Additions to Lyophyllaceae s.l. from China

Four new species, viz. Calocybe coacta, C. fulvipes, C. vinacea and Clitolyophyllum umbilicatum, are described in northern China. Comparisons are made of macro- and micromorphological features among the new species and closely related species within the genus. The new species feature unique morphological characteristics that separate them from the previously described species. Calocybe coacta is characterized by medium- to large-sized basidiocarps, greyish cream, felty pileus and non-cellular epicutis. The key characteristics of C. fulvipes are rose-brown to greyish-brown pileus, stone-brown stipe and non-cellular epicutis. The unique morphological characteristics of C. vinacea that distinguish it from its closely related species are pastel red to dull-red pileus and stipe surface with densely white pruina. The main characteristics of Clitolyophyllum umbilicatum are deeply depressed dark orange to light-brown pileus, central stipe and subglobose-ellipsoid spores. Phylogenetic analyses based on the ITS and 28S regions indicated that the four new species are distinct and monophyletic. Full descriptions, color images, illustrations and a phylogenetic tree that show the placement of the four new species are provided. A key to the Calocybe species reported from China is also given.

Three new species of Sternaspidae (Annelida: Sedentaria) from Thailand

In this contribution, three new species of sternaspids collected from sediments along the coast of southern Thailand are described: Petersenaspis apinyae sp. nov. from a depth of 50–80 m offshore in the Gulf of Thailand; P. narisarae sp. nov. from 9 m depth in the Songkhla Sea, Gulf of Thailand; and P. pakbaraensis sp. nov. from tidal mudflats on the Andaman Coast. All three species resemble P. palpallatoci Sendall & Salazar-Vallejo, 2013. They differ mainly in the pigmentation and shape of the shield, the number of ventral chaetae and chaetae at the posterior shield, body papillae, and size of the abdomen. Further, P. apinyae sp. nov. is clearly distinguished from other species of the genus by having dark orange to red butterfly wing-shaped shields, with strongly curved anterior margins. P. narisarae sp. nov. differs from other species by having concentric colored bands over shields and an expanded oval abdomen. P. pakbaraensis sp. nov. can be distinguished from other species by its dark brown-purple shield and laterally expanded fan. These three species have a unique character in their branchial plates: long brownish filaments. A key to the identification of all species of Petersenaspis is included.

An unusual body colouration of Ceylon roughside snake (Aspidura ceylonensis)

The small sized, non-venomous, and fossorial colubrid snake genus Aspidura Wagler, 1830 is endemic to Sri Lanka. Aspidura ceylonensis (Günther, 1858) is rare and restricted to mid-elevation to montane and sub-montane forests at elevation of 500–1300 m a.s.l. in the Central Highlands and the Knuckles massif. It is found in cool and well-shaded forest areas, with thick moist leaflitter, woody debris, and loose soil. The usual adult body coloration on dorsum is dark reddish or dark orange, rarely yellowish, with a continuous black vertebral line and two rows of dorsolateral black spots along the body.

Orange Pickeringite from the Algares 30-Level Adit, Aljustrel Mine, Iberian Pyrite Belt, Portugal

The sheltered environment of the Algares +30 level adit (underground mine gallery) contributes to the preservation of secondary water-soluble minerals formed on the tunnel walls. The massive sulphide and related stockwork zone are hosted by the Mine Tuff volcanic unit and are exposed in the walls of the gallery, showing intense oxidation and hydrothermal alteration. Minerals from the halotrichite group were identified on the efflorescent salts, typically white fine-acicular crystals but also on aggregates with dark orange/brownish colour. Mineral characterization was performed using several methods and analytical techniques (XRD, XRF-WDS, SEM-EDS, DTA-TG), and the chemical formulas were calculated maintaining the ratio A:B ≅ 1:2 in accordance with the general formula of the halotrichite group, AB2(SO4)4·22H2O. This methodology allowed the assignment of the orange colour to the presence of trivalent iron on iron-rich pickeringite in partial substitution of aluminium.

