In flowering plants, maternal seed integument encloses the embryo and the endosperm, which are both derived from double fertilization. Although the development of these three components must be coordinated, we have limited knowledge of mechanisms involved in such coordination. The endosperm may play a central role in these mechanisms as epigenetic modifications of endosperm development, via imb...

Multicellular glands in the amphibian integument represent a signifi cant evolutionary advance over those of fi shes. Bufonids have parotoid glands, symmetrically disposed in a post-orbital position. Their secretion may contribute to protection against predators and parasites. This study provides a re-evaluation of the morphology of the Bufo ictericus parotoid glands. The parotoid gland integum...

Integument biopsy is a nondestructive method for sampling free-ranging cetaceans, which allows for the determination of both contaminant concentrations and biomarker responses. Cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) expression is induced by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and planar halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons such as the non-ortho and mono-ortho polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). CYP1A induction h...

The body wall of the cercaria of Schistosoma japonicum is covered with a thin integument which is connected to epithel cells located under the uscle layer. On the outer and the basal surfaces of the integument are seen thin limiting membranes. In the matrix of the integument are distributed numerous dense granules, vacuoles and spines. The rootlet of the spine is attached to the basement membra...

To analyse the morphogenic events during skin appendage formation, it is important to have an animal model that offers distinct patterns at various stages of development and is accessible to analysis using state of the art technology. The avian integument is such a model. Combining experimental embryologic approaches, organ cultures, and gene transduction technology, we are now able to begin to...

Cuticle renewal is a complex biological process that depends on the cross talk between hormone levels and gene expression. This study characterized the expression of two genes encoding cuticle proteins sharing the four conserved amino acid blocks of the Tweedle family, AmelTwdl1 and AmelTwdl2, and a gene encoding a cuticle peroxidase containing the Animal haem peroxidase domain, Ampxd, in the h...

MacMunn (1886) extracted a porphyrin from the integument of the starfish Asterias rubens-then known as Uraster rubens-and he considered that this and similar pigments which he had obtained from the slug Arion empiricorum and the coelenterates Flabellum variabile and Fungia symmetrica were identical with the haematoporphyrin of Hoppe-Seyler (1871), which was then the only porphyrin known. Dhere ...

In the silkworm Bombyx mori, pigment mutants with diverse body colors have been maintained throughout domestication for about 5000 years. The silkworm larval body color is formed through the mutual interaction of melanin, ommochromes, pteridines and uric acid. These pigments/compounds are synthesized by the cooperative action of various genes and enzymes. Previous reports showed that melanin, o...