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This page shows you the most recent publications within this specialty of the MedWorm directory. This is page number 25.

Male breeding success is predicted by call frequency in a territorial species, the agile frog (Rana dalmatina)email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
David Lesbarrères, Juha Merilä, and Thierry Lodé - Calling behaviour and the characteristics of the male call are important for both female mate choice and male mating success in anurans. As with most...
Source: Canadian Journal of Zoology - October 30, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals

Solving XOR.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Three experiments examined the way in which exclusive-or (XOR) problems are solved by rats. All rats first received food-rewarded positive and negative patterning problems with two stimulus sets: either A+, B+, AB- and C-, D-, CD+, or A-, B-, AB + and C+, D +, and CD-. Subsequently, rats received revaluation trials in which A was paired with shock and C was not, prior to generalization test trials with B, D, AB, and CD (Experiments 1 & 2); or received A?shock trials prior to tests with B and CD (Experiment 3). There was greater generalized fear to B than to either D (Experiments 1 & 2) or AB (Experiment 2) and CD (Experime...
Source: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes - October 28, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Grand, C.; Honey, R. C. Source Type: journals

Negative patterning is easier than a biconditional discrimination.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Two groups of rats were trained for 50 days on different discriminations in a magazine approach paradigm. One group was trained with a negative patterning schedule and a positive patterning schedule concurrently: they received intermixed trials of A+, B+, AB-, C-, D-, CD+ (A, B, C, and D are four distinct stimuli; the plus sign denotes reinforcement with food, and the minus sign denotes nonreinforcement). The second group of rats was trained with the same four stimuli arranged as compounds and reinforced according to the biconditional schedule AB+, CD+, AC-, and BD-. The first group learned the positive patterning schedule...
Source: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes - October 28, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Harris, Justin A.; Livesey, Evan J.; Gharaei, Saba; Westbrook, R. Frederick Source Type: journals

Analysis of the role of associative inhibition in perceptual learning by means of the same-different task.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
In Experiment 1a, participants were exposed, over a series of trials, to separate presentations of 2 similar checkerboard stimuli, AX and BX (where X represents a common background). In one group, AX and BX were presented on alternating trials (intermixed), in another, they were presented in separate blocks of trials (blocked). The intermixed group performed to a higher standard than the blocked group on a same-different test. A superiority of intermixed over blocked exposure was also evident in a within-subject design (Experiment 1b) and when the test required discrimination between a preexposed stimulus and the backgroun...
Source: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes - October 28, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Mitchell, Chris; Kadib, Raja; Nash, Scott; Lavis, Yvonna; Hall, Geoffrey Source Type: journals

Spontaneous recovery of extinguished fear responses deepens their extinction: A role for error-correction mechanisms.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
A series of experiments used a within-subject design to study spontaneous recovery of fear responses (freezing) to an extinguished conditioned stimulus (CS) in rats. Experiments 1, 2, 3, and 4 demonstrated that: a remotely extinguished CS elicited more freezing than a recently extinguished one on a common test; that the CS showing recovery underwent greater response loss across additional extinction than the one lacking recovery; and that spontaneous recovery and deepening of response loss survived reconditioning. Experiment 5 demonstrated that an excitor extinguished in compound with a CS showing recovery suffered greater...
Source: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes - October 28, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Leung, Hiu Tin; Westbrook, R. Frederick Source Type: journals

Changes in cue associability across training in human causal learning.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
A series of experiments studied the amount learned about two food cues (A and B) whose presentation in a meal was followed by an allergy (+) in a fictitious patient. Participants were trained with A+ and C+ in Phase 1 and then with AB+ or AB++ in Phase 2. Subsequent testing revealed that BC was more allergenic than AD, showing that more had been learned about B than A in Phase 2. Participants were also trained with A+, then with AB+, and finally with AB++. The results of interpolating AB+ between A+ and AB++ training were consistent with the hypothesis that pretraining with Cue A selectively suppressed attention to its ass...
Source: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes - October 28, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Mitchell, Chris J.; Harris, Justin A.; Westbrook, R. Frederick; Griffiths, Oren Source Type: journals