Repression of Carotenoid Accumulation by Nitrogen and NH4+ Supply in Carrot Callus Cells In Vitro

The effect of mineral nutrition on the accumulation of the main health beneficial compounds in carrots, the carotenoid pigments, remains ambiguous; here, a model-based approach was applied to reveal which compounds are responsible for the variation in carotenoid content in carrot cells in vitro. For this purpose, carotenoid-rich callus was cultured on either BI (modified Gamborg B5) or R (modified Murashige and Skoog MS) mineral media or on modified media obtained by exchanging compounds between BI and R. Callus growing on the BI medium had abundant carotene crystals in the cells and a dark orange color in contrast to pale orange callus with sparse crystals on the R medium. The carotenoid content, determined by HPLC and spectrophotometrically after two months of culture, was 5.3 higher on the BI medium. The replacement of media components revealed that only the N concentration and the NO3:NH4 ratio affected carotenoid accumulation. Either the increase of N amount above 27 mM or decrease of NO3:NH4 ratio below 12 resulted in the repression of carotenoid accumulation. An adverse effect of the increased NH4+ level on callus growth was additionally found. Somatic embryos were formed regardless of the level of N supplied. Changes to other media components, i.e., macroelements other than N, microelements, vitamins, growth regulators, and sucrose had no effect on callus growth and carotenoid accumulation. The results obtained from this model system expand the range of factors, such as N availability, composition of N salts, and ratio of nitrate to ammonium N form, that may affect the regulation of carotenoid metabolism.

Three new species of Tricholomopsis (incertae sedis) from North China based on morphological and molecular data

Three new species of Tricholomopsis were described and illustrated based on collections from Shanxi Province in North China. Tricholomopsis galeata sp. nov. is closely related to T. pteridiicola but distinguished from the latter by its large pileus with red to purple reddish fibrous scales and the absence of pleurocystidia. Tricholomopsis pallidolutea sp. nov. is similar to T. sulfureoides and T. flavescens in macromorphology but is differentiated from T. sulfureoides by its dark orange fibrous scales on the pileal surface and narrow basidiospores (avQ = 1.77 ± 0.33), and from T. flavescens by its abundant pleurocystidia. Tricholomopsis mitirubicunda sp. nov. is morphologically similar to T. rutilans but is distinguished from the latter by its abundant pleurocystidia. Phylogenetic analysis supported the taxonomic position of the three new species in the genus Tricholomopsis.

Three new species of crustose Teloschistaceae in Siberia and the Far East

Three species of the family Teloschistaceae (lichenized Ascomycota) are described as new to science from Southern and Eastern Siberia and the Far East. Corticolous Caloplaca saviczii belongs to the genus Caloplaca s. str.; it has C. cerina-like apothecia and green to grey-green, crateriform soralia with a white rim. Lendemeriella aureopruinosa is a saxicolous taxon with a thin grey thallus and small apothecia 0.3–0.6 mm in diameter, with a dark orange disc usually bearing epipsamma and often with a grey true exciple containing the pigment Cinereorufa-green. Orientophila infirma is a corticolous species with an endophloeodal thallus and small orange apothecia, 0.2–0.3 mm in diameter, usually with an inconspicuous thalline exciple. All new taxa presumably have a boreal north-eastern distribution in Asia.

Aluminum Pillared Clay (Al-PILC) for Adsorption of Dyes in Red Fruit Oil

Red fruit oil contains carotene, which is dark orange, so it is not very popular. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the intensity of the color. Yesterday, in this study, the synthesis and characterization of Al-pillared clay (Al-PILC) from light and heavy clay fractions were carried out. The absorption capacity of red fruit carotene dyes was studied. The research stages included preparation, fractionation, activation, pillarization of clay with aluminum, characterization, and adsorption test for carotene dyes on red fruit. Characterization was carried out using X-ray Diffractometer (XRD) and Gas Sorption Analyzer (GSA). The results showed that basal spacing of natural clay, Al pillared heavy fraction-clay, Al pillared light fraction-clay, activated light fraction were 15.08 Å, 15.27 Å, 16.84 Å, and 16, respectively. 22 Å. The GSA results showed that the surface area and pore volume of the Al pillared light fraction-clay of 0.3 was higher than the heavy fraction. The average pore size of Al pillared light fraction-clay and the heavy fraction was found in the mesoporous range of 30-100 Å, and the adsorption isotherm is type IV. Al-pillared light fraction-clay had higher adsorption ability than a heavy fraction and light fraction before pillaring. When the pillaring agent’s concentration was 0.3 M, Al pillared heavy fraction-has absorption capacity is 58.66%, while Al pillared light fraction-clay is 90.4%.

