal tissue and the genotype plant influenced in the interaction between phosphate solubilizing diazotrophic bacteria and sugarcane plants. BOX-PCR revealed high genetic variability among the strains analyzed. So, sugarcane-associated diazotrophic bacteria express the capacity to solubilize inorganic phosphate and they present high genetic diversity.

Identification of bacteria in drinking and purified water during the monitoring of a typical water purification system

Abstract Background A typical purification system that provides purified water which meets ionic and organic chemical standards, must be protected from microbial proliferation to minimize cross-contamination for use in cleaning and preparations in pharmaceutical industries and in health environments. Methodology Samples of water were taken directly from the public distribution water tank at twelve different stages of a typical purification system were analyzed for the identification of isolated bacteria. Two miniature kits were used: (i) identification system (api 20 NE, Bio-Mérieux) for non-enteric and non-fermenting gram-negative rods; and (ii) identification system (BBL crystal, Becton and Dickson) for enteric and non-fermenting gram-negative rods. The efficiency of the chemical sanitizers used in the stages of the system, over the isolated and identified bacteria in the sampling water, was evaluated by the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method. Results The 78 isolated colonies were identified as the following bacteria genera: Pseudomonas, Flavobacterium and Acinetobacter. According to the miniature kits used in the identification, there was a prevalence of isolation of P. aeruginosa 32.05%, P. picketti (Ralstonia picketti) 23.08%, P. vesiculares 12.82%,P. diminuta 11.54%, F. aureum 6.42%, P. fluorescens 5.13%, A. lwoffi 2.56%, P. putida 2.56%, P. alcaligenes 1.28%, P. paucimobilis 1.28%, and F. multivorum 1.28%. Conclusions We found that research was required for the identification of gram-negative non-fermenting bacteria, which were isolated from drinking water and water purification systems, since Pseudomonas genera represents opportunistic pathogens which disperse and adhere easily to surfaces, forming a biofilm which interferes with the cleaning and disinfection procedures in hospital and industrial environments.

Urediospores of rust fungi are ice nucleation active at > -10°C and harbor ice nucleation active bacteria

Various features of the biology of the rust fungi and of the epidemiology of the plant diseases they cause illustrate the important role of rainfall in their life history. Based on this insight we have characterized the ice nucleation activity (INA) of the aerially disseminated spores (urediospores) of this group of fungi. Urediospores of this obligate plant parasite were collected from natural infections of 7 species of weeds in France, from coffee in Brazil and from field and greenhouse-grown wheat in France, the USA, Turkey and Syria. Immersion freezing was used to determine freezing onset temperatures and the abundance of ice nuclei in suspensions of washed spores. Microbiological analyses of spores from France, the USA and Brazil, and subsequent tests of the ice nucleation activity of the bacteria associated with spores were deployed to quantify the contribution of bacteria to the ice nucleation activity of the spores. All samples of spores were ice nucleation active, having freezing onset temperatures as high as −4 °C. Spores in most of the samples carried cells of ice nucleation-active strains of the bacterium Pseudomonas syringae (at rates of less than 1 bacterial cell per 100 urediospores), but bacterial INA accounted for only a small fraction of the INA observed in spore suspensions. Changes in the INA of spore suspensions after treatment with lysozyme suggest that the INA of urediospores involves a polysaccharide. Based on data from the literature, we have estimated the concentrations of urediospores in air at cloud height and in rainfall. These quantities are very similar to those reported for other biological ice nucleators in these same substrates. However, at cloud level convective activity leads to widely varying concentrations of particles of surface origin, so that mean concentrations can underestimate their possible effects on clouds. We propose that spatial and temporal concentrations of biological ice nucleators active at temperatures > −10 °C and the specific conditions under which they can influence cloud glaciation need to be further evaluated so as to understand how evolutionary processes could have positively selected for INA.

