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Zootaxa 2021 Feb 16;4927(4):zootaxa.4927.4.2. Epub 2021 Feb 16.

Mississippi Entomological Museum, Mississippi State University, 100 Old Highway 12, P.O. Drawer 9775, Mississippi State, MS 39762-9775, USA. Research Collaborator, Smithsonian Institution.

Few species of Baltic amber Psychodinae have been described to date. Some were incorrectly classified in Pericoma Walker based on an early, broad definition of the genus and holotypes were not specified. We examined approximately 50 specimens of Baltic amber Psychodinae in addition to reviewing the original series studied by Fernand Meunier. Read More

Anthropol Anz 2021 Jan 5. Epub 2021 Jan 5.

Institute of Anatomy, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, U Nemocnice 3, CZ-128 01 Prague, Czech Republic.

The aim of this work was to document and analyze an exceptionally preserved mummified body of a six-year-old boy found in a family tomb in Skalná, Czech Republic. The boy died of scarlet fever in 1887, and was buried under ground in a cemetery in an unknown coffin shortly after death. His parents exhumed his cadaver and entombed it in the family crypt in two tin coffins a year later. Read More

J Ethnopharmacol 2021 Apr 25;269:113714. Epub 2020 Dec 25.

Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Darwinweg 2, 2333, CR, Leiden, the Netherlands; Institute of Biology, Leiden University, Sylviusweg 72, 2333, BE, Leiden, the Netherlands. Electronic address:

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Traditional Chinese Medicine is subject to changes over time: product names, botanical ingredients, processing methods and uses have varied throughout the course of history. Historic collections of Chinese materia medica (CMM) are of great value for research on the evolvement, development and variability of Chinese herbal medicine over time. These changes may have a significant influence on the safety and efficiency of nowadays' clinical practice. Read More

J Forensic Sci 2021 Mar 23;66(2):677-686. Epub 2020 Nov 23.

LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Istituto di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy.

In forensic contexts of advanced decomposition, when conventional matrices are no longer available for toxicological analyses, finding alternative matrices is necessary. The skeleton, which is fundamental for anthropologists and geneticists, could be useful also for toxicological purposes. The present study aims to examine what kind of information toxicological analysis performed on bones (the cranium and the ribs) in different states of preservation could provide to the forensic practitioner. Read More

iScience 2020 Aug 9;23(8):101348. Epub 2020 Jul 9.

State Key Laboratory of Chem/Biosensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, P.R. China; Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, P.R. China. Electronic address:

The highly reversible zinc-bromine redox couple has been successfully applied in the zinc-bromine flow batteries; however, non-electroactive pump/pipe/reservoir parts and ion-selective membranes are essential to suppress the bromine diffusion. This work demonstrates a zinc-bromine static (non-flow) battery without these auxiliary parts and utilizing glass fiber separator, which overcomes the high self-discharge rate and low energy efficiency while the advantages of the zinc-bromine chemistry are well preserved. It is achieved by a multifunctional additive, tetrapropylammonium bromide (TPABr), which not only mitigates the bromine cross-diffusion by regulating the fluidic bromine to a condensed solid phase but also provides a favorable interface for zinc electrodeposition toward non-dendritic growth. Read More

PeerJ 2020 6;8:e9034. Epub 2020 May 6.

Natural Resources Research Institute, University of Minnesota Duluth, Duluth, MN, United States of America.

Geochemical analyses applied to lake sedimentary records can reveal the history of pollution by metals and the effects of remedial efforts. Lakes provide ideal environments for geochemical studies because they have steady deposition of fine grained material suitable for fixation of pollutants. The Laurentian Great Lakes are the most studied system in this field, and they have well-preserved chronological profiles. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2020 Apr 21;13(1):189. Epub 2020 Apr 21.

Institute of Animal Hygiene and Veterinary Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Leipzig, An den Tierkliniken 1, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.

Background: Ixodes spp. are vectors of zoonotic pathogens. All three active life stages (larvae, nymphs, adults) need to feed on a host in order to develop. Read More

PeerJ 2020 1;8:e8741. Epub 2020 Apr 1.

Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.

