Analysis across diverse fish species highlights no conserved transcriptome signature for proactive behaviour

Background Consistent individual differences in behaviour, known as animal personalities, have been demonstrated within and across species. In fish, studies applying an animal personality approach have been used to resolve variation in physiological and molecular data suggesting a linkage, genotype-phenotype, between behaviour and transcriptome regulation. In this study, using three fish species (zebrafish; Danio rerio, Atlantic salmon; Salmo salar and European sea bass; Dicentrarchus labrax), we firstly address whether personality-specific mRNA transcript abundances are transferrable across distantly-related fish species and secondly whether a proactive transcriptome signature is conserved across all three species. Results Previous zebrafish transcriptome data was used as a foundation to produce a curated list of mRNA transcripts related to animal personality across all three species. mRNA transcript copy numbers for selected gene targets show that differential mRNA transcript abundance in the brain appears to be partially conserved across species relative to personality type. Secondly, we performed RNA-Seq using whole brains from S. salar and D. labrax scoring positively for both behavioural and molecular assays for proactive behaviour. We further enriched this dataset by incorporating a zebrafish brain transcriptome dataset specific to the proactive phenotype. Our results indicate that cross-species molecular signatures related to proactive behaviour are functionally conserved where shared functional pathways suggest that evolutionary convergence may be more important than individual mRNAs. Conclusions Our data supports the proposition that highly polygenic clusters of genes, with small additive effects, likely support the underpinning molecular variation related to the animal personalities in the fish used in this study. The polygenic nature of the proactive brain transcriptome across all three species questions the existence of specific molecular signatures for proactive behaviour, at least at the granularity of specific regulatory gene modules, level of genes, gene networks and molecular functions

How do individuals cope with stress? Behavioural, physiological and neuronal differences between proactive and reactive coping styles in fish

Contains fulltext : 169006.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access

Proactive avoidance behaviour and pace-of-life syndrome in Atlantic salmon

Individuals in a fish population differ in key life history traits such as growth rate and body size. This raises the question if such traits cluster along a fast-slow growth continuum according to a pace-of-life syndrome (POLS). Fish species like salmonids may develop a bimodal size distribution, providing an opportunity to study the relationships between individual growth and behavioural responsiveness. Here we test whether proactive characteristics (bold behaviour coupled with low post-stress cortisol production) are related to fast growth and developmental rate in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Boldness was tested in a highly controlled two-tank hypoxia test were oxygen levels were gradually decreased in one of the tanks. All fish became inactive close to the bottom at 70% oxygen saturation. At oxygen saturation level of 40% a fraction of the fish actively sought out to avoid hypoxia. A proactive stress coping style was verified by lower cortisol response to a standardized stressor. Two distinct clusters of bimodal growth trajectories were identified, with fast growth and early smoltification in 80% of the total population. There was a higher frequency of proactive individuals in this fast-developing fraction of fish. The smolts were associated with higher post-stress plasma cortisol than parr, and the proactive smolts leaving hypoxia had significant lower post-stress cortisol than the stayers. The study demonstrated a link between a proactive coping and fast growth and developmental ratio, and suggests that selection for domestic production traits promotes this trait cluster

Behavioural indicators of welfare in farmed fish

Behaviour represents a reaction to the environment as fish perceive it and is therefore a key element of fish welfare. This review summarises the main findings on how behavioural changes have been used to assess welfare in farmed fish, using both functional and feeling-based approaches. Changes in foraging behaviour, ventilatory activity, aggression, individual and group swimming behaviour, stereotypic and abnormal behaviour have been linked with acute and chronic stressors in aquaculture and can therefore be regarded as likely indicators of poor welfare. On the contrary, measurements of exploratory behaviour, feed anticipatory activity and reward-related operant behaviour are beginning to be considered as indicators of positive emotions and welfare in fish. Despite the lack of scientific agreement about the existence of sentience in fish, the possibility that they are capable of both positive and negative emotions may contribute to the development of new strategies (e. g. environmental enrichment) to promote good welfare. Numerous studies that use behavioural indicators of welfare show that behavioural changes can be interpreted as either good or poor welfare depending on the fish species. It is therefore essential to understand the species-specific biology before drawing any conclusions in relation to welfare. In addition, different individuals within the same species may exhibit divergent coping strategies towards stressors, and what is tolerated by some individuals may be detrimental to others. Therefore, the assessment of welfare in a few individuals may not represent the average welfare of a group and vice versa. This underlines the need to develop on-farm, operational behavioural welfare indicators that can be easily used to assess not only the individual welfare but also the welfare of the whole group (e. g. spatial distribution). With the ongoing development of video technology and image processing, the on-farm surveillance of behaviour may in the near future represent a low-cost, noninvasive tool to assess the welfare of farmed fish.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, Portugal [SFRH/BPD/42015/2007]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Welfare in farmed fish

