A new genus and species of Pristocerinae (Hymenoptera, Bethylidae) from upper Eocene Baltic amber with a review of conspecific association from insect fossils

Background:Female patients sustain noncontact knee ligament injuries at a greater rate compared with their male counterparts. The cause of these differences in the injury rate and the movements that load the ligaments until failure are still under dispute in the literature.Purpose/Hypotheses:This study was designed to determine differences in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and medial collateral ligament (MCL) strains between male and female cadaveric specimens during a simulated athletic task. The primary hypothesis tested was that female limbs would demonstrate significantly greater ACL strain compared with male limbs under similar loading conditions. A secondary hypothesis was that MCL strain would not differ between sexes.Study Design:Controlled laboratory study.Methods:Motion analysis of 67 athletes performing a drop vertical jump was conducted. Kinetic data were used to categorize injury risk according to tertiles, and these values were input into a cadaveric impact simulator to assess ligamentous strain during a simulated landing task. Uniaxial and multiaxial load cells and differential variable reluctance transducer strain sensors were utilized to collect mechanical data for analysis. Conditions of external loads applied to the cadaveric limbs (knee abduction moment, anterior tibial shear, and internal tibial rotation) were varied and randomized. Data were analyzed using 1-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), 2-way repeated-measures ANOVA, and the Fisher exact test.Results:There were no significant differences (P = .184) in maximum ACL strain between male (13.2% ± 8.1%) and female (16.7% ± 8.3%) specimens. Two-way ANOVA demonstrated that across all controlled external load conditions, female specimens consistently attained at least 3.5% increased maximum ACL strain compared with male specimens (F1,100 = 4.188, P = .043); however, when normalized to initial contact, no significant difference was found. There were no significant differences in MCL strain between sexes for similar parameters.Conclusion:When compared with baseline, female specimens exhibited greater values of ACL strain at maximum, initial contact, and after impact (33, 66, and 100 milliseconds, respectively) than male specimens during similar loading conditions, with a maximum strain difference of at least 3.5%. During these same loading conditions, there were no differences in MCL loading between sexes, and only a minimal increase of MCL loading occurred during the impact forces. Our results indicate that female patients are at an increased risk for ACL strain across all similar conditions compared with male patients.Clinical Relevance:These data demonstrate that female specimens, when loaded similarly to male specimens, experience additional strain on the ACL. As the mechanical environment was similar for both sexes with these simulations, the greater ACL strain of female specimens must be attributed to ligament biology, anatomic differences, or muscular stiffness.

Pharyngodon armatus was originally described from female specimens only. Male and female specimens have been recovered from the intestine of green frog tadpoles (Rana clamitans melanota). The male of the species is described for the first time and the female is redescribed. Male and female specimens of the genus Pharyngodon were recovered from the intestine of green frog tadpoles (Rana clamitans melanota) collected from Pond 26, Delaware Game Preserve, Delaware County, Ohio. Seven species of Pharyngodon have been reported from amphibians by Walton (1929, 1933, 1940), Baylis (1930), Yamaguti (1941), Johnston and Mawson (1942), and Ubelaker (1965). Only three of the seven species have been described on the basis of male and female specimens. Pharyngodon spinicauda, the type species, was originally described from the reptile, Lacerta muralis. It has since been recovered from Triturus vulgaris. Pharyngodon armatus was described from female specimens only by Walton (1933). While reviewing a type specimen of P. armatus obtained from the USNM Helm. Coll. No. 27061, I noted discrepancies in the original description of the females. Inconsistencies included the position of the excretory pore, operculum on the eggs, the prominence of the lips, and the beginning of cuticular striations. The newly recovered females were conspecific with the type specimen. Since the original description was incomplete and since male specimens were recovered, I have deposited the Ohio specimens and the following description of the male and redescription of the female are given. MATERIALS AND METHODS The nematodes were fixed in steaming 70% alcohol and cleared in alcohol-glycerine. Living and fixed specimens were examined with light and phase contrast microscopes. The 25 male and 25 female specimens used in this study were temporarily mounted under supported cover slips. All measurements are in microns, unless otherwise Received for publication 6 August 1968. indicated. The range is followed by the average in parentheses. Drawings were made with the aid of the camera lucida. Pharyngodon armatus Walton, 1933 (Figs. 1-8)

