Dioon califanoi (Zamiaceae), a new species from Mexico

A new Mexican species ofDioon has been found in Oaxaca,Dioon califanoi, characterized by keeled fronds and leaflets inserted obliquely above the rachis. A key to the known species ofDioon is given.     

Sexual dimorphism found in teeth of three species of moray eels

Sexual dimorphism was found in the number of teeth on the jaws ofGymnothorax richardsoni and in the shape of teeth ofEchidna nebulosa andE. polyzona. Males ofG. richardsoni have fewer teeth than females. Males of two species ofEchidna have sharper teeth than females.     

Characterization ofGandalf,a new inverted-repeat transposable element ofDrosophila koepferae

The cloning and characterization ofGandalf, a new DNA-transposing mobile element obtained from theDrosophila koepferae (repleta group) genome is described. A fragment ofGandalf was found in a middle repetitive clone that shows variable chromosomal localization. Restriction, Southern blot, PCR and sequencing analyses have shown that mostGandalf copies are about 1 kb long, are flanked by 12 by inverted terminal repeats and contain subterminal repetitive regions on both sides of the element. As with other elements of the DNA-transposing type (known as the ‘Ac family’), theGandalf element generates 8 by direct duplications at the insertion point. Coding region analysis has shown that the longer open reading frame found inGandalf copies could encode part of a protein. However, whether or not the 1 kb copies of the element are actually the active transposons remains to be elucidated.Gandalf shows a very low copy number inD. buzzatii, a sibling species ofD. koepferae. An attempt to induce interspecific hybrid dysgenesis in hybrids of these two species has been unsuccessful.     

A new species of Pinguicula from Mexico (Lentibulariaceae)

A new species ofPinguicula from Mexico,P. sharpii, is described. It belongs in SubgenusIsoloba, SectionIsoloba, as defined in Casper’s monograph of the genusPinguicula (1966a). The somatic chromosome number ofPinguicula sharpii is2n = 16, which is diploid. The basic chromosome numberx = 8 is found in many members of SubgenusIsoloba ofPinguicula, while that ofx = 11 is also found in some members of the subgenus.     

Maranthes (Chrysobalanaceae), a new generic record for America

Maranthes, a genus well known in Africa and Asia, has not been recorded previously in the New World.Couepia panamensis, thought to be endemic to Panama, was found to be synonymous withMaranthes corymbosa, a widespread Asiatic species, and it is reduced into synonymy, making the first American record ofMaranthes. The relationship ofMaranthes toCouepia, and the unusual distribution ofM. corymbosa are discussed.     

A taxonomic study of the genusCalamagrostis on Mount Yakeishidake

Populations of seven species ofCalamagrostis growing on Mt. Yakeishidake were studied from a viewpoint of taxonomy. Four of them (C. sesquifolia, C. fauriei, C. matsumurae, C. gigas) were composed of tetraploid plants with 2n=28 and high pollen fertility.C. matsumurae andC. gigas had sympatric contacts, but no sign of their hybridization could be detected. The population ofC. sachalinensis on this mountain included hexaploids (2n=42) and octoploids (2n=56), and no obvious morphological or ecological differences could be found between them. The population ofC. sachalinensis was estimated to include various ecological races which may be continuously graded. InC. langsdorffi, only octoploid plants were found. Plants with 2n=56+0?1B were found in the population ofC. hakonensis. The pollen features of the collections ofC. langsdorffii, C. sachalinesis andC. hakonensis showed that apomictic seed formation may be more or less developed in them. Populations of these species on Mt. Yakeishidake were clearly separated morphologically. It was concluded that the populations of the seven species examined each have a unity and that strains ofC. langsdorffii, C. sachalinensis andC. hakonensis found on Mt. Yakeishidake are confined to those of a derived type.     

