First record of the rare species Aeromonas culicicola from a drinking water supply

We describe the recovery of the rare species Aeromonas culicicola, so far known only in mosquitoes in India, from a drinking water supply in Spain. Typing, using enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-PCR, revealed that the 27 new isolates belonged to 3 very closely related strains. These strains were genetically identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Spanish strains differed from the mosquito strains in three nucleotide positions. The AHCYTOEN gene was present in these water strains, which may have a public health significance.     

Identification of Aeromonas schubertii and Aeromonas jandaei by using a polymerase chain reaction-probe test

Abstract Two oligonucleotide primers were used in a polymerase chain reaction-protocol to amplify a region (approx. 850 bp) of the 16S rRNA gene of Aeromonas schubertii and Aeromonas jandaei . Hybridization of the polymerase chain reaction products to specific internal probes provided a highly specific method for the identification of these two species.     

First record of the woodwasp family Xiphydriidae from Tasmania with a description of a new species and host record

Rhysacephala warraensis Jennings & Austin, sp. nov., (Hymenoptera: Xiphydriidae), is described, being the first record of a xiphydriid woodwasp from Tasmania. Four females were reared from 'horizontal', Anodopetalum biglandulosum (Cunoniaceae), the first confirmed host record for an Australian xiphydriid.     

Isolation and identification of two novel SDS‐resistant secreted chitinases from Aeromonas schubertii

Two SDS‐resistant endochitinases, designated as ASCHI53 and ASCHI61, were isolated from Aeromonas schubertii in a soil sample from southern Taiwan. MALDI‐TOF mass measurement indicates the molecular weights of 53,527 for ASCHI53 and 61,202 for ASCHI61. N‐terminal and internal amino acid sequences were obtained, and BLAST analysis of the sequences and MS/MS peptide sequencing showed that they were novel proteins. Degradation of chitin by these two endochitinases gave rise to hexameric chitin oligosaccharide, a compound known to have several potent biomedical functions. ASCHI53 and ASCHI61 retained, respectively, 65% and 75%, of their chitinase activity in the presence of 5% SDS and 100% of their activity in the presence of 10% β‐mercaptoethanol. These results demonstrate that they are SDS‐resistant endochitinases and probably have a rigid structure. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2009     

Amauromyces farinaceous, rare known species and new record from Taiwan

Amauromyces farinaceous is investigated. The species is a rare corticiaceous Homobasidiomycete recently collected in Taiwan. The unique basidial morphology, cell walls and septal pores of the hyphae are studied by transmission electron microscopy. The study demonstrates the gradual thickening of cell walls in the lower parts of young basidia, leaving only a small asymmetric cytoplasmic channel in mature stages. Systematics of genus Amauromyces are discussed by comparing it with Athelia, Athelopsis, Chaetoderma, Columnocystis, Gloeosoma, Paullicorticium, Sistotremastrum, Trechispora, Tulasnella and Veluticeps.     

