Victor Valley College

Abstract Knowing about species interactions is essential for ecological research, conservation efforts, resource management, and maintaining healthy ecosystems, but many of these, such as reports of predation, may not always be published in easily located resources—if they are published at all. Finding and collating such information is challenging, given the wide range of often poorly indexed outlets and social media where these are available. We performed an in‐depth literature review of predation data on Iguana iguana (Linnaeus, 1758) and compared our results with two recently published reviews. We identified 158 reported incidences of I. iguana predation from 35 different journals, ten books, and a conference presentation, a total of 91 different sources, compared with 66 and 69 incidences reported in the earlier overviews. We confirmed a total of 108 unique predator species of I. iguana , of which 102 had been reported prior to the 2023 reviews. The earlier reviews retrieved only 56 (54.9%) and 59 (57.8%) predator species, respectively. While the results of our survey increase the number of species known to prey on I. iguana , they also highlight that conducting comprehensive reviews of species interactions is challenging, and that the most commonly used outlets, such as Google Scholar, Herpetological Review , and Herpetology Notes , provide access to a narrower range of observations than those actually available with additional searching. Especially, reports lacking the scientific name of I. iguana were less likely to be identified, indicating the importance of using binomina in titles. We urge compilers of ecology‐ or morphology‐themed reviews (e.g., species as predator or prey, behavioral observations, diseases and parasites, phenotypic aberrations) to use an extra dose of due diligence when assembling their materials and to consult sources well beyond the commonly used outlets.

Although the efficacy and safety of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine have been established, side effects and adverse events related to the COVID-19 vaccine are still coming out. COVID-19 vaccine also has the potential to cause acute and long-term cardiovascular effects, which include myocarditis, pericarditis, myopericarditis, myocardial infarction, pulmonary embolism, thrombotic thrombocytopenia, and pulmonary hemorrhage. Although uncommon, takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TCM) has also been reported following COVID-19 vaccination. We report a case of TCM following the COVID-19 vaccine in a 59-year-old female who presented with intermittent chest pain and dyspnea following the COVID-19 vaccine booster dose. She had no identifiable triggers for TCM, no risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and normal cardiac enzyme levels, ruling out other causes of cardiac dysfunction. The diagnosis of TCM was supported by imaging findings and the absence of obstructive or thrombotic lesions on angiography.

The coexistence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a single individual, also known as overlap syndrome (OVS), is associated with higher cardiovascular risk and mortality than either OSA or COPD alone. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We hypothesized that patients with OVS have elevated systemic inflammatory biomarkers relative to patients with either disease alone, which could explain greater cardiovascular risk observed in OVS. We included 255 participants in the study, 55 with COPD alone, 100 with OSA alone, 50 with OVS, and 50 healthy controls. All participants underwent a home sleep study, spirometry, and a blood draw for high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and total blood count analysis. In a randomly selected subset of 186 participants, inflammatory protein profiling was performed using Bio-Rad Bio-Plex Pro Human Cytokine 27-Plex Assays. Biomarker level differences across groups were identified using a mixed linear model. Levels of interleukin 6 (IL-6), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) were higher in participants with OVS and COPD compared with healthy controls and participants with OSA. Furthermore, participants with OVS had higher circulating levels of leukocytes and neutrophils than those with COPD, OSA, and controls. COPD and OVS are associated with higher systemic inflammation relative to OSA and healthy controls. This work proposes the potential utilization of interleukin 6, granulocyte colony stimulating factor, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein as screening biomarkers for COPD in patients with OSA. Inflammatory pathways may not fully explain the higher cardiovascular risk observed in OVS, indicating the need for further investigation. Sanchez-Azofra A, Gu W, Masso-Silva JA, etal. Inflammation biomarkers in OSA, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/OSA overlap syndrome. J Clin Sleep Med. 2023;19(8):1447-1456.

Rationale: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)-induced endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction contributes to OSA-related cardiovascular sequelae. The mechanistic basis of endothelial impairment by OSA is unclear. Objectives: The goals of this study were to identify the mechanism of OSA-induced EC dysfunction and explore the potential therapies for OSA-accelerated cardiovascular disease. Methods: The experimental methods include data mining, bioinformatics, EC functional analyses, OSA mouse models, and assessment of OSA human subjects. Measurements and Main Results: Using mined microRNA sequencing data, we found that microRNA 210 (miR-210) conferred the greatest induction by intermittent hypoxia in ECs. Consistently, the serum concentration of miR-210 was higher in individuals with OSA from two independent cohorts. Importantly, miR-210 concentration was positively correlated with the apnea-hypopnea index. RNA sequencing data collected from ECs transfected with miR-210 or treated with OSA serum showed a set of genes commonly altered by miR-210 and OSA serum, which are largely involved in mitochondrion-related pathways. ECs transfected with miR-210 or treated with OSA serum showed reduced [Formula: see text]o2 rate, mitochondrial membrane potential, and DNA abundance. Mechanistically, intermittent hypoxia-induced SREBP2 (sterol regulatory element-binding protein 2) bound to the promoter region of miR-210, which in turn inhibited the iron-sulfur cluster assembly enzyme and led to mitochondrial dysfunction. Moreover, the SREBP2 inhibitor betulin alleviated intermittent hypoxia-increased systolic blood pressure in the OSA mouse model. Conclusions: These results identify an axis involving SREBP2, miR-210, and mitochondrial dysfunction, representing a new mechanistic link between OSA and EC dysfunction that may have important implications for treating and preventing OSA-related cardiovascular sequelae.

