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A checklist of the grasses of India is presented, as compiled from survey of all available literature. Of the twelve subfamilies of grasses, ten are represented in India. Most subfamilies have been examined by taxonomic experts for up-to-date nomenclature. The list includes 1506 species plus infraspecific taxa and presents information on types, synonyms, distribution within India, and habit. Twelve new combinations are made, viz.Arctopoa tibetica(Munro ex Stapf) Prob. var.aristulata(Stapf) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Chimonocalamus nagalandianus(H.B. Naithani) L.G. Clark,comb. nov.;Chionachne digitata(L.f.) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Chionachne wallichiana(Nees) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Dinebra polystachyos (R. Br.) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Moorochloa eruciformis(Sm.) Veldkamp var.divaricata(Basappa & Muniv.) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Phyllostachys nigra(Lodd. ex Lindl.) Munro var.puberula(Miq.) Kailash,comb. & stat. nov.;Tzveleviochloa schmidii(Hook. f.) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Urochloa lata(Schumach.) C.E. Hubb. var.pubescens(C.E. Hubb.) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Urochloa ramosa(L.) T.Q. Nguyen var.pubescens(Basappa & Muniy.) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.;Urochloa semiundulata(Hochst. ex A. Rich.) Ashalatha & V.J. Nair var.intermedia(Basappa & Muniy.) E.A. Kellogg,comb. nov.

The network of interferometric gravitational-wave observatories has successfully detected tens of astrophysical signals since 2015. In this paper, we experimentally investigate compact sensors that have the potential to improve the sensitivity of gravitational-wave detectors to intermediate-mass black holes. We use only commercial components, such as sensing heads and lasers, to assemble the setup and demonstrate its subpicometer precision. The setup consists of a pair of Michelson interferferometers that use deep frequency modulation techniques to obtain a linear, relative displacement readout over multiple interference fringes. We implement a laser-frequency stabilisation scheme to achieve a sensitivity of 0.3\,$\text{pm} / \sqrt{\text{Hz}}$ above 0.1\,Hz. The device has also the potential to improve other experiments, such as torsion balances and commercial seismometers., Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures

As a part of ongoing systematic and phylogenetic studies in Polygalaceae, field collections of two pairs of North American species (Polygala balduinii and P. ramosa, and P. lutea and P. rugelii) had morphologically intermediate forms and grew sympatrically, and so were suspected to be interspecific hybrids. Although hybrids among plants are often invoked in taxonomic and floristic literature based on morphologic intermediacy, they are rarely documented and substantiated using molecular tools. We found that the morphologically intermediate individuals within intermixed populations of both species pairs did indeed share all of the variable nucleotide sites in nrITS among the parent species. Likewise, using plastid sequence data (trnL-F), we determined that in both species pairs, the parentage was bidirectional. Although some DNA inheritance phenomena (e.g. incomplete lineage sorting) can result in similar polymorphic DNA sequence data, the intermediacy in both morphology and sequence data within sympatric populations is more indicative of interspecific hybridization.

Summary Recent availability of biodiversity data resources has enabled an unprecedented ability to estimate phylogenetically based biodiversity metrics over broad scales. Such approaches elucidate ecological and evolutionary processes yielding a biota and help guide conservation efforts. However, the choice of appropriate phylogenetic resources and underlying input data uncertainties may affect interpretation. Here, we address how differences among phylogenetic source trees and levels of phylogenetic uncertainty affect these metrics and test existing hypotheses regarding geographic biodiversity patterns across the diverse vascular plant flora of Florida, US. Ecological niche models for 1,490 Florida species were combined with a “purpose-built” phylogenetic tree (phylogram and chronogram), as well as with trees derived from community resources (Phylomatic and Open Tree of Life). There were only modest differences in phylodiversity metrics given the phylogenetic source tree and taking into account the level of phylogenetic uncertainty; we identify similar areas of conservation interest across Florida regardless of the method used., Graphical Abstract, Highlights • Phylodiversity patterns of Florida show peaks of diversity in Northern peninsular areas • Different input trees and uncertainty had modest or little influence on phylodiversity • Chronogram or phylogram had a significant effect on the interpretation of phylodiversity • We highlight areas of high phylodiversity and how these results affect conservation, Spatial Phylogenetics; Plant Biology; Biogeography

