Thermal acclimation induced compensation in biochemical constituents of the Indian freshwater leech,Poecilobdella viridis (Blanchard)

Poecilobdella viridis was used to study the variations in the biochemical parameters: body protein, glycogen and water, following warm (32.0° ± 0.5°C) and cold (10.0° ± 0.5°C) acclimation for 5, 10, 15 and 30 days. The percentage of glycogen decreased significantly (p < 0.05) during both warm and cold acclimation whereas the protein percentage increased significantly (p < 0.05). The percentage of water was significantly (p < 0.05). reduced during both acclimation processes. Ecophysiological significance of these alterations to leeches, in counteracting the ambient thermal fluxes, has been briefly discussed.