Digital Commons Network^™

Seed Preferences Of Wintering Henslow's Sparrows, Jennifer K. Dimiceli, Philip C. Stouffer, Erik I. Johnson, Claudia Leonardi, Edgar B. Moser

Faculty Publications

The Henslow's Sparrow (Ammodramus henslowii), a species of conservation concern, winters primarily in longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) forest ecosystems in the southeastern U.S. These pine savannas have been reduced to 5% of their former range, with remaining patches requiring active management with fire to maintain characteristic structure and plant diversity. Wintering Henslow's Sparrow abundance tracks growing-season fires; bird abundance peaks in the winter following burning, then declines in subsequent winters. Fire also determines dominant plant species, suggesting that Henslow's Sparrows may respond to abundance of preferred seeds. To determine diet preferences of Henslow's Sparrows, we tested seeds from eight species …

Assessment Of Genetic Diversity In The Usda And Cip-Fao International Nursery Collections Of Quinoa (Chenopodium Quinoa Willd.) Using Microsatellite Markers, S. A. Christensen, D. B. Pratt, C. Pratt, P. T. Nelson, M. R. Stevens, Eric N. Jellen, Craig E. Coleman, Daniel J. Fairbanks, A. Bonifacio, Michael J. Maughan

Faculty Publications

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) is a staple food crop for millions of impoverished rural inhabitants of Andean South America where it has been cultivated for millennia. Interest in quinoa, due largely to its superior nutritional characteristics, is fuelling a growing export market and has led to an increased focus on genetic research and the development of quinoa breeding programmes throughout South America. The success of these breeding programmes will rely heavily on the development of core germplasm collections and germplasm conservation. We report the development of a set of fluorescence-tagged microsatellite molecular markers that can be used to characterize genetic …

An Ancestral Variant Of Secretogranin Ii Confers Regulation By Phox2 Transcription Factors And Association With Hypertension, Gen Wen, Jennifer Wessel, Weidong Zhou, Georg B. Ehret, Fangwen Rao, Mats Stridsberg, Sushil K. Mahata, Peter M. Gent, Madhusudan Das, Richard S. Cooper, Aravinda Chakravarti, Huilin Zhou, Nicholas J. Schork, Daniel T. O'Connor, Bruce A. Hamilton

Faculty Publications

Granins regulate secretory vesicle formation in neuroendocrine cells and granin-derived peptides are co-released with neurotransmitters as modulatory signals at sympathetic sites. We report evidence for association between a regulatory polymorphism in Secretogranin II (SCG2) and hypertension in African-American subjects. The minor allele is ancestral in the human lineage and is associated with disease risk in two case-control studies and with elevated blood pressure in a separate familial study. Mechanistically, the ancestral allele acts as a transcriptional enhancer in cells that express endogenous Scg2, whereas the derived allele does not. ARIX (PHOX2A) and PHOX2B are identified as potential transactivating factors by …

Development Of A Simplified And Standardized Protocol With Potential For High-Throughput For Sperm Cryopreservation In Zebrafish Danio Rerio, Huiping Yang, Carrie Carmichael, Zoltan M. Varga, Terrence R. Tiersch

Faculty Publications

Sperm cryopreservation offers potential for long-term storage of genetic resources. However, the current protocols for zebrafish Danio rerio are cumbersome and poorly reproducible. Our objective was to facilitate adoption of cryopreservation by streamlining methods from sperm collection through thawing and use. First, sperm activation was evaluated, and motility was completely inhibited when osmolality of the extender was ≥295-300 mOsmol/kg. To evaluate cryoprotectant toxicity, sperm were incubated with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), N,N-dimethyl acetamide (DMA), methanol, or glycerol at 5, 10, and 15% concentrations. Based on motility, DMSO, DMA, and methanol (≤10%) were less toxic; therefore, sperm were cryopreserved using these cryoprotectants …

Structure And Mechanism Of The Genomically Encoded Fosfomycin Resistance Protein, Fosx, From Listeria Monocytogenes, Kerry L. Fillgrove, Svetlana Pakhomova, Matthew R. Schaab, Marcia E. Newcomer, Richard N. Armstrong

