Hot water immersion lowers survival,shell growth rate and lysosomal membrane stability of oysters Crassostrea virginica (Gmelin)

This study compares the effect of two anti‐fouling treatments, hot water immersion (15 s at 60°C) and air drying (72 h) on the physiological status of the Eastern oyster Crassostrea virginica. The negative impact of hot water immersion was greater than that of air drying, but varied depending on the initial size of the oysters (40 vs. 60 mm shell height) and the time of the year (June vs. August). Groups treated with hot water exhibited a higher proportion of haemocytes with destabilized lysosomal membranes (HDLM; 47.5 ± 3.1%) than those exposed to air drying (37.5 ± 2.9%). This suggests that the oyster immunocompetency may be lowered by hot water immersion. Overall, the large oysters had lower HDLM values (32.9 ± 3.5%) than the small individuals in June (45.7 ± 2.8%) but similar values in August (46.6 ± 3.5%). Small oysters subjected to hot water immersion in June exhibited a 50% reduction in shell growth and a 50% mortality rate after one month. Our results indicate that air drying is more suitable than hot water immersion as an anti‐fouling treatment for <45 mm oysters.     

Growth performance and biochemical composition of the oysters Crassostrea sikamea,Crassostrea angulata and their hybrids in southern China

The Kumamoto oyster (Crassostrea sikamea) and the Portuguese oyster (C. angulata) are important aquaculture species which naturally coexist along the southern coast of China. To understand the potential feasibility of hybridization between the two species, we conducted two‐by‐two factorial cross‐experiments in Beihai (Guangxi province), and also compared the survival and growth of the hybrids to that of the two parental progenies during the grow‐out period from July 2014 to July 2015. Genetic analysis confirmed that the hybrid spats were true hybrids. Additionally, the biochemical composition of the 1‐year‐old oyster progenies was determined. In July 2015, the mean shell height of the hybrids was 42.98 ± 6.29 mm, which was higher than that of the Kumamoto oyster progeny. The cumulative survival rate of the hybrids was 26.37 ± 1.32%, which was higher than that of the progeny of the Portuguese oyster. Mean lipid content of the hybrids was 13.65 ± 1.63% of dry weight, which showed obvious heterosis compared to those of the two parental progenies. Observation of gonads revealed that all hybrids were completely fertile. Furthermore, relative expression of the lipid homeostasis genes, SREBP (sterol regulatory element‐binding proteins), PPARα (peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor) and INSIG (insulin‐induced gene) were found to vary between parental progenies and the hybrids, thus providing a possible reason for difference in the lipid contents of these experimental groups. Overall, the hybrids were viable, rich in lipid and completely fertile and thus could serve as a promising aquaculture stock for oyster breeding in southern China.     

Effects of starvation on survival,growth and development of Exopalaemon carinicauda larvae

This study aimed at evaluating the effects of two starvation modes (fasting‐feeding mode and feeding‐fasting mode) on survival, growth and development of mysis larvae of Exopalaemon carinicauda. It showed that food restriction significantly affected the survival, growth and development in both starvation modes. With the extension of initial starvation period, a significantly reduced survival rate during metamorphosis was observed. In the fasting‐feeding mode, the duration of metamorphosis was extended and the body lengths of the individuals, which experienced successful metamorphosis to the post‐larval stage 1, were much shorter. In the feeding‐fasting mode, the extension of initial feeding period led to dramatically increased survival rate and body lengths, while there was no significant difference in duration of metamorphosis of those groups that reached to post‐larval stage. The 50% point‐of‐no‐return and the 50% point‐of‐reserve‐saturation were 3.85 days and 4.81 days respectively. The results of this study indicate that E. carinicauda mysis have the ability to withstand or recover from relatively extended starvation, but to ensure the success of commercial seedling, timely and adequate feeding is necessary. The information obtained from this study could provide a basis to optimize the feeding schedule of artificial seedling of E. carinicauda.     

