Aedes Aegypti: Energetics of Osmoregulation

Abstract

1. Oxygen consumption of A. aegypti larvae, about 210 mul l g−1 tissue wet weight h−1, does not change when the salinity of the environment is changed. The number of mitochondria in the anal papillae, a salt-absorbing epithelium, increases as the external medium is diluted. There is no difference in oxygen consumption between isolated anal papillae in 0, 2 and 20% sea water. The papillae represent about 5% of body volume and their oxygen consumption is about 2% of the animal's total. The theoretical minimum energy cost of osmoregulation is four orders of magnitude smaller than the measured figure for the anal papillae alone. Osmoregulatory phenomena which would explain the recorded observations are discussed.