Collagenase solutions induce in vitro ovulation in lobsters (Homarus americanus)
✍ Scribed by Talbot, Prudence
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1981
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 363 KB
- Volume
- 216
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0022-104X
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✦ Synopsis
Abstract
The effect of several hydrolytic enzymes on ovulation of lobster (Homarus americanus) oocytes was studied in vitro using strips of ovarian tissue. Only ovaries which were judged by candling and microscopic examination to be close to natural ovulation were used. Ovaries were removed and cut into small, flat strips (1 cm^2^) and placed in either seawater (SW) or SW containing an enzyme. The number of oocytes ovulated from these strips was determined periodically over a 3–6‐hour period. Of the enzymes tested, only crude collagenase treatment produced ovulation. Highly purified collagenase was tested subsequently and found effective. Moreover, when cysteine, a collagenase inhibitor, was added to crude collagenase preparations, ovulation did not occur. These results (1) show that mature lobster ovaries will undergo in vitro ovulation in SW solutions containing collagenase, and (2) are the first demonstration that a hydrolytic enzyme may be directly involved in invertebrate ovulation. It is suggested that collagenase disrupts the thick basement membrane surrounding each follicle, thus initiating follicular rupture and subsequent extrusion of the oocyte. This technique provides a useful method for in vitro studies of lobster ovulation.