Publications by authors named "Molly K Gabler-Smith"
Article Synopsis
- Sharks can replace lost denticles and also grow new denticles without shedding old ones, which could affect their energy costs and how we study fossil shark populations.
- Research showed that different shark species and body areas have similar rates of missing denticles (0%-6%), but some species, like the smooth dogfish and common thresher shark, have notable differences in denticle loss in specific regions.
- The process of denticle regrowth involves multiple stages, starting from crown development underneath the skin, and ultimately ensures sharks maintain a functional skin surface, which may help in reducing fouling and repairing damage over time.
Batoids differ from other elasmobranch fishes in that they possess dorsoventrally flattened bodies with enlarged muscled pectoral fins. Most batoids also swim using either of two modes of locomotion: undulation or oscillation of the pectoral fins. In other elasmobranchs (e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAdipose tissue has many important functions including metabolic energy storage, endocrine functions, thermoregulation and structural support. Given these varied functions, the microvascular characteristics within the tissue will have important roles in determining rates/limits of exchange of nutrients, waste, gases and molecular signaling molecules between adipose tissue and blood. Studies on skeletal muscle have suggested that tissues with higher aerobic capacity contain higher microvascular density (MVD) with lower diffusion distances (DD) than less aerobically active tissues.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- - Shark skin features dermal denticles, which are tooth-like structures that vary in shape and size across different species and regions, particularly within a small area of skin known as the interbranchial skin.
- - Research using advanced techniques found that denticles at the leading edge of the gill pouches are shorter, wider, and smoother compared to those at the trailing edge across 13 species of sharks.
- - The study proposes that these morphological differences may help reduce abrasion during breathing and influence water flow dynamics after it exits the gills, with future work planned to visualize fluid motion over these denticles.
Decompression sickness (DCS) occurs when nitrogen gas (N2) comes out of solution too quickly, forming bubbles in the blood and tissues. These bubbles can be a serious condition; thus it is of extreme interest in the dive community to model DCS risk. Diving models use tissue compartments to calculate tissue partial pressures, often using data obtained from other mammalian species (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiving tetrapods (sea turtles, seabirds and marine mammals) are a biologically diverse group, yet all are under similar constraints: oxygen limitation and increased hydrostatic pressure at depth. Adipose tissue is important in the context of diving because nitrogen gas (N) is five times more soluble in fat than in blood, creating a potential N sink in diving animals. Previous research demonstrates that unusual lipid composition [waxes and short-chained fatty acids (FA)] in adipose tissue of some whales leads to increased N solubility.
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