Choice as a function of reinforcer "hold": From probability learning to concurrent reinforcement.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Two procedures commonly used to study choice are concurrent reinforcement and probability learning. Under concurrent-reinforcement procedures, once a reinforcer is scheduled, it remains available indefinitely until collected. Therefore reinforcement becomes increasingly likely with passage of time or responses on other operanda. Under probability learning, reinforcer probabilities are constant and independent of passage of time or responses. Therefore a particular reinforcer is gained or not, on the basis of a single response, and potential reinforcers are not retained, as when betting at a roulette wheel. In the "real" wo...
Source: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes - October 28, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Jensen, Greg; Neuringer, Allen Source Type: journals

Spatial cognition in the gerbil: computing optimal escape routes from visual threats.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Previous studies in our laboratory have shown that when presented with a sudden stimulus simulating an oncoming predator, Mongolian gerbils can compute the optimal trajectory to a safe refuge, taking into account the position of the threat, the location of a clearly visible refuge, and several other contextual variables as well. In the present studies, the main goal was to explore the abilities of gerbils to use mental representations of spaces that were visually occluded by opaque barriers to compute efficient escape trajectories. In all studies, gerbils were placed into a round open field containing a single refuge. ...
Source: Animal Cognition - October 28, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Ellard CG, Eller MC Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Predator-naïve fall field crickets respond to the chemical cues of wolf spidersemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Jonathan J. Storm and Steven L. Lima - Few studies have addressed whether terrestrial insects assess predation risk via chemical cues. We exposed predator-naïve fall field crickets (Gryllus pennsylvanicus Burmeister, 1838) to filter...
Source: Canadian Journal of Zoology - October 25, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals

Identifying patterns of diversity of the actinopterygian fulcraemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Arratia, G. 2008. Identifying patterns of diversity of the actinopterygian fulcra. [mdash]Acta Zoologica (Stockholm) 89: 000[ndash]000 Fin rays, scutes or ridge scales, and fulcra have been traditionally interpreted as modified scales, but their diversity has been almost ignored. Based on results presented here, revised definitions of these elements are provided. At least two patterns of basal fulcra are found in actinopterygians: in Pattern I all or most basal fulcra are paired elements, whereas in Pattern II, a series of unpaired basal fulcra that are bifurcated proximally, and whose forking gradually becomes larger caud...
Source: Acta Zoologica - October 24, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Gloria Arratia Source Type: journals

The Drosophila STIM1 orthologue, dSTIM, has roles in cell fate specification and tissue patterningemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Conclusions: Our studies show that dSTIM regulates growth and patterning of imaginal discs and indicate potential interactions with the Notch and Wingless signaling pathways. These interactions may be relevant to studies implicating STIM family proteins in tumorigenesis.
Source: BMC Developmental Biology - Latest articles - October 24, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Jean-Pierre Eid, Alfonso Martinez Arias, Hannah Robertson, Gary R Hime and Marie Dziadek Source Type: journals

Domain-specific regulation of foxP2 CNS expression by lef1email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Conclusion: This work shows that lef1 is necessary for expression of foxP2 in the tectum, mid-hindbrain boundary, and hindbrain during CNS development, and is the first insight into the upstream regulation of foxP2 during development. We also demonstrate that in silico prediction of potential lef1 binding sites poorly predicts their ability to function in vivo as enhancers. The foxP2 enhancers we identified will allow dissection of foxP2's role during CNS development.
Source: BMC Developmental Biology - Latest articles - October 24, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Joshua L. Bonkowsky, Xu Wang, Esther Fujimoto, Ji Eun Lee, Chi-Bin Chien and Richard I. Dorsky Source Type: journals

Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) and bonobos (Pan paniscus) point to inform a human about the location of a tool.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Although pointing is not part of great apes' natural gestural repertoire, they can learn to point to food, in order to request it. To assess the flexibility with which they can use this gesture, one can vary the potential referent of the point. In two previous studies, three orangutans (two of them human-reared) have shown the ability to point to the location of a tool which a human experimenter needed in order to give them food. Here, we tested six orangutans and five bonobos using a set-up in which our subjects had to guide a human experimenter to the hiding place of a fork which was needed in order to retrieve a pie...
Source: Animal Cognition - October 24, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Zimmermann F, Zemke F, Call J, Gómez JC Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Differential survival of allosperm by location within the female storage organ of the snail Cornu aspersumemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Ronald Chase and Emily Darbyson - The sperm storage organ of terrestrial gastropod molluscs is implicated in sexual selection because it has a complex structure and it functions in a context...
Source: Canadian Journal of Zoology - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals

