scholarly journals Venom Use in Eulipotyphlans: An Evolutionary and Ecological Approach

Toxins ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 231
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Kowalski ◽  
Leszek Rychlik
Keyword(s):  
Functional Trait ◽  
Ecological Interactions ◽  
High Metabolic Rate ◽  
Animal Kingdom ◽  
Food Acquisition ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Ecological Functions ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Nearly Continuous ◽  
Continuous Demand

Venomousness is a complex functional trait that has evolved independently many times in the animal kingdom, although it is rare among mammals. Intriguingly, most venomous mammal species belong to Eulipotyphla (solenodons, shrews). This fact may be linked to their high metabolic rate and a nearly continuous demand of nutritious food, and thus it relates the venom functions to facilitation of their efficient foraging. While mammalian venoms have been investigated using biochemical and molecular assays, studies of their ecological functions have been neglected for a long time. Therefore, we provide here an overview of what is currently known about eulipotyphlan venoms, followed by a discussion of how these venoms might have evolved under ecological pressures related to food acquisition, ecological interactions, and defense and protection. We delineate six mutually nonexclusive functions of venom (prey hunting, food hoarding, food digestion, reducing intra- and interspecific conflicts, avoidance of predation risk, weapons in intraspecific competition) and a number of different subfunctions for eulipotyphlans, among which some are so far only hypothetical while others have some empirical confirmation. The functions resulting from the need for food acquisition seem to be the most important for solenodons and especially for shrews. We also present several hypotheses explaining why, despite so many potentially beneficial functions, venomousness is rare even among eulipotyphlans. The tentativeness of many of the arguments presented in this review highlights our main conclusion, i.e., insights regarding the functions of eulipotyphlan venoms merit additional study.

scholarly journals Quantitative analysis of repaired and unrepaired damage to trilobites from the Cambrian (Stage 4 - Drumian) Iberian Chains, NE Spain

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Pates ◽  
Russell DC Bicknell ◽  
Allison C. Daley ◽  
Samuel Zamora
Keyword(s):  
Process Analysis ◽  
Healing Process ◽  
Ecological Interactions ◽  
Deep Time ◽  
Formation Stage ◽  
Weak Evidence ◽  
Stage 4 ◽  
Repair Mechanisms ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Selection For

Repaired fossil skeletons provide the opportunity to study predation rates, repair mechanisms, and ecological interactions in deep time. Trilobites allow the study of repaired damage over long time periods and large geographic areas due to their longevity as a group, global distribution, and well-preserved mineralized exoskeletons. Repair frequencies on trilobites from three sites representing offshore marine environments in the Iberian Chains (Spain) show no injuries on 45 complete redlichiid thoraces from Minas Tierga (Huérmeda Formation, Cambrian Series 2, Stage 4), or 23 complete Eccaparadoxides pradoanus thoraces from Mesones de Isuela (Murero Formation, Cambrian Series 3, Drumian). Ten injuries on 69 E. pradoanus thoraces from Purujosa (Murero Formation, Cambrian Series 3, Drumian) were noted. There is no evidence for laterally asymmetric predation or size selection on the trilobites in this study. Weak evidence for selection for the rear of the thorax is documented. A series of injured trilobites illustrates four stages of the healing process. Analysis of injury locations and frequency suggests that injuries to these trilobites are predatory in origin. Semilandmark analysis of previously described exoskeletons with unrepaired damage assigned to the ichnotaxon Bicrescomanducator serratus alongside newly collected damaged exoskeletons from Purujosa (Mansilla and Murero Formations, Stage 5, Drumian), Mesones de Isuela (Murero Formation, Drumian), and Minas Tierga (Huérmeda Formation, Stage 4) found that shapes of biotic and abiotic breaks could not be distinguished.

scholarly journals Risk of Human-to-Wildlife Transmission of SARS-CoV-2

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Gryseels ◽  
Luc De Bruyn ◽  
Ralf Gyselings ◽  
Sébastien Calvignac-Spencer ◽  
Fabian Leendertz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Evolutionary Origins ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The World ◽  
Zoo Animals ◽  
Long Time ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Wildlife Reservoir ◽  
Endangered Animals

