Pteridines as Pigments in Amphibians

Obika, Masataka; Bagnara, Joseph T.

doi:10.1126/science.143.3605.485

Cited by 54 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Simultaneously with studies on goldfish, the functions of pteridines as pigments of amphibian xanthophores were firmly established first by Dr Obika (6) and then by his collaboration with Dr Joseph T. Bagnara (7). All these findings opened a new horizon in pigment cell biology on pteridines from insects to lower vertebrates.…”

Section: Start As a Pigment Cell Biologistmentioning

confidence: 99%

Brightly Colored Pigmentation in Lower Vertebrates: Wonder Searching its Mechanisms and Significance in the Context of Phylogeny

Matsumoto

2002

Pigment Cell Research

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This is a biographical sketch of my research and its related personal episodes with respect to brightly colored pigmentation in lower vertebrates. It includes a brief story of the studies on; (a) pterinosomes as a specific site of pteridine deposition in xanthophores or erythrophores of fish and amphibians, (b) a mosaic phenotype of chromatophores occurring in the reptiles and its implication for their developmental origin and differentiation mechanisms, (c) erythrophoroma as a tumor of erythrophores in goldfish, (d) the pluripotentials of erythrophoroma cells for expression of neural crest-derived characters in vitro, (e) pigment disorders occurring in hatchery-raised flounders and (f) recognition of pigment cell types by murine tyrosinase genes transfected into an orange-colored variant of medaka fish. Some of the personal affairs associated with the history of the Japanese community for pigment cell research were described to illustrate the background of these studies.

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Section: Start As a Pigment Cell Biologistmentioning

confidence: 99%

Brightly Colored Pigmentation in Lower Vertebrates: Wonder Searching its Mechanisms and Significance in the Context of Phylogeny

Matsumoto

2002

Pigment Cell Research

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“…The association of pteridines with xanthophores and erythrophores in lower vertebrates is well established (Bagnara, 1961;Hama, 1963;Matsumoto, 1965;Obika, 1963;Obika and Bagnara, 1964;Ziegler, 1965), while purines have been recognized as the main component of the lightreflecting crystals of iridophores and leucophores (Bagnara and Neidleman, 1958;Bagnara and Stackhouse, 1961;Hitchings and Falco, 1944;Sumner, 1944). It is generally accepted that the yellow and red pteridines act as simple color filters similar to the carotenoids, which are often present as well.…”

Section: Evidence Forthe Presence Of Pteridines In the Iridophores Ofmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pteridines as Reflecting Pigments and Components of Reflecting Organelles in Vertebrates

Oliphant

Hudon

1993

Pigment Cell Research

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This paper reviews evidence for the presence of pteridines in iridophores, leucophores, and xanthophores in a wide variety of vertebrate chromatophores, and argues that the chemical and functional distinction between pterinosomes and reflecting platelets is not as clear-cut as previously believed. Observations indicate that: (1) Pteridines may, either alone or in conjunction with purines, form pigment granules that reflect light, (2) these pigment granules are highly variable ranging from fibrous pterinosomes to typical reflecting platelets and may be colored, reflect white light, or be iridescent, and (3) many "leucophores" probably contain typical pterinosomes and presumed associated colorless pteridines and are therefore more closely related to erythrophores and xanthophores than to iridophores with which they are usually classified. We propose that the classification of pigment cells should be modified to reflect these facts.

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“…Here we show that turtles possess all three types of dermal pigment cells (xanthophores, iridophores, and melanocytes), shared with fish [140,141], amphibians [142,143], and lepidosaurs [144–146]. Analyses of the pigments involved in the production of yellow-red colours in turtles suggest that pteridine derivatives contribute, together with carotenoids, to these colours, which was not previously documented in non-avian archelosaurs, but has been reported in fish [112], amphibians [147], and lizards [104,148]. We show that dermal collagen fibres participate in colour production in turtles which has been reported in mammals [17] and birds [18] and adult amphibians, but not in fish [20,126], amphibian larvae [127], and lizards [125].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Body coloration and mechanisms of colour production in Archelosauria: The case of deirocheline turtles

Brejcha

Bataller

Bosáková

et al. 2019

Preprint

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21Animal body coloration is a complex trait resulting from the interplay of multiple colour-producing mechanisms. 22Increasing knowledge of the functional role of animal coloration stresses the need to study the proximate causes of 23 colour production. Here we present a description of colour and colour producing mechanisms in two non-avian 24 archelosaurs, the freshwater turtles Trachemys scripta and Pseudemys concinna. We compare reflectance spectra; 25 cellular, ultra-, and nano-structure of colour-producing elements; and carotenoid/pteridine derivatives contents in 26 the two species. In addition to xanthophores and melanocytes, we found abundant iridophores which may play a 27 role in integumental colour production. We also found abundant dermal collagen fibres that may serve as 28 thermoprotection but possibly also play role in colour production. The colour of yellow-red skin patches results from 29 an interplay between carotenoids and pteridine derivatives. The two species differ in the distribution of pigment cell 30 types along the dorsoventral head axis, as well as in the diversity of pigments involved in colour production, which 31 may be related to visual signalling. Our results indicate that archelosaurs share some colour production mechanisms 32 with amphibians and lepidosaurs, but also employ novel mechanisms based on the nano-organization of the 33 extracellular protein matrix that they share with mammals. 34 35 *Jindřich Brejcha 2 36 65 Turtles are an early-diverging clade of Archelosauria, the evolutionary lineage of tetrapods leading to 66 crocodiles and birds [22]. Although many turtles have a uniform dull colour, conspicuous striped and spotted 67 patterns are common in all major lineages of turtles (for a comprehensive collection of photographs see [23-26]).68 These conspicuous colour patterns may be present in the hard-horny skin of shells, and/or in the soft skin of the 69 head, limbs or tail. The dark areas of the skin of turtles may have a threefold origin consisting either of dermal, 70 epidermal, or both epidermal and dermal melanocytes. Colourful bright regions are thought to be the result of the 71 presence of xanthophores in the dermis [27] and their interplay with dermal melanophores [28]. Iridophores have 72 never been shown to play role in coloration of turtles [27,29]. 73Pigment-bearing xanthophores were first described in the dermis of the Chinese softshell turtle (Pelodiscus 74 sinensis) [29]. Xanthophores have also been found sporadically in the dermis of the spiny softshell turtle Apalone 75 spinifera, the Murray river turtle (Emydura macquarii) and in the painted turtle (Chrysemys picta) [27]. Such scarcity 76 3 of carotenoid/pteridine derivatives-containing cells is in contrast with chemical analyses of the yellow and red 77 regions of the integument of the red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) and C. picta [30,31]. Two major 78 classes of carotenoids have been described in the integument of these turtles: short wavelength absorbing 79 apocarotenoids and longer wave...

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Pteridines as Pigments in Amphibians

Cited by 54 publications

References 8 publications

Brightly Colored Pigmentation in Lower Vertebrates: Wonder Searching its Mechanisms and Significance in the Context of Phylogeny

Brightly Colored Pigmentation in Lower Vertebrates: Wonder Searching its Mechanisms and Significance in the Context of Phylogeny

Pteridines as Reflecting Pigments and Components of Reflecting Organelles in Vertebrates

Body coloration and mechanisms of colour production in Archelosauria: The case of deirocheline turtles

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