Fish louse Argulus funduli (Crustacea: Branchiura) ectoparasites of the euryhaline teleost host, Fundulus heteroclitus, damage the ion-transport capacity of the opercular epitheliumemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
W. S. Marshall, R. R.F. Cozzi, and C. Strapps - Killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus (L., 1766)) collected in the wild and kept in full-strength seawater were naturally parasitized by the ectoparasite Argulus funduli Krøyer, 1863, a...
Source: Canadian Journal of Zoology - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals

Fecal excretion of alcohols and organic anions in neonatal dairy calvesemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
To clarify colonic fermentation during the perinatal period, 22 dairy calves less than 6 weeks old were used. They were given a milk replacer following colostrum feeding. A total 100 samples of normal feces including meconium were collected from the rectum of the calves. Fecal pH, alcohols, lactate and volatile fatty acids (VFAs) were analyzed. Higher ethanol and n-propanol concentrations were found in many fecal samples particularly in the first 2 weeks after birth, but these metabolites showed consistently lower concentrations thereafter. By contrast, higher concentrations of methanol were observed in some samples for al...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Hiroshi SATO, Yumiko SHIOGAMA Source Type: journals

Improved conception rates in sows inseminated with cryopreserved boar spermatozoa prepared with a more optimal combination of osmolality and glycerol in the freezing extenderemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
In this study, we investigated the motility, membrane and acrosomal integrity of frozen-thawed boar spermatozoa treated with freezing extender (NSF) of varying osmolalities (300, 400, 500 mOsm/kg) and final concentrations of glycerol (0.5, 1, 2, 3%). The spermatozoa that were treated at 400 mOsm/kg and 2% glycerol showed significantly higher rates of motility and membrane integrity compared with those in other treatment groups. In addition, the conception and implantation rates of swine artificially inseminated with spermatozoa frozen by the novel freezing extender (conception; 79%, implantation; 57.5%) were significantly ...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Tetsuji OKAZAKI, Shouhachiro ABE, Masayuki SHIMADA Source Type: journals

Cloning of PRL and VIP cDNAs of the Java sparrow (Padda oryzivora)email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Complementary DNA (cDNA) of prolactin (PRL) and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) of the Java sparrow were cloned and sequenced. The proximal region of the PRL promoter was also identified. Java sparrow PRL was found to have 88.3, 88.3, and 89.1% sequence identity at the cDNA level to PRL of chicken, turkey, and duck, respectively. The predicted amino acid sequence had an overall similarity with a comparable region of chicken (91.4%), turkey (88.9%) and duck (92.0%) PRL. Based on the cDNA sequence and genomic structure of the chicken PRL gene, the proximal promoter was characterized. Sequence analysis of the proximal...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Gen HIYAMA, Tsukasa SATO, David ZADWORNY, Norio KANSAKU Source Type: journals

Goat milk acceptance and promotion methods in Japan: The questionnaire survey to middle class householdsemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
A consumer questionnaire conducted with the purpose of ascertaining the acceptability of goat milk and related products in Japan was carried out on 345 guarantees of Nippon Veterinary and Life Science University in December 2006. 275 effective responses (79%) representing middle class urban households were returned. The results revealed that (1) 30% of respondents have experienced drinking goat milk and only 10% are aware of the current retail situation of goat milk and related products; (2) over 70% of goat milk drinkers raised goats by hand at some point in their past and their first experience drinking goat milk was in ...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Takeyuki OZAWA, Kumiko MUKUDA, Masaru FUJITA, Jiro NISHITANI Source Type: journals

