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Effects of different salinities on growth performance, survival, digestive enzyme activity, immune response, and muscle fatty acid composition in juvenile American shad (Alosa sapidissima)

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Abstract

The effects of salinity on survival, growth, special activity of digestive enzymes, nonspecific immune response, and muscle fatty acid composition were evaluated in the American shad (Alosa sapidissima). Juveniles of 35 days after hatching were reared at 0 (control), 7, 14, 21, and 28 ppt for 60 days. At the end of the experiment, juvenile American shad presented higher survival and specific growth rate (SGR) in salinity group (7, 14, and 21 ppt) than control group (P < 0.05). The special activity of trypsin and chymotrypsin was highest in fish reared at 21 ppt, while the highest lipase special activity was obtained in control group (P < 0.05). The special activity of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), lysozyme (LZM), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) showed significant increases in salinity group (14 and 21 ppt) compared to control group (P < 0.05). Lower muscle ash contents were detected in salinity group (14, 21, and 28 ppt) than control group (P < 0.05), while the contents of crude lipid and crude protein were significantly higher than control group (P < 0.05). The level of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) exhibited a decreasing trend, while an increased level of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) was detected with the increase of salinity. Among the PUFA, the content of n-3 fatty acids in muscle tissue was found to be increasing with the increasing salinity, especially eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Results indicate that appropriate increase in salinity was reasonable and beneficial for juvenile American shad culture after a comprehensive consideration, especially salinity range from 14 to 21 ppt.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Jiangsu Province Technology Infrastructure Construction Project (BM201312), Qingdao postdoctoral application research project (Q51201611), and State Level Commonweal Project of Research Institutes (20603022015005). The authors thank the Jiangsu Zhongyang Group to provide the larvae used in the present study, and thank Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute for their excellent technical assistance.

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  1. Fisheries College, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, People’s Republic of China

    Zhi-Feng Liu

  2. Key Laboratory for Sustainable Development of Marine Fisheries, Ministry of Agriculture, Qingdao Key Laboratory for Marine Fish Breeding and Biotechnology, Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute Chinese, Academy of Fishery Sciences, Qingdao, 266071, People’s Republic of China

    Zhi-Feng Liu, Xiao-Qiang Gao, Jiu-Xiang Yu, Bao-Liang Liu & Lei Hong

  3. Jiangsu Zhongyang Group, Nantong, 226600, People’s Republic of China

    Xiao-Ming Qian & Qiao-Yun Zhang

  4. Haian Aquatic Product Technology Promotion Department, Nantong, 226600, People’s Republic of China

    Guo-Ping Xue

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Liu, ZF., Gao, XQ., Yu, JX. et al. Effects of different salinities on growth performance, survival, digestive enzyme activity, immune response, and muscle fatty acid composition in juvenile American shad (Alosa sapidissima). Fish Physiol Biochem 43, 761–773 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-016-0330-3

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