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Introduction: Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a respiratory immune system disorder characterized by dysregulation of immune responses. Within the context of AR, gut microbiota and its metabolites have been identified as contributors to immune modulation. These microorganisms intricately connect the respiratory and gut immune systems, forming what is commonly referred to as the gut-lung axis. Xiaoqinglong Decoction (XQLD), a traditional Chinese herbal remedy, is widely utilized in traditional Chinese medicine for the clinical treatment of AR. In this study, it is hypothesized that the restoration of symbiotic microbiota balance within the gut-lung axis plays a pivotal role in supporting the superior long-term efficacy of XQLD in AR therapy. Therefore, the primary objective of this research is to investigate the impact of XQLD on the composition and functionality of the gut microbiota in a murine model of AR., Methods: An ovalbumin-sensitized mouse model to simulate AR was utilized, the improvement of AR symptoms after medication was investigated, and high-throughput sequencing was employed to analyze the gut microbiota composition., Results: XQLD exhibited substantial therapeutic effects in AR mice, notably characterized by a significant reduction in allergic inflammatory responses, considerable alleviation of nasal symptoms, and the restoration of normal nasal function. Additionally, following XQLD treatment, the disrupted gut microbiota in AR mice displayed a tendency toward restoration, showing significant differences compared to the Western medicine (loratadine) group., Discussion: This results revealed that XQLD may enhance AR allergic inflammatory responses through the regulation of intestinal microbiota dysbiosis in mice, thus influencing the dynamics of the gut-lung axis. The proposal of this mechanism provides a foundation for future research in this area., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liu, Chen, Yun-Dang, Yan, He, Li, Ruan and Wu.)

Two new species of Antrodia , A. aridula and A. variispora , are described from western China. Phylogeny based on a six-gene dataset (ITS + nLSU + nSSU + mtSSU + TEF1 + RPB2) demonstrates that samples of the two species form two independent lineages within the clade of Antrodia s.s. and are different in morphology from the existing species of Antrodia . Antrodia aridula is characterized by its annual and resupinate basidiocarps with angular to irregular pores of 2-3 mm each and oblong ellipsoid to cylindrical basidiospores measuring 9-12 × 4.2-5.3 μm, growing on gymnosperm wood in a dry environment. Antrodia variispora is characterized by its annual and resupinate basidiocarps with sinuous or dentate pores with a size of 1-1.5 mm each and oblong ellipsoid, fusiform, pyriform, or cylindrical basidiospores measuring 11.5-16 × 4.5-5.5 μm, growing on the wood of Picea . The differences between the new species and morphologically similar species are discussed in this article., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Zhou, Liu, Deng, Liu, Xing, Dai and Wu.)

Megasporoporia sensu lato has recently been intensively studied in China and South America, and four independent clades representing four genera have been recognized phylogenetically. In this study, more samples, mostly from subtropical and tropical Asia, Oceania, and East Africa, are analyzed. A phylogeny based on a 4-gene dataset of sequences (ITS + nLSU + mtSSU + tef ) has confirmed the presence of four genera in Megasporoporia sensu lato: Jorgewrightia, Mariorajchenbergia, Megasporia , and Megasporoporia sensu stricto. Six new species, Jorgewrightia austroasiana, Jorgewrightia irregularis, Jorgewrightia tenuis, Mariorajchenbergia subleucoplaca, Megasporia olivacea , and Megasporia sinuosa , are described based on morphology and phylogenetic analysis. Three new combinations are proposed, viz. Jorgewrightia kirkii, Mariorajchenbergia epitephra , and Mariorajchenbergia leucoplaca . To date, 36 species of Megasporoporia sensu lato are accepted and an identification key to these species is provided. In addition, the identification of Dichomitus amazonicus, Dichomitus cylindrosporus , and Megasporoporia hexagonoides is discussed., Competing Interests: PB was employed by Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Wang, Dai, Liu, Vlasák, Buchanan, Yuan and Wu.)

Phaeolus schweinitzii (Fr.) Pat. was originally described in Europe and is considered a common forest pathogen on conifers in the Northern Hemisphere. Our molecular phylogeny based on samples from China, Europe, and North America confirms that P. schweinitzii is a species complex, including six taxa. P. schweinitzii sensu stricto has a distribution in Eurasia; the samples from Northeast and Southwest China are distantly related to P. schweinitzii sensu stricto, and two new species are described after morphological, phylogenetic, and geographical analyses. The species growing on Larix, Picea , and Pinus in Northeast China is described as Phaeolus asiae-orientalis . Another species mostly occurring on Pinus yunnanensis in Southwest China is Phaeolus yunnanensis . In addition, three taxa distributed in North America differ from P. schweinitzii sensu stricto. Phaeolus tabulaeformis (Berk.) Pat. is in Southeast North America, " P. schweinitzii -1" in Northeast North America, and " P. schweinitzii -2" in western North America., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Yuan, Wu, Wang, Zhou, Qiu, Li, Vlasák, Liu and Dai.)