Faculty Publications

The fosfomycin resistance protein, FosX, catalyzes the hydration of the antibiotic fosfomycin, (1R,25)-epoxypropylphosphonic acid. Genes encoding the enzyme are found in several pathogenic microorganisms. The structure and mechanism of action of the genomically encoded FosX enzyme from Listeria monocytogenes (FosXLMATCC) obtained from the American Type Culture Collection are reported. The gene harbors 31 point mutations, and as a consequence, the protein differs in 10 amino acid residues from the previously reported FosX encoded in the genome of the EGD strain of L. monocytogenes (FosXLMEGD). The FosXLMATCC enzyme is shown to catalyze the addition of water to the C1 position of …

Ultrasonically-Assisted Drug Delivery In Rats Reduces Tumor Growth, William G. Pitt, Beverly L. Roeder, G. Bruce Schaalje, Bryant J. Staples

Faculty Publications

Previously we have shown that nanosized drug carriers called Plurogels™ sequestered Doxorubicin (Dox) and partially released this drug with application of ultrasound (US) (Fig. 1)1. The application to chemotherapy was successfully demonstrated in a rat tumor model2. However previous studies did not examine the distribution of Dox in the insonated and control tissue. This recent work investigated the effect of two US frequencies and examined the Dox distribution in the insonated and control tumors to determine if US was depositing more Dox at the insonated site.

Extended Abstract Rotopod: A Novel Approach To Efficient Legged Locomotion, Damian M. Lyons

Faculty Publications

A number of attempts have been made to integrate the efficiency of wheeled locomotion with the terrain versatility of legged locomotion, e.g., Univ.Michigan’s Rhex platform and Case Western’s Whegs. Those platforms cast legs as rotating spokes placed traditionally at the corners of a rectangular platform. In this paper, we present an alternate approach, with three legs radiating down from a central hub. The energy to move the platform is generated by a rotating reaction mass mounted at the hub and, at rest, rotating parallel to the ground plane.

Our approach is to construct a platform whose natural, uncontrolled motion is …

Unidirectional Na+ And Ca2+ Fluxes In Two Euryhaline Teleost Fishes, Fundulus Heteroclitus And Oncorhynchus Mykiss, Acutely Submitted To A Progressive Salinity Increase, Viviane Prodocimo, Fernando Galvez, Carolina A. Freire, Chris M. Wood

Faculty Publications

Na+ and Ca2+ regulation were compared in two euryhaline species, killifish (normally estuarine-resident) and rainbow trout (normally freshwater-resident) during an incremental salinity increase. Whole-body unidirectional fluxes of Na+ and Ca2+, whole body Na+ and Ca2+, and plasma concentrations (trout only), were measured over 1-h periods throughout a total 6-h protocol of increasing salinity meant to simulate a natural tidal flow. Killifish exhibited significant increases in both Na+ influx and efflux rates, with efflux slightly lagging behind efflux up to 60% SW, but net Na+ balance was restored by the time killifish reached 100% SW. Whole body Na+ did not change, …

Energizing An Invertebrate Embryo: Bafilomycin-Dependent Respiration And The Metabolic Cost Of Proton Pumping By The V-Atpase, Joseph A. Covi, Steven C. Hand

Faculty Publications

We examine herein the contribution of V-ATPase activity to the energy budget of aerobically developing embryos of Artemia franciscana and discuss the results in the context of quiescence under anoxia. 31P-NMR analysis indicates that intracellular pH and NTP levels are unaffected by acute incubation of dechorionated embryos with the V-ATPase inhibitor, bafilomycin A1. Bafilomycin A1 also has no significant effect on oxygen consumption by isolated mitochondria. Taken together, these data indicate that bafilomycin does not affect energy-producing pathways in the developing embryo. However, the V-ATPase inhibitor exhibits a concentration-dependent inhibition of oxygen consumption in aerobic embryos. A conservative analysis of …

In Search Of Polymorphic Alu Insertions With Restricted Geographic Distributions, Richard Cordaux, Deepa Srikanta, Jungnam Lee, Mark Stoneking, Mark A. Batzer

