scholarly journals Microdissection Experiments on Sea-Urchin Eggs at Cleavage

1953 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 515-524
Author(s):  
J. M. MITCHISON
Keyword(s):  
Internal Pressure ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Sea Urchins ◽  
The Other ◽  
Membrane Tension ◽  
Membrane Theory ◽  
Sea Urchin Egg ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Irreparable Damage

1. Chambers (1938) described an experiment in which he cut open one blasto-mere of a cleaving sea-urchin egg at the dumb-bell stage in isotonic KCl. The other blastomere contracted like a ‘deflating balloon’, and this has been taken by other workers as evidence of a positive membrane tension in the cleaving egg. This experiment has been repeated with other sea urchins in various media. It is concluded that this effect only takes place in one species of sea urchin, in an abnormal medium, and after it has suffered irreparable damage. It is not, therefore, legitimate to suppose that there is normally a positive membrane tension in a cleaving egg. It is found that eggs will continue to cleave with one blastomere in an irregular shape which indicates that, on the contrary, there is no membrane tension and no internal pressure. These are the conditions demanded by the ‘expanding membrane’ theory of cleavage. 2. It is found that the furrow of a cleaving egg will pass through a needle placed in its path. This result argues against a simple contracting ring in the furrow region being responsible for cleavage. 3. Chambers (1938) found that an egg will continue to cleave when its asters have been destroyed by stirring. This result has been confirmed by a similar experiment on a different species of sea urchin. This is crucial evidence against an astral mechanism of cleavage. 4. The effects of compressing cleaving eggs have been studied. It is found that compressed eggs continue to cleave unless the degree of flattening is considerable; that cleavage is delayed before it is finally stopped; and that eggs in Ca-free sea water are more susceptible to compression than eggs in ordinary sea water. These results are consistent with the ‘expanding membrane’ theory.

Further studies of the effects of deprivation of sulfate on the early development of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus

Development ◽  
1965 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-305
Author(s):  
J. Immers ◽  
J. Runnström
Keyword(s):  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Paracentrotus Lividus ◽  
The Other ◽  
Free Medium ◽  
Dominant Group ◽  
And Function ◽  
Early Developmental

The morphological effects of sulfate-free medium on sea urchin embryos were described in detail by Herbst (1904). Further studies were carried out by Lindahl (1936, 1942). He was the first to consider metabolic aspects of the rôle of sulfate in the development of the sea urchin. Immers (1956, 1959, 1961a and b, 1962) studied the distribution and function of acid mucopolysaccharides in early developmental stages of sea urchins, mainly Paracentrotus lividus. A dominant group of these acid polysaccharides are sulfated. Their location in the blastocoel, in the hyaline layer and in the lumen of the intestine could be demonstrated by staining of sectioned specimens with the ferri-acetic reagent of Hale (1946). In blastulae or gastrulae raised in sulfate-free sea water these regions are negative with respect to Hale staining (Immers, 1961b). On the other hand, the ectodermal nuclei of the animal region of the embryos are stained with the Hale reagent although the nuclei of the vegetal region remained unstained (1.c.).

The Mechanical Properties of the cell Surface

1954 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 461-472
Author(s):  
J. M. MITCHISON ◽  
M. M. SWANN
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Properties ◽  
Elastic Modulus ◽  
Internal Pressure ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Tennis Ball ◽  
Pressure Measurements ◽  
Membrane Tension ◽  
Inflated Balloon ◽  
Sea Urchin Egg ◽  
Elastic Wall

1. Measurements were made with the cell elastimeter on the stiffness of the cell membrane in the unfertilized eggs of five species of sea urchin. Young's modulus varies in the different species between the values of 0.91 x 104 and 2.08 x 104 dynes/cm2. 2. Experiments on the change of stiffness in hypo- and hypertonic media indicated that there is probably no internal pressure and no membrane tension in the normal egg. If, however, there is an internal pressure, measurements of the minimum shrinkage of the membrane necessary to produce wrinkling showed that this pressure cannot exceed 95 dynes/cm2. 3. A drop in temperature of 18.5° C. produced an increase of stiffness by a factor of 2.1. 4. These experiments, together with other evidence, suggest that for mechanical purposes the unfertilized sea-urchin egg can be compared to a hollow sphere filled with fluid and surrounded by a solid elastic wall (the membrane or cortex) about 1.5 µ thick and with an elastic modulus about 1-2 x 104 dynes/cm2. This degree of rigidity is sufficient to ensure the maintenance of shape of the egg without the presence of an internal pressure or a tension in the membrane. In everyday terms, the egg therefore resembles a tennis ball or a child's rubber ball, rather than an inflated balloon or an oil drop in water.

