The interactions of acid–base status, waste nitrogen excretion and metabolism in the gulf toadfish Opsanus beta, a ureogenic teleost, were examined by exposing toadfish to a variety of water treatments. Our measurements show that, like other marine teleosts, toadfish rapidly regulate acid–base status by manipulating blood [HCO3]. Several treatments affected nitrogen excretion. The initial stage...

Citrulline generation in isolated rat liver mitochondria is markedly inhibited by the carbonic anhydrase inhibitor acetazolamide (Dodgson et al., 1983). This finding suggests that hepatic mitochondrial-matrix carbonic anhydrase may exert an important controlling effect on ureogenesis by supplying bicarbonate for carbamoyl phosphate synthesis. Three different carbonic anhydrase isoenzymes have b...

In order to elucidate the cues for, and the biochemical mechanisms of, the transition to ureogenesis in the gulf toadfish Opsanus beta, experiments on the effects of confinement/crowding were carried out. Confinement of toadfish to small volumes of water initiated a switch to nearly complete reliance on ureogenesis for nitrogen excretion within 24­48 h. Further experiments suggested that th...

Fishes, in general, follow ammonotelic mode of excretion. However, certain stress factors may provoke them to excrete urea. In the present study, the possible role of ureogenesis to avoid accumulation of toxic ammonia under water-restricted condition was tested in Heteropneustes fossilis. A total of hundred fishes were collected and sacrificed. Excretory urea and ammonia were estimated in the w...

In order to elucidate further the cues for, and the biochemical mechanisms of, the transition to ureogenesis in the gulf toadfish Opsanus beta, experiments on the effects of feeding (i.e. nitrogen loading) were carried out. Baseline nitrogen excretion rates were first measured on solitary toadfish in large water volumes (i.e. unconfined conditions). These nitrogen excretion rates were higher, a...

Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) inhibited the stimulation of ureogenesis produced by adrenaline, but produced a minimal displacement to the right of the dose-response curve for glucagon. However, PMA diminished the accumulation of cyclic AMP induced by glucagon. Dissociation between the cyclic AMP concentrations and the metabolic effects induced by glucagon is evidenced in the presence of...

ammonia is the chief excretory product in fishes. however, non-availability of enough of water in the habitat, may lead to the formation of urea, in fishes. in the present study, the possible role of urea formation to avoid the toxicity of ammonia under water-restricted condition was tested in channa gachua. circulatory urea and ammonia were estimated in the blood of the fishes and glutamate de...

or,-Cycloserine (5 to 10 mvl), when added to isolated hepatocytes, is shown to inhibit aspartate aminotransferase predominantly in the cytosol. At low concentrations (0.1 to 0.2 mu) it selectively inhibits alanine aminotransferase. Aminooxyacetate (0.5 mu) irreversibly inhibits all transaminase activity provided the inhibitor is added prior to substrate addition. Neither cycloserine nor aminoox...