Poly (vinylpyridine-N-N-methylenebisacrylamide-acrylicacid) (2-VP-MBAm-AA) was prepared from the reaction of TiO2-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (TiO2-MAPTMS) with 2-vinylpyridine, methylenbisacrylamide (MBAm) and tert-butyl acrylate (t-BuA). Subsequently (2-VP-MBAm-AA) was reacted with CuI to give the Cu(I) NPs supported onto the above polym...

The first clutch of Mesozoic eggs containing embryos was collected more than twenty years ago from the Rooidraai locality in Golden Gate Highlands Park, South Africa. The Elliot Formation crops out throughout the area, and although the sediments exposed at Rooidraai were once thought to be Late Triassic in age, they are now regarded as Early Jurassic. The Elliot Formation preserves a rich terre...

The eggshell is an important physiological structure for the embryo. It enables gas exchange, physical protection and is a calcium reserve. Most squamates (lizards, snakes, worm lizards) lay parchment-shelled eggs, whereas only some gekkotan species, a subgroup of lizards, have strongly calcified eggshells. In viviparous (live-bearing) squamates the eggshell is reduced or completely missing (he...

Laser-Raman and infrared spectroscopic studies reveal abundant beta-pleated sheet conformation in the eggshell proteins of the fish Salmo gairdneri. This secondary structure is the underlying molecular conformation, dictating the formation of the helicoidal architecture of the eggshell. Disulphide bonds crosslink the eggshell proteins of the fertilized eggs and are apparently found in g-g-g (ga...

Physiological constraints on colouration have been widely reported; especially in birds, which trade-off antioxidant responses against colourful costly signals. One female extended phenotypic trait, which might also highlight important physiological trade-offs, is the pigmentation of their eggshells. In ground-nesting species, producing eggs that are visually undetectable by predators is the be...

Poly (vinylpyridine-N-N-methylenebisacrylamide-acrylicacid) (2-VP-MBAm-AA) was prepared from the reaction of TiO2-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (TiO2-MAPTMS) with 2-vinylpyridine, methylenbisacrylamide (MBAm) and tert-butyl acrylate (t-BuA). Subsequently (2-VP-MBAm-AA) was reacted with CuI to give the Cu(I) NPs supported onto the above polym...

The ultrastructure of an eggshell is considered the major determinant of eggshell quality, which has biological and economic significance for the avian and poultry industries. However, the interrelationships and genome-wide architecture of eggshell ultrastructure remain to be elucidated. Herein, we measured eggshell thickness (EST), effective layer thickness (ET), mammillary layer thickness (MT...

Eggshell damages lead to economic losses in the egg production industry and are a threat to human health. We examined 49-wk-old Rhode Island White hens (Gallus gallus) that laid eggs having shells with significantly different strengths and thicknesses. We used HiSeq 2000 (Illumina) sequencing to characterize the chicken transcriptome and whole genome to identify the key genes and genetic mutati...

Copper iodide (CuI) thin films were grown on Si(100) substrates using a copper film iodination reaction method. It was found that γ-CuI films have a uniform and dense microstructure with (111)-orientation. Transmission spectra indicated that CuI thin films have an average transmittance of about 60% in the visible range and the optical band gap is 3.01 eV. By checking the effect of the thickness...