REVISION OF EAST PALEARCTIC \u3ci\u3eAPATANIA \u3c/i\u3e (TRICHOPTERA: APATANIIDAE)

The East Palearctic genus Apatania Kolenati includes 34 species. Thirty-two of these have been described as adults and the other 2 are known only in the larval life stage. Immature stages of most species are not yet known. A morphological study of these species suggested that 2 of the nominal species are synonyms of other species, reducing the number of valid East Palearctic Apatania species to 30. A phylogeny and classification of the reviewed 30 species is provided for this work. My work does not support Schmid\u27s (1953) groupings of Apatania species. Although recognition of homologues was problematic among the highly diverse genitalia, I was able to infer new monophyletic groups among the East Paleartic species. Eight new species groups (the Apatania tsudai, A. momoyaensis, A. zonella, A. copiosa, A. chokaiensis, A. parvula, A. stigmatella and A. siniaevi Groups) and 5 species incertae sedis are recognized. Examination of adult males and females resulted in 2 subjective synonyms; Apatania crassa Schmid, 1953, is junior synonym of A. parvula Martynov, 1935; and A. doehleri Schmid, 1954, is junior synonym of A. majuscula McLachlan, 1872. Keys are provided for identifcation of the 30 valid species based on male and female genitalia. Intraspecific variations also are illustrated. This is the first comprehensive phylogenetic review of East Palearctic Apatania species and conflicting and supporting evidence for homologies of genitalic structures is considered

A Radiological study of the Right Lung

The purpose of this thesis is to illustrate the author's observations on radiological investigations of the right lung both in the living body and at post-mortem, and to describe certain aspects of anatomical, clinical, pathological and radiological interest

From morphology to molecules: A combined source approach to untangle the taxonomy of Clessinia (Gastropoda, Odontostomidae), endemic land snails from the Dry Chaco ecoregion

Background: Land gastropods of the Dry Chaco merit special attention because they comprise a highly diverse but barely studied group. Clessinia Doering, 1875 are typical inhabitants of this ecoregion. The inclusion of their distribution areas into Spixia range, their shell shape similarities, and a former molecular study raised doubts on the monophyly of this genus. The present study review the species of Clessinia, under a morphological, geometric morphometrics, and molecular combined approach. Methods: Adults were collected, photographed, measured, and dissected for anatomical studies. Shell ultrastructure was studied with scanning electron microscope. Geometric morphometric analyses on shells were performed testing if they gave complementary information to anatomy. Two mitochondrial genes, and a nuclear region were studied. Phylogenetic reconstructions to explore the relationships of DNA sequences here obtained to those of Clessinia and Spixia species from GenBank were performed. Results: Species description on shell, periostracal ornamentation and anatomy is provided. We raised former Clessinia cordovana striata to species rank, naming it as Clessinia tulumbensis sp. nov. The periostracum, consisting of hairs and lamellae, has taxonomic importance for species identification. Shell morphometric analyses, inner sculpture of penis and proportion of the epiphallus and penis, were useful tools to species identification. Nuclear markers do not exhibit enough genetic variation to determine species relationships. Based on the mitochondrial markers, genetic distances among Clessinia species were greater than 10%, and while C. cordovana, C. nattkemperi, and C. pagoda were recognized as distinct evolutionary genetic species, the distinction between C. stelzneri and C. tulumbensis sp. nov. was not evident. Clessinia and Spixia were paraphyletic in the molecular phylogenetic analyses. Species of Clessinia here treated have narrow distributional areas and are endemic to the Chaco Serrano subecoregion, restricted to small patches within the Dry Chaco. Clessinia and Spixia are synonymous, and the valid name of the taxon should be Clessinia Doering, 1875 which has priority over Spixia Pilsbry & Vanatta, 1894. Discussion: Our results support the composition of C. cordovana complex by three species, C. cordovana, C. stelzneri, and C. tulumbensis sp. nov. The low genetic divergence between C. stelzneri and C. tulumbensis sp. nov. suggests that they have evolved relatively recently. The former Spixia and Clessinia are externally distinguished because Clessinia has a detached aperture from the body whorl forming a cornet, periostracal microsculpture extended over dorsal portion of the peristome, five inner teeth on the shell aperture instead of three–four found in Spixia. Morphological similarities exists between both genera in shell shape, type of periostracum microsculpture, reproductive anatomy, besides the overlap in geographic ranges.Fil: Cuezzo, Maria Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical; ArgentinaFil: Miranda, Maria Jose. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical. Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical; ArgentinaFil: Vogler, Roberto Eugenio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Biología Subtropical. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Instituto de Biología Subtropical; ArgentinaFil: Beltramino, Ariel Anibal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Biología Subtropical. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Instituto de Biología Subtropical; Argentin

A redescription of Aedes (Stegomyia) calceatus Edwards and description of a new Afrotropical species, Aedes (Stegomyia) ledgeri (Diptera: Culicidae).

