Impact of an environmental relevant concentration of 17α-ethinylestradiol on the cardiac function of bullfrog tadpoles.

This study evaluated if a concentration of 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2 - 10 ng L(-1) for 96 h) normally found in Brazilian surface waters exerts any impact on cardiac function of bullfrog tadpoles (25 Gosner stage), Lithobates catesbeianus. During exposure, the animals' activity level (AL -% of active individuals) was monitored twice a day. Then, the in loco heart rate (f(H) - bpm) was determined, as well as the relative ventricular mass (RVM - % of body mass). Afterwards, cardiac ventricles were mounted for isometric force recordings (CS - mN mm(-2)), and determination of the cardiac pumping capacity (CPC - mN mm(-2) min(-1)). EE2 did not affect tadpoles' AL, although it resulted in a tachycardia in animals exposed to EE2 (f(H) = 66 bpm) when compared to controls (f(H) = 52 bpm), suggesting that EE2 acts directly on the cardiac muscle of tadpoles, rather than being a result of an increased cardiac demand due to a higher activity level (i.e., avoidance response). Additionally, EE2 exerted a positive inotropic response, which resulted in a higher CPC, which occurred independently of an increase in the number of myofibrils of EE2-exposed animals, since RVM remained similar between experimental groups. Thus, the increase on cardiac demand induced by the exposure to EE2 elevates considerably the animal energy expenditure, diverting a large amount of energy that tadpoles could use for their growth and development. These alterations can make amphibians more susceptible to predators and reduce the likelihood to reach reproductive stage.

Cardiac adaptations of bullfrog tadpoles in response to chytrid infection.

The chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) can result in heart failure in Bd-susceptible species. Since Bd infection generally does not cause mortality in North American bullfrogs, the aim of this work was to verify whether this species presents any cardiac adaptation that could improve the tolerance to the fungus. Thus, we analyzed tadpoles' activity level, relative ventricular mass, ventricle morphology, in loco heart frequency, and in vitro cardiac function. The results indicate that infected animals present an increase in both ventricular relative mass and in myofibrils' incidence, which accompanied the increase in myocytes' diameter. Such morphological alterations enabled an increase in the in vitro twitch force that, in vivo, would result in elevation of the cardiac stroke volume. This response requires much less energy expenditure than an elevation in heart frequency, but still enables the heart to pump a higher volume of blood per minute (i.e., an increase in cardiac output). As a consequence, the energy saved in the regulation of the cardiac function of Bd-infected tadpoles can be employed in other homeostatic adjustments to avoid the lethal effect of the fungus. Whether other species present this ability, and to what extent, remains uncertain, but such possible interspecific variability might explain different mortality rates among different species of Bd-infected amphibians.

Monitoração da saturação de oxigênio em circulação extracorpórea por reflectância óptica / Monitoring of oxygen saturation in extracorporeal circulation using an optical reflectance transducer

Este trabalho apresenta o desenvolvimento e a avaliação de um transdutor óptico de reflectância para monitoração da saturação de oxigênio (SO2) no sangue arterial e venoso fluindo pelo circuito de circulação extracorpórea (CEC). O transdutor opera com dois diodos emissores de luz com picos de emissão nas faixas do espectro do vermelho e do infravermelho e um fotodiodo. O transdutor óptico é utilizado em conjunto com um conector transparente, especialmente projetado para ser colocado na linha do circuito de CEC sem alterar o escoamento do sangue. O desempenho de quatro transdutores ópticos foi avaliado em ensaios in vitro e durante monitoração da SO2 em pacientes (n = 16) submetidos à cirurgia cardíaca com CEC. Nos ensaios in vitro utilizou-se sangue de cães em um sistema para simulação de CEC. Os índices de correlação entre os valores de SO2 medidos por reflectância óptica e a SO2 medida por aparelho comercial de gasometria foram de 0,9979 ± 0,0004 nos ensaios in vitro e 0,87 ± 0,05 nas cirurgias com CEC. Os resultados demonstram a possibilidade de se utilizar o princípio de reflectância óptica em 2 comprimentos de onda de luz para determinar a SO2 de forma contínua e em tempo real durante cirurgias com CEC.