Malignant transformation of tailgut cysts is significantly higher than previously reported: systematic review of cases in the literature.

AIM: The best treatment for tailgut cysts has not been firmly established. We report a systematic review of the cases in the available literature in order to provide an evidence base for treatment. METHOD: A systematic search of articles wholly or partly in English was made of PubMed, Embase and Google Scholar; additional studies were discovered by searching reference lists and contacting authors directly. Search terms 'tailgut cyst', 'tail gut cyst', 'retrorectal hamartoma' and 'retrorectal tumour' were used for case reports or case series; no publication date restrictions were imposed. Only studies with histological confirmation of diagnosis and reporting the age and gender of patients were included. Papers were excluded by consensus between the first two authors. RESULTS: A total of 196 individual cases were analysed in detail including 51 cases of neoplasia. The overall rate of neoplastic transformation was 26.6%. Although the male:female cyst incidence ratio was 1:4, men over 18 had a significantly greater relative risk of neoplasm at 1.94 (P = 0.0055). Radiological evidence of nodular thickening of the cyst wall significantly increased the relative risk of the presence of cancer (P = 0.0023). CONCLUSIONS: Current orthodoxy that these are not dangerous embryological remnants is unfounded and may be false. The available data suggest the risk of malignant transformation is high and will apply to any residual tissue after excision. The same rationale behind total mesorectal excision in rectal cancer applies to tailgut cysts. Consequently they should be resected with similar oncological margins.

High species richness and lineage diversity of reef corals in the mesophotic zone.

Coral reefs are increasingly threatened by thermal bleaching and tropical storm events associated with rising sea surface temperatures. Deeper habitats offer some protection from these impacts and may safeguard reef-coral biodiversity, but their faunas are largely undescribed for the Indo-Pacific. Here, we show high species richness of scleractinian corals in mesophotic habitats (30-125 m) for the northern Great Barrier Reef region that greatly exceeds previous records for mesophotic habitats globally. Overall, 45% of shallow-reef species (less than or equal to 30 m), 78% of genera, and all families extended below 30 m depth, with 13% of species, 41% of genera, and 78% of families extending below 45 m. Maximum depth of occurrence showed a weak relationship to phylogeny, but a strong correlation with maximum latitudinal extent. Species recorded in the mesophotic had a significantly greater than expected probability of also occurring in shaded microhabitats and at higher latitudes, consistent with light as a common limiting factor. The findings suggest an important role for deeper habitats, particularly depths 30-45 m, in preserving evolutionary lineages of Indo-Pacific corals. Deeper reef areas are clearly more diverse than previously acknowledged and therefore deserve full consideration in our efforts to protect the world's coral reef biodiversity.

Phylotranscriptomics confirms Alveopora is sister to Montipora within the family Acroporidae.

The genus Alveopora is a scleractinian coral taxon whose phylogenetic classification has recently changed from the family Poritidae to Acroporidae. This change, which was made based on single-locus genetic data, has led to uncertainty about the placement of Alveopora and the ability for deep evolutionary relationships in these groups to be accurately recovered and represented by limited genetic datasets. We sought to characterize the higher-level position of Alveopora using newly available transcriptome data to confirm its placement within Acroporidae and resolve its closest ancestor. Here we present an analysis of a new 2031 gene dataset that confirms the placement of Alveopora within Acroporidae corroborating other single-locus (COI, 16S and ITS) analyses and a mitogenome dataset. We also resolve the position of Alveopora as sister to the genus Montipora. This has allowed the re-interpretation of morphology, and a rediagnosis of the family Acroporidae and the genus Alveopora.