It has been a long time since the world has experienced a pandemic with such a rapid devastating impact as the current COVID-19 pandemic. The causative agent, the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is further unusual in that it appears capable of infecting many different mammal species. As a significant proportion of people worldwide are infected with SARS-CoV-2 and may spread the infection unknowingly before symptoms occur or without any symptoms ever occurring, there is a non-negligible risk of humans spreading SARS-CoV-2 to wildlife, in particular mammals. Because of SARS-CoV-2’s evolutionary origins in bats and reports of humans transmitting the virus to pets and zoo animals, regulations for prevention of human-to-animal transmission have so far focused mostly on these animal groups. Here, we summarize recent studies and reports that show that a wide range of distantly related mammals are likely susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 and that susceptibility or resistance to the virus is in general not predictable, or only to some extent, by phylogenetic proximity to known susceptible or resistant hosts. In the absence of solid evidence on the SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility/resistance for each of the >5,500 mammal species, we argue that sanitary precautions should be taken when interacting with any mammal species in the wild. Preventing human-to-wildlife SARS-CoV-2 transmission is important for protecting these (sometimes endangered) animals from disease, but also to avoid establishment of novel SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs in wild animals. The risk of repeated re-infection of humans from such a wildlife reservoir could severely hamper SARS-CoV-2 control efforts. For wildlife fieldworkers interacting directly or indirectly with mammals, we recommend sanitary precautions such as physical distancing, wearing face masks and gloves, and frequent decontamination, which are very similar to regulations currently imposed to prevent transmission among humans.

scholarly journals Virtual Training Centre for Computer Numerical Control

2008 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 196
Author(s):  
Mehmet Sahin ◽  
Suleyman Yaldiz ◽  
Faruk Unsacar ◽  
Burak Yaldiz ◽  
Nikolaos Bilalis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vocational Training ◽  
Da Vinci ◽  
Computer Numerical Control ◽  
Leonardo Da Vinci ◽  
Numerical Control ◽  
Virtual Training ◽  
Training Centre ◽  
New Developments ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Continuous Demand

It is a fact that virtual training has been a scope of interest for vocational training for a very long time. However, it needs more time to be more common in all specific training fields. Focusing on Computer Numerical Control (CNC) Training, new developments in the CNC machinery produce a continuous demand on enhancing the programming and technical capabilities of the involved personnel. Training on CNC should follow similar developments and in particular in their programming capabilities, automation they offer and their technical capabilities. Based on these main objectives a Virtual Training Center (VTC) for CNC has been developed and it is presented in this paper. The VTC is the main result of a multilateral Leonardo Da Vinci project witch aims to promote and reinforce Vocational Training in CNC Machines.

Motivation of play: from ethological to neurological perspectives

Behaviour ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 153 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 655-662 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabetta Palagi ◽  
Hillary N. Fouts
Keyword(s):  
Biological Synthesis ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Animal Kingdom ◽  
University Of Tennessee ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The University

The collection of papers presented in this Special Issue is the outcome of a series of workshops on the evolution of play held between 2011 and 2013 and sponsored by the National Institute of Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS) at the University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN, USA). These workshops were aimed at stimulating a multidisciplinary discussion about one of the most debated and controversial behaviours in the Animal Kingdom. Although neglected for a long time by researchers studying non-human animals, play research seems to be having a new Renaissance and the last ten years have been extremely fruitful in highlighting some important functions and in delineating key correlates of this activity. Obviously, it is impossible to fully represent such a multifaceted topic as play in a handful of papers; however, the articles in this Special Issue bring to light some over-arching themes and together provide innovative perspectives on play.

Invasive shrubs modify rodent activity timing, revealing a consistent behavioral rule governing diel activity

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 1069-1075 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter W Guiden ◽  
John L Orrock
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Plants ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Community Diversity ◽  
Diel Activity ◽  
Ecological Interactions ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Invasive Shrub ◽  
Animal Activity

Abstract Animals adjust the timing of their activity to maximize benefits, such as access to resources, and minimize costs, such as exposure to predators. Despite many examples of invasive plants changing animal behavior, the potential for invasive plants to alter the timing of animal activity remains unexplored. In eastern North America, invasive shrubs might have particularly strong effects on animal activity timing during spring and fall, when many invasive shrubs retain their leaves long after native species’ leaves senesce. We experimentally removed an invasive shrub (buckthorn, Rhamnus cathartica) and monitored the activity timing of a ubiquitous small-mammal species (white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus) in spring, summer, and fall. We captured nearly 3 times as many P. leucopus in plots invaded by R. cathartica compared with plots with R. cathartica removed, and P. leucopus were captured 2 h earlier in invaded plots. Regardless of invasion treatment, P. leucopus appear to follow a common rule to set activity timing: P. leucopus were only active below a threshold of ground-level moonlight illuminance (0.038 lux). Diel and monthly lunar cycles play an important role in regulating small-mammal activity, but our data suggest that decreased light penetration dampens the influence of moonlight illuminance in habitats invaded by R. cathartica, allowing P. leucopus to remain active throughout the night. By changing the temporal niche of ubiquitous native animals, invasive shrubs may have unappreciated effects on many ecological interactions, including processes that alter community diversity and affect human health.

