Rapid Increase in the Partial Pressure of Nh3 on the Cutaneous Surface of Air-exposed Mangrove Killifish, Rivulus Marmoratus.
From: Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada.
The Journal of experimental biology
- Publish Date: May 2006
- ISSN: 0022-0949
- Volume: 209
- Issue: Pt 9
- Pages: 1737-45
- Medium: Print
- Language: English
- Citation (JAMA): Litwiller S L, O'Donnell M J, Wright P A, et al. Rapid Increase in the Partial Pressure of Nh3 on the Cutaneous Surface of Air-exposed Mangrove Killifish, Rivulus Marmoratus.. J. Exp. Biol. May 2006;209:1737-45
Abstract
Mangrove killifish, Rivulus marmoratus, are tolerant of prolonged periods of air exposure (>30 days). Air-exposed R. marmoratus eliminate more than 40% of their total ammonia through NH(3) volatilization; however, the sites and mechanisms are unclear. We hypothesized that the cutaneous surface is an important site of NH(3) volatilization in air-exposed R. marmoratus. Ion-selective microelectrodes were used to measure the NH(4)(+) concentration and pH in the boundary layer on the cutaneous surface of fish in water or air (acute: 1 h, chronic: 11 days). Following acute and chronic air exposure, there was a approximately 18-fold increase in the NH(4)(+) concentration and a 0.3-0.6 pH unit increase on the cutaneous surface of R. marmoratus. In air-exposed fish, the calculated cutaneous partial pressure (P(NH(3))) was 608-1,251 microTorr, representing a 33- to 75-fold increase over control (immersed) fish. The P(NH(3)) on the cutaneous surface water film was more than sufficient to account for the rate of NH(3) volatilization under terrestrial conditions. Together, these data indicate that during air exposure, R. marmoratus utilize the cutaneous surface as a key site of NH(3) volatilization.
Mesh Headings (Keywords): Adaptation, Physiological, Air, Ammonia, Animals, Hydrogen-Ion Concentration, Killifishes, Skin, Water
Check for Full Text / PubMed Unique Identifier (PMID): 16621954
This abstract is part of PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. PubMed includes more than 17 million citations from MEDLINE and other life science journals for biomedical articles. See Copyright and Disclaimers.
Linked medical terms appearing on this page are added by Healia to help readers find more information and are not part of the original PubMed document.
The data herein was last updated on July 8th, 2008 and may not reflect the most current and accurate data available from NLM.