A new malachite beetle, Baltamauroania mirabilicornis gen. et sp. nov., belonging to the tribe Amauroniodini (Coleoptera: Dasytidae) embedded in Eocene Baltic amber is described and illustrated. The new genus differs from the congeners of the tribe Amauroniodini in possessing a black, elongated, and subparallel body and a pronotum with scalloped lateral sides; long and 11-segmented antennae, with three apical antennomeres enlarged and forming a ‘club’ shape, with cylindrical antennomere 1; tarsi shortened and compressed, 5-segmented, with tarsomeres 1 and 2 equal in length, and tarsomere 5 the longest in all legs; pubescence of the dorsal surface consisting of short strong brown semi-erect and fine adpressed setae; punctation of dorsal surface irregular, elytra lacking grooves; pronotum almost equilateral, slightly elongated, with acute anterior and obtuse posterior angles, with wide margination of basal side and with scalloped and finely margined lateral sides; lateral edges of pronotum weakly rounded, with obtuse protuberance before middle. This is the second extinct genus and third record of the subfamily Danaceinae found in Eocene amber. The fossil records of the family Dasytidae are discussed. Three recent records of different Amauroniodini taxa from Eocene East European amber (Baltic and Rovno) show there to have been a high Danaceinae biodiversity in both the southern coast of the Subparatethys (documented by Rovno amber) and in its northern coast (documented by Baltic amber). The phenomenon of Danaceinae diversity in the Eocene Epoch is discussed.

Why red‐dominated autumn leaves in America and yellow‐dominated autumn leaves in Northern Europe?

Members of the Trichodoridae can cause substantial crop losses directly by feeding on plant roots and indirectly as vectors of tobraviruses; both vector and virus are polyphagous. In April of 2008, soil samples from the rhizosphere of Ulmus minor Mill in a deciduous broadleaf forest at Krivoklat yielded a population of Trichodorus variopapillatus Hooper, 1972. Nematodes were identified by morphological and morphometric characters as well as by molecular analysis. For classical identification, specimens were extracted from soil by a decanting-sieving method, heat killed and fixed in triethanolamine formalin, and processed and mounted in anhydrous glycerin. For molecular analysis, specimens were stored at -20°C in 1 M NaCl. Specimens largely agreed with T. variopapillatus (1,3). Average morphometric data of five male specimens are: body length 766 μm; body width 33 μm; onchiostyle length 55 μm; and spicule length 43 μm. Number of anterior ventromedian cervical papillae and number of precloacal supplements was three each. Spicules are regularly curved and the manubrium is knob-like. Morphometric data of two female specimens are: body length 663 and 858 μm; body width 29 and 38 μm; onchiostyle length 52 and 53 μm; V 54 and 57%. Refractive thickenings at the vulva are very large and quandrangular in shape in the lateral optical section. Identification of these nematodes was further verified by sequencing two regions of rDNA (18S gene and D2/D3 expansion segments of the 28S gene). Single female and male specimens from NaCl storage were transferred to 0.5-ml Eppendorf tubes containing 0.25M NaOH. Total genomic DNA was prepared by a rapid technique (4). The 18S gene was amplified in three fragments using the primer SSU_F_04 + SSU_R_09 (first fragment), SSU_F_22 + SSU_R_13 (second fragment), and SSU_F_23 + SSU_R_81 (third fragment). D2/D3 expansion segments of the large subunit of rDNA were amplified using the forward primer D2A and the reverse primer D3B (2). The regions were sequenced in both directions after purification of PCR products. The sequences of female and male specimens were identical. The sequences were deposited in GenBank with Accession Nos. GQ148719 (28S) and GQ148719 (18S). The length of 18S was 1,760 bp and D2/D3 was 786 bp. The obtained sequences were compared by BLAST in NCBI. The D2/D3 sequence is not available in GenBank for T. variopapillatus. The best BLAST hits were obtained with Trichodorus species. BLAST results of 18S sequence showed 5% divergence (76 substitutions) after trimming unequal ends with published sequence of T. variopapillatus Accession No. AY284841. All substitutions were confirmed from the chromatographs. To our knowledge, this is the first report of T. variopapillatus associated with U. minor in the Czech Republic.

