Acta ZoologicaPub Date : 2023-07-04DOI: 10.1111/azo.12476
Amir Hassan Masoumi, Hamid Reza Esmaeili, Reza Sadeghi
{"title":"Enigmatic fish ear stones: Ontogenetic development of saccular otolith in an endemic toothcarp of the Arabian peninsula, Aphaniops kruppi (Teleostei: Aphaniidae)","authors":"Amir Hassan Masoumi, Hamid Reza Esmaeili, Reza Sadeghi","doi":"10.1111/azo.12476","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12476","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Otolith morphology in the toothcarps of the family Aphaniidae is an important source of taxonomic information. However, little is known about the ontogenetic variation in otolith morphology. In this study, the development of otolith morphology in different life stages of <i>Aphaniops kruppi</i>, an endemic toothcarp of the Arabian Peninsula, is described and discussed. The results reveal (i) a significant correlation between standard length and otolith size (length) in larval and early juvenile stages, (ii) clear differences in otolith morphology between larvae/early juveniles and adults, and (iii) a temporal link between the appearance of the sulcus on the otolith's inner face and lifestyles, that is demersal in larvae and early juveniles, and pelagic in adults. Moreover, our new data on otoliths of <i>Ap</i>. <i>kruppi</i> propose that otoliths of larvae or early juveniles of <i>Ap</i>. <i>kruppi</i> can be recognized by adults not only because of their small size but also based on their short and rounded rostrum and antirostrum and shallow, wide excisura. As the above-mentioned characteristics are also found in the otoliths of juveniles and larvae of several other studied aphaniids, it can be concluded that otoliths are not diagnostic at the species level in <i>Ap</i>. <i>kruppi</i>, and this holds for other closely related species.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 3","pages":"340-354"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82580039","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta ZoologicaPub Date : 2023-06-18DOI: 10.1111/azo.12475
Alessio Alesci, Emmanuele Messina, Krystyna Zuwala, Angelo Fumia, Anthea Miller, Roberta D'Angelo, Michal Kuciel, Marco Albano, Serena Savoca, Gioele Capillo
{"title":"Mechanosensory cells in annelid oligochaete Lumbricus terrestris (Linnaeus, 1758): A new insight on worm evolution","authors":"Alessio Alesci, Emmanuele Messina, Krystyna Zuwala, Angelo Fumia, Anthea Miller, Roberta D'Angelo, Michal Kuciel, Marco Albano, Serena Savoca, Gioele Capillo","doi":"10.1111/azo.12475","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12475","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Ciliated and non-ciliated mechanosensory cells in invertebrates have intricate cytoskeletal structures that, combined with microtubules, act as a mechanical link between external stimulus and signal processing. As a result, they can perceive forces like touch, cuticle deformation, gravity and sound. Through the expression of antibodies against serotonin (5-HT), calbindin, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and α-smooth muscle actin (αSMA), this research aims to investigate mechanosensory cells in the integument of <i>Lumbricus terrestris</i> (Linnaeus, 1758) in an evolutionary perspective. In the epidermis, we discovered isolated mechanosensory cells that were immunopositive to every antibody examined. Our findings improve the knowledge and the evolution of annelid sensory biology adding new insights on the sensory signal transduction and help to better understand the morpho-structural adaptations of invertebrate skin on an evolutionary scale and to give more taxonomic data for species distinction.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 3","pages":"331-339"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90744637","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta ZoologicaPub Date : 2023-06-08DOI: 10.1111/azo.12469
Hamid Reza Esmaeili, Sorour Echreshavi, Amir Hassan Masoumi, Abbas Motlagh Nejad
{"title":"On a remarkable sexual dimorphic trait on scales and fins of the old world Cyprinodontiformes (Actinopterygii: Aphaniidae)","authors":"Hamid Reza Esmaeili, Sorour Echreshavi, Amir Hassan Masoumi, Abbas Motlagh Nejad","doi":"10.1111/azo.12469","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12469","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Secondary sexual dimorphism is an interesting and stupendous subject of research study due to the fact that it is a result of sexual selection, mostly attributed to either female mate choice or male–male competition. This study aims to investigate the microscopic characterization of scales and fin rays in several aphaniids (Cyprinodontiformes: Aphaniidae) to