scholarly journals The emerging vertebrate model species for neurophysiological studies is Danionella cerebrum, new species (Teleostei: Cyprinidae)

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralf Britz ◽  
Kevin W. Conway ◽  
Lukas Rüber
Keyword(s):  
Sound Production ◽  
Adult Size ◽  
Undescribed Species ◽  
Behavioral Repertoire ◽  
Model Species ◽  
Sexual Dimorphisms ◽  
Neurophysiological Studies ◽  
Weberian Apparatus ◽  
Vertebrate Model ◽  
Important Challenge

AbstractThe four described species of Danionella are tiny, transparent fishes that mature at sizes between 10–15 mm, and represent some of the most extreme cases of vertebrate progenesis known to date. The miniature adult size and larval appearance of Danionella, combined with a diverse behavioral repertoire linked to sound production by males, have established Danionella as an important model for neurophysiological studies. The external similarity between the different species of Danionella has offered an important challenge to taxonomic identification using traditional external characters, leading to confusion over the identity of the model species. Using combined morphological and molecular taxonomic approaches, we show here that the most extensively studied species of Danionella is not D. translucida, but represents an undescribed species, D. cerebrum n. sp. that is externally almost identical to D. translucida, but differs trenchantly in several internal characters. Molecular analyses confirm the distinctiveness of D. cerebrum and D. translucida and suggest that the two species are not even sister taxa. Analysis of the evolution of sexual dimorphisms associated with the Weberian apparatus reveals significant increases in complexity from the simpler condition found in D. dracula, to most complex conditions in D. cerebrum, D. mirifica and D. translucida.

scholarly journals Evolution of Courtship Songs in Xenopus: Vocal Pattern Generation and Sound Production

2015 ◽  
Vol 145 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 302-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth C. Leininger ◽  
Darcy B. Kelley
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Sound Production ◽  
Pattern Generation ◽  
Model Species ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Evolutionary Trajectories ◽  
Strong Candidate ◽  
Species Specific

The extant species of African clawed frogs (Xenopus and Silurana) provide an opportunity to link the evolution of vocal characters to changes in the responsible cellular and molecular mechanisms. In this review, we integrate several robust lines of research: evolutionary trajectories of Xenopus vocalizations, cellular and circuit-level mechanisms of vocalization in selected Xenopus model species, and Xenopus evolutionary history and speciation mechanisms. Integrating recent findings allows us to generate and test specific hypotheses about the evolution of Xenopus vocal circuits. We propose that reduced vocal sex differences in some Xenopus species result from species-specific losses of sexually differentiated neural and neuromuscular features. Modification of sex-hormone-regulated developmental mechanisms is a strong candidate mechanism for reduced vocal sex differences.

scholarly journals ADULT SIZE OF EIGHT HUNTING SPIDER SPECIES IN CENTRAL AMAZONIA: TEMPORAL VARIATIONS AND SEXUAL DIMORPHISMS

2002 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thierry Ray Gasnier ◽  
Clarissa Salette de Azevedo ◽  
Martha Patricia Torres-Sanchez ◽  
Hubert Höfer
Keyword(s):  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Adult Size ◽  
Spider Species ◽  
Sexual Dimorphisms ◽  
Central Amazonia ◽  
Hunting Spider

scholarly journals Effects of tritiated water on locomotion of zebrafish larvae: a new insight in tritium toxic effects on a vertebrate model species

2020 ◽  
Vol 219 ◽  
pp. 105384
Author(s):  
Caroline Arcanjo ◽  
Christelle Adam-Guillermin ◽  
Sophia Murat El Houdigui ◽  
Giovanna Loro ◽  
Claire Della-Vedova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tritiated Water ◽  
Toxic Effects ◽  
Model Species ◽  
Zebrafish Larvae ◽  
Vertebrate Model

Negligible energetic cost of sonar jamming in a bat–moth interaction

2015 ◽  
Vol 93 (4) ◽  
pp. 331-335
Author(s):  
A.J. Corcoran ◽  
H.A. Woods
Keyword(s):  
Sound Production ◽  
Resting Metabolic Rate ◽  
Metabolic Cost ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Metabolic Power ◽  
Model Species ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Acoustic Signaling ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Cost

