0000000000408551
AUTHOR
Thomas Leitz
Evidence for an instructive role of apoptosis during the metamorphosis of Hydractinia echinata (Hydrozoa)
Apoptosis is a highly conserved mechanism of cell deletion that destroys redundant, dysfunctional, damaged, and diseased cells. Furthermore, apoptotic cell death is essential during the development of multicellular organisms. However, there are only a few examples where the occurrence of apoptosis has been shown to be a direct prerequisite for developmental processes. As described previously by our group, the degradation of larval tissue during the first half of the metamorphosis of Hydractinia echinata involves extensive cell death. A large number of cells are removed, and we observed several cellular features of apoptotic cell death in the dying tissue, e.g., nucleosomal DNA fragmentation…
An organizing region in metamorphosing hydrozoan planula larvae--stimulation of axis formation in both larval and in adult tissue.
A novel wingless gene was isolated from the marine colonial hydroid Hydractinia echinata. Alignments and Bayesian inference analysis clearly assign the gene to the Wnt5A group. In line with data found for the brachyury ortholog of Hydractinia, He-wnt5A is expressed during metamorphosis in the posterior tip of the spindle-shaped planula larva, suggesting that the tip functions as a putative organizer during metamorphosis. Additionally, the outermost cells of the posterior tip are omitted from apoptosis during metamorphosis. In order to investigate this putative organizer function, we transplanted the posterior tip of metamorphosing animals into non-induced larvae and into primary polyps 24 h…
Social control of testicular steroidogenic capacities in the Siamese fighting fishBetta splendens Regan
Male Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens Regan) of the veiltail variety were raised. At the age of 4 ½ months they were either isolated or community-housed for 2 ½ months. After that time the relative fin lengths were determined, and the in vitro metabolism of testosterone by the testes of the fishes was investigated. Community-housed specimens had shorter fins than the isolated males. Their testes formed less 11-oxy- and more 5β-steroids than those of the isolated males. This difference was even larger when high- and low-ranking community-based specimens were compared. The appearance of low-ranking males resembled that of females, and the main products of their testes were 5β-reduced st…