Some Experiments on Sea-urchin Eggs with Desoxynucleic Acids from Sea-urchin Sperms

Development ◽  
1953 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 261-262
Author(s):  
Sven Hörstadius
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Water Injection ◽  
Dark Field ◽  
The Other ◽  
Columbia University ◽  
Sea Urchin Eggs ◽  
King's College ◽  
Fertilization Membrane

Dr. I. Joan Lorch, of King's College, London, and I have made some experiments on sea-urchin eggs with desoxynucleic acids (DNA) prepared from sperms of several sea-urchin species by Professor Erwin Chargaff, of Columbia University, New York. Unfertilized eggs did not react when put into a solution of DNA in sea-water. Injection of a small amount of DNA dissolved in Callan's solution had the following consequences. If the DNA did not mix with the cytoplasm but remained as a distinct droplet, the egg could be fertilized. The droplet moved slowly towards the surface and ran out of the egg. This sometimes only occurred after several cleavages. Such eggs developed normally. If, on the other hand, the DNA mixed with the cytoplasm the egg became activated. A fertilization membrane was raised. The surface layer in dark field changed in colour from yellow to white as is the case upon fertilization.

Displacement of Valine From Intact Sea-Urchin Eggs by Exogenous Amino Acids

1968 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 515-527
Author(s):  
J. PIATIGORSKY ◽  
A. TYLER
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Glutamic Acid ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
The Other ◽  
Metabolic Product ◽  
Primary Factor ◽  
Lytechinus Pictus ◽  
Sea Urchin Eggs ◽  
Neutral Amino Acids

Unfertilized and fertilized eggs of the sea urchin Lytechinus pictus were preloaded with [14C]valine and exposed to individual solutions of each of the twenty ‘coded’ [12C]amino acids in artificial sea water. After 1 h incubation the amount of radioactivity in the medium was determined. The radioactivity was effectively displaced by most of the other neutral [12C]amino acids that are known to compete with valine for uptake. A chromatographic test with fertilized eggs showed the displaced radioactivity to be [14C]valine and not some metabolic product. Addition of acidic, basic or some neutral amino acids that are known to be poor inhibitors of valine uptake did not cause significant quantities of label to appear in the medium. For the unfertilized eggs, the concentration of acid-soluble label remained many hundreds of times greater in the egg fluid than in the sea water. Tests indicated that efflux of [14C]valine and subsequent competition for re-entry is a primary factor responsible for the displacement phenomenon. That this may not be the sole factor is suggested by the fact that some amino acids that are known to be powerful inhibitors of valine uptake were found to be only weak displacers of [14C]valine. Neither [14C]arginine nor [14C]glutamic acid were displaced in significant amounts from preloaded unfertilized or fertilized eggs by any of the tested [12C]amino acids. Attempts were made to utilize the displacement of [12C]valine to elevate the incorporation of [14C]valine and of other labelled amino acids into protein by intact eggs. Unfertilized and fertilized eggs were pretreated with related [12C]amino acids and then exposed to [14C]valine or a mixture of [14C]amino acids. The results varied in the different tests, ranging from no significant increase to 2-fold.

Kinetics of Fertilization in the Sea Urchin: A Comparison of Methods

1970 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 455-468
Author(s):  
R. PRESLEY ◽  
P. F. BAKER
Keyword(s):  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Uranyl Nitrate ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Fertilization Rate ◽  
The Other ◽  
Jelly Coat ◽  
Cortical Responses ◽  
Direct Counting ◽  
Further Development ◽  
Kinetics Of

1. A method is described for the direct counting of male pronuclei in recently fertilized sea-urchin eggs. 2. Using this method, fertilization rate determinations were made to compare 30% artificial sea water (A.S.W.), isotonic KCl, sea water containing lauryl sulphate, calcium-free and magnesium-free A.S.W. containing EDTA, and sea water containing uranyl nitrate, as agents blocking fertilization but permitting further development of previously fertilized eggs. 3. 30% A.S.W. was found to be less satisfactory than the other agents, lacking instant effect, and tending to promote polyspermy. The other agents all gave sigmoid rate curves, that of uranyl nitrate lagging 15-25 sec. behind the others. 4. Evidence was found that uranyl nitrate acts at a later stage in fertilization than the other agents. 5. Sigmoid rate curves were found, except with 30% A.S.W., when eggs with the bulk of the jelly coat removed, and nicotine-treated eggs, were fertilized. 6. Analysis of sperm distribution among eggs from samples fertilized for more than 40 sec. confirmed that re-fertilization takes place at a lower rate than primary fertilization. 7. The processes blocked by KCl and uranyl nitrate were found to precede the cortical responses to fertilization, and the termination of nicotine sensitivity.

scholarly journals THE MEMBRANE CAPACITANCE OF THE SEA URCHIN EGG

1957 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lord Rothschild
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Unit Area ◽  
Membrane Capacitance ◽  
Percentage Reduction ◽  
Cortical Granules ◽  
Sea Urchin Egg

1. The surface of the unfertilized sea urchin egg is folded and the folds are reversibly eliminated by exposing the egg to hypotonic sea water. If the plasma membrane is outside the layer of cortical granules, unfolding may explain why the membrane capacitance per unit area decreases (and does not increase) when a sea urchin egg is put into hypotonic sea water. 2. The degree of surface folding markedly increases after fertilization, which provides an explanation for the increase in membrane capacitance per unit area observed after fertilization. 3. The percentage reduction in membrane folding in fertilized eggs after immersion in hypotonic sea water is probably sufficient to explain the decrease in membrane capacitance per unit area observed in these conditions.

