Comparative study of plasma biochemical parameters in mature male and female goldfish, Carassius auratus

Blood biochemical parameters are important factors that can show the changes in health offering critical feedback on physiological condition of fish. In the present study, we examined a comparative study on the blood biochemical parameters in mature male and female goldfish, Carassius auratus. Plasma samples of 72 male and female goldfish that have been kept at 24°C for 30 days were analyzed and their biochemical parameters levels were determined. There were significant differences in all measured parameters between genders so that, maximum concentrations of the glucose (73.45±0.68 mg/dl) and calcium (8.32±0.05 mg/dl) were found in female fish, while the highest levels of the total protein (3.14±0.01 g/dl), cholesterol (281.65±3.19 mg/dl) and triglyceride (428.31±1.17 mg/dl) were measured in males. Based on the results, the plasma biochemical parameters changes vary considerably between male and female goldfish

Short- and long-term effect of feeding with flaxseed meal on biochemical parameters and plasma enzymes in cultured Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii)

To evaluate the effects of dietary flaxseed meal on biochemical parameters and plasma enzymes in Siberian sturgeon Acipenser baerii, 32 individuals, 955.06 ± 53.38 g in average weight were selected and randomly distributed in eight 500-L tanks and fed with different levels of dietary flaxseed meal including 0 (control), 50 (F50), 100 (F100) and 150 (F150) g kg-1 diet for 180 days. Biochemical indices and plasma enzymes were determined on the 30th and 180th days. The fish in control group showed significantly higher glucose and cholesterol levels than the other groups. Flaxseed meal exhibited no significant difference in triglyceride, however, triglyceride reduced in all of the flaxseed meal treatments on the 180th day compared to the 30th day. Calcium, total protein, albumin and globulin levels displayed no significant difference in all treatments, while the albumin:globulin ratio increased in control on 180th day compared to 30th day. Alkaline phosphatase activity decreased in F100 and F150 on 180th day. Aspartate aminotransferase decreased in F150 on 30th day and in all the flaxseed meal treatments on 180th day. The highest and lowest levels of lactate dehydrogenase and alanine aminotransferase activities were found in control and F150 on 180th day, respectively. Results of this study indicate that it is possible to use flaxseed meal in the diet of Siberian sturgeon during the growth period up to 15% without negative effect on plasma enzymes and biochemical parameters

Review on the Caspian Shemaya, Alburnus chalcoides (Güldenstädt, 1772)

Alburnus chalcoides, Caspian Shemaya, is found in the river systems of the Aral, Black and Caspian sea basins and is an economically valuable cyprinid from the southern Caspian Sea. This species has been reported as near threatened species in this basin due to damming, over and illegal fishing, destruction of its spawning grounds and water pollution. The Caspian Shemaya is an important species ecologically and economically, but information about its biology and ecology is widely scattered. Hence, in this review, its taxonomy, general characteristics and morphology, distribution, habitat and ecology, age and growth, reproduction, conservation status and threats in the southern Caspian Sea is summarized, and a bibliography on this fish is provided

Effects of starvation and feeding strategies on hematological and biochemical indices in Russian sturgeon Acipenser gueldenstaedtii

The effects of feeding strategies on cytological and biochemical indices in juvenile Russian sturgeon were studied. For this, 180 Russian sturgeons (77 ± 0.33 g) were stocked in three treatments with 20 fish in each tank and three replicates. Different feeding strategies including starvation, restricted feeding and feeding to satiation were assessed. At the beginning, middle and at the end of experiment, blood samples were collected to assay the blood indices. The results showed that at the end of the experimental period, starvation caused a significant decrease in the number of white blood cells (WBC) and mean corpuscular volume (MCV; p0.05). Moreover, the results exhibited that starvation leads to a significant decrease in the plasma glucose and total protein, while a significant increase in cholesterol and triglycerides compared to the other treatments (p<0.05). This study displayed some adverse effects of starvation on hematological and biochemical indices of Russian sturgeon, so that most of hematological and biochemical indices in starvation were significantly different from the other groups. Therefore, this study indicates that Russian sturgeon is unable to acclimate to long-term starvation period and adverse effects of starvation will increase over time

Ontogeny of the digestive enzyme activity of the pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) under culture condition

The pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) is a species with a high potential for aquaculture and a valuable food with high market acceptance. The aim of the study was to evaluate the functional ontogeny of digestive enzyme of pikeperch from hatching to 45 days-post fertilization, 777 degree-day (DPF, dd) under culture condition. The average total length (TL) of larvae measured at hatching was 3.6 ± 0.4 mm (5 DPF; 67 dd) and at the end of experiment (45 DPF, 777 dd) was 27.1 ± 1.1 mm. The survival rate was 80-90% during the experiment period. Inhibition zimography reveals the presence of nine bands with proteolytic activity in the digestive tract of juvenile pikeperch. Zimography results during the ontogeny revealed that in larvae at 8 DPF (108 dd) and 13 DPF (189 dd), three bands were presented. The variations observed in the enzymatic activity reflected a high amount of total protease activity at 10 DPF (133.5 dd). Regarding pepsin, its activity was observed for the first time at 26 DPF (378.9 dd). Lipase activity remained constant from hatching to 26 DPF (378.9 dd). The highest amount of α-amylase activity was detected at 15 DPF (211.5 dd) and 45 DPF (777 dd). The low lipase enzyme activity suggested that live feeds with low lipid were more suitable than diets containing high lipid levels; larvae had also early capability to digest nutrient-dense diet that was high in protein. According to results the pikeperch larvae possess after the exogenous feeding, a functional digestive system with high activities that indicated the gradual development of the digestive system