Effects of tagging on migration behaviour,survival and growth of hatchery‐reared Atlantic salmon smolts

The effects of four different tagging methods (PIT, anchor T‐tag, Carlin tag and dummy radio transmitter) on survival, behaviour and growth of Atlantic salmon smolts during their downstream migration were examined in semi‐natural circular channels during a natural migration period in spring. Survival of smolts was high and tagging wounds healed well in all tagging groups. Tag loss rates were generally low, being the highest (2.5%) in the dummy radio transmitter group. Total length and body mass of the tagged and untagged smolts did not differ at the end of the experiment. Migration activity of smolts generally showed similar patterns among the treatments. However, Carlin‐tagged smolts started their migration slightly later than the PIT‐tagged fish, and smolts tagged with Carlin tag or dummy radio transmitter showed less overall migration activity than fish with PIT tag.     

Effects of dietary nucleotides on growth,survival and metabolic response in whiteleg shrimp,Litopenaeus vannamei against ammonia stress condition

This trial was conducted to evaluate the effects of nucleotides on growth of whiteleg shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei, and the survival and metabolic responses to ammonia stress test. Experimental diets were as follows: low fish meal diet (LFMD), and four LFMD test diets, each supplemented with 0.1% guanosine monophosphate (GMP), 0.1% inosine monophosphate (IMP), 0.1% mixture of GMP and IMP and 0.1% mixture of GMP, IMP, uridine monophosphate (UMP) and cytidine monophosphate (CMP). The shrimp specimens (initial body weight: 0.99 ± 0.01 g) were randomly allocated into five groups and fed four times daily for 8‐weeks. After the trial, final body weight was recorded and haemolymph was withdrawn for haematological analysis. The shrimp was then challenged with 70 mg/L ammonia (LC50) for 10 days. Survival and haemolymph of the shrimp were taken after exposure to ammonia. The highest growth performance was observed in the shrimp fed diet supplemented with GMP (p < .05), while survival was not influenced by the test diets in the feeding trial. In the ammonia challenge test, the highest survival was observed in the shrimp fed GMP supplemented diet compared to others. The plasma protein, glucose and cholesterol levels increased in all the treatments while triglycerides level decreased post challenge. Cortisol level recovered at day 10th after the challenge. Shrimps fed with nucleotides diets showed higher protein and glucose level compared to control groups post challenge. In general, nucleotides supplemented in the diet enhanced growth, improved stress resistance while modulating the haemolymph metabolites in L. vannamei under ammonia stress.     

Genetic parameters of growth and survival in the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas

The Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas is a representative bivalve mollusc that is widely cultured in the world and is the largest molluscan group cultured in China. In order to assess the feasibility of improving survival of C. gigas through genetic selection, the heritability and genetic correlations for growth and survival traits between different life stages were examined. Genetic parameters were estimated based on intraclass correlations of 49 full‐sib families (29 half‐sib families) in larvae (4 and 20 days after fertilization) and spat (140 days after fertilization) stages. The heritability for growth traits in larvae and spat was 0.30–0.86 and 0.53–0.59, respectively, and varied with ages. The heritability of survival was low in larvae (0.13 ± 0.05 and 0.17 ± 0.04, respectively for 4 and 20 days after fertilization) but medium (0.39 ± 0.07) in spat, suggesting that selection for increasing spat survival was feasible. The genetic correlation between growth traits within age was medium to high and positive (ranging from 0.47 to 0.96, respectively, between shell length (SL) and shell height (SH) at 20 days and between SL and SH at 140 days after fertilization), suggesting that selection to improve single growth trait will cause positive response in another growth traits in C. gigas. The genetic correlations between survival and growth traits at 140 days were low but positive (ranging from 0.23 to 0.27, respectively, between survival and SH and between survival and SL at 140 days after fertilization), suggesting that selection for survival may not have a negative response in growth. Overall, this study suggests that survival traits should be taken as improving target of next selection breeding programme in C. gigas.     