Circulating tumour cell (CTC) counts as intermediate end points in castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC): a single-centre experience.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of circulating tumour cell (CTC) counts, before and after commencing treatment, with overall survival (OS) in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: A 7.5 ml of blood was collected before and after treatment in 119 patients with CRPC. CTCs were enumerated using the CellSearchSystem. RESULTS: Higher CTC counts associated with baseline characteristics portending aggressive disease. Multivariate analyses indicated that a CTC >or=5 was an independent prognostic factor at all time points evaluated. Patients with baseline CTC >or=5 had shorter OS than those with <5 [median OS 19.5 versus >30 months, hazard ratio (HR) 3.25, P=0.012]; patients with CTC >50 had a poorer OS than those with CTCs 5-50 (median OS 6.3 versus 21.1 months, HR 4.1, P<0.001). Patients whose CTC counts reduced from >or=5 at baseline to <5 following treatment had a better OS compared with those who did not. CTC counts showed a similar, but earlier and independent, ability to time to disease progression to predict OS. CONCLUSION: CTC counts predict OS and provide independent prognostic information to time to disease progression; CTC dynamics following therapy need to be evaluated as an intermediate end point of outcome in randomised phase III trials.

Does the placement of a FRECA gastrostomy at the time of laparoscopic fundoplication impact on outcome?

AIM: To assess the performance of a paediatric cohort having a FRECA PEG (FP) placed at the time of laparoscopic fundoplication. METHODS: This is retrospective study of a single surgeon's experience of laparoscopic fundoplications over a decade. Patient details were retrieved form a Microsoft Excel database and demographic, operative, and performance measures analysed. RESULTS: Of a series of 67 laparoscopic fundoplications, 20 with neurological compromise underwent FP placement at the time of surgery. Mean age was 3.37 years with a male to female ratio of 1.1:1. A size 9 French FRECA was placed in patients less than 10 kg (12) with larger patients (8) having a size 15 device. A Watson anterior wrap was performed in 16 cases with the rest having a Nissen fundoplication. Seven of these cases had pre-existing FPs which were taken down before replacement post fundoplication. Feeding was resumed the next morning except in three with delayed gastric emptying. Other complications (3) were seen but were not PEG related. The median stay for the series was 4 days (SD 3) and patients were followed up for a mean of 684 days. Over this period four patients relapsed and resumed medical treatment. A single mortality occurred in a syndromic 3-year-old a year later from problems unrelated to surgery. FPs were changed to a button device under general anaesthetic 3-24 months following placement. CONCLUSION: FP placement at the time of laparoscopic fundoplication does not appear to compromise the outcome of surgery. Neither the size of patient nor the type of wrap is an impediment to its placement and the device can be used shortly after surgery in the majority allowing for an early discharge. Complications are infrequent; however, change to a button device within 2 years of initial placement requires general anaesthetic.

Comparative analyses of coding and noncoding DNA regions indicate that Acropora (Anthozoa: Scleractina) possesses a similar evolutionary tempo of nuclear vs. mitochondrial genomes as in plants.

Evidence suggests that the mitochondrial (mt)DNA of anthozoans is evolving at a slower tempo than their nuclear DNA; however, parallel surveys of nuclear and mitochondrial variations and calibrated rates of both synonymous and nonsynonymous substitutions across taxa are needed in order to support this scenario. We examined species of the scleractinian coral genus Acropora, including previously unstudied species, for molecular variations in protein-coding genes and noncoding regions of both nuclear and mt genomes. DNA sequences of a calmodulin (CaM)-encoding gene region containing three exons, two introns and a 411-bp mt intergenic spacer (IGS) spanning the cytochrome b (cytb) and NADH 2 genes, were obtained from 49 Acropora species. The molecular evolutionary rates of coding and noncoding regions in nuclear and mt genomes were compared in conjunction with published data, including mt cytochrome b, the control region, and nuclear Pax-C introns. Direct sequencing of the mtIGS revealed an average interspecific variation comparable to that seen in published data for mt cytb. The average interspecific variation of the nuclear genome was two to five times greater than that of the mt genome. Based on the calibration of the closure of Panama Isthmus (3.0 mya) and closure of the Tethy Seaway (12 mya), synonymous substitution rates ranged from 0.367% to 1.467% Ma(-1) for nuclear CaM, which is about 4.8 times faster than those of mt cytb (0.076-0.303% Ma(-1)). This is similar to the findings in plant genomes that the nuclear genome is evolving at least five times faster than those of mitochondrial counterparts.

