Habitat-associated changes in some metabolic dehydrogenases and proteins of tropical earthworms

Abstract

Impacts of different habitats on specific activities of LDH, cMDH, mMDH, cytoplasmic and mitochondrial proteins of M. posthuma, P. sansibaricus, L. mauritii were studied. Maximum specific activity of LDH of the earthworm M. posthuma and L. mauritii was observed in garden. In case of P. sansibaricus, maximum LDH specific activity was found in sewage. Minimum specific activity of LDH of the earthworm M. posthuma was found in non-cultivated field. However, P. sansibaricus and L. mauritii exhibited minimum activity in orchard and cultivated pedoecosystem, respectively. The maximum specific activity of cMDH and mMDH in earthworms from sewage and minimum from non-cultivated field (in case of M. posthuma), garden (in P. sansibaricus) and cultivated land (in L. mauritii) may be due to availability of more organic matter and nitrogen content in the former than in the later cases. Variations in specific activities of these metabolic enzymes due to changes in their pedoecological habitats clearly demonstrate the impact of pedoecosystem on respiratory capacity of the earthworms. Earthworms from pedoecosystem richer in organic matter and nitrogen showed elevated levels of cytoplasmic and mitochondrial protein. The changes in enzyme-specific activity and protein profiles were habitat specific.