Acclimation to a low oxygen environment alters the hematology of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides)

One of the most severe impacts of urbanization on aquatic systems is the increasing presence of low oxygen environments caused by anthropogenic sources of pollution. As urbanization increases nationally and globally, it is becoming exceedingly important to understand how hypoxia affects aquatic fauna, especially fish species. In an effort to better understand the impacts of prolonged hypoxia on fishes, largemouth bass were held at 3.0 and 9.0 mg L^?1 for 50 days, which has previously shown to be temporally sufficient to impart plastic phenotypic changes. Following the holding period, fish from each group were subjected to a low dissolved oxygen (DO) challenge of 2.0 mg L^?1 for 6 h, and their physiological and hematological parameters were compared with control fish held for 6 h with no change in DO. There were no differences in the physiological stress responses between the two holding groups; however, the low oxygen holding group had increased hemoglobin and hematocrit levels following the 6-h low oxygen challenge compared with the high oxygen group. These results suggest largemouth bass exposed to chronic low oxygen conditions, either naturally or anthropogenically, may possess a beneficial advantage of increased oxygen uptake capacity during periods of low oxygen.     

Comparison of different types and levels of commercial soybean lecithin supplemented in semipurified diets for juvenile Litopenaeus vannamei Boone

Two 6-week growth trials were conducted to determine the dietary phospholipids (PL) requirement of Litopenaeus vannamei juveniles and to compare the effect of different types of soybean lecithin on shrimp growth and survival. In the first trial, a basal diet and diets containing 1.5, 3 or 5% (dry-weight basis) of Type I lecithin (97.6% PL) and 1.5 or 3% of Type II lecithin (71.4% PL) were evaluated. In the second trial, the basal diet and diets containing 1, 2 or 4% of either Type I or Type II lecithin and 1 or 2% of Type III lecithin (48.4% PL) were evaluated. Results showed that there was no interaction between lecithin type and PL level on shrimp growth or survival. Shrimp growth increased with PL levels up to 3–5% of diet. No significant differences were observed for instantaneous growth rate (IGR) of shrimp fed the different types of lecithin at the same inclusion level, and no effect of PL level and lecithin type on shrimp survival was found. Thus, the recommended level of PL supplementation in diets for L. vannamei juveniles ranges from 3 to 5% of diet.     

Changes in lipid class and fatty acid composition of adult male Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone) in response to culture temperature and food deprivation

The effects of culture temperature and food deprivation on lipid class and fatty acid composition of adult male Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone) were investigated. Shrimp were maintained in recirculating seawater systems at temperatures of 26 and 32°C and fed 75% dry commercial feed and 25% fresh‐frozen squid for 42 days. Additionally, groups of fed and non‐fed shrimp were maintained at 26°C for 17 days. In shrimp fed at either 26 or 32°C, polar lipids were the main constituents of total identified lipid classes in muscle tissue (66–71%), while neutral lipids were more abundant in hepatopancreas (82–88%). Higher levels of triglycerides were observed in lipids of shrimp hepatopancreas kept at 32°C, but no other lipid class was affected by temperature. A significantly higher proportion of 22:6n‐3 was consistent in muscle and hepatopancreas polar and neutral lipids of shrimp maintained at 26°C. In response to food deprivation, the amount of polar lipids, but not neutral lipids, was reduced by approximately 28% in muscle tissue, whereas all lipid reserves were almost depleted in the hepatopancreas. The variable consumption of some individual fatty acids was observed in polar and neutral lipids of both tissues.     

Mineral Requirements of Penaeus vannamei: A Preliminary Examination of the Dietary Essentiality for Thirteen Minerals

Diets containing a complete mineral premix or mineral premixes from which Ca, P, Na, CI, K, Mg, Mn, Fe, Zn, Cu, I, Se, or Cr were individually deleted were fed to juvenile Penaeus vunnamei (mean initial weight 79.5 mg) over a 4-week experimental period. Final mean percent weight gain ranged from 1,472 (Cu-free mineral premix) to 1,991% (Na-free mineral premix) with an average of 1,812% for all treatments. Survival during the first two week period and the second two week period was greater than 92% and 88%, respectively. There were no significant differences observed among treatments for growth and survival data.
Upon termination of the growth trial, the hepatopancreas and carapace were dissected from the shrimp and evaluated for ash, Ca, P, Na, K, Mg, Mn, Fe, Zn and Cu content. Of the minerals analyzed, the individual deletion of Mg, Mn, Fe, Zn and Cu from the mineral supplement resulted in reduced tissue mineralization in P. vannamei whereas, the deletion of Ca and P from the mineral mix did not produce significant responses. Deletion of Se from the mineral premix resulted in a significant increase in the ash content of the carapace. Based on the information provided by this and other studies, further investigation of the dietary requirements of P. vannamei for Ca, P, Fe, Mg, Mn, Zn, Cu and Se is recommended.     

