First Record of Psorospermium sp. (Class: Mesomycetozoea) in Northern Clearwater crayfish Faxonius propinquus Girard 1852 (Decapoda: Cambaridae) from Michigan, U.S.A.

Psorospermium cf. haeckeli Hilgendorf 1883 is a unicellular, eukaryotic protozoan within the class Mesomycetozoea, phylogenetically situated near the animal-fungal divergence(Cavalier-Smith 1998; Ragan et al. 1998). Although only one species has been identified, there have been four morphotypes described in 17 species of crayfish from the Holarctic, Neotropical, and Australasian regions (Herbert 1987; Henttonen et al. 1992, 1994; Rug & Vogt 1994). However, molecular analyses of the internal transcribed spacer DNA suggest morphotypes may represent distinct species (Bangyeekhun et al. 2001).

Impatiens bullatisepala (Balsaminaceae), a new species from Guizhou, China

Impatiens bullatisepala (Balsaminaceae), a new species supported by morphological and phylogenetic evidence from Fanjing Mountain, Guizhou province in China, is described here. It is morphologically similar to I. davidii but can be distinguished by its dorsally ridged lateral sepals with sunk reticulate veins and bullate projections on abaxial surface, 2–2.5 cm deep saccate lower sepal with ca. 0.8 cm long narrowly triangular tip at the mouth, and broadly ovate dorsal petal. Phylogenetic analyses of a combined dataset of nuclear ITS and plastid atpB-rbcL intergenic spacer DNA sequences furtherly confirmed its novelty.

Bacterial Small RNAs in the Genus Herbaspirillum spp.

The genus Herbaspirillum includes several strains isolated from different grasses. The identification of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) in the genus Herbaspirillum is an important stage studying the interaction of these molecules and the way they modulate physiological responses of different mechanisms, through RNA–RNA interaction or RNA–protein interaction. This interaction with their target occurs through the perfect pairing of short sequences (cis-encoded ncRNAs) or by the partial pairing of short sequences (trans-encoded ncRNAs). However, the companion Hfq can stabilize interactions in the trans-acting class. In addition, there are Riboswitches, located at the 5′ end of mRNA and less often at the 3′ end, which respond to environmental signals, high temperatures, or small binder molecules. Recently, CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats), in prokaryotes, have been described that consist of serial repeats of base sequences (spacer DNA) resulting from a previous exposure to exogenous plasmids or bacteriophages. We identified 285 ncRNAs in Herbaspirillum seropedicae (H. seropedicae) SmR1, expressed in different experimental conditions of RNA-seq material, classified as cis-encoded ncRNAs or trans-encoded ncRNAs and detected RNA riboswitch domains and CRISPR sequences. The results provide a better understanding of the participation of this type of RNA in the regulation of the metabolism of bacteria of the genus Herbaspirillum spp.

Three new species of Impatiens (Balsaminaceae) from Myanmar

Three new species of Impatiens (Balsaminaceae) from Myanmar are here described: I. decurva Ruchis. & S.B. Janssens, I. hartnolliae Hook. f. ex Ruchis. & Suksathan, and I. oblongata Ruchis. &Van der Niet. The 5-lobed short fusiform fruit of all three species suggests that they are members of subgen. Impatiens sect. Uniflorae Hook. f. & Thomson. For I. decurva and I. oblongata, subgenus membership was corroborated by phylogenetic analyses of a combined dataset of nuclear ITS and plastid atpB-rbcL intergenic spacer DNA sequences. This was not possible for I. hartnolliae, which is only known from a single herbarium specimen.

Impatiens tanintharyiensis (Balsaminaceae), a new species from Southern Myanmar

Impatiens tanintharyiensis Ruchisansakun, Suksathan & Saw-Lwin from the Tanintharyi region of Southern Myanmar is described and illustrated as a new species. The presence of connate lateral united petals and a four-locular ovary, as well as results of molecular phylogenetic analyses of nuclear ITS and plastid atpB-rbcL spacer DNA sequences, suggest that the new species is a member of Impatiens section Semeiocardium (Zoll.) S.X. Yu & Wei Wang. The new species is morphologically most similar to I. spectabilis Triboun & Suksathan, but can be distinguished by its asymmetric flowers, saccate-bucciniform lower sepal, and shorter, slightly incurved spur. Floral traits, including the presence of a large floral chamber with a wide entrance, are consistent with the bee-pollination syndrome in Impatiens. Since I. tanintharyiensis is only known from two small populations, its conservation status is assessed as Endangered.

Hemipilia galeata (Orchideae, Orchidaceae), a new species from Fujian Province, southeastern China

A new orchid species, Hemipilia galeata, is described and illustrated from Wuyi Mountains, Fujian Province, southeastern China, and included in a phylogenetic analysis using the nuclear ribosomal ITS and three plastid markers (matK, trnL intron and trnL-F spacer) DNA. This species is a member of H. section Hemipilia sensu Tang et al. and is distinguished from other species in Hemipilia by its hemispheric dorsal sepal. It is similar to H. hemipilioides, H. occidensichuanensis and H. thailandica, but H. galeata differs by its elliptic, purple-spotted leaf, suborbicular petals, oblong lateral lip lobes and an ovate midlobe.