find out the possibility of using these structures as secondary sexual dimorphism traits and discuss their taxonomic and evolutionary significance. Herein, the results reveal that (i) male individuals of aphaniid species of the genera <i>Aphanius</i>, <i>Aphaniops</i> and <i>Paraphanius</i> present contact organs in the forms of ctenus-like structure (in posterior margin of the scales) and spicule-like structure (in anal fin rays) that show sexual dimorphism of scales and fins; (ii) number, position, size and shape of contact organs provide taxonomic signal to distinguish members of the genus <i>Aphaniops</i> from two other genera; (iii) females of <i>Aphaniops ginaonis</i> also represent contact organs in scales but fewer than males and (iv) as the sexual dimorphism results from different sexual selection pressures acting on males and females, it provides evolutionary signals.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 3","pages":"302-316"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-06-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72423700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Gametogenesis in Rhinella bergi (Anura: Bufonidae): Morphological and morphometric analysis","authors":"Esteban Cheij, Gabriela Beatriz Olea, Florencia Rodríguez, Jorge Céspedez, Carolina Flores Quintana","doi":"10.1111/azo.12470","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12470","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This study aims to characterize the gonads, folliculogenesis, and spermatogenesis processes of male and female <i>Rhinella bergi</i> through anatomical, histological and morphometric analysis. We worked with specimens previously collected in the spring and summer seasons (2014–2015), in which the gonads were studied based on morphological, histological and morphometric analysis. The reproductive system was analyzed using a stereoscopic microscope and a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Histological preparations were made following the conventional protocol of dehydration, inclusion in paraffin and stained with haematoxylin–eosin, Mallory trichrome and PAS histochemical reactions. The anatomical and morphometric characteristics and the gametogenesis in <i>R</i>. <i>bergi</i> agree with what was proposed for other analyzed species of the Bufonidae family. Females with ovaries with oocytes in different stages of maturity and postovulatory females were found. The males presented continuous spermatogenesis. The results of this work serve as a basis for the characterization of the reproductive cycle in <i>R</i>. <i>bergi</i> and, at the same time, provide background information on the analysis of gametogenic activity. Future investigations will be focused on evaluating the reproductive cycle in this species, both in ovaries and testes as well as Bidder's organ, to compare and correlate with the results obtained in this study.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 3","pages":"317-330"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-06-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87092047","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta ZoologicaPub Date : 2023-05-15DOI: 10.1111/azo.12468
Hirohumi Suzuki, Ami Isobe, Toshiharu Yamamoto
{"title":"CXCL14 immunoreactivity is localized in pituitary GH-producing cells and in median eminence somatostatin-containing fibres of the Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica)","authors":"Hirohumi Suzuki, Ami Isobe, Toshiharu Yamamoto","doi":"10.1111/azo.12468","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12468","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This is the first study to examine the distribution of a chemokine CXCL14-like peptide in the pituitary and hypothalamus of an avian species, the Japanese quail (<i>Coturnix japonica</i>). We employed immunohistochemical techniques using a specific anti-human CXCL14 antibody. CXCL14-immunoreactive cells were detected in the caudal lobe of the pars distalis. CXCL14-immunoreactive puncta were densely distributed in the external layer and sparsely distributed in the internal layer of the median eminence. CXCL14 staining was absent after pre-absorption of the antibody with recombinant human CXCL14. All CXCL14-immunoreactive cells corresponded to growth hormone (GH)-producing cells in the caudal lobe. In addition, the majority of CXCL14-immunoreactive puncta in the median eminence corresponded to somatostatin-containing fibres. CXCL14 secreted from GH-producing cells and somatostatin-containing fibres may act as an inhibitor of GH release via an autocrine mechanism and neuroendocrine signalling, respectively.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 3","pages":"294-301"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-05-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79900182","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta ZoologicaPub Date : 2023-05-10DOI: 10.1111/azo.12467
