Combining morphology and molecular data to improve Drosophila paulistorum (Diptera, Drosophilidae) taxonomic status

The Proclossiana eunomia (Esper, 1799) complex is currently composed of the several subspecies distributed throughout Palaearсtic region and North America. Despite the fact that some of the taxa have differences in wing pattern and body size, previous assumptions on taxonomy not supported by molecular data. Therefore, the identity of certain populations of this complex has remained unclear and the taxonomic status of several recently described taxa is debated. Here, we provide insights into systematics of some Palaearctic members of this group using molecular approach, based on the analysis of the barcoding fragment of the COI gene taking into account known morphological differences.

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Combination of nuclear and mitochondrial markers as a useful tool to identify Ctenophthalmus species and subspecies (Siphonaptera: Ctenophthalmidae)

Organisms Diversity & Evolution ◽

10.1007/s13127-021-00500-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Antonio Zurita ◽

Cristina Cutillas

Keyword(s):

Taxonomic Status ◽

Molecular Study ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Point Of View ◽

Morphological Data ◽

Molecular Approach ◽

Nuclear Marker ◽

Mitochondrial Markers ◽

Morphological Criteria ◽

Mtdna Markers

AbstractCtenophthalmus is considered the largest genus within the Order Siphonaptera. From a morphological point of view, only males of this genus can be identified at species and subspecies levels using morphological keys, whereas there are no morphological criteria in order to classify females at these taxonomical levels. Furthermore, the amount of available molecular and phylogenetic data for this genus is quite scarce so far. The main objective of this work was to assess the utility of the combination of nuclear and mitochondrial markers with respect to their ability to differentiate among different subspecies within the Ctenophthalmus genus. With this purpose, we carried out a comparative morphological and molecular study of three different subspecies (Ctenophthalmus baeticus arvernus, Ctenophthalmus nobilis dobyi, and Ctenophthalmus andorrensis catalaniensis) in order to clarify and discuss its taxonomic status. In addition, our study complemented the molecular data previously provided for Ctenophthalmus baeticus boisseauorum and Ctenophthalmus apertus allani subspecies. We sequenced five different molecular markers: EF1-α, ITS1, ITS2, cox1, and cytb. Our results confirmed that morphological data by themselves are not able to discriminate among Ctenophthalmus female taxa; however, the combination of the nuclear marker EF1-α together with mtDNA markers cytb and cox1 constituted a useful taxonomical and phylogenetic tool to solve this issue. Based on these results, we consider that the use of this molecular approach should be gradually used within Ctenophthalmus genus in order to complement its classical taxonomy and clarifying the complex taxonomy of other congeneric species of fleas.

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Gracilaria phuquocensis sp. nov., a new flattened Gracilaria species (Gracilariales, Rhodophyta), previously recognized as G. mammillaris, from the southern coast of Vietnam

10.26686/wgtn.12509957.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

HN Le ◽

N Muangmai ◽

S Kheauthong ◽

Z Sun ◽

Giuseppe Zuccarello

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

South China Sea ◽

South China ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Molecular Data ◽

The South China Sea ◽

The South ◽

Western Atlantic ◽

China Sea ◽

Coast Of Vietnam

© 2019 Japanese Society of Phycology Flattened Gracilaria species are widely distributed along the coasts of the South China Sea with more than 20 species recorded. Within the South China Sea, Gracilaria mammillaris has only been reported from Vietnam, but this species is likely restricted to the western Atlantic. This study aimed to reevaluate the taxonomic status of Vietnamese specimens of ‘G. mammillaris’ using combined morphological and molecular data. Our data clearly indicated that Vietnamese specimens were morphologically and genetically distinct from authentic G. mammillaris from the western Atlantic, and also other described flat Gracilaria species. We, therefore, propose that specimens from Vietnam originally identified as G. mammillaris be designated as a new species, Gracilaria phuquocensis sp. nov. Morphologically, G. phuquocensis can be distinguished from other flat Gracilaria species by its small thallus size, narrower blades, many medullary layers, abundant basal nutritive filaments within mature cystocarps, and tetrasporangial nemathecium. Our rbcL sequence analyses showed that the new species was sister to Gracilaria rhodymenioides from Thailand, and these two species formed a clade with cylindrical Gracilaria species. Our study contributes to clarification of the taxonomic status of misidentified specimens attributed to the flattened Gracilaria species in the South China Sea.

