The effect of salinity on the osmotic,sodium and chloride concentrations in the hemolymph of euryhaline shrimp of the genus Penaeus

• 1.1. The hemolymph is isosmotic to seawater at 745 mOs/kg in P. aztecus, 768 mOs/kg in P. duorarum, 680 mOs/kg in P. setiferus, 699 mOs/kg in P. stylirostris, and 718 mOs/kg in P. vannamei.
• 2.2. The hemolymph is hyperosmotic to seawater at salinities below the isosmotic concentrations and hypoosmotic to those above.
• 3.3. With respect to sodium and chloride, the hemolymph is hyperionic to seawater at low salinities and hypoionic to seawater at high salinities.
• 4.4. P. aztecus and P. duorarum are weaker osmotic and ionic regulators at low salinities than P. setiferus, P. stylirostris, and P. vannamei.
• 5.5. There are no significant differences in the osmotic and ionic regulatory capabilities of all five species at high salinities.

     

Growth and hemolymph trehalose levels of Heliothis zea larvae fed diets containing various sugars

• 1.1. The amount of sugar required for growth of Heliothis zea larvae on a chemically defined diet was determined.
• 2.2. Larvae grew well on fructose, galactose, sucrose, trehalose and raffinose diets but not on diets containing more than 0.5% glucose.
• 3.3. A starch diet did not promote rapid larval growth.
• 4.4. Hemolymph trehalose levels in 12-day-old larvae ranged from none to 45μmoles/ml.
• 5.5. A method for analysis of hemolymph trehalose by gas chromatography is described.

     

Identification and characterization of vitellin in a hermophrodite shrimp,Pandalus kessleri

• 1.1. A female specific protein (FSP, vitellogenin) in hemolymph and its related ovarian protein (vitellin) of Pandalus kessleri were studied by means of electrophoretical and immunological procedures.
• 2.2. The vitellin was purified from vitellogenic ovaries using hydroxylapatite, DEAE cellulose and Sepharose 6B columns, consecutively.
• 3.3. The vitellin had a molecular weight of approximately 560 kD and was composed of two subunits, 81 and 110 kD, respectively.
• 4.4. The vitellogenin concentrations in the hemolymph increased as vitellogenesis in the ovarian oocytes advanced and dropped markedly after the release of mature eggs.

     

Phospholipids composition and metabolism in the hemolymph of Carcinus maenas (Crustacea,Decapoda)—Effect of temperature

• 1.1. The distribution of different phospholipids and the repartition of fatty acids extracted from hemolymph of crab Carcinus maenas are analysed.
• 2.2. The action of the temperature on the lipid composition is also determined: an increase of content of PE and a slight rise of the degree of unsaturation of fatty acids are found at lower temperatures.
• 3.3. The specific radioactivity of total phospholipids, phosphatidyl-choline and phosphatidylethanolamine from hemolymph of Carcinus maenas is studied from two radioactive precursors (³²Phosphorus and ³H]ethanolamine). Results suggested that the conversion of PE into PC by methylation could take place in hepatopancreas of Carcinus maenas.
• 4.4. The specific radioactivity of phospholipids from these two same radioactive compounds is increased following a variation in the environmental temperature.
• 5.5. The composition of hemolymph lipids could be a direct reflection of the lipid metabolism of the hepatopancreas and that the temperature alters the rate of the phospholipid exchange between hepatopancreas and hemolymph.
• 6.6. It is suggested that these lipid alterations occur in order to permit crab Carcinus maenas to support large changes in environmental temperatures.

     

Atrial natriuretic peptides in the heart and hemolymph of the oyster,Crassostrea virginica: A comparison with vertebrates

• 1.1. The content of atrial natriuretic peptides (ANPs) in the auricles of oysters, Crassostrea virginica, was significantly (P < 0.01) greater than in their ventricles.
• 2.2. High-performance gel permeation chromatography (HP-GPC) followed by ANF radioimmunoassay revealed two peaks in both oyster and vertebrate (rat) hearts—a major peak where the 12.6–14 kDa ANF prohormone elutes and a smaller peak where the pure human form of ANF elutes.
• 3.3. HP-GPC evaluation followed by proANF 31–67 radioimmunoassay revealed only an ANF-like prohormone while HP-GPC followed by proANF 1–30 radioimmunoassay revealed the ANF prohormone and a proANF 1–30-like peptide in oyster and rat hearts.
• 4.4. ANPs concentrations in hemolymph were 940 ± 129, 225 ± 25, and 100 ± 10 pg/ml by the proANF 1–30, proANF 31–67, and ANF radioimmunoassays, respectively.
• 5.5. Atrial natriuretic-like peptides are present in the oyster heart in molecular species similar to vertebrate species and these peptides are also present in hemolymph.

