Digestive challenges for vertebrate animals: Microbial diversity, cardiorespiratory coupling, and dietary specialization

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dc.contributor.authorBarboza, P.
dc.contributor.authorBennet, A.
dc.contributor.authorLignot, J.
dc.contributor.authorMacKie, R.
dc.contributor.authorMcWhorter, T.
dc.contributor.authorSecor, S.
dc.contributor.authorSkovgaard, N.
dc.contributor.authorSundset, M.
dc.contributor.authorWang, T.
dc.date.issued2010
dc.descriptionAlso published as: Molecules to Migration: Pressures of Life: the Fourth International Conference in Africa for Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry, Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya, 2008, 2010; pp.764-774
dc.description.abstractThe digestive system is the interface between the supply of food for an animal and the demand for energy and nutrients to maintain the body, to grow, and to reproduce. Digestive systems are not morphologically static but rather dynamically respond to changes in the physical and chemical characteristics of the diet and the level of food intake. In this article, we discuss three themes that affect the ability of an animal to alter digestive function in relation to novel substrates and changing food supply: (1) the fermentative digestion in herbivores, (2) the integration of cardiopulmonary and digestive functions, and (3) the evolution of dietary specialization. Herbivores consume, digest, and detoxify complex diets by using a wide variety of enzymes expressed by bacteria, predominantly in the phyla Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. Carnivores, such as snakes that feed intermittently, sometimes process very large meals that require compensatory adjustments in blood flow, acid secretion, and regulation of acid‐base homeostasis. Snakes and birds that specialize in simple diets of prey or nectar retain their ability to digest a wider selection of prey. The digestive system continues to be of interest to comparative physiologists because of its plasticity, both phenotypic and evolutionary, and because of its widespread integration with other physiological systems, including thermoregulation, circulation, ventilation, homeostasis, immunity, and reproduction.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityP. S. Barboza, A. Bennett, J.-H. Lignot, R. I. Mackie, T. J. McWhorter, S. M. Secor, N. Skovgaard, M. A. Sundset, T. Wang
dc.identifier.citationPhysiological and Biochemical Zoology, 2010; 83(5):764-774
dc.identifier.doi10.1086/650472
dc.identifier.issn1522-2152
dc.identifier.issn1537-5293
dc.identifier.orcidMcWhorter, T. [0000-0002-4746-4975]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/65132
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherUniv Chicago Press
dc.rights© 2010 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved.
dc.source.urihttp://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/650472
dc.subjectDigestive System
dc.subjectAnimals
dc.subjectVertebrates
dc.subjectBacteria
dc.subjectDiet
dc.subjectPhysiology, Comparative
dc.subjectSpecies Specificity
dc.subjectFermentation
dc.subjectDigestion
dc.subjectModels, Biological
dc.subjectCardiovascular Physiological Phenomena
dc.subjectBiological Evolution
dc.titleDigestive challenges for vertebrate animals: Microbial diversity, cardiorespiratory coupling, and dietary specialization
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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