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Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Abstract A list of 18 species of checkered beetles is given, together with images of voucher specimens and a distribution map based on literature, dry collections and databases.

Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Abstract Main stand characteristics and tree species composition were studied in managed and old-growth Oriental beech (Fagus orientalis L.) forests in eastern Georgia (Caucasus). Oriental beech dominates both the regeneration layer and the upper story in old-growth forest. In managed forests, Caucasian hornbeam (Carpinus orientalis) and Oriental beech co-dominate the tree layer as well as the regeneration layer. Tree species diversity and deadwood proportion are higher in managed forests than in old-growth forests. However, the absolute deadwood proportion is similar in both studied forest types. Hence, deadwood proportion is not a suitable indicator to assess the naturalness or management intensity of forests in the study area. The observed proportions of Caucasian hornbeam in managed forests raise concerns about the sustainable use of beechwood in the long term. Harvesting hornbeam and smaller removals of beech are recommended to maintain the uneven-aged forest ecosystem, with Oriental beech as the dominant tree species. The established long-term study plots are important to observe and improve future stand development and forest management.

Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Abstract The Caucasus ecoregion is distinguished by its biodiversity. The flora and fauna of the ecoregion became the study area of many zoologists and botanists. Georgia, as a part of it, is important for its valuable and impressive diversity. However, despite many years of scientific research, certain groups, among them centipedes, are not so well studied. This is the first comprehensive summary of current knowledge about centipedes distributed in the territory of Georgia, based on literature data. It provides information about 59 taxa (57 species and two subspecies) known from Georgia, belonging to 16 genera in seven families from four orders. Nineteen species are endemic to the Caucasus, eight of which are Georgian endemics. Among them, two species: Cryptops datviensis Tuf, Barjadze, and Maghradze, 2022, and Harpolithobius birsteini Zalesskaja, 1972, are troglobiotic. Another four species (Lithobius caucasicus Sseliwanoff, 1881; Lamyctes coeculus (Brölemann, 1889); Lithobius semperi (Haase, 1887); and Scolopocryptops nigridus McNeill, 1887) are considered doubtful records. An overview of local and global distribution for each taxon is included. Lithobius fasciatus Muralevitch, 1929, syn. nov. is formally synonymized with Lithobius striatus Muralevitch, 1926.

Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Abstract The present publication provides a review of the soil mite (Acari; Oribatida) community’s structure and the connection between changes in environmental factors and oribatid mite diversity in the limestone quarry of Saskhori and its adjacent areas. Overall, 52 species were recorded during the study. The most abundant oribatid mite species were Steganacarus carinatus, Aleurodamaeus setosus, Xenillus tegeocranus, Ceratoppia bipilis, Oribatula tibialis, and Punctoribates punctum. Interestingly, 23 species of oribatid mites were recorded for the first time from the limestone quarry of Saskhori, and one species (Liacarus oribatelloides) was a new record for the Caucasus fauna. The following indices were analyzed: abundance (N), species diversity (S), Shannon’s diversity index (H), and Pielou’s evenness index (J’). Regarding the obtained results, the highest density of oribatid mites was recorded in the habitat with Shibliak shrubbery (332 inds/m2), while the forest habitat was characterized with the highest value for Shannon’s diversity index (2,64). In the publication, we also provide a detailed morphological description of the newly recorded species L. oribatelloides, with the respective illustration, as no figures are given in its original description.

Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Abstract Visual inspection of several embryos of the parthenogenetic lizard Darevskia armeniaca revealed the presence of an embryo with axial bifurcation (“two-headed”) on the stage of pigmented eyes and plate-like limb buds with a distinct border at the edges. This is the third recorded case of axial bifurcation in D. armeniaca, although two previous cases were mentioned without further discussion. Here the bicephalic embryo is described in detail and the potential reasons are discussed. The analysis of the literature on axial bifurcation in lacertids suggests that this type of developmental disorder may be particularly common in this parthenogenetic form. Hybridization may cause multiple developmental disorders, including incomplete separation of twin embryos; all parthenogenetic Darevskia have a hybrid origin, and this may cause the disorders rather than parthenogenetic reproduction by itself. The hypothesis needs further study with more representative samples of parthenogenetic and sexually reproducing Darevskia.

