An investigation on medical arthropoda was conducted from 3-30/8/2002 at 4 study sites: A Roang, Hong Van, Ta Rut and Hung Phung in Ho Chi Minh road (Quang Tri and Thua Thien – Hue segments). 3 species of flea (Siphonaptera), 3 species of ticks (Ixodidae), 6 species of mite (Trombiculidae) and 19 species of tiggs (Gamasoidea), 38 species of Culicinae and 19 species of Anopheles were collected. These belong to 8 families, 2 classes: Acarina and Insecta. Medical arthropoda with epidemiological function such as flea: Xenopsylla cheopis, tick: Leptotrombidium (L) deliense, Garhliepia (W) chinensis, mite Orthonyssus bacoti, mosquito Aedes albopictus, Culex tritaeniohyncus
Epidemiology ; Arthropods ; Invertebrates

The serotonergic system in vertebrates and invertebrates has been a focus for over 50 years and will likely continue in the future. Recently, genomic analysis and discovery of alternative splicing and differential expression in tissues have increased the knowledge of serotonin (5-HT) receptor types. Comparative studies can provide useful insights to the wide variety of mechanistic actions of 5-HT responsible for behaviors regulated or modified by 5-HT. To determine cellular responses and influences on neural systems as well as the efferent control of behaviors by the motor units, preparations amenable to detailed studies of synapses are beneficial as working models. The invertebrate neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) offer some unique advantages for such investigations; action of 5-HT at crustacean NMJs has been widely studied, and leech and Aplysia continue to be key organisms. However, there are few studies in insects likely due to the focus in modulation within the CNS and lack of evidence of substantial action of 5-HT at the Drosophila NMJs. There are only a few reports in gastropods and annelids as well as other invertebrates. In this review we highlight some of the key findings of 5-HT actions and receptor types associated at NMJs in a variety of invertebrate preparations in hopes that future studies will build on this knowledge base.
Alternative Splicing ; Aplysia ; Drosophila ; Gastropoda ; Insects ; Invertebrates ; Knowledge Bases ; Neuromuscular Junction ; Serotonin ; Synapses ; Synaptic Transmission ; Vertebrates

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have important roles in all biological pathways in multicellular organisms. Over 1,400 human miRNAs have been identified, and many are conserved among vertebrates and invertebrates. Regulation of miRNA is the most common mode of post-transcriptional gene regulation. The miRNAs that are involved in the initiation and progression of cancers are termed oncomiRs and several of them have been identified in canine and human cancers. Similarly, several miRNAs have been reported to be down-regulated in cancers of the two species. In this review, current information on the expression and roles of miRNAs in oncogenesis and progression of human and canine cancers, as well the roles miRNAs have in cancer stem cell biology, are highlighted. The potential for the use of miRNAs as therapeutic targets in personalized cancer therapy in domestic dogs and their possible application in human cancer counterparts are also discussed.
Animals ; Biology ; Carcinogenesis ; Dogs ; Gene Expression ; Humans ; Invertebrates ; MicroRNAs ; Neoplastic Stem Cells ; Stem Cells ; Vertebrates

The Bombyx mori decapentaplegic gene is one of the conserved genes in vertebrate and invertebrates. The TGF-beta superfamily contains conserved polypeptide growth factors that play important roles in different cellular processes such as proliferation, apoptosis, differentiation and cell-fate determination. The B. mori dpp gene shares genetic homology with hBMPs and Drosophila dpp. Until now, only few studies have been conducted to examine the functions of B. mori dpp; and hence, its function is not yet well understood. In this study, the baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) was used for expression of the recombinant B. mori dpp protein and in which the recombinant baculovirus is recovered in the host Sf9 cells. The selected pure recombinant baculovirus containing B. mori dpp gene (rBV-egfp-Bm dpp) was used to increase the effective protein purification by using His-tag extraction strategy. After selection of recombinant baculovirus, recombinant B. mori dpp proteins were extracted from the re-infected cells with pure rBV-egfp-Bm dpp. Herein, we summarize the efficient expression and purification of B. mori dpp proteins from the insect cells using the BEVS. This recombinant protein could be suitable for functional test and various application studies.
Apoptosis ; Baculoviridae* ; Bombyx* ; Drosophila ; Insects ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins ; Invertebrates ; Sf9 Cells ; Transforming Growth Factor beta ; Vertebrates