Volume: 1

Handbook of Vascular Biometrics

This open access handbook provides the first comprehensive overview of biometrics exploiting the shape of human blood vessels for biometric recognition, i.e. vascular biometrics, including finger vein recognition, hand/palm vein recognition, retina recognition, and sclera recognition. After an introductory chapter summarizing the state of the art in and availability of commercial systems and open datasets/open source software, individual chapters focus on specific aspects of one of the biometric modalities, including questions of usability, security, and privacy. The book features contributions from both academia and major industrial manufacturers

Phylogeny and systematics of the "Pronophila clade," with 2 new genera to resolve the formerly polyphyletic genus Pseudomaniola (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae)

Analysis of a target enrichment molecular dataset confirms the monophyly of the Neotropical montane butterfly group known as the Pronophila Westwood clade, 1 of 2 major lineages of the satyrine subtribe Pronophilina. The Pronophila clade comprises 18-20 recognized genera and some 125 species. Within this group, the genus Pseudomaniola Röber appears as paraphyletic, and is split here into 3 genera, Pseudomaniola sensu novum with 6 species, including 4 previously considered as subspecies of P. phaselis (Hewitson), the monobasic Fahraeusia Pyrcz n. gen. for Catargynnis asuba Thieme, n. comb., and Boyeriana Pyrcz, Espeland & Willmott n. gen., with 9 species. The adults of all 3 genera can be recognized by their wing color patterns, but the strongest synapomorphies are found in the genitalia, especially those of the male, supporting the above systematic de cisions. Notable differences are also found in scale organization and morphology. A divergence time analysis suggests that Fahraeusia diverged from Pseudomaniola + Boyeriana in the mid-Miocene, around 12 Mya, and the subsequent separation of the last 2 genera occurred at the start of the Pliocene at around 5 Mya

Studies of vascular function in patients with heart failure and either preserved or reduced left ventricular systolic function

Up to 50% of patients with the clinical syndrome of heart failure have preserved left ventricular systolic function (HF-PSF). Invasive studies utilising cardiac catheterisation have demonstrated that patients with HF-PSF have abnormalities of left ventricular (LV) relaxation and filling, or LV diastolic dysfunction. As a result, it has been proposed that LV diastolic dysfunction is the primary pathophysiological process in HF-PSF. However, population-based studies have shown that there is poor correlation between the presence of LV diastolic dysfunction and the presence of heart failure. This controversy has led to a search for alternative pathophysiological processes which could potentially cause HF-PSF. There are some data to suggest that patients with HF-PSF have a combination of LV diastolic dysfunction, or ‘LV stiffness’, and large artery stiffness, when compared with normal subjects and patients with systemic hypertension. This implies that the interaction between the left ventricle and the vasculature is dysfunctional and a potential cause of HF-PSF. Although there are limited data on arterial stiffness in HF-PSF, there have been no studies examining other parameters of vascular function in HF-PSF and vascular function has never been formally compared in cohorts of patients with HF-PSF and heart failure due to reduced LV systolic function (HF-RSF). The studies presented in this thesis were designed to further characterise vascular function in HF-PSF and to compare vascular function between patients with HF-PSF, patients with HF-RSF and control subjects. I used non-invasive techniques to assess parameters of arterial function, such as arterial stiffness and arterial endothelial function. I also evaluated parameters of venous function, namely venous capacitance and venous endothelial function. Arterial stiffness, measured by aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV), was significantly elevated in HF-PSF compared to both HF-RSF and control groups, implying that HF-PSF is indeed associated with greater arterial stiffness. In contrast, arterial diastolic waveform analysis failed to show any significant differences in derived parameters of arterial compliance between the three study groups, which may be due to the fact that all three groups were matched for underlying coronary heart disease, reducing the ability of the technique to differentiate between groups. Using Laser Doppler iontophoresis, I demonstrated that HF-PSF and HF-RSF subjects have impaired microvascular responses to both acetylcholine and sodium nitroprusside. This suggests that, rather than being solely a primary disorder of endothelial function, impaired control of vascular tone in HF-PSF reflects significant vascular smooth muscle dysfunction. It is not certain if arterial smooth muscle and/or endothelial dysfunction is secondary to the inflammatory and neurohumoral activation associated with the heart failure syndrome, or a primary pathophysiological factor in the development of either form of heart failure. As regards venous function, patients with HF-PSF had a lower venous capacitance than patients with HF-RSF (but similar venous capacitance to the controls). Increased venous capacitance may represent a compensatory response in heart failure that is less marked or absent in HF-PSF, compared to HF-RSF. Venous endothelial function was measured with the Aellig dorsal hand vein technique. It was not technically possible to complete an Aellig study in the whole patient cohort, resulting in fewer data being available for analysis. Despite this, both heart failure groups appeared to have impaired venodilatation in response to acetylcholine, compared to controls, although this apparent difference was not statistically significant. While the studies of venous capacitance and endothelial function were not conclusive, they suggest that venous function may be abnormal in HF-PSF. The finding that endothelial and smooth muscle control of arterial tone was impaired in both HF-PSF and HF-RSF may indicate a similar primary pathophysiological process, or indeed a similar response to inflammatory and neurohumoral activation in heart failure. I conclude that the data presented in this thesis supports the hypothesis that HF-PSF is associated with increased arterial stiffness, which in combination with increased LV stiffness is likely to result in impaired ventriculo-vascular coupling. This process is likely to be an important pathophysiological factor in the development of HF-PSF