Damien Martin, Philip J. Currie, Martin Kundrát
{"title":"Variability of bone microstructure and growth lines in the evolution of troodontids and dromaeosaurids","authors":"Damien Martin, Philip J. Currie, Martin Kundrát","doi":"10.1111/azo.12467","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12467","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Since the beginning of the 1990s, palaeontologists have been interested in understanding biological processes recorded within the bone microstructure of deinonychosaurian theropods, the group comprising Troodontidae and Dromaeosauridae. Several studies were published on this subject, and the growing database requires the first revision of used terminology and older interpretations. Furthermore, a platform correlating the developmental characters of all investigated taxa is missing. Hence, we lack a perspective to evaluate the potential of deinonychosaurian osteohistology for understanding their evolution and that of their close relatives, including avialans. This study aimed to fill in this gap by offering a comprehensive review of the previous osteohistological investigations published on deinonychosaurians and <i>Archaeopteryx</i>. Four significant evolutionary phenomena are assumed from the investigated deinonychosaurian taxa: (1) it is likely that troodontids evolved general osteohistology closer to basal avialans than to dromaeosaurids, (2) in troodontids, reticular vasculature is correlated to maturation timing, (3) the first growth deceleration occurs later in smaller deinonychosaurs (e.g. <i>Changyuraptor</i>, <i>Sinornithosaurus</i>) than in larger forms (e.g. <i>Buitreraptor</i>), and (4) the growth rate of the deinonychosaurs' hind limbs might be correlated with a specific type of locomotion.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 2","pages":"135-175"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80058991","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta ZoologicaPub Date : 2023-05-01DOI: 10.1111/azo.12464
Chun Yang, Jinyu Sun, Zhaoting Kou, Bo Liu
{"title":"Neurogenesis in the regenerating tail of tsinling dwarf skinks (Scincella tsinlingensis)","authors":"Chun Yang, Jinyu Sun, Zhaoting Kou, Bo Liu","doi":"10.1111/azo.12464","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12464","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Spinal ganglia and peripheral nerves innervate the regenerating tail and muscles of lizards, which provide new opportunities to probe the mechanisms leading to successful functional recovery following spinal cord injury. The regenerated spinal cord and peripheral nerves were detected using immunohistochemistry in original and regenerating tails of <i>Scincella tsinlingensis.</i> Our results showed that positive PCNA, GFAP and SOX2 cells were observed in the ependymal ducts at 15 and 30 days after the autotomy (dpa), with a small number of immunopositive NSE neurons. GFAP and SOX2 positive cells were primarily localized along the regenerated spinal cord after 45 dpa, and the descending nerve of medulla tissue showed positive NSE. Peripheral axons distributed around the muscle and inside the connective tissue and muscle tissue at 15 dpa. The number of axons decreased after 30 dpa. The peripheral axons was mainly distributed between the connective tissue, muscle group and the muscle and epidermis, presenting a radial distribution centred on the cartilage tube at 120 dpa. MBP myelination labelling of the regenerated tail at 30 dpa revealed that the regenerated axons rapidly myelinated along the rostro-caudal axis. The density of NMJ significantly increased at 120 dpa and 250 dpa. In the second regenerated tails, NMJ density at 250 dpa was still greater than original tails. Overall, these results indicated that neurogenesis was an early event and the ependymal cells were heterogeneous in the regenerated spinal cord of <i>S. tsinlingensis</i>. The regenerated peripheral axons presented a radial distribution centred on the cartilage canal, and the regenerated axons were rapidly myelinated along the rostro-caudal axis. During the process of regeneration, there were a large number of regenerated neuromuscular joints with high density.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 2","pages":"241-252"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81562662","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Acta ZoologicaPub Date : 2023-04-28DOI: 10.1111/azo.12466
Torben Stemme
