Unravelling the taxonomic identity of Ophiothela Verrill, 1867 (Ophiuroidea) along the Brazilian coast

Since 2012, when Ophiothela was first described in the Atlantic, there has been no consensus regarding its identification. It has been described as O. mirabilis, O. cf. mirabilis, O. danae, or only Ophiothela sp. In order to fill these gaps, our aim was to test if specimens from Brazil are Ophiothela mirabilis and/or Ophiothela danae. Syntypes from the Museum of Comparative Zoology and United States National Museum, Smithsonian Institution, were used. We examined species boundaries of the small six-rayed brittle star Ophiothela using independent character sets utilizing morphology (external morphology and morphometry) and molecular data (16S and COI). Concordance was found between the analyses indicating that Ophiothela sp. from Brazil (BR), Ophiothela mirabilis and Ophiothela danae are closely related. We suggest that O. danae should be considered as a junior synonym of O. mirabilis. A detailed description of O. mirabilis BR is presented using external morphology and microstructural ossicles (arm plates, vertebra, dental and oral plates). This description includes new diagnostic features, particularly regarding its microstructures: (i) transspondylous articulation (first record in Ophiotrichidae); (ii) eight smooth knobs on the dorsal surface of the vertebrae (to date only in Ophiothela); (iii) vertebrae with distal keel divided into two separate end processes matching the two large dorsal grooves proximally (first time in the literature); and (iv) an opening on both sides of the oral plate (as seen in other fissiparous species Ophiactis savignyi and Ophiocomella ophiactoides).

New rhenopyrgid edrioasteroids (Echinodermata) and their implications for taxonomy, functional morphology, and paleoecology

Rhenopyrgids are rare, turreted edrioasterid edrioasteroids from the lower Paleozoic with a distinctive and apparently conservative morphology. However, new, well-preserved rhenopyrgid edrioasteroid material from Canada, along with a review of described taxa, has revealed broader structural diversity in the oral surface and enabled a re-evaluation of rhenopyrgid functional morphology and paleoecology.The floor plates in Rhenopyrgus viviani n. sp., R. coronaeformis Rievers, 1961 and, R. flos Klug et al., 2008 are well fused to each other and the interradial oral plate and lack obvious sutures, thereby forming a single compound interradial plate. This differs from other rhenopyrgids where sutures are more apparent. Such fused oral surface construction is only otherwise seen in some derived edrioblastoids and in the cyathocystids, suggesting homoplasy.Our analysis further suggests that the suboral constriction could contract but the flexible pyrgate zone could not. Thus, specimens apparently lacking a sub-oral constriction should not necessarily be placed in separate genera within the Rhenopyrgidae. It also supports rhenopyrgids as epifaunal mud-stickers with only the bulbous, textured, entire holdfasts (coriaceous sacs) anchored within the substrate rather than as burrow dwellers or encrusters.Rhenopyrgus viviani n. sp. is described from the Telychian (lower Silurian) Jupiter Formation of Anticosti Island, Québec, Canada and is differentiated by a high degree of morphological variability of pedunculate plates, broader oral plates, and narrower distal ambulacral zones. Specimens lacking or with obscured diagnostic plates from the Ordovician of Montagne Noire, France, and the Ordovician and Silurian of Girvan, Scotland are also described.UUID: http://zoobank.org/7f81d67f-4155-4719-8a45-b278ad70739d

Airway Obstruction Risk in Unique Infant Cleft Phenotype: PSIO Protocol Modification Recommendations

Patients presenting with a unique unilateral cleft phenotype may be at risk of nasal airway obstruction which can be exacerbated by presurgical infant orthopedic (PSIO) appliance therapy and lip taping. Four patients presented to the UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Cleft-Craniofacial Center with a cleft phenotype characterized by: An anteriorly projected greater alveolar segment and medial collapse of the lesser segment posteriorly, leading to cleft alar base displacement posteromedial to the anteriorly projected greater segment. Resultant bilateral nasal airway obstruction: cleft ala drape over the leading edge of the greater segment’s alveolus (cleft side obstruction) and caudal septum displacement secondary to attachments to the orbicularis oris from the noncleft side (noncleft side obstruction). The patient described presented at 3 months old from an outside institution, where PSIO therapy was undertaken. A second opinion was sought due to concern of significant difficulty in breathing and feeding with the PSIO oral plate. Lip-nose adhesion (LNA) was elected and airway obstruction was immediately relieved after this intervention. Lip-nose adhesion releases the tethered cleft side alar base from the pyriform rim of the posteromedially collapsed lesser segment and unites the superior lip and nostril sill—relieving the cleft side nostril obstruction. During the LNA, the caudal septum is surgically released from the anterior nasal spine and is uprighted, relieving the obstructed noncleft nostril. In this cleft anatomy, the treatment alternatives of modification to the PSIO appliance or LNA should be carefully considered in consultation with the surgeon, PSIO provider, and the infant’s caretakers.

