Publications

durettechina beveridgei n. g., n. sp. (nematoda: seuratidae) from antechinus spp. (dasyuridae: marsupialia) from australia.	durettechina beveridgei n. g., n. sp. (nematoda: seuratidae) is described from antechinus flavipes (dasyuridae) from victoria and new south wales. a single female from a. bellus from the northern territory may also be d. beveridgei. this new genus is compared with other genera of the echinonematinae, to which it has been assigned. the genus has a unique body armature and most closely resembles chabaudechina, in the armature of the cephalic bulb, but has four rather than five rows of hooks, and l ...	2000	10682921
uncoupling protein 2 and 3 in marsupials: identification, phylogeny, and gene expression in response to cold and fasting in antechinus flavipes.	we searched for the presence of uncoupling protein genes so far unknown in marsupials and monotremes and identified uncoupling protein 2 (ucp2) and ucp3 full-length cdnas in libraries constructed from the marsupials antechinus flavipes and sminthopsis macroura. marsupial ucp2 is 89-90% identical to rodent ucp2, whereas ucp3 exhibits 80% identity to mouse ucp3. a phylogenetic tree including all known ucps positions the novel marsupial ucp2 and ucp3 at the base of the mammalian orthologs. in the 5 ...	2004	14970361
marsupial cardiac myosins are similar to those of eutherians in subunit composition and in the correlation of their expression with body size.	cardiac myosins and their subunit compositions were studied in ten species of marsupial mammals. using native gel electrophoresis, ventricular myosin in macropodoids showed three isoforms, v(1), v(2) and v(3), and western blots using specific anti-alpha- and anti-beta-cardiac myosin heavy chain (myhc) antibodies showed their myhc compositions to be alphaalpha, alphabeta and betabeta, respectively. atrial myosin showed alphaalpha myhc composition but differed from v(1) in light chain composition. ...	2007	16988832
genetic reconstruction of the population dynamics of a carnivorous marsupial (antechinus flavipes) in response to floods.	human activities such as regulating river flows, logging and removing fallen timber adversely affect floodplain ecosystems around the world. studies of the dynamics of floodplain-dwelling populations will help to understand the effects of altered flood regimes and to manage and restore floodplains. the yellow-footed antechinus (antechinus flavipes) is the only small, native, carnivorous mammal (marsupialia) on many degraded floodplains in south-eastern australia, where its abundance appears to i ...	2007	17614908
heterogeneity of alpha-cardiac myosin heavy chains in a small marsupial, antechinus flavipes, and the effect of hypothyroidism on its ventricular myosins.	the effect of drug-induced hypothyroidism on ventricular myosin gene expression was explored in a small marsupial, antechinus flavipes. pyrophosphate gel electrophoresis, sds-page and western blotting were used to analyse changes in native myosin isoforms and myosin heavy chains (myhcs) in response to hypothyroidism. in some animals, five instead of the normal three native myosin components were found: v(1a), v(1b),v(1c), v(2) and v(3), in order of decreasing mobility. in western blots, v(1a), v ...	2008	17975714
mitochondrial proton conductance in skeletal muscle of a cold-exposed marsupial, antechinus flavipes, is unlikely to be involved in adaptive nonshivering thermogenesis but displays increased sensitivity toward carbon-centered radicals.	the organs and molecular mechanisms contributing to adaptive thermogenesis in marsupials are not known because some species apparently lack brown adipose tissue (bat). the increased oxidative capacity and presence of uncoupling protein 3 (ucp3) in skeletal muscle led to speculations on whether uncoupled respiration sustains endothermy in the cold, as found for bat. here, we investigated the role of mitochondrial proton conductance in the small australian marsupial antechinus flavipes during cold ...	2016	19614545
effects of hypothyroidism on myosin heavy chain composition and fibre types of fast skeletal muscles in a small marsupial, antechinus flavipes.	effects of drug-induced hypothyroidism on myosin heavy chain (myhc) content and fibre types of fast skeletal muscles were studied in a small marsupial, antechinus flavipes. sds-page of myhcs from the tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius revealed four isoforms, 2b, 2x, 2a and slow, in that order of decreasing abundance. after 5 weeks treatment with methimazole, the functionally fastest 2b myhc significantly decreased, while 2x, 2a and slow myhcs increased. immunohistochemistry using monospecific a ...	2010	20012435
candidatus bartonella antechini: a novel bartonella species detected in fleas and ticks from the yellow-footed antechinus (antechinus flavipes), an australian marsupial.	bartonella are fastidious, gram-negative, aerobic bacilli belonging to the alphaproteobacteria group. in the last ten years, the discovery of new bartonella species from a variety of mammalian hosts, arthropod vectors and geographical areas has increased. more than 20 species of bartonella have been identified, of which approximately thirteen are associated with disease in humans and animals. recently, four novel species of bartonella were isolated from mammalian hosts in australia: bartonella a ...	2010	21215534