Arenibacter amylolyticus sp. nov., an amylase-producing bacterium of the family Flavobacteriaceae isolated from marine water in India

A novel Gram-stain-negative, curved rod-shaped, 0.5–0.7 µm wide and 3.0–10.0 µm long, non-motile bacterium, designated strain AK53T, was isolated from a 5 m depth water sample collected from the Bay of Bengal, Visakhapatnam, India. Colonies on marine agar were circular, small, dark orange, shiny, smooth, translucent, flat, with an entire margin. The major fatty acids included iso-C15 : 0, iso-C15 : 0 3OH, anteiso-C15 : 0, iso-C15 : 1 G, iso-C17 : 0 3OH and summed feature 3 (C16 : 1 ω7c and/or C16 : 1 ω6c and/or iso-C15 : 0-2OH). Polar lipids included phosphatidylethanolamine and five unidentified lipids. The DNA G+C content of the strain AK53T was found to be 40.8 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain AK53T was closely related to Arenibacter latericius KMM 426T and Arenibacter certesii KMM3941T (pair-wise sequence similarity of 99.17 and 98.89 %, respectively), forming a distinct branch within the genus Arenibacter and clustering with A. latericius . Strain AK53T shared average nucleotide identity (ANIb, based on blast) of 78.07 and 77.44 % with A. latericius JCM 13508T and A. certesii JCM 13507T, respectively. Based on the observed phenotypic, chemotaxonomic characteristics and phylogenetic analysis, strain AK53T is described in this study as representing a novel species in the genus Arenibacter , for which the name Arenibacter amylolyticus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Arenibacter amylolyticus is AK53T (=MTCC 12004T= JCM 19206T=KCTC 62553T).

Main Agro-Morphological and Biochemical Berry Characteristics of Wild-Grown Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L. ssp. caucasica Rousi) Genotypes in Turkey

Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L. ssp. caucasica Rousi) is one of the most important wild edible fruits, grown in Turkey for centuries without any chemical treatments. The plant is extremely resistant to adverse environmental conditions. In this study, the main agro-morphological and biochemical berry traits and, to a lesser extent, other plant morphological traits of 10 sea buckthorn genotypes sampled from the eastern Anatolia (Sivas province) region were assessed. Among the 10 genotypes, five of them presented a shrub growth habit, whereas five of them presented tree growth habit, with leaf area ranging from 2.56 to 4.22 cm2. The majority of genotypes had an oblong berry shape with variable berry skin color ranging from dark orange to orange, light orange, and yellow. The weight of 100 berries varied from 13.85 to 23.87 g, while juice yield and vitamin C content was found to be 44.87–57.15% and 37.45–62.85 mg/100 g fresh berry base, respectively. Soluble solid content (SSC) was in the range of 12.56–14.67%. The genotypes exhibited a great variability in total anthocyanin content (from 9.1 to 38.7 mg/L), with relatively dark-orange sea buckthorn berries containing more anthocyanin than orange, light-orange, and yellow berries. Linoleic acid was the main fatty acid detected in the pulp of sea buckthorn berries, ranging from 24.11% to 36.37%, depending on the genotype. Investigated genotypes proved also to be rich in total phenolic content, showing at the same time great variability in this trait. The results obtained from the relatively limited number of genotypes show promising traits for further valorization of both horticultural and nutritional traits, suggesting potentially even higher variability, if more genotypes are going to be considered in the future.