Description and molecular analysis of an Italian population of Centrorhynchus globo caudatus (Zeder, 1800) Lühe, 1911 (Acanthocephala: Centrorhynchidae) from Falco tinnunculus (Falconidae) and Buteo buteo (Accipitridae)

2020 ◽  
Vol 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
O.M. Amin ◽  
R.A. Heckmann ◽  
S. Dallarés ◽  
M. Constenla ◽  
S. Rubini

Abstract Centrorhynchus globocaudatus (Zeder, 1800) Lühe, 1911 (Centrorhynchidae) was reported in birds of prey. Our population from Falco tinnunculus Linnaeus (Falconidae) and Buteo buteo Linnaeus (Accipitridae) in northern Italy was morphologically distinct from others described elsewhere. The worms are elongate and cylindrical. Proboscis long, apically truncated and bare, with wider base and variably faint constriction at point of attachment of receptacle. Large anterior hooks well rooted; posterior spiniform hooks with reduced roots; transitional hooks with scutiform roots in-between. Four tubular cement glands extend into prominent ducts overlapping a large Saefftigen's pouch. Bursa large, with sensory plates. Vagina with laterally slit orifice in sub-ventral pit of globular terminal extension. Thick-shelled eggs ovoid without polar prolongation of fertilization membrane. In our specimens, proboscis hooks, receptacle, male reproductive system, and lemnisci especially in males varied in size from those from Ukraine, India, Egypt, Kyrgystan, Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Asian Soviet Republics. Our description of the Italian specimens includes new morphological information supported by scanning electron microscopy and microscope images, molecular analysis and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDXA) of hooks. Additional new details of proboscis hook roots, micropores and micropore distribution are described. Metal composition of hooks (EDXA) demonstrated high levels of calcium and phosphorous, and high levels of sulphur in core and cortical layers of eggs. The molecular profile based on sequences of 18S and cytochrome c oxidase 1 genes is also provided, as well as phylogenetic reconstructions including all available sequences of the family Centrorhynchidae, although further sequences are needed in order to clarify their phylogenetic relationships.

2020 ◽  
Vol 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
O.M. Amin ◽  
M. Sharifdini ◽  
R.A. Heckmann ◽  
M. Zarean

We describe morphological features not previously reported for this old acanthocephalan Nephridiacanthus major (Bremser, 1811 in Westrumb, 1821) Golvan, 1962 first described over 200 years ago. Our specimens were collected from long-eared hedgehog Hemiechinus auritus (Gmelin, 1770) (Erinaceidae) in Iran. We compare the morphometrics of our material with others previously reported from the same host in Iran, Russia, central Asia and Europe. Our specimens had markedly smaller proboscides, proboscis hooks and lemnisci than those reported from Russia and central Asia, but comparable measurements of other structures with specimens previously described from other collections. We document our new observations with scanning electron microscopy features not previously demonstrable by other observers and provide a chemical analysis of proboscis hooks using energy-dispersive X-ray analysis for the first time. The molecular profile of this acanthocephalan, based on 18S rDNA and cox1 genes, was generated for the first time. The phylogenetic analysis showed that N. major is placed in a clade of the family Oligacanthorhynchidae, well separated from the families Moniliformidae and Gigantorhynchidae.


2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (01) ◽  
pp. 29-35
Author(s):  
M. R. Hampel ◽  
M. Lierz ◽  
D. Fischer

