Anna Mikaela A.

Tejano
2018-10523

Evaluation of the research paper “Morphological and biochemical characterization of

the cutaneous poison glands in toads (Rhinella marina group) from different
environments” by Mailho-Fontana et al. (2018)

The process of research follows a series of steps which are logically planned out that
would enable the researcher/s to gather relevant data and information and come up with
the most efficient solution to the main problem. Even the slightest detail of overlooking one
or more characteristics that should be present at a certain part of the paper could affect the
results and conclusion of the study.

This paper provides a comprehensive evaluation of a research article “Morphological

and biochemical characterization of the cutaneous poison glands in toads (Rhinella marina
group) from different environments” by Mailho-Fontana et al. (2018).

Identification of a well-defined, novel research problem is always the prime

foundation of conducting a research. The research problem should be specific, measurable,
attainable, realistic, and time-bound or collectively known as SMART. The same concept
applies in determining the objectives of the study as well. Based on the article, the statement
of the problem is novel however, was vaguely described in which researchers simply implied
that morphological, biochemical, and functional characteristics of other glandular
accumulations are poorly studied. The study was able to provide a generous amount of
literature related to toad toxinology which fairly supports the identified problem
nevertheless, more relevant literature could still be used to strengthen the impact of the
statement. The general objective of the study was clearly stated in the paper which is to
provide morphological and biochemical characterization of the poison glands in Rhinella
marina, R. icterica, R. schneideri, and R. jimi. However, indicators that will be used in the
achieving the objective of the study were not mentioned thus, the measurability of the
objective cannot be quickly determined based on the presented purpose. The rationale of
the study was not clearly mentioned such as the possible applications of studying amphibian
poison glands and this makes it difficult for readers to grasp the point of conducting such
study and establish the potential impacts of the results to society. Although, the article was
able to mention the significance of using Rhinella marina as one of the species models for the
study. This was to obtain better understanding of macrogland use in passive defense of the
specific species. Meanwhile, the significance of using the other three species were not
explicitly described anymore.

A review of related literature is done to gain insights related to the current problem
of the study. This is also to establish the conceptual framework where the hypothesis will be
grounded. In this article, the literature focuses more about the parotoid macroglands which
is somewhat helpful in providing ample information on this type of macrogland and
establishing that it is indeed well-studied compared to the other types. However, it is
deemed ideal to also provide even some basic information regarding the other types of
macroglands to establish their distinctions. Although the literature reviewed were relevant
to the study, most of them were published between 6 to 10 years prior to the publication
year of the current study. It is important to use literature that are recently published as much
as possible to provide up-to-date information on the subject since there could be drastic
changes in the general body of knowledge from 10 years ago compared to the well-supported
facts presented a year ago. Inclusion of recent literature related to the morphology and
biochemical characteristics of the macroglands might provide additional perspectives to the
study.

The research hypothesis was not explicitly labeled in the initial pages of the study so
the readers would have to read and fully digest the introductory parts to be able to
understand the hypothesis although it was formulated based on the literature. In this paper,
researchers want to establish that the topographic distribution, morphology, and
biochemical composition of the different types of macroglands have functional roles in the
passive defense mechanism of the bufonids. It is a non-directional hypothesis wherein

The methodology is the delicate portion of the research process in which it dictates
how the results would come about depending on the execution of the procedure. As much as
possible it should be detailed and well-backed with literature supporting the chosen
methods. In the methodology of the article, variables were not clearly described and defined.
I suppose this implies that the researchers assume that the readers are knowledgeable of the
variables presented earlier. The method for sample collection was not included in the paper
although it was mentioned that all aspects of the study were conducted according to the
protocols approved by the Ethics Committee on Animal Use. The choice of species to be
collected was already mentioned in the introductory paragraph wherein these species differ
in topographic distribution and morphology of macroglands. The article only mentioned the
different locations where the specimens of each toad species were collected from. Based on
the sample size for each species (n=2), I don’t think that it would be considered as a
representative of the population since it is quite small. If it was indeed derived from a reliable
formula, the researchers should at least show the calculations to support their rationale of
the sample size sufficient to be considered as representative. However, it was helpful that
the article provided a detailed procedure of the sample preparation, ultrastructure viewing,
poison extraction and purification techniques, and protein profiling. The article also stated
the different histochemical tests that were used to characterize the chemical composition of
the glands from the specimens along with the biomolecules tested for each method although,
the procedure for each test was not described anymore which implies the assumption of
having prior knowledge in biochemical characterization.

The results and discussion are the deemed the significant parts of the research as it
encloses the main output of the study. The results of the article presented the morphological
and histochemical characterizations and the distributions of the three types of macroglands
in an integrative approach which is consistent with the main objective of the study, including
the enzymatic activities of the poison. The author did relate the results to the review of
literature in which similar morphology of the parotoid macroglands was observed with the
morphological descriptions of Rhinella marina in the previous studies. The discussion
provided in-depth explanations as to how those biochemical characterizations and
distributions of the macroglands relate to mechanism of chemical defense of the four toad
species against predators. The authors also explicitly discussed the functional roles of the
different biomolecules present in the poison. The discussion, hence, provided closure to the
initial hypothesis that topographic distribution, morphology, and biochemical composition
of the different types of macroglands have essential functions in the passive defense
mechanism.
Some of the references listed were studies published almost 10 years prior to the
current published study. It should be kept in mind that the references should be as recent as
possible to reduce possibilities of missing out relevant information. With regards to the
format and completeness of the list, references were consistently written according to the
preferred format of the journal and all studies cited in the paper were present in the
reference list.
Overall, the article was effectively written and understandable by at least a high
school level individual. The usage of language is unbiased. The literature provides sufficient
background on the problem although I still perceive that there is still room for
improvements. The methodology, results, and discussion were well-written and detailed
that the readers would be able to duplicate the methods and understand the implications of
the results. The study concluded that there is a direct relation between the morphological
and biochemical composition with the defensive mechanism of toad species and their
general environmental condition. Suggested improvements for the research would include
incorporation of more recent studies on toad toxinology and additional basic information on
the other types of poison glands other than the parotoid macrogland.