Althepus pictus Thorell, 1898 is the type species of the genus Althepus Thorell, 1898 from the family Psilodercidae Machado, 1951. This genus includes 60 species from Southeast Asia (WSC 2020). A. pictus was described on the basis of one male and one female from Carin Chebà mountains, elevation 600‒800 m, Kayin Province, Myanmar. Another female specimen lacking several legs was found in Farm Caves in Mawlamyine, Mon State, Myanmar. The original description was in Latin and without any figures. Fage (1912) redescribed it based on the same male and female type specimens from Carin Chebà, but without mentioning the female from Farm Caves. Fage (1912) provided measurements, but the figures of the male right palp are imprecise. The species is redescribed here based on the original male and female type specimens deposited in Museo Civico di Storia Naturale 'Giacomo Doria' (MSNG) in Italy. The male and female type specimens are the only known material of A. pictus. No information is available on the female specimen from Farm Caves, which maybe have been lost. No fresh material of this species has been collected in region during five subsequent expeditions to Myanmar tours organized by the Southeast Asia Biodiversity Research Institute in the years 2016-2020.

Asida groehni sp. nov. (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae, Asidini) is described from Eocene Baltic amber from the Kaliningrad Region (Russia). This is the first fossil species belonging to the genus Asida Latreille, 1802 and only the eighth described darkling beetle species from Eocene Baltic amber. This species helps support the hypothesis that the climate in this part of Europe was warmer during Eocene, as no Asida species are currently present in the Baltic area due to not appropriate climate. This new fossil species is similar to modern Asida species in the subgenus Planasida Escalera, 1907, which occur in the Iberian Peninsula and the Maghreb, but it differs from all known Asida in pronotal sculpturing and pilosity, and by its yellow brown shiny cuticle, well visible on the pronotal disc. Despite species-level differences, the new extinct species appears to fit easily within the extant genus Asida.

The male swallowtail butterfly, Papilio polytes, uses cuticular hydrocarbons for mate discrimination

To investigate the factors affecting the emergence of the pine processionary moth (Thaumetopoea pityocampa) in laboratory conditions, a number of 1487 larvae, prepupae and pupae were collected in the period February-May 2019 from five pest habitats: Fotinovo and Kandilka villages (inhabited by a summer phenological form), Sandanski and Klisura towns (winter phonological form occurs) and Sarnak village (both forms occur). At the date of collection, the rate of parasitism was very low (0-0.1%). Throughout the study, significant differences in the characteristics of pupal stage and mortality between both phenological forms were established. The rate of emerged adults varied from 21.4% to 77.6% in the observed habitats. The sex ratio between female and male specimens was almost equal. Only 0.6% of samples emerged in the second year, after diapause. In four localities (Fotinovo, Kandilka, Sandanski and Sarnak), the rate of infection by entomopathogens was between 6.0% and 20.8%, and the parasitism caused by tachinids – between 0.9% and 3.4%. The flight period of the summer and winter phenological forms of T. pityocampa were clearly differentiated with about a month. In summer form, the flight began in late May and ended in the last decade of June, and in winter form – from early July to the end of August. The duration of the flight period in both forms lasted 30 to 50 days with an equal number of emerged male and female specimens.

The narrow-barred Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus commerson is an economically essential species; however, few studies have investigated its demographic structure in the northwestern Pacific, which includes Taiwan’s waters. This study examined the growth parameters, age composition, mortality, and sex ratio of S. commerson catches by examining sagittal otoliths and other biological data collected in a 3-year project from June 2018 to June 2021. The transverse sections of sagittal otoliths exhibited alternating translucent and opaque zones, in annual cycles, and this observation was validated by otolith edge analysis. Opaque zones began to form in October; the growth peaked in December and lasted until March. Growth parameters were estimated for female (L∞ = 144.1 cm fork length [FL], k = 0.39 y−1, to = −0.85 y) and male (L∞ = 136.0 cm FL, k = 0.32 y−1, to = −1.49 y) specimens. The maximum recorded FL, body weight, and age were 159.0 cm, 27 kg, and 9.2 y for female and 135.0 cm, 17.8 kg, and 7.2 y for male specimens. Rapid growth was observed for both sexes, with FL reaching 66.8 ± 14.2 cm in female specimens and 70.1 ± 11.0 cm in male specimens during the first year of life. An age–length key based on the direct otolith aging and FL dataset (N = 646) was used to estimate the age composition of 3-year catches measured at landing (N = 16,133). The results verified that the S. commerson currently caught in the central Taiwan Strait are mainly young fish aged 1+ to 2+ y. The estimated fishing mortality (0.27 y−1) and exploitation rate (0.30) suggested that overfishing was not occurring in this stock. The findings of this study have helped clarify the population dynamics of the S. commerson in the Taiwan Strait, and the biological parameters reported herein can aid the management and conservation to ensure the sustainability of this species in this region.

