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Utilization of an endocrine growth index, insulin-like growth factor binding protein (IGFBP)-1b, for postsmolt coho salmon in the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada

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Abstract

Monitoring the growth of salmon during their early marine phase provides insights into prey availability, and growth rates may be linked to risks of size-dependent mortality. However, the measurement of growth rate is challenging for free-living salmon in the ocean. Insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I is a growth-promoting hormone that is emerging as a useful index of growth in salmon. In addition, laboratory-based studies using coho salmon have shown that one of circulating IGF-binding proteins (IGFBPs), IGFBP-1b, is induced by fasting and thus could be used as an inverse index of growth and/or catabolic state in salmon. However, few studies have measured plasma levels of IGFBP-1b in salmon in the wild. We measured plasma IGFBP-1b levels for postsmolt coho salmon collected in the Strait of Georgia and surrounding waters, British Columbia, Canada, and compared regional differences in IGFBP-1b to ecological information such as seawater temperature and stomach fullness. Plasma IGFBP-1b levels were the highest in fish from Eastern Johnstone Strait and relatively high in Queen Charlotte Strait and Western Johnstone Strait, which was in good agreement with the poor ocean conditions for salmon hypothesized to occur in that region. The molar ratio of plasma IGF-I to IGFBP-1b, a theoretical parameter of IGF-I availability to the receptor, discriminated differences among regions better than IGF-I or IGFBP-1b alone. Our data suggest that plasma IGFBP-1b reflects catabolic status in postsmolt coho salmon, as highlighted in fish in Eastern Johnston Strait, and is a useful tool to monitor negative aspects of salmon growth in the ocean.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Mary Thiess, John Morris, Tyler Zubkowski, Yeongha (Johan) Jung, and Carol Cooper for their assistance with the organization of survey and sampling and the crews of the C.C.G.S. W.E. Ricker, and the F/V Viking Storm, Larissa Rohrbach, Dina Spangenberg and Shelly Nance for the laboratory support.

Funding

This work was financially supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion Science (JSPS), KAKENHI Grant Numbers 16H0496606 (Munetaka Shimizu), JSPS Research Fellow (16J0343706; Nobuto Kaneko), Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Pacific Salmon Commission (Brian R. Beckman and Marc Trudel), and the National Marine Fisheries Service International Science grant (Brian R. Beckman).

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  1. Marc Trudel

    Present address: Fisheries and Oceans Canada, St Andrews Biological Station, St Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, 3-1-1 Minato, Hakodate, Hokkaido, 041-8611, Japan

    Nobuto Kaneko & Munetaka Shimizu

  2. Environmental and Fisheries Sciences Division, Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 2725 Montlake Boulevard East, Seattle, WA, 98112, USA

    Meredith L. Journey & Brian R. Beckman

  3. Fisheries and Oceans Canada, St Andrews Biological Station, St Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada

    Chrys M. Neville

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  1. Nobuto Kaneko
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  2. Meredith L. Journey
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  4. Marc Trudel
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  5. Brian R. Beckman
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  6. Munetaka Shimizu
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Correspondence to Munetaka Shimizu.

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Kaneko, N., Journey, M.L., Neville, C.M. et al. Utilization of an endocrine growth index, insulin-like growth factor binding protein (IGFBP)-1b, for postsmolt coho salmon in the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada. Fish Physiol Biochem 45, 1867–1878 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-019-00681-y

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