aves, biodiversity informatics, open data, nature, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

Here, we introduce SPARSE (acronym for "SPecies AcRoss ScalEs"), a simple and portable template for databases that can store data on species composition derived from ecological inventories, surveys and checklists, with emphasis on metadata describing sampling effort and methods. SPARSE can accommodate resurveys and time series and data from different spatial scales, as well as complex sampling designs. SPARSE focuses on inventories that report multiple species for a given site, together with sampling methods and effort, which can be used in statistical models of true probability of occurrence of species. SPARSE is spatially explicit and can accommodate nested spatial structures from multiple spatial scales, including sampling designs where multiple sites within a larger area have been surveyed and the larger area can again be nested in an even larger region. Each site in SPARSE is represented either by a point, line (for transects) or polygon, stored in an ESRI shapefile. SPARSE implements a new combination of our own field definitions with Darwin Core biodiversity data standard and its Humboldt core extension. The use of Humboldt core also makes SPARSE suitable for biodiversity data with temporal replication.We provide an example use of the SPARSE framework by digitising data on birds from the Czech Republic, from 348 sites and 524 sampling events, with 15,969 unique species-per-event observations of presence, abundance or population density. To facilitate use without the need for a high-level database expertise, the Czech bird example is implemented as MS Access .accdb file, but can be ported to other database engines. The example of Czech birds complements other bird datasets from the Czech Republic, specifically the four gridded national atlases and the breeding bird survey which cover a similar temporal extent, but different locations and spatial scales.

data curation, biodiversity informatics, data inte, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

Linking records for the same taxa between different databases is an essential step when working with biodiversity data. However, name-matching alone is error-prone, because of issues such as homonyms (unrelated taxa with the same name) and synonyms (same taxon under different names). Therefore, most projects will require some curation to ensure that taxon identifiers are correctly linked. Unfortunately, formal guidance on such curation is uncommon and these steps are often ad hoc and poorly documented, which hinders transparency and reproducibility, yet the task requires specialist knowledge and cannot be easily automated without careful validation. Here, we present a case study on linking identifiers between the GBIF and NCBI taxonomies for a species checklist. This represents a common scenario: finding published sequence data (from NCBI) for species chosen by occurrence or geographical distribution (from GBIF). Wikidata, a publicly editable knowledge base of structured data, can serve as an additional information source for identifier linking. We suggest a software toolkit for taxon name-matching and data-cleaning, describe common issues encountered during curation and propose concrete steps to address them. For example, about 2.8% of the taxa in our dataset had wrong identifiers linked on Wikidata because of errors in name-matching caused by homonyms. By correcting such errors during data-cleaning, either directly (through editing Wikidata) or indirectly (by reporting errors in GBIF or NCBI), we crowdsource the curation and contribute to community resources, thereby improving the quality of downstream analyses.

community engagement, conservation, geographic dis, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

Through citizen science projects, like Projeto Bromélias, community members contribute valuable data on species diversity, notably those with low detectability like the Heterodactylus imbricatus lizard. A recent observation in the State of Espírito Santo (south-eastern Brazil), amidst coffee and eucalyptus crops, highlights the utility of widespread technology use in tracking and documenting wildlife. Such initiatives are especially beneficial for mapping the distribution of rare, endemic or endangered reptiles. Therefore, we advocate for more citizen science initiatives near protected areas, involving local communities.We provide a new record for the species Heterodactylus imbricatus, a microteiid lizard of low detectability from the Atlantic Forest of south-eastern Brazil. Heterodactylus imbricatus (Rio de Janeiro Teiid) was recorded near the protected area "Reserva Biológica Augusto Ruschi" by a citizen volunteer who contributes herpetofauna records to the Bromelias Project (https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/projeto-bromelias). Heterodactylus imbricatus is a very poorly-known species in the localities where it occurs, probably due to its fossorial habit, genera's restricted occurrence range, habitat specificity and the absence of proper survey methods fitted to fossorial species, such as the utilisation of pitfall traps. By publishing the records of volunteer citizens, we hope that more people will contribute to increase the knowledge of biodiversity in the mountainous region of Espírito Santo State and expand our collective knowledge.

