Two new species of Rhinogobius (Gobiiformes: Oxudercidae) from Palawan, Philippines, with their phylogenetic placement

Two new species of Rhinogobius found in streams on central part of Palawan Island, Philippines are described. The two new species, Rhinogobius estrellae and Rhinogobius tandikan share unique transverse rows of sensory papillae on the cheek with Rhinogobius similis Gill, 1859, but differ from the latter in fin ray counts, arrangement of the scales, etc. The two new species are distinguished from each other by the pectoral-fin ray count, the longitudinal- and predorsal-scale counts, and colouration of the body. Rhinogobius estrellae new species and R. tandikan new species have been found allopatrically in a stream within Malatgao River system flowing into the Sulu Sea and in the Cayulo River flowing into the South China Sea, respectively. The Malatgao River system is the southernmost habitat of the genus Rhinogobius. Rhinogobius similis had been considered as the only member of the most basal lineage of this genus, but our mitochondrial genome analysis suggested that the two new species are additional members of this lineage. They are considered to be relicts of their common ancestor with R. similis, which probably had a wider distribution.journal articl

Mesozoic origin and ‘out-of-India’ radiation of ricefishes (Adrianichthyidae)

The Indian subcontinent has an origin geologically different from Eurasia, but many terrestrial animal and plant species on it have congeneric or sister species in other parts of Asia, especially in the Southeast. This faunal and floral similarity between India and Southeast Asia is explained by either of the two biogeographic scenarios, ‘into-India’ or ‘out-of-India’. Phylogenies based on complete mitochondrial genomes and five nuclear genes were undertaken for ricefishes (Adrianichthyidae) to examine which of these two biogeographic scenarios fits better. We found that Oryzias setnai, the only adrianichthyid distributed in and endemic to the Western Ghats, a mountain range running parallel to the western coast of the Indian subcontinent, is sister to all other adrianichthyids from eastern India and Southeast–East Asia. Divergence time estimates and ancestral area reconstructions reveal that this western Indian species diverged in the late Mesozoic during the northward drift of the Indian subcontinent. These findings indicate that adrianichthyids dispersed eastward ‘out-of-India’ after the collision of the Indian subcontinent with Eurasia, and subsequently diversified in Southeast–East Asia. A review of geographic distributions of ‘out-of-India’ taxa reveals that they may have largely fuelled or modified the biodiversity of Eurasia.journal articl

New distributional record of Discoplax rotunda (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) (Decapoda: Brachyura: Gecarcinidae) from ground waters in Okinawa-jima Island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan

Two species of Discoplax land crabs, including Discoplax rotunda (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824), as well as additional specimens including three rare stygobiotic shrimps were collected from two anchialine ground water sites in Okinawa-jima Island, Ryukyu Islands, Japan. These findings represent the first record of D. rotunda from Okinawa-jima Island, and a new locality of Caridina rubella Fujino & Shokita, 1975 and Halocaridinides trigonophthalama (Fujino & Shokita, 1975) on the island

Evolution of cavernicolous species in amphidromous gobies

Cavefishes have long attracted attention as a model system for evolutionary biology, but knowledge of their natural history background (taxonomy, phylogeny, and ecology) is lacking, except for a few model taxa. Most cavefishes are endemic to a specific cave or region, reflecting population isolation; however, some are known to be geographically widely distributed, and how these taxa evolved has been an enigma. In this study, using the Gobiiformes as a model system, I examined how cavernicolous species with a wide geographic range evolved. The Gobiiformes include both a geographically widespread cave species (an uncertain species of the genus Eleotris) and a species with a regionally limited range (Bostrychus microphthalmus Hoese and Kottelat, 2005). The results of a phylogenetic analysis suggested that both widespread and endemic species evolved from amphidromous ancestors. Otolith microchemistry and population genomic analysis revealed that the widespread Eleotris sp. is currently maintaining an amphidromous lifecycle and is dispersed across a wide area in the Indo-Pacific region. I propose that a habitat preference shift in the larval recruitment to inland water might have initiated speciation. In contrast, the endemic stygobiotic species B. microphthalmus from Sulawesi has lost its dispersal ecology and shows deep divergence from other congeners, suggesting an ancient speciation event. Considering the geographic and faunal background of the region, the species might have become confined to the cave and ceased to migrate as a result of past geographical events. Regardless of the current dispersal ecology, both widespread species and those with limited ranges exhibited common trends for adaptive morphological characters directly related to the cave environment, suggesting irreversible evolution of these characters. After systematic reassessment of the cavefishes and related species and/or genera, both cavefishes and related taxa were found to share specialized neuromast arrangements, suggesting that this is a preadaptive trait. Furthermore, Eleotris eigenmanni Popta, 1921, which has been redescribed as the uncertain cavernicolous Eleotris sp., exhibits phenotypic plasticity in eye diameter. This finding suggests that genetic assimilation of cave-adaptive traits has taken place. Overall, my results suggest that the evolution of cavernicolous species, which originated from amphidromous ancestors, did not solely follow the classic scenario of simple isolation but also involved persistence of their amphidromous ecology. Considering this scenario, the endemic species could have evolved either after rapid landlocking into caves or by a transition from an amphidromous cave species via loss of dispersibility. There may be multiple pathways for the evolution of cave species

