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The shape of supramolecular aggregates based on stereoisomers of p-tert-butyl thiacalix[4]arenes functionalized with secondary, tertiary amide and hydrazide groups at the lower rim in cone, partial cone and 1,3-alternate conformations with several metal cations were investigated by atomic force microscopy. The examined p-tert-butyl thiacalix[4]arenes form host-guest complexes; dimers, spherics ellipsoids and elongated nanoscale particles depending on the conformation of macrocycles, the nature of the binding centers and the nature of the metal cation. Only associates formed by p-tert-butyl thiacalix[4]arenes with morpholide groups at the lower rim in cone conformation with silver cations exhibited a higher antimicrobial activity.

Chursina MA, Ruchin AB. 2018. A checklist of Bombyliidae (Diptera) from Mordovia, Russia and variation of wing shape in Bombylius species. Biodiversitas 19: 2147-2156. A checklist of Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Republic of Mordovia (Russia) is provided, based on material collected from 2008 to 2017. One hundred ninety specimens from 75 localities were collected. Fourteen of the twenty species are listed as belonging to the fauna for the first time. Intraspecific variation and sexual dimorphism in the wing shape of three species of the genus Bombylius Linnaeus, 1758 were investigated using geometric morphometric techniques. The analysis revealed that wing shape is a good discriminator of the species. In addition, significant sexual dimorphism were found: females of two of the three species had larger wings than males. The sex shape differences consisted mainly of сhanges in the placement of the CuA and A1, while interspecific wing shape variation distributed in more dimensions. There was no evidence for allometric relationships relating to sexual dimorphism and interspecific variation. Potential adaptive significance of interspecific and intersex variation in wing size and shape is discussed.

Abstract. Chursina MA. 2019. Convergent evolution of sexual dimorphism in species of the family Dolichopodidae (Diptera). Biodiversitas 20: 2480-2485. In this study, we investigated patterns of sexual dimorphism in four dolichopodid species namely Dolichopus acuticornis Wiedemann, 1817, D. longicornis Stannius, 1831, Rhaphium appendiculatum Zetterstedt, 1849, and R. caliginosum Meigen, 1824 that are exhibiting similar patterns of sexual dimorphism. Although they are distantly related, males of all these species exhibit similar sexual dimorphic characters in term of elongation of postpedicel. A comparison of variation made it possible to assumed that although sexual selection acts differently, all four species exhibited similar patterns of sexual dimorphism in wings and legs; females possessed relatively widened wing and elongated fore and hind femora than males. Cluster analysis for the morphometry data demonstrated that the differences between sexes significantly exceeds the differences between species. These results may reflect the presence of some conservative genetic structure of covariation among characters.

The recent catalogues of the family Dolichopodidae considered Syntormon pallipes (Fabricius, 1794) and S. pseudospicatus Strobl, 1899 as separate species. In this study, we used three approaches to estimate the significance of differences between the two species: molecular analysis (COI and 12S rRNA sequences), analysis of leg colour characters and geometric morphometric analysis of wing shape. The morphological data confirmed the absence of significant differences between S. pallipes and S. pseudospicatus found in the DNA analysis. Significant differences in the wing shape of two species have not been revealed. Hence, according to our data, there is no reason to consider S. pseudospicatus as a distinct species.