Morphology of the feeding system in agamid lizards: ecological correlates. (1/71)

The interaction of organismal design with ecology, and its evolutionary development are the subject of many functional and ecomorphological studies. Many studies have shown that the morphology and mechanics of the masticatory apparatus in mammals are adapted to diet. To investigate the relations between diet and the morphological and physiological properties of the lizard jaw system, a detailed analysis of the structure of the jaw apparatus was undertaken in the insectivorous lizard Plocederma stellio and in closely related herbivorous lizards of the genus Uromastix. The morphological and physiological properties of the jaw system in P. stellio and U. aegyptius were studied by means of dissections, light microscopy, histochemical characterisations, and in vivo stimulation experiments. The skull of Uromastix seems to be built for forceful biting (high, short snout). Additionally, the pterygoid muscle is modified in P. stellio, resulting in an additional force component during static biting. Stimulation experiments indicate that jaw muscles in both species are fast, which is supported by histochemical stainings. However, the oxidative capacity of the jaw muscles is larger in Uromastix. Contraction characteristics and performance of the feeding system (force output) are clearly thermally dependent. We conclude that several characteristics of the jaw system (presence of extra portion of the pterygoid muscle, large oxidative capacity of jaw muscles) in Uromastix may be attributed to its herbivorous diet. Jaw muscles, however, are still faster than expected. This is presumably the result of trade-offs between the thermal characteristics of the jaw adductors and the herbivorous lifestyle of these animals.  (+info)

The phylogenetic position of the Talpidae within eutheria based on analysis of complete mitochondrial sequences. (2/71)

The complete mitochondrial (mt) genome of the mole Talpa europaea was sequenced and included in phylogenetic analyses together with another lipotyphlan (insectivore) species, the hedgehog Erinaceus europaeus, and 22 other eutherian species plus three outgroup taxa (two marsupials and a monotreme). The phylogenetic analyses reconstructed a sister group relationship between the mole and fruit bat Artibeus jamaicensis (order Chiroptera). The Talpa/Artibeus clade constitutes a sister clade of the cetferungulates, a clade including Cetacea, Artiodactyla, Perissodactyla, and Carnivora. A monophyletic relationship between the hedgehog and the mole was significantly rejected by maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood. Consistent with current systematic schemes, analyses of complete cytochrome b genes including the shrew Sorex araneus (family Soricidae) revealed a close relationship between Talpidae and Soricidae. The analyses of complete mtDNAs, along with the findings of other insectivore studies, challenge the maintenance of the order Lipotyphla as a taxonomic unit and support the elevation of the Soricomorpha (with the families Talpidae and Soricidae and possibly also the Solenodontidae and Tenrecidae) to the level of an order, as previously proposed in some morphological studies.  (+info)

Salmonellosis in wild mammals. (3/71)

One thousand two hundred and sixty-nine freeliving, wild mammals, representative of 16 species from estates in Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Surrey, were examined for the presence of salmonellas. Salmonella typhimurium was isolated from 1 and S. dublin from 7 house mice (Mus musculus). There were no isolations from the other species examined. It was concluded that the house-mice infected with S. dublin acquired the organism from experimentally infected cattle. The wild mammal population does not at present appear to constitute a reservior for infection of domestic animals.  (+info)

The evolution of the thyroid hormone distributor protein transthyretin in the order insectivora, class mammalia. (4/71)

Thyroid hormones are involved in the regulation of growth and metabolism in all vertebrates. Transthyretin is one of the extracellular proteins with high affinity for thyroid hormones which determine the partitioning of these hormones between extracellular compartments and intracellular lipids. During vertebrate evolution, both the tissue pattern of expression and the structure of the gene for transthyretin underwent characteristic changes. The purpose of this study was to characterize the position of Insectivora in the evolution of transthyretin in eutherians, a subclass of Mammalia. Transthyretin was identified by thyroxine binding and Western analysis in the blood of adult shrews, hedgehogs, and moles. Transthyretin is synthesized in the liver and secreted into the bloodstream, similar to the situation for other adult eutherians, birds, and diprotodont marsupials, but different from that for adult fish, amphibians, reptiles, monotremes, and Australian polyprotodont marsupials. For the characterization of the structure of the gene and the processing of mRNA for transthyretin, cDNA libraries were prepared from RNA from hedgehog and shrew livers, and full-length cDNA clones were isolated and sequenced. Sections of genomic DNA in the regions coding for the splice sites between exons 1 and 2 were synthesized by polymerase chain reaction and sequenced. The location of splicing was deduced from comparison of genomic with cDNA nucleotide sequences. Changes in the nucleotide sequence of the transthyretin gene during evolution are most pronounced in the region coding for the N-terminal region of the protein. Both the derived overall amino sequences and the N-terminal regions of the transthyretins in Insectivora were found to be very similar to those in other eutherians but differed from those found in marsupials, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Also, the pattern of transthyretin precursor mRNA splicing in Insectivora was more similar to that in other eutherians than to that in marsupials, reptiles, and birds. Thus, in contrast to the marsupials, with a different pattern of transthyretin gene expression in the evolutionarily "older" polyprotodonts compared with the evolutionarily "younger" diprotodonts, no separate lineages of transthyretin evolution could be identified in eutherians. We conclude that transthyretin gene expression in the liver of adult eutherians probably appeared before the branching of the lineages leading to modern eutherian species.  (+info)