Relationships between tropomyosin and myosin heavy chain isoforms in bovine skeletal muscleemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
The composition of tropomyosin (TPM) and myosin heavy chain (MyHC) isoforms was analyzed in 10 physiologically different bovine muscles (masseter, diaphragm, tongue, semispinalis, pectoralis profundus, biceps femoris, psoas major, semimembranosus, longissimus thoracis and semitendinosus) to clarify the relationships between TPM and MyHC isoforms in different muscle fiber types. The content of TPM1 and TPM3 was different in muscles according to their function in muscle contraction, although the content of TPM2 was constantly about 50% of the total TPM in all muscles. The content of TPM1 was higher in semimembranosus, longis...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Mika OE, Ikuyo NAKAJIMA, Susumu MUROYA, Masahiro SHIBATA, Koich CHIKUNI Source Type: journals

Microbiota analysis of Caspian Sea yogurt, a ropy fermented milk circulated in Japanemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
We analyzed the microbiota of domestic ropy fermented milk, Caspian Sea yogurt (or 'kasupikai yohguruto' in Japanese), circulated in Japan. We collected six varieties from five localities. Lactococcus (L) lactis ssp. cremoris was isolated from all samples as the dominant strain at levels of 108[minus]109 CFU/g. We show this strain produces an extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) that causes the unique characteristic viscosity of the product. From analysis of the RAPD pattern of 60 bacterial isolates from the six samples, we found that 59 strains from a total of 60 isolates were identical and produced this viscosity. Furtherm...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Kenji UCHIDA, Keiko AKASHI, Hidemasa MOTOSHIMA, Tadasu URASHIMA, Ikichi ARAI, Tadao SAITO Source Type: journals

Mobiloization of intracellular calcium ions in chicken and rat lymphocytes induced by T cell mitogensemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Cytosolic Ca2+ is known to be an important factor in intracellular signaling pathways that regulate several cellular functions. The present study was designed to measure the intracellular concentrations of Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) in T cell mitogen-stimulated chicken lymphocytes, and to compare the results with those in rat lymphocytes. [Ca2+]i was increased in the thymocytes, splenocytes and bursacytes of chickens, and in the thymocytes and splenocytes of rats following exposure to the mitogens phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) and concanavalin A (ConA). Increases were greatest in the thymocytes followed by the splenocytes and bursacytes. ...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: , Kiyoaki NARAHARA, Asaki ABE, Yasuhiro KONDO Source Type: journals

Chemical characterization, energy values, protein and carbohydrate fractions, degradation kinetics of frost damaged wheat (with severely overall weight loss) in ruminantsemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
In conclusion, the frozen wheat differed in chemical characteristics, TDN and energy values, protein and carbohydrate fractions and in situ degradation behavior from normal wheat. The chemical and nutritional characterization of wheat was highly associated with climate condition (frost damage). The frost damage to the wheat reduced nutrient content and availability and thus reduced nutrient supply to ruminants.
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Peiqiang YU, Vern RACZ Source Type: journals

Mom's shadow: structure-from-motion in newly hatched chicks as revealed by an imprinting procedure.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
The ability to recognize three-dimensional objects from two-dimensional (2-D) displays was investigated in domestic chicks, focusing on the role of the object's motion. In Experiment 1 newly hatched chicks, imprinted on a three-dimensional (3-D) object, were allowed to choose between the shadows of the familiar object and of an object never seen before. In Experiments 2 and 3 random-dot displays were used to produce the perception of a solid shape only when set in motion. Overall, the results showed that domestic chicks were able to recognize familiar shapes from 2-D motion stimuli. It is likely that similar general me...
Source: Animal Cognition - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Mascalzoni E, Regolin L, Vallortigara G Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Sexual dimorphism in bill morphology and feeding ecology in Cory's shearwater (Calonectris diomedea).email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
The bill is a sexually dimorphic structure in many bird species and implicated in numerous functions. Sexual differences may arise from sexual selection or ecological divergence. Here, we examined differences in bill size and shape between males and females and explored to what extent these relate to feeding ecology of each sex in Cory's shearwater (Calonectris diomedea). We applied linear measurements and geometric morphometric methods to examine sexual differences in bill size and shape. We investigated feeding ecology by tracking foraging movements during the breeding period and by analysing stable isotope signature...
Source: Zoology - October 22, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Navarro J, Kaliontzopoulou A, González-Solís J Tags: Zoology (Jena) Source Type: journals