Cretaceous Diptera From Orapa, Botswana.

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF SClENCE, UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND, JOHANNESBURG, FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY.An assemblage of Cretaceous, Diptera, recovered from the sediments of the Orapa Diamond mine, Botswana, is described. The fossil Diptera are placed In the following families: Tipulidae, Empididae, Hybotidae, Bibionidae, and possibly the Mycetophilidae, Rhagionidae and Anisopodidae. A new pulid species, Helius botswanensis (Tipulidae, subfamily Limoniinae), is described; it is the oldest representative of the subfamily. (Abbreviation abstract)Andrew Chakane 201

Integrative taxonomy of platygastrine wasps of Germany

In the context of the sixth mass extinction, our understanding of insect decline is severely limited by a lack of information on biodiversity. Many highly abundant and diverse insect groups remain unidentifiable to species or even to genus. The parasitoid wasp superfamily Platygastroidea is one such dark taxon. The taxonomic impediment is especially severe in the Palearctic Platygastrinae due to the proliferation of names with vague concepts. Platygastrine wasps parasitize the hyper-diverse Cecidomyiidae (Diptera), suggesting that their species richness may be correspondingly high. Revisionary work is needed to identify named species and to discover new ones. This work applies integrative taxonomic methods to address the most pressing problems within the subfamily. The research presented in this dissertation focuses on Europe, particularly Germany, which is the current center of insect decline research as well as a historical center of platygastrine taxonomy. As part of this work, historical descriptions and their associated type material were examined and clarified so that further revisionary work can occur. The dissertation is structured in five chapters, of which two are published and three are unpublished. The first chapter reviews 18 genera of Platygastridae described by Arnold Förster (1856), most of which represent distinct and recognizable lineages. The study provides their taxonomic history, diagnostic remarks, English translations, and illustrations of important specimens from the Förster collection in the Natural History Museum Vienna. The collection also includes original exemplar specimens of European species whose types have been lost. Potential neotypes and lectotypes from this material are noted, with the aim of improving nomenclatural stability in the group. Potential neotypes were found for Amblyaspis forticornis (Nees, 1834), Isocybus grandis (Nees, 1834), Platygaster striolata Nees, 1834, and Trichacis tristis (Nees, 1834). Lectotypes will be designated for Platygaster spinigera Nees, 1834, which will be transferred to Leptacis, and for Platygaster corvina Förster, 1861, with Platygaster henkvlugi Buhl, 1996 treated as a junior synonym. Synopeas mutica (Nees, 1834) should be transferred back to Platygaster. The second chapter addresses generic concepts within Platygastrinae sensu Ashmead. Part of Platygastrinae (former Inostemmatinae sensu Ashmead) was reviewed and keyed by Masner & Huggert (1989). However, more than half of the genera in the subfamily, including the vast majority of species, have not been revised. A working key to 14 major world genera, the first of its kind, is provided. An additional six genera and three subgenera of uncertain placement are discussed. The third chapter focuses on nomenclatural problems in the genus Platygaster Latreille, which is the type genus for its subfamily, family, and superfamily. It is also the largest genus in Platygastroidea with nearly 700 species, and recent evidence indicates that it is not monophyletic. It is necessary to establish the identity of the type specimen, as well as the identities of the 13 generic junior synonyms and four subgenera, in order to proceed with taxonomic divisions. The type specimen Scelio ruficornis Latreille, 