Gunflints and Musket Balls: Implications for the Occupational History of the Eaton Site and the Niagara Frontier

The multicomponent Eaton site in West Seneca, New York, was the focus of a long-term archaeological project. While the major emphasis was the excavation of a mid-16th-century Iroquoian village, all artifacts are being analyzed. These include 12 gunflints and 8 musket balls deposited at some point after the abandonment of the Iroquoian village. This article describes these objects, their distribution and dating, and the implications of these artifacts for the history of the site and the region

Thecaphora capensis sp. nov., an unusual new anther smut on Oxalis in South Africa

The smut genus Thecaphora contains plant parasitic microfungi that typically infect very specific plant organs. In this study, we describe a new species of Thecaphora from Oxalis lanata var. rosea (Oxalidaceae) in the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa. Molecular phylogenetic reconstructions based on large subunit ribosomal DNA sequence data confirmed the generic placement of the fungus and confirmed that it represents an undescribed species for which the name T. capensis sp. nov. is provided. The closest known sister species of the new taxon is T. oxalidis that infects the fruits of Oxalis spp. in Europe, Asia and the Americas. In contrast, T. capensis produces teliospores within the anthers of its host. This is the first documented case of an anther-smut from an African species of Oxalis and the first Thecaphora species described from Africa

Can education change the world? Education amplifies differences in liberalization values and innovation between developed and developing countries

The present study investigated the relationship between level of education and liberalization values in large, representative samples administered in 96 countries around the world (total N = 139,991). These countries show meaningful variation in terms of the Human Development Index (HDI), ranging from very poor, developing countries to prosperous, developed countries. We found evidence of cross-level interactions, consistently showing that individuals' level of education was associated with an increase in their liberalization values in higher HDI societies, whereas this relationship was curbed in lower HDI countries. This enhanced liberalization mindset of individuals in high HDI countries, in turn, was related to better scores on national indices of innovation. We conclude that this 'education amplification effect' widens the gap between lower and higher HDI countries in terms of liberalized mentality and economic growth potential. Policy implications for how low HDI countries can counter this gap are discussed

Microfungi associated with dying Euphorbia mauritanica in South Africa and their relative pathogenicity

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION : TABLE S1. Collection details and GenBank accessions of Alanphillipsia isolates included in the phylogenetic analyses. TABLE S2. Collection details and GenBank accessions of Cytospora isolates included in the phylogenetic analyses. TABLE S3. Collection details and GenBank accessions of Didymellaceae isolates included in the phylogenetic analyses.Euphorbia mauritanica is a succulent shrub that is indigenous to South Africa and widely distributed throughout the country. Dying plants have been observed in their natural habitat in the Northern and Western Cape Provinces of South Africa in recent years. Stems displaying lesions were collected and the emerging cultures were identified based on ITS, LSU, ACT, RPB2, TEF1 and/or TUB2 sequence data. Four filamentous fungi were consistently observed and isolated. One was identified as Alanphillipsia (Ala.) aloes, and the other three were new to science and are described here as Cytospora euphorbiicola sp. nov., Nothomicrosphaeropsis namakwaensis sp. nov. and Austrophoma (Aus.) euphorbiae gen. et sp. nov. These new species and Ala. aloes were the most commonly encountered, and their pathogenicity was tested on E. mauritanica plants in a greenhouse trial. All four species gave rise to lesions that were significantly larger than those associated with the controls, but they were not significantly different to each other. Although the lesions associated with the inoculations were well-developed, they did not give rise to plant death, suggesting that they are not responsible for the large-scale die-off of E. mauritanica in the field. The primary cause of the death of E. mauritanica in the studied area remains unknown and could be due to environmental factors such as has been found with the die-off of Euphorbia ingens in South Africa.The University of Pretoria.https://www.fuse-journal.orgam2024BiochemistryForestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI)GeneticsMicrobiology and Plant PathologyPlant Production and Soil ScienceSDG-15:Life on lan

Quantification of three macrolide antibiotics in pharmaceutical lots by HPLC: Development, validation and application to a simultaneous separation

A new validated high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method with rapid analysis time and high efficiency, for the analysis of erythromycin, azithromycin and spiramycin, under isocratic conditions with ODB RP18 as a stationary phase is described. Using an eluent composed of acetonitrile –2-methyl-2-propanol –hydrogenphosphate buffer, pH 6.5, with 1.5% triethylamine (33:7: up to 100, v/v/v), delivered at a flow-rate of 1.0 mL min-1. Ultra Violet (UV) detection is performed at 210 nm. The selectivity is satisfactory enough and no problematic interfering peaks are observed. The procedure is quantitatively characterized and repeatability, linearity, detection and quantification limits are very satisfactory. The method is applied successfully for the assay of the studied drugs in pharmaceutical dosage forms as tablets and powder for oral suspension. Recovery experiments revealed recovery of 97.13–100.28%

