Netrins are secreted proteins that were first identified as guidance cues, directing cell and
axon migration during neural development. Subsequent findings have demonstrated that …

Systema Naturae includes representatives of every major lineage of the animal phylum
Cnidaria. However, Linnaeus did not classify the members of the phylum as is now done …

Sea anemones are seemingly primitive animals that, along with corals, jellyfish, and hydras,
constitute the oldest eumetazoan phylum, the Cnidaria. Here, we report a comparative …

The origin of many of the defining features of animal body plans, such as symmetry, nervous
system, and the mesoderm, remains shrouded in mystery because of major uncertainty …

There is growing interest in the use of cnidarians (corals, sea anemones, jellyfish and
hydroids) to investigate the evolution of key aspects of animal development, such as the …

Background Cnidaria (corals, sea anemones, hydroids, jellyfish) is a phylum of relatively
simple aquatic animals characterized by the presence of the cnidocyst: a cell containing a …

Jellyfish (medusae) are a distinctive life-cycle stage of medusozoan cnidarians. They are
major marine predators, with integrated neurosensory, muscular and organ systems. The …

The regulation of body axis specification in the common ancestor of bilaterians remains
controversial. BMP signaling appears to be an ancient program for patterning the secondary …

The distribution of organic forms is clumpy at any scale from populations to the highest
taxonomic categories, and whether considered within clades or within ecosystems. The …

Background Planktonic ciliated larvae are characteristic for the life cycle of marine
invertebrates. Their most prominent feature is the apical organ harboring sensory cells and …