scholarly journals The Physiology of Contractile Vacuoles

1934 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 364-381
Author(s):  
J. A. KITCHING
Keyword(s):  
Fresh Water ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Tap Water ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
The Body ◽  
Contractile Vacuole ◽  
Body Volume ◽  
Water Value ◽  
Contractile Vacuoles ◽  
Sustained Increase

1. The rate of output of fluid from the contractile vacuole of a fresh-water Peritrich Ciliate was decreased to a new steady value immediately the organism was placed in a mixture of tap water and sea water. The rate of output returned to its original value immediately the organism was replaced in tap water. The contractile vacuole was stopped when the organism was treated with a mixture containing more than 12 per cent, of sea water. 2. Transference of various species of marine Peritricha from 100 per cent, sea water to mixtures of sea water and tap water led to an immediate increase of the body volume to a new and generally steady value. Return of the organism to 100 per cent, sea water led to an immediate decrease of the body volume to its original value or less. 3. Marine Peritricha showed little change in rate of output when treated with concentrations of sea water between 100 and 75 per cent. In more dilute mixtures the rate of output was immediately increased, and then generally fell off slightly to a new steady value which was still considerably above the original (100 per cent. sea water) value. The maximum sustained increase was approximately x 80. Return of the organism to 100 per cent, sea water led to an immediate return of the rate of output to approximately its original value. 4. When individuals of some marine species were placed in very dilute concentrations of sea water, the pellicle was frequently raised up in blisters by the formation of drops of fluid underneath it, and the contractile vacuole stopped. 5. Evidence is brought forward to suggest that in the lower concentrations of sea water marine forms lost salts. 6. The contractile vacuole probably acts as an osmotic controller in fresh-water Protozoa. Its function in those marine Protozoa in which it occurs remains obscure.

The Physiology of Contractile Vacuoles

1948 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 421-436
Author(s):  
J. A. KITCHING
Keyword(s):  
Osmotic Pressure ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
External Medium ◽  
External Solution ◽  
Pond Water ◽  
The Body ◽  
Contractile Vacuole ◽  
Effect Of Temperature ◽  
Body Volume ◽  
Sucrose Solutions

1. On transfer from sea water to dilute sea water, the marine peritrich ciliate Vorticella marina swells more rapidly at higher temperatures. 2. It is concluded that the permeability of the surface of V. marina to water is influenced by temperature, with a Q10 of very roughly 2·5-3·2. 3. The body volume of the fresh-water peritrich ciliate Carchesium aselli is maintained approximately constant when the organism is transferred to solutions of sucrose of concentrations up to about 0·04 M; in higher concentrations the organism shrinks. 4. The rate of output of the contractile vacuole of C. aselli decreases with increasing concentrations of sucrose in the external medium; the rate of output is very low in 0·05 M-sucrose. 5. From a consideration of the effects of sucrose solutions on the body volume and on the rate of vacuolar output it is concluded that the initial osmotic pressure of C. aselli normally exceeds that of the external pond water by about 0·04-0·05 M non-electrolyte. 6. The internal osmotic pressure of C. aselli is not materially increased by increase of temperature. 7. It is concluded that the increase in rate of vacuolar output, which accompanies increase of temperature, counterbalances an increased rate of osmotic uptake of water from the external medium, and that this increased rate of uptake is due to an effect of temperature on the permeability of the surface through which the water enters. 8. The rate of vacuolar output is temporarily much increased when C. aselli, which has been equilibrated in solutions of ethylene glycol, is returned to pond water. 9. It is suggested that the temperature and the osmotic pressure of the external solution largely determine the osmotic stress which is imposed on the organism, and that they thus influence the state of hydration of the protoplasm; in turn this may be supposed to determine the activity of the contractile vacuole.