Effects of Dietary Carbohydrate: Lipid Ratio on Growth and Body Composition of Hybrid Striped Bass

A study was conducted to determine the ability of juvenile hybrid striped bass, Morone crysops ♀× M. saxatilis ♂ , to utilize dietary carbohydrate and lipid for energy. Four semipurified diets containing 35% crude protein were formulated to be isocaloric with various levels of dextrin and menhaden fish oil 50 the carbohydrate: lipid ratio (CHO:L) ranged from 2510 to 42:2.5. Diets were fed in triplicate to groups of hybrid striped bass initially averaging 1.5 g/fish in 38 L aquaria receiving a constant supply of hard (> 180 mg/L as CaCO₃) freshwater for a period of eight weeks. Weight gain, feed and protein efficiencies were similar among all dietary groups. Hepatosomatic index (liver weight × 100/body weight), muscle ratio (whole muscle weight × 100/body weight) and condition factor were also similar, while intraperitoneal fat (IPF) ratio (IPF weight × 100/ body weight) was significantly ( P × 0.05) increased as CHO:L decreased. Proximate composition of muscle did not show any effects of diet. However, dry matter and lipid of whole-body increased significantly as CHO:L decreased; conversely whole-body protein was significantly reduced. Moreover, liver glycogen significantly increased as CHO:L decreased. These data indicate hybrid striped bass are able to efficiently utilize carbohydrate for energy; and dietary lipid, which generally caused increased lipid deposition in various tissues, could be partially replaced with carbohydrate to improve fish quality and productivity.     

Anthelmintic resistance and the future for roundworm control

Anthelmintic resistance has emerged as the most important problem confronting the successful control of nematode parasites of grazing animals. Although the significance of the problem varies between, and within, countries and farming enterprises, there is little likelihood that it will disappear of its own accord. On the contrary, it is reasonable to assume that it will increase if there is no change in traditional methods of parasite control. Although progress is being made in non-chemotherapeutic methods of control, these are unlikely to provide any practical alternatives in the short-term future. Nor can the pharmaceutical industry be expected to solve the problem because of the long period and the exceedingly high costs involved in bringing a completely new class of drug on to the market. The answer must lie in carefully husbanding the currently available anthelmintics, by providing farmers with programs which give good levels of parasite control and maintain high productivity in animals with fewer anthelmintic treatments. To be enthusiastically adopted by farmers, the programs require a commitment by both research and advisory workers. Such success can be achieved, as exemplified by the "Drenchplan" and "Wormkill" programs in Australia. It behoves workers in all countries which have a significant grazing livestock industry, not only those with an existing resistance problem, to consider how such schemes could be implemented.     

ASAS–NANP Symposium: Mathematical Modeling in Animal Nutrition: Opportunities and challenges of confined and extensive precision livestock production

Modern animal scientists, industry, and managers have never faced a more complex world. Precision livestock technologies have altered management in confined operations to meet production, environmental, and consumer goals. Applications of precision technologies have been limited in extensive systems such as rangelands due to lack of infrastructure, electrical power, communication, and durability. However, advancements in technology have helped to overcome many of these challenges. Investment in precision technologies is growing within the livestock sector, requiring the need to assess opportunities and challenges associated with implementation to enhance livestock production systems. In this review, precision livestock farming and digital livestock farming are explained in the context of a logical and iterative five-step process to successfully integrate precision livestock measurement and management tools, emphasizing the need for precision system models (PSMs). This five-step process acts as a guide to realize anticipated benefits from precision technologies and avoid unintended consequences. Consequently, the synthesis of precision livestock and modeling examples and key case studies help highlight past challenges and current opportunities within confined and extensive systems. Successfully developing PSM requires appropriate model(s) selection that aligns with desired management goals and precision technology capabilities. Therefore, it is imperative to consider the entire system to ensure that precision technology integration achieves desired goals while remaining economically and managerially sustainable. Achieving long-term success using precision technology requires the next generation of animal scientists to obtain additional skills to keep up with the rapid pace of technology innovation. Building workforce capacity and synergistic relationships between research, industry, and managers will be critical. As the process of precision technology adoption continues in more challenging and harsh, extensive systems, it is likely that confined operations will benefit from required advances in precision technology and PSMs, ultimately strengthening the benefits from precision technology to achieve short- and long-term goals.