Physiological changes and reproductive performance in presence or absence of thiamine in the diet of Sterlet sturgeon, Acipenser ruthenus

To evaluate the effects of thiamine (vitamin B1) on physiological changes and reproductive performance of Sterlet sturgeon (Acipenser ruthenus), 30 females (averaged 698 ± 15 g) were selected in maturity stage IV and were randomly distributed in six fiberglass tanks (1063.3 liters) with two treatments and three replicates. The first treatment was fed with a dry diet containing 10 mg/kg thiamine hydrochloride, while second one was fed with 1 g/kg amprolium hydrochloride as an anti-thiamine compound for five months. After this period, fish were induced for spawning by LHRH-A2. At the end of the experiment, the growth parameters showed no significant differences between treatments (P>0.05). In the first treatment (fed with thiamine), the levels of hematocrit and hemoglobin were significantly increased (P0.05). Germinal vesicle migration was measured in three stages (day 0, 75 and 150) which had a significant decrease in thiamine-fed treatment (P0.05) between the treatments, while a significant increase in testosterone were observed in thiamine-fed treatment (P0.05). According to the results, the presence of thiamine in the diet led to improvement in some physiological and reproductive indices in Sterlet sturgeon and it seems to be an essential vitamin in reproduction season for Sterlet broodstocks

The relationship between morphological and sexual indices in suitable brood Russian sturgeon Acipenser gueldenstaedtii (Brandt and Ratzeburg, 1833)

Owing to reduction of sturgeon stocks in various water bodies, artificial propagation has become significantly important for stock restoration and appropriate broodstock selection is vital in this process. Selection of suitable broodstocks may influence the quality and quantity of obtained eggs and larva. The present study aimed to examine correlation between some morphometric and reproductive parameters to find suitable brood fish for artificial reproduction in Russian sturgeon, Acipenser gueldenstaedtii. Forty fish free of any external disease symptom and abnormality were selected for the study. Following biometric measurements including weight, total length, abdominal girth, PV (distance between pectoral and pelvic fins), LX (distance between anal and caudal fins), polarization index (PI), gonadosomatic index, absolute fecundity, and fertilization rate, correlations between these morphometric and biological characteristics with emphasis on breeding were calculated. There was higher correlation between weight-absolute fecundity and length-PV in fish responded to artificial breeding, while correlation between age-PV, length-PV and weight-abdominal girth were higher in those fish not responded to artificial breeding. The results suggests that it is quite possible to select suitable Russian sturgeon spawners for artificial propagation based on combination of body weight, LX, PV, age, abdominal girth and total length, however the most useful criteria for the selection seems to be precise measurement of the polarization index

The effect of different dietary zero-valent iron nanoparticles levels on growth, carcass quality and biochemical indices of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) fingerlings

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of different doses of zero-valent iron nanoparticles in the diet of common carp fingerling on growth performance, proximate composition, and biochemical blood parameters. For this purpose, 150 fish with an average initial weight of 6.14 ± 0.10 g were fed on the experimental diets for 8 weeks. The diets contained 0, 50, 100, 150 and 200 mg/kg zero-valent iron nanoparticles. Based on the results, fish were fed the diet supplemented with 150 mg/kg zero-valent iron nanoparticles displayed significant difference in final weight, weight gain, final length, specific growth rate, body weight increase, average daily growth, feed efficiency, protein efficiency ratio and lipid efficiency ratio (P0.05), whereas the fat content of fish fed by 50 mg/kg zero-valent iron nanoparticles was significantly higher compared to other experimental diets (P0.05). Based on the results, 150 mg/kg zero-valent iron nanoparticles in the diet has more influence than larger scales due to the increased surface to volume ratio and  can be  recommended in diet of common carp fingerlings

Determination of appropriate dietry protein level of “Aspikutum”, a hybrid of Asp (Aspius aspius ♀) and Caspian Kutum (Rutilus frisii♂ )

This study was conducted to determine the effects of dietary protein levels on growth performance and body biochemical composition of “Aspikutum”, a hybrid between Asp (Aspius aspius ♀) and Caspian Kutum (Rutilus frisii ♂). Six iso-energetic diets containing six protein concentrations (28, 32, 36, 40, 44 and 48%) were tested with triplicate groups for 60 days. Fourteen fish with mean initial weight of 28.5 ± 0.72 g were stocked in each replicate using circular concrete tanks containing 400 liter of water. Fish were hand fed three times daily to apparent satiation. Results showed that the feed efficiency, specific growth rate, protein efficiency ratio, final weight, weight gain and condition factor were significantly affectedby dietary protein. These parameters were increased with increasing dietary protein to 36% and decreased in more protein levels. Body protein and ash contents were significantly different among the treatments. Body protein content increased significantly with increasing dietary protein to 36% and then decreased in 48% protein level. The present study revealed that the best growth performance of Aspikutum juveniles was achieved at 36% dietary protein level. Hence, according to the results and the economic aspect, diet with 36% protein is recommended for rearing juvenile Aspikutum