Pterosaur specimens with complete and well-preserved palatal region are rare. Here we describe new and previously collected specimens of the pterodactyloid pterosaur that are three-dimensionally preserved and provide new anatomical information for this species. Among the unique features is a lateral process of the pterygoid divided into two parts: an anterior thin, parabolic arc shaped element that separates the secondary subtemporal and the subtemporal fenestrae, followed by a dorsoventrally flattened portion that is directed inside the subtemporal fenestrae. Read More

Sci Rep 2020 03 24;10(1):5316. Epub 2020 Mar 24.

Museo del Jurásico de Asturias (MUJA), 33328, Colunga, Asturias, Spain.

Trace fossils represent the primary source of information on the evolution of animal behaviour through deep time, and provide exceptional insights into complex life strategies that would be otherwise impossible to infer from the study of body parts alone. Here, we describe unusual trace fossils found in marginal-marine, storm- and river-flood deposits from the Middle Devonian Naranco Formation of Asturias (northern Spain) that constitute the first evidence for infaunal moulting in a non-trilobite euarthropod. The trace fossils are preserved in convex hyporelief, and include two main morphological variants that reflect a behavioural continuum. Read More

Ecol Evol 2020 Mar 20;10(5):2530-2544. Epub 2020 Feb 20.

Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics American Museum of Natural History New York New York.

Fossil rodent middens are powerful tools in paleoecology. In arid parts of western North America, packrat ( spp.) middens preserve plant and animal remains for tens of thousands of years. Read More

Arthropod Struct Dev 2020 Mar 13;55:100916. Epub 2020 Mar 13.

Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Viničná 7, CZ 128 00, Praha 2, Czech Republic.

Megasecoptera is a late Paleozoic order of herbivorous insects with rostrum-like mouthparts and slender homonomous outstretched wings. Our knowledge of their morphology is mainly based on wings while other body parts are scarcely documented. Here we focus on the families Bardohymenidae and Aspidothoracidae. Read More

J Chem Theory Comput 2020 Feb 27;16(2):1039-1054. Epub 2020 Jan 27.

Department of Chemistry and Ames Laboratory , Iowa State University , Ames , Iowa 50011 , United States.

The fully analytic gradient of the second-order Møller-Plesset perturbation theory (MP2) with the resolution-of-the-identity (RI) approximation in the fragment molecular orbital (FMO) framework is derived and implemented using a hybrid multilevel parallel programming model, a combination of the general distributed data interface (GDDI) and the OpenMP API. The FMO/MP2 analytic gradient contains three parts, i.e. Read More

R Soc Open Sci 2019 Nov 20;6(11):191289. Epub 2019 Nov 20.

Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK.

Erythrosuchidae are a globally distributed and important group of apex predators that occupied Early and Middle Triassic terrestrial ecosystems following the Permo-Triassic mass extinction. The stratigraphically oldest known genus of Erythrosuchidae is Ochev, 1958, which is known from the late Early Triassic (late Olenekian) of European Russia and South Africa. Two species of have been reported from Russia: the type species, Ochev, 1958, and '' von Huene, 1960, which has been referred to as either congeneric () or conspecific (). Read More

J Vis Exp 2019 10 20(152). Epub 2019 Oct 20.

State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University;

Ocular surface (OS) consists of an epithelial sheet with three connected parts: palpebral conjunctiva, bulbar conjunctiva and corneal epithelium. Disruption of OS would lead to keratitis, conjunctivitis or both (keratoconjunctivitis). In experimental animal models with certain genetic modifications or artificial operations, it is useful to examine all parts of the OS epithelial sheet to evaluate relative pathogenetic changes of each part in parallel. Read More

Folia Neuropathol 2019 ;57(3):267-276

Department of Laboratory Diagnostics, Maria Skłodowska-Curie Memorial Bialystok Oncology Center, Bialystok, Poland.

The present study aimed at exploring a potentially neuroprotective effect of topiramate (TPM), one of the most commonly used newer-generation, broad-spectrum, antiepileptic drugs against ultrastructural damage of hippocampal synaptic endings in the experimental model of febrile seizures (FS). The study used male young Wistar rats aged 22-30 days, divided into three experimental groups and the control group. Brain maturity in such animals corresponds to that of 1- or 2-year-old children. Read More

Zoological Lett 2019 18;5:20. Epub 2019 Jun 18.