Host specificity ofPareuchaetes insulata (Lep.: Arctiidae), a biological control agent forChromolaena odorata (Compositae)

Larvae of the arctiid moth,Pareuchaetes insulata, from Florida fed on the leaves ofChromolaena odorata, a serious composite, alien weed in Natal, South Africa. In starvation test trials using 48 plant species,P. insulata completed its development onC. odorata andAgeratum houstonianum. Subsequent attempts to cultureP. insulata on these two plants was only successful onC. odorata. The biology ofP. insulata is similar to that of two other well studiedPareuchaetes species namelyP. pseudoinsulata andP. aurata aurata. Repeated defoliation ofC. odorata byP. insulata could contribute to its control as has been found withP. pseudoinsulata in Guam.Pareuchaetes insulata has been approved for release as a biological control agent ofC. odorata in South Africa.     

Phenology, population trend and natural enemies ofAleurothrixus floccosus (Hom.: Aleyrodidae) at a newly invaded area in Athens, Greece

Aleurothrixus floccosus (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) first invaded eastern urban areas of Athens, Greece, in May 1991. At Zographou, Athens, in 1992–1994, most overwinteringA. floccosus nymphs were of the 3rd and 4th instars, and pupae; during other periods of the year, all developmental instars were found, at fluctuating rates. In 1993, peaks in the numbers of eggs laid coinciding with sharp increases in percentage of 1st instar nymphs found permitted the distinction of 6 overlapping generations. High densities ofA. floccosus infesting citrus in autumn 1992, in the range of 9.1–10.9 nymphs/cm² leaf surface, were brought under control by autumn 1993, with maximum densities of 1.1–1.7 nymphs/cm². This reduction is attributed mostly to the action of the introduced parasitoidCales noacki (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae), released 3 km from Zographou in 1992 and at Zographou itself in 1993. No indigenous parasitoid was ever found parasitizingA. floccosus. The first record ofClitostethus arcuatus (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) in Greece is reported. In summer 1992, eggs larvae and adults ofC. arcuatus were noticed on citrus leaves infested withA. floccosus at Zographou. From 1992 to 1994, the adults were often detected in field samplings and on yellow sticky traps. C. arcuatus adults and larvae were successfully reared, under optimal laboratory conditions, on eggs and early-instar nymphs ofA. floccosus and on eggs ofAnagasta kuehniella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), but the adults did not reproduce.     

A multicopy suppressor ofnin1-1 of the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae is a counterpart of theDrosophila melanogaster diphenol oxidase A2 gene,Dox-A2

NIN1 is an essential gene for growth of the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae and was recently found to encode a component of the regulatory subunit of the 26S proteasome. Thenin1-1 mutant is temperature sensitive and its main defect is in G₁/S progression and G₂/M progression at non-permissive temperatures. One of the two multicopy suppressors ofnin1-1, SUN2 (SUppressor of Nin1-1), was found to encode a protein of 523 amino acids whose sequence is similar to those ofDrosophila melanogaster diphenol oxidase A2 and the mouse mast-cell Tum^? transplantation antigen, P91A. The C-terminal half of Sun2p was found to be functional as Sun2p at 25° C, 30° C, and 34° C but not at 37° C. The open reading frame (ORF) of theDrosophila diphenol oxidase A2 gene (Dox-A2) was obtained from a lambda phage cDNA library using the polymerase chain reaction technique. TheDox-A2 ORF driven by theTDH3 promoter complemented the phenotype of a strain deleted forsun2. ThisDox-A2-dependent strain was temperature sensitive and accumulated dumb-bell-shaped cells, with an undivided nucleus at the isthmus, after temperature upshift. This morphology is similar to that ofnin1-1 cells kept at a restrictive temperature. These results suggest thatSUN2 is a functional counterpart ofDox-A2 and that these genes play a pivotal role in the cell cycle in each organism.     

Cloning and expression of a mannanase gene fromErwinia carotovora CXJZ95-198

A gene encoding a mannanase (ManA) was cloned from the genomic library ofErwinia carotovora CXJZ95-198 and expressed inEscherichia coli cells. A 1783 bp DNA fragment containing amanA gene was sequenced. An open reading frame (ORF) of 1137 bp encoded a protein of 378 amino acids. The expressed enzyme had a molecular mass of approximately 42 KD determined by SDS-PAGE. The optimal pH and temperature for the expressed enzyme was 7.5 and 55 °C, respectively. The nucleotide sequence ofmanA had remarkably low homology with other sequences reported. No typical promoter was found but a palindrome sequence existed downstream of the stop codon. The deduced amino acid sequence from mature ManA showed homology of about 53% with those fromBacillus sp., but much lower homology with those from other strains. The ManA was presumably classified as family 26 of glycosidases. It was also clarified that the 1.3 kb fragment up the locus nt 4449729 ofErwinia carotovora genomic DNA was a mannanase gene.     

