Cyphellostereum Ushima Sp. Nov. (Hygrophoraceae, Agaricales) Described from Amami-Oshima Island (Kagoshima Prefecture, Ryukyu Islands), Japan, with Ultrastructural Observations of its Rhizonema Photobiont Filaments Penetrated Longitudinally by a Central Haustorium

We collected a resupinate fungus lichenized with filamentous Rhizonema cyanobacteria in Amami-Oshima Island, Japan. Microscopic observations and molecular phylogenetic analyses of both the basidioma and the lichenized thallus indicated affinities within Cyphellostereum, the first record of this basidiomycete genus from Japan. Its unique combination of structural characters and ITS rDNA sequences suggest a new species, described here as C. ushima. Light and transmission electron microscopic observations revealed tubular intracellular haustoria penetrating longitudinally within the cyanobacterial cells, a feature typically seen in the related genus Dictyonema, but unusual in Cyphellostereum. The generic circumscription of Cyphellostereum was therefore emended to include features of C. ushima and other recently described species that deviate from the conventional definition of the genus. Ultrastructural details of symbiont interactions are provided for the first time in this genus. We also succeeded in cultivating the fungus from hyphae regenerated from thallus fragments, and include a brief description of those results.TreeBASE reviewer access URL:http://purl.org/phylo/treebase/phylows/study/TB2:S28437?x-access-code=84d2007afb05bd743f34101ac2d97dac&format=html

Development of Prevention Strategies Against Bath-related Deaths Based on Epidemiological Surveys of Inquest Records: A Model Study in Kagoshima Prefecture

Sudden death in the bathroom (bath-related death) occurs more frequently in Japan than in other countries, especially among the elderly. To clarify the epidemiological characteristics of bath-related deaths, we reviewed inquest records of deaths in Kagoshima Prefecture from 2006 to 2019. We identified 2,689 cases of bath-related death. Of these cases, 90% were among people aged ≥65 years. The majority of cases occurred in a home bathtub between 16:00 and 20:00. Most deaths (52.0%) occurred in winter (December to February), and there was a significant negative correlation with the environmental temperature (maximum, minimum, and mean) on the day of death. We identified the environmental temperature that bath-related deaths were likely to occur in each region of Kagoshima. The causes of death were cardiac death in 1,231 cases and drowning in 855 cases. Forensic autopsies were performed in only 29 cases. Although autopsies are essential to elucidate the pathogenesis of bath-related deaths, it is difficult to increase the rate of autopsies under the current Japanese death investigation system. Therefore, we suggest that the best way to prevent bath-related death is establishing an “Alert system” based on our results, and to have people refrain from bathing on dangerous days.