Genetic characterization of Contracaecum cf. overstreeti (Nematoda: Anisakidae) larvae in Mugil cephalus fish from the pacific coast of Ecuador.

Concurrent evaluation of oxidative stress biomarkers, cytokine expression, molecular identification, and histopathological findings in sheep naturally infected with Fasciola hepatica.

Comparative parasitology and host pathophysiology: integrated assessment of ectoparasite dynamics, seasonal prevalence, and physiological impacts in co-cultured European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) and gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata).

Biodiversity of Aspergillus section Flavi species isolated along the peanut paste production chain in Côte d'Ivoire.

Faecal DNA detection and molecular identification of nematodes of veterinary relevance in invasive raccoons and raccoon dogs in Central Europe.

First molecular identification of Spirometra erinaceieuropaei, Ligula intestinalis, and Taenia hydatigena infecting wildlife canine and avian hosts from the Astrakhan Region, Russia.

Dataset on intergenic spacer sequences of the chloroplast genome and potential DNA barcodes of Adinandra glischroloma Hand.-Mazz. from Vietnam.

Drone-based needle trap device array coupled with portable mass spectrometry for onsite analysis of hazardous air pollutants.

Molecular detection of vector-borne and hemotropic pathogens in raccoons (Procyon lotor) from a tropical ecotourism area in Costa Rica.

Integrating DNA barcoding and machine learning for species identification: Comparative genomics and codon usage bias of chloroplasts in Gentiana sect. Cruciata.

Clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) is associated with many diseases of aging. Large research initiatives are needed to develop clinical guidelines for the management of individuals with CHIP and their risk of disease. However, little guidance is available for the classification of variants as CHIP associated or how to identify individuals consistently and systematically as having CHIP. This study aimed to develop and execute a resource-mindful framework for identifying individuals with CHIP, and those without, for downstream clinical studies. This framework was used to categorize CHIP in a cross-section of 2,328 participants from the Australian Breakthrough Cancer Study. DNA extracted from saliva samples was sequenced for a panel of ten gene regions that frequently carry variants that are associated with CHIP. Variants in these regions were curated for CHIP according to field-specific criteria. Individuals were categorized as either CHIP positive, CHIP negative, or CHIP indeterminate based on their variant findings. Sequencing was successfully performed on 2,328 individuals. The mean age (± standard deviation) was 68 ± 3 years, and 48% were men. 347 participants (15%) were identified as CHIP positive with a total of 400 CHIP-associated variants. 1,442 participants (62%) were considered CHIP negative based on finding no somatic variation within the target regions. The remaining 539 (23%) were considered CHIP indeterminate because they had at least one variant that could not be interpreted. This framework provides a consistent approach to the categorization of individuals as CHIP positive or CHIP negative for clinical research and provides an opportunity for improved harmonization in the curation of CHIP.

Molecular identification of trypanosome species and vertebrate blood meals in wild tsetse flies from Binoum in the forest area of the littoral region of Cameroon.

ConspectusSurface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) provides a powerful spectroscopic approach for molecular identification and interfacial analysis by combining chemical specificity with ultrahigh sensitivity. While chemically synthesized nanoparticles have enabled broad use of SERS, increasing attention is being paid to how structural uniformity, aggregation behavior, and surface chemistry influence signal reproducibility, reliability, and mechanistic interpretation. In this context, plasmonic nanoarrays fabricated by template-assisted physical deposition offer a complementary and increasingly important SERS platform.This Account summarizes recent advances in SERS using nanoarrays fabricated by template-assisted evaporation. In these approaches, nanoscale geometry and hotspot distributions are predefined by the template and realized through directional deposition. These template-defined architectures enable reproducible electromagnetic enhancement, polarization-controlled excitation, and stable plasmonic responses. Moreover, physical deposition yields clean, ligand-free metal surfaces, providing a well-defined interface for probing plasmon-molecule interactions and interfacial chemical processes. Using anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) lithography as a representative platform, we illustrate how precise control over template thickness enables angle-resolved deposition and structural programmability, allowing the fabrication of dimers, trimers, and compositionally heterogeneous architectures with nanometer-scale gaps. These capabilities support advanced SERS functionalities, including efficient hotspot activation for enhanced sensitivity, selective molecular trapping, and access to interfacial processes on nonplasmonic or weakly plasmonic materials. Furthermore, integration with transparent substrates and soft supports enables liquid-phase SERS configurations and flexible sensing platforms. These liquid-phase SERS configurations improve signal stability and measurement reliability for real-time, in situ measurements, while mitigating aggregation-related issues commonly encountered in conventional SERS. Beyond molecular detection, nanoarray-based SERS provides a controlled experimental framework for mechanistic studies in plasmonic chemistry. The combination of chemically clean surfaces with nonaggregating and structurally stable architectures enables plasmon-driven interfacial processes to be examined under well-defined and reproducible conditions, and facilitates in situ, real-time tracking of reaction dynamics in liquid-phase SERS measurements. This well-controlled environment serves as a reliable physical model for investigating interfacial reaction mechanisms, allowing direct identification of key reaction intermediates and offering an effective route to resolving long-standing mechanistic debates in plasmonic chemistry.Overall, this Account underscores the value of template-fabricated plasmonic nanoarrays as a versatile SERS platform that connects sensitive detection with mechanistic insight. Looking ahead, continued advances in template engineering and deposition strategies are expected to further expand their role in well-controlled studies of light-matter interactions and interfacial physics and chemistry.