Presurgical Nasal Molding With a Nasal Spring in Patients With Mild-to-Moderate Nasal Deformity With Incomplete Unilateral Cleft Lip With or Without Cleft Palate

Objective: Traditional nasoalveolar molding (NAM) requires steep learning curve for clinicians and significant compliance from parents. Nasal springs have been developed by the author to simplify presurgical nasal molding. This article presents the design, construction, and application of the spring. The treatment goal is to improve nasal deformity prior to primary repair in infants born with incomplete unilateral cleft lip with or without cleft palate. Method: The design, fabrication, and utility of the nasal spring are described. The spring has a simpler design and construction compared to a traditional NAM appliance. Participants: Two patients with incomplete unilateral cleft lip with and without cleft palate are presented. Interventions: The spring is constructed and delivered. The active arm of the spring can be 3-dimensionally (3-D) adjusted to mold the alar cartilage of the affected nostril. The spring does not require an oral plate for adherence as a traditional NAM appliance does, hence an oral impression is not needed. The spring is easy for clinicians to adjust. It also requires less compliance by parents. Main Outcome Measures/Results: The presurgical molding achieved by the use of a nasal spring improved surgical nasolabial aesthetic outcomes. Conclusion: The nasal springs are effective in reducing the initial cleft nasal deformity. This facilitates primary surgical cleft lip and nose correction and improves surgical outcomes in patients with incomplete unilateral cleft lip with or without cleft palate.

EVALUASI KOMPLIKASI PLATE EXPOSURE PASCA RESEKSI AMELOBL ASTOMA MANDIBULA DENGAN REKONSTRUKSI PELAT TITANIUM DI RSUP DR. SARDJITO YOGYAKARTA

Resection of the jaw is a primary option of treatment in mandibular ameloblastoma with bone damage. Mandibular resection will cause mandibular stability disturbance due toloss of some part of the bone. Instability of the mandible can cause aesthetic, physiological, and psychological malfunctioning. To restore its stability, installment of mandibular reconstruction plate on the remaining mandibular by using screws. However, it is not uncommon that plate exposure occurs following mandibular reconstruction, caused by inaccurate adaptation of the plates to the mandibular bone. A 3D stereolithography modelcan help provide the best assesment on the bone defect, plan the making of the more easily pre-operative curved plates and provide more accurate faster surgery time. Objective: To evaluate plate exposure after mandibular resection with titanium reconstruction plates in Dr. SardjitoHospital. Case report: A case was reported on mandibular reconstruction after resection of ameloblastoma with titanium plate performed in Dr. Sardjito Hospital that experienced intra-oral plate exposure and oro-cutaneous fistula on the left mandible. The clinical evaluation showed the curved titanium plate did not adapt well with the remaining mandibular bone; therefore, the titanium plate was removed without replacing it with a new plate. Inappropriate adaptationof curved titanium plate is one of the main causes of plate exposure. The use of a 3D stereolithography model is very helpful for the success of mandibular reconstruction.

Generic revision of the Holocystitidae of North America (Diploporita, Echinodermata) based on universal elemental homology

The Holocystites Fauna is an enigmatic group of North American diploporitans that presents a rare window into unusual middle Silurian echinoderm communities. Multiple systematic revisions have subdivided holocystitids on the basis of presumed differences in oral area plating and respiratory structures. However, these differences were based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the homologous elements of the oral area and the taphonomic process; taphonomic disarticulation of the oral area formed the basis for the erection of Pentacystis and Osgoodicystis as separate genera, and Osgoodicystis is interpreted as the junior synonym of Pentacystis. Holocystitids show a conservative peristomial bordering plate pattern that is shared among all described genera. The peristome is bordered by seven interradially positioned oral plates as is typical for oral plate–bearing blastozoans. A second open circlet of facetal plates lies distal to the oral plates; five of these facetal plates bear facets for feeding appendages (lost on the A ambulacrum in some taxa), while two lateral facets (present in all taxa except Pustulocystis) do not. Holocystitid taxa show minor modifications to this basic peristomial bordering plate pattern. As thecal morphologies are highly variable within populations, taxonomic revision of holocystitids is based on modifications of the plating of the oral area.

