Metabolic effects of exposure to air and the post-aeration response in the intertidal anthozoan Actinia equina L

Abstract

Metabolic adjustments occurring during air exposure have been studied in a population of Actinia equina submitted to long-lasting emersion periods.Oxygen consumption upon reimmersion seems to account for the discharge of an oxygen debt related to the accumulation of end-products derived from anaerobic pathways.Incorporation of radioactive labelled glucose into both submerged and air exposed animals has allowed identification of these final products.A correspondence between the length of exposure-time and the amount of oxygen debt is encountered, which parallels the evolution of the rate of radioactivity incorporation into amino acids.Increasing levels of amino acid synthesis from glucose in the exposed conditions appear as the main metabolic feature.