Effects of hyperoxia on behavioural and physiological variables in farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) parr

A controlled experiment mimicking Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) pre-smolt farming conditions showed that fish exposed to 150 and 175% super oxygenated water produced higher levels of carbon dioxide with the subsequent decrease in water pH compared to control fish exposed to 100% O₂. At the 7th day of exposure the hyperoxic fish showed larger individual variation in swimming activity compared to the controls. The individual variance in activity, tail beat frequency and scattering in the tanks among super oxygenated fish decreased from the 7th to the 21st day of exposure. The behavioural effects of hyperoxia were seen in relation to altered feed consumption halfway through the experiment, lower body weight, and altered haematological variables at day 21 of exposure. Plasma chloride was reduced in the exposed fish and haemoglobin decreased with increasing oxygen saturations. Plasma cortisol was elevated only in the 150% oxygenated group at day 21, while no effect on osmolality was recorded. The alterations in physiology and behaviour from day 7 to day 21 may be explained in terms of acclimation to increased oxygen saturations. This study shows that behaviour may be used as an indication of impaired water quality that may influence animal welfare negatively and eventually prevent an efficient production.     

Feed intake and growth performance of Senegalese sole (Solea senegalensis Kaup, 1858) fed diets with partial replacement of fish meal with plant proteins

To be able to study nutrient requirement and utilization in any species, a diet supporting normal feed intake and growth equally well as a traditional fish meal‐based diet is needed. Additionally the formulation of the diet should allow low levels of the nutrient under study. When studying the amino acid metabolism and requirements, one cannot rely on the fish meal‐based diets as fish meal are nicely balanced according to requirements. Therefore the current study aimed to develop a plant protein‐based diet (with low fish meal inclusion) to be used in the nutritional studies of Senegalese sole juveniles supporting feed intake and growth close to that obtained in a fish meal‐based control feed. Two experiments were conducted to evaluate whether Senegalese sole juveniles would accept and utilize diets containing high plant protein inclusion. For testing the acceptance of high plant protein inclusion, two diets were formulated: a reference diet that contained fish meal as the main protein source (450 g kg^?1 dry matter) whereas in the test diet, fish meal was substituted by a mixture of plant ingredients (soybean meal, corn and wheat gluten) with l ‐lysine supplementation. In order to improve the palatability, 50 g kg^?1 squid meal was added to both diets. The indispensable amino acids (IAA) profile of the test diet was made similar to the control diet by adding crystalline amino acids. Further, automatic feeders were used to improve the feed intake. Fish (24 g initial body weight) were fed the diets for a period of 4 weeks. As fish accepted both diets equally well, a second study was undertaken to test the growth performance. Fish (6 g initial BW) were fed the diets for a period of 12 weeks. The use of automatic feeders to deliver the feed and the addition of both squid and balancing the indispensable amino acids resulted in growth performance and accretion not differing from the fish meal fed control. It can be concluded that juvenile Senegalese sole are able to grow and utilize high plant‐protein diets when both diet composition and feeding regime are adequate for this species.     

Influence of temperature on muscle fibre hyperplasia and hypertrophy in larvae of blackspot seabream,Pagellus bogaraveo

The effects of temperature on Pagellus bogaraveo muscle cellularity were investigated, by morphometry, throughout the endogenous feeding stage, testing two rearing temperatures: 14 and 18 °C. The following parameters were estimated in transversal body sections at post‐opercular and post‐anal body levels: the total cross‐sectional muscle area, the total number of fibres and the mean cross‐sectional fibre area. At hatching, no significant influence of the temperature was observed on the morphometric parameters measured in the white muscle. At mouth opening, an increase in the number of post‐opercular white fibres was promoted by the highest temperature. During embryonic development, the red muscle fibre number in the post‐anal part of the larvae increased with higher temperature, but it appears that the difference was no longer present at mouth opening. An increase in the fibre area and in the total cross‐sectional area of red muscle at the post‐anal level was promoted by a 4 °C increase in the temperature during the vitelline phase. In conclusion, the axial musculature of blackspot seabream embryos/larvae reacted differently to temperature influence according to the body location, strongly supporting the need to look at and account for different body locations when evaluating muscle cellularity in fish, namely in growth/aquaculture‐related studies.     

Anti-Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HepG2) Activities of Monoterpene Hydroxy Lactones Isolated from the Marine Microalga Tisochrysis Lutea

Tisochrysis lutea is a marine haptophyte rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (e.g., docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)) and carotenoids (e.g., fucoxanthin). Because of the nutraceutical applications of these compounds, this microalga is being used in aquaculture to feed oyster and shrimp larvae. In our earlier report, T. lutea organic crude extracts exhibited in vitro cytotoxic activity against human hepatocarcinoma (HepG2) cells. However, so far, the compound(s) accountable for the observed bioactivity have not been identified. Therefore, the aim of this study was to isolate and identify the chemical component(s) responsible for the bioactivity observed. Bioassay-guided fractionation through a combination of silica-gel column chromatography, followed by preparative thin layer chromatography (PTLC), led to the isolation of two diastereomers of a monoterpenoid lactone, namely, loliolide (1) and epi-loliolide (2), isolated for the first time in this species. The structural elucidation of both compounds was carried out by GC-MS and 1D (¹H and ¹³C APT) and 2D (COSY, HMBC, HSQC-ed, and NOESY) NMR analysis. Both compounds significantly reduced the viability of HepG2 cells and were considerably less toxic towards a non-tumoral murine stromal (S17) cell line, although epi-loliolide was found to be more active than loliolide.     

