Comp Btochem Phxstol 1976 Vol 54B pp 193 to 195 Pergamon Press Printed *n Great Br*taln

SERUM CHEMISTRY OF THE SMALL INDIAN MONGOOSE, HERPESTES A U R O P U N C T A T U S

PAUL H LENZ, I DAVID W NELLIS 2 AND CECILIA A HABERZETTL 3

1 Department of Biological Sciences, Falrlelgh Dickinson University, Madison, NJ 07940, U S A 2 Virgin Islands Department of Agriculture Lower Love St Croix U S VI 00820 U S A

3Sandoz lnc, Rt 10 E Hanover, NJ 07936 U S A

(Received 20 January 1975)

Abstraet--I Thirty serum components were quantltahvely determined in Herpestes auropunctatus and Rattus norvegtcus

2 Serum cholesterol was higher in wild mongooses than laboratory rats (P < 0 01) 3 The higher serum osmolahty (P < 001) in mongooses compared to rats was partially due to

higher sodium (P < 001) and urea nitrogen (P < 001) concentrations Serum nonprotein nitrogen components (creatlnme, urea nitrogen, and uric acid) were more than 100",, higher in mongooses than rats (P < 001) These relatively high serum values may be due to the urine concentrating mechanism of the mongoose kidney

4 Serum total protein was greater in wild mongooses than laboratory rats (P < 0 05), due to a higher gamma globulin concentration (P < 0 01)

INTRODUCTION

The small Indmn mongoose, Herpestes auropunctatus, is a diurnal carmvore native to the arid regions of Asia In the wild its diet consists of a wide variety of animal mat ter and vegetation, it is capable of exist- ing on little or no exogenous water In the 1870's it was introduced to the West Indies to control rats on the sugar cane planta t ions and is now a c o m m o n m a m m a l in most habi ta ts on many of these islands (Hmton & Dunn, 1967)

The natural history and behaviour of the mongoose have been studied and are reviewed by Hln ton & D u n n (1967) and added to by Nelhs (1973) The role of H auropunctatus as a parasite vector is known (Duby & Pande, 1963, Smgh et al , 1966, Zumpt , 1969) Studles concerning thermoregula t lon (Nellls & McManus , 1974) and kidney structure and function (Horst et al , m press) in this species have been com- pleted recently L~ttle, if any, information is available on the blood chemistry of this species

This study was conducted primarily to generate baseline serum chemmtry values for the mongoose, H auropunctatus Serum chemistry values were deter- mined concurrently for the laboratory rat, Rattus nor- vegtcus, so that comparisons could be made

METHODS AND MATERIALS

Nine mature male mongooses, H auropunctatus, were captured m live traps at Lower Love, St Croix, U S Virgin Islands, their ages ranged from 1 to 4 years After capture these animals were fasted for 24 hr, lmmoblhzed with suc- clnylchohne, 50 mg/kg body wt, by intramuscular injection, and exsanguinated Twenty mature male Long-Evans strata rats, R norveglcus, with a mean body wt of 311g and mean age of 196 days were obtained from our inbred colony The rats were maintained on Purina Laboratory Chow and tap water ad lib In an animal room with con- trolled photopenod (12 hr hght-12 hr darkness) and tem- perature (22°C) After a 24 hr fast, the rats were sacrificed by decapitation and exsangulnated Serum was separated

immediately from the whole blood by centmfugatlon, the serum from every two rats was pooled yielding ten pools for chemical analysis

