a study of insect digestive enzymes makes sense given that the gut is the major interface between the insect and its environment. an understanding of gut and digestive enzyme function is essential when advanced methods of insect management such as application of enzyme inhibitors and transgenic plants are developed to control insect pests. the aim of the current research project was to study mi...

the experiment was conducted to determine α-amylase activity and the effect of seven plant species extracts including punica granatum l. (punicaceae), rheum officinale b. (polygonaceae), rhus coriaria l. (anacardiaceae), artemisia sieberi b. ( compositae), peganum harmala l. (nitrariaceae) , datura stramonium l. (solanaceae) and thymus vulgaris l. (lamiaceae) on α-amylase activity of four store...

the experiment was conducted to determine α-amylase activity and the effect of seven plant species extracts including punica granatum l. (punicaceae), rheum officinale b. (polygonaceae), rhus coriaria l. (anacardiaceae), artemisia sieberi b. ( compositae), peganum harmala l. (nitrariaceae) , datura stramonium l. (solanaceae) and thymus vulgaris l. (lamiaceae) on α-amylase activity of four store...

The pH of the guts of mites strongly affects their digestive processes. This study was carried out to determine the pH in the guts of 12 species of stored product and house dust mites. Eighteen pH indicators were chosen and offered to the mites in the feeding biotest. Based on the color changes of the indicators, the gut contents of acaridid mites were determined to be within a pH range of 4 to...

The gut of Drosophila melanogaster includes a proximal acidic region (~pH 2), however the genome lacks the H(+)/K(+) ATPase characteristic of the mammalian gastric parietal cell, and the molecular mechanisms of acid generation are poorly understood. Here, we show that maintenance of the low pH of the acidic region is dependent on H(+) V-ATPase, together with carbonic anhydrase and five further ...

The pH of the gastrointestinal tract can have profound influences on digestive processes. Rodents exhibit wide variation in both stomach morphology and dietary strategies, both of which may influence gut pH. Various rodent species have evolved bilocular (or semi-segmented) stomachs that may allow for more microbial growth compared to unilocular (single-chambered) stomachs. Additionally, herbivo...

Insects with altered proteinases can avoid intoxication by Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxins. Therefore, proteinase activities from gut extracts of Bt-susceptible (YDK) and -resistant (YHD2-B, CXC and KCBhyb) Heliothis virescens strains were compared. The overall pH of gut extracts from YDK and CXC were statistically similar (9.56 and 9.62, respectively), while the pH of extracts from KCBhyb a...

The helminth parasite Fasciola hepatica secretes cathepsin L cysteine proteases to invade its host, migrate through tissues and digest haemoglobin, its main source of amino acids. Here we investigated the importance of pH in regulating the activity and functions of the major cathepsin L protease FheCL1. The slightly acidic pH of the parasite gut facilitates the auto-catalytic activation of FheC...

Nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice spontaneously develop type 1 diabetes (T1D), progression of which is similar to that in humans, and therefore are widely used as a model for understanding the immunological basis of this disease. The incidence of T1D in NOD mice is influenced by the degree of cleanliness of the mouse colony and the gut microflora. In this report, we show that the T1D incidence and r...

The level of cellulolytic activity in different areas of the gut of the terrestrial slug Arion ater was assayed at different temperatures and pH values. To do this, crude gut proteins were isolated and assayed using modified dinitrosalicylic acid reducing sugar assay. Crude protein samples were also separated and cellulolytic activity identified using in gel CMC zymography and esculin hydrate a...