Comparative morphology of the digestive system of 19 species of Southern African myomorph rodents in relation to diet and evolution

Trends in digestive system-morphology have been examined in 19 species of Southern African myomorph rodents. Structure was related to function, diet, and evolution. Characters related to an ancestral proteinaceous diet, and specialized characters associated with herbivory, were recognized. All stomachs were of the unilocular hemiglandular type with increasing degrees of cornification of the corpus, although the stomach of Saccostomus compestris approached the bilocular discoglandular condition. Those of Thallomys paedulcus and Mystromys albicaudatus were highly modified in containing numerous papillae in the corpus, possibly associated with gastric fermentation. The most complex caeca, of the herbivorous Otomyids, possessed numerous haustra and internal papillae probably associated with caecal microbial fermentation.     

Population dynamics of Lemniscomys rosaiia (Muridae: Rodentia) in a Swaziland grassland: effects of food and fire

The effects of food supplementation on a population of Lemniscomys rosalia were studied experimentally in a grassland habitat in Swaziland. Food was added bi-weekly to two 1-ha grids, while a single 1-ha grid served as the control. Rodent traps were set monthly over a 12 month period. Food supplementation may have affected the density of L. rosalia, but did not affect any other features of the population. Breeding commenced in September and ended in April (males) and May (females). Recruitment of juveniles occurred between January and March, Adult mean body mass increased from a low in winter (June/July) to a high in late summer (February). The drop in mean body mass in autumn was due to the disappearance of heavy adults and entry of the lighter subadults into the population. Mean survival of L. rosalia was low; 81% of all captured individuals disappeared within four months. An unscheduled fire burnt part of the study area and hence allowed an assessment of the effect of fire on L. rosalia. The fire did not cause undue mortality of L. rosalia, however, burnt areas were avoided for three months until grass cover had sufficiently increased.     

The effect of cranial cruciate ligament insufficiency on caudal cruciate ligament morphology: An experimental study in dogs

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of cranial cruciate ligament (CrCL) insufficiency on morphology of the canine caudal cruciate ligament (CdCL). STUDY DESIGN: In vivo experimental study. ANIMALS: Five adult foxhounds. METHODS: Two years after CrCL transection, the histologic appearance of CdCLs from CrCL-deficient and unoperated contralateral control (CrCL-intact) stifle joints were evaluated using light and transmission electron microscopy. RESULTS: CdCLs from CrCL-deficient joints had extracellular matrix changes, characterized by chondroid metaplasia and disruption of cell architecture. Percent of small-diameter fibrils in CdCLs from CrCL-deficient joints was significantly greater (P <.05) than that in CdCLs from CrCL-intact joints. Collagen fibril density in CdCLs from CrCL-deficient joints (41.09 +/- 5.39%) tended to be less than that in CdCLs from CrCL-intact joints (52.96 +/- 6.92%); however, this difference was not significant (P =.056). Mean eccentricity (ratio of minor to major diameters) of collagen fibrils was significantly (P <.0001) lower for CdCLs from CrCL-deficient joints (0.85 +/- 0.016) when compared with that for CdCLs from CrCL-intact joints (0.87 +/- 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: Significant alterations were found in the morphology of CdCLs from CrCL-deficient joints. These changes may be associated with repetitive microtrauma to the CdCL secondary to instability or enzymatic degradation in the hostile synovial environment of an unstable joint. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Regardless of the cause, the switch to a predominantly small-diameter collagen fibril profile may reflect compromised material properties of the CdCL. This should be taken into account when considering surgical techniques that rely on the CdCL to stabilize CrCL-deficient stifles.     

Osmotic potential of several hardwood species as affected by manipulation of throughfall precipitation in an upland oak forest during a dry year

Components of dehydration tolerance, including osmotic potential at full turgor (Psi(pio)) and osmotic adjustment (lowering of Psi(pio)), of several deciduous species were investigated in a mature, upland oak forest in eastern Tennessee. Beginning July 1993, the trees were subjected to one of three throughfall precipitation treatments: ambient, ambient minus 33% (dry treatment), and ambient plus 33% (wet treatment). During the dry 1995 growing season, leaf water potentials of all species declined to between -2.5 and -3.1 MPa in the dry treatment. There was considerable variation in Psi(pio) among species (-1.0 to -2.0 MPa). Based on Psi(pio) values, American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.), dogwood (Cornus florida L.), and sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) were least dehydration tolerant, red maple (A. rubrum L.) was intermediate in tolerance, and white oak (Quercus alba L.) and chestnut oak (Quercus prinus L.) were most tolerant. During severe drought, overstory chestnut oak and understory dogwood, red maple and chestnut oak displayed osmotic adjustment (-0.12 to -0.20 MPa) in the dry treatment relative to the wet treatment. (No osmotic adjustment was evident in understory red maple and chestnut oak during the previous wet year.) Osmotic potential at full turgor was generally correlated with leaf water potential, with both declining over the growing season, especially in species that displayed osmotic adjustment. However, osmotic adjustment was not restricted to species considered dehydration tolerant; for example, dogwood typically maintained high Psi(pio) and displayed osmotic adjustment to drought, but had the highest mortality rates of the species studied. Understory saplings tended to have higher Psi(pio) than overstory trees when water availability was high, but Psi(pio) of understory trees declined to values observed for overstory trees during severe drought. We conclude that Psi(pio) varies among deciduous hardwood species and is dependent on canopy position and soil water potential in the rooting zone.     

Comparative gastric anatomy of Cricetomys gambianus and Saccostomus campestris (Cricetomyinae) in relation to Mystromys albicaudatus (Cricetinae)

The gastric anatomy of two African cricetomyines is described and compared with that of the only African cricetine. The stomach of C. gambianus is more specialized than that of S. campestris and shows many parallels with that of M. albicaudatus. Both cricetomyines possess an oesophageal groove system which is absent from the cricetine, while C. gambianus and M. albicaudatus have forestomach papillae supporting vast colonies of symbiotic bacteria that are not found in S. campestris. Specializations in gastric anatomy are discussed in relation to phylogeny, using taxonomy to distinguish between apomorphic and plesiomorphic characters, convergence and divergence. Complex gastric adaptations can be explained only by increased digestive efficiency, while the symbiotic association with numerous autochthonous bacteria implies-revolutionary adaptation.