All chemical analyses were performed within 48 hr of collection, the serum was kept refrigerated (4°C) during this period Analyses were performed in two analytical runs (one for each of the species) employing a normal human range (Monltrol I, Lot No 116A, Dade DWlSlOn, American Hospital Supply Corp, Miami, Florida) and elevated human range (Ledertrol, Lot No 1907-625B6, Lederle Diagnostics, American Cyanamid Company, Pearl River, New York) control serum in each run to assure that each methodology was performing optimally Chemical analyses were performed by previously described analytical pro- cedures for glucose (Mitchell & Rydalch, 1968), trlglycer- ides as mg trlolein/DL after blanking (Kessler & Lederer, 1966), cholesterol (Levme & Zak, 1964), uric acid (Kalckar, 1947), creatlnine (Chasson et al, 1961), chloride (Cotlove et al, 1958), inorganic phosphorus (FIske & SubbaRow, 1925), iron (Goodwm et al, 1966), total and direct blhrubm (Jendrassxk & Grof, 1938), and total protein (Gornall et al, 1949) Protein fractlonatlon was accomphshed by elec- trophoresis on cellulose acetate after which the strips were stained and scanned with a recording densltometer equipped with an integrator, blood urea nitrogen was determined by an automated urease procedure (BUN Ana- lyzer, Beckman Instruments, Fullerton, California 92634), sodium and potassium by the IL Flame Photometer (In- strumentation Laboratory, Inc, Boston, Massachusetts), calcium and magnesium by atomic absorption (Perkm- Elmer Corp, Norwalk, Connecticut 06856), per cent solids by photorefractometry (A/O TS meter, American Optical, Buffalo, New York 14215), and osmolahty by freezing point depression (Advanced Instruments, Inc, Needham Heights, Massachusetts) Enzyme activity was determined klnetically using NAD/NADH coupled reactmns (Calblo- chem, LaJolla, California 92037) except for alkahne phos- phatase (Bowers & McComb, 1966) Analyses for changes were performed on the data by the use of standard error of the mean and Student t-tests (Dixon & Massey, 1968)

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Blood chemistry data for the mongooses and rats are given m Table 1 The relatively high serum cho- lesterol concentrat ion observed m the mongoose is

193

194 PAUL H LFNZ, DAVID W NELLIS AND CECILIA A HABERZETrL

Table 1 Serum chemistries

Genus Herpestes Rattus Specles auropunctatus norveglcus

Common name mongoose rat

mean I + SEM 2 mean I + SEM 2 P< Glucose, mg/dl 1 04 13 1 115 2.4 ns Trlglycerldes, mg/dl 41 5 3 23 1 6 .01 Cholesterol, mg/dl 247 9.9 62 2 1 01 BUN, mg/dl 49 5 7 78 16 7 0 61 .01 Urlc Aeld, mg/dl 2 6 0 26 I 0 0 17 .01 Creatmlne, mg/dl 1 3 0 07 0 6 0.02 01 Total blhrubln, mg/dl 0 5 0 06 0.4 0 04 ns Direct bllnmbhn, mg/dl 0 2 0 02 0.2 0 03 ns

Sodlum, mEq/L 164 1 1 140 0.4 .01 Potasslum, mEg/L 6 4 0 3 6 5 0 06 ns Chlorlde, mEq/L 125 1 4 123 1 4 as Calelum, mg/dI 9 7 0 14 9 8 0 13 ns Phosphorus, mg/dl 5 8 0 26 6.7 0 17 .05 Magneslum, mEq/L 2 6 0 12 I 7 0.03 .01 Iron, total, ~g/dl 114 16 9 164 7 0 05

SpeclflC gravlty > 1 035 ) 1 035 Total sohds, % 9 9 0 21 8 4 0 07 .01 Osmolallty, m©smol/L 367 5 4 308 0 2 01 FreezLag polnt depresslon - 0.683 - 0 573

Total proten% g/dl 7 6 0 18 7 1 0.10 05 Albumln, g/dl 2 7 0 06 3 0 0.05 01 alpha-1 globuhn, g/dl 0 6 0.03 0 6 0 034 ns alpha-2 globuhn t g/dl 0 b 0 05 0 7 0 03 ns beta globulin, g/dl 1 6 0 05 1.6 0.04 ns gamma globuhn, g/dl 2 2 0 07 1 1 0 05 01

LDH, IU/L @ 30°C 1528 253 3 1224 92 2 ns HBD, IU/L@ 30°~ 1119 164 4 582 39 4 01 SGOT, IU/L @ 30UC 139 25 6 90 2 2 ns SGPT, IU/L @ 3.Q°C 161 18 0 33 1 3 01 CPK, IU/L @ 3~Q~C 874 142 0 2175 88 1 01 AP t IU/L @ 30UC 25 2 4 88 3 7 .01

