Effects of sodium chloride and sodium gluconate concentration on hydration behavior and water transport in the red-spotted toad, Bufo punctatus

Toads hydrate from standing water or moist substrates by osmotic absorbtion across the ventral skin. On land toads adopt a distinctive posture called the water absorption response (WR) to maximize contact with the substrate and facilitate water absorption. Experiments using hydration behavior on moist substrates and rehydration rate in standing water or salt solutions in dehydrated Red-spotted toads (Bufo punctatus) were used to demonstrate that: (1) toads can distinguish among NaCl concentrations, (2) NaCl facilitates water uptake across the skin, and (3) transport of the chloride anion facilitates sodium uptake and affects sodium detection by the toad. The results of these studies also strongly suggest that general osmotic mechanisms as well as epithelial sodium channels function in chemosensation across the amphibian skin and that the ventral skin and the feet may have different roles in chemosensation.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (MS)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Biological Science

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Year

1998

Author dc:creator

• Sullivan, Polly Ann

Contributors dc:contributor

• Karin Hoff

Statement dc:rights

• IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Identifier

https://oasis.library.unlv.edu/rtds/946

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:oasis.library.unlv.edu:rtds-1945