Effect of ploidy on the mortality of Crassostrea gigas spat caused by OsHV‐1 in France using unselected and selected OsHV‐1 resistant oysters

The effect of ploidy on the mortality of Crassostrea gigas spat caused by the ostreid herpesvirus (OsHV‐1) genotype μVar was investigated at five sites along the Atlantic coast in France in 2011. Sibling diploids and triploids were produced using either unselected or selected OsHV‐1‐resistant oysters. No significant interactions were found between the factors of environment, genotype and ploidy at the endpoint dates. The mean mortality rates at the sites were 62% and 59% for diploids and triploids, respectively, and the two rates were not significantly different. The mean mortality rates were 33% and 32% for sibling diploids and triploids, respectively, when OsHV‐1‐resistant parents were used and 91% and 85%, respectively, when unselected parents were used. The results were confirmed through other broodstocks tested in 2013. Our study is the first to clearly show that mortality related to OsHV‐1 is similar between diploids and triploids in C. gigas when the same germplasm is used for both ploidy. Furthermore, OsHV‐1 resistance was not substantially altered by triploidization, indicating that the achieved selective breeding of diploid oysters for OsHV‐1 resistance can be translated into improved survival in triploids.     

Effects of low salinity exposure on immunological,physiological and growth performance in Litopenaeus vannamei

Growth, immunological and physiological parameters of white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei reared at different salinity levels (1, 10, 15, 25 and 35 g/L) at stocking density of 214 shrimp/m³ were examined at 1, 30 and 63 days. Results showed that the total haemocyte count (THC) of shrimp decreased with time at all salinity levels, indicating a potential reduction in the resistance of shrimp against pathogens, since a low value of THC indicates a perturbation of the immune system. Glucose and protein values observed in the haemolymph throughout the study indicate that shrimp adapted well to low salinities (1, 10 and 15 g/L). Although of those shrimp reared at 10 g/L only 83.3% survived, at this salinity, shrimp depicted a higher glucose concentration in haemolymph at the beginning and end of the study.     

Effects of Pediococcus pentosaceus supplementation on growth performance,intestinal microflora and disease resistance of white shrimp,Litopenaeus vannamei

Litopenaeus vannamei is economically important shrimp species in worldwide aquaculture. This study was conducted to assess the effect of different levels of probiotic Pediococcus pentosaceus (PP) on growth performance, feed utilization, digestive enzyme activity, intestinal microflora count and body composition of L. vannamei. Four diets containing different concentrations [0 (PP0), 10⁶ (PPI), 10⁷ (PPII) and 10⁸ (PPIII) CFU/g] of PP were formulated. After 8 weeks feeding trial, the experimental shrimps were challenged with Vibrio anguillarum and noted the surveillance. At the end of the feeding trial, the obtained results revealed a significant increase (p < .05) in final body weight, final length, weight gain (WG), survival rate, protease and amylase activities, lactobacillus sp. and Bacillus sp. intestinal count, total haemocyte counts (THC) and lysozyme activity in PPIII group when compared with the other groups. Similarly, WG, amylase activity, Bacillus sp. count, THC and lysozyme activity were significantly enhanced in case of PPII compared to the control group (p < .05). Interestingly, FCR and Vibrio sp. counts were significantly decreased in case of PPIII group when compared to the other groups (p < .05). Also, significant level of surveillance was noted in the challenging test with V. anguillarum. These results suggested that the P. pentosaceus improved the growth performance, digestive enzyme activity, immunity and tolerance against V. anguillarum of L. vannamei.     

温度和盐度急性胁迫对岩牡蛎存活及免疫指标的影响

为探究岩牡蛎(Crassostreanippona)对不同温度和盐度急性变化的适应性,本研究通过将岩牡蛎从暂养环境(27℃,盐度32)直接转移至5个温度梯度(15℃、19℃、23℃、31℃、35℃)和6个盐度梯度(16、20、24、28、36、40),研究了急性胁迫对岩牡蛎超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)、过氧化氢酶(CAT)、碱性磷酸酶(AKP)、溶菌酶(LSZ)活性、丙二醛(MDA)含量及存活的影响。温度实验结果显示,15～31℃组岩牡蛎存活率均高于71.11%,35℃组存活率最低(34.44%),而15℃组免疫指标活性均受到明显抑制, MDA含量在144 h时达到最大值(46.93 nmol/mg prot);温度19℃、23℃、31℃组SOD、CAT、AKP和LSZ活性及MDA含量受应激显著上升后均逐渐恢复至对照水平。盐度实验结果表明, 40组盐度变化对岩牡蛎存活抑制明显,显著低于其他处理组(P0.05),适宜岩牡蛎存活的盐度变化为20～36组;盐度16组SOD、CAT、AKP和LSZ活性144 h时均显著低于对照组(P0.05), MDA含量与胁迫时间成正相关最终达到最大值(45.76 nmol/mg prot)。研究表明,温度和盐度突变均会对岩牡蛎5项免疫指标和存活率产生显著影响,岩牡蛎对温度19～31℃组和盐度20～36组突变具有较强的适应能力。     