1 9 mongooses/mean or I0 pools of 2 rats/pool as = not slgnlflcant

2 SEM = standard error of the mean = ~sum devlatlons 2 n(n-1 )

LDH : LacUc dehydrogenase HBD = alpha-Hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase SGOT = Olutamate-oxalaoetate transamlnase SGPT = Glutamate-pyruvate transamlnase CPK = Creatlne phosphoklnase AP = Alkahne phosphatase

expected m carnivores Higher blood cholesterol con- centrations were observed in carnivores, such as dogs, 173 mg/DL, cats, 93 mg/DL, and man, 197 rag/DE (Altman& Dattmer, 1971) and m the insectivorous little brown bat, Myotls luclfugus, 265 mg/BL (Esher et al, 1973) In contrast, herbivores have lower serum cholesterol concentrations, for example guinea pigs, 32 mg/DL, rabbits, 45 mg/DL, and horses. 77 mg/DL (Altman & Dlttmer, 1971) The rats used m this study were fed primarily on plant components and their cholesterol concentraUons were of the same magm- rude as the herbivores

The serum osmolahty (or freezing point depression) is greater in the mongoose (-0683°C) than in the rat (-0573°C), P < 001, and other mammals stud- led, for example man, - 0 532°C, cattle, - 0 587°C, dog, - 0 600°C, horse, - 0 564°C, rabbit, - 0 592°C, sheep, -0619°C, and, swine, -0615°C (Altman & Dlttmer, 1971) In the human, the major serum com- ponents responsible for osmolahty are sodmm, potas- smm, calcmm, chloride, bicarbonate, phosphate, sul- fate, orgamc acids, glucose, and urea which contribute as follows 3045= 1 4 8 + 4 + 2 5 + 1 0 8 + 2 7 + 2 + 1 + 5 + 5 + 2 mOsm/kg, respectively (Teltz, 1970) The osmolahty of mongoose serum was 59 mOsm/kg higher than that of the rat m the current study due to higher concentrations of sodmm (+24mOsm/kg) and urea (+ 5 5 mOsm/kg) Thus, approx 50°0 of the h~gher osmolahty can be accounted for, the remaining half may be due to a higher bicarbonate con- centratlon which could not be measured due to a delay in time after collection Sodium concentrations

were higher in the mongoose than in most other mammals studied, for example cat, 156-158 m-equlv/ L, dog, 150-153 m-equlv/L, horse, 152-156 m-equlv/ L, monkey, 157 m-equiv/L, rabbit, 142-150 m-equlv/L, sheep, 151-160 m-equlv/L, and, swine, 149 mM/L (Alt- man & Dlttmer, 1971)

The total protein, BUN, uric add, and creatlnme concentrations are higher in the mongoose than in the rat In fact, these values are higher than one would expect to find in most animals Hemocon- centratlon is accompanied by elevations in these serum components and may be the reason for these high values in the mongoose This syndrome also is accompanied by a decreased albumin and increased v-globulin concentration, the albumin concentration was lower (P < 0 01) and the v-globulin concentration was higher (P < 001) in the mongoose than m the rat The mongoose normally derives most of its water from the food it consumes and essentially drinks no water, eating habits often deviate from the norm in captured animals, resulting in less food and water consumption DehydraUon accompanied by hemo- concentration may have resulted from a change in eating habits Hypochloremla and hyponatremla often accompany hemoconcentratlon (Hoffman, 1970), but the sodium and chloride concentrations an the mon- goose are higher or within the normal range found in the rat, respechvely, and both values are generally higher than those given for other animals studied (Atman & Dlttmer, 1971) Furthermore, the mon- goose seems to produce a concentrated urine which could affect the serum concentrations of the nitrogen

Serum chemistry of the small Indian mongoose 195

containing components (Horst et a l , in press) The product ion of a concentra ted urine in humans is asso- ciated with elevations m serum nitrogenous waste products (Bradley & Benson, 1969) Ohgur la also may be the result of dehydrahon

The higher serum total protein concentra t ion (P < 0 05) in the mongoose compared to the rat was due to a higher 7-globulin concentra t ion (P < 0 01) The mongooses studied were wdd ammals, whereas the rats had been inbred for several generations in an isolated animal room Due to greater physical In- teraction with other hvlng organisms in their en- v i ronment it is plausible that the mongooses had more oppor tuni ty to develop antibodies to foreign antigens than the rats and thus had higher 7-globuhn concentrat ions

