Publications by authors named "G Bucciarelli"
Article Synopsis
- Amphibians are a diverse group of tetrapods facing significant threats, with about 41% of species at risk of extinction due to various factors like habitat loss and climate change.
- Genomic research on amphibians is critical for understanding their biology, including unique traits like tissue regeneration and adaptation, yet it has lagged behind other vertebrates due to technical challenges.
- The newly formed Amphibian Genomics Consortium (AGC) aims to enhance global collaboration and accelerate genomic research in amphibians, with over 282 members from 41 countries already involved.
Amphibians represent a diverse group of tetrapods, marked by deep divergence times between their three systematic orders and families. Studying amphibian biology through the genomics lens increases our understanding of the features of this animal class and that of other terrestrial vertebrates. The need for amphibian genomic resources is more urgent than ever due to the increasing threats to this group.
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- - Invasive species, like the African clawed frog, are a major threat to biodiversity, particularly affecting amphibians, which are already one of the most endangered groups of vertebrates.
- - Research in the Pacific Northwest focused on how native red-legged frog tadpoles respond to chemical cues from both invasive and native predators, revealing that they react defensively to chemical signals from native predators but not to those from the invasive African clawed frog.
- - The study also explored the interactions between native newts, which produce a neurotoxin, and tadpoles, finding that instead of deterring them, tadpoles were attracted to the newt’s chemical cues, indicating that invasive species may further threaten native amphibians in
Background: Biodiversity is generally reduced when non-native species invade an ecosystem. Invasive crayfish, Procambarus clarkii, populate California freshwater streams, and in the Santa Monica Mountains (Los Angeles, USA), their introduction has led to trophic cascades due to omnivorous feeding behavior and a rapid rate of population growth. The native California newt, Taricha torosa, possesses a neurotoxin, tetrodotoxin (TTX), that affects freshwater animal behavior.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSpeciation entails a reduction in gene flow between lineages. The rates at which genomic regions become isolated varies across space and time. Barrier markers are linked to putative genes involved in (processes of) reproductive isolation, and, when observed over two transects, indicate species-wide processes.
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