1Department of Biology II, LMU Munich, Biocenter, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany.

Background: Calmanostraca is a group of branchiopod eucrustaceans, with and as most prominent representatives. Both are regularly addressed with the inaccurate tag "living fossil", suggesting that the morphology has remained stable for several millions of years. Yet, and represent only a fraction of the morphological diversity occurring in Calmanostraca, comprising the two groups Notostraca and Kazacharthra. Read More

Environ Monit Assess 2019 Jun 4;191(7):408. Epub 2019 Jun 4.

General and Medical Entomology Laboratory, Department of Animal and Plant Biology, Center of Biological Sciences (BAV/CCB), State University of Londrina (UEL), Londrina, Paraná, Brazil.

Pollution of rivers and streams, by anthropic action, is characterized as an environmental, social, and sanitary problem. Factors such as the association between the marginal vegetation, the distribution of the substrates in the riverbed, and the availability of allochthonous organic matter influence the distribution and composition of the aquatic entomofauna. The objective of this study was to analyze the structure of aquatic insect communities in a pasture stream in northern Paraná, southern Brazil, with emphasis on the groups of indicators of good water quality, thus inferring the conditions of its preservation. Read More

Folia Morphol (Warsz) 2020 20;79(1):162-167. Epub 2019 May 20.

Private Dental Practices, Kielce, Poland.

Background: Analysis of the female skeleton from the 18th century revealed a collection of morphological changes.

Materials And Methods: Anthropological evaluation and dental X-ray techniques allowed the age to be determined at 12-13 years.

Results: The distal parts of the both humerus bones had distinct, supracondylar processes of about 5 mm at the medial-lateral surface. Read More

J Ethnobiol Ethnomed 2019 May 9;15(1):22. Epub 2019 May 9.

Institute for Russian and Eurasian Studies, Uppsala University, Box 514, 754 22, Uppsala, Sweden.

Introduction: White bryony, Bryonia alba L., is a relatively little known plant in the history of folk medicine and folk botany in eastern and northern Europe. The main aim of this article is to bring together data about Bryonia alba and to summarise its cultural history and folk botanical importance in eastern and northern Europe. Read More

Asian-Australas J Anim Sci 2019 Apr 15:100-110. Epub 2019 Apr 15.

Department of Agricultural Engineering, College of Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China.

Objective: The objective of this study was to isolate proteolytic microorganisms and evaluate their effects on proteolysis in total mixed ration (TMR) silages of soybean curd residue.

Methods: TMRs were formulated with soybean curd residue, alfalfa or Leymus chinensis hay, corn meal, soybean meal, a vitamin-mineral supplement, and salt in a ratio of 25.0:40. Read More

Biopreserv Biobank 2019 Apr 28;17(2):105-112. Epub 2019 Mar 28.

1 Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Central South University Xiangya School of Medicine, Changsha, Hunan, China.

In 1972, an enormous tomb site was found in the eastern suburb of Changsha, the capital city of Hunan Province, which led to the discovery of Mawangdui tomb No. 1, and soon thereafter tombs Nos. 2 and 3. Read More

Malar J 2019 Mar 22;18(1):95. Epub 2019 Mar 22.

Centro de Biodiversidad y Descubrimiento de Drogas, Instituto de Investigaciones Científicas y Servicios de Alta Tecnología (INDICASAT AIP), City of Knowledge, Panama, 0843-01103, Republic of Panama.

Background: Malaria control in Panama is problematic due to the high diversity of morphologically similar Anopheles mosquito species, which makes identification of vectors of human Plasmodium challenging. Strategies by Panamanian health authorities to bring malaria under control targeting Anopheles vectors could be ineffective if they tackle a misidentified species.

Methods: A rapid mass spectrometry identification procedure was developed to accurately and timely sort out field-collected Neotropical Anopheles mosquitoes into vector and non-vector species. Read More

Sci Rep 2019 01 30;9(1):927. Epub 2019 Jan 30.

Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, 90007, USA.

