Reconstruction and phylogenetic significance of a new Equisetum Linnaeus species from the Lower Jurassic of Cerro Bayo (Chubut province, Argentina)

We describe Equisetum dimorphum sp. nov. from the Lower Jurassic of Chubut Province, Patagonia, Argentina. This new species is based on fertile and vegetative remains preserved as impressions of stems, leaves, strobili, transversal sections of the stems showing their anatomy, and terminal pagoda-like structures. The fine-grained sedimentary matrix also preserved detailed impressions of epidermal features. The morphological characters allow a whole-plant reconstruction and assignment to Equisetum. Equisetum dimorphum sp. nov. shows a mosaic of morphological characters that are commonly present in other Mesozoic forms and representatives of the two extant Equisetum subgenera, e.g., sunken stomata and a blunt strobilus apex. Compared to other well-known Mesozoic equisetalean taxa, Equisetum dimorphum sp. nov. appears to be most closely related to a group of Jurassic Equisetum-like plants including Equisetum laterale Phillips and Equisetites ferganensis Seward. Additional evidence for the morphological stasis of the fertile and vegetative organs of extant horsetails is supplied with this new material, adding further support to the hypothesis that the extant horsetails are a successful group that has undergone only little morphological changeover time and that has been present, nearly worldwide, since Jurassic times.VR 2014-5232 The evolutionary history of fern

Genome-wide association identifies nine common variants associated with fasting proinsulin levels and provides new insights into the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes

OBJECTIVE - Proinsulin is a precursor of mature insulin and C-peptide. Higher circulating proinsulin levels are associated with impaired b-cell function, raised glucose levels, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Studies of the insulin processing pathway could provide new insights about T2D pathophysiology. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS - We have conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association tests of ;2.5 million genotyped or imputed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and fasting proinsulin levels in 10,701 nondiabetic adults of European ancestry, with follow-up of 23 loci in up to 16,378 individuals, using additive genetic models adjusted for age, sex, fasting insulin, and study-specific covariates. RESULTS - Nine SNPs at eight loci were associated with proinsulin levels (P < 5 × 10-8). Two loci (LARP6 and SGSM2) have not been previously related to metabolic traits, one (MADD) has been associated with fasting glucose, one (PCSK1) has been implicated in obesity, and four (TCF7L2, SLC30A8, VPS13C/ C2CD4A/B, and ARAP1, formerly CENTD2) increase T2D risk. The proinsulin-raising allele of ARAP1 was associated with a lower fasting glucose (P = 1.7 3 10-4), improved b-cell function (P = 1.1 × 10-5), and lower risk of T2D (odds ratio 0.88; P = 7.8 × 10-6). Notably, PCSK1 encodes the protein prohormone convertase 1/3, the first enzyme in the insulin processing pathway. A genotype score composed of the nine proinsulin-raising alleles was not associated with coronary disease in two large case-control datasets. CONCLUSIONS - We have identified nine genetic variants associated with fasting proinsulin. Our findings illuminate the biology underlying glucose homeostasis and T2D development in humans and argue against a direct role of proinsulin in coronary artery disease pathogenesis