Revision of the type species of Syllepte Hbner and other spilomeline genera recently synonymized (Lepidoptera: Crambidae).

The identity of Syllepte Hbner, 181921 is revised by designating a neotype from Neomabra Dognin, 1905, rev. syn., for the type species S. incomptalis Hbner, 181921 because the original type material is lost, and we consider it to be congeneric with Syllepte. We redescribe Syllepte based on S. incomptalis and S. nitidalis (Dognin, 1905), rev. comb., and place Syllepte in Agroterini Acloque, 1897, and consequently synonymize Syleptinae [sic] Swinhoe, 1900, syn. rev., with Agroterini. Pantographa Lederer, 1863 and Micromartinia Amsel, 1957 are redescribed, diagnosed, and restored to their status as valid genera, rev. stat., also in the tribe Agroterini. We designate lectotypes for Neomabra nitidalis Dognin, 1905, new lectotype, rev. comb., and Pantographa scripturalis (Guene, 1854), new lectotype, rev. stat., to stabilize the names of these species. Pantographa is compared to Haritalodes Warren, 1890. We newly combine Pantographa gorgonalis Druce, 1895, n. comb., rev. stat., and Pilocrocis cyrisalis (Druce, 1895), n. comb., with Micromartinia. One hundred and ninety-six species are listed that remain misplaced in the polyphyletic Syllepte and need further revision to determine their identity and proper generic placement.

Character correlation and its use for identification.

A method is presented for correlating phylogenetic characters through cladistic analysis. It extends the use of phylogenetic datasets for diagnostic purposes. It improves matrix-based identification tools by predicting novel character-state combinations that were not observed when the key was constructed. By interpreting homoplasy as analytical error, hypothetical character-state combinations are tested for the homoplasy that they would add to the shortest tree(s). The correlation is equal to the homoplasy summed across all state combinations, divided by a maximum possible value. The results depend on uncertainty about the sequence of state transitions and their overlap among characters. A correlation index r is proposed for sets of non-additive characters; it is a kind of multiple-regression value, and its ensemble value R is a statistic of a whole matrix. This approach can be used to select sets of the best "proxy" characters to substitute for unobservable characters of interest. The concept can be extended to continuous characters. Worked examples are given with datasets of various insect orders.

Monophyletic classification and information content.

The connection between monophyly and efficient taxonomic diagnoses is elaborated. The inefficiency of nonmonophyletic groups is shown by reconstructing data matrices from hierarchical sets of diagnoses that are derived from apomorphies and read in order from highest to lowest rank. The practice of diagnosing nonmonophyletic groups either results in omitting data, resulting in errors in reconstructed datasets, or repeating character information to make up for the implied losses. Step-by-step demonstrations with hypothetical and real data are used as guidance. Provisions are made for missing, inapplicable and polymorphic data. Slow optimization (delayed transformation) is useful for choosing a state reconstruction in order to report apomorphies completely. The diagnoses of paraphyletic groups can be expressed in different ways, including regrafting derived clades, reanalyzing data with constraints, and reading the original diagnoses in a different order--the last is the least efficient. A cladistic version of the data compression ratio is proposed to quantify the diagnostic efficiency of a cladogram.

PML is recruited to heterochromatin during S phase and represses DAXX-mediated histone H3.3 chromatin assembly.

The incorporation of the histone H3 variant, H3.3, into chromatin by the H3.3-specific chaperone DAXX and the ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling factor ATRX is a critical mechanism for silencing repetitive DNA. DAXX and ATRX are also components of promyelocytic nuclear bodies (PML-NBs), which have been identified as sites of H3.3 chromatin assembly. Here, we use a transgene array that can be visualized in single living cells to investigate the mechanisms that recruit PML-NB proteins (i.e. PML, DAXX, ATRX, and SUMO-1, SUMO-2 and SUMO-3) to heterochromatin and their functions in H3.3 chromatin assembly. We show that DAXX and PML are recruited to the array through distinct SUMOylation-dependent mechanisms. Additionally, PML is recruited during S phase and its depletion increases H3.3 deposition. Since this effect is abrogated when PML and DAXX are co-depleted, it is likely that PML represses DAXX-mediated H3.3 chromatin assembly. Taken together, these results suggest that, at heterochromatin, PML-NBs coordinate H3.3 chromatin assembly with DNA replication, which has important implications for understanding how transcriptional silencing is established and maintained.

A new Calliprora species mining lead trees in Florida (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae).

Calliprora leucaenae sp. nov. is described infesting foliage of Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit. in Florida, USA. The larvae are blotch-miners and leaf-tiers and are capable of heavy damage to host plants. Photographs of the adult, wing venation, male and female genitalia and illustrations of the larval and pupal chaetotaxy are provided. Calliprora Meyrick is transferred to Thiotrichinae, as the species in the genus exhibit typical characters of the subfamily such as the presence of anellus lobes, a large sternum VIII, and a reduced male tergum VIII. Comparative diagnoses of the morphology and ecology are presented for the newly described species and other thiotrichine species.