Anopheles mosquitoes are key malaria vectors, their high diversity influences transmission competence. Accurate species identification is crucial for understanding malaria epidemiology and implementing effective vector control strategies. The COX1 gene is a widely used DNA barcoding marker for Anopheles due to its high mutation rate and species-specific variations. This study evaluates the consistency of morphological and molecular identification using COX1, analyzes phylogenetic relationships, and explores the implications of these findings for malaria vector control strategies. Anopheles mosquitoes were collected from Bangsring, Banyuwangi, and Hargowilis, Kulonprogo, Indonesia, two geographically distinct sites with a history of malaria outbreaks. Mosquitoes were collected using human landing catches. Identification was performed morphologically and confirmed by molecular analysis based on COX1 sequences. Phylogenetic tree and genetic distances were analyzed in MEGA11 using the Neighbor-Joining method with the Kimura-2 Parameter model. Morphological and COX1-based identification were mostly consistent; however, specimens identified as Anopheles (An.) aconitus and An. minimus from Hargowilis were molecularly confirmed as An. flavirostris. Phylogenetic analysis revealed eight monophyletic clades with strong bootstrap support (≥99% for six), confirming species groupings. Genetic distance analysis showed An. minimus from Hargowilis clustering more closely with An. flavirostris than with An. minimus from other Asian regions. The dominance of An. sundaicus (68%) in Bangsring and An. flavirostris (13%) in Hargowilis highlights the need for targeted vector control strategies. Misidentification of cryptic Anopheles species may lead to ineffective vector control in specific epidemiological settings. Integrating molecular tools into malaria surveillance can support more accurate species identification and contribute to informed disease prevention strategies.

Abstract We propose and demonstrate an image-based molecular classification method for dual-comb spectroscopy (DCS) using convolutional neural networks (CNNs). Transmission spectra acquired by DCS are converted into images and directly classified without spectral fitting or prior knowledge of spectroscopic parameters. Two types of classifiers were developed: one based on single absorption lines and the other based on broadband spectra. The CNNs were pre-trained using reference spectra generated from the HITRAN database and successfully applied to experimentally measured dual-comb spectra. While single-line-based classification is sensitive to absorption line-shape variations, broadband-spectrum-based classification exhibits enhanced robustness by learning global spectral features such as relative intensity distributions, line spacings, and molecular band structures. In addition, image conversion reduces the effective dimensionality of densely sampled spectra, contributing to stable feature extraction. The proposed method provides a versatile framework for automated molecular identification in dual-comb and broadband spectroscopic measurements.

The complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of Anomala antiqua (Gyllenhal, 1817) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) was first described by next-generation sequencing in this study. The length of mitogenome is 16,430 bp with AT content of 77.3%, which contained 37 genes, including 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA genes (tRNAs) and two ribosomal RNA genes (rRNAs). Gene order is conserved and identical to most other previously sequenced Rutelinae. Phylogenetic analysis based on the amino acid sequences of 13 PCGs reveals that A. antiqua forms a basal branch of the subfamily Rutelinae and the genus Anomala is paraphyletic. The complete mtDNA of A. antiqua will be an important genomic resource for molecular identification and systematic classification of the genus Anomala, offering valuable insights into the evolutionary history and taxonomic status of its species.

