Infectious pancreatic necrosis virus (IPNV), a member of the family Birnaviridae, is a major pathogen of farmed salmonids and an important model in fish virology. Despite its small genome, which encodes only five viral proteins, IPNV exhibits complex molecular processes that govern genome expression, replication, and particle assembly. Comprehensive descriptions of the molecular biology and replication cycle of IPNV were largely established in reviews published in the mid-1990s, whereas more recent reviews have primarily focused on virulence determinants, epidemiology, or host-virus interactions. This review provides an updated synthesis of available experimental knowledge on the molecular biology of IPNV by integrating classical and recent studies addressing virion architecture, genome organization, and the functions of viral proteins. Particular attention is given to the molecular events involved in the viral replication cycle, including virus entry, genome transcription, translation and replication in the cytoplasm, polyprotein processing by the viral protease, and the coordination between genome replication and virion assembly. When appropriate, experimental observations from the related Avibirnavirus infectious bursal disease virus are considered to provide additional context for molecular mechanisms conserved within the family Birnaviridae. Together, these studies outline the current understanding of the molecular processes governing IPNV replication and morphogenesis.

The Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum is a commercially important bivalve worldwide, with China being the leading producer. While the reproductive biology of this species has been extensively studied in its native or long-established ranges, knowledge of how populations cultured from non-native seed sources adapt their reproductive cycles to new environmental conditions remains limited. In this observational study, we investigated the annual reproductive cycle of a Manila clam population originating from subtropical waters (Zhejiang Province, Southern China) that was cultured in temperate aquaculture grounds in Zhuanghe Bay, Northern China. Monthly histological examination of 50 clams demonstrated that the gametogenic cycle synchronized between male and female clams. Gametogenesis started in March when seawater temperature exceeded 5.7 °C, and most gametes matured by May. A distinct bimodal spawning pattern was observed: a minor spawning event occurred from May to July, followed by a major spawning phase from September to November after a one-month gonadal recovery period in August. The condition index (CI), analyzed monthly in 30 clams, effectively reflected reproductive stages, increasing during gametogenesis and declining sharply during spawning, with its amplitude indicating spawning intensity. Seawater temperature was identified as the primary regulatory factor driving reproductive development from gametogenesis to spawning, while food availability (indicated by chlorophyll a concentration) played a crucial role in supporting gonadal recovery during summer. These results align with observations in other temperate populations, demonstrating that subtropical-origin clams can successfully acclimate their reproductive cycles to temperate environmental conditions. This study provides the first comprehensive description of the reproductive biology of transplanted Manila clams in Northern China, offering critical benchmarks for optimizing hatchery production schedules and informing sustainable fishery management practices in the region.

In the first part of the article (Fish farm. and Fisheries, No. 12, 2025), the authors provided a fishery and biological description of silver carp and grass carp spawners from the cages of the Luchogorskaya Fish Hatchery Station of the TINRO Research Institute in Primorsky Krai. In the second part of the article, the authors summarized and analyzed the results of the last 25 seasons of growing fingerlings of these species and provided a description of natural population from the cooling pond. The body weight and survival rate of herbivorous fish grown in fry ponds under conditions of polyculture with carp fish and Amur predators were studied. The average weight of silver carp fry varied from 9.7 to 15.3 g when fed, and from 16.4 to 19.3 g for grass carp. The minimum weight of 4.5–5.5 g was recorded when the fish were kept without feeding and the ponds were fertilized with active sludge. The maximum weight of fingerlings is 20–80 g, and low survival rates are observed when feeding fish in seasons with a 10–25-day difference in the timing of planting carp and herbivorous fish and when fry of Chinese perch and Amur catfish weighing 0.3–1.7 g are released into ponds. The average survival rate of silver carp fingerlings over the years of research was slightly higher than that of grass carp, amounting to 16.1% and 14.7%, respectively. The herbivorous fish population of the cooling pond was formed as a result of regular stocking for 30 years and consists of individuals weighing from 5 g to 25 kg. The sex cycles of spawners from cages and cooling pond are significantly different. Silver carp reduced the number of phytoplankton, and grass carp almost completely destroyed macrophytes in the cooling pond. The population of herbivorous fish of the Amur line, living in the cooling pond of the Primorskaya power plant, is a reserve for replenishing the number of herbivorous fishes in the nearby Bikin and Ussuri rivers. The work is relevant in connection with the need to preserve, reproduce and keep clean the Amur line of herbivorous fish in Russia