Revision of the fungus-growing ant genera Mycetophylax Emery and Paramycetophylax Kusnezov rev. stat., and description of Kalathomyrmex n. gen. (Formicidae: Myrmicinae: Attini)

Based on the morphology of workers, gynes and males, we revise the taxonomy of nominal taxa traditionally included by authors in the fungus-growing ant genus Mycetophylax. Our results indicate that Mycetophylax Emery (Myrmicocrypta brittoni Wheeler, 1907, type species, by designation of Emery, 1913; junior synonym of Cyphomyrmex conformis Mayr, 1884 by Kempf, 1962) includes M. conformis, M. simplex (Emery, 1888), and M. morschi (Emery, 1888) new combination (formerly in Cyphomyrmex), with several synonymies. Mycetophylax bruchi (Santschi, 1916) does not belong to the same genus and is diagnosed, in addition to other characters, by a psammophore arising at the anterior margin of the clypeus. For this species we are resurrecting from synonymy Paramycetophylax Kusnezov, 1956 (Mycetophylax bruchi as type species, by original designation, with M. cristulatus as its new synonym). Myrmicocrypta emeryi Forel, 1907 is the only attine in which females lack the median clypeal seta and have the antennal insertion areas very much enlarged and anteriorly produced, with the psammophore setae arising from the middle of the clypeus and not at its anterior margin as in Paramycetophylax. Notwithstanding its inclusion in Mycetophylax by recent authors, it is here recognized as belonging to a hitherto undescribed, thus far monotypic genus, Kalathomyrmex new genus (Myrmicocrypta emeryi as its type species, here designated). We redescribe workers, gynes and males of all species in the three genera and describe for the first time gynes of Mycetophylax conformis and M. simplex, males of M. simplex and M. morschi, and gynes of P. bruchi. Furthermore we present a key to the workers of the taxa treated here (most formerly included under the name Mycetophylax), a key to workers of the Mycetophylax in the revised sense, SEM pictures and high resolution AutoMontage(C) photographs of the species, along with maps of collection records and a summary of biological observations.

Anatomical description of Solen cf. exiguus DUNKER from Thailand (Bivalvia: Solenidae)

An anatomical description of the solenid Solen cf. exiguus DUNKER 1862, collected in the Gulf of Thailand, is provided. The anatomical features include high antero-posterior elongation; mantle lobes widely fused with each other; powerful pallial muscles; fused siphons with capacity of autotomy; wide and partially hollow foot; complete separation between gastric style sac and adjacent portion of intestine; all possible common characters of the family. Some so far exclusive attributes include short anterior pallial tentacles; pair of muscular valves at base of siphons; and arrangement of tentacles at siphonal tip. A short discussion on the taxonomy of the Solen exiguus/leanus complex is also included.

A new species of Leptodactylus (Anura : Leptodactylidae) from the Atlantic forest of Sao Paulo State, Brazil

A new species of Leptodactylus from Bertioga municipality, Sao Paulo State, Brazil is described. Leptodactylus ajurauna sp. nov. differs from others species in the L. marmoratus group by its dark brown throat and the advertisement call. The taxonomy of other species in the group and the status of the population of Leptodactylus marmoratus sympatric with the new species are discussed. The advertisement call is also described.

Systematics of the Jaguar catfish genus Liosomadoras Fowler, 1940 (Auchenipteridae: Siluriformes)

Liosomadoras Fowler, 1940 includes two nominal species: L. oncinus, described from the rio Negro in Brazil, and L. morrowi described from the Peruvian Amazon. Both species are known from only few specimens deposited in fish collections, and information on these fishes is scarce. In order to rectify this situation, diagnoses of the genus and its species and an osteological description off.. oncinus are presented based on recently collected specimens. In addition, the taxonomy of the species of Liosomadoras is reviewed, and L. morrowi is confirmed as distinct from L. oncinus, and also distributed in the Brazilian Amazon. Liosomadoras is hypothesized as a relatively basal genus within Auchenipterinae, sister to all other species of the group, except Asterophysus batrachus and Tocantinsia piresi.