Phylogenetic analyses inferred from the nuc rDNA ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 (ITS) data set and the combined 2-locus data set [5.8S + nuc 28S rDNA (nLSU)] of taxa of Trechisporales around the world show that Sistotremastrum family forms a monophyletic lineage within Trechisporales. Bayesian evolutionary and divergence time analyses on two data sets of 5.8S and nLSU sequences indicate an ancient divergence of Sistotremastrum family from Hydnodontaceae during the Triassic period (224.25 Mya). Sistotremastrum family is characterized by resupinate and thin basidiomata, smooth, verruculose, or odontoid-semiporoid hymenophore, a monomitic hyphal structure, and generative hyphae bearing clamp connections, the presence of cystidia and hyphidia in some species, thin-walled, smooth, inamyloid, and acyanophilous basidiospores. In addition, four new species, namely, Trechispora dentata , Trechispora dimitiella , Trechispora fragilis , and Trechispora laevispora , are described and illustrated. In addition, three new combinations, namely, Brevicellicium daweishanense , Brevicellicium xanthum , and Sertulicium limonadense , are also proposed., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Liu, Wu, Zhao, Lian, Wang, Wang, Mao and Yuan.)

In the present study, a new species of the genus Moniliformis species is described taxonomically in the mitochondrial genomic context. The parasite was found in a plateau zokor captured in a high-altitude area of Xiahe County of Gansu Province, China. The mitochondrial ( mt ) genome length of this new species was 14,066 bp comprising 36 genes and 2 additional non-coding regions (SNR and LNR), without atp 8. The molecular phylogeny inferred by the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene ( cox 1) and the18S ribosomal RNA gene (18S rDNA) sequences showed that the parasite as a sister species to other Moniliformis spp. and was named Moniliformis sp. XH-2020. The phylogeny of the concatenated amino acid sequences of the 12 protein-coding genes (PCGs) showed Moniliformis sp. XH-2020 in the same cluster as Macracanthorhynchus hirudinaceus and Oncicola luehe i confirming the cox 1 and 18S rDNA phylogenetic inference. In addition, the entire mt genome sequenced in this study represents the first in the order Moniliformida, providing molecular material for further study of the phylogeny of the class Archiacanthocephala. Moreover, the species of this class, use arthropods as intermediate hosts and mammals as definitive hosts and are agents of acanthocephaliasis, a zoonosis in humans. Therefore, this study not only expands the host range among potential wild animal hosts for Archiacanthocephalans which is of great ecological and evolutionary significance but also has important significance for the research of zoonotic parasitic diseases., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Dai, Yan, Li, Zhang, Liu, Gao, Ohiolei, Wu, Guo, Fu and Jia.)

The Cyclophyllidea comprises the most species-rich order of tapeworms (Platyhelminthes, Cestoda) and includes species with some of the most severe health impact on wildlife, livestock, and humans. We collected seven Cyclophyllidea specimens from rodents in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) and its surrounding mountain systems, of which four specimens in QTP were unsequenced, representing "putative new species." Their complete mitochondrial ( mt ) genomes were sequenced and annotated. Phylogenetic reconstruction of partial 28S rDNA, cox 1 and nad 1 datasets provided high bootstrap frequency support for the categorization of three "putative new species," assigning each, respectively, to the genera Mesocestoides , Paranoplocephala , and Mosgovoyia , and revealing that some species and families in these three datasets, which contain 291 species from nine families, may require taxonomic revision. The partial 18S rDNA phylogeny of 29 species from Taeniidae provided high bootstrap frequency support for the categorization of the "putative new species" in the genus Hydatigera . Combined with the current investigation, the other three known Taeniidae species found in this study were Taenia caixuepengi , T. crassiceps , and Versteria mustelae and may be widely distributed in western China. Estimates of divergence time based on cox 1 + nad 1 fragment and mt protein-coding genes (PCGs) showed that the differentiation rate of Cyclophyllidea species was strongly associated with the rate of change in the biogeographic scenarios, likely caused by the uplift of the QTP; i.e., species differentiation of Cyclophyllidea might be driven by host-parasite co-evolution caused by the uplift of QTP. We propose an "out of QTP" hypothesis for the radiation of these cyclophyllidean tapeworms., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Wu, Dai, Li, Littlewood, Ohiolei, Zhang, Guo, Wu, Ni, Shumuye, Li, Zhang, Fu, Fu, Yan and Jia.)

The larva of Taeniidae species can infect a wide range of mammals, causing major public health and food safety hazards worldwide. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP), a biodiversity hotspot, is home to many species of rodents, which act as the critical intermediate hosts of many Taeniidae species. In this study, we identified two new larvae of Taenia spp., named T. caixuepengi and T. tianguangfui , collected from the plateau pika ( Ochotona curzoniae ) and the Qinghai vole ( Neodon fuscus ), respectively, in QTP, and their mitochondrial genomes were sequenced and annotated. Phylogenetic trees based on the mitochondrial genome showed that T. caixuepengi has the closest genetic relationship with T. pisiformis , while T. tianguangfui was contained in a monophyletic group with T. crassiceps , T. twitchelli , and T. martis . Biogeographic scenarios analysis based on split time speculated that the speciation of T. caixuepengi (∼5.49 Mya) is due to host switching caused by the evolution of its intermediate host. Although the reason for T. tianguangfui (∼13.11 Mya) speciation is not clear, the analysis suggests that it should be infective to a variety of other rodents following the evolutionary divergence time of its intermediate host and the range of intermediate hosts of its genetically close species. This study confirms the species diversity of Taeniidae in the QTP, and speculates that the uplift of the QTP has not only a profound impact on the biodiversity of plants and animals, but also that of parasites., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Wu, Li, Fan, Ni, Ohiolei, Li, Li, Zhang, Fu, Yan and Jia.)