Miocene sponge assemblages in the face of the Messinian Salinity Crisis—new data from the Atlanto-Mediterranean seaway

The Messinian Salinity Crisis is considered as one of the most influential Cenozoic events that impacted negatively on the benthic fauna of the Mediterranean area. Changing environmental conditions, including a sharp reduction of water exchange between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, altered the geographical ranges of many organisms, including sponges (Porifera). Here, we report a unique assemblage of isolated sponge spicules from the upper Miocene of southwestern Spain. The newly recognized sponge fauna was inhabiting the Guadalquivir Basin—the corridor between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean at that time. It represents a taxonomically rich sponge community that consisted of members of “soft” and “lithistid” demosponges and hexactinellids. Demosponges are represented by at least thirty-four taxa, while hexactinellids are significantly rarer; only six taxa have been identified. From among eighteen taxa recognized to the species level, at least eight seem to be inhabiting this area to these days; six are recorded from adjacent areas, such as the Western Mediterranean, South European Atlantic Shelf, and the Azores, and three are present in the Red Sea and/or the Northern Atlantic. Intriguingly, some taxa seem to have their closest relatives in distant areas, such as the Indo-Pacific and Japanese waters which suggests that the range of some once widely-distributed populations shrunk after the isolation of the Mediterranean and the Messinian Salinity Crisis, surviving to the present day only in refugia.This work was supported by EVAMED (PID2020-118999GB-I00) funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation/State Research Agency of Spain (AEI)

Late Eocene siliceous sponge fauna of southern Australia: reconstruction based on loose spicules record

Łukowiak, Magdalena (2015): Late Eocene siliceous sponge fauna of southern Australia: reconstruction based on loose spicules record. Zootaxa 3917 (1): 1-65, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3917.1.

Unraveling the hidden paleobiodiversity of the Middle Devonian (Emsian) crinoids (Crinoidea, Echinodermata) from Poland

Most previous publications on Devonian crinoids from the Holy Cross Mountains in Poland have concentrated on crinoid columns, and until now, little has been published about crinoid cups and calyxes. Herein, five crinoid taxa are described from an abundant occurrence of aboral cups and partial crowns from the Bukowa Góra Member (Emsian) in the Holy Cross Mountains of southern Poland. The following taxa are described: Bactrocrinites sp., Codiacrinus sevastopuloi sp. nov., Halocrinites geminatus (Bohatý, 2005), Halocrinites schlotheimii Steininger, 1831, and a single brachial plate from a flexible crinoid placed in Flexibilia incertae sedis. Simple discoid holdfasts are also present encrusted to cylindrical stromatoporoids. These taxa are the first crinoids described from the remains of partial crowns from Emsian strata of Poland

Risk factors for seroma evacuation in breast cancer patients treated with intraoperative radiotherapy

BackgroundNovel techniques in oncology provide new treatment opportunities but also introduce different patterns of side effects. Intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) allows a shortened overall treatment time for early breast cancer either combined with whole breast radiotherapy (WBRT), or alone. Although the early side effects of IORT are well known, data on clinically important late side effects, which require medical intervention, are scarce.AimIn this study, we analyze risk factors for seroma evacuation more than 6 months after IORT.Materials and methodsWe evaluated 120 patients with a mean follow-up of 27.8 months (range: 7–52 months). Fifty-one patients received IORT only and 69 were additionally treated with WBRT.ResultsSeroma evacuation was performed 6–38 months after IORT. Two (3.9%) events were observed in the IORT group and 14 (20%) in the IORT[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]+[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]WBRT group. Univariate (Kaplan–Meier) analysis showed that addition of WBRT to IORT increased the risk of seroma evacuation [hazard ratio[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]=[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]5.5, 95% confidence interval: 2.0–14.7, P[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]=[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]0.011]. In a multivariate analysis (Cox proportional hazards regression), WBRT and axillary lymph node dissection were significant risk factors for seroma evacuation (model P value[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]=[[ce:hsp sp="0.25"/]]0.0025).ConclusionsWBRT applied after IORT is associated with increased risk of seroma evacuation, which might be considered as a late side effect

Evaluation of the rectal V30 parameter in patients diagnosed with postoperative endometrial cancer

Background: The present paper reports on analysis of 184 patients who were diagnosed with endometrial cancer. The main objective of this study was to address parameter Vrec(30Gy) which determines a volume of the rectum irradiated with a dose of 30 Gy during radiotherapy. Materials and methods: All patients were irradiated with an IMRT technique on linear accelerators. The planning target volume (PTV) contour was determined by a radiation oncologist. The clinical target volume (CTV) was drawn on CT images obtained in a prone position. For statistical analysis, appropriate tests (e.g. the Shapiro-Wilk, Wilcoxon) were used. Results and discussion: The performed analysis showed that the recommended condition for Vrec(30Gy) is met only in 3% of patients and the observed median value exceeds 90%. The obtained results were compared with the studies in which the Vrec(30Gy) values were related to various radiotherapy techniques. Conclusions: The analysis showed that the condition for Vrec(30Gy) is satisfied in the case of only 3% of patients. Due to the difficulty with meeting the condition, it should be reconsidered based on real results.