<span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:EN-IN;mso-fareast-language:EN-IN;mso-bidi-language:HI" lang="EN-IN">Adrenocortical involvement during diverse stress in soft-shelled turtle <i>Lissemys</i> <i>p. punctata</i> Bonnoterre</span>

Abstract

<span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" mso-ansi-language:en-in;mso-fareast-language:en-in;mso-bidi-language:hi"="" lang="EN-IN">Adrenocortical responses to diverse stressful situations (dehydration, formaldehyde treatment and salt loading) were studied in the adult female soft-shelled turtle, <i>Lissemys p. punctata</i>. Dehydration, formaldehyde treatment (formalin,1% : 0.1 ml/100g body weight daily) or salt loading (NaCl, 1% : 0.1 ml/100g body weight daily) treatments consecutively for 7 days caused hypertrophy of the adrenocortical cells with their nuclear diameter increased, and depletions of adrenal cholesterol and ascorbic acid concentrations followed by decreased acid phosphatase and alkaline phosphatase activities in turtles. Corticosterone levels were elevated in both the adrenal gland and serum of turtles after dehydration and formalin stress, but the hormone level ramined unaltered after salt loading in turtles. The results suggest active involvement of adrenal cortex in stress for homeostasis in <i>Lissemys</i> turtles.</span>