Purpose Acanthamoeba castellanii is an important opportunistic human protozoal pathogen that can cause both skin, ocular and brain infections. Recent studies have established that brews and solvent extract (SE) of green tea ( Camellia sinensis ) can inhibit the growth and encystation of A. castellanii . Here we characterized those growth and encystation inhibitions. Methods Herein, we characterize of the morphological and chem...

Eyes in low-light environments typically must balance sensitivity and spatial resolution. Vertebrate eyes with large "pixels" (e.g., retinal ganglion cells with inputs from many photoreceptors) will be sensitive but provide coarse vision. Small pixels can render finer detail, but each pixel will gather less light, and thus have poor signal relative-to-noise, leading to lower contrast sensitivity. This balance is particularly c...

During mate choice, receivers often assess the magnitude (duration, size, etc.) of signals that vary along a continuum and reflect variation in signaller quality. It is generally assumed that receivers assess this variation linearly, meaning each difference in signalling trait between signallers results in a commensurate change in receiver response. However, increasing evidence shows receivers can respond to signals non‐linear...

Argentine stem weevil adults (ASW, Listronotus bonariensis ) feed on the leaves of agricultural grasses and their larvae mine the pseudostem, causing extensive damage that can result in plant death. Plants emit volatiles that serve as signals to host-searching insects and these odours can be altered by both herbivory and fungal endophyte-infection. This study investigated whether ASW adults utilise olfaction to identify their...

Purpose Engineering and dredging strategies to manage sediment, along with river-scouring, can reveal older sediments. These present a unique opportunity to assess past sources of phosphorus (P) inputs into river sediments. We used the sediment concentrations of P, lead (Pb) and 206/207 Pb isotopes to produce ‘first-order’ estimates of the source (diffuse agricultural or sewage treatment) of phosphorus. Materials and methods S...

In the context of mate choice, males may vary continuously in their expression of assessment signals, typically reflecting information about variation in mate quality. Similarly, females may exhibit variation in mate preference, which could be due to differences in how individual females perceive signals. The extent to which perception varies across individuals, however, and whether differences in sensory physiology underlie p...

Rod spectral sensitivity data ( λ max ), measured by microspectrophotometry, were compiled for 403 species of ray‐finned fishes in order to examine four hypothesized predictors of rod spectral sensitivity (depth, habitat, diet and temperature). From this database, a subset of species that were known to be adults and available on a published phylogeny ( n = 210) were included in analysis, indicating rod λ max values averaging 5...