Recent advances in molecular biological techniques have seen the cloning of the H2-receptor gene from canine parietal cells, and the structural identification and cloning of the H1- and H3-receptors should soon follow. This information will allow the elucidation of the mechanisms responsible for the species and tissue heterogeneity in the H1-receptor binding and functional characteristics. The ...

In this paper, we address sensor fusion for the attitude estimation of micromechanical aerial vehicles (MAVs), in particular a biologically inspired robotic housefly. First, a dynamic observer is proposed that estimates attitude based on kinematic data available from different and redundant bio-inspired sensors such as halteres, ocelli, gravitometers, magnetic compasses and light polarization c...

Infestation of the living tissues of the eye, ocular adnexae or orbit by larvae of flies of the order Diptera is known as ophthalmomyiasis. Ophthalmomyiasis externa is a limited superficial infestation of external ocular structures such as conjunctiva and adnexae. A case of follicular carcinoma thyroid with orbital metastasis presenting as ophthalmomyiasis externa is reported. The patient prese...

As the characteristic size of a flying robot decreases, the challenges for successful flight revert to basic questions of fabrication, actuation, fluid mechanics, stabilization, and power whereas such questions have in general been answered for larger aircraft. When developing a flying robot on the scale of a common housefly, all hardware must be developed from scratch as there is nothing “off-...

To further elucidate the possible involvement of intracellular protein catabolism in the development of insecticide resistance, we determined in vivo effect of the potent synthetic pyrethroid, ß-cyfluthrin on the activities of cytoplasmic and lysosomal proteolytic enzymes in insecticide-resistant and susceptible strain of housefly, Musca domestica. ß-Cyfluthrin at LC50 dose after 48 hour treatm...

In this paper, we address sensor fusion for the attitude estimation of Micromechanical Aerial Vehicles (MAVs), in particular a biologically inspired robotic housefly. First, a dynamic observer is proposed which estimates attitude based on kinematic data available from different and redundant bio-inspired sensors such as halteres, ocelli, gravitometers, magnetic compass and light polarization co...

The hobo transposable element from Drosophila melanogaster was found to be capable of excision, resulting in donor sites unlike those reported for any other transposable element currently known in animals. These empty sites most closely resemble those left by the transposable elements Ac and Tam3 in Zea mays and Antirrhinum majus, respectively. Like Ac and Tam3, the hobo element was found to fu...

Recent studies proved that the biofumigants could be an alternative to chemical fumigants against stored grain insect pests. For this reason, it is necessary to understand the mode of action of biofumigants. In the present study the prospectus of utilising Lantana camara as a potent fumigant insecticide is being discussed. Inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) by Coumaran, an active ingredi...

We observed that a methanolic whole body extract of uninfected last instar larvae of the housefly, Musca domestica, displayed antifungal and antibacterial activity. We have further purified this extract to a single active fraction using reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography. The pure fraction inhibited growth of the Gram-positive bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis and the yeast Sac...

Differentiation in morphometric traits among experimental populations of the housefly subjected to an experimental bottleneck was examined for replicate lines founded with one, four or 16 pairs of flies. Differentiation among lines within a bottleneck size was significantly greater than predicted by drift in relation to the additive genetic variation for these traits within the founding populat...