Energetic cost can constrain how frequently animals exhibit behaviors. The energetic cost of acoustic signaling for communication has been the subject of numerous studies; however, the cost of acoustic signaling for predator defense has not been addressed. We studied the energetic cost and efficiency of sound production for the clicks produced by the moth Bertholdia trigona (Grote, 1879) (Grote’s bertholdia) to jam the sonar of predatory bats. This moth is an excellent model species because of its extraordinary ability to produce sound—it clicks at the highest known rate of any moth, up to 4500 clicks·s–1. We measured the metabolic cost of clicking, resting, and flying from moths suspended in a respirometry chamber. Clicking was provoked by playing back an echolocation attack sequence. The cost of sound production for B. trigona was low (66% of resting metabolic rate) and the acoustic efficiency, or the percentage of metabolic power that is converted into sound, was moderately high (0.30% ± 0.15%) compared with other species. We discuss mechanisms that allow B. trigona to achieve their extraordinary clicking rates and high acoustic efficiency. Clicking for jamming bat sonar incurs negligible energetic cost to moths despite being the most effective known anti-bat defense. These results have implications for both the ecology of predator–prey interactions and the evolution of jamming signals.

scholarly journals Zebrafish (Danio rerio) behavioral laterality predicts increased short-term avoidance memory but not stress-reactivity responses

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara D. Fontana ◽  
Madeleine Cleal ◽  
James M. Clay ◽  
Matthew O. Parker
Keyword(s):  
Danio Rerio ◽  
Stress Reactivity ◽  
Behavioral Repertoire ◽  
Y Maze ◽  
Behavioral Laterality ◽  
Vertebrate Model ◽  
Threat Cues ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
First Time ◽  
Behavioral Domains

AbstractOnce considered a uniquely human attribute, behavioral laterality has proven to be ubiquitous among non□human animals, being frequently associated with different neurophenotypes in rodents and fish species. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are a versatile vertebrate model system that has been widely used in translational neuropsychiatric research due their highly conserved genetic homology, well characterized physiological and extensive behavioral repertoire. Although the spontaneous left- and right-bias responses and associated behavioral domains (e.g. stress reactivity, aggression and learning) have previously been observed in other teleost species, no information regarding how spontaneous motor left-right bias responses of zebrafish predicts other behavioral domains has been described. Thus, we aimed to investigate the existence and incidence of natural left-right bias of adult zebrafish in the Y-maze test and explore any relationship of biasedness on the performance of different behavioral domains. This included learning about threat-cues in the fear conditioning test and locomotion and anxiety-related behavior in the novel tank diving test. In conclusion, we showed for the first time that zebrafish exhibit a natural manifestation of motor behavioral lateralization which can influence aversive learning responses. Although laterality did not change locomotion or anxiety-related behaviors, we found that biased animals had an altered exploration pattern in the Y-maze, making them easily discernable from their unbiased counterparts, and increased learning associated to fear cues.

scholarly journals A native, highly active Tc1/mariner transposon from zebrafish (ZB) offers an efficient genetic manipulation tool for vertebrates

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Shen ◽  
Chengyi Song ◽  
Csaba Miskey ◽  
Shuheng Chan ◽  
Zhongxia Guan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Manipulation ◽  
Sleeping Beauty ◽  
Active Member ◽  
Model Species ◽  
Highly Active ◽  
Sequence Preference ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Transcriptional Regulatory ◽  
Vertebrate Model ◽  
Enhancer Trapping

Abstract New genetic tools and strategies are currently under development to facilitate functional genomics analyses. Here, we describe an active member of the Tc1/mariner transposon superfamily, named ZB, which invaded the zebrafish genome very recently. ZB exhibits high activity in vertebrate cells, in the range of those of the widely used transposons piggyBac (PB), Sleeping Beauty (SB) and Tol2. ZB has a similar structural organization and target site sequence preference to SB, but a different integration profile with respect to genome-wide preference among mammalian functional annotation features. Namely, ZB displays a preference for integration into transcriptional regulatory regions of genes. Accordingly, we demonstrate the utility of ZB for enhancer trapping in zebrafish embryos and in the mouse germline. These results indicate that ZB may be a powerful tool for genetic manipulation in vertebrate model species.

scholarly journals Housing, Husbandry and Welfare of a “Classic” Fish Model, the Paradise Fish (Macropodus opercularis)

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 786
Author(s):  
Anita Rácz ◽  
Gábor Adorján ◽  
Erika Fodor ◽  
Boglárka Sellyei ◽  
Mohammed Tolba ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Model ◽  
Behavioral Genetics ◽  
Breeding Population ◽  
Model Organisms ◽  
Behavioral Repertoire ◽  
Model Species ◽  
External Fertilization ◽  
Fish Model ◽  
Model Animal ◽  
Paradise Fish