Effects of crude extracellular protein and crude intracellular polysaccharides of Vibrio alginolyticus on the growth,energy metabolism regulation and WSSV resistance of Litopenaeus vannamei

This study aimed to investigate the effects of adding crude extracts of the extracellular protein (Ex‐Pro) and intracellular polysaccharides (In‐Poly) of Vibrio alginolyticus to diets, at a dosage of 10 g/kg, on the growth, energy metabolism and WSSV (White Spot Syndrome Virus) resistance of Litopenaeus vannamei (initial weight, 0.88 ± 0.04 g/shrimp). Growth and survival rate were not significantly affected by the crude extracts (p > 0.05). Shrimp fed Ex‐Pro crude extracts showed higher succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) activity in the hepatopancreas and muscle but lower lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity in the muscle (p < 0.05). The activities of hexokinase (HK), pyruvate kinase (PK), LDH and SDH in the hepatopancreas and the activity of SDH in the muscle were significantly increased by feeding In‐Poly crude extracts (p < 0.05). In contrast, the content of fatty acid synthase (FAS) in the muscle was significantly reduced by the crude extracts (p < 0.05). The contents of glucose and triglyceride and the activity of the electron transport system in the hepatopancreas were significantly increased by the crude extracts (p < 0.05), and the WSSV resistance of the shrimp was increased. These results indicated that the Ex‐Pro and In‐Poly crude extracts of V. alginolyticus could affect energy metabolism, and there was a correlation between WSSV resistance and energy metabolism in L. vannamei.     

A comparative study of the survival,growth and gonad development of the diploid and triploid Hong Kong oyster,Crassostrea hongkongensis (Lam & Morton 2003)

The Hong Kong oyster, Crassostrea hongkongensis is an economically important and widely cultivated oyster species in southern China. Aiming to improve the aquaculture potentials of C. hongkongensis, a triploid organism was generated by inhibiting the second polar body formation in the fertilized eggs, using 0.5 mg L^?1 cytochalasin B. Triploids exhibited significantly higher growth and were larger than the diploids throughout the life cycle. Much of the triploid growth advantage can be attributed to resource reallocation to structural development due to gonadal sterility. Most of the triploid oysters exhibited polymorphic sterility with atrophic gonads and abnormal gametogenesis. Only few ‘dysfunctional’ sperms were produced by the triploid males, thus ruling out reproductive and genetic contamination of natural oyster populations from triploid cultivations. This advantage in addition to the superior growth of triploids makes it a potent alternative in Hong Kong oyster aquaculture industry. Triploid survival was mostly found to be similar to that of diploids except for day 360, when a significant triploid advantage in terms of survival was noted. Furthermore, we found that growth and survival of Hong Kong oyster is significantly higher at the Zhuhai site in comparison to the Beihai site. Our results indicate a strong environmental effect in Hong Kong oyster cultivation and points to the fact that Zhuhai site was more suitable for oyster farming than the Beihai site. Overall, this study provides valuable information to the aquaculture industry of southern China.     