Protura, soil biodiversity, megabarcoding, Appalac, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

The higher elevations of the southern Appalachian Mountains, U.S.A., host a rich, but little-studied fauna of Proturan hexapods. Here, we publish 117 Proturan barcode sequences from this region, estimated by automated species delimitation methods to represent 72 distinct species, whereas only nine species have previously been reported from the region. Two families, Eosentomidae and Acerentomidae, co-occur at most sampling sites, with as many as five species occurring in sympatry. Most populations exhibit very low haplotype diversity, but divergences amongst populations and amongst closely-related species are very high, a finding common to other phylogeographic studies of Proturans. Though we were unable to identify any of the barcodes to species, they form a useful, if preliminary, glimpse of southern Appalachian Proturan diversity.

Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Carl Leavitt Hubbs (1894–1979) was a prominent and internationally renowned American ichthyologist whose publications include taxonomic descriptions of several North American blindfishes including the Mexican Cave Characin. His archived personal papers reveal a wide-ranging interest in the biology and evolutionary origins of cave and blindfishes, and his discussions and disputes with colleagues about their taxonomy. He also took opportunities to collect other fauna from American caves during the inter-war decades. Drawing upon his unpublished archive and other relevant sources his biospeleological work is chronicled in detail and discussed in the context of his other work.

Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Understanding the characteristics and conditions that make non-indigenous species (NIS) successful at establishing in recipient communities is a key in determining their potential impacts on native species, as well as to improve management actions such as prevention of future invasions. The round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) is one of the most widespread non-indigenous fish species in the Northern Hemisphere, including the coastal zones of the Baltic Sea. The impacts of round goby in the Baltic Sea are pronounced and multifaceted, yet our knowledge regarding the underlying assembly processes determining its establishment is limited. To overcome this knowledge gap, we applied a trait-based approach to assess the degree of niche overlap and functional (trait) similarity between round goby and native fish species in coastal areas from the Baltic Sea, based on the functional distinctiveness metric. Our results show that round goby is generally quite similar (or not dissimilar) to the native fish of the regional species pool, at least in terms of its overall trait composition. Conversely, round goby demonstrates pronounced differences compared to the native community in its display of parental care and territorial behaviour. Such differences in individual traits could play an important role in round goby’s invasion success in the Baltic Sea, including its interactions with native species (e.g. competition). Our results and their potential implications may be highly relevant for conservation and management if integrated within existing risk assessment tools for biological invasions in order to prioritise and enhance the effectiveness of preventative actions towards the expansion of round goby.

Biology (General) and QH301-705.5

Non sustainable land uses are disturbing natural habitats and wild animals’ ecology worldwide. Nevertheless, the sensitisation of key actors combined with research and a consequent management can influence decision-making and improve animals’ well-being. COVID-19 has influenced the number of interactions with wildlife in urban environments and the ESPOL Polytechnic University is a university campus that holds forested areas in Guayaquil, Ecuador. We implemented an environmental education course with an empathetic approach for the security guards of the university. We used questionnaires to evaluate their attitudes and knowledge on wildlife before and after the sensitisation course. In addition, we registered the incidences of native fauna resulting from the guards’ collaborations and we designed management strategies according to the data gathered. The guards showed an improvement in their knowledge of the issues covered (n = 81–87; X̄ = 163.4%) and an increased preference for wild and native fauna after the sensitisation course (n = 67; 151.6%). Furthermore, the collaborations of guards with the Biodiversity Unit of the university concerning animal-human interactions increased, as did the supporting actions towards the well-being of native animals. Moreover, the information about direct and indirect interactions with wildlife included reports on traces of large to medium animal activity and a record of illegal hunting of Choloepus hoffmanni for bushmeat consumption. Obtained data sustained adaptive management actions such as signalling and restrictions in use. We recommend educating key actors with an empathetic approach, developing critical skills and promoting collaborations to reduce human impacts in wild areas.