Object permanence in lemurs.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
The objective of this study was to examine whether lemurs possess object permanence. Thirteen adult subjects representing four species of diurnal lemur (Eulemur fulvus rufus, Eulemur mongoz, Lemur catta and Hapalemur griseus) were presented with seven standard Piagetian visible and invisible object displacement tests, plus one single visible test where the subject had to wait predetermined times before allowed to search, and two invisible tests where each hiding place was made visually unique. In all visible tests lemurs were able to find an object that had been in clear view before being hidden. However, when lemurs were ...
Source: Animal Cognition - October 21, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Deppe AM, Wright PC, Szelistowski WA Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Primary chondrification foci in the wing basipodium of Struthio camelus with comments on interpretation of autopodial elements in Crocodilia and Aves.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Conclusions: (1) The existence of five discrete metacarpal condensations in the 16-day embryo of Struthio argues for unique linear patterning process for each, and these are interpreted as digits 2,3,4 originating from metacarpal condensations 2,3,4. Nine chondrogenic foci appear in the Struthio carpus: radiale, centrale, intermedium, ulnare, pseudoulnare, pisiform, distal carpal 2+3, distal carpal 4, and distal carpal 5. It is evident that: (a) the avian "radiale" represents fused chondrogenic foci of the intermedium plus the radiale; (b) a neomorph carpal element, the pseudoulnare (probably avian autapomorphy), replaces ...
Source: Journal of Experimental Zoology. Part B. Molecular and Developmental Evolution - October 21, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Kundrát M Tags: J Exp Zoolog B Mol Dev Evol Source Type: journals

Insights into the early evolution of SOX genes from expression analyses in a ctenophore.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
SOX genes encode transcription factors acting in various developmental processes in bilaterian animals, such as stem cell maintenance and the control of specification and differentiation of cell types in a variety of contexts, notably in the developing nervous system. To gain insights into the early evolution of this important family of developmental regulators, we investigated the expression of one subgroup B, two subgroup E, one subgroup F and two divergent SOX genes in the cydippid larva and in the adult of the ctenophore Pleurobrachia pileus. Transcripts of the two unclassified SOX (PpiSOX2/12) were detected in the...
Source: Journal of Experimental Zoology. Part B. Molecular and Developmental Evolution - October 21, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Jager M, Quéinnec E, Chiori R, Le Guyader H, Manuel M Tags: J Exp Zoolog B Mol Dev Evol Source Type: journals

beta-keratins of the crocodilian epidermis: composition, structure, and phylogenetic relationships.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences of three beta-keratins of Nile crocodile scales are presented. Using 5'- and 3'-RACE analysis, two cDNA sequences of 1 kb (Cr-gptrp-1) and 1.5 kb (Cr-gptrp-2) were determined, corresponding to 17.4 and 19.3 kDa proteins, respectively, and a pI of 8.0. In genomic DNA amplifications, we determined that the 5'-UTR of Cr-gptrp-2 contains an intron of 621 nucleotides. In addition, we isolated a third gene (Cr-gptrp-3) in genomic DNA amplifications that exhibits seven amino acid differences with Cr-gptrp-2. Genomic organization of the sequenced crocodilian beta-keratin genes is sim...
Source: Journal of Experimental Zoology. Part B. Molecular and Developmental Evolution - October 21, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Dalla Valle L, Nardi A, Gelmi C, Toni M, Emera D, Alibardi L Tags: J Exp Zoolog B Mol Dev Evol Source Type: journals

New method to deliver exogenous material into developing planarian embryos.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
In this study, we used egg capsules from Schmidtea polychroa (Schmidt, 1861) to microinject 1 microm fluorescein isothiocyanate fluorescent beads into the live embryos. We obtained viability values ranging from 15% in early egg capsules to 100% in late developmental stages. Moreover, we measured the delivery effectiveness as the number of hatchlings containing fluorescent beads per microinjected egg capsule, reaching 100% in early stages and almost 40% in late stages. This is the first time that planarian embryos have been modified without compromising normal development. We consider that this technique will be of extreme ...
Source: Journal of Experimental Zoology. Part B. Molecular and Developmental Evolution - October 21, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Martín-Durán JM, Duocastella M, Serra P, Romero R Tags: J Exp Zoolog B Mol Dev Evol Source Type: journals

