The family structure of the Mucorales: a synoptic revision based on comprehensive multigene-genealogies.

The Mucorales (Mucoromycotina) are one of the most ancient groups of fungi comprising ubiquitous, mostly saprotrophic organisms. The first comprehensive molecular studies 11 yr ago revealed the traditional classification scheme, mainly based on morphology, as highly artificial. Since then only single clades have been investigated in detail but a robust classification of the higher levels based on DNA data has not been published yet. Therefore we provide a classification based on a phylogenetic analysis of four molecular markers including the large and the small subunit of the ribosomal DNA, the partial actin gene and the partial gene for the translation elongation factor 1-alpha. The dataset comprises 201 isolates in 103 species and represents about one half of the currently accepted species in this order. Previous family concepts are reviewed and the family structure inferred from the multilocus phylogeny is introduced and discussed. Main differences between the current classification and preceding concepts affects the existing families Lichtheimiaceae and Cunninghamellaceae, as well as the genera Backusella and Lentamyces which recently obtained the status of families along with the Rhizopodaceae comprising Rhizopus, Sporodiniella and Syzygites. Compensatory base change analyses in the Lichtheimiaceae confirmed the lower level classification of Lichtheimia and Rhizomucor while genera such as Circinella or Syncephalastrum completely lacked compensatory base changes.

ITS1 versus ITS2 as DNA metabarcodes for fungi.

The nuclear ribosomal Internal Transcribed Spacer ITS region is widely used as a DNA metabarcoding marker to characterize the diversity and composition of fungal communities. In amplicon pyrosequencing studies of fungal diversity, one of the spacers ITS1 or ITS2 of the ITS region is normally used. In this methodological study we evaluate the usability of ITS1 vs. ITS2 as a DNA metabarcoding marker for fungi. We analyse three data sets: two comprising ITS1 and ITS2 sequences of known taxonomic affiliations and a third comprising ITS1 and ITS2 environmental amplicon pyrosequencing data. Clustering analyses of sequences with known taxonomy using the bioinformatics pipeline ClustEx revealed that a 97% similarity cut-off represent a reasonable threshold for estimating the number of known species in the data sets for both ITS1 and ITS2. However, no single threshold value worked well for all fungi at the same time within the curated UNITE database, and we found that the Operational Taxonomic Unit (OTU) concept is not easily translated into the level of species because many species are distributed over several clusters. Clustering analyses of the 134 692 ITS1 and ITS2 pyrosequences using a 97% similarity cut-off revealed a high similarity between the two data sets when it comes to taxonomic coverage. Although some groups are under- or unrepresented in the two data sets due to, e.g. primer mismatches, our results indicate that ITS1 and ITS2 to a large extent yield similar results when used as DNA metabarcodes for fungi.

Names are key to the big new biology.

Those who seek answers to big, broad questions about biology, especially questions emphasizing the organism (taxonomy, evolution and ecology), will soon benefit from an emerging names-based infrastructure. It will draw on the almost universal association of organism names with biological information to index and interconnect information distributed across the Internet. The result will be a virtual data commons, expanding as further data are shared, allowing biology to become more of a 'big science'. Informatics devices will exploit this 'big new biology', revitalizing comparative biology with a broad perspective to reveal previously inaccessible trends and discontinuities, so helping us to reveal unfamiliar biological truths. Here, we review the first components of this freely available, participatory and semantic Global Names Architecture.

Heart rate strain in cable hauler choker setters in New Zealand logging operations.

This study examined the physical strain experienced by cable hauler choker setters, and the applicability of heart rate indices for measuring physical strain in commercial forest harvesting operations in New Zealand. The heart rate of four choker setters were recorded continuously throughout the working day and applied to heart rate indices. Based on the relative heart rate at work (%HRR), ratio of working heart rate to resting heart rate and 50% level indices, the mean working heart rate (HRw) of 106 bt. min(-1) +/- 6.9 (mean +/- SD) placed choker setting in the moderate workload category. The specific tasks of line shifts (120.3 +/- 4.8 bt. min(-1)), hooking up drags (118.8 +/- 6.6 bt. min(-1)) and uphill travel (126.1 +/- 12.9 bt. min(-1)), imposed the most severe workloads on the choker setters. This research also demonstrated that heart rate indices could be used as an effective means of determining the physiological strain of subjects working in New Zealand's commercial forest harvesting operations.

Long-term follow-up of bowel management after spinal cord injury.

