.......................................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... 4

Identifying the dispersal pathways of an invasive species is useful for adopting the appropriate strategies to prevent and control its spread. However, these processes are exceedingly complex. So, it is necessary to apply new technology and collect representative samples for analysis. This study used Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) in combination with traditional genetic tools to examine...

Procambarus clarkii is among the worst invasive species that have invaded Europe. It originates from the central south of the USA and northeastern Mexico and is a hardy, r-selected generalist. There exists a marked gradient in population numbers from southwestern to northeastern Europe: The Iberian Peninsula, Italy and France have the bulk of the populations, while northeastern populations are ...

Antioxidant parameters, such as total glutathione, glutathione S-transferase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, glyoxalases, catalase, and some heavy metals such as, lead, cadmium and chromium were examined in hepatopancreas of both sexes of Procambarus clarkii collected seasonally from Lake Trasimeno, from winter 20002003 to autumn 2003. Heavy metals content in hepatopancreas in m...

Self-cloning is quite rare in shrimp, lobsters, crayfish and crabs. Here we report the discovery of four natural clones of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii), each containing 2-6 genetically identical individuals, during the genotyping of 120 individuals with five microsatellites. The four clones were heterozygote at most of the five microsatellite loci. Phylogenetic analysis using micros...

The red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) was introduced to China in the early 20(th) century. It has been spread to almost all forms of fresh water bodies including lakes, rivers and even paddyfields in most provinces of China. To clarify issues such as the initial entry point(s), dispersal pattern, genetic diversity and genetic structure of Procambarus clarkii in China, the genetic structu...

qRT-PCR is a widely used technique for rapid and accurate quantification of gene expression data. The use of reference genes for normalization of the expression levels is crucial for accuracy. Several studies have shown that there is no perfect reference gene that is appropriate for use in all experimental conditions, and research on suitable reference genes in red swamp crawfish (Procambarus c...

In invasion processes, both abiotic and biotic factors are considered essential, but the latter are usually disregarded when modeling the potential spread of exotic species. In the framework of set theory, interactions between biotic (B), abiotic (A), and movement-related (M) factors in the geographical space can be hypothesized with BAM diagrams and tested using ecological niche models (ENMs) ...

The influence of red-pigment-concentrating hormone (RPCH) on ovarian maturation in the red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii was studied using both in vivo and in vitro techniques. In vivo, RPCH stimulated ovarian maturation. However, RPCH did not affect the ovary in vitro when only RPCH, muscle and ovarian explants were used. But when RPCH, thoracic ganglia, which are known to contain gonad-s...

BUR[;(;RE"I, W. W., B. R. McMAHON, and J. W. COSTEIl.TON. 1974. Branchial waterand blood­ flow patterns and the structure of the gill of the crayfish Procambarus clarkii. Can. J. Zool, 52: 15111518. Water flow within the branchial chamber, blood flow within the gill filaments, and the line str.ucture of t~~ gill epithelium have been determined In the crayfish Procambarus clarkii. The epithelium...