O’DONNELL, Brigid; University of Connecticut, Storrs: The development and evolution of abdominal gills in mayflies Insects have highly diversified appendages, including mouthparts, antennae, wings and legs; this diversification no doubt played a role in the evolutionary success of the insects. Mayflies have highly diversified abdominal gills as aquatic nymphs, exhibiting the greatest variation in abdominal […]

FOLTZ, D.W.*; HRINCEVICH, A.W.; ROCHA-OLIVARES, A.; Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge; CICESE, Ensenada, Mexico: Substitution Patterns for Mitochondrial Genes Vary with Mode of Reproduction in Marine Invertebrate Species Under a nearly-neutral model in which most amino acid substitutions are slightly deleterious, variation in life history traits among closely-related species can […]

KAPPNER, I*; BIELER, R; Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago; Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago: Phylogeny of the nominal subfamily Venerinae (Bivalvia: Veneridae) as inferred from morphology and molecules. Phylogeny and systematics of the diverse, commercially important, and cosmopolitan marine bivalve subfamily Venerinae (Heterodonta: Veneridae) remain poorly understood. The group currently comprises nine extant […]

VILLINSKI, J.V.; DAYAL, S; KIYAMA, T; LIANG, S; KLEIN, W.H.; Univ. Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX: Dynamic cis-regulatory evolution in the Spec gene family involves the acquisition of a transcriptional enhancer and evidence of stabilizing selection. The evolution of genetic regulatory interactions is considered a driving force in generating evolutionary novelty because alterations […]

CHIU, C-H.; Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ: Bichir HoxA cluster sequence reveals surprising trends in ray-finned fish genomic evolution The study of Hox clusters and genes provides insights into the evolution of genomic regulation of development. Derived ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii, Teleostei) such as zebrafish and pufferfish possess duplicated Hox clusters that have undergone considerable sequence evolution. […]

SERB, J.M.*; OMILIAN, A.; OAKLEY, T.H.; Univ. of California, Santa Barbara; Indiana Univ., Bloomington; Univ. of California, Santa Barbara: Ancient duplication of Pax-6 homologs eyeless (ey) and twin of eyeless (toy) Two Pax-6 homologs, eyeless (ey) and twin of eyeless (toy), play important and non-redundant roles in controlling Drosophila eye and nervous system development. Strong […]

CATTERFELD, GE; HOYT, DF; DUTTO, DJ; WICKLER, SJ; COGGER, EA; California State Polytechnic University, Pomona: Trotting at low vs. high speeds: different gait dynamics of fore- and hind limbs Statistical analysis of our previously reported ground reaction force (GRF) and stride parameter data from horses trotting from ca. 1.5-5.0 m/s identified some deviations in the […]

HOYT, DF; WICKLER, SJ; DUTTO, DJ; California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; California State Polytechnic University, Pomona: The trot-gallop transition: insights from energetics, muscle function and biomechanics Recently, it was shown that the trot gallop transition occurs at a lower speed when going up an incline than on the level, but […]

BERTRAM, John E.A.; Florida State Univ., Tallahassee: The mechanics behind galloping in larger mammals: not what you would expect! Interpretation of the details of morphological form and functional strategies requires an understanding of the critical determinants influencing the performance of the system. In locomotion, substantial insight into the mechanics of a system can sometimes be […]

FRANZ, T.M.*; DEMES, B.; CARLSON, K.J.; Stony Brook University; Stony Brook University; Stony Brook University: The kinetics of leaping in strepsirrhine primates This study explores the forces associated with leaping in two primate species and how they compare to forces of nonprimate mammals performing similar tasks. Takeoff and landing forces were analyzed for two species […]