四株杂交鳢致病性舒伯特气单胞菌特性及致病性比较

【背景】舒伯特气单胞菌为革兰氏阴性短杆菌,是一种人-畜-鱼共患的条件性致病菌,它能引起不同程度的人类疾病,近年来更是在水产养殖中被频繁报道。【目的】比较分析4株杂交鳢源舒伯特气单胞菌(WL-4、ZL-1、ZL-13、D075)菌株间生理生化特性、致病性以及对常用药物的敏感性差异,为水产舒伯特气单胞菌病的防治提供参考依据。【方法】使用全自动细菌生化鉴定仪检测菌株的生理生化特性;运用PCR扩增和测序比对菌株的gyrB、16S rRNA基因序列;采用改良平板法检测毒力因子表达,PCR技术检测菌株毒力基因和耐药基因的携带情况;通过人工注射感染分析4株舒伯特气单胞菌对杂交鳢的致病性差异;并采用微量二倍稀释法测试15种抗菌药物对菌株的最小抑菌浓度。【结果】以ATCC43700 (人源舒伯特气单胞菌)作为参考,4株菌株理化特性基本相同,gyrB和16SrRNA基因一致性分别为99.57%和100%,聚类分析聚为一簇;不同的舒伯特气单胞菌(ATCC43700、WL-4、ZL-1、ZL-13、D075)均具有溶血性、蛋白酶活性和脂肪酶活性;但人源菌株(ATCC43700)与杂交鳢源舒伯特气单胞菌携带的毒力基因存在差异,其中人源菌株携带了hlyA、ela、lip、ahal、act,而杂交鳢源菌株(WL-4、ZL-1、ZL-13、D075)携带hlyA、ela、lip、ahal、aer;4株杂交鳢源舒伯特气单胞菌对杂交鳢致病性存在差异,1.2×10~5CFU/mL浓度腹腔注射感染健康杂交鳢,WL-4、ZL-1、ZL-13、D075对杂交鳢的感染致死率依次为30%、40%、70%和80%;不同菌株(ATCC43700、WL-4、ZL-1、ZL-13、D075)的药物敏感性以及携带的耐药基因也存在差异。【结论】4株杂交鳢源舒伯特气单胞菌在致病性、药物敏感性等方面存在差异,研究结果有助于进一步开展舒伯特气单胞菌病发病机制和防控技术研究。     

First record of Isocapnia (Plecoptera: Capniidae) from China with description of a new species

Summary

The winter stonefly genus Isocapnia Banks, 1938??? is mainly distributed in western North America and eastern Asia, but has never been reported from China. In this paper, we report, describe and illustrate a new species of this genus, I. anguis n. sp. from Sichuan Province of China. This is the first record for the genus Isocapnia from China, extending the distribution of Isocapnia into the southwestern China. An identification key to all the Isocapnia species from Asia is provided.???     

Social dimensions of preimplantation genetic diagnosis: a literature review

The study provides a systematic overview of research on the social implications of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). The analysis focuses on empirical studies that provide insights into its heterogeneous fields of application and the concrete experiences of its users. The literature review shows that three areas of concern and controversial topics are particularly relevant for a social-scientific evaluation of PGD. Firstly, we present attitudes towards and assessments of PGD based on an ongoing expansion and transformation of its fields of application. This process includes not only more and more disorders and disease risks but also applications that are not disease-related. Secondly, there is evidence of significant gender asymmetries and financial concerns regarding the use of and access to PGD. Thirdly, the empirical studies point to a shift in normative expectations towards the idea of “genetic reproductive responsibility” and possible discriminatory consequences for individuals and families with diseases and disabilities.     

First record of the genus Brachygaster Leach (Hymenoptera: Evaniidae) from Australia with the description of a new species

Abstract  Brachygaster murrayorum sp. n., a new species of evaniid ensign wasp, is described from northern Queensland. This is the first record of Brachygaster Leach in Australia and represents a significant range extension from Singapore, its previous closest occurrence.     

First record of the mitrateBarrandeocarpus from England

The mitrateBarrandeocarpus Ubaghs, previously known from the Ordovician of Bohemia, is reported from an approximately coeval locality in Shropshire, England. Although incomplete, the material from Shropshire provides partial information on the internal head anatomy in this genus. The English and the BohemianBarrandeocarpus are very similar and the possibility that they are conspecific cannot be excluded.     

First record of the family Thamnocephalidae (Crustacea: Anostraca) from Southeast Asia and description of a new species of Branchinella

During a two-year investigation of freshwater microcrustaceans in Thailand, an undescribed species of fairy shrimp of the genus Branchinella Sayce, 1903 in the family Thamnocephalidae, was discovered. This is the first record of the genus and the family from Southeast Asia and the second anostracan reported from Thailand. The new species, Branchinella thailandensis n. sp. appears to be morphologically intermediate between B. kugenumaensis (Ishikawa, 1895) from Japan and east China, and B. madurai Raj, 1951 from India and Pakistan. B. thailandensis n. sp. was collected from several temporary ponds in 11 provinces of the northeast and the central Thailand, often co-occurring with Streptocephalus sirindhornae Sanoamuang, Murugan, Weekers & Dumont, 2000.     