Buchananiella whitei Reuter (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae) is a native New Zealand predator that has recently been commercialised for the biological control of various arthropod pests. However, no detailed biological information has been reported for this species. This study describes its life history, development, and some oviposition when reared on three different diets—frozen moth eggs of Ephestia kuehniella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae); frozen mixed stages of Carpoglyphus lactis (Sarcoptiformes: Carpoglyphidae); and live mixed stages of C. lactis. All three diets supported complete development, but individuals fed live C. lactis or frozen moth eggs attained significantly larger adult body sizes than those reared on frozen C. lactis. Developmental duration, hatch rate, and survival did not differ significantly among diets. Between 15% and 23% of individuals developed through six (rather than the usual five) nymphal instars, representing the variable instar number within the Anthocoridae. Adult females were larger than males across all treatments. Oviposition occurred only when females were provided with live C. lactis, and increased markedly when relative humidity was reduced (from 80% ± 5% to 26% ± 4%), suggesting that environmental moisture strongly influences reproduction. These results support our hypotheses, demonstrating that live C. lactis is a suitable and cost-effective factitious prey for rearing B. whitei, and they provide the first detailed biological description of this species. The discovery of humidity-dependent oviposition and variable instar number highlights developmental plasticity within the Anthocoridae and offers insights for optimising mass-rearing systems and improving the use of B. whitei in New Zealand biological control programmes.

The first confirmed locations of Sosnowsky's hogweed (Heracleum sosnowskyi Manden.) in Magadan Oblast are reported. This is the northernmost location in the Far East and in Asian Russia. This dangerous invasive plant was found in two Magadan City locations. We counted six plants, including three in the reproductive stage. For a broader public understanding, the biological description of the species, characteristics of its primary and secondary range, ecological preferences, differences from related species, and control measures are provided.

Accurate species delimitation benefits detailed biological descriptions and conservation practices. In this study, we focus on a frog species distributed throughout the western edge of Sichuan Basin, China, the Sichuan torrent frog-Amolops mantzorum. Currently, A. mantzorum is recognized as comprising two subspecies-the nominate subspecies A. m. mantzorum and A. m. xinduqiao. We investigated a population from along the Yalong River, Sichuan Province, China which was previously overlooked in phylogenetic studies. Combining multiple mitochondrial genes (16S, CO1, cytb), we identified four distinct lineages within A. mantzorum using Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood phylogeny. Principal Component Analysis based on morphometrics revealed significant differences between the population from along the Yalong River and the other two subspecies for which morphological data were available. Combined with detailed morphological descriptions and comparisons, here we describe this population as the third subspecies of A. mantzorum-Amolops mantzorum feiyessp. nov.

This article examines the lived experience of women in childbirth as portrayed in two Qur’anic passages—QS. al-Aḥqāf [46]:15 and QS. Maryam [19]:22–26—through a qualitative descriptive–analytical framework. Integrating textual, contextual, and hermeneutical approaches, the study investigates how the Qur’an articulates both the human dimension (al-insāniyyah) and the spiritual dimension (al-rūḥāniyyah) of the maternal experience. Surah al-Aḥqāf underscores an ethical-normative vision, portraying the mother’s suffering and sacrifice as the moral foundation of birr al-wālidayn (filial devotion). Conversely, Surah Maryam presents an existential-spiritual encounter in which Maryam’s solitude, anguish, and submission (tawakkul) reflect the depth of human faith in the face of divine will. Drawing upon the works of classical exegetes such as al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, and Ibn Kathīr, alongside contemporary interpretations by M. Quraish Shihab, this study argues that the Qur’an transcends the biological description of childbirth and reveals its theological and existential depth. Childbirth emerges not merely as a physiological process but as a sacred intersection between the human and the Divine, where pain becomes a vessel of raḥmah (divine mercy) and maternal love embodies the compassionate presence of God within creation.

