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At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources
PubMed2001

Diabetic cataract of the musk shrew (Suncus murinus, Insectivora) exhibiting spontaneous non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM).

The EDS colony, developed as a new laboratory colony of the musk shrew, is characterized by a high incidence of early-onset spontaneous non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). In this colony, a few diabetic shrews exhibited a cataract at 1 month after the onset of diabetes, and all diabetic shrews had bilateral cataracts at 5 months after the onset of diabetes. In contrast, cataractous animals were never observed among non-diabetic shrews. These results suggest that the cataract in the EDS colony is a diabetic complication.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Inheritance and breeding of the waltzing mutant in the musk shrew (Suncus murinus, Insectivora) characterized by the circling and head-shaking behaviors.

A behavioral mutant was found in the laboratory-bred musk shrew (Suncus murinus). The affected shrews were characterized by the behaviors of tight circling in both directions and frequent head shaking in horizontal. They could definitely be identified by at least day 10 after birth. These abnormal behaviors were steady and permanent through life. Mating experiments demonstrated that the mutant character is expressed by a single autosomal recessive gene in homozygote with complete penetrance. The pedigree analysis indicated that the gene was derived from one heterozygous male captured in Ginowan city, Okinawa. The name, waltzing, was proposed for this mutant character with the gene symbol wz. An abnormality of the balance organ was predicted for a cause of the abnormal behaviors, since, besides the circling and head shaking behaviors, the affected shrews could not keep the body stretching but twisted it frequently when they were held up by the tail and further they could not keep the head on the water surface at all. Nevertheless, the affected shrews were almost normal in gestation period, litter size, weaning ratio and body weight in comparison with the phenotypically normal ones. The mutant shrews have been maintained as a closed colony, the WZ line involved more than 30 individuals at every one generation.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Red-eyed dilution (rd), a novel coat-color mutant gene in the musk shrew (Suncus murinus, Insectivora).

A novel coat-color mutant was found in the musk shrew (Suncus murinus). Mutant shrews were characterized by light-gray coat, pinkish skin and red eyes. Mating experiment demonstrated that the mutant character was controlled by a single autosomal recessive gene. The gene could be traced back to at least four heterozygous carriers captured in Naha city, Okinawa in 1983. The name, red-eyed dilution, was proposed for this mutant character with the gene symbol rd. Linkage analysis proved no close relationship of the rd locus with the cr (cream coat color) and ch (curly hair) loci. The red-eyed dilution shrews (+/+, rd/rd) could easily be distinguished from the cream coat shrews with dark-red eyes (cr/cr, +/+) and the double homozygotes exhibiting light-cream coat with pink eyes (cr/cr, rd/rd). The rd gene has been maintained in the OKI line about at 75% of its frequency in every generation. We have started to develop a new line triple-homozygous for the cr, ch and rd genes.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Coccidia in the mammary glands of shrews (Order: Insectivora).

Three of 6 female long-clawed shrews, Sorex unguiculatus Dobson, 1890, collected on the island of Hokkaido, Japan, were found to have unsporulated oocysts and sexual stages (both macro- and microgamonts) in varying stages of development of an unidentified coccidium in both lactating and nonlactating mammary glands. Gamonts developed in the alveoli of the mammary glands, and oocysts were found in the lactiferous ducts and in pools of milk. Mature macrogamonts were 11.9 x 15.2 microm (10-14 x 14-20 microm), whereas completely developed microgamonts with many gametes were 14.8 x 16.8 microm (10-18 x 13-20 microm). Oocysts in tissue sections were 19.5 x 13.8 microm and had a smooth outer wall that was <1 microm thick. Little histopathology was associated with the infections. Infected cells were enlarged and appeared cloudy, and in some areas there was leucocytic infiltration by macrophages, small and large lymphocytes, neutrophils, and eosinophils. No basophil was seen. We also found sections of a nematode, probably a Mammanidula sp., in sections of an active mammary gland in 1 of the shrews not infected with the coccidium.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Helminth associations in white-toothed shrews Crocidura russula (Insectivora: Soricidae) from the Albufera Natural Park, Spain.

The helminths of 218 white-toothed shrews from 29 sites in 2 biotopes in the Albufera Natural Park (Valencia, Spain) were examined from July 1990 to August 1991. An association analysis of helminths occurring at a prevalence of more than 4% was carried out for 4 species of cestodes located in the intestine (Hymenolepis pistillum, H. scalaris, H. tiara, and Pseudhymenolepis redonica) and 3 species of nematodes (Pseudophysaloptera sp. located in the stomach, Stammerinema rhopocephala larvae in the intestine and abdominal cavity, and Porrocaecum sp. in the thoracic and abdominal cavities). Bivariate (species pairs) versus multivariate analyses (associations within the entire set of species) were performed of presence-absence and of quantitative records (influence of intensity on associations). The associations were evaluated with respect to the sex and age of the host and to the sampling date and sites. The host and environment played a limited role, and the major determinant of species assemblage was phylogenetic. Positive associations were found among both the cestodes and the nematodes, whereas negative associations were found between cestodes and nematodes. The type of life cycle was probably the second greatest determinant of species associations. Nematodes using shrews as a paratenic host or as their definitive host were both positively associated.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1990

The ultrastructure of the ganglionated nerve plexus in the nasal vestibular mucosa of the musk shrew (Suncus murinus, insectivora).

