Primary cilia are sensory organelles that coordinate numerous cellular signalling pathways during development and adulthood. Defects in ciliary assembly or function lead to a series of developmental disorders and diseases commonly referred to as ciliopathies. Still, little is known about the formation and function of primary cilia in the mammalian testis. Here, we characterized primary cilia in...

organs including the eye, hair, and lungs. Dhh and Ihh play more restricted roles: Dhh acts in the regulation of spermatogenesis and organization of the perineurium, Andrew P. McMahon Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138 which ensheaths peripheral nerves, and Ihh in coordinating proliferation and maturation of chondrocytes during develop...

Hedgehog genes have been implicated in inductive signaling during development in a variety of organisms. A key element of the hedgehog signaling system is encoded by the gene patched. In Drosophila hedgehog regulates gene expression by antagonizing the action of patched. In addition, patched is itself a transcriptional target of hedgehog signaling. We have isolated a chicken patched homolog and...

In Poland, just like in many other countries, selling Red-eared terrapins Trachemys scripta elegans as invasive has been prohibited, but there are other subspecies of Trachemys scripta on the pet market, constituting a threat to the native Pond turtle Emys orbicularis. I provide data on the structure of local trade in turtles in eastern Poland and the factors driving it after the introduction o...

Among vertebrates able to tolerate periods of oxygen deprivation, the painted and red-eared slider turtles (Chrysemys picta and Trachemys scripta) and the crucian carp (Carassius carassius) are the most extreme and can survive even months of total lack of oxygen during winter. The key to hypoxia survival resides in concerted physiological responses, including strong metabolic depression, protec...