Zusammenfassung Gegenstand und Ziel: Aufgefundene Wildgreifvögel sollten nur nach medizinischer Diagnosestellung, entsprechender Therapie und anschließender Vorbereitung auf die Wildbahn ausgewildert werden. Hierfür sind je nach Greifvogelart und Alter der Tiere unterschiedliche Trainingsmethoden, inklusive falknerischer Methoden notwendig. Nach Abschluss dieser Maßnahmen und Auswilderung wurden Greifvögel mittels Telemetrie überwacht, um die Überlebensfähigkeit und die Prognose von Erkrankungen/Verletzungen für die Wildbahnfähigkeit einschätzen zu können. Zusätzlich sollte die Telemetrie als Überwachungsverfahren evaluiert werden. Dies fand in Kooperation mit Schülern statt, um einen Betrag zur Naturerziehung zu leisten. Material und Methoden: Drei Mäusebussarde (Buteo buteo) und ein Turmfalke (Falco tinnunculus) wurden fallspezifisch in der Klinik behandelt und nach Abschluss der Therapie mit einem an einer Schwanzfeder befestigten Sender entlassen und täglich per PKW oder Flugzeug verfolgt. Nach Peilung der Tiere erfolgte eine Sichtung mittels Fernglas. Die GPS-Daten der Aufenthaltsorte der Vögel wurden notiert. Ergebnisse: Ein Tier verlor den Sender frühzeitig, sodass keine Verfolgung möglich war. Die anderen drei Vögel wurden über mehr als 14 Tage überwacht. Ihre gute Reintegration in die Wildpopulation ließ sich durch beobachtetes Balz-und Paarungsverhalten belegen. Die weiteste Flugstrecke eines Vogels betrug 44 km. Schlussfolgerungen: Tiermedizinische Maßnahmen mit dem Ziel der Wiederherstellung der Wildbahnfähigkeit von Wildvögeln können erfolgreich sein. Die Telemetrie eignet sich zur Überwachung ausgewilderter Vögel. Die Handhabung der Technik ist problemlos durch Laien (z. B. Schüler) durchführbar. Klinische Relevanz: Übereinstimmend mit anderen Studien bestärken die Daten Tierärzte in der ordnungsgemäßen Durchführung von Rehabilitationsmaßnahmen an aufgefundenen Wildgreifvögeln.


Crystals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 807
Author(s):  
Ilya V. Kornyakov ◽  
Sergey V. Krivovichev

Single crystals of two novel shchurovskyite-related compounds, K2Cu[Cu3O]2(PO4)4 (1) and K2.35Cu0.825[Cu3O]2(PO4)4 (2), were synthesized by crystallization from gaseous phase and structurally characterized using single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The crystal structures of both compounds are based upon similar Cu-based layers, formed by rods of the [O2Cu6] dimers of oxocentered (OCu4) tetrahedra. The topologies of the layers show both similarities and differences from the shchurovskyite-type layers. The layers are connected in different fashions via additional Cu atoms located in the interlayer, in contrast to shchurovskyite, where the layers are linked by Ca2+ cations. The structures of the shchurovskyite family are characterized using information-based structural complexity measures, which demonstrate that the crystal structure of 1 is the simplest one, whereas that of 2 is the most complex in the family.


Zootaxa ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 2742 (1) ◽  
pp. 60 ◽  
Author(s):  
DAVID PENNEY ◽  
ANDREW MCNEIL ◽  
DAVID I. GREEN ◽  
ROBERT BRADLEY ◽  
YURI M. MARUSIK ◽  
...  

A new species of the extant spider family Anapidae is described from a fossil mature male in Eocene amber from the Baltic region and tentatively assigned to the genus Balticoroma Wunderlich, 2004. Phase contrast X-ray computed micro-tomography was used to reveal important features that were impossible to view using traditional microscopy. Balticoroma wheateri new species is easily diagnosed from all other anapids by having clypeal extensions that run parallel to the ectal surface of the chelicerae and in having the metatarsus of the first leg highly reduced and modified into what is presumably a y-shaped clasping structure. Although only a single extant anapid species occurs in northern Europe, the family was diverse in the Eocene. The discovery of yet another anapid species in Baltic amber supports the idea that Eocene European forests may have been a hotspot of evolution for this family of spiders.


Structure ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 419-429 ◽  
Author(s):  
Constanze Breithaupt ◽  
Jochen Strassner ◽  
Ulrike Breitinger ◽  
Robert Huber ◽  
Peter Macheroux ◽  
...  

Zootaxa ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5032 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-236
Author(s):  
ANDRIS BUKEJS ◽  
ADAM ŚLIPIŃSKI ◽  
JERIT L. MITCHELL ◽  
RYAN C. MCKELLAR ◽  
MAURICIO BARBI ◽  
...  

Based on material originating from five amber collections of Eocene Baltic amber, Protostomopsis pandema gen. et sp. nov. is described and illustrated using X-ray micro-computed tomography. It is the first formally described extinct species of Cerylonidae, and the first known Palaearctic representative of the subfamily Ostomopsinae. As such, the new species extends the temporal range of the family Cerylonidae by approximately 45 Ma.  