Population genetic structure of mussels from the Baltic Sea

In a macrogeographic survey, the population genetic structure of mussels from various regions of the Baltic Sea, a large semi-enclosed brackish-water basin, was examined with reference toMytilus edulis andM. galloprovincialis samples from the North Sea, Irish coast and southern Portugal. Electrophoretically detectable variation was analysed at 6 polymorphic enzyme loci (Ap, Est-D, Lap-2, Odh, Pgi andPgm). Evidence was provided of a remarkably large amount of biochemical genetic differentiation among ecologically and morphologically divergent mussel populations in the Baltic. Patterns of allele frequencies in low-salinity populations from the area of the Baltic Proper were demonstrated to be widely homogeneous but contrast strongly with those of the western Baltic, the latter resembling populations from marine habitats of the North Sea. Associated with a pronounced salinity gradient, the spatial heterogeneity in gene-pool structure is indicated by steep clines of allele frequency changes in the area of the eastern Danish isles. The adaptive significance of the observed allozymic variation is suggested. From genetic distance estimates, the subdivision of population structure is discussed in relation to the significant amount of differentiation detected withinMytilus populations to date and to the evolutionary time required for the divergence of Baltic mussel populations. The allozymic data provide evidence for the genetic distinctiveness of mussels from the low-salinity areas of the Baltic. Their position at the specific or subspecific level of classification requires further consideration.     

Modeling and simulation of genetic regulatory systems: a literature review.

In order to understand the functioning of organisms on the molecular level, we need to know which genes are expressed, when and where in the organism, and to which extent. The regulation of gene expression is achieved through genetic regulatory systems structured by networks of interactions between DNA, RNA, proteins, and small molecules. As most genetic regulatory networks of interest involve many components connected through interlocking positive and negative feedback loops, an intuitive understanding of their dynamics is hard to obtain. As a consequence, formal methods and computer tools for the modeling and simulation of genetic regulatory networks will be indispensable. This paper reviews formalisms that have been employed in mathematical biology and bioinformatics to describe genetic regulatory systems, in particular directed graphs, Bayesian networks, Boolean networks and their generalizations, ordinary and partial differential equations, qualitative differential equations, stochastic equations, and rule-based formalisms. In addition, the paper discusses how these formalisms have been used in the simulation of the behavior of actual regulatory systems.     

First record and description of a new species of Sycorax Curtis (Diptera: Psychodidae, Sycoracinae) from the Brazilian Amazon

Sycorax longispinosa sp. nov. is described from Serra do Cachorro, Pará State, Brazil. This new species is the first record of the genus from the Brazilian Amazon. An identification key for males of species of Sycorax from the neotropical region is presented.     

First record of Stigmatijanus Wei (Hymenoptera: Cephidae)from South Korea with description of a new species

The genus Stigmatijanus Wei, 2007 is recorded from Korea for the first time. A diagnosis of the genus is briefly discussed. A new species, Stigmatijanus koreanus sp. nov., is described from Mt. Homyeong, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. A key to the three species of the genus is provided.     

First record of the genus Buchananiella Reuter (Heteroptera: Anthocoridae) from Japan, with description of a new species

Two species of the anthocorid genus Buchananiella Reuter are recorded from Japan for the first time. Buchananiella leptocephala sp. nov. is described here based on specimens from Honshu and the Ryukyus. Buchananiella crassicornis Carayon, hitherto known from the Ivory Coast and India, was found in the Ryukyus.     

First record of the genus Codrus Panzer (Hymenoptera: Proctotrupidae) from South Korea with description of a new species

The genus Codrus Panzer, 1803 is recorded for the first time from South Korea. A new species and three newly recorded species are described: C. tripotini Lee and Park sp. nov., C. ciliatus Townes, 1981, C. nebriae (Watanabe, 1954) and C. niger Panzer, 1803. Additionally, C. ciliatus Townes is newly added to Chinese fauna. A key to the South Korean Codrus, diagnostic characteristics and photographs are provided.