Cavendish bananas (Musa spp.) are a high-value agricultural crop for people in the Trang Bom district of Dong Nai province (before).From 2019 to the present, the area of intensive banana cultivation has expanded, posing a potential risk of spreading the Fusarium wilt disease, decreasing productivity.Cavendish Fusarium wilt (yellow) was considered one of the most destructive diseases of bananas.By morphological and biological description combined with sequencing of the ITS gene region, the causative agent of Cavendish banana Fusarium wilt disease was identified as Fusarium oxysporum f.sp.cubense (Foc).A survey of the biological characteristics of Foc shows that the mushroom was grown optimally on a PDA medium at temperatures ranging from 25 to 30 o C, pH 6 to 7, producing the highest spores (microspores and macrospores) with 2.0x10 8 spores/ml.Disease infection on tissue-cultured Cavendish banana plants results show that inoculating spore suspension with 10 8 spores/ml into tissue-cultured bananas at a dose of 15 ml/1 kg of substrate is the method of infection that produces a fast infection with recognisable symptoms.The yellow wilted leaves scored 1-3 with a rate of 50-75%, and discolouration inside the tuber scored 4-5 with a rate of 50-90% (after 20-30 days of inoculation) was shown on both the outside of the plant and inside the tuber and banana roots.

Type IV pili (T4Ps) are multifunctional surface fibers essential for bacterial motility, adhesion, and virulence, found across Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria and archaea. Detailed descriptions of T4P structural biology are allowing progress in understanding T4P biogenesis. Secretins, large outer membrane channels, are crucial for T4P extrusion in Gram-negative bacteria. Using cryo-EM and AlphaFold, we modeled the structure of BfpB, the secretin of the Bundle-Forming Pilus (BFP) of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli. BfpB exhibits a unique 17-fold symmetry, correlating with the thicker BFP filaments, and diverging from the 12-15 subunits typical of T4P, type 2 secretion (T2S), and type 3 secretion (T3S) systems. Additionally, we identified an extended β-hairpin loop in the N3 domain, resembling features of distantly related T3SS secretins, and an N-terminal helix where a C-terminal S-domain is seen in some T2S and T3S secretins. These findings reveal evolutionary parallels and structural adaptations in secretins, highlighting the link between oligomerization and pilus structure. This work advances our understanding of T4P biogenesis, secretin evolution, and bacterial secretion systems, offering insights into pathogenic diversity and future research directions.

Glossogobius aureus is a potential aquaculture species with limited data from the Philippines. 3,340 individuals were collected over 2 years to describe the biological features of the species from Naujan Lake. Gonads were collected to measure fecundity; total lengths were taken, and photos of the left side of the individuals were taken. Length data were used to model the species growth dynamics using FiSAT (FAO-ICLARM Stock Assessment Tool). Geometric morphometrics was used to describe individual shape variation using the photos taken from the samples. Size frequency indicated that sexually mature individuals are at least 14 cm long with an average reproductive output of 20,000 eggs. Site-specific variation in shape indicates non-homogeneity of the population, which may be an environmental response to genetic variation. Morpho-meristic data and the FiSAT model L∞ to be 23.27 cm, with Z, F, and M at 12.12-yr, 7.85-yr, and 4.27-yr, respectively. The current exploitation rate is estimated to be 0.65, higher than the theoretical sustainable exploitation rate (Emax). This paper is the first biological description of G. aureus from the Philippines.

