Background: In this study, we report the first case of a male reef manta ray, Mobula alfredi, becoming sexually mature in captivity and present its reproductive characteristics. Methods: We investigated changes in external morphology, behavior, and levels of steroid hormones in a male M. alfredi during its sexual maturation process. Results: At 2 years and 6 months of age, the male exceeded 300...

Information on aging, maturation, and growth is important for understanding life histories of organisms. In extinct dinosaurs, such information can be derived from the histological growth record preserved in the mid-shaft cortex of long bones. Here, we construct growth models to estimate ages at death, ages at sexual maturity, ages at which individuals were fully-grown, and maximum growth rates...

Airway smooth muscle (ASM) displays a hyperresponsive phenotype at young age and becomes less responsive in adulthood. We hypothesized that allergic sensitization, which causes ASM hyperresponsiveness and typically occurs early in life, prevents the ontogenetic loss of the ASM hyperresponsive phenotype. We therefore studied whether neonatal allergic sensitization, not followed by later allergen...

In the present study, age, growth, length-weight relationship and reproduction were investigated in gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata L., 1758) collected from Beymelek Lagoon (Antalya, Turkey) between February 2006 and July 2007. The age, total length and weight of samples ranged from 0+ to 4 years, 10.6 to 35.5cm, and 18 to 928g, respectively. Growth was described by the standard form of the vo...

Traditional poultry production has changed to a considerable industry after few decades. Now, poultry industry is one of the main sectors to obtain the required protein for human consumption. Prediction of the weight and number of eggs according to economic traits can improve the efficiency of production and the profit of producers. In present study, the weight and number of eggs in Mazandaran ...

In the present study, age, growth, length-weight relationship and reproduction were investigated in gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata L., 1758) collected from Beymelek Lagoon (Antalya, Turkey) between February 2006 and July 2007. The age, total length and weight of samples ranged from 0+ to 4 years, 10.6 to 35.5cm, and 18 to 928g, respectively. Growth was described by the standard form of the vo...