Correction: Some Rare Indo-Pacific Coral Species Are Probable Hybrids.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0003240.].

An unusual midline swelling--case report of a cutaneous bronchogenic cyst.

Cutaneous bronchogenic cyst remains a very rare cause of a midline swelling in children. The authors report a case of a 14-month-old boy who presented with a sternal sinus and consequent abscess. Histopathological analysis revealed this to be a cutaneous bronchogenic cyst. This is a very rare lesion with only 65 cases reported in the literature. It is caused by an abnormal development in the distal tracheobronchial tree, and diagnosis is confirmed by ciliated and mucin-producing pseudostratified columnar epithelium of respiratory type on histopathological analysis. It is managed by resection of the cyst, as these cysts are often foci for subsequent infections and malignant potential has been reported.

Bikini Atoll coral biodiversity resilience five decades after nuclear testing.

Five decades after a series of nuclear tests began, we provide evidence that 70% of the Bikini Atoll zooxanthellate coral assemblage is resilient to large-scale anthropogenic disturbance. Species composition in 2002 was assessed and compared to that seen prior to nuclear testing. A total of 183 scleractinian coral species was recorded, compared to 126 species recorded in the previous study (excluding synonomies, 148 including synonomies). We found that 42 coral species may be locally extinct at Bikini. Fourteen of these losses may be pseudo-losses due to inconsistent taxonomy between the two studies or insufficient sampling in the second study, however 28 species appear to represent genuine losses. Of these losses, 16 species are obligate lagoonal specialists and 12 have wider habitat compatibility. Twelve species are recorded from Bikini for the first time. We suggest the highly diverse Rongelap Atoll to the east of Bikini may have contributed larval propagules to facilitate the partial resilience of coral biodiversity in the absence of additional anthropogenic threats.

Corrigendum: The Coral Trait Database, a curated database of trait information for coral species from the global oceans.

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1038/sdata.2016.17.

Diverse staghorn corals (Acropora) in high-latitude Eocene assemblages: implications for the evolution of modern diversity patterns of reef corals.

Acropora is the most diverse genus of reef-building corals in the world today. It occurs in all three major oceans; it is restricted to latitudes 31 degrees N-31 degrees S, where most coral reefs occur, and reaches greatest diversity in the central Indo-Pacific. As an exemplar genus, the long-term history of Acropora has implications for the evolution and origins of present day biodiversity patterns of reef corals and for predicting their response to future climate change. Diversification of Acropora was thought to have occurred in the central Indo-Pacific within the previous two million years. We examined Eocene fossils from southern England and northern France and found evidence that precursors of up to nine of 20 currently recognized Acropora species groups existed 49-34 Myr, at palaeolatitudes far higher than current limits, to 51 degrees N. We propose that pre-existing diversity contributed to later rapid speciation in this important functional group of corals.

A unique coral biomineralization pattern has resisted 40 million years of major ocean chemistry change.

Today coral reefs are threatened by changes to seawater conditions associated with rapid anthropogenic global climate change. Yet, since the Cenozoic, these organisms have experienced major fluctuations in atmospheric CO2 levels (from greenhouse conditions of high pCO2 in the Eocene to low pCO2 ice-house conditions in the Oligocene-Miocene) and a dramatically changing ocean Mg/Ca ratio. Here we show that the most diverse, widespread, and abundant reef-building coral genus Acropora (20 morphological groups and 150 living species) has not only survived these environmental changes, but has maintained its distinct skeletal biomineralization pattern for at least 40 My: Well-preserved fossil Acropora skeletons from the Eocene, Oligocene, and Miocene show ultra-structures indistinguishable from those of extant representatives of the genus and their aragonitic skeleton Mg/Ca ratios trace the inferred ocean Mg/Ca ratio precisely since the Eocene. Therefore, among marine biogenic carbonate fossils, well-preserved acroporid skeletons represent material with very high potential for reconstruction of ancient ocean chemistry.

