Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42006377›Full record

ArticleiScience2026

Changes in the chemical defenses of an invasive toad indicate drivers and limitations of adaptation.

Max Mühlenhaupt, James Baxter-Gilbert, Julia L Riley, Buyisile G Makhubo, Nhlanhla S Dludla, Cláudia Baider, F B Vincent Florens, Xavier Porcel, André de Villiers, Willem A L van Otterlo and 1 more

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Article in iScience, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Max MühlenhauptDepartment of Behavioural Ecology, Bielefeld University, Konsequenz 45, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany.
James Baxter-GilbertCentre for Invasion Biology, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, Western Cape 7600, South Africa.
Julia L RileyDepartment of Biology, Mount Allison University, 62 York Street, Sackville, New Brunswick E4L 1G7, Canada.
Buyisile G MakhuboSchool of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X54001, Durban 40001, South Africa.
Nhlanhla S DludlaSchool of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X54001, Durban 40001, South Africa.
Cláudia BaiderThe Mauritius Herbarium, Agriculture Services, Ministry of Agro-Industry, Food Security and Blue Economy and Fisheries, Le Réduit, Mauritius.
F B Vincent FlorensTropical Island Biodiversity, Ecology and Conservation Pole of Research, Faculty of Science, University of Mauritius, Le Réduit, Mauritius.
Xavier PorcelCIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal.
André de VilliersDepartment of Chemistry and Polymer Science, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch 7600, South Africa.
Willem A L van OtterloDepartment of Chemistry and Polymer Science, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch 7600, South Africa.
John MeaseyCentre for Invasion Biology, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, Western Cape 7600, South Africa.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Chemical defenses of invasive species provide protection against predators, competitors, and parasites enabling successful colonization of novel environments and can be highly detrimental to native biota. Here, we study how the chemical defenses of a successful invasive toad have changed by comparing the native source population with the introduced populations on Mauritius, Réunion, and in Cape Town. In line with the enemy release hypothesis, on Mauritius and Réunion where the community of predator species is less diverse, the toads show marked reductions in toxin gland size as well as changes in the composition of the toxins. However, in Cape Town, where the introduction happened more recently and the predator community is more diverse, only the composition of the toad toxins changed. Our results indicate drivers and constraints of adaptations of chemical defenses and provide evidence for the role of enemy release in the success of an invasive toad.

Indexed as

EcologyEnvironmental scienceEvolutionary ecology

Identifiers

PMID42006377
PMCPMC13091458

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.