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Historical climatic and geological events are largely known to have impacted biome evolution across the Neotropics and their associated rich biodiversity. However, a clear understanding of dispersal and biome shifts between neotropical biomes over time is still lacking for many ecologically important plant clades. We investigated the timing and ancestral species movements within the early branching papilionoid legume Dipterygeae lineage of neotropical tree species, some of which are among the most ecologically dominant across Amazonian rainforests and Brazilian savannas, to understand how dispersal and evolutionary trajectories in biome predilection have led to their modern distribution. We also estimated the evolution of fruit types and discuss their potential roles in the colonization of non-Amazonian rainforest habitats. To address these questions, we used one nuclear (ITS/5.8S) and two plastid (matK and trnL intron) DNA regions of the Dipterygeae clade to estimate divergence times with a Bayesian relaxed-clock approach, ancestral area distribution, and evolutionary shifts in biome and morphological traits. All currently recognized species of this clade were sampled, covering its full geographical range. Dipterygeae originated in the Amazonia during the Middle Eocene, where it has undergone a long history of in situ diversification, particularly over the last 15 Myr. Dispersal events into the rainforests of the Brazilian Coastal Atlantic Forest and Chocó + Central America, the fire-prone savannas of the Cerrado, and the Caatinga seasonally dry tropical forest occurred independently. Most lineages ecologically associated with rainforests are dispersed by animals (zoochory), whereas shifts to open habitats generally coincide with wind dispersal (anemochory). Our study highlights the significance of geological events, climatic factors, and shifts in fruit type as crucial contributors to the diversification of Dipterygeae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molecular phylogenetic studies focused on the early-branching papilionoid legumes have revealed many new clades and supported several generic realignments, yet the monophyly of some of the constituent genera has remained unassessed. This is the case for the Amazonian genus Clathrotropis of the tribe Ormosieae. The genus, as traditionally circumscribed, comprises seven species of trees, including some of the most ecologically hyper dominant taxa across the Amazonian terra firme and seasonally flooded forests. Here we employed a Bayesian analysis of densely sampled nuclear ribosomal ITS/5.8S and plastid matK and trnL intron DNA sequences to evaluate the monophyly of Clathrotropis. All individual and concatenated analyses concurred in showing the non-monophyletic nature of Clathrotropis , whose species fall into three distantly related lineages: one, comprised of C. brachypetala , C. brunnea , C. glaucophylla and the ecologically dominant C. macrocarpa , is circumscribed here as the new genus Cabari ; the two others, comprising C. paradoxa and the widespread C. nitida , are more closely related to Spirotropis of the tribe Ormosieae. Such phylogeny-based dismemberment of Clathrotropis is further supported by vegetative, floral, fruit, and seed characters. Although the genes analysed in this study have provided phylogenetically informative data supporting the need for a new circumscription of Clathrotropis , we suggest that future phylogenomic studies should seek to better resolve the relationships of the newly described genus Cabari across the phylogenetically recalcitrant early-branching nodes of the Genistoid clade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The early-branching clades of Fabaceae subfamily Papilionoideae are characterized by their remarkable lability in floral architecture. In contrast, more derived papilionoid lineages are marked by evolutionary conservatism towards strongly bilateral, papilionate flowers. Here, we show an unexpected example of conservatism of a unique floral architecture during the early diversification history of the papilionoids. We built the most comprehensively sampled molecular phylogenetic tree with a focus on the early-diverging papilionoid Dipterygeae clade to evaluate conservatism of the winged papilionate architecture and associated traits related to flower specialization (e.g. zygomorphy, petal differentiation, stable stamen number and stamen sheath). Dipterygeae comprise c. 22 species of mostly giant trees from across tropical forests in Central America and the Amazon, but they are also ecologically dominant in the savannas of the Brazilian Central Plateau. Phylogenetic analyses of nuclear ribosomal ITS/5.8S and plastid matK and trnL intron sequences strongly supported inter-relationships and the monophyly of each genus (Dipteryx , Monopteryx , Pterodon and Taralea). Bayesian relaxed-clock dating and a Bayesian model of ancestral character estimation revealed c. 30 Myr of conservatism of all winged papilionate-related flower traits in a clade comprising the most recent common ancestor of Dipteryx , Pterodon and Taralea , but lability in fruit morphology during the diversification of the entire Dipterygeae clade. Despite Monopteryx and remaining Dipterygeae being florally discrepant, they are collectively defined by a floral synapomorphy that is unique among all papilionoid Fabaceae: the highly differentiated calyx, where the two upper lobes are enlarged and wing-like, whereas the other three lower lobes are reduced. We suggest that the different dispersal strategies and the ancient winged papilionate floral conservatism in Dipterygeae, which has maintained effective ecological