Catoptinae subfam. n., a new subfamily of carpenter-moths (Lepidoptera,Cossidae)

The new subfamily of Cossidae; Catoptinae Yakovlev, subfam. n., well distinguished from other representatives of the family, is described. The new subfamily includes two genera: Catopta Staudinger, 1899 (type genus) and Chiangmaiana Kemal et Koçak, 2006. A catalogue of the subfamily is presented. One new synonym Catopta hyrcanus (Christoph, 1888) = Catopta brandti Bryk, 1947, syn. n., is established. The new subfamily has the following distinguishing features: short valvae; reduced processes of transtilla; vesica with numerous cornuti; pearshaped bursa copulatrix; and very short ductus bursae.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Rheiacardia lerami</Emphasis> n. gen. n. sp., ein hippocardiider Rostroconch aus dem Devon Laurussias

To the most recent revisions of the family HippocardiidaePojeta &; Runnegar (Rostroconchia, Mollusca) the additional, monotypic genusRheiacardia n. gen. is added. The genus belongs to the recently described subfamily HippocardiinaePojeta &; Runnegar and is unambiguously classified and characterized by differentiation from the previously described genera of the subfamily.Rheiacardia n. gen. has a stratigraphic occurrence from Early to Middle Devonian.     

Orthid brachiopods from the Lower and Middle Devonian of northeastern Russia

Brachiopods of the order Orthida from the Lower and Middle Devonian of northeastern Russia: Skenidium diversus Baranov (family Skenidiidae); Datnia gen. nov., with the type species D. asiatica sp. nov. (subfamily Prokopiinae); Janzhinshinia gen. nov., with the type species J. datnensis sp. nov. (subfamily Isorthinae); Cortezorthis chobotchalensis (Alekseeva) (subfamily Cortezorthinae); Elenia gen. nov., with the type species E. gerensis sp. nov. (family Dicoelosiidae); Seimtchania communis (family Seimtchaniidae); Simakovia gen. nov., with the type species S. rara sp. nov. (family Draboviidae); Schizophoria distenta sp. nov., S. grande Baranov, S. striatula (Schlotheim) (family Schizophoriinae); and Hypsomionia sinsera Baranov (family Hypsomioniidae) are described.     

A review of the Lyonetiid moths (Lepidoptera,Lyonetiidae): II. The subfamilies Lyonetiinae and Bedelliinae

The second communication of the survey deals with two subfamilies of the family Lyonetiidae: Lyonetiinae and Bedelliinae. The genus Phyllobrostis Stgr., not found in Russia hitherto, was earlier referred to the subfamily Cemiostominae (Seksyaeva, 1981, 1994), but now many authors include it in the subfamily Lyonetiinae (Karsholt and Razowski, 1996; Leraut, 1997). It is considered here within the latter subfamily, being mentioned here since findings of its representatives may be expected in Russia. The annotated list of Lyonetiinae and Bedelliinae of the fauna of Russia includes eight species from three genera.     

New Lower Devonian brachiopods of the family Reticulariidae Waagen (order Spiriferida) of northeastern Russia

New Lower Devonian brachiopod taxa of the family Reticulariidae (order Spiriferida) are described from northeastern Russia: Havlicekospirifer gen. nov. with the type species H. mirabilis sp. nov. (subfamily Reticulariinae) and Pavlovispirifer gen. nov. with the type species P. pelagicus sp. nov. (subfamily Rhenothyridinae).     

New tribes of the superfamily Curculionoidea (Coleoptera) in Burmese amber

Two new tribes in the Curculionoidea are described as the Anchineini Poinar and Legalov, n. trib. (Ithyceridae: Carinae) and Paleocryptorhynchini Poinar and Legalov, n. trib. (Curculionidae: Erirhininae). The genus Anchineus Poinar and Brown, 2009, n. placem. is transferred from the subfamily Curculioninae of the family Curculionidae to the subfamily Carinae of the family Ithyceridae. The genus Paleocryptorhynchus Poinar, 2009, n. placem. is transferred from the subfamily Cryptorhynchinae to the subfamily Erirhininae. The placement of the genus Mesophyletis Poinar, 2006 in the family Ithyceridae was confirmed. http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:0C0039DD-7BC6-4A54-9282-F43C5606D68B     

Residues Asn214, Gln211, Glu219 and Gln221 contained in the subfamily 3 catalytic signature of the isocitrate lyase from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas aeruginosa</Emphasis> are involved in its catalytic and thermal properties

Isocitrate lyase, encoded by the aceA gene, plays an important role in the ability of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to grow on fatty acids, acetate, acyclic terpenes, and amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the ICL superfamily is divided in two families: the ICL family, which includes five subfamilies, and the 2-methylisocitrate lyase (MICL) family. ICL from P. aeruginosa (ICL-Pa) was identified in a different ICL node (subfamily 3) than other Pseudomonas ICL enzymes (grouped in subfamily 1). Analysis also showed that psychrophilic bacteria are mainly grouped in ICL subfamily 3, whose ICL proteins contain the highly conserved catalytic pattern Q_IEN_QV_SDE_KQ_CGHQD. We performed site-directed mutagenesis, enzymatic activity, and structure modeling of conserved residues in mutated ICLs by using ICL-Pa as a model. Our results indicated that the N214 residue is essential for catalytic function, while mutating the Q211, E219, and Q221 residues impairs its catalytic and thermostability properties. Our findings suggest that conserved residues in the subfamily 3 signature of ICL-Pa play important roles in catalysis and thermostability and are likely associated with the catalytic loop structural conformation.     

