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Action of Thyroid Inhibitor Propyl Thiouracil on Thyroid and Interrenal Axes in the Freshwater Tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus Peters


Affiliations
1 Department of Zoology, University of Kerala, Kariavattom 695581, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
     

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The actions of propyl thiouracil (PTU), a thyrostatic drug, on thyroid hormones (THs) and cortisol production were examined in freshwater tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) to examine whether the hypothyroid state affects the function of interrenal axes in this fish. The plasma levels of triiodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4), and cortisol along with branchial and renal Na+, K+-ATPase activities were measured after feeding varied doses (5-20 μg g-1) of PTU for over 10 or 15 days. Feeding low dose (5 μg g-1) of PTU produced significant rise in plasma T4 level but both T3 and T4 levels were decreased significantly after feeding a high dose (20 μg g-1) of PTU for 15 days. All doses of PTU failed to alter the plasma cortisol. No significant correlation was found between the plasma levels of T3, T4 and cortisol after varied doses of PTU. Treatment of T3 or T4 (40 ng g-1) to the high dose PTU-fed tilapia produced a significant rise in plasma cortisol, suggesting a link to the thyroid and interrenal axes in this fish. The rise in T3 or T4 level in the PTU-treated tilapia after TH injections correlated with the branchial and renal Na+, K+-ATPase activities, which imply an effective Na handling, though a tight regulation of Na+ and K+ transport was maintained in the plasma of these fish. The data show that high dose of PTU inactivates the thyroid axis resulting in the decreased production of T3 and T4, though a low dose of PTU activates the thyroid axis. Our results provide evidence that exogenous T3 activates interrenal axis to produce cortisol and both exogenous T3 and T4 promote branchial and renal Na handling in PTU-induced hypothyroid tilapia.

Keywords

Cortisol, Fish, Propyl Thiouracil, Oreochromis mossambicus, Osmoregulation, Thyroid Hormones, Tilapia, Stress.
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  • Action of Thyroid Inhibitor Propyl Thiouracil on Thyroid and Interrenal Axes in the Freshwater Tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus Peters

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Authors

M. C. Subhash Peter
Department of Zoology, University of Kerala, Kariavattom 695581, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
Valsa S. Peter
Department of Zoology, University of Kerala, Kariavattom 695581, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

Abstract


The actions of propyl thiouracil (PTU), a thyrostatic drug, on thyroid hormones (THs) and cortisol production were examined in freshwater tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) to examine whether the hypothyroid state affects the function of interrenal axes in this fish. The plasma levels of triiodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4), and cortisol along with branchial and renal Na+, K+-ATPase activities were measured after feeding varied doses (5-20 μg g-1) of PTU for over 10 or 15 days. Feeding low dose (5 μg g-1) of PTU produced significant rise in plasma T4 level but both T3 and T4 levels were decreased significantly after feeding a high dose (20 μg g-1) of PTU for 15 days. All doses of PTU failed to alter the plasma cortisol. No significant correlation was found between the plasma levels of T3, T4 and cortisol after varied doses of PTU. Treatment of T3 or T4 (40 ng g-1) to the high dose PTU-fed tilapia produced a significant rise in plasma cortisol, suggesting a link to the thyroid and interrenal axes in this fish. The rise in T3 or T4 level in the PTU-treated tilapia after TH injections correlated with the branchial and renal Na+, K+-ATPase activities, which imply an effective Na handling, though a tight regulation of Na+ and K+ transport was maintained in the plasma of these fish. The data show that high dose of PTU inactivates the thyroid axis resulting in the decreased production of T3 and T4, though a low dose of PTU activates the thyroid axis. Our results provide evidence that exogenous T3 activates interrenal axis to produce cortisol and both exogenous T3 and T4 promote branchial and renal Na handling in PTU-induced hypothyroid tilapia.

Keywords


Cortisol, Fish, Propyl Thiouracil, Oreochromis mossambicus, Osmoregulation, Thyroid Hormones, Tilapia, Stress.



DOI: https://doi.org/10.18519/jer%2F2009%2Fv13%2F77712