Juncus (Juncaceae) comprises over 300 species with high morphological plasticity, and its systematics remain incompletely resolved due to limited genomic resources. Here, we generated complete plastid genomes for two Korean Juncus species (J. decipiens and J. gracillimus) and incorporated plastid coding genes from an additional species to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships and examine plastome evolution within Juncaceae. Comparative analyses revealed substantial plastome size variation across Juncus and Luzula, largely driven by changes in inverted repeat (IR) length, with Luzula plastomes showing pronounced IR expansion. Within Juncus, extensive structural rearrangements were detected, including multiple inversion events, and closely related taxa shared conserved inversion patterns. Phylogenomic analyses recovered well-supported clades that were associated with structural traits such as extreme small single-copy (SSC) contraction and consistent loss of the plastid ndh, some rps and rpl gene families, indicating clade-specific plastome evolution in Juncaceae. To support applied molecular identification, we identified J. decipiens-specific plastid diagnostic SNPs (matK, rpl2) and validated allele-specific PCR markers using individuals from different species within the Juncus genus. In parallel, transcriptome sequencing of J. decipiens generated 133,559 transcripts and 66,324 unigenes, enabling discovery of high-confidence nuclear exonic SNP loci by mapping reads to a J. effusus nuclear genome. Collectively, our results provide new insights into plastome structural evolution and gene loss in Juncus and deliver validated plastid and nuclear markers for authentication and future conservation or utilisation studies on J. decipiens.

The blue stain of lotus rhizome, a major postharvest issue, is hypothesized to result from polyphenol-iron complexation; however, direct in situ evidence and molecular-level identification of the pigments have been lacking. This study employed a multimodal analytical approach to unravel this process from the cellular to the molecular level. Transmission electron microscope and electrolyte leakage results demonstrated that cellular damage was a prerequisite, enabling the colocalization of polyphenols and Fe3+ at lesion sites, as visualized by scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and confocal fluorescence microscopy. Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy verified complex formation, while mass spectrometry identified specific chelates. The mechanism involves polyphenol-mediated reduction of Fe3+ followed by chelation. Ascorbic acid effectively mitigated bluing by competitively reducing/chelating Fe3+, disrupting this redox cycle. This work definitively establishes the mechanism and proposes ascorbic acid as a viable antidiscoloration strategy.

Recent advancements in quantum algorithms have reached a state where we can consider how to capitalize on quantum and classical computational resources to accelerate molecular resonance state identification. Here, we identify molecular resonances with a method that combines quantum computing with classical high-throughput computing (HTC). This algorithm, which we term qDRIVE (the quantum deflation resonance identification variational eigensolver), exploits the complex absorbing potential formalism to distill the problem of molecular resonance identification into a network of hybrid quantum-classical variational quantum eigensolver tasks and harnesses HTC resources to execute these interconnected but independent tasks both asynchronously and in parallel, a strategy that minimizes wall time to completion. We show qDRIVE successfully identifies resonance energies and wave functions in simulated quantum processors with current and planned specifications, which bodes well for qDRIVE's ultimate application in disciplines ranging from photocatalysis to quantum control and places a spotlight on the potential offered by integrated heterogeneous quantum computing/HTC approaches in computational chemistry.

This study evaluated entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) isolated from a cacao agroforestry system in the Peruvian Amazon, focusing on their molecular characterization and efficacy against Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) larvae. Thirteen EPN isolates were obtained from 50 soil samples using the Galleria mellonella baiting technique. Mortality assays revealed significant differences among isolates at 24, 48, and 72 h, with isolates 11N-A4 and 8N-B1 being the most virulent, achieving maximum mortalities of 100% and 96.3% at 72 h, respectively. Median lethal time (LT50) values indicated rapid action of these isolates on G. mellonella larvae, with 33.3 h for 11N-A4 and 32.4 h for 8N-B1. Molecular identification using ITS, D2-D3 (LSU), and COI markers confirmed the isolates as Heterorhabditis sp. (11N-A4) and Heterorhabditis amazonensis (8N-B1). In bioassays with S. frugiperda larvae, both EPNs exhibited dose- and time-dependent mortality. H. amazonensis showed rapid action, reaching 100% mortality at the highest dose (60 IJs/larvae) within 48 h, whereas Heterorhabditis sp. displayed a gradual, sustained increase, attaining 91% mortality at 72 h. Median lethal dose (LD50) and LT50 values reflected the efficiency of both isolates, with Heterorhabditis sp. achieving lower LD50 at later stages and shorter LT50 at low-to-intermediate doses. These findings highlight the potential of Heterorhabditis sp. and H. amazonensis as effective biocontrol agents adapted to local conditions and represent the first report of H. amazonensis in Peru. Further studies under field conditions are required to confirm their suitability for incorporation into integrated pest management strategies in the Peruvian Amazon.