A ganglionated nerve plexus (GNP) found in the nasal vestibular mucosa of the adult musk shrew, and most likely belonging to the nervus terminalis, was studied by electron microscopy. The GNP, which contained ganglion cells and both myelinated and unmyelinated nerve fibers, was located in the subepithelial layer of the mesial vestibular mucosa of the snout processes. The ganglion cells were characterized by an eccentrically located round nucleus, dispersed mitochondria and Golgi apparatuses, and many small vesicles. Nissl bodies were rare. The ganglion cells, solitary or in a small group, were entirely covered with satellite cell sheaths. Semiserial sections suggested that a given ganglion cell directly extends one nerve process and plural modified cilia. There were no synaptic contacts between the ganglion cells and efferent nerve elements. On the other hand, it was seen that the epithelium overlying the GNP contained many nerve terminals which probably originated from the GNP. It is suggested that the ganglion cells in the nasal vestibular GNP of the musk shrew represent primary sensory neurons.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Morphometric geographic variation in the Asian lesser white-toothed shrew Crocidura shantungensis (Mammalia, Insectivora) in East Asia.

This study investigated geographic variation in the Asian lesser white-toothed shrew, Crocidura shantungensis Miller, 1901, among a number of localities in East Asia, including the Korean Peninsula, Tsushima Island, Cheju Island, and Taiwan, using univariate and multivariate analyses of cranial morphometric characters. Sexual differences were found in Taiwanese shrews, but were not evident in those from Korea or Tsushima. The samples from Taiwan had a larger overall cranial size than those from Korea and Tsushima, and were well separated from the latter two samples in the discriminant analyses. The overall size of the Cheju shrews was also greater, but lay within the variation of those from Taiwan. Crocidura dsinezumi quelpartis Kuroda, 1934, described from Cheju Island, is actually a junior synonym of C. shantungensis, and is not related to C. dsinezumi.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed2003

Phylogenetical positions of Sorex sp. (Insectivora, Mammalia) from Cheju Island and S. caecutiens from the Korean Peninsula, inferred from mitochondrial cytochrome b gene sequences.

Phylogenetical positions of Sorex specimens unassigned to species from Cheju Island, Korea, and S. caecutiens from southern Korean Peninsula were investigated based on full nucleotide sequences (1,140 bp) of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene, comparing specimens of the S. caecutiens/shinto group from locations throughout its range. In the phylogenetic tree obtained, S. caecutiens were separated into two main groups: Hokkaido and Continent-Sakhalin-Cheju clusters. Shrews from Cheju and Korean Peninsula were included in the latter cluster. Thus, we suggest that the shrew on Cheju Island should be ranked as S. caecutiens, although taxonomic description of the shrew has to be conducted elsewhere. The Cheju shrews formed a single sub-cluster while the peninsular shrews were not included in a single sub-cluster. The clustering of individuals in Continent-Sakhalin-Cheju cluster did not always reflect the geographical proximity of their capture locations. We interpret these findings as indicating ancestral isolation of a Hokkaido population and recent rapid range expansion of the modern population in Eurasian Continent-Sakhalin-Cheju.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Immunohistochemical study of adenohypophysial gonadotropes in the musk shrew, Suncus murinus L. (Insectivora).

Most gonadotropes in the pituitary of male Suncus murinus L. are immunostained with both LH beta and FSH antisera, whereas only a few gonadotropes are positive only for LH beta. The former gonadotropes consist of polygonal or polyhedral cells of medium size, and can be identified by the presence of two types of secretory granules of low density: smaller ones (about 150-250 nm in diameter) which are spherical in shape, and larger ones of irregular form with a maximum diameter of about 1,500 nm. The endoplasmic reticulum is not prominent, while the Golgi apparatus is distinct. Mitochondria are found throughout the cytoplasm but are often concentrated in and around the region of the Golgi apparatus. These fine structural features are somewhat similar to those of the classical Barnes "FSH cells" and Kurosumi-Oota "FSH cells".

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Crown structure of the maxillary molars in the Japanese shrew mole, Urotrichus talpoides (Insectivora, Talpidae).

The maxillary first and second molars (M1 and M2) in the Japanese shrew mole, Urotrichus talpoides, were investigated using an odontometrical approach. The mesiodistal crown diameter was larger in M1 than in M2, while the buccolingual diameter of M1 was nearly equal to that of M2. M2 was more compressed mesiodistally than M1. M1 had a large distal triangle on the stylar shelf. The mesial triangle of M2 was slightly larger than the distal triangle. Despite being smaller than M1, M2 was less variable than M1 in terms of size. The distal triangle of M1 and the mesial triangle of M2 were well developed, and thus this area, which corresponds to the inflection point of the maxillary dental arch, was most likely the center of an occlusal function.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Peroxidase activity in the submandibular gland of the house musk shrew, Suncus murinus (Soricidae, Insectivora).

Endogenous peroxidase activity in the submandibular gland of the house musk shrew, Suncus murinus was cytochemically investigated by light and electron microscopy using 3,3'-diaminobenzidine-tetrahydrochloride salt (DAB). The submandibular glands of male Suncus murinus at 8-month-olds were excised and diced into small pieces. In general, salivary glands are structurally divided into a terminal portion comprising a secretory portion and duct system. The submandibular gland of the Suncus murinus, the terminal portions consisted of proximal and distal acinar cells. On the other hand, a granular duct cell of the duct system contained a number of characteristic myelin-like bodies. In the present study, the peroxidase reaction products were localized in the secretory granules of the proximal acinar cells and in the endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus and myelin-like bodies of the granular duct cells. These reaction products were reduced when 5 mM 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole was added to the reaction medium. Additionally, release of peroxidase into the lumen was observed. In conclusion, the proximal acinar and granular duct cells formed peroxidase and may have performed excretory secretions. Moreover, the peroxidase positive myelin-like body consisted of lamellated membrane and its outer surface membrane continued to the endoplasmic reticulum.

Animals↗