Interspecific hybridization in seahorses: artificially produced hybrid offspring of Hippocampus kuda and Hippocampus reidi

Abstract Interspecific hybridization experiments were conducted between the common seahorse Hippocampus kuda (male) and the slender seahorse H. reidi (female) during artificial rearing to develop a new aquarium fish with unique polyandrous mating. Molecular analysis via mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) cytochrome b and nuclear DNA (ncDNA) ribosomal protein S7 gene supported the hybridization between the two species, and the hybrid also showed morphological characteristics of both species. Juveniles of H. kuda have dense melanophores on the whole body or only on the trunk and tail, whereas juveniles of H. reidi have thin melanophores on the whole body or present in stripes only along their prominent trunk and tail rings. However, all the hybrid juveniles had dense melanophores only on the tail, with the striped trunk rings, thus showing an intermediate pattern, and these patterns were limited to the fairly early stage of development (1–10 days old). In contrast, the two eye spines in the hybrid were apparent after 9 days old, which were not inherited from H. kuda (one eye spine), but from H. reidi (two eye spines). According to LOESS (local regression) analysis, the growth rate increased between 20 and 25 days, and the hybrids grew faster than H. kuda when they entered the explosive second phase of growth between 25 and 45 days for all the seahorses. This study highlights the hybridization between H. kuda and H. reidi may contribute to the improved taxonomic information of young seahorses

Anti-fatigue activity of a mixture of seahorse (Hippocampus abdominalis) hydrolysate and red ginseng

Abstract Seahorse, a syngnathidae fish, is one of the important organisms used in Chinese traditional medicine. Hippocampus abdominalis, a seahorse species successfully cultured in Korea, was validated for use in food by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in February 2016; however. the validation was restricted to 50% of the entire composition. Therefore, to use H. abdominalis as a food ingredient, H. abdominalis has to be prepared as a mixture by adding other materials. In this study, the effect of H. abdominalis on muscles was investigated to scientifically verify its potential bioactivity. In addition, the anti-fatigue activity of a mixture comprising H. abdominalis and red ginseng (RG) was evaluated to commercially utilize H. abdominalis in food industry. H. abdominalis was hydrolyzed using Alcalase, a protease, and the effect of H. abdominalis hydrolysate (HH) on the muscles was assessed in C2C12 myoblasts by measuring cell proliferation and glycogen content. In addition, the mixtures comprising HH and RG were prepared at different percentages of RG to HH (20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, and 80% RG), and the anti-fatigue activity of these mixtures against oxidative stress was assessed in C2C12 myoblasts. In C2C12 myoblasts, H2O2-induced oxidative stress caused a decrease in viability and physical fatigue-related biomarkers such as glycogen and ATP contents. However, treatment with RG and HH mixtures increased cell viability and the content of fatigue-related biomarkers. In particular, the 80% RG mixture showed an optimum effect on cell viability and ATP synthesis activity. In this study, all results indicated that HH had anti-fatigue activity at concentrations approved for use in food by the law in Korea. Especially, an 80% RG to HH mixture can be used in food for ameliorating fatigue

Gene encoding prolactin in cinnamon clownfish Amphiprion melanopus and its expression upon acclimation to low salinities

BACKGROUND: Prolactin (PRL) is a key hormone for osmoregulation in fish. Levels of PRL in the pituitary gland and plasma ion composition of clownfish seem to change to regulate their hydromineral balance during adaptation to waters of different salinities. In order to understand osmoregulatory mechanism and its association with growth performance and PRL in fish, the gene encoding PRL and its expression level in cinnamon clownfish Amphiprion melanopus upon acclimation to low salinity was analyzed. RESULTS: The PRL gene of A. melanopus encoded a protein of 212 amino acid residues comprised of a putative signal peptide of 24 amino acids and a mature protein of 188 amino acids. Analysis of growth performance under different salinities of 34, 25, 15, and 10 ppt indicated that cinnamon clownfish could survive under salinities as low as 10 ppt. A higher rate of growth was observed at the lower salinities as compared to that of 34 ppt. Upon shifting the salinity of the surrounding water from 34 ppt to 15 ppt, the level of the PRL transcripts gradually increased to reach the peak level until 24 h of acclimation at 15 ppt, but decreased back as adaptation continued to 144 h. In contrast, levels of plasma Na(+), Cl(-), and osmolality decreased at the initial stage (4–8 h) of acclimation at 15 pt but increased back as adaptation continued till 144 h. CONCLUSION: Cinnamon clownfish could survive under salinities as low as 10 ppt. Upon shifting the salinity of the surrounding water from 34 ppt to 15 ppt, the level of the PRL transcripts gradually increased during the initial stage of acclimation but decreased back to the normal level as adaptation continued. An opposite pattern of changes - decrease at the beginning followed by an increase - in the levels of plasma Na(+), Cl(-), and osmolality was found upon acclimation to low salinity. The results suggest an involvement of PRL in the processes of osmoregulation and homeostasis in A. melanopus

Size-Dependent Exciton Recombination Dynamics in Single CdS Nanowires beyond the Quantum Confinement Regime

A deep understanding of the size, surface trapping, and scattering effects on the recombination dynamics of CdS nanowires (NWs) is a key step for the design of on-demand CdS-based nanodevices. However, it is often very difficult to differentiate these intertwined effects in the NW system. In this article, we present a comprehensive study on the size-dependent exciton recombination dynamics of high-quality CdS NWs (with diameters from 80 to 315 nm) using temperature-dependent and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) spectroscopy in a bid to distinguish the contributions of size and surface effects. TRPL measurements revealed two distinct processes that dominate the band edge recombination dynamics—a fast decay process (τ1) originating from the near-surface recombination and a slower decay process (τ2) arising from the intrinsic free exciton A decay. With increasing NW diameters, τ1 increases from 0.10 to 0.42 ns due to the decreasing surface-to-volume ratio of the NWs, whereas τ2 increases from 0.36 to 1.21 ns due to decreased surface scattering in the thicker NWs—as validated by the surface passivation and TRPL studies. Our findings have discerned the interplay between size and surface effects and advanced the understanding of size-dependent optoelectronic properties of one-dimensional semiconductor nanostructures for applications in surface- and size-related nanoscale devices.Accepted versio