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Effects of weaning age and diets on ontogeny of digestive activities and structures of pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) larvae

Fish Physiology and Biochemistry volume 33, pages 121–133 (2007)Cite this article

Abstract

Growth and ontogeny of digestive function were studied in pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) larvae weaned on artificial food at different ages. Three weaning treatments initiated respectively on day 9 (W9), day 15 (W15) or day 21 (W21) post-hatching (p.h.) were compared with a control group, fed Artemia nauplii from first feeding until the end of the rearing trial on day 36 p.h. The digestive enzyme activities and the ontogeny of digestive structures were investigated using enzymatic assays and histological methods. Growth of pikeperch larvae was significantly affected by precocious weaning. Pancreatic (trypsin and amylase) and intestinal (leucine-alanine peptidase, leucine aminopeptidase N and alkaline phosphatase) enzyme activities were detected from hatching onwards, increased at the moment of first feeding and then decreased. Pepsin secretion occurred at day 29 p. h. only, concurrently with the stomach development and differentiation of gastric glands. In the early weaning group (W9) the maturation process of intestinal enterocytes seems to be impaired and/or delayed and several signs of malnutrition were recorded. Except for alkaline phosphatase activity, no differences in enzyme activities and development of digestive structures were observed among the control, W21, and W15 groups. Moreover, at the end of the experiment, no differences in proteolytic activities were observed among larvae from the different treatments, indicating that, in surviving individuals, the digestive structures were properly developed and the larvae had acquired an adult mode of digestion. Based on the artificial diet used, our results suggested that pikeperch larvae can be weaned from day 15 p.h. without significant adverse effect on digestive capacities (except for alkaline phosphatase) or development of digestive tract, while earlier weaning impaired the onset of the maturation processes of the digestive system, both in terms of morphological structures and enzymatic activities.

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Abbreviations

Amy:

Amylase

AN:

Leucine aminopeptidase N

AP:

Alkaline phosphatase

Leu-ala:

Leucine alanine peptidase

Try:

Trypsin

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Dr Gerard Trausch (URBO) and Dr Michèle Leclercq (Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine) for their precious help in enzymology and histology respectively. This study was initiated by a co-operative project between INSTM (Tunisia) and FUNDP (Belgium) and supported by a CGRI-DRI grant, French-speaking Community of Belgium and Ministry of the Walloon Region.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer, 28, avenue 2 Mars 1934, 2025, Salammbo, Tunisia

    Neila Hamza & Mohamed Mhetli

  2. Unité de Recherche en Biologie des Organismes, University of Namur, Rue de Bruxelles, 61, 5000, Namur, Belgium

    Neila Hamza & Patrick Kestemont

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  1. Neila Hamza
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  2. Mohamed Mhetli
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Correspondence to Patrick Kestemont.

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Hamza, N., Mhetli, M. & Kestemont, P. Effects of weaning age and diets on ontogeny of digestive activities and structures of pikeperch (Sander lucioperca) larvae. Fish Physiol Biochem 33, 121–133 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-006-9123-4

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Keywords

  • Digestive enzymes
  • Histology
  • Larval development
  • Ontogenesis
  • Pikeperch
  • Dry diet

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