Faculty Publications

Alu elements are transposable elements that have reached over one million copies in the human genome. Some Alu elements inserted in the genome so recently that they are still polymorphic for insertion presence or absence in human populations. Recently, there has been an increasing interest in using Alu variation for studies of human population genetic structure and inference of individual geographic origin. Currently, this requires a high number of Alu loci. Here, we used a linker-mediated polymerase chain reaction method to preferentially identify low-frequency Alu elements in various human DNA samples with different geographic origins. The candidate Alu loci were …

Sines, Evolution And Genome Structure In The Opossum, Wanjun Gu, David A. Ray, Jerilyn A. Walker, Erin W. Barnes, Andrew J. Gentles, Paul B. Samollow, Jerzy Jurka, Mark A. Batzer, David D. Pollock

Faculty Publications

Short INterspersed Elements (SINEs) are non-autonomous retrotransposons, usually between 100 and 500 base pairs (bp) in length, which are ubiquitous components of eukaryotic genomes. Their activity, distribution, and evolution can be highly informative on genomic structure and evolutionary processes. To determine recent activity, we amplified more than one hundred SINE1 loci in a panel of 43 M. domestica individuals derived from five diverse geographic locations. The SINE1 family has expanded recently enough that many loci were polymorphic, and the SINE1 insertion-based genetic distances among populations reflected geographic distance. Genome-wide comparisons of SINE1 densities and GC content revealed that high SINE1 …

Genomic Organization And Imprinting Of The Peg3 Domain In Bovine, Joomyeong Kim, Anne Bergmann, Jung Ha Choo, Lisa Stubbs

Faculty Publications

Using multiple mammalian genomic sequences, we have analyzed the evolution and imprinting of several genes located in the Peg3 domain, including Mim1 (approved name, Mimt1), Usp29, Zim3, and Zfp264. A series of comparative analyses shows that the overall genomic structure of this 500-kb imprinted domain has been well maintained throughout mammalian evolution but that several lineage-specific changes have also occurred in each species. In the bovine domain, Usp29 has lost its protein-coding capability, Zim3 has been duplicated, and the expression of Zfp264 has become biallelic in brain and testis, which differs from paternal expression of mouse Zfp264 in brain. In …

Population Spread Of The Introduced Red Imported Fire Ant Parasitoid, Pseudacteon Tricuspis Borgmeier (Diptera: Phoridae), In Louisiana, D. C. Henne, S. J. Johnson, J. T. Cronin

Faculty Publications

Predicting the spread of introduced species, such as natural enemies used in classical biological control programs, requires quantitative data on the rates of spread. Here, the pattern of spread of Pseudacteon tricuspis Borgmeier (Diptera: Phoridae), a parasitoid of the red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta Buren; Hymenoptera: Formicidae), was monitored at two widely separated release sites in Louisiana, USA. At both sites, P. tricuspis range expansion (measured as the mean radius of the range from four cardinal directions) was accelerating during the first four years post-release. This pattern contrasts with a linear pattern expected with simple diffusion. This suggests that …

Localization Of Ligand Binding Site In Proteins Identified In Silico, M. Michal Brylinski, Marek Kochanczyk, Elzbieta Broniatowska, Irena Roterman

Faculty Publications

Knowledge-based models for protein folding assume that the early-stage structural form of a polypeptide is determined by the backbone conformation, followed by hydrophobic collapse. Side chain-side chain interactions, mostly of hydrophobic character, lead to the formation of the hydrophobic core, which seems to stabilize the structure of the protein in its natural environment. The fuzzy-oil-drop model is employed to represent the idealized hydrophobicity distribution in the protein molecule. Comparing it with the one empirically observed in the protein molecule reveals that they are not in agreement. It is shown in this study that the irregularity of hydrophobic distributions is aim-oriented. …

Genome-Wide Association Scan Shows Genetic Variants In The Fto Gene Are Associated With Obesity-Related Traits, Angelo Scuteri, Serena Sanna, Wei Min Chen, Manuela Uda, Giuseppe Albai, James Strait, Samer Najjar, Ramaiah Nagaraja, Marco Orrú, Gianluca Usala, Mariano Dei, Sandra Lai, Andrea Maschio, Fabio Busonero, Antonella Mulas, Georg B. Ehret, Ashley A. Fink, Alan B. Weder, Richard S. Cooper, Pilar Galan, Aravinda Chakravarti, David Schlessinger, Antonio Cao, Edward Lakatta, Gonçalo R. Abecasis

