Discovery and redescription of type material of Nausithoe simplex (Kirkpatrick, 1890), comb. nov (Cnidaria: Scyphozoa: Coronatae: Nausithoidae) from the North Atlantic

With discovery and examination of type specimens in the Natural History Museum, London, UK, we reassign Stephanoscyphistoma simplex (Kirkpatrick, 1890) to the genus Nausithoe Kolliker, 1853, as Nausithoe simplex, comb. nov., and designate a lectotype for the species. Use of morphometric measurements is considered important in coronate systematics, but key features also include the unique whorl of internal cusps and the shape of these cusps. All previous records of N. simplex must be re-evaluated, taking into consideration the morphology of these internal cusps.

Catalogue of the type material of Neriidae (Diptera, Schizophora) in the collection of the Museum fur Naturkunde Berlin, Germany

The Diptera collection of the Natural History Museum Berlin holds one of the most important collections of Neriidae. In this paper, the type specimens (holotypes, lectotypes, paratypes, paralectotypes, syntypes) of this historical collection are listed. 28 species-group taxa are dealt with. A lectotype designation is made for the species Brachantichir purpusianus Enderlein, 1922 in order to fix the identity of the name. Holotypes are recognized by monotypy of the species Chaetomeristes bullatus Enderlein, 1922; Chaetomeristes peruanus Enderlein, 1922; Derocephalus angusticollis Enderlein, 1922; Glyphidops limbatus Enderlein, 1922; Longina abdominalis Wiedemann, 1830; Loxozus clavicornis Enderlein, 1922; Oncopsia mexicana Enderlein, 1922; Paranerius fibulatus Enderlein, 1922; Telostylinus dahli Enderlein, 1922; Telostylus latibrachium Enderlein, 1922; and Telostylinus luridus Enderlein, 1922. Syntypes are labelled and listed for Brachantichir robusta Enderlein, 1922; Nerius terebratus Enderlein, 1922; Odontoloxozus punctulatus Enderlein, 1922; Telostylinus apicalis Enderlein, 1922; Telostylinus obscuratus Enderlein, 1922; and Telostylinus ornatipennis Enderlein, 1922. The account concludes with geographic and taxonomic summaries; an appendix listing the abbreviations, localities, and collectors cited in the text; and a bibliography. ((c) 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Longitudinal assessment of neuropathy in type 1 diabetes using novel ophthalmic markers (LANDMark) : study design and baseline characteristics

Aims Corneal nerve morphology and corneal sensation threshold have recently been explored as potential surrogate markers for the evaluation of diabetic neuropathy. We present the baseline findings of the ‘Longitudinal Assessment of Neuropathy in type 1 Diabetes using novel ophthalmic Markers’(LANDMark) study. Methods The LANDMark study is a 4-year, two-site, natural history study of three participant groups: type 1 diabetes with neuropathy (T1W), type 1 diabetes without neuropathy (T1WO) and control participants without diabetes or neuropathy. All participants undergo a detailed annual assessment of neuropathy including corneal nerve parameters measured using corneal confocal microscopy and corneal sensitivity measured using non-contact corneal aesthesiometry. Results 76 T1W, 166 T1WO and 154 control participants were enrolled into the study. Corneal sensation threshold (mbars) was significantly higher (i.e. sensitivity was lower) in T1W (1.0 ± 1.1) than T1WO (0.7 ± 0.7) and controls (0.6 ± 0.4) (p < 0.001), with no difference between T1WO and controls. Corneal nerve fibre length was lower in T1W (14.0 ± 6.4 mm/mm2) compared to T1WO (19.1 ± 5.8 mm/mm2) and controls (23.2 ± 6.3 mm/mm2) (p < 0.001). Corneal nerve fibre length was lower in T1WO compared to controls. Conclusions The LANDMark baseline findings confirm a reduction in corneal sensitivity only in Type 1 patients with neuropathy. However, corneal nerve fibre length is reduced even in Type 1 patients without neuropathy with an even greater deficit in Type 1 patients with neuropathy.