BACKGROUND: Bacteria associated with marine invertebrates are a rich source of bioactive metabolites. OBJECTIVE: The effects of marine bacteria extracts on pigmentation were investigated to find novel whitening agents. METHODS: The marine bacteria collected near Gangwha Island in Korea were isolated and extracted using organic solvent. The organic extracts were screened and selected using the cell free tyrosinase activity. The whitening effects of the selected extract were further investigated using cultured melanocytes, cultured skin and in vivo zebrafish. The whitening mechanism of the marine extract was also investigated. RESULTS: The marine bacterial methylene chloride extract reduced the pigmentation of Melan-a cells, human melanocytes, cultured skin and in vivo zebrafish. The decrease in pigmentation was due to the inhibition of tyrosinase activity and the expression of tyrosinase and microphthalmia-associated transcription factor protein. These bacteria were identified as a novel Pseudomonas species. CONCLUSION: The methylene chloride extract of marine pseudomonas species possesses a whitening effect. Further chemical isolation and characterization of the active compounds from this marine bacterial extract are needed.
Bacteria ; Humans ; Invertebrates ; Korea ; MART-1 Antigen ; Melanocytes ; Methylene Chloride ; Microphthalmia-Associated Transcription Factor ; Monophenol Monooxygenase ; Pigmentation ; Pseudomonas ; Skin ; Zebrafish

Cephalopods have the most advanced nervous systems and intelligent behavior among all invertebrates. Their brains provide comparative insights for understanding the molecular and functional origins of the human brain. Although brain maps that contain information on the organization of each subregion are necessary for a study on the brain, no whole brain atlas for adult cephalopods has been constructed to date. Here, we obtained sagittal and coronal sections covering the entire brain of adult Octopus minor (Sasaki), which belongs to the genus with the most species in the class Cephalopoda and is commercially available in East Asia throughout the year. Sections were stained using Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) to visualize the cellular nuclei and subregions. H&E images of the serial sections were obtained at 30~70-µm intervals for the sagittal plain and at 40~80-µm intervals for the coronal plain. Setting the midline point of the posterior end as the fiducial point, we also established the distance coordinates of each image. We found that the brain had the typical brain structure of the Octopodiformes. A number of subregions were discriminated by a Hematoxylin-positive layer, the thickness and neuronal distribution pattern of which varied markedly depending upon the region. We identified more than 70 sub-regions based on delineations of representative H&E images. This is the first brain atlas, not only for an Octopodiformes species but also among adult cephalopods, and we anticipate that this atlas will provide a valuable resource for comparative neuroscience research.
Adult ; Arm* ; Brain* ; Cephalopoda ; Eosine Yellowish-(YS) ; Far East ; Hematoxylin ; Histology, Comparative ; Humans ; Invertebrates ; Nervous System ; Neurons ; Neurosciences ; Octopodiformes*

GIT1, a multifunctional signaling adaptor protein, is implicated in the development of dendritic spines and neuronal synapses. GIT1 forms a signaling complex with PIX, RAC, and PAK proteins that is known to play important roles in brain development. Here we found that Git1-knockout (Git1-/-) mice show a microcephaly-like small brain phenotype, which appears to be caused by reduced neuronal size rather than number. Git1-/- mice also show decreased dendritic spine number without morphological alterations in the hippocampus. Behaviorally, Git1-/- mice show impaired motor coordination and learning and memory. In addition, adult dGit Drosophila mutants show decreased brain size and abnormal morphology of the mushroom body. These results suggest that GIT1 is important for brain development in both rodents and flies.
Adult ; Animals ; Brain* ; Dendritic Spines ; Diptera ; Drosophila ; Hippocampus ; Humans ; Invertebrates* ; Learning ; Memory ; Mice ; Microcephaly ; Mushroom Bodies ; Neurons ; Phenotype ; Rodentia ; Synapses ; Vertebrates*

