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Am J Physiol Renal Physiol (October 22, 2008). doi:10.1152/ajprenal.90349.2008
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Submitted on June 6, 2008
Revised on October 8, 2008
Accepted on October 14, 2008

A nectar-feeding mammal avoids body fluid disturbances by varying renal function

Bradley Hartman Bakken1*, L. Gerardo Herrera M.2, Robert M. Carroll3, Jorge Ayala-Berdón2, Jorge E. Schondube2, and Carlos Martínez del Rio3

1 University of Wisconsin-Madison
2 Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
3 University of Wyoming

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: hartmanbakke{at}wisc.edu.

To maintain water and electrolyte balance, nectar-feeding vertebrates oscillate between two extremes: avoiding overhydration when feeding and preventing dehydration during fasts. Several studies have examined how birds resolve this osmoregulatory dilemma, but no data are available for nectar-feeding mammals. In this article, we 1) estimated the ability of Pallas' long-tongued bats (Glossophaga soricina; Phyllostomidae) to dilute and concentrate urine and 2) examined how water intake affected the processes that these bats use to maintain water balance. Total urine osmolality in water- and salt-loaded bats ranged between 31 ± 37 (n = 6) and 578 ± 56 mOsm/kg (n = 2), respectively. Fractional water absorption in the gastrointestinal tract was not affected by water intake rate. As a result, water flux, body water turnover, and renal water load all increased with increasing water intake. Despite these relationships, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was not responsive to water loading. To eliminate excess water, Pallas' long-tongued bats increased water excretion rate by reducing fractional renal water reabsorption. We also found that rates of total evaporative water loss increased with increasing water intake. During their natural daytime fast, mean GFR in Pallas' long-tongued bats was 0.37 mL/h (n = 10). This is ~90% lower than the GFR we measured in fed bats. Our findings 1) suggest that Pallas' long-tongued bats do not have an exceptional urine-diluting or -concentrating ability and 2) demonstrate that they eliminate excess ingested water by reducing renal water reabsorption and limit urinary water loss during fasting periods by reducing GFR.







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