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Cinusa nippon Nagasawa (Isopoda: Cymothoidae), a marine parasite infesting the buccal cavities of coastal puffers, is newly recorded from the Pacific coasts of central Japan. A pair consisting of a mature female and mature male, and six mancae and a juvenile, were collected from reared vermiculated puffer, Takifugu snyderi (Abe) (Tetraodontiformes: Tetraodontidae), in an aquarium and a museum, respectively. The present paper provides a description of the morphological characters of these cymothoids, including their immature stages, and molecular analysis using 16S rRNA for C. nippon and related species. In the maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree, C. nippon was included in the clade of Ceratothoa Dana and corresponds to Ceratothoa sp. 2 reported in another study. These suggest that the relationship between Cinusa Schioedte and Meinert and Ceratothoa needs to be re-examined. Furthermore, the morphological study showed that these cymothoid mancae are similar to Manca type 2 known from zoo-plankton, provided in one of our previous reports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report six freshwater ostracods from Rishiri Island, Hokkaido, Japan: Cypricercinae sp., Cavernocy-pris sp. 1, Ca. sp. 2, Cypridopsis vidua, Candonini sp., and Metacypris cf. digitiformis. This is the first report of freshwater ostracods from this island. We provided brief descriptions of their morphology, presented partial nucleotide sequences for their mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and/or nuclear 18S rRNA genes, and determined a partial 16S rRNA sequence for the endosymbiotic bacterium Cardinium in some species. A key to six species collected from this island was presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to obtain knowledge of taxonomy about microorganisms habiting in Indonesian hot springs, the spring water samples from geothermal areas Kawah Domas and Gunung Pancar in western Java, Indonesia, were applied to enrichment cultivation and identification of microorganisms. Only archaea were detected in the enrichment cultures derived from Kawah Domas, and only bacteria were detected in the enrichment cultures derived from Gunung Pancar. Thermoacidophilic archaeon Metallosphaera sedula and Thermoplasma acidophilum were detected as described species from Kawah Domas. In addition, novel species of the genus Sulfurisphaera which was thermoacidophilic archaeon was detected. Moreover, Archaeal Richmond Mine Acidophilic Nanoorganisms (ARMAN) and Miscellaneous Crenarchaeota Group (MCG) which were uncultured archaeal group were detected in enrichment cultures. On the other hand, Thermus brockianus, Thermus arciformis, Sulfurihydrogenibium subterraneum, and Geobacillus icigianus were detected as described bacterial species from Gunung Pancar hot spring. Additionally, a novel specie of the genus Thermus was detected. As described above, the detected microorganisms include two archaeal species, which are difficult to culture and highly novel, as well as multiple new species, and reaffirm the value of Indonesian hot springs as a research field of microbial taxonomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Entomopathogenic microsporidia are pathogens of various arthropods and therefore cause disease in important host species ranging from agricultural pests to beneficial insects. Here, we investigated three genera of entomopathogenic microsporidia from dragonflies； these were isolated in Kanagawa, Japan, in 2014. In total, the infection rate was 0.85%（16 of the 1,886 surveyed dragonfly adults）. Four strains of microsporidia selected from infected Orthetrum albistylum speciosum（Uhler）（Odonata: Libellulidae）adults were measured for spore size and analyzed at the molecular level. According to spore size, the four strains were roughly divided into two groups. Analysis of smallsubunit ribosomal RNA sequences indicated that the microsporidia strains belonged to the Trachipleistophora, Vavraia, and Paranosema clusters. Microsporidia species that are closely related to the strains isolated in this study have previously been reported to infect insects other than dragonflies. Therefore, we suggest the possibility that the microsporidian strains we isolated in O. albistylum speciosum may also infect other insect species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We first report the gooseneck barnacle, Conchoderma auritum (Linnaeus, 1767), from Rishiri Island, Hokkaido, northern Japan. The barnacles we found were attached to the left tooth of a Stejneger' s beaked whale, Mesoplodon stejnegeri True, 1885 (Cetacea: Ziphiidae), which was stranded on the rocky shore of Cape Kutsugata, western Rishiri Island, on 11 April 2015. We provide a description of their morphology, and present a mitochondrial 16S rRNA barcode sequence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malassezia species of lipophilic yeasts account for most fungal microbiota. Although they colonize healthy skin, they are also associated with several skin diseases, including pityriasis versicolor, seborrheic dermatitis, Malassezia folliculitis, and atopic dermatitis. To date. 14 members of the Malassezia genus have been identified. Of these, both M. globosa and M. restricta predominate, regardless of skin-disease type. Comprehensive analysis of fungal microbiota in the skin of patients with atopic dermatitis using an rRNA clone library method revealed that fungal microbiota cluster according to disease severity. The external ear canal and sole of the foot are colonized by specific Malassezia microbiota. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]