Temperature and salinity effects on whole-organism and cellular level stress responses of the sub-Antarctic notothenioid fish Patagonotothen cornucola yolk-sac larvae.

This work aimed to evaluate the whole-organism and cellular level responses to different combinations of water temperature and salinity of the notothenioid Patagonotothen cornucola at the end of the yolk-sac larval stage. Egg masses of the species were collected in the wild and then maintained at natural water conditions (4 °C and 30 PSU). Newly hatched larvae were placed in aquaria with different combinations of water temperature (4 °C, 12 °C, and 16 °C) and salinity (15 and 30 PSU) during four days before yolk sac absorption. Larvae exposed to 12 °C grew more in length than those exposed to 16 °C, but yolk volume was more reduced in larvae exposed to 16 °C than those exposed to 4 °C and 30 PSU than of 15 PSU. In addition, a higher proportion of larvae exposed to 12 °C and 15 PSU completely absorbed their yolk. Whereas the more tolerant larvae to high temperatures were those exposed to 16 °C and 30 PSU, lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation were highest at natural and at 12 °C and 30 PSU conditions, respectively. The nutritional status (as standardized DNA/RNA index-sRD -) was low in all cases, even at natural conditions (average sRD ~ 1). Our study suggests that, in the context of climate change, the mortality rate of yolk-sac larvae of P. cornucola would not increase due to temperature or salinity stress. However, indirect effects (such as habitat degradation or changes in food availability) would be critical after complete absorption of the yolk.

The use of morphological and histological features as nutritional condition indices of Pagrus pagrus larvae

Morphometrical and histological techniques were employed to characterize Pagrus pagrus larvae nutritional condition. Larvae were reared in laboratory under controlled conditions with the main objective of testing whether these methodologies allowed finding differences between larvae from different feeding treatments. Once yolk was consumed (three days after hatching) larvae were assigned to a feeding treatment: starved during the whole experiment; delayed feeding, starved during three days; fed during the entire experiment. Algae (Nannochloropsis oculata) and rotifers (Brachionus plicatilis) were provided to larvae for feed treatments. Larvae were fixed daily; for morphometrical purposes in 5% formaldehyde solution, and in Bouin for histological sections. Results herein obtained showed that both methodologies are sensitive enough to distinguish larvae characterized by different nutritional condition states obtained from the feeding treatments. Consequently, these methodologies could be employed in wild red porgy larvae in order to asses their nutritional condition. These techniques could also be employed to check larval quality obtained with aquaculture purposes to estimate the effects of changes in rearing protocols or kind of food supply and thus, to guaranty a higher survival of early developmental stages of reared larvae.

Con el objeto de determinar si las técnicas morfométricas e histológicas permiten diferenciar larvas en estado de inanición de las sometidas a tratamientos de alimentación, ejemplares de Pagrus pagrus fueron criados en laboratorio bajo condiciones controladas. Una vez que el vitelo fue consumido (tres días luego de la eclosión) las larvas fueron sometidas a diferentes tratamientos de alimentación: completamente privadas de alimento, privadas de alimento durante tres días y luego alimentadas, y alimentadas durante todo el experimento. Algas (Nannochloropsis oculata) y rotíferos (Brachionus plicatilis) fueron proporcionados a las larvas de los tratamientos de alimentación. Diariamente se fijaron ejemplares de los tres tratamientos en formol 5% para estudios morfométricos y en Bouin para estudios histológicos. Los resultados obtenidos dan evidencias de que las metodologías presentadas son suficientemente sensibles para determinar diferencias en la condición de larvas sometidas a los tratamientos de alimentación. Por lo tanto, podrían ser empleadas para determinar la condición nutricional de las larvas de besugo recolectadas en el mar. Por otra parte, éstas metodologías podrían ser empleadas para determinar la calidad de larvas producidas en acuicultura y evaluar los efectos de modificaciones introducidas en los protocolos de crianza o en el tipo de alimento suministrado con el objeto de mejorar la supervivencia de los estadios tempranos de desarrollo.