Phylogenetics, taxon delimitation and phylogenetic diversity

Throughout the history of Linnean taxonomy, species have been described with varying degrees of justification. Many descriptions have been based on only a few ambiguous morphological characters. Moreover, species have been considered natural, well-defined units whereas higher taxa have been treated as disparate, non-existent creations. In the present thesis a few such cases were studied in detail. Often the species-level descriptions were based on only a few specimens and the variation previously thought to be interspecific was found to be intraspecific. In some cases morphological characters were sufficient to resolve the evolutionary relationships between the taxa, but generally more resolution was gained by the addition of molecular evidence. However, both morphological and molecular data were found to be deceptive in some cases. The DNA sequences of morphologically similar specimens were found to differ distinctly in some cases, whereas in other closely related species the morphology of specimens with identical DNA sequences differed substantially. This study counsels caution when evolutionary relationships are being studied utilizing only one source of evidence or a very limited number of characters (e.g. barcoding). Moreover, it emphasizes the importance of high quality data as well as the utilization of proper methods when making scientific inferences. Properly conducted analyses produce robust results that can be utilized in numerous interesting ways. The present thesis considered two such extensions of systematics. A novel hypothesis on the origin of bioluminescence in Elateriformia beetles is presented, tying it to the development of the clicking mechanism in the ancestors of these animals. An entirely different type of extension of systematics is the proposed high value of the white sand forests in maintaining the diversity of beetles in the Peruvian Amazon. White sand forests are under growing pressure from human activities that lead to deforestation. They were found to harbor an extremely diverse beetle fauna and many taxa were specialists living only in this unique habitat. In comparison to the predominant clay soil forests, considerably more elateroid beetles belonging to all studied taxonomic levels (species, genus, tribus, and subfamily) were collected in white sand forests. This evolutionary diversity is hypothesized to be due to a combination of factors: (1) the forest structure, which favors the fungus-plant interactions important for the elateroid beetles, (2) the old age of the forest type favoring survival of many evolutionary lineages and (3) the widespread distribution and fragmentation of the forests in the Miocene, favoring speciation.

A long-lost relic from the eastern ghats: morphology, distribution and habitat of sepsophis punctatus Beddome, 1870 (Squamata: Scincidae)

Sepsophis punctatus Beddome 1870, the only species of a monotypic genus, was described based on a single specimen from the Eastern Ghats of India. We rediscovered the species based on specimens from Odisha and Andhra Pradesh state, India, after a gap of 137 years, including four specimens from close to the type locality. The holotype was studied in detail, and we present additional morphological characters of the species with details on natural history, habitat and diet. The morphological characters of the holotype along with two additional specimens collected by Beddome are compared with the specimens collected by us. We also briefly discuss the distribution of other members of the subfamily Scincinae and their evolutionary affinities.

The genus Pikea (Dumontiaceae, Rhodophyta) in England and the North Pacific: Comparative morphological, life history, and molecular studies

A Pikea species attributed to Pikea californica Harvey has been established in England since at least 1967. Previously, this species was believed to occur only in Japan and Pacific North America. Comparative morphological studies on field-collected material and cultured isolates from England, California, and Japan and analysis of organellar DNA restriction fragment length polymorphisms, detected using labeled organellar DNA as a non-radioactive probe, showed that English Pikea is conspecific with P. californica from California. Both populations consist of dioecious gametophytes with heteromorphic life histories involving crustose tetrasporophytes; 96% of organellar DNA bands were shared between interoceanic samples. A second dioecious species of Pikea, P. pinnata Setchell In Collins, Holden et Setchell, grows sympatrically with P. californica near San Francisco but can be distinguished by softer texture, more regular branching pattern, and elongate cystocarpic axes. Pikea pinnata and P. californica samples shared 49-50% of organellar DNA bands, consistent with their being distinct species. Herbarium specimens of P. robusta Abbott resemble P. pinnata in some morphological features but axes are much wider; P. robusta may represent a further, strictly subtidal species but fertile material is unknown. Pikea thalli from Japan, previously attributed to P. californica and described here as Pikea yoshizakii sp. nov., are monoecious and show a strikingly different type of life history. After fertilization, gonimoblast filaments grow outward through the cortex and form tetrasporangial nemathecia; released tetraspores develop directly into erect thalli. Tetrasporoblastic life histories are characteristic of certain members of the Phyllophoraceae but were previously unknown in the Dumontiaceae. Japanese P. yoshizakii shared 55 and 56% of organellar DNA bands with P. californica and P. pinnata, respectively phylogenetic analysis indicated equally distant relationships to both species. Pikea yoshizakii or a closely similar species with the same life history occurs in southern California and Mexico.