Diagnostic markers for Teratosphaeria destructans and closely related species

Teratosphaeria foliar pathogens cause leaf and shoot blight on Eucalyptus trees in many parts of the world. Among them, T. destructans is one of the most aggressive pathogens causing defoliation of young Eucalyptus trees in tropic regions. Identification of T. destructans to species level is currently not possible based solely on morphological characteristics or ITS sequence data. The aim of this study was to assess T. destructans microsatellites and a newly developed T. epicoccoides microsatellite as a diagnostic tool to differentiate among T. destructans and several closely related foliar pathogens. Based on the number of markers that amplified, the T. destructans microsatellites allowed for the differentiation of T. destructans, T. epicoccoides,T. eucalypti,T. nubilosa,T. pseudoeucalypti and T. viscidus. These microsatellites provide a rapid and cost-effective diagnostic tool that will enable the identification of a large number of isolates important in disease surveys and inoculation trials.Supplementary material: Table S1. Teratosphaeria isolates and their sequences used for phylogenetic analyses.Table S2. Microsatellite markers and panel designs for Teratosphaeria species.Table S3. BLASTn results of microsatellites in the Teratosphaeria genomes.The National Research Foundation, the SARChI Chair in Fungal Genomics, the UP Doctoral Research Bursary and the Tree Protection Co-operative program (TPCP).http://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/efp2021-10-27hj2021BiochemistryForestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI)GeneticsMicrobiology and Plant Patholog

Genetic basis for high population diversity in Protea-associated Knoxdaviesia

Sexual reproduction is necessary to generate genetic diversity and, in ascomycete fungi, this process is controlled by a mating type (MAT) locus with two complementary idiomorphs. Knoxdaviesia capensis and K. proteae (Sordariomycetes; Microascales; Gondwanamycetaceae) are host-specific saprophytic fungi that show high population diversity within their Protea plant hosts in the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa. We hypothesise that this diversity is the result of outcrossing driven by a heterothallic mating system and sought to describe the MAT1 loci of both species. The available genome assembly of each isolate contained only one of the MAT1 idiomorphs necessary for sexual reproduction, implying that both species are heterothallic. Idiomorph segregation during meiosis, a 1:1 ratio of idiomorphs in natural populations and mating experiments also supported heterothallism as a sexual strategy. Long-range PCR and shot-gun sequencing to identify the opposite idiomorph in each species revealed no sequence similarity between MAT1-1 and MAT1-2 idiomorphs, but the homologous idiomorphs between the species were almost identical. The MAT1-1 idiomorph contained the characteristic MAT1-1-1 and MAT1-1-2 genes, whereas the MAT1-2 idiomorph consisted of the genes MAT1-2-7 and MAT1-2-1. This gene content was similar to that of the three species in the Ceratocystidaceae (Microascales) with characterized MAT loci. The Knoxdaviesia MAT1-2-7 protein contained and alpha domain and predicted intron, which suggests that this gene arose from MAT1-1-1 during a recombination event. In contrast to the Ceratocystidaceae species, Knoxdaviesia conformed to the ancestral Sordariomycete arrangement of flanking genes and is, therefore, a closer reflection of the structure of this locus in the Microascalean ancestor.The National Research Foundation (NRF) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST)-NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology (CTHB).http://www.elsevier.com/locate/yfgbi2017-11-30hb2017GeneticsMicrobiology and Plant Patholog

Cypress canker : an important disease discovered for the first time on a native South African tree

Cypress canker is a branch and stem canker disease of Cupressaceae trees, particularly those in the genera Cupressus and Hesperocyparis. These trees have been planted in many parts of the world as ornamentals and the Seiridium species that cause the disease, consequently, also have an almost global distribution. The taxonomy of Seiridium species causing cypress canker has recently been revised and numerous species are now believed to cause the disease. This study describes, for the first time, cypress canker on the native South African Cupressaceae tree, Widdringtonia nodiflora. The aim was to identify the causal agent and confirm its pathogenicity. Phylogenetic analyses of sequence data for four regions identified the fungus as Seiridium neocupressi, a species previously known only from Australia, New Zealand and Italy. Field inoculations of W. nodiflora branches resulted in distinct cankers within 6 weeks and the fungus could be reisolated from the treated trees. Cypress canker has been known in South Africa for many decades, where it causes a serious disease on nonnative species of Cupressus, but it has never been found on native Cupressaceae. The newly discovered disease caused by a probable alien pathogen is of particular concern because only three species of Widdringtonia occur in South Africa and are important components of the native flora. The two other species, W. wallichii and W. schwartzii, occur in small endemic and threatened populations. The origin of S. neocupressi in South Africa and the relative susceptibility of the three Widdringtonia species, consequently, requires urgent attention.The University of Pretoria and the National Research Foundation.https://bsppjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13653059dm2022BiochemistryForestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI)GeneticsMicrobiology and Plant PathologyPlant Production and Soil Scienc

Genome sequences of Knoxdaviesia capensis and K. proteae (Fungi : Ascomycota) from Protea trees in South Africa

Two closely related ophiostomatoid fungi, Knoxdaviesia capensis and K. proteae, inhabit the fruiting structures of certain Protea species indigenous to southern Africa. Although K. capensis occurs in several Protea hosts, K. proteae is confined to P. repens. In this study, the genomes of K. capensis CBS139037 and K. proteae CBS140089 are determined. The genome of K. capensis consists of 35,537,816 bp assembled into 29 scaffolds and 7940 predicted protein-coding genes of which 6192 (77.98 %) could be functionally classified. K. proteae has a similar genome size of 35,489,142 bp that is comprised of 133 scaffolds. A total of 8173 protein-coding genes were predicted for K. proteae and 6093 (74.55 %) of these have functional annotations. The GC-content of both genomes is 52.8 %.Additional file 1: Table S1. Associated MIGS record for K. capensis.Additional file 2: Table S2. Associated MIGS record for K. proteae.Additional file 3: Table S3. Sequenced Sordariomycete fungi used as evidence for genome annotations.The National Research Foundation (NRF) and the Department of Science and Technology/NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology.http://www.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo/issn/1944-3277/am2016GeneticsMicrobiology and Plant Patholog