Search results for "Growth"
showing 10 items of 5134 documents
The way wear goes: phytolith-based wear on the dentine–enamel system in guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus)
2019
The effect of phytoliths on tooth wear and function has been contested in studies of animal–plant interactions. For herbivores whose occlusal chewing surface consists of enamel ridges and dentine tissue, the phytoliths might particularly erode the softer dentine, exposing the enamel ridges to different occlusal forces and thus contributing to enamel wear. To test this hypothesis, we fed guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus; n = 36 in six groups) for threeweeks exclusively on dry or fresh forage of low(lucerne), moderate (fresh timothy grass) or very high (bamboo leaves) silica content representing corresponding levels of phytoliths. We quantified the effect of these treatments with measuremen…
Light Conditions Affect NaCl-Induced Physiological Responses in a Clonal Plant Species Hydrocotyle vulgaris
2020
Abstract In order to understand if differences in light conditions can affect responses of a clonal plant species to increased soil salinity, the long-term effect of two substrate concentrations of NaCl on leaf growth, clonal plasticity and oxidative enzyme (peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase) activity in Hydrocotyle vulgaris L. plants grown at low, moderate and high light conditions was studied. H. vulgaris appeared to be a shade-tolerant species, since both leaf blade and petiole growth was inhibited at low light intensity. At low light intensity, H. vulgaris plants represented characteristics of halophytes with significant stimulation of leaf blade and petiole growth by NaCl, especially a…
Experimental and natural cathodoluminescence in the shell of Crassostrea gigas from Thau lagoon (France): ecological and environmental implications.
2006
We present a cathodoluminescence (CL) study of growth layer deposition in the shell of the oyster Crassostrea gigas. CL is based on the physical properties of lattice-bound manganese (Mn2+), which is the main activator in calcium carbonate. Our study involved chemical marking by immersing individuals in seawater to which manganese chloride had been added, and subsequent reading of the shell with CL microscopy coupled with numeric treatment of microphotographs; CL emission was analyzed using a scanning electron microscope coupled to a spectrometer. Since the marking did not harm the oysters, repeated markings were possible, allowing validation of the inferences made from analysis of the shel…
Breeding success of the Great Tit Parus major in relation to attributes of natural nest cavities in a primeval forest
2015
An overlap in attributes of nest cavities used by Great Tit Parus major across Eurasia suggests similar nest site preferences within the geographical range, although the drivers of these preferences are unclear. To determine whether preferred cavities provide conditions enhancing successful reproduction, we investigated the breeding performance of Great Tits in relation to tree cavity characteristics using data collected during 2008–2011 in primeval conditions (Białowieża National Park, Poland). Here, tree cavities are diverse and superabundant but nesting birds are at risk from a variety of predators. According to expectations, nest losses were high (60 % of Great Tit nests failed), mostly…
Growth parameters and population structure of Aristeus antennatus (Decapoda, Penaeidae) in the south Tyrrhenian Sea (southern coast of Italy).
2011
Abstract The blue and red shrimp Aristeus antennatus (Risso, 1816) is one of the most important fishery resources in the Mediterranean Sea. Monthly samplings of blue and red shrimp from June 2006 to May 2007 were landed by the trawl fleet in two northwest Sicilian fishing harbours (San Vito Lo Capo and Terrasini). The carapace length (CL) frequency distribution of females ranged between 15.00 and 59.00 mm, whereas male CLs ranged between 17.00 and 34.00 mm. The estimated parameters of the Von Bertalanffy growth function (VBGF) for San Vito lo Capo females and males were: CL∞ = 65 mm, K = 0.58 y–1 and CL∞ = 41 mm, K = 0.71 y–1, respectively; while for Terrasini females and males these were:…
Estimation of fitness from energetics and life-history data: An example using mussels.
2017
Changing environments have the potential to alter the fitness of organisms through effects on components of fitness such as energy acquisition, metabolic cost, growth rate, survivorship, and reproductive output. Organisms, on the other hand, can alter aspects of their physiology and life histories through phenotypic plasticity as well as through genetic change in populations (selection). Researchers examining the effects of environmental variables frequently concentrate on individual components of fitness, although methods exist to combine these into a population level estimate of average fitness, as the per capita rate of population growth for a set of identical individuals with a particul…
Arabidopsis plants deficient in plastidial glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase show alterations in abscisic acid (ABA) signal transduction: inte…
2010
Abscisic acid (ABA) controls plant development and regulates plant responses to environmental stresses. A role for ABA in sugar regulation of plant development has also been well documented although the molecular mechanisms connecting the hormone with sugar signal transduction pathways are not well understood. In this work it is shown that Arabidopsis thaliana mutants deficient in plastidial glycolytic glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (gapcp1gapcp2) are ABA insensitive in growth, stomatal closure, and germination assays. The ABA levels of gapcp1gapcp2 were normal, suggesting that the ABA signal transduction pathway is impaired in the mutants. ABA modified gapcp1gapcp2 gene expressio…
Systematic analysis of specific and nonspecific auxin effects on endocytosis and trafficking.
2021
Abstract The phytohormone auxin and its directional transport through tissues are intensively studied. However, a mechanistic understanding of auxin-mediated feedback on endocytosis and polar distribution of PIN auxin transporters remains limited due to contradictory observations and interpretations. Here, we used state-of-the-art methods to reexamine the auxin effects on PIN endocytic trafficking. We used high auxin concentrations or longer treatments versus lower concentrations and shorter treatments of natural indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and synthetic naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) auxins to distinguish between specific and nonspecific effects. Longer treatments of both auxins interfere wi…
Agro-Morphological Characterization of Sicilian Chili Pepper Accessions for Ornamental Purposes
2020
The species belonging to the genus Capsicum have been widely used as decorative vegetables, however only a few genotypes are available for this purpose. The goal of the present work was the agro-morphological characterization of several chili pepper accessions cultivated into different pot sizes (10, 14, 18 or 20 cm diameters). The agro-morphological characterization of 19 accessions was performed following IPGR (International Plant Genetic Resources Institute) descriptors: plant height (PH), plant canopy width (PCW), PH/PCW ratio, plant growth habit, plant visual quality, first flower emission, fruiting start, end of harvest, fruit number, fruit length, fruit width, fruit color at mature s…
The shoot concept of the flower: Still up to date?
2016
Abstract The shoot concept of the flower suggests that flowers correspond to vegetative short-shoots except the fact that their lateral appendages are floral and not vegetative leaves. However, in view of the different properties of vegetative and flower meristems, this concept should be questioned. Differential meristem activity resulting in tubes, hypanthia and inferior ovaries, continuous meristem expansion providing space for stamen fascicles and additional structures and the process of (repeated) fractionation using a given space completely, are characteristics of flower meristems hardly explainable with the shoot concept. Linking instead flower development with recent findings in mole…