Background Prolonged (>10 days) use of intravenous (IV) piperacillin/tazobactam has been associated with a risk of developing hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) syndrome. However, clinical and biological descriptions of this rare complication are lacking in the literature, such as management guidelines. Objectives and Methods We describe a series of five children who presented with an HLH-like hypersensitivity reaction after prolonged use of IV piperacillin/tazobactam therapy between February 2024 and October 2024 in a single pediatric tertiary center. Results Five patients aged between 6 and 15 years received IV piperacillin/tazobactam for various bacterial infections. The reaction occurred between 7 and 19 days after the start of therapy. While initial infections were well controlled, all patients presented with a reoccurrence of high fever, malaise, and a maculopapular rash in 4 of them. All developed biological abnormalities with elevated ferritin (range: 913-124895 µg/L), LDH (range: 565-3130 U/L), liver enzymes (ALT range: 113-363 U/L), and severe neutropenia (range: 0.1-0.4 x 109/L). Eosinophils were normal in 4/5 and mildly elevated (0.8 x 109/L) in 1/5. Increased HLADR+ CD8+ T cell frequency was observed in 3/3 patients tested (range: 25-30%). Investigations for classical secondary HLH triggers were negative. Piperacillin/tazobactam discontinuation led to resolution of fever and associated symptoms within 24 hours in all patients. All biological features resolved within a few days. Only one child received a short course of steroids for severe pruritus and myalgia. One patient reported a similar reaction after a previous course of 14 days of piperacillin/tazobactam therapy, 1.5 years earlier. Four patients were evaluated in allergology: 1/4 reacted to intradermal testing for piperacillin/tazobactam. Patch tests and one dose provocation challenge were negative (tested in 4 and 2 patients, respectively). Conclusion We provide further evidence that prolonged use of IV piperacillin/tazobactam may be associated with hypersensitivity reactions reminiscent of HLH (although only 1/5 formally fulfilled HLH-2004 criteria). We propose the term of HLH-like hypersensitivity reactions. Usual allergy testing is not useful to the diagnosis. Spontaneous resolution of symptoms can be expected after discontinuation of piperacillin/tazobactam. Clinicians should be aware of this rare disorder to avoid overtreatment or unnecessary investigations.

Abstract Background: Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare cancer with limited treatment options. Large-scale deep biological description of intratumor heterogeneity at single-cell resolution is still missing. Recent studies of fresh tumor biopsies analyzed only a few patients, limiting resolution of population heterogeneity. Objective: To describe at single-cell resolution in FFPE tissues the cancer cell and tumor microenvironment heterogeneity of untreated MPM patients. Method: Of the 400 enrolled patients in the BEAT-MESO clinical trial (NCT03762018), 220 patients had available tumor blocks for single-nuclei preparation. The study compared the chemotherapy and bevacizumab combination with and without atezolizumab (anti-PD-L) treatment. All patients signed the ICFs and approved the translational study. Single nuclei were prepared using the snPATHO protocol followed by 10x Genomics FLEX pipeline. Samples were sequenced on a Novaseq X platform. Results: 179 of the available 220 samples had sufficient tumor content to perform the assay. In total, we detected 792’000 cells. We defined cell type identities using singleR with a combined reference map from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and a small mesothelioma cohort. We could readily identify cell types of the tumor microenvironment. The most abundant cell types beside tumor cells were cancer associated fibroblast/CAFS (median of 22% of all cells) and macrophages (14% of all cells). We could also define T cell heterogeneity, whereas CD4 TCM cells were the most abundant and detected in all patients, in contrast with proliferating CD4 or CD8 T cells which were absent in 68% of patients, suggestive of rich abundance of tumor reactive T cells. Among immune checkpoints, the expression of TIGIT was the highest, followed by LAG3 and PD1 expression. Tregs were rare and most frequently expressed TIGIT similar to CD8EM and CD4CM cells. We could also define an important heterogeneity of cancer-associated fibroblasts as well as of endothelial cells. Endothelial cell heterogeneity reflected on the proximity to B cells and tertiary lymphoid structures. In contrast, to previous single-cell RNA seq analysis of a small cohort of MPM, we could readily detect neutrophil granulocytes in the tumors. We will also provide data on matching H&E evaluation of TLSs. Depending on the maturation of clinical data, we will also present comparison with clinical parameters. Conclusions: Our results show the outstanding power to perform snRNAseq of fixed tissues from clinical trials. The method is readily compatible with large phase III clinical trials, and provide a much deeper insight into tumor heterogeneity than bulk RNAseq with deconvolution would do. Citation Format: Daria Buszta, Maxim Norkin, Jonathan Bac, Sanjay Popat, Anthony Pope, Riyaz Shah, Toby Talbot, Julia Giner, Wold-Dieter Janthur, Ernest Nadal, Annamaria Catino, David Gilligan, Amy Roy, Zoi Tsourti, Patrick Vagenknecht, Georgia Dimopoulou, Roswitha Kammler, Stephen P. Finn, Enriqueta Felip, Solange Peters, Rolf Stahel, Raphael Gottardo, Krisztian Homicsko. Ultra-high throughput single-nuclei RNAs sequencing of malignant pleural mesothelioma samples in the BEAT-MESO clinical trial [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2025; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2025 Apr 25-30; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2025;85(8_Suppl_1):Abstract nr 7147.