Faculty Publications

The obesity epidemic is responsible for a substantial economic burden in developed countries and is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The disease is the result not only of several environmental risk factors, but also of genetic predisposition. To take advantage of recent advances in gene-mapping technology, we executed a genome-wide association scan to identify genetic variants associated with obesity-related quantitative traits in the genetically isolated population of Sardinia. Initial analysis suggested that several SNPs in the FTO and PFKP genes were associated with increased BMI, hip circumference, and weight. Within the FTO gene, rs9930506 …

Suppression Of Growth Of A Brown Rot Fungus, Gloeophyllum Trabeum, By Formosan Subterranean Termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), Poornima Jayasimha, Gregg Henderson

Faculty Publications

Although a brown rot fungus, Gloeophyllum trabeum (Pers.) Murrill, has been shown to be attractive and beneficial to subterranean termites, including Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), no research has been conducted to determine whether the association is mutualistic. We first investigated whether the fungus could be spread by C. formosanus, because this would represent an obvious benefit to the fungus. We found that Formosan subterranean termites did not spread G. trabeum, rather they suppressed its growth. To further investigate this phenomenon, wood chips were inoculated with G. trabeum, and fungal growth was measured in treatments with termites or without termites …

Evolutionary Dynamics Of Transposable Elements In The Short-Tailed Opossum Monodelphis Domestica, Andrew J. Gentles, Matthew J. Wakefield, Oleksiy Kohany, Wanjun Gu, Mark A. Batzer, David D. Pollock, Jerzy Jurka

Faculty Publications

The genome of the gray short-tailed opossum Monodelphis domestica is notable for its large size (∼3.6 Gb). We characterized nearly 500 families of interspersed repeats from the Monodelphis. They cover ∼52% of the genome, higher than in any other amniotic lineage studied to date, and may account for the unusually large genome size. In comparison to other mammals, Monodelphis is significantly rich in non-LTR retrotransposons from the LINE-1, CR1, and RTE families, with <29% of the genome sequence comprised of copies of these elements. Monodelphis has at least four families of RTE, and we report support for horizontal transfer of this non-LTR retrotransposon. In addition to short interspersed elements (SINEs) mobilized by L1, we found several families of SINEs that appear to use RTE elements for mobilization. In contrast to L1-mobilized SINEs, the RTE-mobilized SINEs in Monodelphis appear to shift from G+C-rich to G+C-low regions with time. Endogenous retroviruses have colonized ∼10% of the opossum genome. We found that their density is enhanced in centromeric and/or telomeric regions of most Monodelphis chromosomes. We identified 83 new families of ancient repeats that are highly conserved across amniotic lineages, including 14 LINE-derived repeats; and a novel SINE element, MER131, that may have been exapted as a highly conserved functional noncoding RNA, and whose emergence dates back to ∼300 million years ago. Many of these conserved repeats are also present in human, and are highly over-represented in predicted cis-regulatory modules. Seventy-six of the 83 families are present in chicken in addition to mammals. ©2007 by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.

An Artificial Immune System-Inspired Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithm With Application To The Detection Of Distributed Computer Network Intrusions, Charles R. Haag, Gary B. Lamont, Paul D. L. Williams, Gilbert L. Peterson

Faculty Publications

Today's signature-based intrusion detection systems are reactive in nature and storage-limited. Their operation depends upon catching an instance of an intrusion or virus and encoding it into a signature that is stored in its anomaly database, providing a window of vulnerability to computer systems during this time. Further, the maximum size of an Internet Protocol-based message requires the database to be huge in order to maintain possible signature combinations. In order to tighten this response cycle within storage constraints, this paper presents an innovative Artificial Immune System-inspired Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithm. This distributed intrusion detection system (IDS) is intended to measure …

A Multi-Scale Examination Of Stopover Habitat Use By Birds, Jeffrey J. Buler, Frank R. Moore, Stefan Woltmann

Faculty Publications

Most of our understanding of habitat use by migrating land birds comes from studies conducted at single, small spatial scales, which may overemphasize the importance of intrinsic habitat factors, such as food availability, in shaping migrant distributions. We believe that a multi-scale approach is essential to assess the influence of factors that control en route habitat use. We determined the relative importance of eight variables, each operating at a habitat-patch, landscape, or regional spatial scale, in explaining the differential use of hardwood forests by Nearctic-Neotropical land birds during migration. We estimated bird densities through transect surveys at sites near the …