Although neurogenic bowel is a major sequelae of spinal cord injury (SCI), little is known about long-term outcomes of bowel management. The major purposes of this study were to: 1) describe bowel management programs, 2) determine the prevalence of gastrointestinal (GI) complaints, including evacuation problems and GI symptoms, 3) describe the impact of neurogenic bowel on life activities, 4) describe satisfaction with bowel management and, 5) identify the relationship between outcomes and selected injury characteristics. A telephone survey questionnaire was administered to 171 adults with a mean SCI duration of 8.9 years (SD = 8.9) and mean age of 39.5 years (SD = 14.5). The most common bowel program reported was chemical rectal stimulant (39%). The average dietary fiber intake was 6.8 grams (SD = 4.6). The prevalence of total GI complaints was 90% and 76% during the past year and the past month, respectively. Despite the high prevalence of complaints, overall satisfaction was high. Persons with long-term SCI can benefit from continuing assessment by the rehabilitation team, dietary instruction on fiber needs, and dissemination of information on new methods or treatments. Future research needs include prospective studies to assess change over time and to test interventions to improve outcomes.

Classification of pressure ulcers.

Several systems exist for classifying pressure ulcers, though none of them have been evaluated for interrater reliability. A new grading scale was compared with the commonly used Shea classification. This new scale was developed to provide a more complete description of pressure ulcer healing. The advantages of this scale include a classification of red areas as ulcers to help prevent further deterioration and classification of healed sores to note potential problems. The Yarkony-Kirk scale classifies a red area as a grade 1 ulcer, and involvement of the epidermis and dermis with no subcutaneous fat observed as a grade 2 ulcer. Grade 3 indicates exposed subcutaneous fat with no muscle observed. Exposed muscle without bone involvement is classified as a grade 4 ulcer, and grade 5 describes exposed bone with no joint space involvement. Grade 6 indicates joint space involvement. There is a classification of pressure sore healed to indicate a healed pressure ulcer. Interrater reliability was assessed by two nurses. In spite of an increased number of categories for the Yarkony-Kirk scale, there was no decline in reliability. Reliability was excellent with an interrater correlation of 0.90 for the Yarkony-Kirk scale and 0.86 for the Shea classification when measured for 72 patients. Eighty-five percent of the ratings for the Yarkony-Kirk scale were identical, whereas only 68% were identical for the Shea classification. Three percent of the ratings for the Shea classification were greater than +/- 1 category; 6% of the ratings for the Yarkony-Kirk scale were greater than +/- 1 category. This scale appears to possess good reliability and to describe pressure ulcers more completely. This scale may also be used to teach prevention activities as well as ulcer classification.

Association between risk factors for coronary heart disease in schoolboys and adult mortality rates in the same localities.

Risk factors for coronary heart disease were compared in fifth year boys (15-16 years old) from two schools that were chosen from localities with a fourfold difference in adult mortality from coronary heart disease. One school was in an underprivileged urban locality in the area of increased incidence of heart disease ('high risk') and the other in a semi-rural affluent locality with an incidence of heart disease similar to the national average ('low risk'). Smoking, hypertension, hypercholesterolaemia, obesity, physical fitness, and inactivity were evaluated as risk factors for coronary heart disease. Smoking, increased body fat, poor diet, and physical inactivity were found increased among pupils from the school in the high risk area compared with those in the low risk area. Lipids, maximum oxygen uptake, and hypertension were similar in both schools. The risk of coronary heart disease seems to reflect the adult mortality rates in the area. To reduce the overall incidence of coronary heart disease, health education should be directed towards prevention of smoking, improving diets, and increasing amounts of activity among school children, with special attention directed toward children in regions where there is a high mortality from coronary heart disease among adults.

Rehabilitation of quadriplegic patients with phrenic nerve pacers.

Patients with viable phrenic nerves and adequate diaphragm and lung function can be freed from mechanical ventilation by the use of phrenic nerve pacers. Four quadriplegic patients with phrenic nerve pacers were admitted to a rehabilitation facility between April 1981 and September 1986. These patients made significant gains after undergoing a comprehensive rehabilitation program. They developed skills to maximize their independence, including independent electric wheelchair mobility and independent use of environmental control systems. They were able to communicate verbally by corking their tracheostomies, to write and type by using mouthsticks, and to use computers with mouth-sticks or pneumatic switches. All four patients were discharged to home with a family member as the primary care-provider. Successful discharge can be achieved only by adequate family teaching and counseling, optimal equipment prescription, adequate nursing and other community support for the primary care-provider, and close medical follow-up.