A new genus and species of Discozerconidae (Acari: Mesostigmata) from carabid beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in New Zealand .

Berzercon ferdinandi gen. nov., sp. nov. (Acari: Mesostigmata: Discozerconidae) is described from carabid beetles in New Zealand. As in all Discozerconidae, Berzercon has large ventrally-directed opisthogastric suckers. However it is distinctive in its long marginal setae, tripartite gnathotectum, fused palp tibia and tarsus, the female's large dome-shaped genital shield and the male's highly modified hypostomal seta h1. This new species also represents the first Heterozerconina from an insect host. 

A revision of the Heatherellidae (Parasitiformes: Mesostigmata) with a new genus and two new species from Australasia.

The discovery of a new genus of Heatherellidae in New Zealand has led us to revise this enigmatic family and its constituent genera. Aheatherella n. gen., based on A. mira n. sp. from the North Island of New Zealand, lacks some of the derived character states that link the Australian Heatherella, most notably the lack of sexual dimorphism in the dorsal shields and in the presence of peritremes in adult Aheatherella. Heatherella osleri n. sp. is described from New South Wales, extending the distribution of this genus beyond Queensland. New collection records of H. callimaulos and a key to the genera and species of the family are provided. We propose that the Heatherellidae-previously placed in its own cohort outside the Gamasina-are best considered a superfamily of gamasine mites within the subcohort Epicriiae.

Isoflurane's Effect on Protein Conformation as a Proposed Mechanism for Preconditioning.

Persistent alteration of protein conformation due to interaction with isoflurane may be a novel molecular aspect of preconditioning. We preincubated human serum albumin with isoflurane, dialyzed to release agent, and assessed protein conformation. Susceptibility to chemical modification by methylglyoxal and nitrophenylacetate was also examined. Isoflurane had a persistent effect on protein conformation. An increase in the susceptibility of surface residues to chemical modification attended this change in conformation. Modification of isoflurane-treated HSA included intra- and intersubunit cross-linking that may be a consequence of anesthetic-induced changes in multimeric subpopulations. This irreversible effect of isoflurane may represent a mechanism for preconditioning.