Ontogeny and tissue differentiation of the pelvic girdle and hind limbs of anurans

We present the ontogeny of the integrated musculoskeletal complex that comprises the pelvic girdle and hind limbs of anurans. Our histological data show that the pelvic girdle originates from a single mesenchymatic condensation. The tissue differentiation sequence is cartilage, muscle and tendon. The intrusion of the ischiadic nerve into the limb bud is produced very early in ontogeny. The pre‐cartilage appears in the pre‐motile stage. Therefore, the nerve produces a movement analogous to the ‘embryonic motility’ that would induce the emergence of the pre‐cartilage. The acetabulum is the first of all cavitation processes to form, the second one being the knee. The acetabulum appears before the muscles are mature, although it has been stressed that the muscle contraction maintains joint progenitors committed to their fate. Our data indicate an explosive differentiation of all 11 muscular masses together. We provide three new characters that support the monophyly of Hyloides, Acosmanura and Neobatrachia.     

The systematic relationships of the snake genus Anomochilus

Phylogenetic analysis of 38 skeletal characters, 12 muscular characters and 15 visceral characters in 17 major snake clades plus Anomochilus suggests that Anomochilus is the sister taxon of all other living alethinophidian snakes. However, skeletal, muscular and visceral character sets analysed separately or in pairs give four groups of nonconcordant tree topologies. Based on the cladogram derived from the total evidence, two families are erected to prevent the existing family Uropeltidae from becoming paraphyletic: Anomochilidae, for the Malaysian and Indonesian genus Anomochilus , and Cylindrophiidae, for the Sri Lankan, Southeast Asian and Indonesian genus Cylindrophis and the Upper Eocene fossil Eoanilius.     

Vancomycin-resistant enterococci colonization–infection model: parameter impacts and outbreak risks

Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) infections have been linked to increased mortality and costs. A new model of a VRE-infested intensive care unit (ICU) is introduced. It incorporates critical features including the difference between colonization and infection, the role of special preventive care treatment cycles, fitness cost, and antibiotic use. Five patient stages are considered: susceptible, colonized with and without special preventive care, and infected with and without treatment. Parameter ranges are determined representing different ICUs and incorporated to numerically simulate the model. Basic reproductive number of the infection is derived and the impacts of the parameters are analysed. Strategies to minimize VRE infections and outbreak risk are explored with a focus on efficient and simultaneous control of critical parameters. In particular, threshold values of the level of special preventive care and ICU compliance rate are given to achieve desired goals under various constraints.     

神经节苷脂联合咪达唑仑治疗重症颅脑损伤的临床疗效及对患者血清MMP-9、GFAP、MBP、NSE水平的影响

目的:探讨神经节苷脂联合咪达唑仑治疗重症颅脑损伤的临床疗效及对患者血清基质金属蛋白酶-9(MMP-9)、胶质纤维酸性蛋白(GFAP)、髓鞘碱性蛋白(MBP)、神经元特异性烯醇化酶(NSE)水平的影响。方法:选择2016年3月到2017年9月于我院进行治疗的85例重症颅脑损伤患者,将其按随机数表法分为观察组(n=45)和对照组(n=40),对照组使用神经节苷脂治疗,观察组采用神经节苷脂联合咪达唑仑治疗。比较两组治疗后疗效及血清GFAP、中枢神经特异蛋白(S100β)、NSE、MMP-9、MBP、C反应蛋白(CRP)、白细胞介素-6(IL-6)、肿瘤坏死因子α(TNF-α)水平、格拉斯哥昏迷评分(Glasgow Coma Scale,GCS)评分的变化及不良反应的发生情况。结果:治疗后,观察组临床疗效总有效率(93.33%)显著高于对照组(75.00%,P0.05);两组血清GFAP、S100β、NSE、MMP-9、MBP、CRP、IL-6及TNF-α水平均较治疗前明显下降,且观察组以上指标均显著低于对照组(P0.05);观察组GCS评分明显高于对照组(P0.05),且不良反应发生率明显低于对照组(6.67%vs. 30.00%,P0.05)。结论:神经节苷脂联合咪达唑仑治疗重症颅脑损伤患者的临床效果显著,明显优于单用神经节苷脂治疗,可能与其有效改善患者血清MMP-9、GFAP、MBP、NSE水平及抑制炎症因子的生成有关。     

Body mass estimation for †Cyonasua (Procyonidae,Carnivora) and related taxa based on postcranial skeleton

Procyonidae were the first northern placental carnivorans that reached the Neotropics. They are represented by two extinct genera: ?Cyonasua and ?Chapalmalania (late Miocene – early Pleistocene). Postcranial elements are only known for ?Cyonasua and related taxa (?Parahyaenodon argentinus and ?Tetraprothomo argentinus). To obtain highly reliable allometric equations for body mass estimations of fossil procyonids, we performed least squares regressions (multiple and bivariate lineal models) using 51 postcranial linear measurements. The extant sample included 124 taxa corresponding to nine families of Carnivora, with body mass data from the literature. We obtained about 63 equations from diverse combinations of postcranial measurements; 14 of them were selected using several reliability indexes as criteria. Our results show that body masses calculated for ?Cyonasua range between 12.63 and 28.45 kg, ?P. argentinus was estimated at 14.41 kg, while ?T. argentinus at 25.31 kg. Thus, the body mass of ?Cyonasua would have been at least twice as high as the mean of the extant procyonid Procyon cancrivorus. ?Cyonasua was probably able to fend off predators and quite capable of climbing slowly on thick-enough branches. Other palaeoecological and palaeobiological inferences are discussed.