     

Characterization of the blood volume and iron kinetics in the three-toed sloth,Bradypus tridactylus

• 1.1. Blood volume and iron kinetics were determined in three specimens of Bradypus tridactylus which were obtained in the coastal north-east regions of Brazil.
• 2.2. The average blood volume, circulating red cell volume and plasma volume were 54.9, 19.5 and 35.4 ml/kg body weight, respectively.
• 3.3. The average plasma iron disappearance half-time was 150.6min; the red cell radioiron uptake was 62% and the serum iron was 74.3 μg/100 ml.
• 4.4. From these figures the plasma iron turnover rate was calculated to be 165.6 μg/kg per day and the red cell iron turnover rate 102.7 μg/kg per day.

     

A comparison of the capabilities of juvenile and adult Penaeus setiferus and Penaeus stylirostris to regulate the osmotic,sodium, and chloride concentrations in the hemolymph

• 1.1. The capabilities of juvenile and mature adult Penaeus setiferus and P. stylirostris to regulate the osmotic, sodium, and chloride concentrations in the hemolymph are compared.
• 2.2. In P. setiferus and P. stylirostris acclimated to salinities of 9.8 and 10.8%. respectively, juvenile shrimp are stronger hyperosmotic and hyperionic regulators than adults. However, the reduced regulatory capabilities of adult shrimp are not sufficient to require migration to offshore waters for survival.
• 3.3. At 40.4%. juvenile P. setiferus are more effective hypoosmotic and hypoionic regulators than adults. However, there is no difference between the regulatory capabilities of juvenile and adult P. stylirostris at 36.2%.
• 4.4. Differences in hemolymph concentration between juvenile and adult P. setiferus at 23.5%. indicate that the isosmotic and isoionic crossover concentrations are elevated with maturation.

     

Organ specific changes in energy metabolism due to anaerobiosis in the sea mussel Mytilus edulis (L.)

• 1.1. Anaerobic energy metabolism was investigated in different organs of Mytilus edulis and the whole animal.
• 2.2. Succinate accumulates to high levels in most organs but remains low in the hemolymph.
• 3.3. After 16 hours propionate accumulation is observed in all organs. Experimental evidence is not sufficient yet to point out organs that produce more propionate than others.
• 4.4. Acetate is a minor end product.
• 5.5. Acetate and propionate are found in the hemolymph in amounts equal to those in the organs.
• 6.6. Animals incubated in oxygen-free seawater accumulate more end products than animals exposed to air, in the form of volatile fatty acids that are excreted into the incubation water.
• 7.7. Alanine and glutamine increase in the posterior adductor muscle. Aspartate decreases in the total animal, posterior adductor muscle and gills, while in the hemolymph decrease in alanine, asparagine, serine, threonine and proline are observed.

     

Effect of salinity on the osmotic,chloride, total protein and calcium concentrations in the hemolymph of the prawn Peneaus monodon (fabricius)

• 1.1. Osmolality and chloride concentrations in the hemolymph of Penaeus monodon became stable 1 day after molting in 32 ppt, while total protein and calcium concentrations remained stable throughout the molting cycle. When intermolt (≥ 36 hr postmolt) animals were transferred from control (32 ppt) to experimental (8–40 ppt) salinities, osmolality, chloride and total protein, but not calcium, concentrations in the hemolymph achieved steady state values 24–48 hr after transfer.
• 2.2. The hemolymph osmolality was a linear function (slope = 0.28) of medium osmolality at salinities between 8 and 40 ppt. It was isosmotic to seawater at 698 mOsm (10 g prawns) and 752 mOsm (30 g), and was hyperosmotic to the medium below isosmotic concentrations, and hypoosmotic to those above.
• 3.3. Hemolymph chloride concentration was isoionic to seawater at 334 mM, and was hyperregulated below isoionic concentrations, and hyporegulated to those above.
• 4.4. P. monodon maintained its hemolymph calcium concentration between 6.4 and 10 mM when medium salinities increased from 8 to 40 ppt.
• 5.5. Total protein concentration in the hemolymph was independent of medium salinity (8–40 ppt) and hemolymph osmolality (540–850 mOsm).

     

Determination of benzo(a)pyrene in isopods (Porcellio scaber Latr.) exposed to contaminated food

• 1.1. A method is presented for the determination of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) in the isopod Porcellio scaber, using reversed-phase HPLC with fluorescence detection.
• 2.2. This technique has a detection limit for BaP in P. scaber of approximately 3.2 ng g⁻¹ fresh weight.
• 3.3. BaP was assimilated from food by P. scaber.
• 4.4. After four weeks of ad libitum feeding on BaP-contaminated food, concentrations in the isopods were approximately 30–40 times lower than those in the food.
• 5.5. Male and female isopods did not differ in BaP concentration. Variation among males seemed to be much higher than among females.