Are coral reefs victims of their own past success?

As one of the most prolific and widespread reef builders, the staghorn coral Acropora holds a disproportionately large role in how coral reefs will respond to accelerating anthropogenic change. We show that although Acropora has a diverse history extended over the past 50 million years, it was not a dominant reef builder until the onset of high-amplitude glacioeustatic sea-level fluctuations 1.8 million years ago. High growth rates and propagation by fragmentation have favored staghorn corals since this time. In contrast, staghorn corals are among the most vulnerable corals to anthropogenic stressors, with marked global loss of abundance worldwide. The continued decline in staghorn coral abundance and the mounting challenges from both local stress and climate change will limit the coral reefs' ability to provide ecosystem services.

The Coral Trait Database, a curated database of trait information for coral species from the global oceans.

Trait-based approaches advance ecological and evolutionary research because traits provide a strong link to an organism's function and fitness. Trait-based research might lead to a deeper understanding of the functions of, and services provided by, ecosystems, thereby improving management, which is vital in the current era of rapid environmental change. Coral reef scientists have long collected trait data for corals; however, these are difficult to access and often under-utilized in addressing large-scale questions. We present the Coral Trait Database initiative that aims to bring together physiological, morphological, ecological, phylogenetic and biogeographic trait information into a single repository. The database houses species- and individual-level data from published field and experimental studies alongside contextual data that provide important framing for analyses. In this data descriptor, we release data for 56 traits for 1547 species, and present a collaborative platform on which other trait data are being actively federated. Our overall goal is for the Coral Trait Database to become an open-source, community-led data clearinghouse that accelerates coral reef research.

Coral reefs. Limited scope for latitudinal extension of reef corals.

An analysis of present-day global depth distributions of reef-building corals and underlying environmental drivers contradicts a commonly held belief that ocean warming will promote tropical coral expansion into temperate latitudes. Using a global data set of a major group of reef corals, we found that corals were confined to shallower depths at higher latitudes (up to 0.6 meters of predicted shallowing per additional degree of latitude). Latitudinal attenuation of the most important driver of this phenomenon-the dose of photosynthetically available radiation over winter-would severely constrain latitudinal coral range extension in response to ocean warming. Latitudinal gradients in species richness for the group also suggest that higher winter irradiance at depth in low latitudes allowed a deep-water fauna that was not viable at higher latitudes.

A diverse assemblage of reef corals thriving in a dynamic intertidal reef setting (Bonaparte Archipelago, Kimberley, Australia).

The susceptibility of reef-building corals to climatic anomalies is well documented and a cause of great concern for the future of coral reefs. Reef corals are normally considered to tolerate only a narrow range of climatic conditions with only a small number of species considered heat-tolerant. Occasionally however, corals can be seen thriving in unusually harsh reef settings and these are cause for some optimism about the future of coral reefs. Here we document for the first time a diverse assemblage of 225 species of hard corals occurring in the intertidal zone of the Bonaparte Archipelago, north western Australia. We compare the environmental conditions at our study site (tidal regime, SST and level of turbidity) with those experienced at four other more typical tropical reef locations with similar levels of diversity. Physical extremes in the Bonaparte Archipelago include tidal oscillations of up to 8 m, long subaerial exposure times (>3.5 hrs), prolonged exposure to high SST and fluctuating turbidity levels. We conclude the timing of low tide in the coolest parts of the day ameliorates the severity of subaerial exposure, and the combination of strong currents and a naturally high sediment regime helps to offset light and heat stress. The low level of anthropogenic impact and proximity to the Indo-west Pacific centre of diversity are likely to further promote resistance and resilience in this community. This assemblage provides an indication of what corals may have existed in other nearshore locations in the past prior to widespread coastal development, eutrophication, coral predator and disease outbreaks and coral bleaching events. Our results call for a re-evaluation of what conditions are optimal for coral survival, and the Bonaparte intertidal community presents an ideal model system for exploring how species resilience is conferred in the absence of confounding factors such as pollution.

