Lysozyme and antiprotease activity in the lesser octopus Eledone cirrhosa (Lam.) (Cephalopoda)

Antiprotease and lysozyme activities were detected in various tissue samples including the haemocytes and haemolymph of Eledone cirrhosa. Injection of live Vibrio anguillarum caused an increase in lysozyme activity in the branchial heart over 48 hours and a decrease in the lysozyme activity of haemocytes over 24 hours. Haemocytes from control PBS injected animals demonstrated increased lysozyme levels 4 hours after injection whereas it decreased after the injection of live bacteria in PBS. The lysozyme activity of the haemolymph was not affected by these procedures. Bacteria injections had no effect on the antiprotease activity of the organ samples but increased the antiprotease activity of the haemocytes compared to controls in the 4 h samples. Haemolymph antiprotease activity decreased at a greater rate following bacteria injection than in control PBS injected animals. Haemocyte numbers/ml increased for both the control and bacteria injected animals with a greater increase demonstrated for the bacteria injected animals in the 4 h sample. Concomittant with the increase in the numbers of circulating haemocytes live V. anguillarum were cleared from the circulation of E. cirrhosa in less than 4 hours.