INSIDE JEB
COMMENTARY
- The utility and determination of Pcrit in fishes
Summary: We outline why Pcrit is a useful and informative comparator of hypoxia tolerance in fishes, provided it is determined using standardized respirometry methods and sound statistical approaches.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
- Predator chemical cues decrease attack time and increase metabolic rate in an orb-web spider
Summary: Female orb-web spiders, Argiope keyserlingi, elevate their metabolic rate under the risk of predation, allowing them to respond quicker and spend less time on foraging, reducing their exposure to predators.
- On sarcomere length stability during isometric contractions before and after active stretching
Summary: Sarcomere lengths are more stable in the force-enhanced than the isometric reference state and sarcomere length instability does not necessarily correlate with sarcomere length non-uniformity and should therefore not be treated as the same phenomenon.
- Cardiac mitochondrial function, nitric oxide sensitivity and lipid composition following hypoxia acclimation in sablefish
Summary: Chronic hypoxia does not affect sablefish cardiac steady state mitochondrial respiration or ROS release, but alters mitochondrial lipid composition and nitric oxide sensitivity, and improves respiration and reduces ROS release post-anoxia.
- The Caenorhabditis elegans cysteine-string protein homologue DNJ-14 is dispensable for neuromuscular junction maintenance across ageing
Summary: Despite the cysteine-string protein (CSP) being important for synapse health in flies and mammals, the C. elegans CSP homologue DNJ-14 is not required for neuromuscular junction maintenance across ageing.
- Lower-limb joint mechanics during maximum acceleration sprinting
Summary: An inverse-dynamics-based analysis of the mechanical function of the human major lower-limb joints reveals that the hip and especially the ankle represent key sources of positive work during the stance phase of maximum acceleration sprinting.
- Slowing down the metabolic engine: impact of early-life corticosterone exposure on adult metabolism in house sparrows (Passer domesticus)
Highlighted Article: Developmental corticosterone exposure can orient the phenotype towards an energy-saving strategy in adult sparrows and there are both benefits and costs that could be associated with this reduced metabolism.
- High concentrations of trimethylamines in slime glands inhibit skein unraveling in Pacific hagfish
Highlighted Article: High levels of trimethylamines in slime glands of the Pacific hagfish stabilize the skeins and prevent their unraveling by stabilizing adhesive proteins.
- Intra-oropharyngeal food transport and swallowing in white-spotted bamboo sharks
Summary: White-spotted bamboo sharks transport food through their long oropharynx in step-wise motions by elevating their hyoid, which is likely to generate water flows.
- Naked mole-rats reduce the expression of ATP-dependent but not ATP-independent heat shock proteins in acute hypoxia
Summary: In acute hypoxia, the regulation of heat shock proteins in naked mole-rats indicates prioritization of energy conservation over proteostasis.
- Quantifying the acid–base status of dragonflies across their transition from breathing water to breathing air
Summary: Dragonflies show a moderate rise in hemolymph bicarbonate as they transition from water breathing to air breathing, while the non-bicarbonate buffer capacity of their hemolymph is low relative to that of other insects.
- Exposure to fluctuating temperatures leads to reduced immunity and to stress response in rattlesnakes
Summary: An acute change from a constant to a fluctuating thermal regime triggers a stress response in rattlesnakes. Additionally, exposure to a fluctuating thermal regime is associated with reduced immunity in rattlesnakes.
- Species- and tissue-specific differences in ROS metabolism during exposure to hypoxia and hyperoxia plus recovery in marine sculpins
Summary: Our comparison of two intertidal sculpin fish species, which differ in hypoxia tolerance, show species- and tissue-specific responses in ROS metabolism after exposure to hypoxia and hyperoxia with normoxic recovery.
- Activation of oxygen-responsive pathways is associated with altered protein metabolism in Arctic char exposed to hypoxia
Summary: Arctic char, a hypoxia-sensitive species, regulates protein metabolism in a tissue-specific fashion during hypoxia.
- Malpighian tubules of caterpillars: blending RNAseq and physiology to reveal regional functional diversity and novel epithelial ion transport control mechanisms
Summary: Malpighian tubules of caterpillars consist of several distinct regions that differ in structure and function and are regulated by complex mechanisms.
- Hearing in caterpillars of the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus)
Highlighted Article: Monarch butterfly caterpillars use specialized hairs on their thorax to detect sounds, and respond by freezing and flicking – behaviours that are thought to prevent attacks by flying insect predators.
- Thrust generation during steady swimming and acceleration from rest in anguilliform swimmers
Summary: During early acceleration from rest, sea lampreys employ distinctive, high-amplitude kinematics that produce thrust through the creation of a high-pressure region just posterior to the head.
- Dynamics of electroencephalogram oscillations underlie right-eye preferences in predatory behavior of the music frog
Summary: Predatory responses in the music frog (Nidirana daunchina) indicate that EEG oscillations at higher frequency may play important roles in right-eye preference.
- Multiple functions of ion transport by the nuchal organ in embryos and neonates of the freshwater branchiopod crustacean Daphnia magna
Summary: Measurements with the scanning ion-selective microelectrode technique reveal roles of the nuchal organ in ionoregulation, pH regulation and nitrogenous waste excretion by Daphnia magna.
- Path minimization in a tandem running Indian ant in the context of colony relocation
Summary: Ants choose the shortest path when they are tandem running nestmates to their new nest.
- Variation in developmental temperature alters adulthood plasticity of thermal tolerance in Tigriopus californicus
Summary: Developmental temperatures affect thermal limit plasticity in adults of a marine ectotherm, and changes in these limits are paralleled by differences in ATP synthesis rate and heat shock protein expression.
This issue
Other journals from The Company of Biologists
Meet the Editors at SICB Virtual 2021
Reserve your place to join some of the journal editors, including Editor-in-Chief Craig Franklin, at our Meet the Editor session on 17 February at 2pm (EST). Don’t forget to view our SICB Subject Collection, featuring relevant JEB papers relating to some of the symposia sessions.
2020 at The Company of Biologists
Despite 2020's challenges, we were able to bring a number of long-term projects and new ventures to fruition. As we enter a new year, join us as we reflect on the triumphs of the last 12 months.
Critical temperature window sends migratory black-headed buntings on their travels
The spring rise in temperature at black-headed bunting overwintering sites is essential for triggering the physical changes that they undergo before embarking on their spring migration – read more.
Developmental and reproductive physiology of small mammals at high altitude
Cayleih Robertson and Kathryn Wilsterman focus on high-altitude populations of the North American deer mouse in their review of the challenges and evolutionary innovations of pregnant and nursing small mammals at high altitude.
Read & Publish participation extends worldwide
“Being able to publish Open Access articles free of charge means that my article gets maximum exposure and has maximum impact, and that all my peers can read it regardless of the agreements that their universities have with publishers.”
Professor Roi Holzman (Tel Aviv University) shares his experience of publishing Open Access as part of our growing Read & Publish initiative. We now have over 60 institutions in 12 countries taking part – find out more and view our full list of participating institutions.