2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (12) ◽  
pp. 3012-3017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Rogne ◽  
Marie Rosselin ◽  
Christin Grundström ◽  
Christian Hedberg ◽  
Uwe H. Sauer ◽  
...  

Enzymatic substrate selectivity is critical for the precise control of metabolic pathways. In cases where chemically related substrates are present inside cells, robust mechanisms of substrate selectivity are required. Here, we report the mechanism utilized for catalytic ATP versus GTP selectivity during adenylate kinase (Adk) -mediated phosphorylation of AMP. Using NMR spectroscopy we found that while Adk adopts a catalytically competent and closed structural state in complex with ATP, the enzyme is arrested in a catalytically inhibited and open state in complex with GTP. X-ray crystallography experiments revealed that the interaction interfaces supporting ATP and GTP recognition, in part, are mediated by coinciding residues. The mechanism provides an atomic view on how the cellular GTP pool is protected from Adk turnover, which is important because GTP has many specialized cellular functions. In further support of this mechanism, a structure–function analysis enabled by synthesis of ATP analogs suggests that a hydrogen bond between the adenine moiety and the backbone of the enzyme is vital for ATP selectivity. The importance of the hydrogen bond for substrate selectivity is likely general given the conservation of its location and orientation across the family of eukaryotic protein kinases.


Author(s):  
Anoshia Afzal ◽  
Rufei Lu ◽  
Sepideh Asadbeigi ◽  
Kar-Ming Fung ◽  
JoElle Peterson

Primary ovarian ependymoma is a rare neuroectodermal neoplasm that can arise from immature ovarian teratoma. Due to the paucity of this entity, a complete molecular analysis of these tumors has not been done, thus creating a challenge for finding an effective and safe therapeutic treatment. In limited literature, patient with primary ovarian ependymoma showed various responses to an array of individualized therapies ranging from surgeries and chemotherapies. Here, we present a 38-year-old female with persistent ovarian ependymoma with molecular profile similar to traditional central nervous system ependymoma that is irresponsive to multiple cytoreduction and clinical experimental therapies. Therefore, a prompt recognition and reporting of this entity can greatly aid in expanding the understanding and standardization of therapies for this neoplasm.


eLife ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karthik Ramanadane ◽  
Monique S Straub ◽  
Raimund Dutzler ◽  
Cristina Manatschal

Members of the ubiquitous SLC11/NRAMP family catalyze the uptake of divalent transition metal ions into cells. They have evolved to efficiently select these trace elements from a large pool of Ca2+ and Mg2+, which are both orders of magnitude more abundant, and to concentrate them in the cytoplasm aided by the cotransport of H+ serving as energy source. In the present study, we have characterized a member of a distant clade of the family found in prokaryotes, termed NRMTs, that were proposed to function as transporters of Mg2+. The protein transports Mg2+ and Mn2+ but not Ca2+ by a mechanism that is not coupled to H+. Structures determined by cryo-EM and X-ray crystallography revealed a generally similar protein architecture compared to classical NRAMPs, with a restructured ion binding site whose increased volume provides suitable interactions with ions that likely have retained much of their hydration shell.


1997 ◽  
Vol 53 (6) ◽  
pp. 861-869 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. D. Ling ◽  
J. G. Thompson ◽  
S. Schmid ◽  
D. J. Cookson ◽  
R. L. Withers

The structures of the layered intergrowth phases SbIIISb^{\rm V}_xAl-xTiO6 (x \simeq 0, A = Ta, Nb) have been refined by the Rietveld method, using X-ray diffraction data obtained using a synchrotron source. The starting models for these structures were derived from those of Sb^{\rm III}_3Sb^{\rm V}_xA 3−xTiO14 (x = 1.26, A = Ta and x = 0.89, A = Nb), previously solved by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. There were no significant differences between the derived models and the final structures, validating the approach used to obtain the models and confirming that the n = 1 and n = 3 members of the family, Sb^{\rm III}_nSb^{\rm V}_xA n−xTiO4n+2 are part of a structurally homologous series.


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