Background: Having conquered water surfaces worldwide, the semi-aquatic bugs occupy ponds, streams, lakes, mangroves, and even open oceans. The diversity of this group has inspired a range of scientific studies from ecology and evolution to developmental genetics and hydrodynamics of fluid locomotion. However, the lack of a representative water strider genome hinders our ability to more thoroughly investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the processes of adaptation and diversification within this group.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe origin of complex worker-caste systems in ants perplexed Darwin and has remained an enduring problem for evolutionary and developmental biology. Ants originated approximately 150 million years ago, and produce colonies with winged queen and male castes as well as a wingless worker caste. In the hyperdiverse genus Pheidole, the wingless worker caste has evolved into two morphologically distinct subcastes-small-headed minor workers and large-headed soldiers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAm J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol
October 2017
The actions of hydrogen sulfide (HS) on the heart and vasculature have been extensively reported. However, the mechanisms underlying the effects of HS are unclear in the anesthetized rat. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of HS on the electrocardiogram and examine the relationship between HS-induced changes in heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and respiratory function.
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