Standard area diagram set to assess rust severity on eucalyptus leaves

This study aimed to develop and validate a standard area diagram set (SADs) to help assess rust severity caused by Austropuccinia psidii on eucalyptus leaves. The SADs has eight colour images of leaves with severity values ranging from 0.97% to 37.3%. The SADs were validated by 16 raters, who assessed the same set of 50 images twice: the first without the SADs and the second using it as an aid. Accuracy and precision of the estimates were determined based on Lin's concordance correlation coefficient, and the inter‐rater reliability was measured using the coefficient of determination (R²) and intraclass correlation. The estimates of severity of eucalyptus rust were more accurate, precise and reliable using SADs. These results demonstrate the value of SADs for several activities, including epidemiological studies, treatments comparison, disease monitoring, decision‐making in eucalyptus rust management measures, and in breeding programs.     

The Potential of High-Oil Oats under Cool Temperate Conditions

Abstract

Genetic and growth temperature effects on the oil content of oats have been studied. A line with high oil content was crossed to a line with low oil content, and the progenies from parental and F₂ plants were studied in two replicated experiments, one in the field, the other combined field/greenhouse. Interactions between greenhouse and field were found for oil content as well as for other characters. High heritability estimates and additive gene action were found for oil content. Insignificant genetic correlations were found between oil content and grain yield. F₃ families which on average had the same oil content as the highest parent were recovered. The results from two independent phytotron experiments indicate that genes conferring high oil content and low temperatures during grain filling seem to work additively towards higher oil content.     

Consequences of specialized breeding in the Swedish Warmblood horse population

In many European warmblood studbooks, clear specialization toward either jumping or dressage horses is evident. The Swedish Warmblood (SWB) is also undergoing such specialization, creating a possible need for separate breeding programs and a discipline-specific Young Horse Test (YHT). This study investigated how far specialization of the SWB breed has proceeded and the potential consequences. Individuals in a population of 122,054 SWB horses born between 1980 and 2020 were categorized according to pedigree as jumping (J), dressage (D), allround (AR), or thoroughbred (Th). Data on 8,713 J horses and 6,477 D horses assessed for eight traits in YHT 1999–2020 were used to estimate genetic parameters within and between J and D horses and between different periods. Future scenarios in which young horses are assessed for either jumping or dressage traits at YHT were also analyzed. More than 80% of horses born in 1980–1985 were found to be AR horses, while 92% of horses born in 2016–2020 belonged to a specialized category. The average relationship within J or D category was found to increase during the past decade, whereas the relationship between these categories decreased. Heritability estimates for gait traits were 0.42–0.56 for D horses and 0.25–0.38 for J horses. For jumping traits, heritability estimates were 0.17–0.26 for J horses and 0.10–0.18 for D horses. Genetic correlations between corresponding traits assessed in J and D horses were within the range 0.48–0.81, with a tendency to be lower in the late study period. In the future scenarios, heritability and genetic variance both decreased for traits that were not assessed in all horses, indicating that estimation of breeding value and genetic progress for these traits could be affected by a specialized YHT. However, ranking of sires based on estimated breeding values (EBVs) and accuracy of EBVs was only slightly altered for discipline-specific traits. With continued specialization in SWB, specialization of the YHT should thus be considered.     

Antinociceptive effect of buprenorphine and evaluation of the nociceptive withdrawal reflex in foals

ObjectiveTo elicit and evaluate the NWR (nociceptive withdrawal reflex) in 2 and 11 day old foals, to investigate if buprenorphine causes antinociception and determine if the NWR response changes with increasing age. The effect of buprenorphine on behaviour was also evaluated.Study designProspective, experimental cross-over trial.AnimalsNine Norwegian Fjord research foals.MethodsBuprenorphine, 10 μg kg⁻¹ was administered intramuscularly (IM) to the same foal at 2 days and at 11 days of age. The NWR and the effect of buprenorphine were evaluated by electromyograms recorded from the left deltoid muscle following electrical stimulation of the left lateral palmar nerve at the level of the pastern. Mentation, locomotor activity and respiratory rate were recorded before and after buprenorphine administration.ResultsWe were able to evoke the NWR and temporal summation in foals using this model. Buprenorphine decreased the root mean square amplitude following single electrical stimulation (p < 0.001) in both age groups, and increased the NWR threshold following single electrical stimulation in 2 day old foals (p = 0.0012). Repeated electrical stimulation at 2 Hz was more effective to elicit temporal summation compared to 5 Hz (p < 0.001). No effect of age upon the NWR threshold was found (p = 0.34). Sedation when left undisturbed (11 occasions), increased locomotor activity when handled (9 occasions) and tachypnea (13 occasions) were common side-effects of buprenorphine.Conclusion and clinical relevanceThese findings indicate that buprenorphine has antinociceptive effect in foals. Opioid side effects often recognized in adult horses also occur in foals.