Abundance and ecologic distribution of the shrimp Rimapenaeus constrictus (Crustacea : Penaeidae) on the northern coast of São Paulo State, Brazil

The abundance and ecologic distribution of the shrimp R. constrictus were compared among three different embayments within the northern coast of São Paulo State (23degreesS, 45degreesW); i.e. Mar Virado (MV), Ubatuba (UBA) and Ubatumirim (UBM). Key environmental factors were monitored for a better understanding of the distributional patterns of this species, namely temperature, salinity, depth, organic matter content and texture of sediments. In each bay, six transects were delimited, four parallel to the coastline and the other two in areas adjacent to rocky shores. Monthly samples were taken over a 2-year period (1998 and 1999), using a shrimp fishing boat equipped with double-rig nets. Abundance data were treated separately according to environmental characteristics. A total of 4978 specimens was obtained; 921 at MV, 1948 at UBA and 2109 at UBM. The spatial distribution of R. constrictus differed among bays. Higher abundance values were recorded at areas where silt and clay comprised less than 70% of the sediment. A more diversified sediment at UBM and UBA apparently favours the establishment of this species in the region. Its abundance also followed a seasonal trend, higher during spring and summer when intrusions of cold South Atlantic Coastal Waters (SACW) are frequent, promoting the migration of this shrimp to more sheltered areas. These results suggest that sediment type and temperature are the most important variables affecting the spatial and seasonal distribution of this species.

On the synonymy between Paraponychus corderoi (Baker & Pritchard, 1962) and P. incanus Gonzalez & Flechtmann, 1977 (Acari, Tetranychidae)

In this paper we propose a new synonymy between P. corderoi (Baker & Pritchard, 1962) and P. incanus Gonzalez & Flechtmann, 1977, based on the examination of type-specimens.

Serum titres of anti-glutamic acid decarboxylase-65 and anti-IA-2 autoantibodies are associated with different immunoregulatory milieu in newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes patients

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

Rediscovery and re-description of Ischnocnema nigriventris (Lutz, 1925) (Anura: Terrarana: Brachycephalidae)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

História natural das serpentes dos gêneros Echinanthera e Taeniophallus (Echinantherini)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Serpentes da Caatinga: diversidade, história natural, biogeografia e conservação

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

Composição, ecologia e história natural das serpentes de uma região de transição Amazônia - Cerrado, Mato grosso, Brasil

Este trabalho foi feito em formato de artigo de acordo com as normas da revista Biota Neotropica, foi desenvolvido na Fazenda Tanguro, localizada em uma região de transição Amazônia - Cerrado, município de Querência/ MT, com o objetivo de estudar a composição e história natural da comunidade de serpentes encontrada na região. Foram realizadas seis expedições a área de estudo, que resultaram no registro de 203 espécimes (194 capturas), distribuídos em 34 espécies, 26 gêneros e 8 famílias. Uma Estimativa baseada na incidência de espécies raras (Jackknife 1) indicou uma riqueza total de 38 espécies na área. As espécies mais abundantes foram Caudisona durissa (N=50), Philodryas olfersii (N=15), Philodryas nattereri (N=13), Xenodon rabdocephalus (N=12), Lachesis muta (N=10) e Liophis almadensis (N=10). Uma análise de Coordenadas Principais (PCO) demonstrou que as taxocenoses se sobrepõem, revelando uma tendência para a formação de três grupos distintos: taxocenoses amazônicas, Cerrado e Mata Atlântica. A composição de espécies na fazenda Tanguro apresentou-se intermediária em relação aos agrupamentos formados por espécies Amazônicas e de Cerrado, ocorrendo espécies tanto com ampla distribuição, como endêmicas dos biomas Cerrado ou Amazônico. O padrão de utilização de habitat da taxocenose é terrícola, seguido de semi-arboricolas e fossorial. Há predominância de espécies de serpentes generalistas quanto a alimentação. Na análise de agrupamentos ecológicos, foram observados quatro grupos funcionais, mostrando que a complexidade da taxocenose é explicada tanto por fatores ecológicos como históricos.

História natural e ecologia das serpentes da Floresta Nacional de Caxiuanã e áreas adjacentes, Pará, Brasil