Risk factors for sepsis-related death in children and adolescents with hematologic and malignant diseases

The aim of this study was to elucidate risk factors for mortality after developing sepsis in pediatric patients with hematologic and malignant disorders. Methods: A total of 90 patients (43 boys, 47 girls) with various hematologic and malignant diseases who experienced sepsis between June 2006 and March 2014 were enrolled. Clinical and laboratory features of 134 episodes of sepsis observed in the 90 patients were compared between those with and without sepsis-related death which was defined as death within 14 days after sepsis. Results: Age at hospitalization, sex, and type of underlying disease did not differ between patients with and without sepsis-related death. Sepsis episode-based univariate analysis identified patients with a history of relapse or in a refractory state of underlying disease (p<0.01), those with high C-reactive protein concentrations (≥50 mg/L) at the beginning of fever (p<0.01), those who had undergone hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (p<0.01), and those who were forced to change initial antibiotics (p = 0.02) because of being at high risk of sepsis-related death. The former two factors were further confirmed by multivariate analysis. More than half (52.9%) the isolates from sepsis-related death were Gram-positive cocci resistant to β-lactam antibiotics, but susceptible to vancomycin. Conclusion: It was found that a history of relapse, a refractory state of underlying disease, and high C-reactive protein concentrations at the beginning of fever were significant risk factors for mortality after developing sepsis. Survival rate of patients with risk factors raised in this study might be improved by early introduction of vancomycin

Prophylactic administration of voriconazole with two different doses for invasive fungal infection in children and adolescents with acute myeloid leukemia

Background: Pediatric patients under treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are at high risk for invasive fungal infection (IFI). We evaluated the efficacy of prophylactic administration of voriconazole (VRCZ) with two different doses. Methods: Between October 2005 and June 2011, 17 children and adolescents (aged 0–20 years) undergoing chemotherapy for AML were prophylactically administered with 5 mg/kg/d of oral VRCZ. Furthermore, 22 AML patients (aged 0–19 years) were administered 10 mg/kg/d of oral VRCZ between July 2011 and December 2014. The incidences of IFI with two different doses of VRCZ were compared. Results: Irrespective of the dosage of VRCZ, eight patients developed IFI. Of these eight patients, four belonged to the 5 mg/kg/d group and four to the 10 mg/kg/d group. Cumulative incidences of IFI at 180 days after the initiation of chemotherapy were not different between the 5 mg/kg/d and 10 mg/kg/d groups. The trough plasma VRCZ concentration in the 10 mg/kg/d group ranged from < 0.09 μg/mL to 2.17 μg/mL, with a median level of 0.27 μg/mL, and patients with the targeted trough concentration (1–4 μg/mL) comprised only 18.8% of the evaluable patients in this group, whereas the trough plasma VRCZ concentration of the evaluable patients in the 5 mg/kg/d group were all below the limit of sensitivity (< 0.09 μg/mL). Conclusion: More dose escalation is required based on this study. As VRCZ concentration is considerably influenced by genetic polymorphisms and drug–drug interactions, VRCZ should be used under therapeutic drug monitoring to keep effective drug concentrations. Keywords: acute myeloid leukemia, concentration, invasive fungal infection, prophylaxis, voriconazol

