KANADI (KAN) transcription factors promote abaxial cell fate throughout plant development and are required for organ formation during embryo, leaf, carpel and ovule development. ABERRANT TESTA SHAPE (ATS, or KAN4) is necessary during ovule development to maintain the boundary between the two ovule integuments and to promote inner integument growth. Yeast two-hybrid assays identified ETTIN (ETT,...

Melanism has been found in a wide range of species, but the molecular mechanisms involved remain largely elusive. In this study, we studied the molecular mechanisms of the pupal melanism in Spodoptera exigua. The full length cDNA sequences of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and dopa decarboxylase (DDC), two key enzymes in the biosynthesis pathway of melanin, were cloned, and their temporal expression...

THE dermal plicae folds or ridges of the metamorphosed anuran constitute striking integumentary structures. In most anurans two sets of dermal plicae are present, viz. a dorso-lateral set which run posterior from the dorso-posterior border of each eye to a point just lateral to the urostyle prominence, and a lateral pair originating near the external nares of either side and thence running post...

Neotropical orchid bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Euglossina) are conspicuous due to their vivid and metallic colors. Nevertheless, except for a few comments, usually concerning the appropriateness of using coloration as a taxonomic character (e.g. Rebêlo and Moure, 1996; Nemésio, 2005, 2009; Bembé, 2007), virtually nothing is known about color production and evolution in orchid bees. Based on stud...

Seed development of flowering plant is a complicated process controlled by a signal network. Double fertilization generates 2 zygotic products (embryo and endosperm). Embryo gives rise to a daughter plant while endosperm provides nutrients for embryo during embryogenesis and germination. Seed coat differentiates from maternally derived integument and encloses embryo and endosperm. Seed size/mas...

Seed development in plants involves the coordinated growth of the embryo, endosperm, and maternal tissue. Several genes have been identified that influence seed size by acting maternally, such as AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR2, APETALA2, and DA1. However, given the lack of gain-of-function effects of these genes on seed size, it is unclear whether their activity levels are limiting in WT plants and whe...

There are some reports about the risk of manipulating wild hedgehogs since they can be reservoirs of potential zoonotic agents like dermatophytes. The aim of this study was to describe the integument mycobiota, with special attention to dermatophytes of wild European hedgehogs. Samples from spines and fur were cultured separately in Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) with antibiotic and dermatophyte...

Seed formation is a pivotal process in plant reproduction and dispersal. It begins with megagametophyte development in the ovule, followed by fertilization and subsequently coordinated development of embryo, endosperm, and maternal seed coat. Two closely related MADS-box genes, SHATTERPROOF 1 and 2 (SHP1 and SHP2) are involved in specifying ovule integument identity in Arabidopsis thaliana. The...

Embryos of the viviparous cockroach Diploptera punctata accumulate large amounts of hydrocarbon (HC) of either maternal or embryonic origin. HC synthesis and its accumulation in maternal and embryonic tissues were measured over the course of gestation. Female abdominal integument was the only tissue that synthesized appreciable amounts of HC in vitro, and did so at an increasing rate from the t...

Evidence of original coloration in fossils provides insights into the visual communication strategies used by ancient animals and the functional evolution of coloration over time [1-7]. Hitherto, all reconstructions of the colors of reptile integument and the plumage of fossil birds and feathered dinosaurs have been of melanin-based coloration [1-6]. Extant animals also use other mechanisms for...