Multi-modality pre-training paradigm that aligns protein sequences and biological descriptions has learned general protein representations and achieved promising performance in various downstream applications. However, these works were still unable to replicate the extraordinary success of language-supervised visual foundation models due to the ineffective usage of aligned protein-text paired data and the lack of an effective function-informed pre-training paradigm. To address these issues, this paper curates a large-scale protein-text paired dataset called ProtAnno with a property-driven sampling strategy, and introduces a novel function-informed protein pre-training paradigm. Specifically, the sampling strategy determines selecting probability based on the sample confidence and property coverage, balancing the data quality and data quantity in face of large-scale noisy data. Furthermore, motivated by significance of the protein specific functional mechanism, the proposed paradigm explicitly model protein static and dynamic functional segments by two segment-wise pre-training objectives, injecting fine-grained information in a function-informed manner. Leveraging all these innovations, we develop ProtCLIP, a multi-modality foundation model that comprehensively represents function-aware protein embeddings. On 22 different protein benchmarks within 5 types, including protein functionality classification, mutation effect prediction, cross-modal transformation, semantic similarity inference and protein-protein interaction prediction, our ProtCLIP consistently achieves SOTA performance, with remarkable improvements of 75% on average in five cross-modal transformation benchmarks, 59.9% in GO-CC and 39.7% in GO-BP protein function prediction. The experimental results verify the extraordinary potential of ProtCLIP serving as the protein multi-modality foundation model.

The occurrence of Agrilus kubani Bílý, 1991 is reported for the first time in Romania. This study provides details on its distribution within the country, along with information on its biological characteristics and morphological description, contributing to a better understanding of this species

Background. According to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP), a cultivar is regarded as documented when its nomenclatural standard has been formalized and published. This procedure attaches a cultivar name to a herbarium specimen, and makes it possible to refer to such specimens when the taxonomic affiliation of a cultivar is being disputed. It also helps to maintain a national catalogue of crops and protect breeders’ rights.Materials and methods. The nomenclatural standards are presented, along with morphological, biological, ecological and agronomic descriptions, for spring oat cvs. ‘Uralets’ and ‘Kross’ released by the Ural Research Institute of Agriculture, as well as those of collective authorship: ‘Blits’ (with Perm Federal Research Center) and ‘Ural 2’ (with the Siberian Research Institute of Feed). The herbarium material for nomenclatural standards was collected in the fields of Pushkin and Pavlovsk Laboratories of VIR. All specimens of one cultivar are the plants grown from a single seed sample. Each herbarium sheet contains the entire plant in the state of milky ripeness, as well as mature spikes and grains.Results and conclusion. The nomenclatural standards for the four spring oat cultivars were formatted in line with the ICNCP recommendations and registered in the VIR Herbarium Database. The items are deposited in the Herbarium of Cultivated Plants of the World, Their Wild Relatives and Weeds (WIR), and are made part of the collections of the National Center for Plant Genetic Resources. The nomenclatural standard of each cultivar is presented on one herbarium sheet and has three duplicate sheets, except for cv. ‘Blits’ with its four duplicate standards.

