Do extreme postprandial levels of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and ammonia in the digestive tract equilibrate with the bloodstream in the freshwater rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)?

Abstract

The gastrointestinal tract (GIT) lumen of teleosts harbors extreme conditions, especially after feeding: high PCO₂ (20-115 Torr), total ammonia (415-3710 μM), PNH₃ (79-1760 μTorr in the intestine), and virtual anoxia (PO₂ < 1 Torr). These levels could be dangerous if they were to equilibrate with the bloodstream. Thus, we investigated the potential equilibration of O₂, CO₂, and ammonia across the GIT epithelia in freshwater rainbow trout by monitoring postprandial arterial and venous blood gases in vivo and in situ. In vivo blood was sampled from the indwelling catheters in the dorsal aorta (DA) and subintestinal vein (SIV) draining the posterior intestine in the fasting state and at 4 to 48 h following catheter-feeding. To investigate possible ammonia absorption in the anterior part of the GIT, blood was sampled from the DA, SIV and hepatic portal vein (HPV) from anaesthetized fish in situ following voluntary feeding. We found minimal equilibration of all three gases between the GIT lumen and the SIV blood, with the latter maintaining pre-feeding levels (PO₂ = 25-49 Torr, PCO₂ = 6-8 Torr, and total ammonia = 117-134 μM and PNH₃ = 13-30 μTorr at 48 h post-feeding). In contrast to the SIV, we found that the HPV total ammonia more than doubled 24 h after feeding (128 to 297 μM), indicative of absorption in the anterior GIT. Overall, the GIT epithelia of trout, although specialized for absorption, prevent dangerous levels of PO₂, PCO₂ and ammonia from equilibrating with the blood circulation.