The nucleotide sequences of 5S rRNA from three echinoderms, a sea-cucumber Stichopus oshimae, a starfish Asterina pectinifera and a sea-urchin Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus have been determined. These 5S rRNAs are all 120 nucleotides long. The echinoderm sequences are more related to the sequences of proterostomes animals such as mollusc, annelids and some others (87% identity on average) than to ...

Phylogenetic analyses were performed on the 17 taxa in the subtribe Brachysternina (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Rutelinae: Anoplognathini) as a means of resolving classification conflicts and of identifying monophyletic groups. Results demonstrated that the subtribe is monophyletic and is composed of three monophyletic genera: Aulacopalpus Guérin-Méneville (nine species), Brachysternus Guérin-Mén...

Stichopus horrens flesh was explored as a potential source for generating peptides with angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory capacity using 6 proteases, namely alcalase, flavourzyme, trypsin, papain, bromelain, and protamex. Degree of hydrolysis (DH) and peptide profiling (SDS-PAGE) of Stichopus horrens hydrolysates (SHHs) was also assessed. Alcalase hydrolysate showed the highest DH ...

In a biological system the product of free-radical induced-lipid peroxidation are conjugated dienes (CDs), lipid peroxides and malondialdehyde (MDA). Its control depends on antioxidant activities. Antioxidant defend the body system by controlling the damage caused by the free radicals. This paper describes lipid peroxidation process and antioxidant activities present in three species of holothu...

Smooth muscle relaxation in vertebrates is regulated by a variety of neuronal signalling molecules, including neuropeptides and nitric oxide (NO). The physiology of muscle relaxation in echinoderms is of particular interest because these animals are evolutionarily more closely related to the vertebrates than to the majority of invertebrate phyla. However, whilst in vertebrates there is a clear ...

the intestinal bacterial diversity of stichopus japonicus was investigated using 16s ribosomal rna gene (rdna) clone library and polymerase chain reaction/denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (pcr-dgge). the clone library yielded a total of 188 clones, and these were sequenced and classified into 106 operational taxonomic units (otus) with sequence similarity ranging from 88 to 100%. the cov...