0000000000718458
AUTHOR
Sebastian Steinfartz
showing 4 related works from this author
Proteomics of Galápagos Marine Iguanas Links Function of Femoral Gland Proteins to the Immune System
2020
Femoral glands secrete a wax-like substance on the inner side of lizard hind legs, which is thought to function as a mode of chemical communication. Though the minor volatile fraction is well studied, the major protein fraction remains enigmatic. Here, we use proteomics to analyze proteins in femoral gland secretions of the Galápagos marine iguana. Although we found no evidence for proteins and peptides involved in chemical communication, we found several immune-regulatory proteins which also demonstrate anti-microbial functions. Accordingly, we show that femoral gland proteins and peptides function as a barrier against microbial infection and may prevent the rapid degradation of volatile s…
Mitochondrial sequence analysis of Salamandra taxa suggests old splits of major lineages and postglacial recolonizations of Central Europe from disti…
2000
Representatives of the genus Salamandra occur in Europe, Northern Africa and the Near East. Many local variants are known but species and subspecies status of these is still a matter of dispute. We have analysed samples from locations covering the whole expansion range of Salamandra by sequence analysis of mitochondrial D-loop regions. In addition, we have calibrated the rate of divergence of the D-loop on the basis of geologically dated splits of the closely related genus Euproctus. Phylogenetic analysis of the sequences suggests that six major monophyletic groups exist (S. salamandra, S. algira, S. infraimmaculata, S. corsica, S. atra and S. lanzai) which have split between 5 and 13 milli…
Cracking the nut: Geographical adjacency of sister taxa supports vicariance in a polytomic salamander clade in the absence of node support
2008
The urodelan genus Lyciasalamandra, which inhabits a relatively small area along the southern Turkish coast and some Aegean islands, provides an outstanding example of a diverse but phylogenetically unresolved taxon. Molecular trees contain a single basal polytomy that could be either soft or hard. We here use the information of nuclear (allozymes) and mitochondrial (fractions of the 16S rRNA and ATPase genes) datasets in combination with area relationships of lineages to resolve the phylogenetic relationships among Lyciasalamandra species in the absence of sufficient node support. We can show that neither random processes nor introgressive hybridization can be invoked to explain that the m…
A molecular phylogeny of ‘true’ salamanders (family Salamandridae) and the evolution of terrestriality of reproductive modes
2009
Key innovations enable species to conquer new habitats. Within the family Salamandridae, particular adaptations to terrestrial life, such as the anatomy and physiology of the feeding apparatus, courtship behaviour and in some cases viviparity, allowed the ‘true’salamanders (genera Chioglossa, Mertensiella, Salamandra) to shift from a semi-aquatic to a more terrestrial life cycle. We sequenced 423 base pairs of the 16S RNA gene of the mitochondrial DNA for all species of the ‘true’salamanders. Based on the resulting phylogeny we discuss the evolution of terrestrial reproductive modes within this species group. We especially tested two hypotheses of monophyletic origin of specific adaptations…