Evolution of Visual and Non-visual Pigments (Springer Series in Vision Research Book 4)

Photopigments are molecules that react to light and mediate a number of processes and behaviours in animals. Visual pigments housed within the photoreceptors of the eye, such as the rods and cones in vertebrates are the best known, however, visual pigments are increasingly being found in other tissues, including other retinal cells, the skin and the brain. Other closely related molecules from the G protein family, such as melanopsin mediate light driven processes including circadian rhythmicity and pupil constriction. This Volume examines the enormous diversity of visual pigments and traces the evolution of these G protein coupled receptors in both invertebrates and vertebrates in the context of the visual and non-visual demands dictated by a species' ecological niche.--Back cover Front Matter....Pages i-viii The Evolution and Diversity of Pineal and Parapineal Photopigments....Pages 1-21 The Evolution and Function of Melanopsin in Craniates....Pages 23-63 The Evolution of Non-visual Photopigments in the Central Nervous System of Vertebrates....Pages 65-103 The Evolution of Invertebrate Photopigments and Photoreceptors....Pages 105-135 Insect Photopigments: Photoreceptor Spectral Sensitivities and Visual Adaptations....Pages 137-162 The Evolution of Photoreceptors and Visual Photopigments in Vertebrates....Pages 163-217 Diversity and Functional Properties of Bistable Photopigments....Pages 219-239 Visual Photopigment Evolution in Speciation....Pages 241-267 Back Matter....Pages 269-276 Research on the evolution of visual and non-visual pigments is both exciting and timely. There is an explosion of interest in visual pigments across both invertebrates and vertebrates and the discovery of non-visual pigments involved in irradiance detection and photoentrainment as opposed to image formation is undergoing a revolution. How do these two pigments systems operate to provide both vision and circadian regulation in animals from different light environments? Non-visual pigments have now been discovered