Tropical parabiotic ants: Highly unusual cuticular substances and low interspecific discriminationemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Conclusions: We conclude that there is a mutual substance transfer between Cr. modiglianii and Ca. rufifemur. Ca. rufifemur actively or passively acquires cuticular steroids from its Cr. modiglianii partner, while the latter acquires at least two cuticular hydrocarbons from Ca. rufifemur. The cuticular substances of both species are highly unusual regarding both substance classes and chain lengths, which may cause the apparent inability of Cr. modiglianii to discriminate Ca. rufifemur nestmates from allocolonial Ca. rufifemur workers of the same chemical variety.
Source: Frontiers in Zoology - October 20, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Florian Menzel, Nico Bluthgen and Thomas Schmitt Source Type: journals

The club-shaped gland of amphioxus: export of secretion to the pharynx in pre-metamorphic larvae and apoptosis during metamorphosisemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Holland, N.D., Paris, M. and Koop, D. 2008. The club-shaped gland of amphioxus: export of secretion to the pharynx in pre-metamorphic larvae and apoptosis during metamorphosis. [mdash]Acta Zoologica (Stockholm) 00: 000[ndash]000 In amphioxus larvae, the club-shaped gland is a tube connecting the pharyngeal lumen with the external environment. The functions of the gland and its fate during the larva-to-juvenile metamorphosis have long been controversial. Here we use a fixative including ruthenium red to preserve extracellular secretions (presumably glycoproteins) in late pre-metamorphic larvae. This procedure reveals reddis...
Source: Acta Zoologica - October 18, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Nicholas D. Holland, Mathilde Paris, Demian Koop Source Type: journals

Intersexual niche divergence in northern map turtles (Graptemys geographica): the roles of diet and habitatemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
G. Bulté, M.-A. Gravel, and G. Blouin-Demers - Sexual dimorphism in body size and in trophic morphology are common in animals and are often concordant with patterns of habitat use and diet. Proximate...
Source: Canadian Journal of Zoology - October 17, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals

Fine structure of spermatozoa of Chondrostoma nasus and Rutilus meidingerii (Teleostei, Cyprinidae), as revealed by scanning and transmission electron microscopyemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Fürböck, S., Patzner, R.A. and Lahnsteiner, F. 2008. Fine structure of spermatozoa of Chondrostoma nasus and Rutilus meidingerii (Teleostei, Cyprinidae), as revealed by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. [mdash] Acta Zoologica (Stockholm) 89: 000[ndash]000 The fine structure of spermatozoa of sneep or nase, Chondrostoma nasus, and lake chub, Rutilus meidingerii, was investigated by means of scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The uniflagellate spermatozoa of C. nasus lacked an acrosome. The flagellum contained the conventional nine peripheral doublets and one central pair of microtubules (9 + 2 pat...
Source: Acta Zoologica - October 17, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Sonja Fürböck, Robert A. Patzner, Franz Lahnsteiner Source Type: journals

Humans (Homo sapiens) fail to show an inequity effect in an "up-linkage" analog of the monkey inequity test.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
This report exemplifies that up- and down-linkage tests are often requisite to establish commonality of psychological process between nonhuman primates and humans. PMID: 18925422 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Animal Cognition - October 17, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Hachiga Y, Silberberg A, Parker S, Sakagami T Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Concept of uprightness in baboons: assessment with pictures of realistic scenes.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
How nonhuman primates process pictures of natural scenes or objects remains a matter of debates. This issue was addressed in the current research by questioning the processing of the canonical orientation of pictures in baboons. Two adult guinea baboons were trained to use an interactive key (IK) on a touch-screen to change the orientation of target pictures showing humans or quadruped mammals until upright. In experiment 1, both baboons successfully learned to use the IK when that key induced a 90 degrees rightward rotation of the picture, but post-training transfer of performance did not occur to novel pictures of na...
Source: Animal Cognition - October 17, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Fagot J, Bonté E, Parron C Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Left gaze bias in humans, rhesus monkeys and domestic dogs.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
While viewing faces, human adults often demonstrate a natural gaze bias towards the left visual field, that is, the right side of the viewee's face is often inspected first and for longer periods. Using a preferential looking paradigm, we demonstrate that this bias is neither uniquely human nor limited to primates, and provide evidence to help elucidate its biological function within a broader social cognitive framework. We observed that 6-month-old infants showed a wider tendency for left gaze preference towards objects and faces of different species and orientation, while in adults the bias appears only towards uprig...
Source: Animal Cognition - October 17, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Guo K, Meints K, Hall C, Hall S, Mills D Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Gorillas' (Gorilla gorilla) use of experimenter-given manual and facial cues in an object-choice task.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Several experiments have been performed to examine the great apes' use of experimenter-given manual and visual cues in object-choice tasks. Considering their use of referential gestures in gaze-following paradigms, great apes perform surprisingly unsuccessfully in object-choice tasks. However, the large majority of object-choice experiments have been conducted with chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) with very few experiments including other great ape species, making it difficult to generalize about the great apes. Interestingly, the only object-choice task conducted with gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) has indicated successful u...
Source: Animal Cognition - October 17, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Byrnit JT Tags: Anim Cogn Source Type: journals