Atlantic Forest, avifauna, biodiversity, conservat, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

The Brazilian region known as Triângulo Mineiro and Alto Paranaíba (TMAP) has some areas of high bird diversity. Yet, the region has not been systematically surveyed despite the large transformations its original vegetation has suffered over the past few decades. We report on the most comprehensive bird inventory of the TMAP region, in which we surveyed in 353 sites. For this, we used point transects (11,120 sampling hours) and mist nets (41,920 net-hours). We recorded 469 species belonging to 27 orders and 73 families. Forest-associated species represented 49.04% of the total, grassland and savanna species 38.81%, and aquatic species 11.73%. We found 44 endemic species and 37 species that are threatened at some level. An annotated list of the rare, endemic, and threatened species is provided. This study may serve as a baseline for future studies within the region, including those designed to identify areas of conservation priority.

Biology (General), QH301-705.5, Zoology, and QL1-991

We collected seven fixed pairs of Rhyacophila lezeyi during mating copulation and observed four different states of copulation. We investigated the underlying mechanism for the variations in the morphology of each copulating device, based on the copulation state. Notably, the male anal sclerites underwent considerable changes from the early stages of copulation. Initially, the female segment VIII approached the male anal sclerites, which were pushed downwards by the female VIII and IX segments, extending from IX. With the progression of mating stage, the distended end of the female’s segment VIII covered the anal sclerites, pushing them further down. The male parameres were initially folded in bellows-like shapes under the aedeagus before copulation initiation. However, as the copulation stage advanced, they extended to about 3.2 times of their original length. Distended ends of both parameres adhered to the position of the spiracles at the anterior margin of the lateral part of the female’s VII abdominal sternite. The attachment site was the external surface of the hair bulb of the male parameres. During the middle stage of copulation, movements involving the opening and closing of the male gonopods started. The gonoslylus made strong contact with the female’s abdominal segment VIII, resulting in the deformation of segment VIII due to the contact pressure.

Armored catfishes, biogeography, Brumadinho, DNA b, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

Aspidoras fuscoguttatus Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 is a small, relatively common armored catfish considered endemic to the upper Paraná river basin. Here, based on recent collections, as well as morphological and molecular evidence, the known geographic distribution of this species is extended to the basin of the São Francisco River. Specimens were collected during biological surveys in two unnamed tributaries of the Paraopeba River, in the headwaters of the São Francisco River. The new records may be a consequence of headwater stream-captures between São Francisco and upper Paraná drainages. Continued surveys are needed to assess and mitigate natural and human impacts, including biological exchanges between basins.

Biology (General), QH301-705.5, Zoology, and QL1-991

Two new records of the genus Lepidostoma Rambur are reported from India. These include L. diespiter (Malicky & Sangpradub, 2001) and L. kamba (Mosely, 1939b) collected from Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand in India. With these new additions, the genus Lepidostoma Rambur is represented by 51 valid species from India. Complete redescriptions of these two species with illustrations are also provided. Also, L. sonomax (Mosely, 1939) is reported from Uttarakhand for the first time. Potential threats to these species and other freshwater biota are noted.

pancreatic cancer, long noncoding RNA, N6-methyladenosine, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

Pancreatic cancer is a malignant tumor of the digestive system that is highly malignant, difficult to treat, and confers a poor prognosis for patients. BRAF-activated noncoding RNA (BANCR) has been proven to play an important role in the invasion and metastasis of pancreatic cancer. In this study, we focused on BANCR as a potential therapeutic target for human pancreatic cancer. The BANCR level in pancreatic cancer tissues and cells is affected by m6A methylation. Based on this, the aim of our study was to investigate the effect of a highly potent and selective first-in-class catalytic inhibitor of METTL3 (STM2457) on BANCR m6A methylation and its malignant biological behaviors in pancreatic cancer. The relationship between BANCR expression and BANCR m6A modification was detected with RT-qPCR and MeRIP-PCR. The expression of methyltransferase-like 3 (METTL3), the key enzyme involved in m6A methylation, in pancreatic cancer tissues was detected using a Western blot. STM2457 was used in vitro to investigate its resistance to the proliferation, invasion, and metastasis of pancreatic cancer cells. BANCR was overexpressed in pancreatic cancer tissues and cells, which was associated with poor clinical outcomes and validated in pancreatic cancer cell lines. m6A modification was highly enriched within BANCR and enhanced its expression. Remarkably, STM2457 inhibited the proliferation, invasion, and metastasis of pancreatic cancer cells by down-regulating BANCR m6A modifications. This study demonstrates the promise of BANCR as a new diagnostic and therapeutic target for pancreatic cancer and reveals the therapeutic effect that STM2457 exerts on pancreatic cancer by down-regulating BANCR m6A modifications.