Fast ing serum chemistries have been presented for the mongoose and the rat Values for the rat compare favorably with those in the literature, with the excep- t ion of the values for enzyme activity for which few data are available at present It would be presump- tuous to conclude that the values presented for the mongoose are totally unbmsed, these were wdd am- mals subjected to the stress associated with captivity even though at tempts were made to minimize such effects

REFERENCES

ALTMAN P L & DITTMER D S (1971) Blood and other body fluids Fedn Proc Fedn Am Socs exp Bzol

BOWERS G N & McCoMB R G (1966) Continuous spec- trophotometric method for measuring the activity of serum alkaline phosphatase Chn Chem 12, 70-89

BRADLEY G M & BENSON E S (1969) In Todd-Sanford Chmcal Diagnosis by Laboratory Methods (Edited by DAVIDSOaN I & HENR~ J B ), pp 45-46 Saunders, Phi- ladelphla

CHASSON A L, GRADV H J & STANLEY M A (1961) Determination of creatmine by means of automatic chemical analysis Tech Bull Reolst Med Techn 30, 207-212

COTLOVE T E, TRANTHAN H V & BOWMAN R L (1958) An instrument and method for automatic rapid, accurate and sensitive titration of chloride In biological samples J Lab chn Med 51,461-468

DIXON W J & MASSEY F J (1968) Introductton to Stattstt- cal 4nab'sis McGraw-Hill New York

DUBY J P & PANDE B P (1963) Observations on the coccldlan oocysts from Indian mongoose (Herpestes mungo) Indian J Mlcrobzol 3, 49-54

ESHER R J, FLEISCHMAN A I & LENZ P H (1973) Blood and liver hpids In torpid and aroused little brown bats, Myotzs luclfugus Comp Blochem Physzol 45A, 933-938

FISKE C H & SUBBAROW Y (1925) The colonmetrlc deter- mlnatlon of phosphorous J blol Chem 66. 375-400

GOODWIN J F , MURPHY B & GUILEMETTE M (1966) The colorimetrlc determination of Iron in biological material with reference to measurement during chelation therapy Chn Chem 12, 58-69

GORNALL A G, BARDAWILL C J & DAVID M M (1949) Determination of serum proteins by means of the Bluret reactions J bzol Chem 177. 75l 766

HINTON H E & DUNN A M S (1967)Mongooses Oliver & Boyd, London

HOFFMAN W S (1970) In The Btochemtstrv o] Chmcal Medt~me pp 254-257 Year Book Medical, Chicago

HORST G R, NELLIS D W & P1NTER A J (1975) Anat Rec (In press)

JENDRASSIK L & GROF P 09381 Verelnfachte photome- trische methoden zur bestlmmung des blutbihrublns Btochem Z 297, 81-89

KALCKAR H M (1947) Differential spectrophotometry of purlne compounds by means of specific enzymes J blol Chem 167, 429

KESSLER G & LEDERER H (1966) Fluorometric measure- ment of trlglycerides In 4utomatton m Analytical Che- mistry, Techmcon Symposta 1965 (Edited by SKEGGS L T JR), pp 341-344 Medlad, New York

LEVINE J & ZAK B (1964) Automated determination of serum total cholesterol Chmca Chtm Acta 10, 381-384

MITCHELL T & RYDALCH V (1968) An evaluation of a true glucose procedure utilizing the enzyme hexokmase Tech Bull Regzst Med Techn 38, 221-222

NELLIS D W (1973) The biology of the mongoose (Her- pestes auropunctatus) on St Crolx Dissertation, Unlv of Georgm

NELLIS D W & MCMANUS J J (1974) Thermal tolerance of the mongoose, Herpestes amopunctatus J Mammal 55. 645 697

SiNGH N, NAUNIHAL t~; PANDE B P (1966) Notes on nematode parasites of Indian mongoose Herpestes mungo 4nn Paras~tol Hum Comp 41,467 485

TIETZ N W (1970) Fundamentals of Chmcal Chemtstry, p 678 Saunders, Philadelphia, Penna

ZUMPT I F (1969) Factors influencing rabies outbreak the age and breeding cycle of the yellow mongoose, Cymctts pemc~llata (G Cuvier) J S Afr Vet Med Asso 40, 319-322