Composition of fluid from the notochordal canal of the coelacanth,Latimeria chalumnae

Fluid from the notochordal canal of the coelacanth, Latimeria chalumnae, was analyzed for major inorganic and organic constituents and compared with blood serum from the same fish. Significantly or suggestively lower levels of sodium, magnesium, calcium, bicarbonate, sulfate, total carbohydrates, glucose, lactate, cholesterol, bound phosphate and total proteins were found in notochordal fluid than in serum, whereas potassium, chloride, urea, trimethylamine oxide, and total free amino acids were higher and inorganic phosphorus essentially identical. Osmolarity of notochordal fluid (1058 mOsm) exceeds that of serum (942 mOsm). A whitish precipitate in the fluid consisted of a matrix of fibers 100 A in diameter and of indefinite length. It resembled a sialoglycoprotein in composition and was stabilized by disulfide bonds. The fluid contained cellular debris.