title: Red blood cells from the South American rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus terrificus) regulate volume incompletely following osmotic shrinkage and swelling in vitro.
abstract: The ability of rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus terrificus) red blood cells to volume regulate in vitro has been investigated. Blood was drawn through a catheter inserted in the dorsal aorta and equilibrated to gas mixtures of different composition. Cells shrunken osmotically by increasing the extracellular osmolarity from approximately 291 mosm l(-1) (n=3) to approximately 632 mosm l(-1) (calculated) only partially regulated their volume back towards the original volume either at pH 7.51+/-0.05 (mean+/-S.D., n=5) or pH 7. 20+/-0.06 (mean+/-S.D., n=3). There was no improvement of the regulatory volume increase at low haemoglobin oxygen saturation. The limited volume restoration was inhibited by separate additions of amiloride (10(-4) M) or DIDS (10(-4) M) suggesting involvement of the Na(+)/H(+) and Cl(-)/HCO(3)(-) exchangers. Cells that were swollen osmotically by an approximately 30% dilution of the extracellular medium also exhibited a limited ability to recover their volume. Therefore, these cells show little ability to volume regulate when exposed to in vitro conditions that shrink or swell the cell.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Respiratory Adaptation, Institute of Biology, University of Odense, Odense, Denmark.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Koldkjaer
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: T W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: A S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Abe
mesh_terms: D017878:4,4'-Diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-Disulfonic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D000584:Amiloride / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D048429:Cell Size / Q000187:drug effects; D017839:Crotalus / Q000097:blood*; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D009997:Osmotic Pressure
chemical_list: D000584:Amiloride; D017878:4,4'-Diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-Disulfonic Acid