Integrative taxonomy of Pseudolepeophtheirus longicauda (Crustacea: Copepoda: Caligidae) parasitic on Platichthys stellatus (Actinopterygii: Pleuronectidae).

Based on specimens from the gill cavities of one Platichthys stellatus individual collected in the Sea of Japan, we investigated the taxonomic status of the enigmatic caligid genus Pseudolepeophtheirus and its type species, Pseudolepeophtheirus longicauda. In a maximum likelihood (ML) tree based on 18S rRNA gene sequences, the sequence from our sample was nested in a well-supported Lepeophtheirus clade, along with the type species, confirming that Pseudolepeophtheirus should be considered a junior synonym of Lepeophtheirus; our morphological data support this synonymy. Although a previous study had synonymized Pseudolepeophtheirus longicauda with Lepeophtheirus parvicruris, we found that the former differs morphologically from the latter in having a short leg-4 exopod, with the articulation between the first and second segments not evident (the shape of the posterior striated membrane on the leg-2 intercoxal sclerite also differs between two species), and detected slight differences in 18S rRNA sequences between two taxa.

Disseminated Mycobacterium genavense infection in a healthy boy.

Mycobacterium genavense (M genavense) has been recognized as a life-threatening pathogen in severely immunocompromised patients. To our knowledge, disseminated M genavense infection has never been described in immunocompetent individuals. Here, we report a case of disseminated M genavense infection in a healthy Japanese boy.