Thanks to its small size, external fertilization and fecundity, over the past four decades, zebrafish (Danio rerio) has become the dominant fish model species in biological and biomedical research. Multiple lines of evidence, however, suggest that the reliance on only a handful of genetic model organisms is problematic, as their unique evolutionary histories makes them less than ideal to study biological questions unrelated to their historically contingent adaptations. Therefore, a need has emerged to develop novel model species, better suited for studying particular problems. The paradise fish (Macropodus opercularis) has a much more complex behavioral repertoire than zebrafish and has been a favored model animal in ethological research during the last decades of the previous century. We believe that with currently available, easily adaptable genetic toolkits, this species could be easily developed into a popular model of behavioral genetics. Despite its earlier popularity, however, the description of a detailed housing and husbandry protocol for this species is still missing from scientific literature. We present here a detailed description of how to raise and breed paradise fish successfully under laboratory conditions, and also discuss some of the challenges we faced while creating a stable breeding population for this species in our facility.

Reading Risk in Children With Speech Sound Disorder: Prevalence, Persistence, and Predictors

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (11) ◽  
pp. 3714-3726
Author(s):  
Sherine R. Tambyraja ◽  
Kelly Farquharson ◽  
Laura Justice
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Sound Production ◽  
Speech Therapy ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Reading Difficulties ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
Speech Sound Disorder ◽  
Word Decoding ◽  
School Year ◽  
School Based

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which school-age children with speech sound disorder (SSD) exhibit concomitant reading difficulties and examine the extent to which phonological processing and speech production abilities are associated with increased likelihood of reading risks. Method Data were obtained from 120 kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade children who were in receipt of school-based speech therapy services. Children were categorized as being “at risk” for reading difficulties if standardized scores on a word decoding measure were 1 SD or more from the mean. The selected predictors of reading risk included children's rapid automatized naming ability, phonological awareness (PA), and accuracy of speech sound production. Results Descriptive results indicated that just over 25% of children receiving school-based speech therapy for an SSD exhibited concomitant deficits in word decoding and that those exhibiting risk at the beginning of the school year were likely to continue to be at risk at the end of the school year. Results from a hierarchical logistic regression suggested that, after accounting for children's age, general language abilities, and socioeconomic status, both PA and speech sound production abilities were significantly associated with the likelihood of being classified as at risk. Conclusions School-age children with SSD are at increased risk for reading difficulties that are likely to persist throughout an academic year. The severity of phonological deficits, reflected by PA and speech output, may be important indicators of subsequent reading problems.

Sound Production Treatment for Acquired Apraxia of Speech: An Examination of Dosage in Relation to Probe Performance

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Julie L. Wambaugh ◽  
Lydia Kallhoff ◽  
Christina Nessler
Keyword(s):  
Retrospective Analysis ◽  
Sound Production ◽  
Apraxia Of Speech ◽  
Practice Schedule ◽  
Practice Schedules ◽  
Baseline Performance ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Number Of Treatment ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study was designed to examine the association of dosage and effects of Sound Production Treatment (SPT) for acquired apraxia of speech. Method Treatment logs and probe data from 20 speakers with apraxia of speech and aphasia were submitted to a retrospective analysis. The number of treatment sessions and teaching episodes was examined relative to (a) change in articulation accuracy above baseline performance, (b) mastery of production, and (c) maintenance. The impact of practice schedule (SPT-Blocked vs. SPT-Random) was also examined. Results The average number of treatment sessions conducted prior to change was 5.4 for SPT-Blocked and 3.9 for SPT-Random. The mean number of teaching episodes preceding change was 334 for SPT-Blocked and 179 for SPT-Random. Mastery occurred within an average of 13.7 sessions (1,252 teaching episodes) and 12.4 sessions (1,082 teaching episodes) for SPT-Blocked and SPT-Random, respectively. Comparisons of dosage metric values across practice schedules did not reveal substantial differences. Significant negative correlations were found between follow-up probe performance and the dosage metrics. Conclusions Only a few treatment sessions were needed to achieve initial positive changes in articulation, with mastery occurring within 12–14 sessions for the majority of participants. Earlier occurrence of change or mastery was associated with better follow-up performance. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12592190

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