First case of human rabies in chile caused by an insectivorous bat virus variant. (5/71)

The first human rabies case in Chile since 1972 occurred in March 1996 in a patient without history of known exposure. Antigenic and genetic characterization of the rabies isolate indicated that its reservoir was the insectivorous bat Tadarida brasiliensis. This is the first human rabies case caused by an insectivorous bat rabies virus variant reported in Latin America.  (+info)

Evolutionary coherence of the mammalian amygdala. (6/71)

Despite great interest in the role of the amygdala in animal and human behaviour, its very existence as a structurally and functionally unified brain component has been questioned, on the grounds that cell groups within it display divergent pharmacological and connectional characteristics. We argue that the question of whether particular brain nuclei constitute a valid structural and functional unit is inherently an evolutionary question, and we present a method for answering it. The method involves phylogenetic analysis of comparative data to determine whether or not separate regions of the putative brain structure show statistically correlated evolution. We find that, in three separate groups of mammals (primates and two groups of insectivores), evolutionary changes in the volumes of amygdala components are strongly correlated, even after controlling for volumetric change in a wide range of limbic and other brain structures. This allows us to reject the strong claim that the amygdala is neither a structural nor a functional unit, and demonstrates the importance of evolutionary analysis in resolving such issues in systems neuroscience.  (+info)

The phylogenetic relationships of insectivores with special reference to the lesser hedgehog tenrec as inferred from the complete sequence of their mitochondrial genome. (7/71)

The complete mitochondrial genome of a lesser hedgehog tenrec Echinops telfairi was determined in this study. It is an endemic African insectivore that is found specifically in Madagascar. The tenrec's back is covered with hedgehog-like spines. Unlike other spiny mammals, such as spiny mice, spiny rats, spiny dormice and porcupines, lesser hedgehog tenrecs look amazingly like true hedgehogs (Erinaceidae). However, they are distinguished morphologically from hedgehogs by the absence of a jugal bone. We determined the complete sequence of the mitochondrial genome of a lesser hedgehog tenrec and analyzed the results phylogenetically to determine the relationships between the tenrec and other insectivores (moles, shrews and hedgehogs), as well as the relationships between the tenrec and endemic African mammals, classified as Afrotheria, that have recently been shown by molecular analysis to be close relatives of the tenrec. Our data confirmed the afrotherian status of the tenrec, and no direct relation was recovered between the tenrec and the hedgehog. Comparing our data with those of others, we found that within-species variations in the mitochondrial DNA of lesser hedgehog tenrecs appear to be the largest recognized to date among mammals, apart from orangutans, which might be interesting from the view point of evolutionary history of tenrecs on Madagascar.  (+info)

Fine structural changes in the epididymal epithelium of moles (Talpa europaea) throughout the year. (8/71)

The epididymis of the European mole (Talpa europaea) was studied by light and electron microscopy. In the sexually active animal, spermatozoa mature during their passage through the epididymis and the structure of the cells lining the duct suggests a clear regional division into initial, middle and terminal segments. Numerous intra-epithelial vesicles were present in the distal part of the middle segment of sexually active moles and the lining epithelium in the terminal segment appeared to be secretory. Variation in the sensitivity of different regions of the epididymis to androgens was apparent: the principal cells of the initial segment were morphologically active only during the peak of the breeding season in spring, while the cells of the terminal segment became active earlier and remained so for longer. During sexual regression, many autophagic vacuoles were found in the principal cells, and these became transformed into lipofuscin pigment granules. Cells heavily laden with these granules appeared concurrently in the lining epithelium. It is suggested that such cells may be involved in the regression of principal cells by means of heterophagic activity. A similar situation was also observed, but to a lesser extent, at the beginning of the breeding season. Outside the breeding season, the organelles of the principal cells were poorly developed throughout the epididymis, and lipofuscin pigment granules remained in the principal and basal cells of adults. Such granules were seldom seen in immature animals.  (+info)

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