Studies on the Permeability To Water Of Selected Marine, Freshwater And Euryhaline Teleosts

1969 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 689-703 ◽  
Author(s):  
DAVID H. EVANS
Keyword(s):  
Fresh Water ◽  
Brown Trout ◽  
Water Permeability ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Tritiated Water ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
The Body ◽  
Freshwater Species ◽  
Silver Eel ◽  
As Species

Measurements were made of the flux of tritiated water across various marine, freshwater and euryhaline teleosts. The effects of temperature, body size, species differences, salinity, stress and anaesthetization were studied. 2. The Q10 of the flux of water across teleosts is approximately 1·90 and the flux is related to the 0·88 power of the body weight. 3. All of the freshwater species studied were more permeable to water than the marine species. Euryhaline teleosts appear to have about the same permeability as species to which they are most closely related. 4. While the flounder and the yellow eel are more permeable to water in fresh water than in sea water, the silver eel and the brown trout do not change their permeability and the 3-spined stickleback is less permeable to water in fresh water than in sea water. 5. While stress markedly increases the permeability to water of large brown trout, it has no effect on small brown trout and seems to decrease the water permeability of the plaice. 6. Anaesthetization has no effect on the water permeability of the goldfish but markedly increases the permeability to water of the silver eel. 7. The relationship between the flux of water and either the drinking rate in sea water or the urine flow in fresh water is discussed.

The Physiology of Contractile Vacuoles

1948 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 406-420
Author(s):  
J. A. KITCHING
Keyword(s):  
Fresh Water ◽  
High Temperatures ◽  
Normal Level ◽  
Contractile Vacuole ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Body Volume ◽  
Slow Decline ◽  
Food Vacuoles ◽  
Contractile Vacuoles

1. The rate of output of the contractile vacuole in a fresh-water peritrich ciliate (Carchesium aselli) varies with temperature with a Q10 of about 2·5-3·2, or a µ of about 17,000, over the range 0-30° C. 2. There is a slow decline in output during exposure for several hours to high temperatures (25-30° C.). At still higher temperatures (34° C.) a high rate of output is maintained for a few minutes, but swelling and death rapidly ensue. 3. The frequency of uptake of food vacuoles also varies with temperature, increasing from 0 to about 24° C., but decreasing at higher temperatures. At about 0° C. and at temperatures above about 30° C. no food vacuoles are taken up and the adoral cilia remain extended and motionless. 4. No change in body volume could be detected during exposure to high temperatures (25-30° C.) for two or more hours, even though the rate of vacuolar output was increased to three or four times its normal level at 15° C. It is concluded that the rate of uptake of water from the outside medium must have been increased correspondingly. 5. It is suggested that temperature affects the permeability of the organism to water, and that the rate of vacuolar output is adjusted accordingly, although on the evidence so far presented other explanations are possible.

The Physiology of Contractile Vacuoles

1951 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-214
Author(s):  
J. A. KITCHING
Keyword(s):  
Ethylene Glycol ◽  
Osmotic Pressure ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Tap Water ◽  
Good Evidence ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Volume ◽  
Dilute Solution ◽  
High Level ◽  
Osmoregulatory Mechanism

1. Evidence from osmotic experiments indicates that the amount of osmotically inactive material in the suctorian Podophrya is small, and that the internal osmotic pressure of the cytoplasm is approximately that of a 0-04 M solution of non-electrolyte. 2. When the internal osmotic pressure of Podophrya is raised to an abnormally high level by equilibration with a solution of ethylene glycol or with dilute sea water, and the organism is then transferred to tap water, the rate of vacuolar output is temporarily raised far above its normal value. The body swells only slightly. This is taken as good evidence for osmoregulation. 3. When Podophrya is placed in a dilute solution of sucrose the rate of vacuolar output (relative to the original rate in tap water) decreases rectilinearly with the concentration of sucrose used, reaching zero at about 0.04M. This is as would be required for good osmoregulation. 4. There is a slight lag in the response of the contractile vacuole to a change of medium. It is suggested that this delay in adjustment of the osmoregulatory mechanism must result in a slight change of body volume, which could be the basis for the control of vacuolar output.

scholarly journals The Physiology Of Contractile Vacuoles

1936 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-27
Author(s):  
J. A. KITCHING
Keyword(s):  
Cell Membrane ◽  
Body Surface ◽  
Salt Concentration ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Cane Sugar ◽  
The Body ◽  
Contractile Vacuole ◽  
Body Volume ◽  
Oxidative Process ◽  
Low Concentrations