The detectors of the laser interferometer gravitational-wave observatory (LIGO) are broadly limited by the quantum noise and rely on the injection of squeezed states of light to achieve their full sensitivity. Squeezing improvement is limited by mode mismatch between the elements of the squeezer and the interferometer. In the current LIGO detectors, there is no way to actively mitigate this mode mismatch. This paper presents a new deformable mirror for wavefront control that meets the active mode matching requirements of advanced LIGO. The active element is a piezo-electric transducer, which actuates on the radius of curvature of a 5 mm thick mirror via an axisymmetric flexure. The operating range of the deformable mirror is 120±8 mD in vacuum and an additional 200 mD adjustment range accessible out of vacuum. Combining the operating range and the adjustable static offset, it is possible to deform a flat mirror from −65 mD to −385 mD. The measured bandwidth of the actuator and driver electronics is 6.8 Hz. The scattering into higher-order modes is measured to be

Premise of the study Phylogenomic studies employing large numbers of genes, including those based on plastid genomes (plastomes), are becoming common. Nonphotosynthetic plants such as mycoheterotrophs (which rely on root-associated fungi for essential nutrients, including carbon) tend to have highly elevated rates of plastome evolution, substantial genome reduction, or both. Mycoheterotroph plastomes therefore provide excellent test cases for investigating how extreme conditions impact phylogenomic inference. Methods We used parsimony and likelihood analysis of protein-coding gene sets from published and newly completed plastomes to infer the phylogenetic placement of taxa from the 10 angiosperm families in which mycoheterotrophy evolved. Key results Despite multiple very long branches that reflect elevated substitution rates, and frequently patchy gene recovery due to genome reduction, inferred phylogenetic placements of most mycoheterotrophic lineages in DNA-based likelihood analyses are both well supported and congruent with other studies. Amino-acid-based likelihood placements are broadly consistent with DNA-based inferences, but extremely rate-elevated taxa can have unexpected placements-albeit with weak support. In contrast, parsimony analysis is strongly misled by long-branch attraction among many distantly related mycoheterotrophic monocots. Conclusions Mycoheterotrophic plastomes provide challenging cases for phylogenomic inference, as substitutional rates can be elevated and genome reduction can lead to sparse gene recovery. Nonetheless, diverse likelihood frameworks provide generally well-supported and mutually concordant phylogenetic placements of mycoheterotrophs, consistent with recent phylogenetic studies and angiosperm-wide classifications. Previous predictions of parallel photosynthesis loss within families are supported for Burmanniaceae, Ericaceae, Gentianaceae, and Orchidaceae. Burmanniaceae and Thismiaceae should not be combined as a single family in Dioscoreales.

Caamembeca (Polygalaceae) is a genus of 13 species endemic to South America. The genus is morphologically distinctive, e.g. supported by the putative morphologic synapomorphy of paired glands in a stipular position and on the rachis. However, its monophyly has not been robustly tested as only four species have been included in previous phylogenetic analyses. We present a phylogenetic analysis of 11 species based on nrITS, matK, the trnL intron, and trnL-trnF intergenic spacer. Relationships among Caamembeca species are discussed, and three new combinations are made, Caamembeca amazonensis, Caamembeca autranii, and Caamembeca formosa, providing an improved understanding of the genus.