Background:The most common hospital-acquired pathogen is Pseudomonas aeruginosa. It is a multidrug resistant bacterium causing systemic infections.Objectives:The present study was carried out in order to investigate the distribution of virulence factors and antibiotic resistance properties of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from various types of hospital infections in Iran.Patients and Methods:Two-hundred and seventeen human infection specimens were collected from Baqiyatallah and Payambaran hospitals in Tehran, Iran. The clinical samples were cultured immediately and samples positive for P. aeruginosa were analyzed for the presence of antibiotic resistance and bacterial virulence genes using PCR (polymerase chain reaction). Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed using disk diffusion methodology with Müeller–Hinton agar.Results:Fifty-eight out of 127 (45.66%) male infection specimens and 44 out of 90 (48.88%) female infection specimens harbored P. aeruginosa. Also, 65% (in male specimens) and 21% (in female specimens) of respiratory system infections were positive for P. aeruginosa, which was a high rate. The genes encoding exoenzyme S (67.64%) and phospholipases C (45.09%) were the most common virulence genes found among the strains. The incidences of various β-lactams encoding genes, including blaTEM, blaSHV, blaOXA, blaCTX-M, blaDHA, and blaVEB were 94.11%, 16.66%, 15.68%, 18.62%, 21.56%, and 17.64%, respectively. The most commonly detected fluoroquinolones encoding gene was gyrA (15. 68%). High resistance levels to penicillin (100%), tetracycline (90.19%), streptomycin (64.70%), and erythromycin (43.13%) were observed too.Conclusions:Our findings should raise awareness about antibiotic resistance in hospitalized patients in Iran. Clinicians should exercise caution in prescribing antibiotics, especially in cases of human infections.

The ground beetle genus Bembidion is a highly diverse group of small predators with more than 1.200 described extant species. In contrast, only two representatives of Bembidion are known from the amber fossil record and their position within this mega-diverse genus is dubious. Here, we address the taxonomic position of these two extinct Bembidion species (B.succini Giebel, 1856 and B.christelae Ortuño & Arillo, 2010). Based on the insufficient description and the missing type specimen, B.succini, nomen dubium, cannot be assigned to the genus Bembidion and/or to the tribe Bembidiini with certainty. The subgenus Archaeophilochthus Ortuño & Arillo, 2010 was erected for the second extinct species, B.christelae, based on external characters. However, this species seems indistinguishable to members of the earlier described subgenus Philochthemphanes Netolitzky, 1943 which comprises about extant 10 species distributed in East and Southeast Asia. Furthermore, we describe two new species, B.bukejsisp. n. and B.alekseevisp. n., from the Eocene Baltic amber using X-ray microscopy. Based on external and genital morphology including endophallic structures, we erected the monotypic subgenus Eodontiumsubgen. n. for B.bukejsisp. n., which is probably related to the subgenera Andrewesa Netolitzky, 1931, the Hydrium complex, or the Odontium series sensu Maddison (2012). On the other hand, B.alekseevisp. n. can be assigned to the subgenus Eupetedromus Netolitzky, 1911. The occurrence of representatives of at least two species groups adapted to a temperate climate suggests the presence of at least locally temperate climates in Baltic amber forests.

The scorpion Tityus serrulatus Lutz & Mello, 1922 (Buthidae) is endemic to Brazil and is considered the most toxic South American scorpion species. The ample distribution of this species and its occurrence in urban areas has been attributed primarily to the parthenogenetic mode of reproduction. For a long time, only all-female T. serrulatus populations were known. Male specimens are very rare and have been recently discovered in natural environments within the Brazilian semi-arid zone. In the present study, we investigated cytogenetically bisexual populations of T. serrulatus, and compared the data with those available for parthenogenetic specimens. The diploid number (2n=12) and the general configuration of the chromosomes in male and female specimens were similar to those recorded for parthenogenetic populations. Male postpachytene cells contained chromosomes in a parallel arrangement with no differentiation of the bivalents, indicating the absence of heteromorphic sex chromosomes. However, the number of 28S rDNA sites varied between male and female specimens. Females invariably presented only one rDNA cistron, while all the males had two. This finding seems to indicate the existence of a sex-specific heteromorphism in T. serrulatus, in which the females are heterogametic and the males are the homogametic sex.

