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Aquatic Plants Native to America
Published in Namrita Lall, Aquatic Plants, 2020
Bianca D. Fibrich, Jacqueline Maphutha, Carel B. Oosthuizen, Danielle Twilley, Khan-Van Ho, Chung-Ho Lin, Leszek P. Vincent, T. N. Shilpa, N. P. Deepika, B. Duraiswamy, S. P. Dhanabal, Suresh M. Kumar, Namrita Lall
The extent of phenotypic plasticity observed within species of the Alisma genus has led to enormous confusion in taxonomic treatments thereof resulting in the speciation of the Alisma genus becoming a source of great contention among researchers. Researchers are turning to genome and transcriptome sequencing technology to delineate more specific phylogenetic relations between not only species of the same genera but between sister groups that are thought to have undergone parallel evolution (Tanaka, Suda et al. 1997, Jacobson and Hedrén 2007, Iles et al. 2013, Manton 2016, Kuzmina et al. 2017). The genome of A. triviale has not yet been completely sequenced; however, 23 identical protein groups and 28 proteins have been identified for this species and are available through the NCBI platform, A few are listed in Table 4.2.
Brazilian Bryophytes and Pteridophytes as Rich Sources of Medicinal Compounds
Published in Luzia Valentina Modolo, Mary Ann Foglio, Brazilian Medicinal Plants, 2019
Adaíses Simone Maciel-Silva, Lucas Vieira Lima
Recent phylogenies, especially those based on molecular data, have resulted in different hypotheses concerning the evolution of bryophyte lineages and the relationships between them (Crandall-Stotler et al., 2009; Goffinet et al., 2009; Renzaglia et al., 2007, 2009). Among the current phylogenetic hypotheses of land plants or embryophytes is the proposal that Marchantiophyta would have diverged early in the evolution of the group, while Anthocerotophyta is the sister group to all vascular plants; Bryophyta would be an intermediate group. Many recent studies have focused on understanding the evolution of land plants using ever broader frameworks, and bryophyte lineages seem to mark the transition from the algal ancestors of land plants to vascular plants (Goffinet and Buck, 2012; Goffinet et al., 2009).
Neurotransmitters in Marine and Freshwater Algae
Published in Akula Ramakrishna, Victoria V. Roshchina, Neurotransmitters in Plants, 2018
Kathryn L. Van Alstyne, Richard L. Ridgway, Timothy A. Nelson
The closest algal relatives of land plants, the green algal phyla Charophyta and Chlorophyta, include several species producing neurotransmitters or receptors for known neurotransmitters (Table 3.1). The Charophyta were recently removed from a single Phylum Chlorophyta, commonly called green algae, so that the remaining Chlorophyta represented a more nearly monophyletic group. Among the green algae, the Charophyta are sister to the land plants but are themselves a paraphyletic collection leading to multiple taxonomic schemes with various classes and orders being promoted to phylum status (Laurin-Lemay 2012) (Figure 3.2). Land plants are a sister group to the Zygnematales/Desmidiales lineages (Guiry 2013) which are included in the Charophyta sensu lato. Two species of charophytes have been associated with neurotransmitters; of these, Micrasterias denticulata, a member of the Desmidiales, would presumably be the closest relative of land plants (Schiechl et al. 2008; Beilby et al. 2015b).
Temporal flexibility in activity rhythms of a diurnal rodent, the ice rat (Otomys sloggetti)
Published in Chronobiology International, 2020
African vlei rats or laminate-toothed rats from the genus Otomys are widespread in sub-Saharan Africa. From a few field studies and anecdotal field observations, it appears that many of the vlei rats display diurnal or crepuscular activity in their natural environments (Haim and Fairall 1987; Hinze and Pillay 2006; Packer 1980; Vermeulen and Nel 1988). With the exception of the Karoo bush rat (O. unisulcatus), members of the genus Otomys are usually associated with alpine, montane and sub-montane habitats (Monadjem et al. 2015), which are generally cooler areas that would promote diurnal activity (Willmer et al. 2000). Taxonomic groupings of rodents tend to show similar temporal activity patterns, which seems to be related to habitat type (Roll et al. 2006). The timing of activity is an important adaptation for the survival of species, especially for species that live in more challenging habitats, such as mountains or deserts (Hut et al. 2012). Currently 31 Otomys species are recognized (Monadjem et al. 2015), and their taxonomy and morphology have been described comprehensively (Monadjem et al. 2015). The genus Otomys is grouped with Old World rats and mice, classified in the family Muridae and subfamily Murinae. Fossil and DNA evidence suggests Otomyinae is a sister group to Arvicanthis, another group of diurnal African rodents (Monadjem et al. 2015).
Therapeutic targets for the treatment of microsporidiosis in humans
Published in Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Targets, 2018
Microsporidia are unicellular, obligate intracellular parasites. They have a wide infection range from invertebrate to vertebrate hosts. Phylogenetic studies suggest that microsporidia are related to the fungi [1–3] probably as a sister group along with the Cryptomycota. Microsporidia were first identified in the nineteenth century when Nosema bombycis was identified as the cause of pebrine disease in Bombyx mori which almost destroyed the European silkworm industry [4]. Microsporidia are still responsible for economic losses due to their adverse effects on farming and other industries [5,6]. There are over 200 genera and 1400 species of microsporidia. While they are extremely diverse, they all contain a unique invasion apparatus the polar tube and are surrounded by a spore wall [7]. The spore wall contains two layers, the exospore layer, and a chitin-containing endospore layer [8–10]. Chitin is probably essential in maintaining spore rigidity and function. The polar tube is a highly specialized invasion organelle, which is coiled around the sporoplasm inside of spore before germination and invasion. Upon appropriate environmental stimulation, the polar tube extrudes out of spore rapidly and polar tube proteins interact with host cell surface proteins creating an invasion synapse, the sporoplasm and nucleus travel down the hollow polar tube and enter the host cells in this invasion synapse [11–14]. The sporoplasm then undergoes its life cycle which consists of a proliferative phase (merogony), spore production phase (sporogony), and formation of mature spores (infective phase), either in a parasitophorous vacuole or in the host cytoplasm depending on the species of microsporidia [15,16].
Facial Attractiveness of the Sisters of Istmo Zapotec Men and Muxes: Implications for the Evolution of Male Androphilia
Published in The Journal of Sex Research, 2022
Francisco R. Gómez Jiménez, Paul L. Vasey
From the pool of 67 images of control sisters, we randomly selected 27 that were within the same age range as the 27 muxe sisters (i.e., 18–46) to create the stimuli for male raters. This was done so that the two sister groups would not differ significantly in age (see Results). Thus, 54 images composed of 27 muxe sisters and 27 control sisters were selected for males to rate. The order of the 54 images was randomized for placement into a flipbook. The images were then divided into 4 blocks (two with 13 pictures and two with 14 pictures), and the block order was randomized for each male rater.