Genetic characterization of flea-derived Bartonella species from native animals in Australia suggests host-parasite co-evolution.	Fleas are important arthropod vectors for a variety of diseases in veterinary and human medicine, and bacteria belonging to the genus Bartonella are among the organisms most commonly transmitted by these ectoparasites. Recently, a number of novel Bartonella species and novel species candidates have been reported in marsupial fleas in Australia. In the present study the genetic diversity of marsupial fleas was investigated; 10 species of fleas were collected from seven different marsupial and pla ...	2011	21856444
torpor in free-ranging antechinus: does it increase fitness?	antechinus are small, insectivorous, heterothermic marsupial mammals that use torpor from late summer to early winter and reproduce once a year in late winter/early spring. males die after mating, most females produce only a single litter, but some survive a second winter and produce another litter. as it is not known how these females manage to survive the second winter after the energetically demanding reproductive period and then reproduce a second time, we aimed to provide the first data on ...	2014	24441710
detection and identification of a gammaherpesvirus in antechinus spp. in australia.	we detected herpesvirus infection in a male yellow-footed antechinus (antechinus flavipes) and male agile antechinus (antechinus agilis) during the period of postmating male antechinus immunosuppression and mortality. histopathologic examination of tissues revealed lesions consistent with herpesvirus infection in the prostate of both animals. herpesvirus virions were observed by transmission electron microscopy in the prostate tissue collected from the male yellow-footed antechinus. herpesvirus ...	2014	24499331
relating demographic characteristics of a small mammal to remotely sensed forest-stand condition.	many ecological systems around the world are changing rapidly in response to direct (land-use change) and indirect (climate change) human actions. we need tools to assess dynamically, and over appropriate management scales, condition of ecosystems and their responses to potential mitigation of pressures. using a validated model, we determined whether stand condition of floodplain forests is related to densities of a small mammal (a carnivorous marsupial, antechinus flavipes) in 60,000 ha of exta ...	2014	24621967
a new dasyurid marsupial from kroombit tops, south-east queensland, australia: the silver-headed antechinus, antechinus argentus sp. nov. (marsupialia: dasyuridae).	antechinus argentus sp. nov. is currently only known from the plateau at the eastern escarpment of kroombit tops national park, about 400km nnw of brisbane and 60km ssw of gladstone, south-east queensland, australia. antechinus flavipes (waterhouse) is also known from kroombit tops np, 4.5km w of the nearest known population of a. argentus; a. mysticus baker, mutton and van dyck has yet to be found within kroombit tops, but is known from museum specimens taken at bulburin np, just 40km ese, as w ...	2013	25113476
taxonomy and redescription of the yellow-footed antechinus, antechinus flavipes (waterhouse) (marsupialia: dasyuridae).	we provide a taxonomic redescription of the ubiquitous and variable dasyurid marsupial yellow-footed antechinus, antechinus flavipes (waterhouse), which comprises three currently recognized subspecies whose combined geographic distribution spans almost the length and breadth of australia. a. flavipes leucogaster gray is confined to south-west western australia; a. flavipes flavipes is distributed in south-eastern australia across four states—south australia, victoria, new south wales and queensl ...	2013	25340194
prevalence and clinical significance of herpesvirus infection in populations of australian marsupials.	herpesviruses have been reported in several marsupial species, but molecular classification has been limited to four herpesviruses in macropodids, a gammaherpesvirus in two antechinus species (antechinus flavipes and antechinus agilis), a gammaherpesvirus in a potoroid, the eastern bettong (bettongia gaimardi) and two gammaherpesviruses in koalas (phascolarctos cinereus). in this study we examined a range of australian marsupials for the presence of herpesviruses using molecular and serological ...	2015	26222660
taxonomy and redescription of the atherton antechinus, antechinus godmani (thomas) (marsupialia: dasyuridae).	we provide a taxonomic redescription of the dasyurid marsupial atherton antechinus, antechinus godmani (thomas). a. godmani is only rarely encountered and limited to wet tropical rainforests of north-east queensland, australia, between the towns of cardwell and cairns (a distribution spanning 135 kilometres from north to south). the distinctive species occurs at altitudes of over 600 meters asl, in all major rainforest types, and can be found with both the northern subspecies of the yellow-foote ...	2013	26438953
