DNA barcoding enables precise identification of species from analysis of unique DNA sequence of a target gene. The present study was undertaken to develop barcodes for different species of the genus Dalbergia, an economically important timber plant and is widely distributed in the tropics. Ten Dalbergia species selected from the Western Ghats of India were evaluated using three regions in the p...

We studied the reproductive behaviour associated with mate choice by size in three species of White Sea molluscs genus Littorina—L. saxatilis, L. obtusata and fabalis. Three behavioural patterns were revealed after a comparative analysis male snails. The males obtusata, regardless their size, could all females but preferred to larger ones. fabalis chose own or larger. saxatilis mated approximat...

Genome scans have been used in the studies of ecological speciation to find genomic regions ('outlier loci') showing reduced gene flow between divergent populations/species. High-throughput sequencing ('454') offers new opportunities in this field via transcriptome sequencing. Divergent ecotypes of the marine gastropod Littorina saxatilis represent a good example of incipient ecological speciat...

In organisms encountering predictable environments, fixed development is expected, whereas in organisms that cannot predict their future environment, phenotypic plasticity would be optimal to increase local adaptation. To test this prediction we experimentally compared phenotypic plasticity in two rocky-shore snail species; Littorina saxatilis releasing miniature snails on the shore, and Littor...

The antioxidant activities of 24 isoflavonoids that were previously isolated as pure compounds from Dalbergia parviflora were evaluated using three different in vitro antioxidant-based assay systems: xanthine/xanthine oxidase (X/XO), ORAC, and DPPH. The isolates consisted of three subgroups, namely isoflavones, isoflavanones, and isoflavans, each of which appeared to have diversified substituen...

The urinary systems of Roccus saxatilis (Walbaum) and Roccus ~­ icanus (Gmelin) were studied to check the validity of the monogeneric classification and to examine the osmoregulatory mechanism that allows the species to survive in environments of various salinities. The gross anatomy of the urinary systems of 13 ~· saxatilis and 12 !!o americanus showed a number of similarities to exist, e.g. t...

Two rocky shore ecotypes of Littorina saxatilis from north-west Spain live at different shore levels and habitats and have developed an incomplete reproductive isolation through size assortative mating. The system is regarded as an example of sympatric ecological speciation. Several experiments have indicated that different evolutionary forces (migration, assortative mating and habitat-dependen...

T. E. Rodrigues1, J. D. T. Arruda-Neto1, J. Mesa2, C. Garcia1, K. Shtejer1,3, D. Dale4, and I. Nakagawa5 1Physics Institute, University of São Paulo, P.O. Box 66318, CEP 05315-970, São Paulo, Brazil 2Department of Physics and Biophysics UNESP, Botucatu, SP, Brazil 3Center of Applied Studies for Nuclear Developments (CEADEN), Havana, Cuba 4Department of Physics, Idaho State University, Pocatello...

Dalbergia sissoo and Azadirachta indica are commonly known trees of India. They belong to family leguminoseae (fabaceae) and meliaceae respectively. They are broadly used in folk medicine for several diseases. The present study is carried out on biochemical parameters i.e. on content of protein and glycogen with standardized method in liver and kidney of Sprague-dawley rats. Due to combined ext...

Plants of Juniperus communis L. var. communis, J. c. var. depressa Pursh, J. c. var. jackii Rehdr, J. c. var. saxatilis Pall. were sampled and SNPs from nrDNA were examined. Based on these data and previous data, a new variety of J. communis is recognized: Juniperus communis var. charlottensis R. P. Adams, var. nov. It occurs in muskeg bogs on Queen Charlotte Island, British Columbia and in the...