A phylogeny of the family Poritidae (Cnidaria, Scleractinia) based on molecular and morphological analyses.

The family Poritidae formerly included 6 genera: Alveopora, Goniopora, Machadoporites, Porites, Poritipora, and Stylaraea. Morphologically, the genera can be differentiated based on the number of tentacles, the number of septa and their arrangement, the length of the polyp column, and the diameter of the corallites. However, the phylogenetic relationships within and between the genera are unknown or contentious. On the one hand, Alveopora has been transferred to the Acroporidae recently because it was shown to be more closely related to this family than to the Poritidae by previous molecular studies. On the other hand, Goniopora is morphologically similar to 2 recently described genera, Machadoporites and Poritipora, particularly with regard to the number of septa (approximately 24), but they have not yet been investigated at the molecular level. In this study, we analyzed 93 samples from all 5 poritid genera and Alveopora using 2 genetic markers (the barcoding region of the mitochondrial COI and the ITS region of the nuclear rDNA) to investigate their phylogenetic relationships and to revise their taxonomy. The reconstructed molecular trees confirmed that Alveopora is genetically distant from all poritid genera but closely related to the family Acroporidae, whereas the other genera are genetically closely related. The molecular trees also revealed that Machadoporites and Poritipora were indistinguishable from Goniopora. However, Goniopora stutchburyi was genetically isolated from the other congeneric species and formed a sister group to Goniopora together with Porites and Stylaraea, thus suggesting that 24 septa could be an ancestral feature in the Poritidae. Based on these data, we move G. stutchburyi into a new genus, Bernardpora gen. nov., whereas Machadoporites and Poritipora are merged with Goniopora.

DNA barcoding reveals the coral "laboratory-rat", Stylophora pistillata encompasses multiple identities.

Stylophora pistillata is a widely used coral "lab-rat" species with highly variable morphology and a broad biogeographic range (Red Sea to western central Pacific). Here we show, by analysing Cytochorme Oxidase I sequences, from 241 samples across this range, that this taxon in fact comprises four deeply divergent clades corresponding to the Pacific-Western Australia, Chagos-Madagascar-South Africa, Gulf of Aden-Zanzibar-Madagascar, and Red Sea-Persian/Arabian Gulf-Kenya. On the basis of the fossil record of Stylophora, these four clades diverged from one another 51.5-29.6 Mya, i.e., long before the closure of the Tethyan connection between the tropical Indo-West Pacific and Atlantic in the early Miocene (16-24 Mya) and should be recognised as four distinct species. These findings have implications for comparative ecological and/or physiological studies carried out using Stylophora pistillata as a model species, and highlight the fact that phenotypic plasticity, thought to be common in scleractinian corals, can mask significant genetic variation.

Molecular evidence shows low species diversity of coral-associated hydroids in Acropora corals.

A novel symbiosis between scleractinians and hydroids (Zanclea spp.) was recently discovered using taxonomic approaches for hydroid species identification. In this study, we address the question whether this is a species-specific symbiosis or a cosmopolitan association between Zanclea and its coral hosts. Three molecular markers, including mitochondrial 16S and nuclear 28S ribosomal genes, and internal transcribed spacer (ITS), were utilized to examine the existence of Zanclea species from 14 Acropora species and 4 other Acroporidae genera including 142 coral samples collected from reefs in Kenting and the Penghu Islands, Taiwan, Togian Island, Indonesia, and Osprey Reef and Orpheus Island on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Molecular phylogenetic analyses of the 16S and 28S genes showed that Acropora-associated Zanclea was monophyletic, but the genus Zanclea was not. Analysis of the ITS, and 16S and 28S genes showed either identical or extremely low genetic diversity (with mean pairwise distances of 0.009 and 0.006 base substitutions per site for the 16S and 28S genes, respectively) among Zanclea spp. collected from diverse Acropora hosts in different geographic locations, suggesting that a cosmopolitan and probably genus-specific association occurs between Zanclea hydroids and their coral hosts.