Information Consensus And Its Application In Multi-Vehicle Cooperative Control, Ella Atkins, Randal Beard, Wei Ren

Faculty Publications

In the last two decades, advances in networking and distributed computing have facilitated a paradigm shift from large, monolithic mainframe computers to networks of less expensive, less powerful workstations. One motivation for multi-vehicle systems is to achieve the same gains for mechanically controlled systems as has been gained in distributed computation. Rather than having a single monolithic (and therefore expensive and complicated) machine do everything, the hope is that many inexpensive, simple machines, can achieve the same, or enhanced functionality, through coordination. In essence, the objective is to replace expensive complicated hardware with software and multiple copies of simple hardware. …

Neighborhood Context And Ethnicity Differences In Body Mass Index: A Multilevel Analysis Using The Nhanes Iii (1988-1994), D. Phuong Do, Tamara Dubowitz, Chloe E. Bird, Nicole Lurie, José J. Escarce, Brian K. Finch

Faculty Publications

A growing body of literature has documented a link between neighborhood context and health outcomes. However, little is known about the relationship between neighborhood context and body mass index (BMI) or whether the association between neighborhood context and BMI differs by ethnicity. This paper investigates several neighborhood characteristics as potential explanatory factors for the variation of BMI across the United States; further, this paper explores to what extent segregation and the concentration of disadvantage across neighborhoods help explain ethnic disparities in BMI. Using data geo-coded at the census tract-level and linked with individual-level data from the Third National Health and …

Mentors And Students Seeking Knowledge, Meredith Jones-Gray

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Direct Substrate-Substrate Interaction Found In The Kinase Domain Of The Bifunctional Enzyme, 6-Phosphofructo-2-Kinase/Fructose-2,6-Bisphosphatase, Song Gun Kim, Michael Cavalier, M. Raafat El-Maghrabi, Yong Hwan Lee

Faculty Publications

To understand the molecular basis of a phosphoryl transfer reaction catalyzed by the 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase domain of the hypoxia-inducible bifunctional enzyme 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase (PFKFB3), the crystal structures of PFKFB3{radical dot}AMPPCP{radical dot}fructose-6-phosphate and PFKFB3{radical dot}ADP{radical dot}phosphoenolpyruvate complexes were determined to 2.7 Å and 2.25 Å resolution, respectively. Kinetic studies on the wild-type and site-directed mutant proteins were carried out to confirm the structural observations. The experimentally varied liganding states in the active pocket cause no significant conformational changes. In the pseudo-substrate complex, a strong direct interaction between AMPPCP and fructose-6-phosphate (Fru-6-P) is found. By virtue of this direct substrate-substrate interaction, Fru-6-P is aligned …

Putting Emotional Reactivity In Its Place? Exploring Family-Of-Origin Influences On Emotional Reactivity, Conflict, And Satisfaction In Premarital Couples, Brandt C. Gardner, Dean M. Busby, Andrew S. Brimhall

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this research was to develop a structural equation model that tested the effects of emotional reactivity on the relational health of a representative sample of 736 premarital couples. We hypothesized that partners’ perceived family-of-origin experience would be predictive of partners’ reports of their own and their partners’ emotional reactivity. These reports were hypothesized to predict partners’ reports of their own and their partners’ ability to manage conflict, which were hypothesized to predict relationship satisfaction. Overall, the model fit the data quite well, with particularly interesting differences by gender. We discuss the model’s fit within the larger body …

The Stat5a-Mediated Induction Of Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Kinase 4 Expression By Prolactin Or Growth Hormone In Adipocytes, Ursula A. White, Ann A. Coulter, Tiffany K. Miles, Jacqueline M. Stephens

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to determine whether pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase (PDK)4 was expressed in adipocytes and whether PDK4 expression was hormonally regulated in fat cells. Both Northern blot and Western blot analyses were conducted on samples isolated from 3T3-L1 adipocytes after various treatments with prolactin (PRL), growth hormone (GH), and/or insulin. Transfection of PDK4 promoter reporter constructs was performed. In addition, glucose uptake measurements were conducted. Our studies demonstrate that PRL and porcine GH can induce the expression of PDK4 in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Our studies also show that insulin pretreatment can attenuate the ability of these hormones to …

