Phylogenetic revision of Backhousieae (Myrtaceae): Neogene divergence, a revised circumscription of Backhousia and two new species

Backhousieae is a small tribe of Myrtaceae composed of two genera (Backhousia and Choricarpia) endemic to Australia. Phylogenetic analyses (parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian) were performed on a combined chloroplast (matK, trnH–psbA, trnC–psbM, trnL–F, rps16) and nuclear (internal transcribed spacers) dataset for all nine species of Backhousia, two species of Choricarpia and two undescribed species. Backhousieae is monophyletic; however, Choricarpia is embedded within Backhousia. In all analyses there were four strongly supported clades containing two to four taxa, with no support for relationships among clades, and the relationships of B. bancroftii and B. citriodora remain unresolved. Bayesian relaxed-clock molecular dating indicated that the Backhousieae has been potentially present in rainforest across Australia for more than 50 million years. The current distribution of Backhousia is inferred to be largely due to the contraction of Australian rainforest in the Neogene. New combinations in Backhousia are made for the two species of Choricarpia, and B. gundarara and B. tetraptera are described as new species. B. gundarara is known only from the Kimberley region of Western Australia, widely disjunct from the remaining Backhousia in eastern Queensland and New South Wales, and appears to be a lineage isolated by increasing aridity during the Miocene

Comparing very low birth weight versus very low gestation cohort methods for outcome analysis of high risk preterm infants

Background: Compared to very low gestational age (\u3c32 weeks, VLGA) cohorts, very low birth weight (\u3c1500 g; VLBW) cohorts are more prone to selection bias toward small-for-gestational age (SGA) infants, which may impact upon the validity of data for benchmarking purposes. Method: Data from all VLGA or VLBW infants admitted in the 3 Networks between 2008 and 2011 were used. Two-thirds of each network cohort was randomly selected to develop prediction models for mortality and composite adverse outcome (CAO: mortality or cerebral injuries, chronic lung disease, severe retinopathy or necrotizing enterocolitis) and the remaining for internal validation. Areas under the ROC curves (AUC) of the models were compared. Results: VLBW cohort (24,335 infants) had twice more SGA infants (20.4% vs. 9.3%) than the VLGA cohort (29,180 infants) and had a higher rate of CAO (36.5% vs. 32.6%). The two models had equal prediction power for mortality and CAO (AUC 0.83), and similarly for all other cross-cohort validations (AUC 0.81-0.85). Neither model performed well for the extremes of birth weight for gestation (\u3c1500 g and ≥32 weeks, AUC 0.50-0.65; ≥1500 g and \u3c32 weeks, AUC 0.60-0.62). Conclusion: There was no difference in prediction power for adverse outcome between cohorting VLGA or VLBW despite substantial bias in SGA population. Either cohorting practises are suitable for international benchmarking

Melaleuca (Myrtaceae) from Australia

Volume: 19Start Page: 444End Page: 45

New Combinations in Melaleuca for Australian Species of Callistemon (Myrtaceae)

Volume: 16Start Page: 468End Page: 47

A New Species of Syzygium (Myrtaceae) from the Arnhem Land Plateau, Northern Territory, Australia

Volume: 19Start Page: 87End Page: 8

Seven New Species of Heliotropium (Boraginaceae) from the Monsoon and Arid Zones of Australia

Volume: 21Start Page: 11End Page: 2

Anetholea anisata transferred to, and two new Australian taxa of, Syzygium (Myrtaceae)

The distinction between Anetholea and Syzygium is lessened due to the occurrence of epigeal germination and dry fruitedness in the latter genus also and it is concluded that Anetholea is better placed within Syzygium. Analysis of sequence data from nuclear ribosomal DNA and the chloroplast genome support this conclusion. The sole species of Anetholea, A. anisata, is transferred to Syzygium and the new combination, S. anisatum (Vickery) Craven & Biffin, made. Syzygium wilsonii subsp. cryptophlebium is reinstated at species rank, necessitating the new combination, S. cryptophlebium (F. Muell.) Craven & Biffin. Two new taxa of Syzygium are described from Australia, S. wilsonii subsp. epigaeum Craven & Biffin and S. maraca Craven & Biffin

A new Species of, and Reinstatements in, Octamyrtus (Myrtaceae)

Volume: 56Start Page: 147End Page: 15