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Ontogeny and development of the gastrointestinal system in Indian walking catfish (Clarias magur) during its early development

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Abstract

Ontogeny of the digestive tract and its accessory organs and their further development in the Indian walking catfish (Clarias magur) were examined in larvae, starting from the day of hatching until 35 days post-hatching (dph) reared at 28–29 °C. Many organs at their primordial stage were seen on the day of hatching. These include opened oral cavity with monolayered epithelial lining and very few newly emerging taste buds and goblet cells, primordial pharyngeal teeth on slightly stratified epithelia of the pharyngeal plate, stomach anlage with some degree of the mucosal fold, and a few newly forming gastric glands embedded under its mucosa, primordial anterior and posterior intestine with the smooth mucosal surface, anal opening, and primordial liver and pancreas. At 1 dph, the stomach appeared to be bilobed with the first evidence of food particle in it, and the intestine had some initial folding. On the day of hatching, goblet cells appeared in all lengths of the gut, but not densely, except in the stomach; on it, they appeared at 2 dph. Pancreatic zymogen granules also appeared on this day. Supranuclear vesicles first appeared on 4–5 dph (7.9 ± 0.5–8.6 ± 0.8 mm TL), and they continue to exist until 35 dph. The developmental sequence in this fish confirmed it as an altricial species with some major histomorphological events after the onset of feeding; these include—the appearance of fully developed—pharyngeal teeth at 4 dph and onwards, pyloric sphincter, anterior to posterior intestinal sphincter at 6 dph, and the continuous development of buccopharyngeal cavity and stomach in their shape, size, and functionality until the completion of metamorphosis. Overall, the information on gastrointestinal development in the early life stage of C. magur will be useful for understanding its larval digestive physiology, and this, in turn, will help in designing effective larval feed for growth and survival.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the Director, ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, Bhubaneswar, India, for providing the necessary facilities and support to carry out this research.

Funding

The financial assistance provided by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare, New Delhi, India, as the institutional project is highly acknowledged.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, 751002, India

      Rakhi Kumari & G. M. Siddaiah

    2. ICAR-Directorate of Coldwater Fisheries Research (DCFR), Bhimtal, Uttarakhand, 263136, India

      Prakash Sharma, Debajit Sarma & Maneesh K. Dubey

    3. Institute of Fisheries Post Graduate Studies, Tamil Nadu Dr. J. Jayalalithaa Fisheries University, Vaniyanchavadi, Chennai, 603 103, India

      Isfaq Nazir Mir

    4. ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, 400061, India

      P. P. Srivastava

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    1. Rakhi Kumari
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    Contributions

    Conceived and designed the experiment: R.K. and S.G.M. Performed the experiment: R.K. and S.G.M. Analyzed the data: R.K., P.S., and M.K.D. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: D.S., P.S., R.K., and M.K.D. Wrote the paper: R.K. and P.S. Review and editing: D.S., I.N.M., and P.P.S.

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    Correspondence to Rakhi Kumari.

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    Rakhi Kumari and Prakash Sharma contributed equally to the manuscript

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    Kumari, R., Sharma, P., Sarma, D. et al. Ontogeny and development of the gastrointestinal system in Indian walking catfish (Clarias magur) during its early development. Fish Physiol Biochem 47, 1033–1052 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-021-00957-2

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