The stress response in the abundance of circulating leucocytes in the killifish, Fundulus heteroclitus II. The role of catecholamines

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Abstract
Intraperitoneal injections of distilled water at 5 μ1/g, but not at 1 μ1/g, elicit transitory leucopenia at three minutes post‐injection in intact Fundulus heteroclitus. Later phases of the stress sequence (Pickford et al., '71) are not elicited. Intraperitoneal injections of epinephrine (0.025 μg/g in 5 μ1/g H2O) completely simulate the cold‐shock leucocyte sequence. Hypophysectomy abolishes the two hour leucocytic phase, as in the cold‐shock response. Norepinephrine is ineffective at 0.1 μg/g but simulates the epinephrine response at a high dose (1.0 μg/g). Isoprenaline (1.0 or 0.1 μg/g) elicits the leucopenic but not the leucocytic phases.Pretreatment with phenoxybenzamine (2.5 mg/liter aquarium water) abolishes both three minute and 45–60 minute cold‐shock leucopenia; two hour leucocytosis is unimpaired but the 15 minute response is reversed. Pretreatment with propranolol (1 μg/liter aquarium water) has no effect on the two leucopenic phases; two hour leucocytosis is delayed or, at higher doses, abolished; 15 minute leucocytosis is either unaffected, or reversed.It is not possible to interpret these results in terms of classical mammalian alpha‐ and beta‐adrenergic mechanisms.

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