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Gracilaria phuquocensis sp. nov., a new flattened Gracilaria species (Gracilariales, Rhodophyta), previously recognized as G. mammillaris, from the southern coast of Vietnam

10.26686/wgtn.12509957 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

HN Le ◽

N Muangmai ◽

S Kheauthong ◽

Z Sun ◽

Giuseppe Zuccarello

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

South China Sea ◽

South China ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Molecular Data ◽

The South China Sea ◽

The South ◽

Western Atlantic ◽

China Sea ◽

Coast Of Vietnam

© 2019 Japanese Society of Phycology Flattened Gracilaria species are widely distributed along the coasts of the South China Sea with more than 20 species recorded. Within the South China Sea, Gracilaria mammillaris has only been reported from Vietnam, but this species is likely restricted to the western Atlantic. This study aimed to reevaluate the taxonomic status of Vietnamese specimens of ‘G. mammillaris’ using combined morphological and molecular data. Our data clearly indicated that Vietnamese specimens were morphologically and genetically distinct from authentic G. mammillaris from the western Atlantic, and also other described flat Gracilaria species. We, therefore, propose that specimens from Vietnam originally identified as G. mammillaris be designated as a new species, Gracilaria phuquocensis sp. nov. Morphologically, G. phuquocensis can be distinguished from other flat Gracilaria species by its small thallus size, narrower blades, many medullary layers, abundant basal nutritive filaments within mature cystocarps, and tetrasporangial nemathecium. Our rbcL sequence analyses showed that the new species was sister to Gracilaria rhodymenioides from Thailand, and these two species formed a clade with cylindrical Gracilaria species. Our study contributes to clarification of the taxonomic status of misidentified specimens attributed to the flattened Gracilaria species in the South China Sea.

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A NEW SPECIES OF THE Pareas hamptoni COMPLEX (SQUAMATA, SERPENTES, PAREIDAE) FROM THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE

TAPROBANICA The Journal of Asian Biodiversity ◽

10.47605/tapro.v9i2.230 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 174-193

Author(s):

Li Ding ◽

Zening Chen ◽

Chatmongkon Suwannapoom ◽

Tan Van Nguyen ◽

Nikolay A. Poyarkov ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Yunnan Province ◽

Southern China ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Distinct Species ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Lower Number ◽

Actual Distribution ◽

Golden Triangle ◽

Morphological And Molecular Data

An investigation of the taxonomic status of Pareas hamptoni (Hampton's Slug snake) based on morphological and molecular data revealed a new distinct species from the Golden Triangle region (comprising parts of southern China, and adjacent Laos and Thailand). The new species is shown to be a sister species to P. hamptoni but can be separated from the latter by having 3–5 dorsal scale rows at midbody slightly keeled (vs 5–9 scales strongly keeled); a lower number of ventrals, 170–188 (vs 185–195); and a lower number of subcaudals, 67–91 (vs 91–99). The new species is currently known from northwestern Thailand, northern Laos, and the southern part of Yunnan Province in China at elevations of 1,160–2,280 m a.s.l. We suggest that the new species to be considered of Least Concern (LC) in the IUCN‘s Red List categories. Problems of taxonomy and actual distribution of the P. hamptoni complex are briefly discussed; our results show P. hamptoni is now reliably known only from Myanmar and Vietnam, but its occurrence in Yunnan Province of China is likely.

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Taxonomic notes on Scutellaria taipeiensis (Lamiaceae) from morphological and molecular data

PhytoKeys ◽

10.3897/phytokeys.140.48578 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 140 ◽

pp. 33-45

Author(s):

Chien-Ti Chao ◽

Bing-Hong Huang ◽

Jui-Tse Chang ◽

Pei-Chun Liao

Keyword(s):

Dna Sequence ◽

Phylogenetic Relationships ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Plastid Dna ◽

Single Species ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Sequence Information ◽

Related Literature ◽

Morphological And Molecular Data ◽

Comprehensive Study

The genus Scutellaria comprises eight species distributed from 50 to 2000 m in Taiwan. Amongst them, S. barbata and S. taipeiensis are very similar on the basis of morphological and plastid DNA sequence information. Therefore, a comprehensive study of the taxonomic status of S. taipeiensis is necessary. We reviewed the herbarium sheets, related literature and protologues and compared morphologies of these two species, as well as their phylogenetic relationships. All evidence, including the diagnostic characters between S. taipeiensis and S. barbata, suggest that they belonged to a single species rather than two. As a result, S. taipeiensis is treated as a synonym of S. barbata.

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Complete mitochondrial genome of an Arctic Collared Lemming subspecies endemic to the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago, Russia

Ecologica Montenegrina ◽

10.37828/em.2021.40.12 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 40 ◽

pp. 133-139

Author(s):

Vitaly M. Spitsyn ◽

Alexander V. Kondakov ◽

Elsa Froufe ◽

Mikhail Y. Gofarov ◽

André Gomes-Dos-Santos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Complete Mitochondrial Genome ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Molecular Data ◽

The Arctic ◽

Novaya Zemlya Archipelago ◽

Novaya Zemlya ◽

Mtdna Sequence ◽

Cold Tolerant ◽

Complete Mitogenome ◽

Dicrostonyx Torquatus

In this study, we present an announcement of Novaya Zemlya Collared Lemming Dicrostonyx torquatus ungulatus (von Baer, 1841) complete mitogenome. This rodent was described historically as an Arctic Collared Lemming subspecies endemic to Novaya Zemlya (Arctic Russia) but its taxonomic status was unclear due to the lack of available molecular data. Based on a comprehensive mitogenomic phylogeny of the Arctic Collared Lemming, we show that this insular population shares a highly divergent mtDNA sequence (total length 16,341 bp). Hence, it should be considered a valid subspecies of the Arctic Collared Lemming. Our findings support the hypothesis that the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago had served as a cryptic polar refugium for cold-tolerant terrestrial and freshwater taxa since the mid-Pleistocene or even earlier.

