Ecological Relevance of Hemolymph Total Protein Concentration in Seven Unrelated Crustacean Species from Different Habitats Measured Predictively by a Density-Salinity Refractometer

In recent years, blood metabolites have been investigated as a tool for monitoring physiological condition in wild or cultured crustaceans exposed to different environmental conditions. Blood protein levels fluctuate with changes in environmental and physiological conditions and play fundamental roles in the physiology of crustaceans from O2 transport to reproduction up to stress responses. Proteins are major contributors to hemolymph density, and the present study correlates the easy and low cost measure of hemolymph density by a density-salinity refractometer with the total protein concentration, measured with a colorimetric method. Moreover, the study evaluates the accuracy of the relationship and provides a conversion factor from hemolymph density to protein in seven species of crustaceans, representative of taxa far apart in the phylogenetic tree and characterized by different life habits. Measuring serum-protein concentration by using a refractometer can provide a non-destructive field method to assess crustacean populations/species protein-related modifications of physiological state without need of costly laboratory facilities and procedures

SVILUPPO DI METODI DI VALUTAZIONE DEI MECCANISMI E DELLE VARIAZIONI ORMONALI NEI CROSTACEI IN SEGUITO A STRESS AMBIENTALI

2001/2002XV Ciclo1968Versione digitalizzata della tesi di dottorato cartacea

Crustacean Immunity: The Modulation of Stress Responses

This chapter provides an overview of the main stress responses modulated by neuropeptides of the crustacean hyperglycemic hormone (CHH) family. The current scenario of upstream regulation of CHHs is presented here. Numerous sequence variants, splicing-isoforms, and posttranslational modifications of CHHs point to a wide functional diversification of these peptides.Other than the classical main CHH-mediated cascade resulting in energy mobilization, new aspects focused on CHH chirality are demanding deeper efforts on the characterization of their target and mode of action. Moreover, new CHH variants with immune-related functions have been recently described, broadening further the role of such a neuropeptides family