Morphological diagnosis of the two genetic lineages of Acrocnida brachiata (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea), with description of a new species

The burrowing brittle-star Acrocnida brachiata has so far been regarded as a single, easily identifiable species. Recent studies showed habitat-related differences in maximum size, life span, breeding time and recruitment between intertidal and subtidal populations, which at first were attributed to environmental effects on individuals within the same species. Molecular data, however, strongly suggested the existence of two distinct lineages and ultimately two cryptic species with clear bathymetric segregation. Morphological evidence had so far not been presented, because any differences were interpreted as intraspecific variation. We collected A. brachiata from intertidal and subtidal habitats at the coast of Brittany, France, and examined 15 specimens of each group externally by SEM. A key character of A. brachiata is that the scales at the edge of the disc and on the ventral side are conically enlarged. Intertidal individuals showed a sparser disc scalation, more spine-like than conical ventral disc scales and spatulate, distally widened arm spines. In addition, we dissected several specimens of different size and examined the internal skeleton by SEM. The oral plates showed a rib-like structure on their abradial face that differs between individuals from either habitat. Subtidal specimens have fewer ribs than intertidal ones. These consistent differences support the existence of two species within A. brachiata. To describe the second species, we needed to establish the identity of A. brachiata. We describe a neotype, because no type material has been preserved since it was first described; it corresponds mainly to subtidal samples. The new species is described as Acrocnida spatulispina sp. nov. The taxonomic status of Acrocnida has been debated over the years with reference to its close affinities with Amphiura chiajei. We compared the species of Acrocnida with A. chiajei and Amphiura filiformis and found that Acrocnida is indeed morphologically similar to A. chiajei, among other characters by a similar oral plate structure, whereas A. filiformis differs greatly from Acrocnida as well as A. chiajei. Most strikingly, it has a different type of oral plate. These findings indicate that fundamental taxonomic changes may need to be made in the family Amphiuridae in the future.

Description of the glochidium of Margaritifera auricularia (Spengler 1793) (Bivalvia, Unionoidea)

The glochidium of Margaritifera auricularia is described for the first time by using light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and histological techniques. The larval mantle is formed by only two layers of cells; the inner one being much thicker, with microvilli. All cell masses of the glochidium are temporary aggregations that are the rudiments of organs of the subsequent juveniles which will be released after metamorphosis in the host tissues. In the glochidium there are three main masses of cells: (i) the muscle, which is in an anterior position; (ii) the oral plate in the centre of the larva; and (iii) the more ventrally and posteriorly situated ventral plate, or foot rudiment, flanged with lateral pits all bearing dense cilia. No rudimentary organs such as the pericardium, the kidney, the heart or nerve ganglia have developed. There are no visible hooks in the valve margins, but by using light microscopy we observed minute teeth covered by a rim of the periostracum. Near the margin of the shell there are two pairs of sensory hair tufts only observable by scanning electron microscopy. The glochidium of M. auricularia is the largest of the family Margaritiferidae and intermediate between the glochidium of the known species of this family and those of Unionidae.

A new species of root-lesion nematode (Pratylenchidae: Nematoda) in Canada with a scanning electron microscope study of its head morphology

Pratylenchus sensillatus, a new monosexual species of root-lesion nematode in Canada is described and illustrated. The primary distinguishing characters are a low, rounded, offset head with three annules, a body length of 621 ± 0.39 μm, b value of 7.1–8.3 (7.8 ± 0.32), stylet length of 15–17 (15.6) μm, V value of 77–81 (79), a vulva–anus length 3.9 ± 0.5 times that of the tail length, absence of afunctional spermatotheca, and a subcylindrical tail with a broadly rounded, smooth terminus. Characteristic of the first head annule are wedge-shaped submedian sectors of the oral plate and the first finding of eight cuticular pits identifiable with cephalic and outer labial sensilla.