-The interest of fish welfare is increasing, both in Norway and internationally, leading to an increasing need for scientific knowledge about basic and applied questions related to how farmed fish are produced. The strategic institute programme (SIP) ”Welfare in farmed fish” was financed by the Research Council of Norway, for the five years period from 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2005. The core partners in the SIP were the Norwegian Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture Research (Fiskeriforskning) in Tromsø, Institute of Marine Research (IMR) in Bergen and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB) at Ås. The general aim of the programme was to increase the basic competence about fish welfare by the integration of scientific fields such as fish behaviour, fish physiology and fish health as tools to understand welfare related topics in farmed fish, and to use these tools to evaluate fish welfare based on the animal’s behavioural needs. This report aims at giving the reader an insight in the scientific work carried out in this strategic research programme and the progress made in this relatively new scientific field of aquaculture research. Chapter 3 gives a conceptual and theoretic background of animal welfare, and chapter 4 describes the methodological progress financed in part by the programme. Chapter 5-11 reports results and progress related to both basic and more applied fish welfare research which gives an illustration of the interdisciplinary nature of the subject

Welfare in farmed fish

-The interest of fish welfare is increasing, both in Norway and internationally, leading to an increasing need for scientific knowledge about basic and applied questions related to how farmed fish are produced. The strategic institute programme (SIP) ”Welfare in farmed fish” was financed by the Research Council of Norway, for the five years period from 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2005. The core partners in the SIP were the Norwegian Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture Research (Fiskeriforskning) in Tromsø, Institute of Marine Research (IMR) in Bergen and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB) at Ås. The general aim of the programme was to increase the basic competence about fish welfare by the integration of scientific fields such as fish behaviour, fish physiology and fish health as tools to understand welfare related topics in farmed fish, and to use these tools to evaluate fish welfare based on the animal’s behavioural needs. This report aims at giving the reader an insight in the scientific work carried out in this strategic research programme and the progress made in this relatively new scientific field of aquaculture research. Chapter 3 gives a conceptual and theoretic background of animal welfare, and chapter 4 describes the methodological progress financed in part by the programme. Chapter 5-11 reports results and progress related to both basic and more applied fish welfare research which gives an illustration of the interdisciplinary nature of the subject

Welfare in farmed fish

The interest of fish welfare is increasing, both in Norway and internationally, leading to an increasing need for scientific knowledge about basic and applied questions related to how farmed fish are produced. The strategic institute programme (SIP) ”Welfare in farmed fish” was financed by the Research Council of Norway, for the five years period from 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2005. The core partners in the SIP were the Norwegian Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture Research (Fiskeriforskning) in Tromsø, Institute of Marine Research (IMR) in Bergen and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB) at Ås. The general aim of the programme was to increase the basic competence about fish welfare by the integration of scientific fields such as fish behaviour, fish physiology and fish health as tools to understand welfare related topics in farmed fish, and to use these tools to evaluate fish welfare based on the animal’s behavioural needs. This report aims at giving the reader an insight in the scientific work carried out in this strategic research programme and the progress made in this relatively new scientific field of aquaculture research. Chapter 3 gives a conceptual and theoretic background of animal welfare, and chapter 4 describes the methodological progress financed in part by the programme. Chapter 5-11 reports results and progress related to both basic and more applied fish welfare research which gives an illustration of the interdisciplinary nature of the subject

Data from Damsgård et al

Data from Damsgård et a