1805, lost to science for 192 years, was rediscovered. However, it does not belong to the prevailing concept of Platygaster, but to Isocybus Förster, which has extreme taxonomic ramifications. The proposed solution would replace the type species of each genus in order to retain prevailing usage and prevent widespread confusion. A petition is presented to designate Epimeces ensifer Westwood as the type of Platygaster and Scelio ruficornis as the type of Isocybus. In the fourth chapter, the genus Trichacis Förster is revised for Europe. Examination of historical and modern collections combined with DNA barcoding revealed the presence of only a single species in Europe, Trichacis tristis (Nees, 1834), redescribed here. The results suggest that T. tristis has 14 junior synonyms: T. abdominalis (Thomson, 1859); T. bidentiscutum Szabó, 1981; T. didas (Walker, 1835); T. fusciala Szabó, 1981; T. hajduica Szabó, 1981; T. illusor Kieffer, 1916; T. nosferatus Buhl, 1997; T. pisis (Walker, 1835); T. persicus Asadi & Buhl, 2021; T. pulchricornis Szelényi, 1953; T. quadriclava Szabó, 1981; T. remulus (Walker, 1835); T. vitreus Buhl, 1997; and T. weiperti Buhl, 2019. Four species should be transferred to Amblyaspis Förster: T. afurcata Szabó, 1977, T. hungarica Szabó, 1977, T. pannonica Szabó, 1977, and T. tatika Szabó, 1977. Intraspecific variation, biological associations, and taxonomic history are discussed. DNA barcodes are provided and analyzed in the context of worldwide Trichacis and its sister genus Isocybus Förster. The fifth chapter examines platygastrid diversity in Germany in the context of insect decline. DNA barcodes indicate the presence of 178 observed species, with an estimated total of 290. GBOL sampling captured an estimated 93.7% of total species richness, but only 45.8% of rare species. A case study from Isocybus compares historical specimens, DNA barcode vouchers, and ecological data to illustrate the possible decline of a wetland parasitoid species. Altogether, the research demonstrates the importance of historical material, especially type specimens, in understanding biodiversity through time, and provides an essential taxonomic foundation for much-needed modern identification resources for Platygastrinae in the western Palearctic and beyond.Mitten im sechsten Massensterben ist unser Verständnis des Insektenrückgangs durch mangelhafte Informationen über die biologische Vielfalt noch immer stark eingeschränkt. Viele der häufigen und artenreichen Insektengruppen lassen sich nicht bis zur Art oder Gattung bestimmen, verweilen daher im Dunkeln. Platygastroidea, eine Überfamilie parasitoider Wespen, stellt ein solches "dark Taxon" dar. Bei paläarktischen Platygastrinae ist die taxonomische Bearbeitung besonders schwer, da es in einer Vielzahl von Taxa Unklarheiten gibt. Platygastrinae parasitieren die sehr artenreichen Cecidomyiidae (Diptera), was darauf schließen lässt, dass ihr Artenreichtum ebenfalls entsprechend groß sein könnte. Taxonomische Revisionen sind erforderlich, um beschriebene Arten zu identifizieren und neue zu entdecken. Die vorliegende Arbeit nutzt integrative Taxonomie, um die dringendsten Probleme dieser Unterfamilie anzugehen. Der Forschungsschwerpunkt liegt auf Europa, insbesondere Deutschland, das aktuelle Zentrum der Erforschung des Insektensterben, sowie ein historisches Zentrum der Platygastrinen-Taxonomie. Die Dissertation ist in fünf Kapitel unterteilt, von denen zwei veröffentlich und drei unveröffentlicht sind. Das erste Kapitel liefert einen Überblick über die 18 von Arnold Förster (1856) beschriebenen Gattungen der Platygastridae. Informationen über ihre Taxonomie, Anmerkungen zur Diagnose, Übersetzungen sowie Abbildungen wichtiger Exemplare aus der Förster-Sammlung im Naturhistorischen Museum Wien werden bereitgestellt. Die Sammlung Förster enthält zudem wichtige Original-Exemplare europäischer Arten, deren Typen unauffindbar sind. Potenzielle Neotypen und Lectotypen aus diesem Material sind vermerkt, um