{"title":"No evidence for regeneration of pectines in the scorpion Euscorpius italicus (Herbst, 1800)","authors":"Torben Stemme","doi":"10.1111/azo.12466","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12466","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Although scorpions have comparatively low regenerative potential, legs and pedipalps are able to regenerate some structures in an often incomplete manner. The most intriguing scorpion appendages are the ventrally located pectines. These organs are equipped with numerous sensilla that scan the substrate for mechanosensory- and chemosensory cues. Due to their ventral position and frequent substrate contact, pectines are vulnerable to traumatic injuries. Pecten malformations have been hypothesized to be the result of incomplete regeneration. To investigate their regeneration capabilities, the pectines of postembryonic stages of <i>Euscorpius italicus</i> (Herbst, 1800) were amputated before the second moult at three different positions. Data on intermoult periods and the number of pectinal teeth were gathered for approximately 2.5 years. The regeneration process on exuviae of up to six moulting events was documented by photographs and confocal laser-scanning microscopy. Regardless of the amputation site, no evidence for regenerative capabilities of pectines in <i>E. italicus</i> could be reported. Thus, incomplete regenerations mentioned in the literature are likely the result of simple wound healing. Depending on habitat complexity, substrate contact time of the pectines seem to differ, which might be interpreted as a trade-off between highest sensory input and the avoidance of traumatic injury of the pectines.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 3","pages":"281-293"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/azo.12466","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74590410","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Notes on the female reproductive system of the red-and-black froghopper, Cercopis vulnerata Rossi, 1807 (Hemiptera: Cercopidae)-light and electron microscopy studies","authors":"Nurcan Özyurt Koçakoğlu, Selami Candan, Hicret Arslan","doi":"10.1111/azo.12465","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12465","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The morphology of the female reproductive system in <i>Cercopis vulnerata</i>, an economically important species, was examined with light and scanning electron microscopy techniques. The female reproductive system of <i>C. vulnerata</i> has two ovaries, each containing 14 telotrophic meroistic ovarioles joined by two lateral oviducts that open in a common oviduct. In this type of ovarioles, the trophocytes within the germarium are transferred to the developing oocytes in the vitellarium via the nutritive cords. The oocytes in the vitellarium have three different development stages: previtello, vitello and choriogenesis. The ovarioles open in the lateral oviduct with a thin canal-shaped pedicel. A pair of lateral oviducts opens distally into the common oviduct. The oviducts are surrounded by a monolayer cubical epithelium with deep folds toward the lumen and a thick muscle layer. A pair of spermatheca and a bursa copulatrix are seen near the common oviduct. Spermatheca has an elongated shape. The bursa copulatrix has an ovoid tube-like structure. No work has been done on the female reproductive system of Cercopidae to date. This study was conducted to fill this gap and forms part of the female reproductive system morphology of this economically important insect.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 2","pages":"253-261"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83328223","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Egg morphology and mating behaviour of Dryops rufipes (Krynicki, 1832) (Coleoptera: Dryopidae) newly recorded from the Central Anatolian Region of Turkey","authors":"Hakan Özdamar, Nurcan Özyurt Koçakoğlu, Selami Candan","doi":"10.1111/azo.12463","DOIUrl":"10.1111/azo.12463","url":null,"abstract":"<p>A group of aquatic Coleoptera specimens was collected from Güvenç Village in the Kahramankazan region of Ankara. Among these specimens was <i>Dryops rufipes</i> (Krynicki, 1832) (Coleoptera: Dryopidae), which is recorded from the Middle Anatolian Region of Turkey for the first time. The egg morphology of <i>D. rufipes</i> is described based on light and scanning electron microscope micrographs. Copulation and oviposition are described.</p>","PeriodicalId":50945,"journal":{"name":"Acta Zoologica","volume":"105 2","pages":"234-240"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-04-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72837419","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}