Transformation of Rana tigrina during Progressive Metamorphosis

Abstract

We determined the kinetics of metamorphosis, apoptosis, and tail regression in Rana tigrina. Acid phosphatase activity (µMole Pi.hr-1.tail-1) in the growing and regressing tail attended six to thirty fold increase respectively. However total activity in the trunk was decreased through progressive growing stages of metamorphosis. Total protein content in the trunk of tadpoles at climax stage (XXI) was decrease (35%) from 2.6mg/ml to 1.7mg/ml. The tail of tadpole tissue has shown a two fold increase in total Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) content from stage III to stage XVIII. But there was again decrease in total RNA content at climax stage (stage XXI). This might be possible due to decreased protein synthetic status. When the experiment was performed in trunk homogenate the amount of total carbohydrate (mg/ml) was slightly increased from 37mg/ml to 38.6mg/ml. this might be due to increase in the activity of α-amylase enzymes in the viscera of developing tadpole when it reached the climax stage.