dealing with uncertainty in landscape genetic resistance models: a case of three co-occurring marsupials.	landscape genetics lacks explicit methods for dealing with the uncertainty in landscape resistance estimation, which is particularly problematic when sample sizes of individuals are small. unless uncertainty can be quantified, valuable but small data sets may be rendered unusable for conservation purposes. we offer a method to quantify uncertainty in landscape resistance estimates using multimodel inference as an improvement over single model-based inference. we illustrate the approach empirical ...	2016	26588177
torpor and basking after a severe wildfire: mammalian survival strategies in a scorched landscape.	wildfires can completely obliterate above-ground vegetation, yet some small terrestrial mammals survive during and after fires. as knowledge about the physiological and behavioural adaptations that are crucial for post-wildfire survival is scant, we investigated the thermal biology of a small insectivorous marsupial (antechinus flavipes) after a severe forest fire. some populations of antechinus survived the fire in situ probably by hiding deep in rocky crevices, the only fire-proof sites near w ...	2017	27734149
a new cue for torpor induction: charcoal, ash and smoke.	recent work has shown that the use of torpor for energy conservation increases after forest fires in heterothermic mammals, probably in response to the reduction of food. however, the specific environmental cues for this increased torpor expression remain unknown. it is possible that smoke and the novel substrate of charcoal and ash act as signals for an impending period of starvation requiring torpor. we therefore tested the hypothesis that the combined cues of smoke, a charcoal/ash substrate a ...	2017	28100803
forelimb myology of carnivorous marsupials (marsupialia: dasyuridae): implications for the ancestral body plan of the australidelphia.	carnivorous marsupials of the family dasyuridae represent a more generalized anatomical condition of both craniodental and postcranial features in comparison to other groups of australidelphian marsupials. plesiomorphic characters include polyprotodont dentition, didactylous (rather than syndactylous) pedal morphology, the retention of clavicles and epipubic bones, and an unossified patelloid. in light of the anatomy of the postcranial skeleton, we hypothesized that the muscular anatomy of the d ...	2017	28524458
eimeria taggarti n. sp., a novel coccidian (apicomplexa: eimeriorina) in the prostate of an antechinus flavipes.	a novel coccidian species was discovered in the prostate of an antechinus flavipes (yellow-footed antechinus) in south australia, during the period of post-mating male antechinus immunosuppression and mortality. this novel coccidian is unusual because it develops extra-intestinally and sporulates endogenously within the prostate gland of its mammalian host. histological examination of prostatic tissue revealed dense aggregations of spherical and thin-walled tetrasporocystic, dizoic sporulated co ...	2017	29119858
thermal physiology and activity in relation to reproductive status and sex in a free-ranging semelparous marsupial.	in a changing climate, southern hemisphere mammals are predicted to face rising temperatures and aridity, resulting in food and water shortages, which may further challenge already constrained energetic demands. especially semelparous mammals may be threatened because survival of the entire population depends on the success of a single breeding event. one of these species, the yellow-footed antechinus, antechinus flavipes, a small, heterothermic marsupial mammal, commences reproduction during wi ...	2019	31737272
full mitochondrial genome and nuclear 18s rdna sequences refine the taxonomic placement of choleoeimeria taggarti n. comb. from the prostate of antechinus flavipes (yellow-footed antechinus).	an unusual coccidian parasite was described previously from the prostate of a male antechinus flavipes (family: dasyuridae; common name: yellow-footed antechinus). morphometrics and a partial nuclear 18s small subunit rdna (18s rdna) sequence were used to assign this parasite to the genus eimeria; it was named eimeria taggarti. we generated full nuclear 18s rdna and mitochondrial genome sequences from this parasite and used the newly completed 18s rdna and mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subu ...	2020	31995717
growing up in a changing climate: how temperature affects the development of morphological, behavioral and physiological traits of a marsupial mammal.	climate change is likely to affect many mammalian phenotypes, yet little is known whether and how phenotypic plasticity is involved in responding to thermal challenges during mammalian development. we investigated the effect of continuous cold or warm exposure during development on morphological, behavioral, and functional variables of yellow-footed antechinus (antechinus flavipes), a semelparous australian marsupial mammal. captive-bred young were exposed to two ambient temperatures (t a ), col ...	2020	32116761