Abstract
Metabolite changes in Nile tilapia in response to carbonate alkalinity stress were investigated by transferring the fish directly from freshwater into different carbonate alkaline water. Levels of plasma pH/HCO3− concentration, the mRNA and protein expression of two carbonic anhydrases (CAhz and CAIV), and two HCO3− transporters (Na+/HCO3− cotransporter and Cl−/HCO3– exchanger) in the gill, kidney, and intestine were determined using a pH meter, UV spectrophotometer, quantitative real-time PCR, and western blotting within 192 h of exposure. Plasma pH showed an “up-peak-down” variation, whereas HCO3− concentration decreased at first and then increased in all alkaline water groups. The overall mRNA expression was regulated in an alkalinity- and time-dependent manner. Western blot results showed that the Cl−/HCO3− exchanger protein was detected in all tissues examined, whereas the two carbonic anhydrases and Na+/HCO3− cotransporter proteins were only expressed in the gill and kidney. Therefore, the studied carbonic anhydrases and HCO3− transporters are involved in the HCO3− metabolism and transport to maintain acid–base balance in Nile tilapia under carbonate alkalinity stress.
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Acknowledgements
This research was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2020YFD0900400), the China Agriculture Research System of MOF and MARA (Grant No. CARS-46), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 31602128). We thank International Science Editing (http://www.internationalscienceediting.com) for editing this manuscript. I certify that this manuscript is original and has not been published elsewhere in any form or language and will not be submitted elsewhere for publication while being considered by Hydrobiologia. In addition, the study is not split into several parts to increase the number of submissions and submitted to various journals or one journal over time. No data have been fabricated or manipulated (including images) to support our conclusions. No data, text, or theories by others are presented as if they were our own. Proper acknowledgments to other works have been given.
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This research was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2020YFD0900400), the China Agriculture Research System of MOF and MARA (Grant No. CARS-46), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 31602128).
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Zhao, Y., Wang, Y., Zhang, C. et al. Variation in pH, HCO3−, carbonic anhydrases, and HCO3− transporters in Nile tilapia during carbonate alkalinity stress. Hydrobiologia 850, 2447–2459 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-022-05020-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-022-05020-6