First discovery of fossil Coloninae in Cretaceous Burmese amber (Coleoptera,Staphylinoidea, Leiodidae)

Coloninae is a tiny and distinctive subfamily of the highly diverse family Leiodidae (round fungus and small carrion beetles). Although only one leiodid fossil is known from the Mesozoic, its taxonomic position and classification are doubtful. We describe the first definitive Coloninae fossil, Colon burmiticum Yamamoto sp. nov., from Upper Cretaceous amber of Myanmar. Our finding sheds light on the origin and early evolutionary history of this peculiar genus and its subfamily.     

New species of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Fanichonetes</Emphasis> Xu et Grant (Brachiopoda,Chonetida) from the Lower Permian of South Korea

A new chonetid species, Fanichonetes minusculus, from the Lower Permian of Pamchi Formation of the northeastern South Korea is described and assigned to the subfamily Rugosochonetinae of the family Rugosochonetidae.     

New Brachiopod Species <Emphasis Type="Italic">Leurosina katasumiensis</Emphasis> (Chonetida) from the Kungurian Katasumi Limestone of the Kusu Area,Central Japan

A new brachiopod species, Leurosina katasumiensis sp. nov. (order Chonetida, family Rugosochonetidae, subfamily Rugosochonetinae), is described from the Kungurian Stage (Lower Permian, Nabeyama Formation) of central Japan.     

New Middle Carboniferous genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Neotornquistia</Emphasis> (Brachiopoda,Chonetida) from the Moscow Syneclise

A new Middle Carboniferous brachiopod genus, Neotornquistia, with the type species Paeckelmannia aljutovica E. Ivanova, 1952 (order Chonetida, superfamily Anoplioidea, family Anopliidae, subfamily Tornquistiinae) is described from the Alyutovo Formation of the Vereyan Horizon of the Moscovian Stage of the Moscow Syneclise.     

Morphogenesis,origin, and paleoecology of the bryozoans of the family Medvedkellidae fam. nov. (Upper Carboniferous,East European Platform)

A new family of the order Rhabdomesida, Medvedkellidae fam. nov., is described. This family consists of a new genus, Medvedkella gen. nov., comprising three species transferred from the genus Rhombopora Meek, 1872: the type species M. riasanensis (Schulga-Nesterenko, 1955), M. diaphragmata (Schulga-Nesterenko, 1955), and M. mariae (Dunaeva, 1961). The morphogenesis of the first two species is studied. For the first time axial zooecia are revealed in the suborder Golgdfussitrypina, which existed in parallel with the suborder Rhabdomesina of the order Rhabdomesida. A hypothesis that the new family evolved from the subfamily Nicklesoporinae Gorjunova, 1985 of the family Goldfussitrypidae, 1985 is proposed. Some questions of the ecological adaptation of these bryozoans in the Late Carboniferous marine basin of the East European Platform are discussed.     

Phylogeny and taxonomy of casebearer moths (Lepidoptera,Coleophoridae) based on morphological and molecular genetic data. 1. Reconstruction of phylogeny of coleophoridae using analysis of <Emphasis Type="Italic">COI</Emphasis> gene variability

A phylogenetic study of representatives of the family Coleophoridae was conducted using a comprehensive approach, including methods of morphological and molecular genetic analyses. The existent data on the family system were compared with the results of phylogenetic analysis of the COI mitochondrial gene sequences. Four of the five studied subfamilies (Coleophorinae, Ischnophaninae, Augasminae, and Tolleophorinae) corresponded to their location on the phylogram; representatives of Metriotinae were part of Coleophorinae. According to the aggregate data from molecular phylogeny and morphology, the most numerous subfamily of casebearers, Coleophorinae, is polyphyletic within its current boundaries. The results of our analysis of COI molecular divergence does not refute the monophyly of the tribes Casignetellini, Carpochenini, Klinzigedini, Goniodomini, Casasini, and Atractulini from the subfamily Coleophorinae. The allocation of the tribes Aporipturini and Sistrophoecini within the subfamily does not correspond to the molecular data. Monophyly of the genera Ecebalia, Perygra, and Casignetella was confirmed. These genera are well isolated, which reflects the evolutionary significance of the morphological characters chosen for their taxonomic division. The boundaries of the cluster containing these genera correspond to those of the tribe Casignetellini, justifying the allocation of this tribe within the subfamily. The existence of monophyletic tribes Goniodomini (genus Goniodoma) and Carpochenini (genera Ionescumia, Carpochena, and Falkmisa) was also supported. The exceptions were the genera Kasyfia, Tollsia, and Agapalsa, whose monophyly was not confirmed by our results. The distribution of the sequences of species of these genera indicated a paraphyletic origin of Kasyfia and Tollsia and a polyphyletic origin of Agapalsa.     

