The mitochondrial genome of Chelonus formosanus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) with novel gene orders and phylogenetic implications.

Chelonus formosanus Sonan is an important egg-larval parasitoid of noctuid moths and a potential candidate for understanding interactions between host and parasitoid mediated by polydnavirues (PDVs). We sequenced and annotated the mitochondrial genome of C. formosanus, which is 15,466 bp in length and possesses 38 mitochondrial genes. However, unlike most animal mitochondrial genomes, it contains one extra trnF gene. There are five transfer RNA (tRNA) rearrangement events compared with the ancestral gene order, which is a novel rearrangement type in Hymenoptera for all published mitogenomes so far. Phylogenetic trees supported C. formosanus from the subfamily Cheloninae was closely related to the subfamily Cardiochilinae and Microgastrinae.

Comparison of ovarian preservation versus oophorectomy on fertility outcomes in patients with endometriosis post-laparoscopic surgery: A prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory condition affecting a significant proportion of women of reproductive age. Although laparoscopic surgery is commonly the preferred treatment, the decision to preserve or remove the ovaries remains controversial. Previous studies have yielded inconsistent results regarding the impact of ovarian preservation vs oophorectomy on fertility outcomes and disease recurrence. This prospective study aimed to address this knowledge gap by comparing the effects of these surgical approaches on spontaneous pregnancy rates, time to pregnancy, recurrence rates, and postoperative pain in patients with endometriosis. AIM: To compare the reproductive outcomes and recurrence rates between ovarian preservation and oophorectomy in women undergoing laparoscopic surgery for endometriosis. METHODS: This study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital between January 2019 and December 2023. A total of 312 women aged 18 to 40 years, diagnosed with endometriosis and undergoing laparoscopic surgery, were included. The patients were categorized into the ovarian preservation group (n = 204) and the oophorectomy group (n = 108). The primary outcome measure was the achievement of spontaneous pregnancy within 24 months post-surgery. Secondary outcomes included time to spontaneous pregnancy, recurrence rates, and postoperative pain scores. RESULTS: The ovarian preservation group exhibited a significantly higher spontaneous pregnancy rate than that in the oophorectomy group (43.6% vs 28.7%, P = 0.006). Moreover, the median time to spontaneous pregnancy was shorter in the ovarian preservation group (8.2 months vs 11.4 months, P = 0.018). Nonetheless, endometriosis recurrence was more prevalent in the ovarian preservation group (22.1% vs 11.1%, P = 0.014). The postoperative pain scores demonstrated similar improvements in both groups, with no significant differences observed. Subgroup analyses indicated that the benefit of ovarian preservation on spontaneous pregnancy rates was more evident among younger women (≤ 35 years) and those with advanced-stage endometriosis. CONCLUSION: Ovarian preservation is associated with a high spontaneous pregnancy rate and a short time to pregnancy. However, because of the increased risk of recurrence, the decision should be based on age, fertility aspirations, and disease severity.

A review of the subgenera Carinichelonus, Microchelonus, Parachelonus and Stylochelonus of the genus Chelonus Panzer (Braconidae: Cheloninae) with descriptions of twenty-one new species from China.