interactions with specialized pollinators and ensured the protection of young flower buds and developing fruits, may explain successful evolutionary and ecological persistence of the clade across the main Neotropical biomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Brazilian Atlantic Forest domain has one of the highest levels of plant species endemism, but the intense historical fragmentation across the coastal Atlantic tropical rain forest has reduced the original vegetation to < 10% and an island-like, patchy landscape. Despite such unprecedented vegetation loss, biogeographically and phylogenetically interesting discoveries in different angiosperm families have been newly reported for the Atlantic Forest in recent years. Here, we show that species discovery in the legume family (Fabaceae) across the Atlantic Forest has counter-intuitively been increasing. Since 1850, more than half of the legume species described for the domain are endemic, and the total number of endemic species has since increased almost four-fold, resulting in the current record of 442 endemic legumes. One such endemic is a new papilionoid legume, only known from a few giant trees that remained misidentified for 70 years since it was first collected. This new species, described here under the name Dipteryx hermetopascoaliana, based on morphological, geographical and molecular evidence, represents the first endemic species to the genus in the Atlantic Forest. We provide a complete morphological description, distribution map, preliminary conservation status and illustration of the new species. The phylogenetic isolation of D. hermetopascoaliana as sister to all other species of the genus and its restricted distribution in a severely fragmented landscape isolated by sugarcane monocultures in north-eastern Brazil are a signature of how critically endangered the biodiversity of the Atlantic Forest is. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spectrum of renal osteodystrophy (ROD) in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients remains to be clarified. Ideal intact parathormone (iPTH) levels range is still not defined. The role of sclerostin, dickkopf‐related protein 1, osteoprotegerin, and receptor activator for nuclear factor κB ligand for the diagnosis of ROD needs to be elucidated. In this cross‐sectional study, tetracycline double‐labeled bone biopsy was performed in 49 patients with histomorphometric analysis according Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) guidelines. All patients were treated with biocompatible PD solutions, with calcium concentration of 1.25 mmol/L. Adynamic bone was the most frequent diagnosed pattern (42.9%) followed by hyperparathyroid‐related bone disease (28.6%). Twenty‐two percent of patients had normal bone. In patients with iPTH within the KDIGO recommended range for dialysis patients, adynamic bone was found in 59% of cases. Median (range) iPTH in patients with adynamic bone was 312 (60–631) pg/mL. Median (range) levels of sclerostin varied from 1511.64 (458.84–6387.70) pg/mL in patients with hyperparathyroid bone disease to 2433.1 (1049.59–11354.52) pg/mL in patients with adynamic bone. Sclerostin/iPTH ratio was the best marker of low turnover disease but iPTH performed best in the diagnosis of high turnover disease. Calcium mass transfer was positive in patients with low bone volume. Adynamic bone is the most frequent ROD pattern in contemporary PD. Our results suggest the need to review the iPTH target range for this population. The sclerostin/iPTH ratio showed improved performance compared to iPTH for the diagnosis of low turnover bone. © 2022 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Disordered mineral and bone metabolism is a common complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Bone biopsy remains the gold standard tool for evaluating renal osteodystrophy (ROD), but it is an invasive procedure. Despite a growing interest in the ability of newer bone biomarkers to discriminate between different forms of ROD, data on pre-dialysis patients are scarce. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in a cohort of 56 patients with CKD Stages 3 and 4. Participants underwent a transiliac bone biopsy after a course of double tetracycline labelling. Circulating levels of Wnt signalling inhibitors sclerostin and Dickkopf-1 (DKK1), soluble receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (sRANKL) and osteoprotegerin were measured and correlated with histomorphometric analysis results. Results Most patients had abnormal bone histology and low-turnover bone disease was the predominant form of ROD. Characteristics associated with high bone turnover were worse renal function, lower serum calcium and higher intact parathyroid hormone and fibroblast growth factor-23 levels. Patients with low bone turnover, on the other hand, presented with higher sclerostin along with lower DKK1 and sRANKL levels. In the multivariable logistic regression analysis, sclerostin and DKK1 levels were independently associated with low-turnover bone disease. Conclusions Our results suggest that circulating levels of Wnt signalling inhibitors sclerostin and DKK1 are predictive of low-turnover bone disease in patients not yet on dialysis. Further research is needed to assess the performance of these bone turnover biomarkers, compared with histomorphometric analysis, in the diagnosis and treatment monitoring of ROD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dipteryx timber has been heavily exploited in South America since 2000s due to the increasing international demand for hardwood. Developing tools for the genetic identification of Dipteryx species and their geographical origin can help to promote legal