The archipelagos of Wallacea extend between the Sunda and Sahul Shelves, serving as a semipermeable two-way filter influencing faunal exchange between Asia and Australo-Papua. Forest skinks (Genus Sphenomorphus) are widespread throughout southern Wallacea and exhibit complex clinal, ontogenetic, sexual, and seasonal morphological variation, rendering species delimitation difficult. We screened a mitochondrial marker for 245 Sphenomorphus specimens from this area to inform the selection of 104 samples from which we used targeted sequence capture to generate a dataset of 1154 nuclear genes (∼1.8 Mb) plus complete mitochondrial genomes. Phylogenomic analyses recovered many deeply divergent lineages, three pairs of which are now sympatric, that began to diversify in the late Miocene shortly after the oldest islands are thought to have become emergent. We infer a complex and nonstepping-stone pattern of island colonization, with the group having originated in the Sunda Arc islands before using Sumba as a springboard for colonization of the Banda Arcs. Estimates of population structure and gene flow across the region suggest total isolation except between two Pleistocene Aggregate Island Complexes that become episodically land-bridged during glacial maxima. These historical processes have resulted in at least 11 Sphenomorphus species in the region, nine of which require formal description. This fine-scale geographic partitioning of undescribed species highlights the importance of utilizing comprehensive genomic studies for defining biodiversity hotspots to be considered for conservation protection.

On the one hand, using a traditional narrative approach, this dissertation examines disco's historical trajectory from an underground movement to a mainstream phenomenon, and analyzes its relationships to American cultural and racial tensions during the 1970s and 1980s. On the other hand, this dissertation also departs from traditional historical approaches by emphasizing an archive of personal experiences, memories, and reflections produced over the last four decades by individuals, living and dead, whose creative expressions help give disco its definition. Each chapter is organized around the story of an individual DJ whose work and play reflected the broader disco landscape. Together, the anecdotal experiences of these DJs help to conjure a collective biography of disco, emphasizing the significance of disco not only as a "genre" of pop music, but as a larger reference point for shared, and sometimes contested, cultural experiences.

This chapter analyzes Lope de Vega's metaphors for texts and textual production in the opening sonnet of his Rimas.

Only a single known specimen of Cnemaspis timoriensis (Duméril Bibron, 1836) exists, the holotype in the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris, France. Purportedly collected by Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré in the year 1818 on Timor Island in the Lesser Sunda Archipelago during the circumnavigation of the globe by the vessel L'Uranie, intensive research on Timor has failed to produce additional specimens or any similarly appointed gecko. Using a series of detailed morphological comparisons, we provide irrefutable evidence that the animal in question is not a member of Cnemaspis but of the neotropical genus Gonatodes. Furthermore, we ascertained that C. timoriensis is conspecific with G. humeralis, a widely distributed South American species. We also show that a specimen labeled with the timoriensis name in the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, Germany is not conspecific and not part of a type series. While the taxon name timoriensis has nomenclatural priority over the two-decades-younger name humeralis, usage would dictate that to preserve the nomenclatural stability of neotropical geckos the junior synonym should be retained. An application to the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature to this effect is in preparation.

We describe a new species of snake of the genus Cylindrophis Wagler, 1828 from Boano Island, northern Maluku Province, Indonesia. Cylindrophis osheai sp. nov. differs from all congeners by a combination of the following eidonomic characters: (1) 19 dorsal scale rows at midbody; (2) 224-226 ventral scales; (3) 8-9 subcaudal scales; (4) 25-28 dark ventral blotches, aligned to form a broad, wavy stripe along most of the body; (5) a dark ventral pattern that is completely separated from the dark dorsal coloration; (6) an almost completely dark ventral surface on the tail; (7) a dark bar running from the eye through the 3rd and 4th supralabials to the mouth; and (8) a dark, double-diamond-shaped ventral blotch in the area immediately posterior to the genials. Eidonomic species separation from other Cylindrophis species is supported by differences in cranial osteology, as elucidated by micro-computed tomography images. Diagnostic features of the cranium include (1) well-developed postorbitofrontals that project laterally beyond the maxilla in dorsal view, creating a characteristic, horn-like appearance; (2) a broad parietal with a bulbous middle section; (3) 10-12 maxillary teeth; (4) nine palatine teeth; (5) 7-9 teeth on the pterygoid; and (6) 11-13 teeth on the dentary. We also provide notes on the taxonomic history of Cylindrophis melanotus Wagler, 1828 and an identification key to the Moluccan species of the genus.

Germany’s zoological collections are among the oldest, most diverse, and historically most interesting natural history collections. From the perspective of three herpetologists with particular interest in taxonomy, we recount how invaluable visits to German collections have been to our own research efforts. Not only have we been able to use our findings in multiple publications, we also list examples of how we discovered new species and rediscovered specimens long thought lost, and we see in these experiences reasons to believe that many treasures in Germany’s herpetological collections remain to be discovered. We also provide a brief historical overview of how Central Europe’s and Germany’s political structures in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries led to a more diverse pattern for the formation of natural history collections than elsewhere, and we comment on the effects that the Second World War had on the well-being and continuity of collections. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, German zoological collections are a nexus for zoological research and a globally important scientific treasure.