Search results for "OTA"
showing 10 items of 33012 documents
The current and future state of animal coloration research
2017
Animal colour patterns are a model system for understanding evolution because they are unusually accessible for study and experimental manipulation. This is possible because their functions are readily identifiable. In this final paper of the symposium we provide a diagram of the processes affecting colour patterns and use this to summarize their functions and put the other papers in a broad context. This allows us to identify significant ‘holes’ in the field that only become obvious when we see the processes affecting colour patterns, and their interactions, as a whole. We make suggestions about new directions of research that will enhance our understanding of both the evolution of colour …
Angiosperm to Gymnosperm host-plant switch entails shifts in microbiota of the Welwitschia bug, Probergrothius angolensis (Distant, 1902).
2019
The adaptation of herbivorous insects to new host plants is key to their evolutionary success in diverse environments. Many insects are associated with mutualistic gut bacteria that contribute to the host's nutrition and can thereby facilitate dietary switching in polyphagous insects. However, how gut microbial communities differ between populations of the same species that feed on different host plants remains poorly understood. Most species of Pyrrhocoridae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera) are specialist seed-feeders on plants in the family Malvaceae, although populations of one species, Probergrothius angolensis, have switched to the very distantly related Welwitschia mirabilis plant in the Nami…
Variation in male fertility in a polymorphic moth, Parasemia plantaginis
2016
The maintenance of multiple morphs in warning signals is enigmatic because directional selection through predator avoidance should lead to the rapid loss of such variation. Opposing natural and sexual selection is a good candidate driving the maintenance of multiple male morphs but it also includes another enigma: when warning signal efficiency differs between male morphs, why would females choose a phenotype with lower survival? We tested the hypothesis that indirect responses to selection on correlated characters through sexual selection may substantially shape the evolution of male coloration. If male phenotypes differ in their fertilization ability, female choice against the best surviv…
The Effect of Cadmium on Oxidative Stress in Beta vulgaris
2018
Abstract As a heavy metal, cadmium has strongly toxic effects on plants and can induce oxidative stress. It is absorbed by the roots and transported to the stems and leaves. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of various concentrations of cadmium on the metabolic activity of Beta vulgaris and assess the dependence of these processes on the content of metal in the plants. To demonstrate the effect of cadmium on metabolism, protein and photosynthetic pigment content, lipid peroxidation, and the activity of enzymes specific for oxidative stress in roots and shoots were measured. Seeds of B. vulgaris were treated with different concentrations of Cd supplied via a CdCl2 solution: 0 (…
Preference for dietary fat: From detection to disease
2020
Recent advances in the field of taste physiology have clarified the role of different basic taste modalities and their implications in health and disease and proposed emphatically that there might be a distinct cue for oro-sensory detection of dietary long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs). Hence, fat taste can be categorized as a taste modality. During mastication, LCFAs activate tongue lipid sensors like CD36 and GPR120 triggering identical signaling pathways as the basic taste qualities do; however, the physico-chemical perception of fat is not as distinct as sweet or bitter or other taste sensations. The question arises whether "fat taste" is a basic or "alimentary" taste. There is compelling e…
In vitro propagation of the relict laperinne’s olive (Olea europaea L. subsp. laperrinei)
2017
Olea europaea L. subsp. laperrinei (Oleaceae) is an endemic taxon of the mountainous regions of central Sahara, consisting of currently fragmented and small relict populations. The tree can propagate vegetatively or by seed, but no recent natural regeneration was observed in the Algerian massive populations, some of which are considered threatened with extinction. Sterile triploid individuals were also identified in some populations showing increasing vigour. As a result of its long persistence and despite its rarity, the Laperrine's olive is an iconic component of Saharan mountain ecosystems. The aim of this study is to develop an efficient micropropagation protocol for both diploid and tr…
First report of tomato brown rugose fruit virus infecting sweet pepper in Italy
2020
In January 2020, about 85% of a red sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum) crop in a greenhouse located in Ragusa province (Sicily, Italy) showed virus-like symptoms. Symptoms consisted of a slight mosaic and discoloration of young leaves, vein clearing on young leaves, browning of the stem with strong necrosis located in the intersection of the secondary branches, partial necrosis of the vegetative apex and marbling, mosaic and distortion of the fruits (Fig. 1). It is important to note that in 2019 the same greenhouse was cultivated with tomato, which had been removed due to extensive infection caused by Tomato brown rugose fruit virus
Inheritance patterns of photoperiodic diapause induction inLeptinotarsa decemlineata
2016
Photoperiod is a reliable indicator of season and an important cue that many insects use for phenological synchronization. Undergoing range expansion insects can face a change in the local photoperiod to which they need to resynchronize. Rapid range expansion can be associated with rapid photoperiodic adaptation, which can be associated with intense selection on strongly heritable polygenic traits. Alternatively, it is proposed that, in insects with an XO sex-determination system, genes with large effect residing on the sex chromosome could drive photoperiodic adaptation because the gene or genes are exposed to selection in the sex carrying only a single X-chromosome. The present study seek…
Genome-Wide Profiling and Phylogenetic Analysis of the SWEET Sugar Transporter Gene Family in Walnut and Their Lack of Responsiveness to Xanthomonas …
2020
Following photosynthesis, sucrose is translocated to sink organs, where it provides the primary source of carbon and energy to sustain plant growth and development. Sugar transporters from the SWEET (sugar will eventually be exported transporter) family are rate-limiting factors that mediate sucrose transport across concentration gradients, sustain yields, and participate in reproductive development, plant senescence, stress responses, as well as support plant&ndash
Hop stunt viroid: A polyphagous pathogenic RNA that has shed light on viroid–host interactions
2021
[Taxonomy]: Hop stunt viroid (HSVd) is the type species of the genus Hostuviroid (family Pospiviroidae). The other species of this genus is Dahlia latent viroid, which presents an identical central conserved region (CCR) but lacks other structural hallmarks present in Hop stunt viroid. HSVd replication occurs in the nucleus through an asymmetric rolling-circle model as in the other members of the family Pospiviroidae, which also includes the genera Pospiviroid, Cocadviroid, Apscaviroid, and Coleoviroid.