Evolutionary community ecology

2019 ◽  
pp. 307-333
Author(s):  
Gary G. Mittelbach ◽  
Brian J. McGill
Keyword(s):  
Population Dynamics ◽  
Community Ecology ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Ecological Interactions ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Evolutionary Rescue ◽  
Species Pools ◽  
Laboratory Populations ◽  
Long Time

Ecology and evolution go hand in hand. However, since evolution occurs over relatively long time scales, ecologists had long thought it unlikely that evolutionary events could affect population dynamics or species interactions in ecological time. This view is changing. Today, there are multiple areas of research examining how evolutionary processes feedback directly on ecology. For example, eco-evolutionary dynamics focus on the cyclical interaction between ecology and adaptive evolution, such that changes in ecological interactions drive selection on organismal traits that, in turn, alter the outcome of ecological interactions. Striking examples of eco-evolutionary feedbacks are found in predator–prey interactions of laboratory populations. However, less is known about eco-evolutionary feedbacks in nature. Evolutionary rescue describes a process whereby rapid adaptation may prevent extinction in a changing environment. Other topics covered in this chapter are community phylogenetics and the evolution of regional species pools.

scholarly journals Predation and protection in the macroevolutionary history of conifer cones

2011 ◽  
Vol 278 (1720) ◽  
pp. 3003-3008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew B. Leslie
Keyword(s):  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Important Change ◽  
Feeding Strategies ◽  
Ecological Interactions ◽  
Insect Feeding ◽  
Seed Cone ◽  
Tree Canopies ◽  
Long Time ◽  
History Of ◽  
Plant Animal Interactions

Conifers are an excellent group in which to explore how changing ecological interactions may have influenced the allocation of reproductive tissues in seed plants over long time scales, because of their extensive fossil record and their important role in terrestrial ecosystems since the Palaeozoic. Measurements of individual conifer pollen-producing and seed-producing cones from the Pennsylvanian to the Recent show that the relative amount of tissue invested in pollen cones has remained constant through time, while seed cones show a sharp increase in proportional tissue investment in the Jurassic that has continued to intensify to the present day. Since seed size in conifers has remained similar through time, this increase reflects greater investment in protective cone tissues such as robust, tightly packed scales. This shift in morphology and tissue allocation is broadly concurrent with the appearance of new vertebrate groups capable of browsing in tree canopies, as well as a diversification of insect-feeding strategies, suggesting that an important change in plant–animal interactions occurred over the Mesozoic that favoured an increase in seed cone protective tissues.

scholarly journals Biodiversitas Burung pada Beberapa Tipe Habitat di Kampus Universitas Sam Ratulangi

Jurnal MIPA ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 43
Author(s):  
Ratih Dwi Rumanasari ◽  
Saroyo Saroyo ◽  
Deidy Y. Katili
Keyword(s):  
Sampling Method ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Wiener Index ◽  
Ecological Functions ◽  
Food Material ◽  
Purposive Sampling ◽  
Passer Montanus ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Seed Dispersers ◽  
Index Value