Apoptotic markers can be used to forecast the freezeability of stallion spermatozoa.email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
In an attempt to identify valuable markers for potential freezeability of the equine spermatozoa, three ejaculates were collected from five Andalusian stallions and frozen using a standard protocol. Before freezing, three apoptotic cell markers were studied by flow cytometry (early changes in sperm membranes, mitochondrial membrane potential and caspase activity). Post-thaw, spermatozoa were again evaluated for these parameters. Sperm kinematics using CASA were also studied before and after freezing and thawing. Receiving operating system curves were used to evaluate the relative value of the apoptotic markers herein s...
Source: Animal Reproduction Science - October 17, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Ortega-Ferrusola C, Macías García B, Gallardo-Bolaños JM, González-Fernández L, Rodríguez-Martinez H, Tapia JA, Peña FJ Tags: Anim Reprod Sci Source Type: journals

Dusky dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) subgroup distribution: are shallow waters a refuge for nursery groups?email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
J. S. Weir, N. M.T. Duprey, and B. Würsig - Mammalian young are especially vulnerable to harm because of their small size, poorly developed survival skills, and strong dependence on maternal care. Tactics for rearing...
Source: Canadian Journal of Zoology - October 16, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals

Determination of angiotensin-I converting enzyme inhibitory peptides in chicken leg bone protein hydrolysate with alcalaseemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
This study aims to identify peptides with angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity in hydrolysate from chicken leg bone protein hydrolyzed with alcalase for 4 h (A4H). The hydrolysate has demonstrated potent in vitro ACE inhibitory activity, and has been shown to attenuate the development of hypertension and cardiovascular hypertrophy in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). A4H is competitive for ACE and was separated using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a gel filtration column (Superdex Peptide HR 10/30). The results show that A4H is a mixed non-competitive inhibitor. Eighteen fracti...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 14, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Fu-Yuan CHENG, Tien-Chun WAN, Yu-Tse LIU, Chi-Ming CHEN, Liang-Chuan LIN, Ryoichi SAKATA Source Type: journals

Ability of heifers to discriminate between familiar herdmates and members of an unfamiliar group: preference test and operant conditioning testemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
In conclusion, heifers did not show a preference toward familiar or unfamiliar individuals; but after conditioning, some heifers could learn to discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar groups.
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 13, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Yuki KOBA, Lene MUNKSGAARD, Hajime TANIDA, Lene PEDERSEN Source Type: journals

The structure of vocalization of ewes and male lambs at pastureemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
We performed an analysis of the vocalization of 161 ewes and 50 male lambs that were pastured day and night. The vocalization structures of the phonetic notations of the opened-mouth from closed mouth /[eta]aee/ and /[eta]naeee/ and closed-mouth /[eta][eta][eta][eta]/ of ewes, and the opened-mouth from closed-mouth /[eta]eee/ and /[eta]neeee/ and closed-mouth /[eta][eta][eta][eta]/ of male lambs were studied in terms of their audio characteristics. The items subject to analysis included duration of each vocalization, fundamental frequency, sound pressure and first formant (F1), second formant (F2), and third formant (F3). ...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 13, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Hirofumi NAEKAWA Source Type: journals

