Front cover: Bony labyrinth shown in a hatching Crocodylus porosus, based on computed tomography scan. See J.A. Schwab et al., 'Ontogenetic variation the crocodylian vestibular system.

Extraembryonic ectoderm differentiation and chorioallantoic attachment are fibroblast growth factor (FGF)- and transforming growth factor beta-regulated processes that are the first steps in the development of the placenta labyrinth and the establishment of the fetal-maternal circulation in the developing embryo. Only a small number of genes have been demonstrated to be important in trophoblast...

Numerous investigators have remarked upon the secretory appearance of the labyrinth and coelomosac of the crayfish antennal gland (e.g. Marchal, 1892; Peters, 1935; Maluf, 1939). It is readily observed in stained sections that vesicles are formed at the lumenad borders of the labyrinth cells. Furthermore, the cells of the coelomosac appear to be filled with vacuoles containing granular material...

A STUDY of the circulation in the labyrinth, to be complete, must include an investigation of the fluid circulation. The fluid system in the labyrinth is much more complex than that of the cerebrospinal axis. In the latter, the cerebrospinal fluid, produced by the choroid plexuses, circulates by known anatomical pathways and its main function is the protection of the brain. In the labyrinth, ho...

Maternal undernutrition (MUN) during pregnancy may lead to fetal intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), which itself predisposes to adult risk of obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. IUGR may stem from insufficient maternal nutrient supply or reduced placental nutrient transfer. In addition, a critical role for maternal stress-induced glucocorticoids (GCs) has been suggested to contribute to b...

when teaching to our housestaff trainees thoracocentesis that does not rely on chest percussion, namely, clavicle tapping with posterior chest auscultation. Stated simply, this technique takes advantage of the sound transmission characteristics of the inflated lung and the loss of sound transmission caused by the interposition of a layer of fluid between the air-filled lung and the chest wall. ...

Distal-less 3 (Dlx3) is a homeobox factor that functions as a placental-specific transcriptional regulator. Dlx3 null mice (-/-) have compromised placental development and do not survive in utero past embryonic day (E) 9.5. The current studies were undertaken to examine the expression of Dlx3 in mouse placenta during gestation, and to determine whether Dlx3 was involved in placental progesteron...

The membranes of kidney cells of 3-spined sticklebacks were examined in freeze-etch replicas. The numbers of particles adhering to surfaces and fracture faces of the outer cell membranes and the membranes of the basal labyrinth were determined. The latter membranes probably are the main location of ion-transporting enzyme complexes. The total number of particles per cell in freshwater fish exce...

OBJECTIVE Previous in vivo experimental magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) investigations of the mammalian inner ear at 4.7 Tesla have indicated that intravenously injected gadolinium (Gd) penetrates the perilymphatic labyrinth, but not the endolymphatic membranous labyrinth. In the present study, high field MRI at 9.4T was used to visualize the in vivo mouse vestibulo-cochlea system, and to dete...