     

Purification and characterization of vitellogenin from the American cockroach,Periplaneta americana

• 1.1. Vitellogenin (VG) was isolated and purified from the hemolymph of female American cockroaches.
• 2.2. The purification method used in this study comprises two steps: the first step is based on the method originally developed for purifying lipophorin from hemolymph, and the second step is the separation of VG from lipophorin by a KBr density gradient ultracentrifugation.
• 3.3. The purified VG was characterized according to molecular weight, substructure, shape and size, and lipid composition.
• 4.4. The VG molecule is almost globular in shape with the diameter of about 15.5 nm and is indistinguishable from lipophorin in shape and size.
• 5.5. The native molecular weight determined by light scattering method was 560 kDa.
• 6.6. The VG consists of four subunits with molecular weights of approximately 102, 81, 49 and 40 kDa, respectively.
• 7.7. VG is a lipoprotein and comprises 92% protein and 8% lipid.
• 8.8. Major lipid components were found to be diacylglycerol (25%) and phospholipids (71%).

     

Human GMP synthetase

• 1.1. The specific activity of GMP synthetase was measured in several human tissues and found to be highest in cultured skin fibroblasts, followed by bone marrow, leukocytes, erythrocytes. placenta, and liver.
• 2.2. The enzyme from fibroblasts was purified approximately 50-fold by ammonium sulfate fractionation and gel filtration.
• 3.3. The K_m values were determined to be 4.9μM for XMP, 270μM for ATP. and 340 μM for glutamine.
• 4.4. Ammonium sulfate could replace glutamine as the amino donor but was much less efficient.
• 5.5. The enzyme was specific for ATP as the energy source.
• 6.6. Unlike the calf thymus enzyme, the human enzyme has no requirement for a reduced sulfhydryl compound.
• 7.7. Human GMP synthetase is inhibited by ATP, dATP, azaserine, and hydroxylamine.

     

Haemoglobin metabolism in mice with a hereditary iron deficiency anaemia (sla/Y)

• 1.1. Haemoglobin was labelled in vivo in normal mice and in mice with iron deficiency anaemia due to the X-linked gene mutation, sla.
• 2.2. Two main red cell populations are found in normal mice, one subject to accelerated destruction and the second with a longer finite life span.
• 3.3. In iron deficient sla / Y mice, haem and globin labelling indicate random haemolysis and shortened red cell survival.
• 4.4. Specific activity curves of faecal urobilinogen show complex “early” labelling patterns. They confirm mean red cell survival in both normal and anaemic mice. and indicate increased ineffective erythropoiesis in the sla/Y animals with iron deficiency.

     

Water relations and thermal sensitivity of several cockroach species (Dictyoptera: Blattidae and blaberidae)

• 1.1. Per cent total body water content (%TBW), cuticular permeability (CP), rate of water loss, critical thermal maxima (CTMax), and upper lethal limits (ULL) were determined for Pacific beetle, Diploptera punctata (Eschscholtz), Surinam, Pycnoscelus surinamensis (L.), and Turkestan, Blaita lateralis (Walker), cockroaches.
• 2.2. Initial body mass ranged from 153.16 to 464.96 mg, for D. punctata and P. surinamensis cockroaches, respectively. Mean %TBW was 57.8 for P. surinamensis and 67.7 for B. lateralis.
• 3.3. Mean cuticular permeability was not related to initial mass and ranged from 20.9 to 38.7 μg/cm²/hr/mmHg for D. punctata and P. surinamensis, respectively.
• 4.4. Cumulative mass loss and %TBW lost increased linearly with desiccation time.
• 5.5. CTMax ranged from 43.2°C for D. punctata to 44.3°C for P. surinamensis. There were significant, but small differences in CTMax among the three species.
• 6.6. ULL were 2.2 to approximately 4°C greater than CTMax. The greatest ULL was 48.1°C for B. lateralis and the lowest ULL was 45.0°C for D. punctata.

     

Some properties of ATPase activity in the intact cells of yeast Saccharomycopsis fibuligera

• 1.1. The properties of ATPase activity were studied with the cells at the early stationary phase of Saccharomycopsis fibuligera.
• 2.2. Optimal pH for the activity was approximately 7.
• 3.3. The activity was stimulated by Mg²⁺.
• 4.4. The activity was inhibited by NaF, DCCD, oligomycin, NaN₃, NaVO₃, or PCMB but not inhibited by ouabain.

