Description of a new species of the genus Yunnanilus Nichols, 1925 (Teleostei: Nemacheilidae) from Yunnan, China

A new species of the family Nemacheilidae, Yunnanilus niulanensis, is described from the upper reach of the NiulanjiangRiver, a branch of the Jinsha River, in Songming County, Yunnan Province, China. It can be distinguished from all otherYunnanilus species by the combination of the following characters: dorsal fin rays iii, 9; anal fin rays iii, 5; pectoral finrays i, 11; pelvic fin rays i, 7–8; branched caudal fin rays 14; mouth subterminal; 9–11 gillrakers on the inner side of thefirst gill arch, no gillrakers on the outer side; upper two-thirds of body and head covered by large brown spots; fins hyaline;body covered with scales; no lateral line; no cephalic sensory pores; caudal-peduncle length less than caudal-peduncledepth; caudal-peduncle length 9.2–11.1 % SL; body depth 21.0–25.8 % SL; eye diameter 5.4–6.0 % SL; interorbital width 9.9–12.1 % SL.

Afternoon shedding of a new species of Isospora (Apicomplexa) in the endangered Regent Honeyeater (Xanthomyza phrygia)

SUMMARYThe Regent Honeyeater (Xanthomyza phyrigia) is an endangered Australian bird species. Breeding populations have been established at Australian zoos in support of re-introduction programmes. This species is the host of a new species of Isospora (Apicomplexa). Oocysts are spherical, 25·8 (22·5–28·75) by 23·8 (20–26·25) μm with a colourless to pale yellow smooth wall undergoing rapid exogenous sporulation, 90% sporulated oocysts in 8 h at 20°C. Each oocyst contains 1 polar granule. Sporocysts are ovoid, 18·67 (17–19) by 9·49 (9–10) μm with a flat Stieda body and spherical substieda body devoid of a hyaline body. The asexual stages and sexual phase is within the enterocytes of the duodenum and jejunum. Faeces collected in the morning (AM, n=84) and in the afternoon (PM, n=90) revealed significant diurnal periodicity in oocyst shedding; 21% (18 of 84) of the AM were positive with the mean of 499 oocysts.g−1 compared to the PM with 91% (82 of 90) bird faeces positive with the mean of 129 723 oocysts.g−1. Therefore, parasite checks for these birds should be carried out in the afternoon to obtain an accurate result. The ecological significance of the high parasite burden in captive birds requires further investigation and comparison to the wild counterparts.

The anatomy of Santalum album (Sandalwood) haustoria

Structural attributes of Santalum album L. (Sandalwood) haustoria have been long overlooked in the literature. This is surprising since successful haustorial formation is key to the survival of individuals of this ecologically and economically important plant. We investigated the morphology of haustoria formed by S. album attached to one of its principal hosts Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsley) A. Gray. The bell-shaped mature haustoria were composed of a peripheral hyaline body and a centrally located penetration peg. The parasite penetration peg can penetrate the host by means of direct pressure and the secretion of cell-wall-degrading enzymes when forming a successful graft union. The latter mechanism is supported by this study as we observed no evidence of collapsed host cells as the result of parasite applied pressure. Upon reaching the xylem tissue of the host root, the penetration peg formed a thin ellipsoidal disc and the host–parasite interface was almost entirely composed of parenchymatous tissue. Luminal continuities were absent between the xylem conducting tissues of the partners, thus suggesting mass flow of solutes is unlikely to occur in this association. High densities of contact parenchyma were found at the host–parasite interface; thus it is probable that these are the principal structures formed by the parasite that facilitate the acquisition of host-derived xylem resources. This study therefore concludes that haustorial anatomy of S. album supports cross membrane (potentially selective) uptake of host-derived solutes as opposed to mass flow via vascular continuity.

Hyaline Body Myopathy: Adulthood Manifestations

ABSTRACT:Background:Hyaline body myopathy (HBM) is a rare chronic nonprogressive congenital myopathy, with variable patterns of inheritance.Methods:We describe a patient with congenital HBM with progression of weakness and increasing muscle pain in adulthood. Three muscle biopsies, done at various times in her life, are reported.Results:Symptoms started during childhood; however, as an adult, following a period of stability with no progression of the disease, the patient became symptomatic with worsening proximal limb weakness, severe aching pain and hypertrophy of calves. Moderate elevations of serum creatine kinase and myopathic features were noted on electrophysiologic testing. Muscle pathology showed significant fatty infiltration of skeletal muscle and increased number of fibers with internal nuclei. Histology demonstrated the presence of subsarcolemmal, well-delineated hyaline areas, which on histochemical studies was shown to be limited to type1 fibers. The hyaline bodies were dark with pH 4.2 ATPase and with immunohistochemical studies reacted only with myosin heavy chain slow. Electron microscopy showed the hyaline bodies to be composed of nonmembrane bound, fairly even sized granular material, which merged with the adjacent myofibrils. Earlier muscle biopsies, done during childhood, also revealed presence of similar subsarcolemmal hyaline deposits.Conclusion:There appears to be a pattern of presentation with adulthood progression in HBM, which has not been described before. Further case studies are required to understand the clinical progression in HBM.