Variation and distribution of esterase isozymes inHeteranthelium andTaeniatherum of the tribe triticeae,gramineae

Esterase isozyme variations ofHeteranthelium piliferum, Taeniatherum asperum andT. crinitum collected in Iraq, Turkey and Iran were analysed by gel isoelectric focusing. InH. piliferum two types of esterase zymogram, H1 and H2, were found. It was demonstrated that a pair of allelic genes, which is shown in the heterozygotes, controls the difference between type H1 and H2. Two types of esterase zymogram, T1 and T2, were observed in two species ofTaeniatherum. The majority of strains having type H1 ofH. piliferum and type T1 ofT. crinitum was distributed in the highly elevated plateau of the Anatolian and Iranian highlands, while strains with H2 and T2 of these two species were found in the western foot-hills of the Zagros Mountains, the Tigris basin of Mesopotamia and the central Anatolian plateau.     

Trichogramma semblidis [Chalcidoidea: Trichogrammatidae] as a parasite of the bark beetle eggs [Coleoptera: Scolytidae]

It has been found thatTrichogramma semblidis (Aurv.) parasitizes the eggs ofleperisinus fraxini (Panz.),L. orni (Fuchs) andHylesinus crenatus (Fabr.) in typical variant ofCircaeo-Alnetum Oberdorfer 1953 in the Laski Experimental Forestry near Kepno. Thorough studies were conducted on exposed European ash logs and split wood in 3 methodical variants. The analysis of the galleries ofLeperisinus fraxini has showed that the average egg infestation amounted to 14.1%, 13.0% and 11.1% respectively. The egg infestation of individual gallery systems in the exposed control logs and split wood ranged between 2.7–51.2%, 1.2–44.1% and 1.7–69.2%, respectively, in different variants and the average effectiveness of the parasite amounted to 12.7% of the host egg mortality in 1970. Earlier observations and analyses of the gallery systems made on the ash trunks and branches in 1967 and 1968 showed 80.0% and 98.0% infestation of the eggs ofL. fraxini and 10.0% and 1.5% infestation of the eggs ofL. orni. Separate developmental stages of the parasite, the behaviour of the latter and penetration of the gallery systems were observed too. The most important data on the host species ofT. semblidis have been compared.     

Molecular cloning, sequence analysis and expression studies of a novelGAmyb homologous gene,hvmyb

Using a knownGAmyb gene as the probe, two fully identical clones were isolated from a barley aleurone cDNA library. Sequence analysis showed that their 5′ termini are highly homoIogous to the 3′ termini ofGAmyb (97%) and their 3′ termini share no significant homology with any myb genes. Therefore, the deduced protein may hold intact putativeGAmyb activation domain but lack the normal DNA-binding domain. Northern blot reveals thathumyb expression in barley aleurone layers is strongly up-regulated by gibberellin (GA) and down-regulated by abscisic acid (APIA). The tissue-and developmental-stage-specificity ofhvmyb was also found, which was only expressed in barley aleurone cells and dropped to non-detectable level soon after germination.     

