Sea cucumbers are characterized by their content in holothurins, triterpenoid glycosides that are responsible for the toxicity of these echinoderms. Nearly 100 holothurins isolated in the last twenty years are grouped into three main aglycone structural types: 3p-hydrox>iiolost-9(ll)-ene, 3p-hydrox5*iolost-7-ene and nonholostane based aglycones. This communication offers a general view of the s...

The recently erected phyllophorid genus Massinium Samyn & Thandar, 2003 hithertho held three species: the southern African endemics Massinium arthroprocessum (Thandar, 1989) and M. maculosum Samyn & Thandar, 2003 (type species), and the central Indo-Pacific M. magnum (Ludwig, 1882). Careful examination of the incomplete holotype of M. magnum and material assigned to this species from various mu...

The stiffness of holothurian dermis can be altered experimentally in vitro by changing the concentration of extracellular Ca(2+). Previous experiments with Cucumaria frondosa have established that these Ca(2+) effects are due to Ca(2+)-dependent cellular processes rather than to direct effects of Ca(2+) on the extracellular matrix. The present report describes two protein factors that are relea...

In this paper, we diagnose a new genus of Sclerodactylidae, Coronatum gen. et sp. nov., from shallow waters of the southwestern Atlantic Ocean. Coronatum baiensis sp. nov. has a compact calcareous ring with short posterior processes and a unique set of body wall ossicles, composed of two-pillared tables, which do not have any morphological affinities with Euthyonidiella dentata and Pseudothyone...

Three ganglioside molecular species, SCG-1, SCG-2, and SCG-3, were obtained from the lipid fraction of the chloroform-methanol extract of the sea cucumber Stichopus chloronotus. On the basis of chemical and spectroscopic evidence, the structures of these gangliosides have been determined to be 1-O-[(N-glycolyl-alpha-D-neuraminosyl)-(2-->6)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl]-ceramide (SCG-1), 1-O-[8-O-sulfo...

Understanding the viscoelastic behavior of collagenous tissues with complex hierarchical structures requires knowledge of the properties at each structural level. Whole tissues have been studied extensively, but less is known about the mechanical behavior at the submicron, fibrillar level. Using a microelectromechanical systems platform, in vitro coupled creep and stress relaxation tests were p...

A new species of sea cucumber of the genus Lissothuria Verrill, 1867 is described. Lissothuria caboblanquensis n. sp. was found in the Costa Rican Pacific, at 17 m depth. The presence of towers with spiny apex and the elaborated shape of the hourglasses in the dorsal body wall, make this species unique among the species of this genus. This species is distinctive within the genus. The shape of t...

—Overfishing due to high demand in Asian markets, have encouraged illegal fisheries of sea cucumbers in non-traditional areas of the tropical Caribbean. This work assesses the population structure, distribution, and abundance of three commercially important Caribbean species (Isostichopus badionotus, Holothuria mexicana, and Astichopus multifidus) in 47 158 hectares of shallow habitats in Bocas...

Sea cucumber catch has followed “boom-and-bust” patterns over the period of 60 years from 1950-2010, and sea cucumber fisheries have had important ecological, economic and societal roles. However, sea cucumber fisheries have not been explored systematically, especially in terms of catch change trends. Sea cucumbers are relatively sedentary species. An attempt was made to explore whether the tim...