Three subgenera Microchelonus Szpligeti, 1908 s. str., Parachelonus Tobias, 1995 and Stylochelonus Helln, 1958 are newly recorded from China, 21 new species, viz., C. (M.) adiazetos sp. nov., C. (M.) aequus sp. nov., C. (M.) brachykeraiatus sp. nov., C. (M.) bullatus sp. nov., C. (M.) clivus sp. nov., C. (M.) crassitibialis sp. nov., C. (M.) cyclotus sp. nov., C. (M.) erugatus sp. nov., C. (M.) illatus sp. nov., C. (M.) leious sp. nov., C. (M.) linzhiensis sp. nov., C. (M.) maculovittatus sp. nov., C. (M.) melanochromus sp. nov., C. (M.) platyetrus sp. nov., C. (M.) recavus sp. nov., C. (M.) ruficorpus sp. nov., C. (M.) scirpophagae sp. nov., C. (M.) staurorhytis sp. nov., C. (P.) hirsutus sp. nov., C. (S.) acaretrus sp. nov., and C. (S.) punctulosus sp. nov. are described and illustrated. Also, eleven species are reported as new to China: C. (M.) alticinctus (Tobias, 1989), C. (M.) alveatus (Tobias, 1989), C. (M.) calcaratus (Tobias, 1989), C. (M.) flagellaris (Tobias, 1989), C. (M.) insidiatrix (Tobias, 1989), C. (M.) milkoi (Tobias, 2003), C. (M.) moskovitus (Tobias, 1997), C. (M.) semilunaris (Tobias, 2000), C. (M.) temporalis (Tobias, 1986), C. (M.) varus (Tobias, 2000) and C. (M.) zaitzevi (Tobias, 1972). Four new combinations are proposed: C. (P.) compressor (Chen & Ji, 2003) comb. nov., C. (P.) macrocorpus (Ji & Chen, 2003) comb. nov., C. (P.) polycolor (Chen & Ji, 2003) comb. nov. and C. (Baculonus) rubriventris (Tobias, 1988) comb. nov. The following new names are proposed: C. (M.) jiae nom. nov. for C. (M.) bimaculatus (Chen & Ji, 2003) and C. (M.) substernatus nom. nov. for C. (M.) tobiasi (Yuldashev, 2011). Microchelonus (Carinichelonus) cavifrons Tobias, 2000 is synonymized with C. (Ca.) tabonus Sonan, 1932. A key to the Chinese species of the subgenus Microchelonus is provided together with keys to the currently known species of the subgenera Carinichelonus, Stylochelonus and Parachelonus.

Review of the subgenus Chelonus of the genus Chelonus Panzer (Braconidae: Cheloninae) with description of twenty-one new species from China.

The subgenus Chelonus Panzer, 1806 of genus Chelonus Panzer, 1806 is revised for China and 73 (of which 31 are illustrated) species are recognized. Twenty-one new species, namely, C. (C.) akinakes sp. nov., C. (C.) ameterion sp. nov., C. (C.) angustivertex sp. nov., C. (C.) apicoretusus sp. nov., C. (C.) argoskeles sp. nov., C. (C.) aspros sp. nov., C. (C.) bouommatus sp. nov., C. (C.) brochus sp. nov., C. (C.) columnatus sp. nov., C. (C.) ferrugineus sp. nov., C. (C.) gilvus sp. nov., C. (C.) glomerosus sp. nov., C. (C.) hadrosetron sp. nov., C. (C.) longipectus sp. nov., C. (C.) notochinensis sp. nov., C. (C.) pedinos sp. nov., C. (C.) perspicillatus sp. nov., C. (C.) tanyaisthema sp. nov., C. (C.) transversus sp. nov., C. (C.) truncatus sp. nov. and C. (C.) wuyiensis sp. nov., are described and illustrated. Nine species are recorded from China for the first time, i.e., C. (C.) breviventris Thomson, 1874, C. (C.) capsa Tobias, 1972, C. (C.) cesa Kocak & Kemal, 2013, C. (C.) dauricus Telenga, 1941, C. (C.) fumarius Tobias, 2000, C. (C.) pannonicus Szpligeti, 1896, C. (C.) praepusillus Tobias, 2000, C. (C.) subseticornis Tobias, 1971 and C. (C.) wullii Kittel, 2016. A key to the Chinese species of the subgenus Chelonus Panzer, 1806 is provided.

A review of the subgenera Arichelonus, Megachelonus and Scabrichelonus of the genus Chelonus Panzer (Braconidae: Cheloninae) with description of five new species from China.

The subgenus Arichelonus Viereck, 1913 of genus Chelonus Panzer, 1806 is newly recorded from China and five new species belonging to three different subgenera are described and illustrated from China, i.e., Chelonus (Arichelonus) allokotosus sp. nov., Chelonus (Arichelonus) kenosetrus sp. nov., Chelonus (Megachelonus) irilaminatus sp. nov., Chelonus (Megachelonus) macrodontus sp. nov., and Chelonus (Scabrichelonus) nigrifemoratus sp. nov. Keys to the currently known species of the subgenera Arichelonus, Megachelonus and Scabrichelonus are provided.

A new subgenus of Chelonus Panzer, 1806 (Braconidae: Cheloninae) from China.

A new subgenus of the genus Chelonus Panzer, 1806 (Braconidae: Cheloninae), Mirachelonus subgen. nov. (type species: Chelonus (Mirachelonus) miraventris sp. nov.) with deeply incurved apex of carapace, is described and illustrated from southwest China. A key to the subgenera currently recognized in Chelonus is included to facilitate future identifications.