Ornithine decarboxylase activity in embryos depends on temperature of development rather than on the stage of development. Molecular adaptation to temperature changes in poikilothermic animals.

The activity of ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) (the key enzyme of polyamine synthesis) in different poikilothermic animals depends on the temperatures at which they were kept just before the enzyme assay. With an increase in temperature (within physiological limits) ODC activity rises 5-25-fold within several hours. With a decrease in temperature it falls at the same rate. This effect, studied on loach (Misgurnus fossilis) embryos in detail, was also shown for embryos, larvae and some adult tissues of many species. It is not, however, observed in homoiothermic animals (chick embryos and mammalian cells), nor in bacteria and plants. Changes in polyamine concentrations follow those in ODC activity, but more slowly and to a lesser extent. It is assumed that modulation of ODC activity changes as a result of its synthesis and degradation. We suggest that the temperature-dependence of ODC activity is a mechanism of adaptation which maintains the optimal cellular concentration of polyamines for each temperature.