1. There was no change in the body volume of marine Peritricha subjected to reductions in the salt concentration of the medium, so long as the osmotic pressure of the medium was kept constant by the addition of urea, glycerol, or cane-sugar. In mixtures of isotonic non-electrolytes with sea water the rate of vacuolar output was decreased--more so in the case of urea than of glycerol. It is concluded that the cell membrane is relatively impermeable to urea, glycerol, and cane-sugar, and also to neutral salts. 2. Excretory substances could not be produced in sufficient quantity to attract water into the contractile vacuole by osmosis at the rate observed. The process of diastole therefore involves "secretion" of water by the vacuolar walls. 3. Cyanide and sulphide in very low concentrations rapidly caused a great reduction in the rate of output of the contractile vacuole of marine Peritricha. In the case of cyanide this effect was rapidly reversible. Alcohols and urethane only decreased the rate of vacuolar output when present in much higher concentrations. It is suggested that possibly vacuolar activity depends directly on an oxidative process. 4. When marine Peritricha were transferred from dilute sea water to dilute sea water of the same concentration+cyanide M/200 or M/500 (the pH being carefully controlled), the contractile vacuole was completely or almost completely stopped, and the body increased in volume. When the organism was transferred back to dilute sea water of the same concentration without cyanide, the contractile vacuole became active again and the body decreased in volume until a new steady value was attained which was rather below the value in dilute sea water before cyanide treatment. 5. The increase in body volume consequent on treatment with cyanide was greater the more dilute was the sea water. For sea water of concentrations of 100-75 per cent, no swelling was detectable when the organism was treated with cyanide. 6. The rate of output of the contractile vacuole is sufficiently great to account for the decrease in body volume during recovery from cyanide. 7. The permeability of the body surface to water is estimated as 0.05-0.10 cubic micra per square micron per atmosphere per minute.

The Physiology of Contractile Vacuoles

1954 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-75
Author(s):  
J. A. KITCHING
Keyword(s):  
The Body ◽  
Contractile Vacuole ◽  
Body Volume ◽  
Sudden Increase ◽  
Small Decrease ◽  
Partial Restoration ◽  
Contractile Vacuoles

1. A study has been made of the effects of sudden changes of temperature on the contractile vacuole of the suctorian Discophrya piriformis Guilcher. 2. A sudden increase of temperature from below 15° C. by 5° or more causes a temporary fall in the rate of output, followed by a rise to a new level higher than the original. During the depression in activity the body swells slightly. 3. The vacuolar frequency increases immediately but briefly when the temperature is raised, falls steeply when the depression sets in, and when secretion is re-established rises again to a level above the original. 4. A sudden fall in temperature causes an immediate decrease in vacuolar frequency, followed by a partial restoration. The rate of output falls rather more slowly and remains low. In several cases a small decrease in body volume was observed. 5. It is suggested that the contractile vacuole is really contractile. 6. The observations on vacuolar frequency described in this paper are interpreted in terms of an inherent vacuolar rhythm which is modified by temperature and which is partially linked with rate of secretion.

Sodium Regulation and Adaptation to Fresh Water in Gammarid Crustaceans

1968 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 359-380
Author(s):  
D. W. SUTCLIFFE
Keyword(s):  
Body Weight ◽  
Fresh Water ◽  
Body Surface ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Sodium Concentration ◽  
The Body ◽  
Outward Diffusion ◽  
Gammarus Zaddachi ◽  
Freshwater Habitats ◽  
Sodium Regulation

1. Sodium uptake and loss rates are given for three gammarids acclimatized to media ranging from fresh water to undiluted sea water. 2. In Gammarus zaddachi and G. tigrinus the sodium transporting system at the body surface is half-saturated at an external concentration of about 1 mM/l. and fully saturated at about 10 mM/l. sodium. In Marinogammarus finmarchicus the respective concentrations are six to ten times higher. 3. M. finmarchicus is more permeable to water and salts than G. zaddachi and G. tigrinus. Estimated urine flow rates were equivalent to 6.5% body weight/hr./ osmole gradient at 10°C. in M. finmarchicus and 2.8% body weight/hr./osmole gradient in G. zaddachi. The permeability of the body surface to outward diffusion of sodium was four times higher in M. finmarchicus, but sodium losses across the body surface represent at least 50% of the total losses in both M. finmarchicus and G. zaddachi. 4. Calculations suggest that G. zaddachi produces urine slightly hypotonic to the blood when acclimatized to the range 20% down to 2% sea water. In fresh water the urine sodium concentration is reduced to a very low level. 5. The process of adaptation to fresh water in gammarid crustaceans is illustrated with reference to a series of species from marine, brackish and freshwater habitats.