     

Characterization of the Melanoplus sanguinipes hemolymph after infection with Beauveria bassiana or wounding

• 1.1. The phenoloxidase activity, protein and carbohydrate levels were studied for 24 hr in the hemolymph of the migratory grasshopper, Melanoplus sanguinipes after artificial wounding of the insect cuticle or the injection of Beauveria bassiana conidia.
• 2.2. Injection or wounding induced a primary response and phenoloxidase activity was found to increase within 10–60 min. The values for phenoloxidase activity in viable B. bassiana-injected insects exhibited a secondary response, i.e., an increase 24 hr after injection.
• 3.3. In wounded insects and those injected with inactivated conidia, the phenoloxidase activity receded after the initial increase and remained at low levels.
• 4.4. Protein concentrations in the hemolymph increased immediately after infection and wounding and returned to basal levels during the course of the experiment.
• 5.5. Injection of viable B. bassiana resulted in a gradual increase in the protein concentrations between 12 and 24 hr.
• 6.6. There was no apparent change in the carbohydrate levels in either B. bassiana-infected or wounded insects.
• 7.7. These results are discussed in relation to their possible role(s) and interrelationships in the immune response to infection or wounding. Furthermore, we suggest that a “factor” is released after mechanical injury of the integument.

     

Lipids in the storage organs of three mermithid nematodes and in the hemolymph of their hosts

• 1.1. Trophosomes of the mosquito parasitic mermithid Romanomermis culicivorax and two strains of the blackfly parasitic mermithid Neomesomermis flumenalis contained in order of prevalence: triacylglycerols, phospholipids, sterols and sterol esters.
• 2.2. Triacylglycerols in the trophosomes comprised a wide array of fatty acids, sterol esters a smaller variety.
• 3.3. The degree of unsaturation of triacylglycerols and sterol esters was greater for N. flumenalis than R. culicivorax.
• 4.4. The hemolymph of the three host species (Aedes aegypti, Prosimulium mixtum/fuscum, Simlium venustum) contained an assortment of fatty acids, with a higher degree of unsaturation in the simuliids than in the culicid.
• 5.5. The overall lipid concentration of the blood of A. aegypti was unaltered by parasitism, but the mermithid caused an increase in the myristic acid:palmitic acid ratio in the free fatty acid fraction of the host's haemolymph.

     

Properties of hemocyanins isolated from Amazon river arthropods and molluscs

• 1. Hemocyanins from four organisms inhabiting the Amazon River were isolated and partially characterized.
• 2. Three arthropodan species (Dilocarcinus pagei cristatus, Silviocarcinus pardalinus andMacrobrachium amazonicum) possess hemocyanins whose subunit structure is remarkably simple. Regular and SDS polyacrylamide disc electrophoresis revealed predominantly single bands and no polymorphisms.
• 3. Oxygen-binding experiments showed that the three arthropodan hemocyanins possess large positive Bohr effects and pH dependence in the degree of subunit interaction.
• 4. The hemocyanin of one mollusc,Pila sp., was studied and its subunit size appears to be similar to that of other molluscan hemocyanins, i.e. a polypeptide of mol. wt 400,000. In the hemolymph,Pila hemocyanin probably exists as a mixture of 100 and 124S aggregates.
• 5. The oxygen binding properties of the large molecules ofPila hemocyanin are notable because of their low cooperativity and lack of a strong pH-dependence.

     

Subcellular distribution of metals within the kidney of the bivalve Mercenaria mercenaria (L.)

• 1.1. The subcellular distribution of nine transition metals (plus four additional elements) was measured in the kidney tissue of the quahog, Mercenaria mercenaria.
• 2.2. Elemental analyses of the subcellular fractions indicated three main patterns of metal distribution within kidney cells.
• 3.3. Barium, iron, manganese and lead were associated primarily with kidney granules.
• 4.4. Cadmium, copper, potassium and magnesium were found mainly in the cytosolic fraction.
• 5.5. Calcium, phosphorus and zinc were found in all isolated fractions, probably reflecting the important roles that these elements play in bivalve metabolism.
• 6.6. The organelle composition of the isolated subcellular fractions was determined using marker enzyme assays and microscopic techniques.

     

Characterization of diverse hemolymph lectins in the cotton caterpillar Spodoptera littoralis

• 1.1. Hemolymph lectins (agglutinins) of the cotton caterpillar Spodoptera littoralis were analyzed by agglutination, cross-absorption and carbohydrate-hemagglutination inhibition using several vertebrate erythrocytes.
• 2.2. Lectins were found to interact, with all tested erythrocytes, by binding to carbohydrate moieties but showing no definite specificity.
• 3.3. Disulphide bonds were probably absent as 2-ME treatment was ineffective.
• 4.4. By cross-absorption studies, we have proposed that the hemolymph contains multiple lectins.