Chromosome Sets of Two Chalcid Wasps (Hymenoptera,Eulophidae), Invasive Pests of Eucalypts (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Eucalyptus</Emphasis> spp.) on the Black Sea Coast of Krasnodar Territory

Karyotypes of two gall-inducing species of the chalcid family Eulophidae which are invasive pests of eucalypts in the Sochi region of Russia, namely Ophelimus maskelli (Ashmead, 1900) (subfamily Opheliminae, 2n = 20) and Leptocybe invasa Fisher et La Salle, 2004 (subfamily Tetrastichinae, 2n = 12), were studied for the first time. The results, including the first karyotypic data for Opheliminae, the least advanced group of all Eulophidae, suggest that the chromosome set of O. maskelli is close to that ancestral to Eulophidae.     

A Drosophila gene with predicted rhoGEF,pleckstrin homology and SH3 domains is highly expressed in morphogenic tissues

We have identified a Drosophila gene that has substantial sequence homology to a distinct class of proto-oncogenes that includes DBL, VAV, Tiam-1, ost and ect-2. It has predicted Rho or Rac guanine exchange factor (Rho/RacGEF) and pleckstin homology (PH) domains with the PH immediately downstream of the Rho/RacGEF. Rho/RacGEFs catalyze the dissociation of GDP from the Rho/Rac subfamily of Ras-like GTPases, thus activating the target Rho/Rac (Takai et al. (1995)Trends Biochem. Sci. 20, 227–231]. Members of the Rho/Rac subfamily regulate organization of the actin cytoskeleton, which controls the morphology, adhesion and motility of cells (Nobes et al. (1995)J. Cell Sci. 108, 225–233; Ridley and Hall (1992)Cell 70, 389–399; Ridley et al. (1992)Cell 70, 401–410]. Message from this gene is found throughout oogenesis and embryogenesis. Of particular interest, message is most abundant in furrows and folds of the embryo where cell shapes are changing and the cytoskeleton is likely to be undergoing reorganization.     

Description of a new subfamily of casebearer moths,Omphalopodinae subfam. n. (Lepidoptera,Coleophoridae), based on morphological and molecular genetic characters

Based on a complex analysis of both morphological and molecular genetic data, a new subfamily of casebearer moths, Omphalopodinae subfam. n., is allocated. Omphalopoda Falkovitsh, 1987, the type genus of this subfamily, is well distinguished by a set of apomorphic morphological characters and is clearly clustered between two genetically well differentiated groups of the family Coleophoridae: Tolleophorinae and Coleophorinae + Augasminae + Ischnophaninae + Metriotinae.     

Polyphyletic origin in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pimpinella</Emphasis> (Apiaceae): evidence in Western Europe

The genus Pimpinella L. comprises about 150 species, being one of the largest genera within the family Apiaceae (subfamily Apioideae). Previous molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that Pimpinella is a taxonomically complex group. In this study, evolutionary relationships among representatives from Western Europe have been inferred from phylogenetic analyses of nuclear ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS 1 and ITS 2) and plastid sequences (trnL intron and the trnL-F spacer), with a representative sampling included (168 accessions in the ITS analysis, representing 158 species; and 42 accessions in the cpDNA analysis representing 35 taxa of Pimpinella and closely related species). All analyses resolved that Pimpinella is a non-monophyletic group, and Pimpinella’s taxa that grow in Western Europe are part of phylogenetically independent groups that correspond to three different tribes of the subfamily Apioideae: Pimpinelleae (core group), Pyramidoptereae and Smyrnieae.     

Genetic Divergence of Mussels (Mollusca,Mytilidae) Based on the <Emphasis Type="Italic">28S</Emphasis> rRNA, <Emphasis Type="Italic">18S</Emphasis> rRNA,and <Emphasis Type="Italic">H3</Emphasis> Nuclear Gene Sequences

On the basis of nucleotide sequences of three nuclear genes and using molecular phylogenetic and evolutionary genetic approaches, the phylogeny of the main representatives of one of the largest taxa of bivalve mollusks, the family Mytilidae, was studied, and its system and taxonomy were refined. A phylogenetic system for the family Mytilidae and closely relative taxa of the order Mytilida, which currently has no consensus among specialists on the basis of traditional characters, is presented. Using nucleotide sequences of the 28S rRNA, 18S pRNA, and histone H3 genes, this consensus was established by the study of Mytilidae. Some concerns of mussel systematics were resolved; in particular, the monophyly of the family Mytilidae Rafinesque, 1815 was established with the strongest support for the subfamily Mytilinae Rafinesque, 1815. The data obtained disprove Distel’s conclusion on polyphyly of the subfamily Mytilinae Rafinesque, 1815. Isolation of the taxa in the rank of the Modiolinae G. Termier & H. Termier, 1950 and Bathymodiolinae Kenk & Wilson, 1985 subfamilies in the family Mytilidae and also the family Septiferidae Scarlato et Starobogatov, 1979 was confirmed, although the rank of the later taxon is not universally recognized and it remains to be clarified in an additional study.