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The role of mucus in ion absorption by the oesophagus of the sea-water eel (Anguilla anguilla L.)

Electrophysiological, structural and cytochemical investigations

  • Published:
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Summary

  1. 1.

    The structure of mucus in the oesophagus of the sea-water adapted eel, consists of a framework of fibers decreasing in density and thickness from the anterior to the posterior oesophagus.

  2. 2.

    With seawater in the lumen the mucus layer supports, in vitro, about 45% of the lumen to serosa gradient of sodium ion activity along the whole oesophagus. It supports different chloride ion activity gradients: about 80% in the anterior and about 45% in the middle and posterior oesophagus. These results are confirmed by X-ray micro-analysis.

  3. 3.

    Experiments without lumen-to-serosa gradients demonstrate a linked sodium and chloride active absorption appearing in the middle oesophagus and increasing towards the posterior oesophagus.

  4. 4.

    Na+−K+-ATPase is cytochemically demon-strated but could not be inhibited by ouabaïn during in vitro experiments, due to its particular localization.

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Abbreviations

SW :

seawater

FW :

freshwater

SEM :

scanning electron microscope

TEM :

transmission electron microscope

ISM :

ion-selective microelectrode

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de Zoologie, JE CNRS 033669, Université Louis Pasteur, 12, rue de l'Université, F-67000, Strasbourg, France

    V. Simonneaux, J. A. Barra, W. Humbert & R. Kirsch

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  1. V. Simonneaux
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  2. J. A. Barra
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  3. W. Humbert
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  4. R. Kirsch
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Simonneaux, V., Barra, J.A., Humbert, W. et al. The role of mucus in ion absorption by the oesophagus of the sea-water eel (Anguilla anguilla L.). J Comp Physiol B 157, 187–199 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00692363

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00692363

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