BACKGROUND Road mortality is probably the best-known and visible impact of roads upon wildlife. Although several factors influence road-kill counts, carcass persistence time is considered the most important determinant underlying underestimates of road mortality. The present study aims to describe and model carcass persistence variability on the road for different taxonomic groups under differe...

A major effort is being undertaken to sequence an array of mammalian genomes. Coincidentally, the evolutionary relationships of the 18 presently recognized orders of placental mammals are only just being resolved. In this work we construct and analyse the largest alignments of amino acid sequence data to date. Our findings allow us to set up a series of superordinal groups (clades) to act as pr...

Most circulating human gamma delta T cells are Vγ9Vδ2 T cells. Their hallmark is the expression of T cell antigen receptors (TCR) whose γ-chains show a Vγ9-JP (Vγ2-Jγ1.2) rearrangement and are paired with Vδ2-containing δ-chains, a dominant TCR configuration, which until recently seemed to occur in primates only. Vγ9Vδ2 T cells respond to phosphoantigens (PAg) such as (E)-4-Hydroxy-3-methyl-but...

Based on the number of tissues separating maternal from fetal blood, placentas are classified as epitheliochorial, endotheliochorial or hemochorial. We review the occurrence of these placental types in the various orders of eutherian mammals within the framework of the four superorders identified by the techniques of molecular phylogenetics. The superorder Afrotheria diversified in ancient Afri...

Understanding the conditions that facilitate top predator effects upon mesopredators and prey is critical for predicting where these effects will be significant. Intraguild predation (IGP) and the ecology of fear are hypotheses used to describe the effects of top predators upon mesopredators and prey species, but make different assumptions about organismal space use. The IGP hypothesis predicts...

Protamines are extremely variable and positively charged proteins which act by compacting the DNA in the sperm nucleus of many species (1). Their precise role and evolutionary pathways are not well understood at present probably because of the variable nature of these proteins and the corresponding sperm-associated structures together with the limited number of species with known protamine nucl...

Rabbit hemorrhagic disease is a serious and extremely contagious viral disease of domesticated and wild rabbits. Morbidity and mortality rates are high in unvaccinated animals; on some farms, most or all of the rabbits may die. This disease has also caused dramatic declines in some wild rabbit populations, particularly when it is first introduced. This has had a detrimental effect on some ecosy...

The cytokine hormone leptin is a key signalling molecule in many pathways that control physiological functions. Although leptin demonstrates structural conservation in mammals, there is evidence of positive selection in primates, lagomorphs and chiropterans. We previously reported that the leptin genes of the grey and harbour seals (phocids) have significantly diverged from other mammals. There...

The role of the uterus and that of the embryo in regulating luteal progesterone secretion appear to differ greatly, depending on the mammal. However, the situation is analogous in some mammals. The main role of luteal progesterone is to permit the establishment and maintenance of pregnancy, and there appears to be a relationship between the type of placenta and the uterine and embryonic modes o...

in this research the glir,s tooth remains from four caves and rockshelter sites in west and north west of iran have been reported. recent archaeological surveys and excavations by center for paleolithic research of national museum of iran and two other institutions, along other remains, have yielded rich assemblages of microvertebrate remains. the cave sites are yafteh, gar arjeneh and qalaloun...