A neuronal network of mitochondrial dynamics regulates metastasis.

The role of mitochondria in cancer is controversial. Using a genome-wide shRNA screen, we now show that tumours reprogram a network of mitochondrial dynamics operative in neurons, including syntaphilin (SNPH), kinesin KIF5B and GTPase Miro1/2 to localize mitochondria to the cortical cytoskeleton and power the membrane machinery of cell movements. When expressed in tumours, SNPH inhibits the speed and distance travelled by individual mitochondria, suppresses organelle dynamics, and blocks chemotaxis and metastasis, in vivo. Tumour progression in humans is associated with downregulation or loss of SNPH, which correlates with shortened patient survival, increased mitochondrial trafficking to the cortical cytoskeleton, greater membrane dynamics and heightened cell invasion. Therefore, a SNPH network regulates metastatic competence and may provide a therapeutic target in cancer.

RNase P protein subunit Rpp29 represses histone H3.3 nucleosome deposition.

In mammals, histone H3.3 is a critical regulator of transcription state change and heritability at both euchromatin and heterochromatin. The H3.3-specific chaperone, DAXX, together with the chromatin-remodeling factor, ATRX, regulates H3.3 deposition and transcriptional silencing at repetitive DNA, including pericentromeres and telomeres. However, the events that precede H3.3 nucleosome incorporation have not been fully elucidated. We previously showed that the DAXX-ATRX-H3.3 pathway regulates a multi-copy array of an inducible transgene that can be visualized in single living cells. When this pathway is impaired, the array can be robustly activated. H3.3 is strongly recruited to the site during activation where it accumulates in a complex with transcribed sense and antisense RNA, which is distinct from the DNA/chromatin. This suggests that transcriptional events regulate H3.3 recruited to its incorporation sites. Here we report that the nucleolar RNA proteins Rpp29, fibrillarin, and RPL23a are also components of this H3.3/RNA complex. Rpp29 is a protein subunit of RNase P. Of the other subunits, POP1 and Rpp21 are similarly recruited suggesting that a variant of RNase P regulates H3.3 chromatin assembly. Rpp29 knockdown increases H3.3 chromatin incorporation, which suggests that Rpp29 represses H3.3 nucleosome deposition, a finding with implications for epigenetic regulation.

A new Antaeotricha species from Florida sandhills and scrub (Lepidoptera, Depressariidae, Stenomatinae).

Antaeotricha floridella sp. n. is described and diagnosed from the closely similar Antaeotricha albulella (Walker). The species is distributed in xeric sandhill and scrub habitats in peninsular Florida, USA, and larvae feed on Quercus species. Keys are given for pale-winged Stenomatinae and similar Gelechioidea based on external characters and genitalia.

Centromeric motion facilitates the mobility of interphase genomic regions in fission yeast.

Dispersed genetic elements, such as retrotransposons and Pol-III-transcribed genes, including tRNA and 5S rRNA, cluster and associate with centromeres in fission yeast through the function of condensin. However, the dynamics of these condensin-mediated genomic associations remains unknown. We have examined the 3D motions of genomic loci including the centromere, telomere, rDNA repeat locus, and the loci carrying Pol-III-transcribed genes or long-terminal repeat (LTR) retrotransposons in live cells at as short as 1.5-second intervals. Treatment with carbendazim (CBZ), a microtubule-destabilizing agent, not only prevents centromeric motion, but also reduces the mobility of the other genomic loci during interphase. Further analyses demonstrate that condensin-mediated associations between centromeres and the genomic loci are clonal, infrequent and transient. However, when associated, centromeres and the genomic loci migrate together in a coordinated fashion. In addition, a condensin mutation that disrupts associations between centromeres and the genomic loci results in a concomitant decrease in the mobility of the loci. Our study suggests that highly mobile centromeres pulled by microtubules in cytoplasm serve as 'genome mobility elements' by facilitating physical relocations of associating genomic regions.

Acquired resistance to BRAF inhibitors mediated by a RAF kinase switch in melanoma can be overcome by cotargeting MEK and IGF-1R/PI3K.

BRAF is an attractive target for melanoma drug development. However, resistance to BRAF inhibitors is a significant clinical challenge. We describe a model of resistance to BRAF inhibitors developed by chronic treatment of BRAF(V)6°°(E) melanoma cells with the BRAF inhibitor SB-590885; these cells are cross-resistant to other BRAF-selective inhibitors. Resistance involves flexible switching among the three RAF isoforms, underscoring the ability of melanoma cells to adapt to pharmacological challenges. IGF-1R/PI3K signaling was enhanced in resistant melanomas, and combined treatment with IGF-1R/PI3K and MEK inhibitors induced death of BRAF inhibitor-resistant cells. Increased IGF-1R and pAKT levels in a post-relapse human tumor sample are consistent with a role for IGF-1R/PI3K-dependent survival in the development of resistance to BRAF inhibitors.