Commentary As orthopaedic surgeons, we are well aware of the important role that sex plays in the epidemiology and treatment of many orthopaedic conditions. Some conditions have a strong bias toward men (such as Achilles tendon rupture)1 or women (such as de Quervain tenosynovitis)2, and surgical treatment plans can also be influenced by sex. Using the knee as an example, women at the time of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction are at a higher risk for an excessively small gracilis and semitendinosus combined autograft diameter3. Women also tend to have relatively narrower distal parts of the femora (in medial-lateral dimension) than men do, which, in part, led to the design of sex-specific implants for use in total knee arthroplasty4. Historically, women have been severely underrepresented in human clinical trials, which led to the Revitalization Act of 1993 and the requirement to include women in clinical research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Under this policy, enrollment rates of women in modern NIH-funded clinical trials are now higher than those of men5. However, little attention has been paid to sex bias among animals or cells utilized in basic science research. In 2014, the NIH leadership unveiled future plans to roll out policies that require balanced use of female and male animals and cells in basic science research6. The rationale for these proposed policies is that elimination of sex bias at the preclinical stage will lead to improved clinical study design and more reliable translation of results to clinical practice. This proposal has had mixed support in the basic science community. Routine use of male and female cell lines and animals as well as comparison of experimental results by sex may unnecessarily increase experimental costs and variability7; if there is no physiologic basis for sex to play a role in certain experiments, why should it be investigated? However, proponents of the proposal suggest that the extra cost and effort needed to equally include male and female specimens are justified by the downstream costs of failing to do so, namely, failed clinical trials, misdiagnosis and inappropriate therapies for women, and omission of fundamental biological principles8. In the current review, Bryant et al. investigated the potential for sex bias in orthopaedic basic science research. The authors identified all cadaveric, animal, and cell-based studies shown in 4 of our top journals in 2014 (Journal of Orthopaedic Research, Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, The Bone & Joint Journal, and The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery) and determined that sex is not reported in more than one-third of the included studies. Among studies that did include sex, there was a predilection toward use of male specimens, and authors reported sex-specific results in only 13% of studies that included both sexes. The predilection for male specimens in animal studies, in particular, is based on the unfounded (and debunked)9 assumption that variability in results is intrinsically higher in females because of variability in estrogen cycles. Clearly, we need to do a better job of consistently reporting sex in basic science research within our field. The current review highlights an important topic and reminds us to, at a minimum, actively consider the sex of specimens when interpreting study results or designing a new basic science experiment. Standardized reporting of the sex of included specimens should be a requirement, as well as an explanation for use of samples from one sex if a balanced sample (of male and female specimens) is not used. This has the potential to increase discovery of previously obscured sex-specific relationships and to improve the clinical applicability of basic science studies within our field.

Gender differences in glenoid anatomy have not been well studied in the current literature. Previous literature demonstrates a mismatch between glenoid anatomy and glenoid implants for shoulder replacements. This may have clinical implications in that glenoid loosening after shoulder arthroplasty has been cited as a frequent cause of poor performance of shoulder implants, and perhaps the most common indication for revision. The purpose of this study was to determine any gender differences in the size and overall shape of the glenoid. Eleven measurements were taken of 363 human scapular bone specimens (equal proportions of females to males and blacks to whites). Glenoid height and width, glenoid notch location, and depth were measured for each specimen using calipers. In addition, the authors developed a classification system to describe anterior glenoid notch morphology. There was a significant difference between female and male specimens for each dimension measured (P < 0.05). Height to width ratios were also significantly different comparing men to women (P < 0.05). These differences resulted in a rounder male glenoid and more oval female glenoid. Our results showed that 80.4% of females had an anterior glenoid notch compared to only 57.6% of males. There was a significant difference between female and male specimens in the location of the anterior glenoid notch: 36.7% from the top of the glenoid in female specimens, and 28.9% in males (P < 0.0001). The clear difference between male and female glenoid anatomy may be important in various shoulder surgeries.