The Physiology of Contractile Vacuoles

1960 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-82
Author(s):  
J. A. KITCHING ◽  
J. E. PADFIELD ◽  
M. H. ROGERS
Keyword(s):  
Body Surface ◽  
Normal Activity ◽  
The Body ◽  
Contractile Vacuole ◽  
Diffusion Constants ◽  
Contractile Vacuoles

1. The suctorian Discophrya collini (Root) has been subjected to D2O-H2O mixtures containing up to 99.7% D2O. 2. In 25% D2O or over there is a rapid but temporary shrinkage of the body. This shrinkage is difficult to estimate owing to the wrinkling of the body surface, but amounts to at least 10% in the undiluted (99.7%)D2O. 3. During the period of temporary shrinkage the contractile vacuole ceases activity. Normal activity is resumed when the normal volume is regained. In concentrations of D2O too low to cause shrinkage there is a temporary fall in the rate of vacuolar output. 4. Return to H2O leads to a brief but often very considerable rise in vacuolar output. 5. It is concluded that D2O penetrates less rapidly than H2O. A difference of at least 10% in the diffusion constants in the membrane would be required to explain our results. We cannot exclude this as unreasonable from our data, although an explanation based on differences in the equilibrium properties of D2O and H2O might also be invoked.

DROWNING AND THE TREATMENT OF NON-FATAL SUBMERSION

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1966 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 684-698
Author(s):  
Jerome Imburg ◽  
Thomas C. Hartney
Keyword(s):  
Ventricular Fibrillation ◽  
Pulmonary Function ◽  
Fresh Water ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
The Body ◽  
Positive Pressure ◽  
Cardiac Massage ◽  
Central Nervous System Damage ◽  
Intermittent Positive Pressure Breathing

Animal studies have shown that fluid enters the body via the lungs in sea-water and fresh-water drowning. In fresh-water drowning in dogs, there is marked and rapid hemodilution with death due to ventricular fibrillation in about 4 minutes. In sea-water drowning in dogs, there is hemoconcentration; the blood water is lost into the sea water in the lungs with bradycardia and death due to asystole in 6 to 8 minutes. Studies of human drowning victims show similar, but less striking, changes in hemodynamics. In human non-fatal submersion the problems are usually those produced by impaired pulmonary function and central nervous system damage due to hypoxia. Hemodilution and ventricular fibrillation have not been documented in human nonfatal submersion. Therapeutic measures may be divided into those of an immediate urgent nature to be employed at the accident scene: expired air resuscitation, which should be started on reaching the unconscious victim in the water, and external cardiac massage, when indicated. Later measures to be instituted in the hospital include: cardiac resuscitation, intermittent positive-pressure breathing, hypothermia, tracheostomy and tracheal tiolet, oxygen therapy, antibiotics, steroids, and intravenous fluids to correct defects in blood elements (hemoglobin, electrolytes, pH). Later, pulmonary function should be studied for impairment due to alveolar damage and fibrosis. Permanent neurologic sequellae may develop.

Hibernation and Osmoregulation in the Diamondback Terrapin Malaclemys Centrata Centrata (Latreille)

1973 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-51
Author(s):  
M. GILLES-BAILLIEN
Keyword(s):  
Osmotic Stress ◽  
Blood Plasma ◽  
Osmotic Pressure ◽  
Fresh Water ◽  
Seasonal Variations ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Tap Water ◽  
The Other ◽  
Diamondback Terrapin ◽  
Diamondback Terrapins

1. Two batches of diamondback terrapins have been kept for a whole year, one in sea water the other in tap water, and seasonal variations have been recorded in the composition and osmotic pressure of the blood plasma. 2. All year round the sea-water animals have a higher osmotic pressure and higher concentrations of Na, K, Cl and urea than fresh-water animals. It is in July, however, that these differences are the least marked. 3. The seasonal variations recorded are linked in particular to the conditions of osmotic stress imposed by the environment. 4. The results are discussed within the framework of hibernation and of the evolution among chelonians from fresh water to sea water.

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