Effects of thyroxine,cod liver oil and potassium iodide on growth and survival of juvenile seahorse,Hippocampus barbouri

Low survival at early stage is the bottleneck in seahorse aquaculture, particularly in the feeding aspect since newborn seahorses must feed immediately upon birth to sustain themselves. Seahorses are visual predator, therefore preferred live feed such as zooplankton. In aquaculture, the most common live feed used is Artemia. In this study, two experiments were conducted to determine the effect of different Artemia enrichment on the growth and survival of newborn Hippocampus barbouri. In the first experiment, six treatments using Artemia enriched with Culture Selco Plus? (SELCO), thyroxine (T4), potassium iodide (KI), cod liver oil (CLO), cod liver oil in combination with thyroxine (CLO + T4) and potassium iodide (CLO+KI) were fed to newborn H. barbouri. Newly hatched Artemia were used as control. At the end of first experiment, treatments using CLO + T4 produced juvenile H. barbouri with the best (p < .05) wet weight (0.142 ± 0.000 g), while juvenile in treatment CLO+KI recorded the highest (p < .05) standard length (3.947 ± 0.014 cm). Subsequently, a second experiment was carried out using the two best enrichment (CLO + T4 and CLO + KI) from the first experiment, but given at different frequency (daily, twice a week, once a week, once in 2 weeks). Daily enrichment using both CLO + T4 and CLO + KI showed no significant (p > .05) difference in growth performance and survival of juvenile of H. barbouri. Interestingly, juvenile fed CLO + T4 enriched Artemia at frequency of twice a week also has no significant difference (p > .05) in survival and growth performance (except for final standard length) when compared with treatment CLO + T4 at daily frequency.     

Effects of continuous and alternate administration of β‐glucan and mannan‐oligosaccharide on the growth,immunity and resistance against Vibrio splendidus of sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus (Selenka)

A 4‐week growth trial was conducted to compare the effects of different feeding strategies of dietary immunostimulants on the growth, immunity and resistance against Vibrio splendidus of sea cucumbers Apostichopus japonicus (Selenka). Six feeding strategies were set, including feeding immunostimulants‐free diet continuously (control), feeding dietary β‐glucan (1.25 g kg^?1 diet) continuously, feeding dietary mannan‐oligosaccharides (MOS; 2.00 g kg^?1 diet) continuously, feeding β‐glucan 2 days followed by MOS 5 days alternately, feeding β‐glucan 5 days followed by MOS 2 days alternately and feeding β‐glucan 7 days followed by MOS 7 days alternately. The sea cucumbers fed immunostimulants showed higher specific growth rate (SGR) and lower cumulative mortality than control (P < 0.05). When sea cucumbers were fed with β‐glucan continuously, total coelomocytes counts and superoxide anion were significantly higher than control on the 4th day (P < 0.05). However, these two immune parameters were not significantly higher than those in control after the 18th day (P > 0.05). While sea cucumbers continuously fed MOS, these two immune parameters were not significantly higher than control until the 15th day. All immune parameters of the sea cucumbers fed with β‐glucan and MOS alternately were significantly higher than those in control during the experiment (P < 0.05). The sea cucumbers fed with β‐glucan 7 days followed MOS 7 days alternately showed the highest SGR and second lowest cumulative mortality. It was suggested that this feeding strategy is most suitable for sea cucumbers.     

The consequences of diet limitation in juvenile threespine stickleback: growth,lipid storage and the phenomenon of compensatory growth

Many organisms exhibit compensatory growth (CG), an accelerated growth rate during recovery from periods of low nutrient resources. Despite numerous studies, many aspects of CG, particularly fine‐scale temporal effects early in life, remain poorly understood. We manipulated early‐life feeding regimens in threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) to study compensatory responses in growth rate and lipid storage during the first growing season. Laboratory‐reared stickleback, including ancestral oceanic and derived freshwater populations, were divided into three age‐specific dietary treatment groups – DPR1, DPR2 and DPR3 – which were exposed to a half‐ration nutrient deprivation for 30 days at the onset of 2, 3 and 4 months of age, respectively. We hypothesised that these month‐long periods of nutrient deprivation would result in strong, yet variable CG responses across stickleback populations and dietary treatments following a return to optimal ration levels. The youngest two age classes of fish (DPR1 &and DPR2) exhibited strong CG responses, matching growth rates and lipid generation levels seen in control fish fed an ad libitum diet. The oldest nutrient‐deprived group (DPR3) showed a reduced CG response, with body growth recovering only partially, and lipid levels exhibiting even less recovery. Our results demonstrate that compensatory growth responses in juvenile stickleback depend on the timing of deprivation during the first growing season and further that responses to late‐season deprivation have favoured development of a larger body frame entering the overwintering season over lipid regeneration.     