The evaluation of the curd forming ability of milk replacersemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
This study showed that most of the milk replacers sold in Japan could not form the curd with rennet.
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 13, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Keiji OKADA, Junro KATO, Tamako MIYAZAKI, Kentaro IKUTA, Yoshihisa NAITO, Jun YASUDA Source Type: journals

Effect of cooking time on some nutrient and antinutrient components of bambaragroundnut seedsemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
The proximate composition, gross energy, mineral composition, percentage sugar, oligosaccharides and antinutrient substances of bambaragroundnut seeds subjected to different cooking times were determined. The seeds were cooked for 30, 60, 90 and 120 min. Results of the proximate analysis showed that only the ether extract and ash were significantly (P < 0.05) reduced as the cooking time increased. In contrast, gross energy values significantly (P < 0.05) increased with increased cooking time. Amongst, the mineral elements assayed, calcium, magnesium and iron were significantly (P < 0.05) increased, while phosphorous, potas...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 13, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Stanley Omoh OMOIKHOJE, Mohammed Bashiru ARUNA, Adeyemi Mustapha BAMGBOSE Source Type: journals

Effects of dietary glucose level during late gestation on litter performance and glucose concentration in sowsemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
In conclusion, feeding glucose to sows during 5 days before parturition increased birth weight of live-born piglet and decreased sows feed intake during lactation, but did not affect the performance of sows and piglets.
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 13, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Young-Keun HAN, Qi WANG, Jin-Ho CHO, Ying-Jie CHEN, Joo-Sang YOO, Seung-Oh SHIN, In-Ho KIM Source Type: journals

The effect of fermented apple diet supplementation on the growth performance and meat quality in finishing pigsemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of fermented apple diet (FAD) supplementation on the growth performance and meat quality in finishing Berkshires. The FAD was made from dropped apple mixed with rice bran and barley bran. Until 81 ± 1 kg live weight at 133 ± 1 days, the animals were fed a growing diet, after which experimental samples were fixed at 0, 2, 4 and 6% FAD as C, T1, T2 and T3 in the finishing diets. Growth performance, ADG, ADFI and feed efficiency were improved in T1 than other groups. In carcass parameters, carcass weight was higher (P < 0.05) in T1 than in other groups. In mea...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 13, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Sung Dae LEE, Hoi Yun KIM, Hyun Jung JUNG, Sang Yun JI, Rekha CHOWDAPPA, Ji Hee HA, Young Min SONG, Jun Cheol PARK, Hong Kil MOON, In Cheul KIM Source Type: journals

Relationships between physical and structural properties of intramuscular connective tissue and toughness of raw porkemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
We studied the relationships between the shear-force value and physical and structural properties of the intramuscular connective tissue (IMCT) in six classes of porcine skeletal muscle to elucidate the contribution of IMCT to toughness of raw pork. The shear-force value of raw pork correlated significantly with that of the IMCT model prepared from each class of skeletal muscle (P < 0.05). The correlation suggested that the variable toughness of pork was caused by the mechanical strength of the endomysium and perimysium. The thickness of the secondary perimysium correlated significantly with the shear-force value of raw po...
Source: Animal Science Journal - October 13, 2008 Category: Zoology Authors: Takanori NISHIMURA, Suhong FANG, Jun-ichi WAKAMATSU, Koui TAKAHASHI Source Type: journals

Evolution and maintenance of colour pattern polymorphism in Liopholis (Squamata : Scincidae)email this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
David G. Chapple, Mark N. Hutchinson, Brad Maryan, Mike Plivelich, Jennifer A. Moore, J. Scott Keogh - Volume 56(2)
Source: Australian Journal of Zoology - October 12, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals

In superb fairy wrens (Malurus cyaneus), nuptial males have more blood parasites and higher haemoglobin concentration than eclipsed malesemail this articleEmail this article to a colleague. save this article to My ClippingsSave this article to My Clippings. discuss this articleDiscuss or comment on this article.
Diane Colombelli-Négrel, Sonia Kleindorfer - Volume 56(2)
Source: Australian Journal of Zoology - October 12, 2008 Category: Zoology Source Type: journals