Over the last three years, Burmese amber (~99 Ma, from Myanmar) has provided a series of immature enantiornithine skeletal remains preserved in varying developmental stages and degrees of completeness. These specimens have improved our knowledge based on compression fossils in Cretaceous sedimentary rocks, adding details of three-dimensional structure and soft tissues that are rarely preserved elsewhere. Here we describe a remarkably well-preserved foot, accompanied by part of the wing plumage. Read More

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018 11 5;115(47):12005-12010. Epub 2018 Nov 5.

Subdepartment of Evolution and Development, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, 752 36 Uppsala, Sweden.

All living tetrapods have a one-to-two branching pattern in the embryonic proximal limb skeleton, with a single element at the base of the limb (the humerus or femur) that articulates distally with two parallel radials (the ulna and radius or the tibia and fibula). This pattern is also seen in the fossilized remains of stem-tetrapods, including the fishlike members of the group, in which despite the absence of digits, the proximal parts of the fin skeleton clearly resemble those of later tetrapods. However, little is known about the developmental mechanisms that establish and canalize this highly conserved pattern. Read More

Mol Ecol Resour 2018 11;18(6):1185-1187

Institut Jacques Monod, CNRS, University Paris Diderot, Paris, France.

It is the dream of all researchers working with ancient DNA to identify prior to DNA extraction from bone the specimens or specific zones within them that contain the highest proportion of endogenous DNA. As it impacts the sacrifice of precious ancient specimens and the financial support needed for the analyses, the question is of high importance to the scientific field of palaeogenomics. The "Holy Grail" of palaeogenomics was reached when Cristina Gamba et al. Read More

Zootaxa 2018 Sep 30;4486(4):548-558. Epub 2018 Sep 30.

Thrips-iD, Straßburger Straße 37A, 77652 Offenburg, Germany..

Burmite, a Cretaceous amber coming from the north of Myanmar, is known to preserve a great diversity of fossil arthropods, particularly insects. Many inclusions of different taxa in several insect orders have been well analysed, but this is the first study focussed on the Thysanoptera found in Burmite. In the sub-order Terebrantia, family Merothripidae, Myanmarothrips pankowskiorum gen. Read More

PLoS One 2018 4;13(10):e0204649. Epub 2018 Oct 4.

Department of Archaeology and Classical studies, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.

The inland area of southwestern Sweden is well known for its well-preserved archaeological animal and human remains dating back to the Mesolithic and Neolithic (10000-4000 and 4000-1700 BC). They allow application of multiple bioarchaeological methods, giving insights into various and complementary aspects of prehistoric human life, as well as economic and social structures. One important aspect concerns human mobility and its relation to social networks and to circulation of objects. Read More

PLoS One 2018 27;13(7):e0200545. Epub 2018 Jul 27.

Tromsø University Museum, Department of Cultural Sciences, University of Tromsø, Tromsø, Norway.

Although there are several well preserved Viking boat burials from Norway, until recently palaeoecological research on their context has often been limited. Research on fossil insect remains in particular can provide valuable forensic information even in the absence of an actual body. Here we present archaeoentomological information from a boat burial at Øksnes in Vesterålen, northeast Norway, an area where Norse and Sami traditions overlap. Read More

Biopreserv Biobank 2018 Aug 11;16(4):251-257. Epub 2018 Jun 11.

1 Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Central South University , Changsha, China .

Objectives: We have explored a better method to preserve and store human medically amputated large size samples. The approach involved developing a special embalming solution and procedures for biopreservation and biostorage of a large-sized sample as a whole specimen rather than dissected small parts. Evaluation of the effect of our special embalming solution and procedures on whole human amputated extremities compared with excised small tissues was conducted. Read More

Sci Rep 2018 May 2;8(1):6923. Epub 2018 May 2.

Faculty of Philosophy I, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany.

The state of substances under ultrahigh pressures and temperatures (UHPHT) now raises a special interest as a matter existing under extreme conditions and as potential new material. Under laboratory conditions only small amounts of micrometer-sized matter are produced at a pressure up to 100 GPa and at room temperature. Simultaneous combination of ultrahigh pressures and temperatures in a lab still requires serious technological effort. Read More