Effects of docosahexaenoic acid on growth,survival and swim bladder inflation of larval amberjack ( Seriola dumerili, Risso)

The effect of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on the growth performance, survival and swim bladder inflation of larval Seriola dumerili during the rotifer feeding period was investigated in two feeding experiments. Amberjack larvae at 3 day post hatching were fed rotifers enriched with (1) freshwater C hlorella (Chlo), (2) a mixture (2:1, v/v) of Chlo and DHA‐enriched C hlorella (DHA‐Chlo), (3) DHA‐Chlo and (4) DHA‐Chlo and commercial DHA emulsion, in triplicate for 7 days. The average DHA contents of the rotifers were 0.0, 0.4, 1.0 and 1.9 mg g^?1 DM respectively. The survival rate was improved by the enrichment of rotifers with DHA‐Chlo alone, and DHA‐Chlo and emulsion. Growth and swim bladder inflation of fish fed rotifers enriched with DHA‐Chlo were significantly (P < 0.05) improved, however, with increased levels of DHA further improvement was not found. DHA content in the larval whole body proportionally increased with the DHA level in the rotifers. These results suggest that DHA enrichment of rotifers is effective to improve the growth, survival rate and swim bladder inflation of amberjack larvae. The DHA requirement of amberjack larvae is estimated to be 1.5 mg g^?1 on a dry matter basis of rotifers.     

Effects of dietary inclusion of various concentrations of Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi extract on growth,body composition,serum chemistry and challenge test of far eastern catfish (Silurus asotus)

Effects of various concentrations of Scutellaria baicalensis (SB) extract in diets on growth, body composition, serum chemistry and disease challenge test of far eastern catfish (Silurus asotus) were determined and compared with a commercially available immune enhancer. Eight experimental diets were prepared in triplicate: control (Con) diet without supplementation of SB and SB‐0.25, SB‐0.5, SB‐1, SB‐2, SB‐3 and SB‐5 diets containing SB at concentrations of 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 3 and 5%, respectively. In addition, 0.1% of a commercial immune enhancer product (CP) was also tested. No significant difference in weight gain of fish was found. Feed consumption, feed efficiency ratio and protein retention of fish were not affected by the experimental diets. At the end of the 8‐week feeding trial, 10 externally normal fish from each tank were infected by Vibrio anguillarum or Strepotococcus iniae. Cumulative mortality of fish fed the Con diet was higher than that of fish fed the all other diets in 10 and 25 days after V. anguillarum or S. iniae infection. Results of this study indicated that dietary inclusion of SB extract was effective in improving survival of eastern catfish after V. anguillarum and S. iniae infection, but the various concentrations of SB did not affect fish performance.     

Identification and characterization of the pathogen associated with skin ulcer syndrome in lined seahorse,Hippocampus erectus

The lined seahorse, Hippocampus erectus, is an Atlantic species, which mainly inhabits shallow sea beds or coral reefs. Seahorse has become very popular in China due to its wide use in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). However, the aquaculture of the lined seahorse has been threatened by a variety of diseases, especially bacterial infections. Skin ulcer syndrome becomes more and more common in the culture of seahorses, leading to skin ulcer, liver erosion and minority tail rotting. These diseased seahorses die in only 72 hr, causing huge economic losses in aquaculture. Pathogen HMT‐1 was isolated from the lined seahorses with skin ulcer syndrome, which was identified as Vibrio harveyi. The median lethal dose (LD₅₀) of HMT‐1 was 2.88 × 10⁸ cfu/ml. The pathogenic mechanism of HMT‐1 was preliminarily studied, and the pathological changes of the diseased lined seahorses were also investigated. Moreover, the activities of ACP, complement 3, SOD and LZM at different time post injection were measured by commercial kits. Our findings can provide reliable reference for diagnosis and treatment in the future.