Agarum cribrosum, trifuhalol A, asthma, allergic, ovalbumin, inflammation, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease involving structural changes to the respiratory system and severe immune responses mediated by allergic cytokines and pro-inflammatory mediators. Agarum cribrosum (AC) is a kind of seaweed which contains a phlorotannin, trifuhalol A. To evaluate its anti-allergic inflammatory effect against asthma, an ovalbumin inhalation-induced mouse asthma model was used. Histologic observations proved that trifuhalol A is minimizing the lung and tracheal structure changes as well as the infiltration of eosinophils and mast cells against ovalbumin inhalation challenge. From the serum and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, ovalbumin-specific IgE and Th2-specific cytokines, IL-4, -5, and -13, were reduced with trifuhalol A treatment. In addition, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α concentrations in lung homogenate were also significantly reduced via trifuhalol A treatment. Taken together, trifuhalol A, isolated from AC, was able to protect lung and airways from Th2-specific cytokine release, and IgE mediated allergic inflammation as well as the attenuation of IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α in lung, which results in the suppression of eosinophils and the mast cells involved asthmatic pathology.

long non-coding RNA, MIR4435-2HG, cancer, tumor microenvironment, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

The long non-coding RNA MIR4435-2HG has been confirmed to play a crucial regulatory role in various types of tumors. As a novel type of non-coding RNA, MIR4435-2HG plays a key role in regulating the expression of tumor-related genes, interfering with cellular signaling pathways, and affecting tumor immune evasion. Its unique structure allows it to regulate the expression of various tumor-related genes through different pathways, participating in the regulation of tumor signaling pathways, such as regulating the expression of oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, influencing the biological behaviors of proliferation, metastasis, and apoptosis in tumors. Numerous studies have found a high expression of MIR4435-2HG in various tumor tissues, closely related to the clinical pathological characteristics of tumors, such as staging, lymph node metastasis and prognosis. Some studies have discovered that MIR4435-2HG can regulate the sensitivity of tumor cells to chemotherapy drugs, affecting tumor cell drug resistance. This provides new insights into overcoming tumor drug resistance by regulating MIR4435-2HG. Therefore, studying its molecular mechanisms, expression regulation, and its relationship with the clinical features of tumors is of great significance for revealing the mechanisms of tumor occurrence and developing new therapeutic targets.

galectin-10, gestational diabetes mellitus, pregnancy, Biology (General), and QH301-705.5

Galectins are known to play an important role in immunoregulatory processes and autoimmune diseases. Galectin-10 is a cytoplasmic protein of human eosinophils and is involved in various eosinophilic diseases. Since increased galectin expression is already detected in the placentas of mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), this study focuses on the specific role of galectin-10 and hints at consequences for the diagnosis and therapeutic options of GDM. It is hypothesized that the difference in galectin-10 expression will raise the pathophysiological understanding of gestational diabetes. The study population consists of 80 women: 40 healthy mothers and 40 women suffering from gestational diabetes mellitus. The expression of galectin-10 was analyzed in the syncytiotrophoblast (SCT) and the decidua of the placenta via immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence double staining. The immunoreactivity score (IRS) was used for evaluation. The results in this study were significant for an overexpression of galectin-10 in GDM placentas compared with the control group. The syncytiotrophoblast showed overexpression in the nucleus and the cytoplasm, whereas expression of galectin-10 in the decidua was significant in the cytoplasm only. This study identified the expression changes in galectin-10 in placental tissue between healthy and GDM mothers and intensified the understanding of gestational diabetes. Assuming that gestational diabetes mellitus is involved in inflammatory processes, galectin-10 might play a role in the development and maintenance of GDM. Further investigation is required to strengthen these findings.