Fertilization acid of sea urchin eggs: Evidence that it is H+, not CO2 |
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Authors: | Linda Z. Holland Meredith Gould-Somero |
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Affiliation: | Department of Biology, B-022, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093 USA |
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Abstract: | The report of R. J. Gillies, M. P. Rosenberg, and D. W. Deamer (1981, J. Cell. Phys., 108, 115–122) that sea urchin fertilization acid is anaerobically produced CO2, was reinvestigated by inseminating Strongylocentrotus purpuratus eggs in HCO?3-free seawater, then bubbling the seawater with N2 to remove volatile acid. Fertilization acid production occurred in HCO?3-free seawater and with N2-bubbling, the pH rose 0.28 ± 0.08 unit, significantly less than the rise of 0.63 ± 0.14 unit during N2-bubbling of HCO?3-free seawater that had been acidified with CO2 and similar to the rise of 0.18 ± 0.07 unit when acidification was with HCl. We conclude that most, if not all, of the sea urchin fertilization acid is nonvolatile and thus is not CO2; since it is not a weak acid, it must be H+. |
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