Acclimatory responses in enzymatic activity and metabolite concentrations in the tropical scorpion Heterometrus fulvipes

Abstract

1. 1.|Changes in tissue metabolite concentrations and enzyme activities in the pedipalpal (PM) and heart (HM) muscles of the tropical scorpion Heterometrus fulvipes show that the metabolism in PM and HM is fundamentally reorganized following low (18°C) and high (38°C) temperature acclimation. 2. 2.|Changes in metabolite concentrations show that metabolite biosynthesis showed increases after cold acclimation but decreases after warm acclimation. 3. 3.|Similarly, changes in enzyme activities show a preponderance of glycolysis and HMP shunt activity after cold acclimation, while after warm acclimation glycogenolysis, oxidative metabolism and gluconeogenesis predominated. 4. 4.|Higher metabolite concentrations and enzyme activities both before and after thermal acclimation in HM reflect its greater compensatory abilities.