Three enigmatic lineages of the Polygalaceae endemic to the semi-arid region of Argentina were sampled within the framework of a molecular phylogenetic study of its genera. The regions nrITS, matK, the trnL intron, the trnL-trnF intergenic spacer, and rbcL were analyzed, and the history of some morphological characters was reconstructed in the family. Results of our phylogenetic analyses and morphological study support the recognition of three monotypic genera historically treated in the genera Bredemeyera and Polygala. A new genus, Rhamphopetalum, and a new combination, R. microphyllum, are proposed together with resurrection of Hualania and Monrosia. The emergence of two species (Bredemeyera colletioides, B. microphylla) as new genera resolves the polyphyletic status of Bredemeyera. Relationships and morphological characters among the genera of Polygalaceae are discussed. Provided here are photographic plates of Hualania colletioides, Monrosia pterolopha, and Rhamphopetalum microphyllum habits, with details of floral structures, a distribution map, typifications, and taxonomic keys for the tribes of Polygalaceae and genera within the tribe Polygaleae. Fil: Mota, Michelle. Universidade Federal Da Santa Catarina. Centro de Ciencias Biológicas.; Brasil Fil: Abbott, J. Richard. The University Of Arkansas At Monticello; Estados Unidos Fil: Salas, Roberto Manuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales y Agrimensura; Argentina Fil: Neubig, Kurt M.. Southern Illinois University Carbondale; Estados Unidos Fil: Barea Pastore, José Floriano. Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina; Brasil

Gait problems can arise from a number of different causes ranging from primary neurological to locomotor conditions. Prevalence increases with age, and causation is often multifactorial. Falls are a frequent consequence. This chapter covers the diagnosis of gait disorders and therapies.

The pantropical flowering plant family Annonaceae is the most species-rich family of Magnoliales. Despite long-standing interest in the systematics of Annonaceae, no authoritative classification has yet been published in the light of recent molecular phylogenetic analyses. Here, using the largest, most representative, molecular dataset compiled on Annonaceae to date, we present, for the first time, a robust family-wide phylogenetic tree and subsequent classification. We used a supermatrix of up to eight plastid markers sequenced from 193 ingroup and seven outgroup species. Some of the relationships at lower taxonomic levels are poorly resolved, but deeper nodes generally receive high support. Annonaceae comprises four major clades, which are here given the taxonomic rank of subfamily. The description of Annonoideae is amended, and three new subfamilies are described: Anaxagoreoideae, Ambavioideae and Malmeoideae. In Annonoideae, seven tribes are recognized, one of which, Duguetieae, is described as new. In Malmeoideae, seven tribes are recognized, six of which are newly described: Dendrokingstonieae, Fenerivieae, Maasieae, Malmeeae, Monocarpieae and Piptostigmateae. This new subfamilial and tribal classification is discussed against the background of previous classifications and characters to recognize subfamilies are reviewed. © 2012 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, 169, 5–40.

RATIONALE A two-layered polymeric membrane is employed for the formation of separated dried plasma spots from whole blood as an alternative to the direct analysis of whole dried blood spots (DBS). This dried plasma spot (DPS) analysis procedure precludes potential issues of hematocrit differences in whole blood samples while providing pharmokinetic data from plasma rather than whole blood. The described procedure is also semi-automated thus providing a simpler work flow for LC/MS/MS bioanalysis procedures. METHODS Molecular filtration of red blood cells (RBC) from applied microsamples of whole blood fortified with guanfacine and its stable isotope internal standard was accomplished with a two-layer polymeric membrane substrate. The lower membrane surface containing the separated plasma spot was physically separated from the upper membrane followed by semi-automated direct elution of the sample to an online solid-phase extraction (SPE) cartridge followed by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). RESULTS A two-layer membrane sample preparation substrate produced plasma from whole blood without centrifugation which could be directly eluted for semi-automated LC/MS/MS bioanalysis. Standard curves were constructed by plotting peak area ratios between the analyte and the stable isotope labeled internal standard (SIL-IS) versus the nominal concentration in whole blood. A weighted 1/x2 linear regression was applied to the data from DPS samples. Standard curves were linear over the range 0.25–250 ng/mL human whole blood. The representative regression equation was y = 0.0142x + 0.00248 (R2 = 0.995) for the described DPS assay. CONCLUSIONS The described work demonstrates proof-of-principle using membrane sample preparation techniques to form DPS samples from whole blood for subsequent bioanalysis by LC/MS/MS. This approach has the potential to eliminate the hematocrit issues from the current controversy surrounding validation of DBS assays. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The 4th Open Symposium of the European Bioanalytical Forum entitled ‘Less is More’ was held on 16–18 November 2011 at the Hesperia Tower Hotel, Barcelona, Spain. More than 50 interesting presentations were delivered covering areas with interest for the small- and large-molecule community – biomarker validation; regulations, including an update on new and emerging guidelines and on Global harmonization; technology updates; incurred sample stability; microdosing; dried blood spots and microsampling; challenges of ‘free’ and ‘total’ macromolecule quantification; stability issues in ligand binding assays or anomalous results. In excess of 450 delegates from more than 170 institutes and companies (industry, regulators and academia) from all global regions participated in the open and stimulating discussions. This manuscript provides an overview of the highlights discussed at the meeting.

