Ultrafiltration in the Branchial Heart Appendage of Dibranchiate Cephalopods: a Comparative Ultrastructural and Physiological Study

It is shown that ultrafiltration could be the first step in urine formation in Sepia officinalis and Octopus vulgaris. The organization of the podocytes indicates that ultrafiltration can occur through these cells. They have a thick basal lamina in contact with the peripheral blood lacunae, and the cell apices lie in infoldings of the lumen of the appendage. Comparison between the colloid-osmotic and the hydrostatic pressures of the fluids in the branchial heart and the pericardial coelom shows that an ultrafiltration can take place during the branchial heart systole as well as during a long phase of the diastole. Comparison of the osmolalities of blood, coelomic fluid, renal-sac fluid, and sea water shows that these species are hypoosmotic regulators.