Functional visualization of the separate but interacting calcium stores sensitive to NAADP and cyclic ADP-ribose

2000 ◽  
Vol 113 (24) ◽  
pp. 4413-4420 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.C. Lee ◽  
R. Aarhus
Keyword(s):  
Endoplasmic Reticulum ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
The Other ◽  
Calcium Stores ◽  
Cellular Functions ◽  
Large Size ◽  
Opposite Pole ◽  
Visual Evidence ◽  
Sea Urchin Egg ◽  
Cyclic Adp Ribose

Cells possess multiple Ca(2+) stores and their selective mobilization provides the spatial-temporal Ca(2+) signals crucial in regulating diverse cellular functions. Except for the inositol trisphosphate (IP(3))-sensitive Ca(2+) stores, the identities and the mechanisms of how these internal stores are mobilized are largely unknown. In this study, we describe two Ca(2+) stores, one of which is regulated by cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR) and the other by nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAADP). We took advantage of the large size of the sea urchin egg and stratified its organelles by centrifugation. Using photolysis to produce either uniform or localized increases of cADPR and NAADP from their respective caged analogs, the two separate stores could be visually identified by Ca(2+) imaging and shown to be segregated to the opposite poles of the eggs. The cADPR-pole also contained the IP(3)-sensitive Ca(2+) stores, the egg nucleus and the endoplasmic reticulum (ER); the latter was visualized using Bodipy-thapsigargin. On the other hand, the mitochondria, as visualized by rhodamine 123, were segregated to the opposite pole together with the NAADP-sensitive calcium stores. Fertilization of the stratified eggs elicited a Ca(2+) wave starting at the cADPR-pole and propagating toward the NAADP-pole. These results provide the first direct and visual evidence that the NAADP-sensitive Ca(2+) stores are novel and distinct from the ER. During fertilization, communicating signals appear to be transmitted from the ER to NAADP-sensitive Ca(2+) stores, leading to their activation.

scholarly journals Studies on Sulfhydryl Groups during Cell Division of Sea Urchin Egg

1962 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 427-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hikoichi Sakai
Keyword(s):  
Cell Division ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Soluble Fraction ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
The Other ◽  
Original Sample ◽  
Water Soluble Fraction ◽  
Sea Urchin Egg ◽  
Soluble Fractions

The contractility of the thread model prepared from the KCl-soluble proteins of the egg and in vivo factors for the contraction are investigated in Hemicentrotus, Anthocidaris, and Pseudocentrotus eggs. The contractility of the thread model induced by metal ions or cystine changes during development in the characteristic pattern of high at the metaphase and low at the monaster and the interkinetic stages. The change in contractility is paralleled by the change in the —SH content of the protein. The water-soluble fraction of the eggs has activity in causing contraction of the thread model. This activity changes during development in the same way as the contractility itself. The contraction of the thread induced by the water-soluble fractions is accompanied by a decrease in the —SH content of the thread. The activity of the water-soluble fraction in inducing the contraction is proportional to its ability to decrease the number of —SH groups. On boiling, the activity is largely destroyed. The activity is due to two components, one being non-dialyzable and the other dialyzable. Separately each component has little effect, but when mixed, the activity of the original sample is completely restored.

Polynoid polychaetes living in the gut of irregular sea urchins: a first case of inquilinism in the Southern Ocean

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 144-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefano Schiaparelli ◽  
Maria Chiara Alvaro ◽  
Ruth Barnich
Keyword(s):  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Weddell Sea ◽  
The Other ◽  
Antarctic Species ◽  
Host Switch ◽  
First Case ◽  
Oral Surface ◽  
The Antarctic

AbstractMany different polychaete-echinoderm relationships have been described, from tropical to polar environments. Most of these associations have been generally defined as ‘commensal’, with polychaetes guests usually found on the oral surface of their hosts or, in a very few cases, even inside the host's body. Here we present an inquilinistic association involving two Antarctic species, the polychaete Gorekia crassicirris (Willey, 1902) (Polynoidae) and the irregular sea urchin Abatus nimrodi (Koheler, 1911) (Schizasteridae) found in the Ross Sea. This record is only the second worldwide for this kind of association, after that of the polychaete Benthoscolex cubanus which lives in the gut of the spatangoid Archeopneustes hystrix in Caribbean waters. Gorekia crassicirris seems to be a polyxenous species as it was also observed on another schizasterid, Brachysternaster chescheri Larrain, 1985 in the Weddell Sea. Considering that A. nimrodi is absent from that area and that the two sea urchin species have a disjoint distribution, it is possible that a ‘host-switch’ phenomenon occurred at some stage. We review the available literature to compare the Antarctic pairing with the other known examples of similar associations.

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