Wild grapes are woody climbers, found mostly in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere, comprising the genus Vitis. Despite its importance, the evolutionary history of Vitis is still contentious. Past studies have led to conflicting hypotheses about the phylogeny, speciation events, and biogeographic history of the genus. Here we investigate the evolutionary history of Vitis using data from four chloroplast spacers (trnH-psbA, trnK-rps16, trnF-nahJ, and rp132-trnL) and the nuclear gene RPB2-I, and we explore mechanisms that could have shaped the observed distribution of current species. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian analyses provided similar results, strongly supporting the presence of two subgenera and suggesting a species clustering within subgenus Vitis that mainly mirrors the disjunction between the Old and New World. Vitis vinifera subsp. syivestris was found to be sister to the Asian species while three major clades were found in the American species. A network approach confirmed the main geographic groups and highlighted different chloroplast haplotype patterns between Asian and American species. Molecular dating analysis provided the time boundaries to discuss our results. Our study shows wild grape diversification to be a continuous and complex process that concerned the Tertiary as well as the Quaternary, most likely involving both geographical and climatic forces. Local variations in extent and timing of these forces were discussed based on observed differences between groups. In the context of the Tertiary-Quaternary debate, we provide evidence in favor of the "continuous hypothesis" to explain present diversity. Finally, two directions for future research are highlighted: (i) was the earliest grape American or Asian? and (ii) are all modern grape species real? (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Background: Dried blood spot (DBS) technology was evaluated for the quantitative determination of guanfacine in human blood in clinical studies. A very sensitive DBS assay has been developed using HPLC coupled with an AB Sciex 5500 QTRAP® (Applied Biosystems/MDS Sciex, ON, Canada) MS system (LC–MS/MS) with a linear calibration range of 0.05 to 25 ng/ml. High-resolution MS using an Exactive Orbitrap® (ThermoFisher, LLC., CA, USA) was compared with the QTRAP using extracted exact mass ion current profiles for guanfacine and its stable-isotope-incorporated internal standard. The sample preparation employed liquid–liquid extraction with methyl t-butyl ether of 5 mm punched DBS card disks, followed by reversed-phase HPLC separation coupled with either MS/MS or high-resolution MS. Routine experiments were performed to establish the robustness of the DBS assay, including precision, accuracy, linearity, selectivity, sensitivity and long-term stability of up to 76 days. In addition, several factors that potentially affect quantitation were investigated, including blood volume for DBS spotting, punch size and punch location. Results: A sensitive research assay with a LLOQ of 0.05 ng/ml was developed and subjected to several components of a method validation common to a regulated bioanalysis procedure employing DBS. This method development and partial validation study determined that spot volume, punch size or punch location do not affect assay accuracy and precision. The DBS approach was successfully applied to a clinical study (a Phase I, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study to assess the effect of varying multiple oral doses of guanfacine on the pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, safety, and tolerability profiles in healthy adult subjects). The pharmacokinetic profiles for 12 volunteers generated from the DBS assay and from a previously validated plasma assay were compared and were found to be comparable. DBS incurred samples collected from finger prick blood and directly applied to the DBS cards were also analyzed for comparison. Conclusion: From a bioanalytical perspective, DBS sample collection and analysis is a potentially viable alternative for guanfacine determination in clinical studies, utilizing approximately 100 µl of blood per subject profile compared with a few millilitres of blood drawn for conventional plasma bioanalysis.

