Oxygen consumption in the rectal gland of the dogfishScyliorhinus canicula and the effects of cyclic AMP

Oxygen consumption and Na+,K+-ATPase activity of rectal gland and gill tissue in the spiny dogfish,Squalus acanthias

Oxygen consumption was measured in rectal gland and gill tissue of the spiny dogfish (Squalus acanthias) to estimate the energy cost of salt (NaCl) transport in these osmoregulatory organs. Ouabain (0.5 mM) was used to specifically inhibit Na+,K+-ATPase activity and thus the portion of tissue respiration required by the Na+/K+pump. The total mass-specific oxygen consumption of rectal gland tissue (14.2 ± 1.2 μmol O2/(g wet mass∙h)) was significantly higher than measured for the gills (9.6 ± 1.4 μmol O2/(g wet mass∙h)), and ouabain significantly reduced oxygen consumption in both tissues. Ouabain-sensitive oxygen consumption of the rectal gland accounted for 55% of total mass-specific oxygen consumption, compared with 22% for the gill. The higher ion transport capacity of the rectal gland was also evident in Na+,K+-ATPase specific activity measurements of fresh tissue samples, which were sixfold higher in the rectal gland than in the gill. Ouabain-sensitive oxygen consumption was also calculated on the basis of total organ mass to determine the portion of whole-animal oxygen uptake related to organismal NaCl transport. The cost of NaCl secretion was estimated to be 0.5% of standard metabolic rate for the rectal gland compared with 0.14% for the gills, suggesting that this process constitutes a relatively small portion of the total energy budget in the spiny dogfish.

Purification and characterisation of VIP from two species of dogfish

Acid extracts of intestine from the dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula and Squalus acanthius were purified by gel filtration, ion exchange chromatography, and reversed-phase HPLC. In radioimmunoassays, VIP-like material from both species of dogfish cross reacted with N-terminal, but not C-terminal antisera. Like porcine VIP, both Scyliorhinus and Squalus VIP were stimulants of exocrine pancreatic secretion in the turkey. The time course of the responses to dogfish VIP were, however, different from that seen with porcine VIP. The present study has developed methods for the isolation of VIP-like peptides from elasmobranchs and has demonstrated that elasmobranch VIP differs from Porcine VIP in the C-terminal region, and that these differences may affect biological activity.

Biochemical and physiological studies on peptides from the elasmobranch gut

A peptide fraction has been purified from intestinal extracts of the dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula which is a powerful stimulant of rectal gland secretory activity. This peptide is distinct from elasmobranch vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP). The elasmobranch VIP fraction is not active in the rectal gland assay and mammalian VIP is only an effective agonist in Squalus and not in Scyliorhinus or Raja. Preliminary characterisation of the elasmobranch VIP indicate that it has strong N-terminal similarities with mammalian VIP but has limited C-terminal comparability. It is suggested that the rectal gland stimulating peptide, rectin, rather than VIP is responsible for the control of fluid and electrolyte secretion of elasmobranchs.

Inositol lipid turnover and adenosine 3,5 cyclic monophosphate in the salt-secreting rectal gland of the dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula)

The rectal gland of the dogfish is rich in inositol lipids. Total phospholipids from the gland contained 9.1 mol% of phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns), 1.0 mol% of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PtdIns4P) and 0.9 mol% of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-biphosphate (PtdIns4,5P2). [32P]Orthophosphate was readily incorporated into PtdIns, phosphatidic acid (PtdA) and especially into PtdIns4P and PtdIns4,5P2 in salt gland slices incubated in elasmobranch Ringer with glucose and no other additions over a 2 hr period. The calcium ionophore A23187 stimulated incorporation into PtdIns and PtdA, but not into PtdIns4P or PtdIns4,5P2. Oxygen uptake by rectal gland slices was maximally stimulated by 0.08mM forskolin, 2.5mM 8-chlorophenylthio cyclic AMP, 2.0mM dibutyryl cyclic AMP and 0.25mM theophylline. Stimulated oxygen uptake was inhibited by 0.1mM ouabain in all cases. Incorporation of [32P]orthophosphate into PtdIns, PtdA, PtdIns4P and PtdIns4,5P2 was inhibited by 0.08mM forskolin and 2.0mM dibutyryl cyclic AMP over a 2 hr period. The results are discussed in relation to the control of salt secretion by the rectal gland.

An endogenous peptide stimulates secretory activity in the elasmobranch rectal gland

Extraction and partial purification of peptide material from the intestine of the elasmobranch Scyliorhinus canicula yielded a fraction that shows potent stimulatory activity in the rectal gland. The extracted material appears to contain an endogenous peptide (or peptides) that represents the natural hormone responsible for the control of rectal gland secretion in vivo.

Amphotericin B and the elasmobranch rectal gland: implications for the relationship between oxygen consumption and ion transport

In slices of the dogfish rectal gland, amphotericin B produced increases in oxygen consumption and ouabain binding similar to those produced by cyclic AMP, except that the increases induced by the latter were inhibited by furosemide whereas those resulting from the addition of amphotericin B were unaffected by the diuretic. Unlike cyclic AMP, however, amphotericin B failed to stimulate secretion by the isolated perfused gland. These results support the suggestion that the increases in ouabain binding and oxygen consumption produced by cyclic AMP result simply from an increased sodium entry into the cells, and as such can be mimicked by amphotericin B, whereas secretion rate itself depends on some additional, cyclic AMP-induced process. The implications of this for determinations of the relationship between rates of oxygen consumption and ion transport are discussed.