Characterization Of Beaf Mutations Isolated By Homologous Recombination In Drosophila, Swarnava Roy, Matthew K. Gilbert, Craig M. Hart

Faculty Publications

The Drosophila BEAF-32A and BEAF-32B proteins bind to the scs′ insulator and to hundreds of other sites on Drosophila chromosomes. These two proteins are encoded by the same gene. We used ends-in homologous recombination to generate the null BEAFAB-KO allele and also isolated the BEAF A-KO allele that eliminates production of only the BEAF-32A protein. We find that the BEAF proteins together are essential, but BEAF-32B alone is sufficient to obtain viable flies. Our results show that BEAF is important for both oogenesis and development. Maternal or zygotic BEAF is sufficient to obtain adults, although having only maternal BEAF impairs …

Biology Intensive Orientation For Students (Bios): A Biology "Boot Camp", Sheri Maples Wischusen, E. William Wischusen

Faculty Publications

The Biology Intensive Orientation for Students (BIOS) Program was designed to assess the impact of a 5-d intensive prefreshman program on success and retention of biological science majors at Louisiana State University. The 2005 pilot program combined content lectures and examinations for BIOL 1201, Introductory Biology for Science Majors, as well as learning styles assessments and informational sessions to provide the students with a preview of the requirements of biology and the pace of college. Students were tracked after their BIOS participation, and their progress was compared with a control group composed of students on the BIOS waiting list and …

Molecular Phylogeny Of The Scincid Lizards Of New Caledonia And Adjacent Areas: Evidence For A Single Origin Of The Endemic Skinks Of Tasmantis, Sarah A. Smith, Ross A. Sadlier, Aaron M. Bauer, Christopher C. Austin, Todd Jackman

Faculty Publications

We use ∼1900 bp of mitochondrial (ND2) and nuclear (c-mos and Rag-1) DNA sequence data to recover phylogenetic relationships among 58 species and 26 genera of Eugongylus group scincid lizards from New Caledonia, Lord Howe Island, New Zealand, Australia and New Guinea. Taxon sampling for New Caledonian forms was nearly complete. We find that the endemic skink genera occurring on New Caledonia, New Zealand and Lord Howe Island, which make up the Gondwanan continental block Tasmantis, form a monophyletic group. Within this group New Zealand and New Zealand + Lord Howe Island form monophyletic clades. These clades are nested within …

Endonuclease-Independent Insertion Provides An Alternative Pathway For L1 Retrotransposition In The Human Genome, Shurjo K. Sen, Charles T. Huang, Kyudong Han, Mark A. Batzer

Faculty Publications

LINE-1 elements (L1s) are a family of highly successful retrotransposons comprising ∼ 17% of the human genome, the majority of which have inserted through an endonuclease-dependent mechanism termed target-primed reverse transcription. Recent in vitro analyses suggest that in the absence of non-homologous end joining proteins, L1 elements may utilize an alternative, endonuclease-independent pathway for insertion. However, it remains unknown whether this pathway operates in vivo or in cell lines where all DNA repair mechanisms are functional. Here, we have analyzed the human genome to demonstrate that this alternative pathway for L1 insertion has been active in recent human evolution and …

Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone And Receptor Distributions In The Visual Processing Regions Of Four Coral Reef Fishes, Karen P. Maruska, Timothy C. Tricas

Faculty Publications

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) is widely distributed in the brain of fishes where it may function as a neuromodulator of sensory processing and behavior. Immunocytochemical and neuronal label experiments were conducted on species from four families of coral reef fishes (Chaetodontidae, butterflyfish; Pomacentridae, damselfish; Gobiidae, goby; and Labridae, wrasse) to assess conservation of GnRH targets in the visual processing retina and brain. In all species, GnRH-immunoreactive (-ir) axons from the terminal nerve project principally to the boundary between the inner plexiform (IPL) and inner nuclear (INL) layers of the retina, and are less prominent in the optic nerve, ganglion cell, IPL …