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Minimising aerobic respiratory demands could form the basis to sub-lethal copper tolerance by rainbow trout gill epithelial cells in vitro

Fish Physiology and Biochemistry volume 24, pages 157–169 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

Mechanisms of Cu tolerance were investigated in respiratory epithelial cell cultures, from rainbow trout gills, by studying O2 consumption and protein synthesis rates, intracellular Na concentration and TER. The lowest concentration found to reduce O2 consumption was 25 μM Cu. This did not affect either protein synthesis rate or intracellular Na concentration and was interpreted in terms of copper tolerance; i.e., how these two energetically demanding processes are maintained despite a reduction in aerobic ATP supply. The relationship between protein synthesis rate and synthesis cost is exponential and the cost of protein synthesis in gill cells was found to be minimal (i.e., this cell occupies a position on the asymptotic section of the protein synthesis rate/synthesis cost model) and unaffected by 25 μM Cu. Thus protein synthesis rates could be maintained since any reduction would represent an insignificant energy saving. Intracellular Na concentrations and O2 consumption rates were linearly correlated suggesting reducing intracellular maintenance costs would have a greater significance in terms of overall energetic conservation. Intracellular Na maintenance costs, calculated from O2 consumption rates and intracellular Na concentrations, were found to decline after exposure to 25 μM Cu. Since TER was unaffected this implied the reduced costs arose from membrane `channel arrest'. Thus the Na/K ATPase energy demands, associated with maintaining intracellular Na concentration, could be reduced by decoupling metabolic demand and membrane function. Therefore this study may demonstrate how the flexibility of cellular energetics enables gill epithelial cells to tolerate sub-lethal Cu.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Aberdeen, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen, AB24 2TN, Scotland, UK

    Richard W. Smith & Dominic F. Houlihan

  2. Department of Environmental Toxicology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18A, S-752 36, Uppsala, Sweden

    Maria Jönsson

  3. European Commission, Joint Research Centre (C.C.R.), Environment Institute, TP 460, I-21020, Ispra (VA), Italy

    Peter Pärt

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  1. Richard W. Smith
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Smith, R.W., Jönsson, M., Houlihan, D.F. et al. Minimising aerobic respiratory demands could form the basis to sub-lethal copper tolerance by rainbow trout gill epithelial cells in vitro. Fish Physiology and Biochemistry 24, 157–169 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011932002623

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011932002623

  • intracellular Na maintenance costs
  • intracellular sodium
  • oxygen consumption
  • protein synthesis
  • protein synthesis costs
  • transepithelial resistance

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