Biochemical studies on the blood and tissue components of the common Egyptian toad bufo regularis

Abstract

The effect of insulin and/or cortisone on the blood, serum and tissue levels of glucose, glycogen, pyruvic acid, lactic acid cholinesterase, alkaline phosphatase, aspartate amino transferase (AST), alanine amino-transferase (ALT) and total serum protein fractions was investigated in both males and females of Bufo regularis once in June and August. Metabolic activities in general were higher in August than in June. The intraperitoneal injection of insulin produced hypoglycemia but its effect on other metabolites and enzymes in blood, serum and tissues were found to be variable. The intraperitoneal injection of cortisone increased blood glucose, liver and muscle glycogen, blood lactate and blood pyruvate. It also produced a general increase in the activities of AST, ALT, alkaline phosphatase and cholinesterase in serum, liver and muscle tissues. When insulin was injected together with cortisone they failed to antagonize the effects of cortisone on blood glucose, lactic and pyruvic acids in August but its effect was found to be variable in June. The importance of these findings was discussed in relation to the findings of the other investigators.