Chigger mites are parasites of rodents and other vertebrates, invertebrates, and other arthropods, and are the only vectors of scrub typhus, in addition to other zoonoses. Therefore, investigating their distribution, diversity, and seasonal abundance is important for public health. Rodent surveillance was conducted at 6 districts in Shandong Province, northern China (114–112°E, 34–38°N), from January to December 2011. Overall, 225/286 (78.7%) rodents captured were infested with chigger mites. A total of 451 chigger mites were identified as belonging to 5 most commonly collected species and 3 genera in 1 family. Leptotrombidium scutellare and Leptotrombidium intermedia were the most commonly collected chigger mites. L. scutellare (66.2%, 36.7%, and 49.0%) was the most frequently collected chigger mite from Apodemus agrarius, Rattus norvegicus, and Microtus fortis, respectively, whereas L. intermedia (61.5% and 63.2%) was the most frequently collected chigger mite from Cricetulus triton and Mus musculus, respectively. This study demonstrated a relatively high prevalence of chigger mites that varied seasonally in Shandong Province, China.
Animals ; Arthropods ; Arvicolinae ; China* ; Cricetinae ; Cricetulus ; Humans ; Invertebrates ; Mice ; Mites* ; Murinae ; Neptune ; Parasites ; Prevalence ; Public Health ; Rats ; Rodentia* ; Scrub Typhus ; Seasons ; Trombiculidae* ; Vertebrates ; Zoonoses

Nucleic scids transfer the genetic information for serving a central biological purpose. The nucleic acids are polymers of nucleotides and they are mainly ribonucleic acid(RNA) and deoxyribonucleic acid(DNA). The nucleotides are stoichiometrically composed of five-carbon sugars, nitrogeneous bases, and phosphoric acids. The chemistry of nucleic acids and characteristics of different genomes are decribed for further study. Most of DNA genomes tend to be circular including bacterial genomes and eukaryotic mitochondrial DNA. Eukaryotic chromosomes in cells, in contrast, are generally linear. The ends of linear chromosomes are called telomeres. The genomes of different species, such as mammals, plants, invertebrates can be compared with the chromosome ends. The telomeric complex allows cells to distinguish the random DNA breaks and natural chromosomal ends. The very ends of chromosomes cannot be replicated by any ordinary mechanisms. The shortening of telomeric DNA templates in semiconservative replication is occurred with each cell division. The short telomere length is critically related to aging, tumors and dieases.
Aging ; Carbohydrates ; Cell Division ; DNA ; DNA Breaks ; DNA, Mitochondrial ; Genome ; Genome, Bacterial ; Genome, Mitochondrial ; Invertebrates ; Mammals ; Nitrogen ; Nucleic Acids ; Nucleotides ; Phosphoric Acids ; Polymers ; Telomere

Vertebrate genomes are characterized with CpG deficiency, particularly for GC-poor regions. The GC content-related CpG deficiency is probably caused by context-dependent deamination of methylated CpG sites. This hypothesis was examined in this study by comparing nucleotide frequencies at CpG flanking positions among invertebrate and vertebrate genomes. The finding is a transition of nucleotide preference of 5' T to 5' A at the invertebrate-vertebrate boundary, indicating that a large number of CpG sites with 5' Ts were depleted because of global DNA methylation developed in vertebrates. At genome level, we investigated CpG observed/expected (obs/exp) values in 500 bp fragments, and found that higher CpG obs/exp value is shown in GC-poor regions of invertebrate genomes (except sea urchin) but in GC-rich sequences of vertebrate genomes. We next compared GC content at CpG flanking positions with genomic average, showing that the GC content is lower than the average in invertebrate genomes, but higher than that in vertebrate genomes. These results indicate that although 5' T and 5' A are different in inducing deamination of methylated CpG sites, GC content is even more important in affecting the deamination rate. In all the tests, the results of sea urchin are similar to vertebrates perhaps due to its fractional DNA methylation. CpG deficiency is therefore suggested to be mainly a result of high mutation rates of methylated CpG sites in GC-poor regions.
AT Rich Sequence ; Animals ; CpG Islands ; genetics ; DNA Methylation ; GC Rich Sequence ; Gene Frequency ; Genome ; Genomics ; methods ; Humans ; Invertebrates ; genetics ; Isochores ; genetics ; Mutation ; Vertebrates ; genetics