A busca por padrões de estrutura e composição das comunidades é essencial para prover informações que permitam o manejo sustentado de populações e monitoramento de atividades antrópicas. Na região neotropical, onde ocorre grande riqueza de espécies e complexas relações ecológicas entre elas, estudos envolvendo ofidiofauna ainda são escassos, o que faz com que o entendimento dos processos responsáveis pela estruturação de suas comunidades ainda seja incipiente. No Brasil, vários trabalhos foram desenvolvidos na tentativa de explicitar os fenômenos responsáveis pelos padrões de ocorrência e interações das espécies de serpentes. Objetivando esclarecer quais os fatores que determinam os padrões observados e que afinidades (ecológicas e/ou históricas) as espécies compartilham, foi realizado estudo da taxocenose de serpentes da FLONA de Caxiuanã e áreas adjacentes, durante os anos de 2005 e 2006. Utilizou-se conjuntamente quatro métodos de amostragem (Procura Limitada por Tempo-PLT, Encontros Ocasionais-EO, Armadilhas de Interceptação e Queda-AIQ e Coletas por Terceiros-CT), em cinco áreas (IBAMA e Caquajó, no interior da FLONA de Caxiuanã; Enseada e dois pontos com influência antrópica: Marinaú e Mojuá, estando esses três últimos localizados em áreas adjacentes à FLONA. Foram registrados 378 espécimes distribuídos em cinco famílias, 35 gêneros e 50 espécies. Com os novos registros obtidos nesse estudo, o número de espécies de serpentes para a FLONA de Caxiuanã e áreas adjacentes passa de 63 para 69. Os métodos que apresentaram melhor desempenho em número de indivíduos foram PLT (199/378) e CT (159/378). EO (11/378) e AIQ (9/378) foram os métodos menos eficazes. A riqueza estimada (Jackknife 1), a partir de dados obtidos através de PLT, foi de 56 (+ ou – 4) espécies. O número de espécies estimado para as áreas preservadas foi maior que para áreas antropizadas. A composição das espécies de serpentes da área estudada apresentou maior similaridade com outras taxocenoses de áreas amazônicas. As espécies mais abundantes, acessadas através de PLT, foram Imantodes cenchoa, Corallus hortulanus e Leptodeira annulata. Quando todos os métodos foram considerados, Bothrops atrox, Imantodes cenchoa e Corallus hortulanus foram as espécies mais representadas. As áreas mais antropizadas, localizadas fora da FLONA (Marinaú e Mojuá), apresentaram menores abundância e riqueza de espécies em comparação com áreas protegidas, localizadas no interior da FLONA. Nove espécies foram consideradas potencialmente especialistas: Lachesis muta (pequenos mamíferos), Atractus schach (minhocas), Dipsas catesbyi (moluscos - lesmas), Helicops trivitatus e Hydrops triangularis (peixes), Siphlophis compressus (lagartos), Xenopholis scalaris, Taeniophallus brevirostris (anfíbios anuros) e Tantilla melanocephala (centopéias). Os itens mais acessados foram “lagartos”, “anfíbios anuros” e “pequenos mamíferos”. Serpentes com hábitos primária ou exclusivamente diurnas prevaleceram na comunidade analisada. A ausência de sazonalidade reprodutiva foi característica da maioria das espécies e isso se deve, muito provavelmente, à pouca diferença na temperatura ao longo do ano. A taxocenose de serpentes da FLONA de Caxiuanã e áreas adjacentes está, basicamente, formada por grupos contendo espécies onde, em geral, hábitos diários e de dieta estão sobrepostos. Além dos diversos fatores ecológicos, também fatores históricos, como adaptações morfológicas das espécies, têm grande influência na composição da taxocenose analisada. A grande dificuldade na realização de estudos de comunidades de serpentes está na escassez de dados das espécies, portanto torna-se imperioso que estudos de Ecologia e História Natural continuem sendo exaustivamente conduzidos em uma mesma localidade, objetivando a elucidação dos padrões de respostas aos diversos fatores relacionados à existência das espécies nos diferentes biomas.

Determinants of baseline seroreactivity to human papillomavirus type 16 in the Ludwig-McGill cohort study

Background: Immunity plays an important role in controlling human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and associated lesions. Unlike infections caused by other viruses, natural HPV infection does not always result in a protective antibody response. Therefore, HPV antibodies are also considered markers of cumulative exposure. The aim of this study was to identify determinants of HPV16 seroreactivity at enrollment among women from the Ludwig-McGill cohort, a natural history study of HPV infection and risk of cervical neoplasia.Methods: HPV16 serology was assessed by ELISA for L1 and L2 capsid antigens, while HPV typing and viral load measurements were performed by PCR-based methods. The associations were analyzed by unconditional logistic regression.Results: Of 2049 subjects, 425 (20.7%) were strongly seropositive for HPV16. In multivariate analysis, seroreactivity was positively correlated with age, lifetime number of sexual partners, frequency of sex, and HPV16 viral load, and negatively associated with duration of smoking.Conclusions: HPV16 seroreactivity is determined by factors that reflect viral exposure.