Occurrence of ochratoxin A in herbal drugs of Indian origin — a report

This paper contains a report of occurrence of ochratoxin A in some common herbal medicines collected from different store-houses and shop-keepers of Bihar, India. Of 129 samples of 9 plants, 55 were found to be contaminated with various levels of ochratoxin A. The level of ochratoxin A was found maximal in barks ofHolarrhena antidysenterica (1.14 – 2.34 μg/g) whereas it was minimal in rhizomes ofTacca aspera (0.3 – 0.74 μg/g).Aspergillus ochraceus, A sulphureus and Penicillium viridicatum isolates obtained from drug samples were also examined for their toxigenic potentials. 19 isolates ofA ochraceus, 13 ofA sulphureus and 37 isolates ofP viridicatum were found to be toxigenic out of 67, 33, and 107 isolates, respectively. The ochratoxin A produced by Aochraceus was in the range of 0.09 to 2.44 μg/mL, byA sulphureus 0.1 to 1.76 μg/mL, and byP viridicatum 0.14 to 2.78 μg/mL of the culture filtrate.     

Myrotoxins from a plant pathogenic isolate ofMyrothecium roridum

An isolate ofM roridum (ATCC 52485) which is a potent pathogen to muskmelon was shown to produce a series of macrocyclic trichothecenes, the myrotoxins, heretofore found to be produced only by an. isolate ofM roridum which is a pathogen to tomato. The fact that these two isolates are virulent pathogens and both produce the same potent mycotoxins suggests that these novel trichothecenes may play an important role in the pathogenicity of the fungi.     

Studies on protozoan parasites of Australian fishes. Notes on coccidian parasites with description of three new species

In 1990 several species of the generaEimeria andGoussia were found during the examination of some marine and freshwater fishes in New South Wales for protozoan parasites. In freshwater hosts,Goussia carpelli (Léger & Stankovitch, 1921) was found inCarassius auratus from a fish farm andEimeria anguillae Léger & Hollande, 1922 inAnguilla australis from feral eels. A new species,G. piekarskii n. sp., is described from the small intestine of feralGambusia holbrooki. Spherical or subspherical oöcysts average 9.2 μm in diameter, the average size of sporocysts being 7.6 × 4.2 μm. From coastal marine fishes,Goussia thelohani labbé, 1896 was identified in the liver parenchyma ofAcanthopagrus australis andRhabdosargus sarda. G. cruciata (Thélohan, 1892) Labbé, 1896 was found in the liver parenchyma ofPseudocaranx dentex. Both species were found for the first time outside the European area and in completely different hosts.Eimeria sillaginis Molnár & Rohde, 1988 is redescribed from the intestine ofSillago ciliata, and includes a new structure on its sporocyst wall.E. nesowai n. sp. is described from the pyloric caeca and intestine ofGerres ovatus. Subspherical oöcysts average 12.9 μm in diameter, the average size of sporocysts being 7 × 4.2 μm.E. rohdei n. sp. was found to infect the pyloric caeca ofMonacanthus chinensis. The average sizes of oöcysts and sporocysts are 7.5 μm diameter and 5.1 × 3 μm, respectively.     

Effects of triazoles on fungi: V. Response by a naturally tolerant species,Mucor rouxii

The responses ofMucor rouxii to propiconazole, and in some cases etaconazole, with respect to lipid metabolism were compared with those ofAspergillus ochraceus andRhizopus stolonifer which exhibit higehr sensitivity to this triazole by factors of 50 and 10, respectively. Propiconazole inhibited the C-14 demethylation of lanosterol in each of the species tested, which resulted in a dose-related decrease in ergosterol and increase in C-14 methyl sterols. The principal C-14 methyl sterol that accumulated with inhibitor treatment was 24-methylene dihydrolanosterol. The tolerance ofM. rouxii could not be explained by reduced inhibitor uptake, alteration of the inhibitor binding site, or detoxification through metabolism since C-14 methyl sterols accumulated in mycelium treated with 2.0 μg/ml propiconazole, a concentration 40 times less than that required for 50% growth inhibition and at which no growth inhibition was detected in this species, and one that gave over 50% inhibition ofA. ochraceus. Other alterations in lipid metabolism that accompany treatment with sterol inhibitors in relatively sensitive species, i.e., accumulation of free fatty acids and increase in linoleic acid (C_18:2), were not observed inM. rouxii orR. stolonifer, but they were found inA. ochraceus. The results of this study suggest that the quantitative and perhaps the qualitative nature of the requirement for sterols may be different inM. rouxii, and perhaps other tolerant Mucorales, than in the more sensitive fungi.