trading of timber. A collection of 800 individual trees, belonging to 6 different Dipteryx species, was genotyped based on 171 molecular markers. After the exclusion of markers out of Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium or with no polymorphism or low amplification, 83 nuclear, 29 chloroplast, 13 mitochondrial single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and 2 chloroplast and 5 mitochondrial INDELS remained. Six genetic groups were identified using Bayesian Structure analyses of the nuclear SNPs, which corresponded to the different Dipteryx species collected in the field. Seventeen highly informative markers were identified as suitable for species identification and obtained self-assignment success rates to species level of 78–96%. An additional set of 15 molecular markers was selected to determine the different genetic clusters found in Dipteryx odorata and Dipteryx ferrea , obtaining self-assignment success rates of 91–100%. The success to assign samples to the correct country of origin using all or only the informative markers improved when using the nearest neighbor approach (69–92%) compared to the Bayesian approach (33–80%). While nuclear and chloroplast SNPs were more suitable for differentiating the different Dipteryx species, mitochondrial SNPs were ideal for determining the genetic clusters of D. odorata and D. ferrea. These 32 selected SNPs will be invaluable genetic tools for the accurate identification of species and country of origin of Dipteryx timber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Burns are a common cause of pediatric injury and represent significant morbidity and mortality in this age group. In children, most burns are thermal, resulting from exposure to a hot surface, liquid, or fire. Cyanoacrylate is a liquid compound commonly found in households, mainly in "superglue" and nail glue. This compound solidifies through an exothermic reaction that is magnified when in contact with certain fibers that act as catalysts, such as cotton. In these circumstances, intense heat is produced in the contact area, potentially causing severe thermal burns. Despite its widespread availability, there is a paucity of safety information about cyanoacrylate and its role as a cause for burns. In the literature, only 18 cases of cyanoacrylate burns are reported in children. We present two cases of pediatric burns with cyanoacrylate and a review of the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of constraint satisfaction problems (CSPs) definable in various fragments of Datalog has recently gained considerable importance.We consider CSPs that are definable in the smallest natural recursive fragment of Datalog—monadic linear Datalog with at most one EDB (extensional database predicates) per rule, and also in the smallest nonlinear extension of this fragment. We give combinatorial and algebraic characterizations of such problems, in terms of homomorphism dualities and lattice operations, respectively.We then apply our results to study graph H-colouring problems. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We studied the genetic relatedness of 47 Portuguese penicillin-resistant 9V and 23F Streptococcus pneumoniae of clinical origin, using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. PFGE fingerprinting showed that 24 isolates of serotype 9V and 23 isolates of serotype 23F were variants of the Spain(9V)-3 and Spain(23F)-1 clones, respectively. Fingerprinting of pbp1a, pbp2b and pbp2x genes showed that all the penicillin-resistant clones gave similar HinfI restriction patterns. In this study, serotypes 9V and 23F have different clonal origins and identical PBP genotypes, suggesting a horizontal transfer of resistance. Visual and computer-assisted analysis of PFGE patterns correlated well (r = 0.983). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Fish/seafood consumption has health benefits, namely due to its omega-3 fatty acids levels and risks due to methylmercury contamination. This study aims to quantify the health impact of hypothetical scenarios of fish/seafood consumption through a risk-benefit assessment and provide support for recommendations, using Portuguese food consumption data. Methods We used data from the National Food, Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey 2015-2016 (n = 5811) to estimate the mean exposure to methylmercury and EPA+DHA in the current and alternative scenarios. Alternative scenarios were modelled using probabilistic approaches to reflect substitutions from the current consumption in the type of fish/seafood (predatory vs low-mercury species) or its frequency (1-7x/week). The overall scenarios' impact was quantified using Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). Results About 14% of the Portuguese population exceeds the methylmercury tolerable weekly intake, and this prevalence is higher among small children (36.6%). Nevertheless, if the fish/seafood consumption increased to once a day, ≈11450 DALYs could be prevented each year. However, such a scenario would result in higher risk for pregnant women (1398 extra DALYs). Moreover, excluding predatory species consumption resulted in small but significant health gains (-1078 DALYs). Conclusions For the general population, the maximum health gains are obtained by consuming fish/seafood up to 7x/week, but among children and pregnant women, the frequency should be limited to 3-5x/week. All population should preferably choose non-predatory species. Key messages Daily fish consumption results in the highest overall populational health gain, but children and pregnant women need to limit it to 3-5x/week, due to methylmercury exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]