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Classification and Systematics
Published in Jacques Derek Charlwood, The Ecology of Malaria Vectors, 2019
Flies (Diptera) have a mobile head with large compound eyes and three simple eyes (ocelli). The mouthparts are adapted for lapping and sponging liquids or piercing and sucking. A characteristic feature of the order is the possession of a single pair of membranous front wings, although some ectoparasitic species are wingless. The hindwings in all species are reduced to form a pair of balancing organs called halteres. These insects were given the name Diptera (Di – two, pteron – wings) by the Greek philosopher Aristotle around 500 BC so that Linnaeus did not need to find a new name when he first produced his classification.
Wasps (Yellowjackets, Hornets, and Paper Wasps)
Published in Gail Miriam Moraru, Jerome Goddard, The Goddard Guide to Arthropods of Medical Importance, Seventh Edition, 2019
Gail Miriam Moraru, Jerome Goddard
Again, it is important to mention that the commonly called bald-faced hornet that produces a large, egg-shaped aerial nest (Figure 31.5) is not a true hornet—it is a yellowjacket. Vespa crabro (the only true U.S. hornet) is a distinctive wasp with a large, robust body (2.5–3.5 cm long) and characteristic brown, orange, and red coloration. The head is swollen behind the eyes, and the ocelli (small, simple eyes) are remote from the margin of the head.
Profile of Toxic Pufferfish
Published in Ramasamy Santhanam, Biology and Ecology of Toxic Pufferfish, 2017
Description: Skin of this species is scaleless, but head and body are covered with small spines except on snout and caudal region. Teeth form beak-like structure consisting in each jaw of two pieces fused on midline and covered by layer of enamel. Nostrils are consisting of two fleshy lobes placed in front of folded collar surrounding the opening. Two pairs of non-perforated nasal tentacles are present. Dorsal and anal fins are short and placed far back on body. Pectoral fins are well developed. There are no pelvic fins. Caudal fin is rounded, and its length is of 3 times in standard length. Longitudinal stripes are seen along sides of body in adults. Black-rimmed red ocelli (eyespots) are present in juveniles. It feeds mainly on benthic organisms which may include freshwater mussels and snails. It rises to surface to inflate its body resembling a balloon. This inflation is useful to the fish as it is less easily eaten by predators. It reaches a maximum total length of 43 cm and weight of 1 kg.
Toxicity of nanoplastics during the embryogenesis of the ascidian Ciona robusta (Phylum Chordata)
Published in Nanotoxicology, 2020
Maria Concetta Eliso, Elisa Bergami, Loredana Manfra, Antonietta Spagnuolo, Ilaria Corsi
The results of the DCFDA assay in C. robusta embryos exposed to PS-NH2 (5-7.5–10-15 μg mL−1) are shown in Figure 6. A dose-dependent increase in fluorescence was observed with significant higher values at 10–15 µg mL−1, compared to controls. This data was further confirmed by a direct observation of exposed larvae under fluorescence microscope (Figure 7). C. robusta larvae exposed to 7.5 μg mL−1 PS-NH2 showed a fluorescent signal in the brain vesicle (Figure 7(B)), mostly around the ocellus which was absent in larvae from the control group (Figure 7(A)). Interestingly, the fluorescence signal expanded in almost all CNS of the larval trunk (brain vesicle and visceral ganglion) as well as in the palps of larvae exposed to 10 μg mL−1 (Figure 7(C)) and almost in the whole trunk, including the endoderm and the mesenchyme, at 15 μg mL−1 PS NPs treatment (Figure 7(D)). Notably, oxidative stress territories and phenotypic morphological alterations were both localized mostly at the level of trunk structures.
Time-restricted foraging under natural light/dark condition shifts the molecular clock in the honey bee, Apis mellifera
Published in Chronobiology International, 2018
Antennae, brains and SEGs were dissected on dry ice. During brain dissections, ocelli, compound eyes and all glandular tissue were removed. To get substantial amount of RNA from antennae and SEGs, four antennae (two bees) or two SEGs (two bees) were pooled in one sample. Total RNA from antennae (four antennae/sample), SEGs (two SEGs/sample), and brains (one brain/sample) was isolated using Trizol® reagent (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA) following the manufacturer’s protocol. RNA quantity and quality were assessed via nanodrop measurements and agarose gels. All samples were treated with DNase I (Invitrogen). 0.5 ug–1 ug of RNA was used to generate cDNA using Superscript III (Invitrogen) and oligo d(T)16 primers (Invitrogen). Primer pairs (S3 Table) for qPCR were designed in a way that one of the primers covered exon-exon junctions, not allowing the amplification of genomic DNA if any. Each reaction was run in triplicates using (10ul reaction mix) KAPA SYBR FAST qPCR Master Mix (Kapa Biosystems, Wilmington, MA) in 7900HT Fast Real-Time PCR system (Applied Biosystems, Carlsbad, CA). Purity of all the qPCRs was verified using dissociation/melt curve analysis. Although all primers showed efficiency of 95–100%, standard curves with a separate stock cDNA were generated in each qPCR (384-well) plate to reduce inter run variability. Test genes (clock genes) and ribosomal protein 49 (rp49) levels in all six time point samples from the same experiment were analyzed in the same plate. mRNA levels quantification was based on the linear values interpolated from the standard curves. rp49 was used as internal control gene for normalization.