EMERGENCY TREATMENT FOR CENTRAL RETINAL ARTERY OCCLUSION ( CRAO )

Central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) is a blinding event but not considered as a common emergency problem. Since awareness of the case is low, patients usually come to the ophthalmologist later than the golden period and havingthe worst prognosis. We report the case of patient with a central retinal artery occlusion that had visual improvement after emergency treatment.A 47-year-old woman with no comorbidities presented with symptoms of a sudden blurred vision, no pain or redness in the right eye (RE). Best-corrected visual acuity in the RE was 1/60. A relative afferent pupillary defect was observed in the RE. Ocular fundus examination of RE was suggestive of CRAO. Emergency treatment were performed, including rebreathing of expired CO2, ocular massage and ocular chamber paracentesis. One week later, the visual acuity was improved.This case highlights that fast and accurate response in acute management of CRAO should be conducted, especially within the golden hours which is less than 6 hours after the accident, to prevent permanent visual loss of thepatient.

Introducing a new pleosporalean family Sublophiostomataceae fam. nov. to accommodate Sublophiostoma gen. nov.

Collections of microfungi on bamboo and grasses in Thailand revealed an interesting species morphologically resembling Lophiostoma, but which can be distinguished from the latter based on multi-locus phylogeny. In this paper, a new genus, Sublophiostoma is introduced to accommodate the taxon, S. thailandica sp. nov. Phylogenetic analyses using combined ITS, LSU, RPB2, SSU, and TEF sequences demonstrate that six strains of the new species form a distinct clade within Pleosporales, but cannot be assigned to any existing family. Therefore, a new family Sublophiostomataceae (Pleosporales) is introduced to accommodate the new genus. The sexual morph of Sublophiostomataceae is characterized by subglobose to hemisphaerical, ostiolate ascomata, with crest-like openings, a peridium with cells of textura angularis to textura epidermoidea, cylindric-clavate asci with a bulbous or foot-like narrow pedicel and a well-developed ocular chamber, and hyaline, fusiform, 1-septate ascospores surrounded by a large mucilaginous sheath. The asexual morph (coelomycetous) of the species are observed on culture media.

Morpho-Phylo Taxonomy of Novel Dothideomycetous Fungi Associated With Dead Woody Twigs in Yunnan Province, China

Within the field of mycology, macrofungi have been relatively well-studied when compared to microfungi. However, the diversity and distribution of microfungi inhabiting woody material have not received the same degree of research attention, especially in relatively unexplored regions, such as Yunnan Province, China. To help address this knowledge gap, we collected and examined fungal specimens from different plants at various locations across Yunnan Province. Our investigation led to the discovery of four species that are clearly distinct from extant ones. These taxonomic novelties were recognized based on morphological comparisons coupled with phylogenetic analyses of multiple gene sequences (non-translated loci and protein-coding regions). The monotypic genus Neoheleiosa gen. nov. (type: N. lincangensis) is introduced in Monoblastiaceae (Monoblastiales) for a woody-based saprobic ascomycete that possesses globose to subglobose or obpyriform ascomata with centric or eccentric, papillate ostioles, an ascomatal wall with thin-walled cells of textura globulosa, cylindric, pedicellate asci with an ocular chamber, and 1-septate, brown, guttulate, longitudinally striated, bicellular ascospores. Neoheleiosa has a close phylogenetic affinity to Heleiosa, nevertheless, it is morphologically dissimilar by its peridium cells and ornamented ascospores. Acrocalymma hongheense and A. yuxiense are described and illustrated as new species in Acrocalymmaceae. Acrocalymma hongheense is introduced with sexual and asexual (coelomycetous) features. The sexual morph is characterized by globose to subglobose, ostiolate ascomata, a peridium with textura angularis cells, cylindric-clavate asci with a furcate to truncate pedicel and an ocular chamber, hyaline, fusiform, 1-septate ascospores which are surrounded by a thick, distinct sheath, and the asexual morph is featured by pycnidial conidiomata, subcylindrical, hyaline, smooth, annelledic, conidiogenous cells, hyaline, guttulate, subcylindrical, aseptate conidia with mucoid ooze at the apex and with a rounded hilum at the base. Acrocalymma yuxiense is phylogenetically distinct from other extant species of Acrocalymma and differs from other taxa in Acrocalymma in having conidia with three vertical eusepta. Magnibotryascoma kunmingense sp. nov. is accommodated in Teichosporaceae based on its coelomycetous asexual morph which is characterized by pycnidial, globose to subglobose, papillate conidiomata, enteroblastic, annelledic, discrete, cylindrical to oblong, hyaline conidiogenous cells arising from the inner layer of pycnidium wall, subglobose, oval, guttulate, pale brown and unicelled conidia.