During a survey of leafhoppers (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) associated with aromatic crops, the Ligurian leafhopper, Eupteryx decemnotata Rey was identified for the first time in the Platense Horticultural Belt in Buenos Aires province, Argentina. This study provides a detailed description of the female genitalia and immature stages, along with biological traits, including developmental time from egg to adult, sex ratio, oviposition sites preference and host plants. This leafhopper was reported on oregano, thyme, rosemary and mint plants. Significant damage to host plants was observed due to feeding activity, with females showing a marked preference for ovipositing in secondary veins of leaves (31.15%), followed by stems (21.31%) and main veins (19.67%). The total developmental time from egg to adult averaged 29.14 days under controlled conditions, with the fifth instar being the longest. The sex ratio was male-biased (59.49% males, 40.51% females). This study expands the known distribution of E. decemnotata and provides essential biological and morphological data that contribute to its taxonomic identification and pest management strategies.

Tumor Microenvironment Differences between Diagnostic and Relapsed Classic Hodgkin Lymphoma Revealed By Single Cell Transcriptome Sequencing

The dung beetle genus Scarabaeus (Coleoptera, Scarabaeinae, Scarabaeini), predominantly found in the arid regions of the Old World, includes three endemic species inhabiting the dry ecosystems of western and southern Madagascar. These species are presumed to form a monophyletic clade nested within the African Scarabaeus.Semantic modelling of phenotypes using ontologies represents a transformative approach to species description in biology, making phenotypic data FAIR and computable. The recently developed Phenoscript language enables the creation of semantic, computable species descriptions using a syntax akin to human natural language (NL). However, Phenoscript has not yet been tested as a tool for describing new taxa. In this study, we test the utility of Phenoscript by describing a new species, Scarabaeus (sensu lato) sakalava sp. nov. from Madagascar. The initial description is composed directly in Phenoscript, replacing the traditional natural language format. This Phenoscript description is then translated into a human-readable form using the Phenospy tool for publication purposes. Additionally, the Phenoscript description is converted into an RDF graph, making it understandable by computers using semantic technologies.Scarabaeussakalava sp. nov. is found in western central Madagascar and is closely related to S.viettei (Paulian, 1953) from north-western Madagascar. We provide an updated identification key and distribution map for all Malagasy Scarabaeus and discuss their systematic placement.

Genetically engineered mouse models (GEMMs) are vital for elucidating gene function and disease mechanisms. An overwhelming number of GEMM lines have been generated, but endeavors to collect and organize the information of these GEMMs are seriously lagging behind. Only a few databases are developed for the information of current GEMMs, and these databases lack biological descriptions of allele compositions, which poses a challenge for nonexperts in mouse genetics to interpret the genetic information of these mice. Moreover, these databases usually do not provide information on human diseases related to the GEMM, which hinders the dissemination of the insights the GEMM provides as a human disease model. To address these issues, we developed an algorithm to annotate all the allele compositions that have been reported with Python programming and have developed the genetically modified mice information database (GMMID; http://www.gmmid.cn), a user-friendly database that integrates information on GEMMs and related diseases from various databases, including National Center for Biotechnology Information, Mouse Genome Informatics, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man, International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium, and Jax lab. GMMID provides comprehensive genetic information on >70 055 alleles, 65 520 allele compositions, and ∼4000 diseases, along with biologically meaningful descriptions of alleles and allele combinations. Furthermore, it provides spatiotemporal visualization of anatomical tissues mentioned in these descriptions, shown alongside the allele compositions. Compared to existing mouse databases, GMMID considers the needs of researchers across different disciplines and presents obscure genetic information in an intuitive and easy-to-understand format. It facilitates users in obtaining complete genetic information more efficiently, making it an essential resource for cross-disciplinary researchers. Database URL: http://www.gmmid.cn.

In addition to the borderline Phenomenological problems of Medical and Biological Description, it is necessary to carefully analyze the borderline Characteristic States between LIVING and NON-LIVING Matter.