Morphology and evolution of the jaw suspension in lamniform sharks

The morphology of the jaw suspension and jaw protrusion mechanism in lamniform sharks is described and mapped onto a cladogram to investigate how changes in jaw suspension and protrusion have evolved. This has revealed that several evolutionary modifications in the musculoskeletal apparatus of the jaws have taken place among lamniform sharks. Galeomorph sharks (Carcharhiniformes, Lamniformes, Orectolobiformes, and Heterodontiformes) have paired ethmopalatine ligaments connecting the ethmoid process of the upper jaw to the ethmoid region of the cranium. Basal lamniform sharks also acquired a novel single palatonasal ligament connecting the symphysis of the upper jaw to the cranium mid-ventral to the nasal capsule. Sharks in the family Lamnidae subsequently lost the original paired ethmopalatine ligament while retaining the novel palatonasal ligament. Thus, basal lamniform taxa (Mitsukurina owstoni, Carcharius taurus, Alopias vulpinnis) have increased ligamentous support of the lateral region of the upper jaw while derived species (Lamnidae) have lost this lateral support but gained anterior support. In previous studies the morphology of the jaw suspension has been shown to play a major role in the mechanism of upper jaw protrusion in elasmobranchs. The preorbitalis is the primary muscle effecting upper jaw protrusion in squalean (sister group to galeomorphs) and carcharhiniform (sister group to lamniforms) sharks. The preorbitalis originates from the quadratomandibularis muscle and inserts onto the nasal capsule in squalean and carcharhiniform sharks. Carcharhiniform sharks have evolved a subdivided preorbitalis muscle with the new division inserting near the ethmoid process of the palatoquadrate (upper jaw). Alopid sharks have also independently evolved a partially subdivided preorbitalis with the new division inserting at the base of the ethmoid process and surrounding connective tissue. Lamnid sharks have retained the two preorbitalis divisions but have modified both of the insertion points. The original ventral preorbitalis division now inserts onto the connective tissue surrounding the mid-region of the upper jaw, while the new dorsal preorbitalis division inserts onto the surrounding connective tissue and skin at a more posterior position on the upper jaw. The retractor muscle of the jaws, the levator hyomandibularis, has also been modified during the evolution of lamniform sharks. In most sharks, including basal lamniforms, the levator hyomandibularis inserts onto the hyomandibula and functions to retract the jaws after protrusion. In alopid and lamnid sharks the levator hyomandibularis inserts primarily onto the upper and lower jaws around the jaw joint and is a more direct route for retracting the jaws. Thus, there has been at least one instance of character loss (ethmopalatine ligament), acquisition (palatonasal ligament), subdivision (preorbitalis), and modification (ventral preorbitalis, dorsal preorbitalis, and levator hyomandibularis) in the ligaments and muscles associated with the jaw suspension and jaw protrusion mechanism in lamniform sharks. While derived lamniform sharks (Lamna nasus, Carcharodon carcharius, and Isurus oxyrinchus) lost the ancestral passive lateral support of the ethmoid articulation of the upper jaw, they simultaneously acquired muscular support by way of the levator hyomandibularis, which provides a dynamic mechanism for lateral support. The evolution of multiple divisions of preorbitalis insertions onto the palatoquadrate and modification of the levator hyomandibularis insertion directly onto the jaws provides an active mechanism for multiple protractions and retractions of the upper jaw, which is advantageous in those sharks that gouge or saw pieces from large oversized prey items.     

急性化脓性扁桃体炎患者咽部菌群特征

目的基于16S rRNA基因高通量测序技术分析急性化脓性扁桃体炎患者咽部菌群特征。方法选择2017年2月至2019年10月在我院就诊的137例急性化脓性扁桃体炎(AST)患者为AST组,选择同期我院20例体检者为对照组,每个对象于左侧扁桃体采集口咽拭子,利用16S rRNA测序技术进行高通量测序分析,并对咽拭子进行细菌培养。结果AST组患者咽部菌群Ace指数、Chao指数、Shannon指数显著低于对照组,Simpson指数显著高于对照组(P<0.05)。科水平上,AST组患者咽部葡萄球菌科和巴斯德菌科相对丰度显著增加(均P<0.05)。属水平上,AST组患者咽部葡萄球菌属、嗜血杆菌属和不动杆菌属相对丰度显著增加。细菌培养结果显示,AST组患者咽部葡萄球菌属、嗜血杆菌属和克雷伯菌属的阳性率高于对照组(均P<0.05)。结论AST患者咽部菌群与健康人相比具有一定差异。AST患者的致病菌可能隶属于葡萄球菌属、嗜血杆菌属和克雷伯菌属。     