Burung merupakan salah satu hewan yang memiliki kaitan erat dengan kehidupan manusia sejak dahulu kala. Fungsi ekologis burung yaitu sebagai penyebar biji dan penyerbuk alami. Burung juga dimanfaatkan manusia sebagai bahan makanan serta sebagai hewan peliharaan, bahkan burung juga turut berperan dalam berbagai budaya masyarakat. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menentukan tingkat biodiversitas burung di daerah Kampus Universitas Sam Ratulangi Manado berdasarkan nilai indeks Shannon-Wiener. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode purposive sampling yang dilaksanakan pada bulan Desember 2016-Maret 2017. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian terdapat sembilan jenis yang ditemukan yaitu, Butorides striatus, Collocalia esculenta, Passer montanus, Pycnonotus aurigaster, Geopelia striata, Gallirallus torquatus, Hirundo tahitica, Nectarinia jugularis, dan Halcyon chloris. Burung yang paling banyak ditemukan adalah Collocalia esculenta dan yang paling sedikit adalah Butorides striatus. Indeks keanekaragaman dari burung yang diamati termasuk dalam kategori sedang melimpah yaitu, 1,638.Bird is one of the animals that has a closed relationship with human life since a long time ago. The ecological functions of birds are as natural seed dispersers and pollinators. Birds are also used by humans as food material and as a pet, even birds also play a role in various cultures of society. This study aims to determine the level of bird biodiversity in the area of University of Sam Ratulangi Manado based on Shannon-Wiener index value. This study used purposive sampling method conducted in December 2016-March 2017. Based on the results of the study there were nine species found, namely Butorides striatus, Collocalia esculenta, Passer montanus, Pycnonotus aurigaster, Geopelia striata, Gallirallus torquatus, Hirundo tahitica, Nectarinia jugularis, and Halcyon chloris. The most bird that commonly found is Collocalia esculenta and the fewest is Butorides striatus. The index diversity value of birds is 1,638 that belongs to abundant category.

Afforesting as a Way to Eliminate Haze and to Fertilize Plants

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiayi Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Health Risk ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Ecological Systems ◽  
Water Transparency ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Ecological Functions ◽  
Environment Friendly ◽  
Living Things ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Nitrogen Phosphorus

Haze problem causes serious health risk and troubles to the human being. Traditional manners such as reducing vehicle uses and biomass burning etc. don’t workwell as was expected. More effective ways to address haze problem are urgently in need. From literatures, haze contains many vital elements plants growth, such as nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur, such thatabsorbing them as the fertilizers for forests or other ecological systems would be a more effective way to tackle the haze problem. In fact, the components in haze are suitable for fertilizing plants because they come from burningoil and coals which are dead plants and animals long time ago. Sincesoils with water in them are feasible to dissolve the ions in haze, combined with ecological functions of forests such as water transparency, harmful gases absorption, forests and other ecological systems can effectively absorb the haze and turnthem into the fertilizers for plants continuously; therefore, the haze would be eliminated with infinite capacity. In summary, haze would be eaten by these ecological systems and turn them into life again. Utilizingafforesting, haze can be eliminated in an environment friendly and constructive way, they would become the nutrition in living things and circulate in the biosphere.In this way, not only haze can be absorbed, but also the plants are fertilized, more over such process is infinite.

Lactate as energy substrate and its role in carcinogenesis

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 54
Author(s):  
Dayana Pimentel De Souza ◽  
Marvyn De Santana Do Sacramento ◽  
Pedro Henrique Silva Santos ◽  
Giulliano Gardenghi
Keyword(s):  
Lactate Production ◽  
Reference List ◽  
High Metabolic Rate ◽  
Electronic Library ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Review Study ◽  
Aerobic And Anaerobic ◽  
Cancer Clinic ◽  
Anaerobic System ◽  
The Warburg Effect

Introduction: Lactate is the product of the degradation of pyruvate produced in the cytoplasm. For a long time, it was believed that it was produced only in the presence of hypoxia. Several studies have shown that lactate production depends on several factors and is not only influenced by the lactic anaerobic system. In addition, large concentrations of lactate are present in neoplastic cells, even at rest, a phenomenon known as the Warburg Effect, which can occur due to the high metabolic rate of tumor cells. Objective: This study aimed to discuss the physiological aspects involved in the production, metabolism and signaling of lactate, as well as to demonstrate the new therapeutic results related to the cancer clinic. Methods: This is a literature review study. Articles were selected in the languages: Portuguese, English and Spanish, published between 2000 and 2019, in the databases: MEDline via Pubmed, Scientific Electronic Library Online (Scielo). The gray literature was verified using Google Scholar and reference list of selected articles. Results: 43 articles related to lactate were included. The searches were carried out between July and December 2019. Conclusion: Lactate is a subtract produced in aerobic and anaerobic environments, in different exercise intensities. It can be used as an energy source during and after physical exercise, in addition to acting on anabolic signals. On the other hand, it can contribute to the maintenance of an environment that favors carcinogenic proliferation. This thinking has allowed the creation of new therapies to decrease tissue damage and eradicate malignant cells.Keywords: lactic acid, neoplasm, metabolism.

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