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Passive Diffusivity of Water and Sodium Through the Stratum Corneum of Three Species of Aquatic Snakes

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Passive Diffusivity of Water and Sodium Through the Stratum Corneum of Three Species of Aquatic Snakes W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1991 Passive Diffusivity of Water and Sodium through the Stratum Corneum of Three Species of Aquatic Snakes Joseph Hamilton Brown College of William and Mary - Virginia Institute of Marine Science Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the Physiology Commons Recommended Citation Brown, Joseph Hamilton, "Passive Diffusivity of Water and Sodium through the Stratum Corneum of Three Species of Aquatic Snakes" (1991). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539617629. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.25773/v5-kmky-k887 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Passive D iffu s iv ity of Water and Sodium Through the Stratum Corneum of Three Species of Aquatic Snakes A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the School of Marine Science The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements fo r the Degree of Master of Arts by Joseph H. Brown 1991 APPROVAL SHEET This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts Llti tUuJ 7; K Joseph Hamilton Brown Approved, August 1991 n A. Mustek, Ph. D P tlis r-1 U Garnett Brooks, Ph. D, Robert George, D.V.M. wi 11iam MacIntyre, Pn. D. 7] Charlotte Mangum/Ph. Dedication To my parents, who have always encouraged me. i i i And where the water had dripped from the tap in a small clearness, He sipped with his straight mouth, S o ftly drank through his stra ight gums into his slack long body, S ile n tly . "Snake" D. H. Lawrence TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS......................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES........................................................................................................... v ii LIST OF FIGURES......................................................................................................... v ii i ABSTRACT........................................................................................................................ 1 INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................ 2 MATERIALS AND METHODS............................................................................................. 6 RESULTS............................................... 9 DISCUSSION..................................................................................................................... 50 LITERATURE CITED......................................................... 54 APPENDIX........................................................................................................................ 57 VITA................................................................................................................................ 64 v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I thank my friend and major professor, Dr. John Musick, for his support and encouragement during the course of this research. I am also very grateful to a ll the members of my committee, G.R. Brooks, Robert George, William MacIntyre, and Charlotte Mangum, for helpful suggestions regarding this study and for thoughtful review of the manuscript. Thanks are due to many members of the VIMS community whose help was instrumental in making th is study possible. Susi Sami kindly helped with German translations. Nita Walker w illin g ly and jo v ia lly prepared the histological specimens. Patrice Mason was indispensable during the course of the electron microscopy. Dave Zwerner, Beth McGovern and Wolfgang Vogelbein gave freely of their time during histological examinations. Jiangang Luo aided fre ely in computer graphics. The library staff, including Diane Walker, Susan Barrick, Janice Meadows, and Marilyn Lewis contributed much time and energy on countless occasions; without their kindness this study would have been impossible. Very special thanks are due Kay Stubblefield and B ill Jenkins, fo r countless reasons. Deep gratitude is extended to Ray Floriano, V irg in ia Commonwealth University, for helping to redesign the glassware used in the diffusion experiments, and in finally constructing it. The most special thanks of all is extended to Ernie Warinner, whose kindness, patience, and understanding during d iffic u lt and dangerous times w ill never be forgotten. Bonnie J. Ambrose typed the manuscript. LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Influx (I) and efflux (E) of water and sodium across shed snake skins ............................................................... 13 2. Relative influx and efflux of sodium chloride and water in Acrochordus granulatus, Acrochordus javanicus, and Erpeton tentaculatum ..................................................................................... 15 vi i LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Bar p lo t of water flu x across shed snake skins ............................. 17 2. Bar p lo t of sodium flu x across shed snake skins ........................... 19 3. A. Section through stratum corneum of Acrochordus granulatus. Spines (S) and mesos-layer (ML) clearly visible. HH&E s ta in ............................................................................................... 21 B. Section through the skin of Acrochordus javanicus. Stratum corneum (SC), melanin (M), and stratum germinativum (SG) with keratohyaline cells (KC) in proliferative region. HH&E stain ................................................. 21 4. A. Section through skin of Acrochordus granulatus. Muscle fibers (MF) about each scale. Masson's s ta in ................................................. 23 B. Muscle fibe rs (MF) about each scale of Acrochordus granulatus in closer view. Masson's s ta in ........................................................................ 23 5. A. Section through the skin of Acrochordus granulatus showing connective tissue TcfT associated with stria te d muscle. Masson's s ta in ....................................... 25 B. Striated muscle (SM) of Acrochordus javanicus. HH&E stain ...................................................................... 25 6. A. Striated muscle (SM) and connective tissue (CT) in Acrochordus granulatus. Masson's s ta in ....................................................................................... 27 B. Scale tip s of Acrochordus granulatus, each with associated blood vessel TBV). HH&E s ta in ............................................................................................... 27 v i i i Figure Page 7. A. Blood vessel (BV) with nucleate red blood c e lls (RBC) in the skin of Acrochordus granulatus. HH&E s t a in . ............................... 29 B. Pressure sensitive Pacinian corpuscle (PC) and red blood cells in Acrochordus javanicus. HH&E s ta in ........................................ 29 8. Red blood ce lls (RBC) in vessel associated with nerve tissue (NT) in Acrochordus granul atus. HH&E stain ............................................................................ 31 9. Dorsal scale of Acrochordus javanicus showing trilobate form .............................................................................. 33 10. A. Closeup of trilobate form with leading edge keel (K) and sensory dome (SD) in Acrochordus javanicus ........................................................................ 35 B. Echinulate spines (ES) of Acrochordus javanicus ........................................................................ 35 11. A. Sensory dome (SD) with sensory spine (SS) in Acrochordus javanicus .................................................................. 37 B. Underside of scale of Acrochordus javanicus showing canal (C) leading to sensory dome ........................................................................................... 37 12. A. Echinulate spines (ES) forming echinoreticulate pattern in Acrochordus javanicus ........................................................................ 39 B. Skin between scales of Acrochordus javanicus viewed from below ............................ 39 13. A. Basic topography of the skin of Acrochordus granulatus showing rounded form of scales, each with a prominent spine ......................................................................................................... 41 B. Single scale of Acrochordus granulatus with sensory dome (SD). VTew from tr a ilin g edge ......................................................................................... 41 C. Sensory dome (SD) and sensory spine (SS) of Acrochordus granulatus viewed from above ......................................................................................................... 41 i x Figure Page 14. A. Closeup of sensory dome (SD) and sensory spine (SS) of Acrochordus granul atus ...................................................................... 43 B. Echinulate spines (ES) in Acrochordus granulatus forming echinoreticul ate pattern .................................................................. 43 15. A. Scales of Erpeton tentacuolatum with prominent keel (K) .................. 45 B. Canaliculate ridge (CR) in Erpeton tentaculatum .......................................................................... 45 16. A. Canaliculate pattern along keel (K) in Erpeton tentacul atum ...................................................................
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