Reproduction And Development In Mollusca

This book is perhaps the first attempt to comprehensively project the uniqueness of molluscs, covering almost all aspects of reproduction and development from aplacophorans to vampyromorphic cephalopods. Molluscs are unique for the presence of protective external shell, defensive inking, geographic distribution from the depth of 9,050 m to an altitude of 4,300 m, gamete diversity, the use of nurse eggs and embryos to accelerate the first few mitotic divisions in embryos, the natural occurrence of androgenics in a couple of bivalves, viable induced tetraploids, gigantism induced by elevated ploidy, the complementary role played by mitochondrial genome in sex determination by nuclear genes and the uptake and accumulation of steroid hormone from surrounding waters. In molluscs, sexuality comprises of gonochorism ( 24%), protandry (

The Mollusca, Volume 7: Reproduction presents the significant features of reproduction for one of the significant major molluscan groups. This book reviews the reproductive biology of land snails, which offers the basis for making fascinating comparisons with other terrestrial groups in illustrating how evolutionary various groups solved their common problem of laying eggs. Organized into six chapters, this volume begins with an overview of the reproductive biology of prosobrach gastropods. This text then provides a comparative morphology of land snail reproductive anatomy. Other chapters consider the endocrine control of the female reproductive activity of Lymnaea stagnalis. This book discusses as well the transition in intraspecific and interspecific sexuality. The final chapter deals with cephalopod reproductive biology. This book is a valuable resource for readers who are in need of more appropriate animal systems for solving research problems pertaining to general reproduction, cytology, sex determination, biochemistry, gamete biology, neuroendocrinology, and evolutionary biology.

Reproduction of Marine Invertebrates Volume V, Molluscs: Pelecypods and Lesser Classes presents valuable insights on the early evolution of molluscan reproductive biology. It discusses the asexual reproduction, sexual reproduction capacity, and developmental stages of pelecypods and the remaining smaller classes, including aplacophora, polyplacophora, and monoplacophora. One chapter in this volume provides a broad overview of the knowledge and problems on oyster reproductive biology. This book is ideal for marine biologists and researchers, reproductive biologists, and developmental biologists.

Molluscs comprise the second largest phylum of animals (after arthropods), occurring in virtually all habitats. Some are commercially important, a few are pests and some carry diseases, while many non-marine molluscs are threatened by human impacts which have resulted in more extinctions than all tetrapod vertebrates combined. This book and its companion volume provide the first comprehensive account of the Mollusca in decades. Illustrated with hundreds of colour figures, it reviews molluscan biology, genomics, anatomy, physiology, fossil history, phylogeny and classification. This volume includes general chapters drawn from extensive and diverse literature on the anatomy and physiology of their structure, movement, reproduction, feeding, digestion, excretion, respiration, nervous system and sense organs. Other chapters review the natural history (including ecology) of molluscs, their interactions with humans, and assess research on the group. Key features of both volumes: up to date treatment with an extensive bibliography; thoroughly examines the current understanding of molluscan anatomy, physiology and development; reviews fossil history and phylogenetics; overviews ecology and economic values; and summarises research activity and suggests future directions for investigation. Winston F Ponder was a Principal Research Scientist at The Australian Museum in Sydney where he is currently a Research Fellow. He has published extensively over the last 55 years on the systematics, evolution, biology and conservation of marine and freshwater molluscs, as well as supervised post graduate students and run university courses. David R. Lindberg is former Chair of the Department of Integrative Biology, Director of the Museum of Paleontology, and Chair of the Berkeley Natural History Museums, all at the University of California. He has conducted research on the evolutionary history of marine organisms and their habitats on the rocky shores of the Pacific Rim for more than 40 years. The numerous elegant and interpretive illustrations were produced by Juliet Ponder.

This reference work is designed to provide background information on an array of northeastern Pacific marine invertebrate species so that they can be more easily included in comparative studies of morphology, cell biology, reproduction, embryology, larval biology, and ecology. It is meant to serve biologists who are new to the field as well as experienced investigators who may not be familiar with the invertebrate fauna of the northern Pacific Coast. The species discussed in this volume are mostly from the cold temperate waters of the San Juan Archipelago, near Puget SOund and the Strait of Georgia, but the information and methods given will be useful in laboratories from Alaska to central California and applicable to some extend in other coastal or inland facilities. An introductory chapter discusses basic prodcedures for collecting and maintaining mature specimens, for initiating spawning, and for culturing embryos and larvae in the laboratory. Subsequent chapters summarize reproduction and development in thirty different invertebrate groups and provided ercent references through which additional information can be traced, cite monographs or keys needed to identify species, and give methods useful for studying an array of selected species. Available information on habitat, diet, reproductive mode, egg size, developmental pattern, developmental times, larval type, and conditions for settlement and metamorphosis is reported for over 450 species.

Physiology of Mollusca, Volume I focuses on the physiology of mollusks, as well as respiration, reproduction, embryogenesis, gastrulation, and shell formation and regeneration. The selection first offers information on the classification and structure of the Mollusca and the physiological aspects of the ecology of intertidal mollusks. Topics include respiration and excretion of shore mollusks, physiological variations in intertidal mollusks, Amphineura and Monoplacophora, Cephalopoda, Scaphopoda, and Gastropoda. The publication then evaluates the physiological aspects of ecology in nonmarine mollusks and reproduction of mollusks. The book touches on the development of mollusks and the culture of marine bivalve larvae. Discussions focus on gastrulation, embryogenesis, cleavage, and culture under laboratory conditions and in ponds and outdoor tanks. The manuscript then explains shell formation and regeneration, osmotic and ionic regulation, and muscle and neuromuscular physiology. The selection is highly recommended for readers interested in the physiology of mollusks.

This multi-author, six-volume work summarizes our current knowledge on the developmental biology of all major invertebrate animal phyla. The main aspects of cleavage, embryogenesis, organogenesis and gene expression are discussed in an evolutionary framework. Each chapter presents an in-depth yet concise overview of both classical and recent literature, supplemented by numerous color illustrations and micrographs of a given animal group. The largely taxon-based chapters are supplemented by essays on topical aspects relevant to modern-day EvoDevo research such as regeneration, embryos in the fossil record, homology in the age of genomics and the role of EvoDevo in the context of reconstructing evolutionary and phylogenetic scenarios. A list of open questions at the end of each chapter may serve as a source of inspiration for the next generation of EvoDevo scientists. Evolutionary Developmental Biology of Invertebrates is a must-have for any scientist, teacher or student interested in developmental and evolutionary biology as well as in general invertebrate zoology. This volume covers the animals that have a ciliated larva in their lifecycle (often grouped together as the Lophotrochozoa), as well as the Gnathifera and the Gastrotricha. The interrelationships of these taxa are poorly resolved and a broadly accepted, clade-defining autapomorphy has yet to be defined. Spiral cleavage is sometimes assumed to be the ancestral mode of cleavage of this grouping and therefore the clade is referred to as Spiralia by some authors, although others prefer to extend the term Lophotrochozoa to this entire assemblage. Aside from the taxon-based chapters, this volume includes a chapter that highlights similarities and differences in the processes that underlie regeneration and ontogeny, using the Platyhelminthes as a case study.