A fossil tarantula (Araneae: Mygalomorphae: Theraphosidae) is described from an exuvium in Tertiary (Miocene) Chiapas amber, Simojovel region, Chiapas State, Mexico. It is difficult to assign it further taxonomically, but it is the first mygalomorph recorded from Chiapas amber and only the second unequivocal record of a fossil theraphosid. With a carapace length of ca. 0.9 cm and an estimated l...

The fossil record of lichens is scarce and many putative fossil lichens do not show an actual physiological relationship between mycobionts and photobionts or a typical habit, and are therefore disputed. Amber has preserved a huge variety of organisms in microscopic fidelity, and so the study of amber fossils is promising for elucidating the fossil history of lichens. However, so far it has not...

BACKGROUND Clinical uncertainty is emotionally challenging for patients and carers and creates additional pressures for those clinicians in acute hospitals. The AMBER care bundle was designed to improve care for patients identified as clinically unstable, deteriorating, with limited reversibility and at risk of dying in the next 1-2 months. AIM To examine the experience of care supported by t...

Two new earwigs (Dermaptera) recently discovered in mid-Cretaceous (latest Albian) amber from Myanmar are described and figured. Astreptolabis ethirosomatiagen. et sp. n. is represented by a peculiar pygidicranoid female, assigned to a new subfamily, Astreptolabidinaesubfam. n., and differs from other protodermapterans in the structure of the head, pronotum, tegmina, and cercal forceps. Tytthod...

We have established an in vitro transcription system to produce infectious tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) RNA from a cloned cDNA copy. Using this system, several TMV mutants were transcribed in vitro from cDNA clones mutagenized at or near the leaky amber termination codon of the 130K protein gene, and their infectivity was assayed on tobacco plants. Three (two frame-shift and one non-sense) mutant...

Genetic code expansion technology enables the incorporation of non-canonical amino acids (NCAAs) into proteins expressed in live cells. The NCAA is commonly encoded by an in-frame amber stop codon (TAG) and the methodology relies on the use of an orthogonal aminoacyl tRNA synthetase and its cognate amber suppressor tRNA; e.g., the pyrrolysine synthetase / tRNA CUA (PylT) pair. It is widely acce...

A new species of the extinct genus Serphites Brues (Proctotrupomorpha: Bipetiolarida: Serphitidae) is described from two individuals preserved in Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian to Santonian) amber from Vendée, northwestern France. Serphites fannyae n. sp., is distinguished from its congeners and brief comments are made on the significance of finding a serphitid wasp in Vendean amber as well as pot...

Two fossil species, Paraphloeostiba electrica sp.n. and Phyllodrepa antiqua sp.n. (Staphylinidae, Omaliinae), are described from Baltic amber. Their external and relevant internal structures are illustrated using propagation phase contrast synchrotron microtomography. The palaeobiogeogaphy of the two genera, the thermophilous Paraphloeostiba, the temperate Phyllodrepa, as well as palaeoenvironm...

Transfer RNA from super-suppressor mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cannot suppress an amber mutation in vitro in an E. coli protein synthesizing system. It is tentatively concluded that the yeast amber suppressor does not contain a transfer RNA altered in the anticodon.

Human evolution has made the two legs as the only tools for locomotion in humans. In other words, human evolution has made and continuously improved bipedal (two legged) walking to an extent that it can exhibit amazingly robust behaviors over a wide variety of terrains in the environment. This is one of the factors why emulating human walking has been a continued objective for a majority of bip...