die nomenklatorische Stabilität der Gruppe zu verbessern. Potenzielle Neotypen wurden für Amblyaspis forticornis (Nees, 1834), Isocybus grandis (Nees, 1834), Platygaster striolata Nees, 1834, und Trichacis tristis (Nees, 1834) gefunden. Lectotypen werden für P. spinigera Nees, 1834, die zu Leptacis gestellt wird, und für P. corvina Förster, 1861, bestimmt, wobei Platygaster henkvlugi Buhl, 1996 als jüngeres Synonym zur letztgenannten Art behandelt wird. Synopeas mutica (Nees, 1834) sollte zurück zu Platygaster gestellt werden. Das zweite Kapitel befasst sich mit Gattungskonzepten innerhalb der Platygastrinae sensu Ashmead. Ein Teil der Platygastrinae (früher Inostemmatinae sensu Ashmead) wurde von Masner & Huggert (1989) überarbeitet und ein Bestimmungsschlüssel bereitgestellt. Viele Gattungen dieser Unterfamilie, einschließlich der meisten Arten, wurden jedoch nicht überarbeitet. Ein Bestimmungsschlüssel für 14 wichtige Gattungen der Welt wird vorgelegt. Weitere sechs Gattungen und drei Untergattungen mit unsicherer Stellung werden diskutiert. Das dritte Kapitel stellt die nomenklatorischen Probleme in der Gattung Platygaster Latreille dar, die Typusgattung der Überfamilie. Mit fast 700 Arten ist sie die größte Gattung der Platygastroidea, die nach neueren Erkenntnissen nicht monophyletisch ist. Das Aufklären der Identitäten des Typusexemplars, 13 jüngerer Synonyme und vier Untergattungen ist wichtig, um mit der taxonomischen Aufarbeitung fortzufahren. Das Typusexemplar von Scelio ruficornis, das 192 Jahre lang für die Wissenschaft als verschollen galt, wurde wiederentdeckt. Der Typus passt jedoch nicht zum vorherrschenden Konzept von Platygaster, sondern von Isocybus. Dies hat bedeutende taxonomische Auswirkungen. Als Lösung wird empfohlen, die Typusarten der einzelnen Gattungen zu ersetzen, um die aktuelle Namensnutzung beizubehalten und Verwirrung zu verhindern. Die Designation von Epimeces ensifer Westwood als Typusart von Platygaster und Scelio ruficornis als Typusart von Isocybus wird vorgeschlagen. In Kapitel vier wird die Gattung Trichacis Förster für Europa überarbeitet. Eine Untersuchung von historischem und neuem Sammlungsmaterial in Kombination mit DNA-Barcoding offenbarte das Vorhandensein einer einzigen Art in Europa, Trichacis tristis (Nees, 1834), die hier neu beschrieben wird. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass T. tristis 14 jüngere Synonyme hat: T. abdominalis (Thomson, 1859); T. bidentiscutum Szabó, 1981; T. didas (Walker, 1835); T. fusciala Szabó, 1981; T. hajduica Szabó, 1981; T. illusor Kieffer, 1916; T. nosferatus Buhl, 1997; T. pisis (Walker, 1835); T. persicus Asadi & Buhl, 2021; T. pulchricornis Szelényi, 1953; T. quadriclava Szabó, 1981; T. remulus (Walker, 1835); T. vitreus Buhl, 1997; und T. weiperti Buhl, 2019. Vier Arten sollten zu Amblyaspis Förster gestellt werden: T. afurcata Szabó, 1977, T. hungarica Szabó, 1977, T. pannonica Szabó, 1977 und T. tatika Szabó, 1977. Intraspezifische Variationen, biologische Assoziationen und die taxonomische Geschichte werden diskutiert. DNA-Barcodes werden bereitgestellt und im Kontext der weltweiten Arten von Trichacis und ihrer Schwestergattung Isocybus Förster analysiert. Im fünften Kapitel wird die Diversität der Platygastriden in Deutschland im Hinblick auf das Insektensterben untersucht. DNA-Barcodes weisen auf das Vorhandensein von 178 Arten hin, bei einer geschätzten Gesamtzahl von 290 Arten. Die Studie erfasste geschätzt 93,7 % des gesamten Artenreichtums, aber nur 45,8 % der seltenen Arten. Eine Untersuchung der Gattung Isocybus mittels historischer Belege, DNA-Barcodes und ökologischer Daten zeigt den potentiellen Rückgang einer Parasitoidenart. Diese Arbeit demonstriert, wie wichtig Sammlungen, insbesondere Typusexemplare, für das Verständnis der Artenvielfalt im Laufe der Zeit sind und liefert die taxonomische Grundlage für die dringend benötigten modernen Bestimmungshilfen der Platygastrinae in der westlichen Paläarktis und darüber hinaus