A new genus of Bambusicolaceae (Pleosporales) on Corylus avellana (Fagales) from Italy

In this study, we introduce Corylicola gen. nov. in the family of Bambusicolaceae (Pleosporales), to accommodate Corylicola italica sp. nov. The new species was isolated from dead branches of Corylus avellana (common hazel) in Italy. The discovery of this new genus with both sexual and asexual characters will contribute to expand the knowledge and taxonomic framework of Bambusicolaceae. Corylicola gen. nov. has similar morphological characters compared to other genera of Bambusicolaceae. These are solitary, scattered, globose to subglobose and ostiolate ascomata; anastomosing and branching pseudoparaphyses; cylindrical asci with a well-developed ocular chamber and short furcate pedicel; and single-septate ascospores. The coelomycetous asexual morph of Corylicola has holoblastic, phialidic conidiogenous cells and light brown conidia analogous to other members in the family. Corylicola differs from the other genera of Bambusicolaceae in having yellowish-brown ascospore masses at the top of the ascomatal neck. Detailed morphological illustrations with comprehensive descriptions for the new taxa are provided, as well as a key to the genera of Bambusicolaceae. Maximum Likelihood analysis and Bayesian Inference of a combined SSU, LSU, ITS, RPB2 and TEF1 sequence dataset confirms the placement of this genus as a distinct lineage in Bambusicolaceae.

Anisomeridium flavovulcanus, a new corticolous lichen from Costa Rica

A corticolous species, Anisomeridium flavovulcanus, is described. It has so far been found in the Carribean and Pacific lowland rainforests of Costa Rica, where it is a frequent lichen in the understorey. This conspicuous lichen is characterized by large conical conidiomata, which release a yellow conidial mass at the apex. Dimorphic conidia occur in the same conidiomata: 1-septate microconidia and thick walled globose macroconidia. Ascomata were found only twice; the inconspicuous perithecia are hemispherical, semi-emergent with an apical ostiole, the asci are cylindrical with a cruciform ocular chamber and the ascospores are uniseriately arranged.

A Synopsis of the Genera Skyttea, Llimoniella and Rhymbocarpus (Lichenicolous Ascomycota, Leotiales)

The genus Skyttea is characterized by urceolate ascomata, with a narrow pore when young, a greenish or brownish, rarely reddish exciple of conglutinate hyphae with subglobose to ± cylindrical lumina, bordered near the margin by hyaline to greenish or brownish, usually smooth, straight hairs, the absence of periphyses, rarely branched and apically hardly thickened paraphyses, asci and a hymenium that are entirely I — and KI —, a thin lateral and a very thick apical ascus wall with a small ocular chamber, and normally aseptate ascospores. It is considered to belong to the Leotiales and not to the Ostropales. It comprises at least 17 species, including S. caesii sp. nov., S. carboneae sp. nov., S. lecanorae sp. nov., S. mayrhoferi sp. nov., S. pyrenulae sp. nov., S. radiatilis comb, nov., S. tavaresae. sp. nov. and S. thelotrematis sp. nov. Rhymbocarpus is shown to be a distinct leotialean genus, distinguished from Llimoniella by a different excipular structure, different pigments and the presence of excipular hairs, which, in some species, are embedded in the excipular gel and thus not visible macroscopically. In addition to the type species, R. geographici, of which a neotype is designated, it includes R. boomii sp. nov.,R. cruciatus comb, nov., R. fuscoatrae comb, nov.,R. makarovae sp. nov.,R. neglectus comb, nov., R. pertusariae sp. nov.,R. pubescens comb. nov. and R. stereocaulorum comb. nov. Llimoniella s. str. comprises at least 6 species, including the type, L. scabridula, L. adnata, L. pertusariae sp. nov., L. pyrenulae sp. nov., L. ramalinae comb. nov. and L. vinosa comb. nov. Several species formerly assigned to Skyttea or Llimoniella are now included in the leotialean genus Unguiculariopsis, and the following new combinations are proposed: Unguiculariopsis acrocordiae comb, nov., U. groenlandiae comb. nov. and U. lesdainii comb. nov. A lectotype is chosen for Lichen stictoceros, which is shown to be a synonym of Evemia prunastri. Keys are given for the species of Skyttea, Llimoniella and Rhymbocarpus, and for the lichenicolous genera of Leotiales and Ostropales.

Hyalpyrenia Japonica, a Peculiar New Pyrenocarpous Lichen Genus from Japan

Hyalopyrenia japonica Harada (lichenized Ascomycotina) is described as new genus on the basis of a specimen from friable rock in forests in Chiba-ken, central Japan. It is characterized by a poorly developed crustose thallus, a Trentepohlia phycobiont, immersed perithecia with hyaline walls, simple paraphyses and periphyses, non-amyloid bitunicate asci with an ocular chamber, and transversely septate hyaline spores. Hyalopyrenia is monotypic, and its taxonomic position is uncertain.