数值诊断的一种新方法──贝叶斯定理在数值诊断中的应用研究

根据贝叶斯定理,给出数值诊断的一种新方法——评分法．该方法简单易行,便于推广,且在治疗腰椎间盘突出症应用中收到满意效果．     

A comparison of the mouth morphology of three co-occurring species of atherinid

The mouth morphology of three species of atherinids, which feed at different levels in the water column (benthos, plankton and water surface) were compared. These three species, which all grow to less than 100 mm in length, inhabit the shallows (<2m) of Wilson Inlet, a temperate south-western Australian estuary. The species could be distinguished primarily on the basis of the extent to which they can protrude their jaws. Thus, whereas Leptatherina presbyteroides feeds highest in the water column, including at the water surface on terrestrial insects, and has the most protrusible jaws, Atherinosonia elongata feeds predominantly at or near the benthos and has the least protrusible jaws. Leptatherina wallacei , which ingests prey from the plankton and near the benthos, is intermediate in the degree to which it can protrude its jaws. Other characters of the three species which are associated with feeding, such as the number of gill rakers and the size of teeth, show consistent trends with the degree of jaw protrusion in relation to the type of prey consumed.     

RhoA Controls Axon Extension Independent of Specification in the Developing Brain

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Disruption and de novo formation of nanotubular membrane extensions in SW620 colon carcinoma cell line during cell division

A novel biological principle of cell-to-cell interaction based on membrane continuity of nanotubular channels has recently been described. These contacts are extremely dynamic and sensitive to mechanical stress, which causes their rapid breakage and retraction. Here we demonstrate that functional mechanical stress generated during cell division can disrupt membrane nanotubes, which are formed de novo when filopodia-like projections on one cell make contact with a neighbouring cell, using the SW620 colon carcinoma cell line. Considering the general principal of decreasing cell-cell interactions during tumour progression, our observation is appealing because this new phenomenon may be valid for neoplastic cells.     

A catalogue of skulls and jaws of eastern tropical Pacific blennioid fishes (Blennioidei: Teleostei): A proposed evolutionary sequence of morphological change

Skulls and jaws are compared in 35 species of tropical eastern Pacific (mainly Gulf of California) blennioid fishes (5 species of Tripterygiidae, 13 Labrisomidae, 12 Chaenopsidae, 5 Blenniidae). Morphotypes are arranged in a series from relatively large-mouthed fishes (tripterygiids and a few labrisomids) with protrusible jaws and conical teeth to species with small, non-protrusible jaws and a single row of incisiform teeth. This polarity of arrangement probably reflects the direction of phylogenetic development, as suggested by outgroup comparison with other perciform fishes. Distribution patterns of morphotypes in a simple morphospace, obtained by combining dentition, shape of the jaw arch and jaw protrusibility, are discussed within an adaptive context.     

Functional morphology of extreme jaw protrusion in Neotropical cichlids

The New World cichlids Petenia splendida and Caquetaia spp. possess extraordinarily protrusible jaws. We investigated the feeding behavior of extreme (here defined as greater than 30% head length) and modest jaw-protruding Neotropical cichlids by comparing feeding kinematics, cranial morphology, and feeding performance. Digital high-speed video (500 fps) of P. splendida, C. spectabile, and Astronotus ocellatus feeding on live guppy prey was analyzed to generate kinematic and performance variables. All three cichlid taxa utilized cranial elevation, lower jaw depression, and rotation of the suspensorium to protrude the jaws during feeding experiments. Extreme anterior jaw protrusion in P. splendida and C. spectabile resulted from augmented lower jaw depression and anterior rotation of the suspensorium. Morphological comparisons among eight cichlid species revealed novel anterior and posterior points of flexion within the suspensorium of P. splendida and Caquetaia spp. The combination of anterior and posterior loosening within the suspensorium in P. splendida and Caquetaia spp. permitted considerable anterior rotation of the suspensorium and contributed to protrusion of the jaws. Petenia splendida and C. spectabile exhibited greater ram distance and higher ram velocities than did A. ocellatus, resulting primarily from increased jaw protrusion. Petenia splendida and C. spectabile exhibited lower suction feeding performance than A. ocellatus, as indicated by lower suction-induced prey movements and velocities. Thus, extreme jaw protrusion in these cichlids may represent an adaptation for capturing elusive prey by enhancing the ram velocity of the predator but does not enhance suction feeding performance.