New distributional record of two stygobiotic shrimps (Decapoda: Caridea: Atyidae) in Okinawa-jima Island, Ryukyu Islands, southwestern Japan

Two stygobiotic atyid shrimps, Antecaridina lauensis (Edmondson, 1935) and Halocaridinides trigonophthalma (Fujino & Shokita, 1975), are recorded on the basis of specimens collected from an anchialine cave in Yomitan-son Village of Okinawa-jima Island, Ryukyu Islands, southwestern Japan. This record represents the first discovery of A. lauensis from the island and a slight northward extension of the geographical range of the species

Bloodmeal host identification with inferences to feeding habits of a fish-fed mosquito, Aedes baisasi

Abstract The mosquito, Aedes baisasi, which inhabits brackish mangrove swamps, is known to feed on fish. However, its host assemblage has not been investigated at the species level. We amplified and sequenced the cytochrome oxidase subunit I barcoding regions as well as some other regions from blood-fed females to identify host assemblages in the natural populations from four islands in the Ryukyu Archipelago. Hosts were identified from 230 females. We identified 15 host fish species belonging to eight families and four orders. Contrary to expectations from previous observations, mudskippers were detected from only 3% of blood-engorged females. The dominant host was a four-eyed sleeper, Bostrychus sinensis (Butidae, Gobiiformes), in Iriomote-jima Island (61%), while it was a snake eel, Pisodonophis boro (Ophichthidae, Anguilliformes), in Amami-oshima and Okinawa-jima islands (78% and 79%, respectively). Most of the identified hosts were known as air-breathing or amphibious fishes that inhabit mangroves or lagoons. Our results suggest that A. baisasi females locate the bloodmeal hosts within the mangrove forests and sometimes in the adjacent lagoons and land on the surface of available amphibious or other air-breathing fishes exposed in the air to feed on their blood

New distributional records of four amphidromous gobies (Gobioidei: Sicydiinae) in continental Vietnam / Nouvelles occurrences pour quatre gobies amphidromes (Gobioidei : Sicydiinae) au Vietnam continental

Sicydiine gobies (Gobioidei: Sicydiinae) are a diverse group of amphidromous fishes distributed across tropical and subtropical regions, particularly in the Indo-Pacific (Chen and Tan, 2005; Keith et al., 2015). Amphidromy is a form of diadromous lifecycle where adults live and reproduce in freshwater environments and their newly hatched larvae migrate downstream to marine environments to develop, before the post-larvae return to fresh water and metamorphose to juveniles (McDowall, 2010). Within the Indo-Pacific region there are seven genera, each with a distinct distribution (Keith et al., 2015). This variation in distribution is hypothesised to be due to a combination of factors including pelagic larval duration, larval behaviour, ocean currents and adult habitat suitability (McDowall, 2010; Taillebois et al., 2012). Sicydiine gobies, along with other diadromous fish, crustacean and mollusc species, typically dominate streams on tropical islands, with subsets of this fauna also found on some continents (McDowall, 2010; Nip, 2010; Castellanos-Galindo et al., 2011; Ebner and Thuesen, 2011; Keith et al., 2015; Maeda et al., 2015). They generally inhabit short steep-coastal-streams in high rainfall areas with clear, fast, flowing water which facilitates the swift oceanward transport of larvae (McDowall, 2010). These habitat characteristics are common on high islands throughout the Indo-Pacific, where geomorphological, climatic and hydrological attributes combine to provide suitable habitat and favour an amphidromous life cycle. Vietnam has an extensive coastline bordering the Western Pacific Ocean and is adjacent to known sicydiine populations (Nip, 2010; Keith et al., 2015), however only one Sicydiine species, Stiphodon multisquamus Wu & Ni, 1986, has been previously recorded from continental Vietnam where it is abundant only in central Vietnam (Maeda et al., 2015). The species is also known from southern Japan, Malaysia, mainland China (Hong Kong and Guangdong), and Hainan. In addition to S. multisquamus, the present study reports the occurrence of four species of sicydiine gobies from mainland Vietnam, being new records for the country