Badiera subrhombifolia is newly described from Hispaniola, where it co-occurs with B. fuertesii and B. penaea. Badiera subrhombifolia lacks the long peduncle of the former species and the scabrous leaves of the latter; it is also often distinguishable by subrhomboid, triplinerved leaves. This new species is a near endemic to high montane forests of the “south island” of Hispaniola, i.e., the Massif de la Hotte, Massif de la Selle, and Sierra de Bahoruco.

The European Bioanalysis Forum is a bioanalytical nonprofit organization comprised of European pharmaceutical companies (27 members to date) and currently expanding to include CROs as well. The European Bioanalysis Forum provides a broad European bioanalytical network for the discussion of scientific, technological and regulatory topics of bioanalytical interest. The 3rd Annual Open Symposium was again much anticipated after the two previous successful meetings. The symposium included sessions on thinking outside the ‘commodity’ box, bioanalytical challenges with blood, global harmonization, assay platforms, dried blood spots, immunogenicity, matrix effects, anomalous results, biomarkers and two plenary technology sessions hosted by the Platinum sponsors. Experts and key opinion leaders were invited as guest speakers. A total of 424 delegates registered from 113 companies representing a large percentage of the European bioanalytical community. In addition to 48 oral presentations, 88 posters were presented and there was a vendor exposition of 40 companies.

The European Bioanalysis Forum is a non-profit organization comprised of European pharmaceutical companies (25 members to date). Their activities focus on bringing together managers and scientists in the broad field of bioanalysis to discuss topics related to science, process and regulations. There has been much interest over the past few years in the potential application of dried blood spots as an alternative to traditional plasma collection in pharmacokinetic studies. The success of the technique has been highlighted by several companies. We know that seven of the European Bioanalysis Forum member companies are using dried blood spots intensively and that 22 out of 25 companies are using it or plan to use it very soon, initially in nonregulated studies. However, most companies have less than 1 year of experience with dried blood spots and, beyond the scientific merit, it is less clear just how the technique is perceived by key client groups, such as toxicology, clinical and regulatory authorities. The objective of this symposium was to bring together representatives from all of these client groups as well as a broad bioanalytical audience to discuss the various perspectives on dried blood spots and to try to provide answers to potential issues that still remain. The symposium included sessions on dried blood spots in the nonregulated environment, toxicology and regulatory/QA perspectives, clinical use and bioanalytical applications and tools. There was plenty of time for discussion within the program in tutorials, poster and break-out sessions and the degree of delegate participation reflected the high level of engagement with the topic. A total of 190 delegates attended from more than 80 organizations. In addition to 21 oral presentations, more than 20 posters were presented and there was a vendor exposition of ten sponsor companies.

UNLABELLED PREMISE OF THE STUDY Primers were developed for a portion of the ycf1 plastid gene in magnoliid taxa to investigate the utility of ycf1 in phylogenetic analyses. • METHODS AND RESULTS Twenty-six species across six families within the magnoliid group (Canellales, Piperales, Laurales, and Magnoliales) were sampled to examine the ability to amplify ycf1. Additionally, 29 accessions of Asimina and Deeringothamnus (Annonaceae) were sequenced to assess levels of variation in ycf1 compared to matK and trnL-F. • CONCLUSIONS Results indicate that ycf1 is easily amplified and sequenced. In Annonaceae, ycf1 provides more informative phylogenetic characters than commonly used markers such as matK and trnL-F.