Changes in the Olfactory Response to Amino Acids in Japanese Newts After Transfer from an Aquatic to a Terrestrial Habitat

Abstract

Amphibians are capable of smelling both volatile and water-soluble (e.g., amino acids) odorants. Adult Japanese newts, Cynops pyrrhogaster, live mostly in water, except during hibernation, but sometimes on land. To examine olfactory responses of the newts to adaptation to a short-term stay on land (land adaptation), we measured the magnitude of the olfactory response at five different time points (land adaptation time: 0, 30, 54, 90, and 114 h after transfer from an aquatic to a terrestrial habitat by using electro-olfactogram (EOG) recordings. Statistical analysis by the weighted linear model (P < 0.05) indicated that the time to land adaptation had a significant effect on the magnitude of the EOG induced by 1 microM and 10 microM amino acid mixtures. Further, the slope estimates of the weighted linear model were significantly positive (P < 0.05). These results indicate that the magnitude of the EOG response to amino acid mixtures (arginine, alanine, proline, and glutamic acid) significantly increases with land adaptation time. On the other hand, we observed no significant relationship between the magnitude of the EOG response induced by an 0.05% volatile odorant mixture (isoamyl acetate, n-amyl acetate, cineole, and limonene) and land adaptation time. Our results indicate that olfactory sensitivity to amino acids significantly increases with land adaptation time in adult Japanese newts.