Uptake of glycine and release of primary amines by the polychaete Nereis virens (Sars) and the mud snail Hydrobia neglecta muus

Abstract

Uptake of glycine and release of primary amines by the polychaete Nereis virens (Sars) and the mud snail Hydrobia neglecta Muus was investigated. In a flow system, Nereis virens had a net influx of glycine of 32 to 39 nmol·g −1 fresh wt·h from a 5-μM solution of glycine. Simultaneously, an efflux of primary amines of 14 nmol·g −1·h −1 was measured. The experiments indicated that glycine uptake and release of primary amines are two independent processes. Glycine was absorved by Hydrobia neglecta from 50-μM solutions at an influx of 175 nmol·g −1 organic wt·h −1, and simultaneously, there was an independent efflux of 25 nmol primary amine·g −1·h −1. In the experiments, released primary amines from both species increased the ambient concentration of primary amines, but after various periods of time these concentrations apparently stabilized. Finally, the significance of micro-organisms in amino-acid uptake experiments is considered.