Uptake of radioactive sulfate as a function of time by mast cells in Triturus cristatus carnifex (Laur.)

Summary Thirty two Triturus cristatus carnifex (Laur.) male individuals were injected intraperitoneally with a single dose of 150 c of carrier-free S³⁵ labelled sodium sulfate. The tissues were removed at different time intervals within a period of 3 hours and 30 days after the injection. Autoradiographs were prepared from mesentery whole mounts and histologie sections of the pelvic region. In mesentery whole mounts entire spider-shaped mast cells were studied. The earliest activity was always seen to arise in the perikaryon at 3 hours, where it persisted throughout the experiment while moving along the cellular processes progressively with time. The specific activity was assayed in the pelvic glands (bilateral organs of the reproductive system in males) and plotted against time. Since in these glands S³⁵O₄^––uptake in shown exclusively by mast cells the turnover time of 10–11 days therein recorded was taken to indicate the total metabolism of the sulfated compound stored in the mast cells. No direct evidence is as yet available to indicate that the metachromatic sulfated compound stored in Triturus mast cells is heparin.The present study was supported by a grant from the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche-Impresa di Endocrinologia — Gruppo di Endocrinologia Comparata.