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The forgotten exotic tapeworms: a review of uncommon zoonotic Cyclophyllidea

Parasitology ◽

10.1017/s003118202000013x ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 147 (5) ◽

pp. 533-558 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sarah G. H. Sapp ◽

Richard S. Bradbury

Keyword(s):

Clinical Presentation ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Life Cycles ◽

Accurate Data ◽

Diagnostic Features ◽

Diagnostic Dilemma ◽

True Incidence ◽

Medical Microbiology ◽

Intestinal Infections

AbstractAs training in helminthology has declined in the medical microbiology curriculum, many rare species of zoonotic cestodes have fallen into obscurity. Even among specialist practitioners, knowledge of human intestinal cestode infections is often limited to three genera, Taenia, Hymenolepis and Dibothriocephalus. However, five genera of uncommonly encountered zoonotic Cyclophyllidea (Bertiella, Dipylidium, Raillietina, Inermicapsifer and Mesocestoides) may also cause patent intestinal infections in humans worldwide. Due to the limited availability of summarized and taxonomically accurate data, such cases may present a diagnostic dilemma to clinicians and laboratories alike. In this review, historical literature on these cestodes is synthesized and knowledge gaps are highlighted. Clinically relevant taxonomy, nomenclature, life cycles, morphology of human-infecting species are discussed and clarified, along with the clinical presentation, diagnostic features and molecular advances, where available. Due to the limited awareness of these agents and identifying features, it is difficult to assess the true incidence of these ‘forgotten’ cestodiases as clinical misidentifications are likely to occur. Also, the taxonomic status of many of the human-infecting species of these tapeworms is unclear, hampering accurate species identification. Further studies combining molecular data and morphological observations are necessary to resolve these long-standing taxonomic issues and to elucidate other unknown aspects of transmission and ecology.

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Morphological and molecular characterization of a new species of Atlantic stalked barnacle (Scalpelliformes: Pollicipedidae) from the Cape Verde Islands

Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom ◽

10.1017/s0025315411000166 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 91 (7) ◽

pp. 1537-1545 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Javier Quinteiro ◽

Jorge Rodríguez-Castro ◽

Pedro López ◽

Luis F. López-Jurado ◽

Nieves González-Henríquez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Cape Verde ◽

Eastern Pacific ◽

Cape Verde Islands ◽

The North ◽

North Eastern ◽

Central Eastern

The taxonomy of pedunculate cirripedes belonging to the genus Pollicipes has essentially remained unchanged since Charles Darwin described them in his exhaustive work on the Cirripedia. This genus includes three species of stalked barnacles: Pollicipes pollicipes in the north-eastern Atlantic, P. polymerus in the north-eastern Pacific and P. elegans in the central-eastern Pacific. However, a population genetics analysis of P. pollicipes suggested the presence of a putative cryptic species collected from the Cape Verde Islands in the central-eastern Atlantic. This study examines the morphology of these genetically divergent specimens and compares them with that of representative Atlantic samples of the biogeographically closely related P. pollicipes and with the poorly described P. elegans. Molecular data, including mitochondrial COX1 and nuclear ribosomal interspaces sequences, were obtained for all species of the genus Pollicipes. Morphological distinctiveness, diagnostic characters, congruent divergence level and monophyletic clustering, at both nuclear and mitochondrial loci support the taxonomic status of this new species, Pollicipes darwini.

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Regarding the taxonomic status of Ophyra Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Muscidae): A molecular approach

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.712.1.1 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 712 (1) ◽

pp. 1 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

GUILHERME SCHNELL E. SCHUEHLI ◽

CLAUDIO JOSÉ BARROS DE CARVALHO ◽

BRIAN M. WIEGMANN

Keyword(s):

Elongation Factor ◽

Taxonomic Status ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Systematic Position ◽

Mitochondrial Genes ◽

Phylogenetic Study ◽

Molecular Approach ◽

The Family ◽

The Subject ◽

Elongation Factor 1

The muscid genus Ophyra has long been the subject of debate over its placement within the family. However, a phylogenetic study has never been conducted that would clarify its systematic position. In the present paper, phylogenetic relationships are examined between Ophyra albuquerquei and related muscid genera. The mitochondrial genes Cytochrome Oxidase I and II and tRNA-Leu were used combined with the nuclear genes CAD and Elongation Factor 1 to compose a matrix with 2989 characters (716 parsimonyinformative). These characters were analyzed under parsimony resulting in a single most parsimonious tree. Contrary to some recent classifications, our molecular data suggest the placement of Ophyra albuquerquei within the Muscinae in a separate position from the azeliine genus Hydrotaea.

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