Stress caused by the 'mark-recapture' method to Coregonus albula (L)

The aim of this study was to establish if capture and marking caused stress to C. albula , and if a 'mark-recapture' method was suitable for the estimation of a population of C. albula . The blood lactate and glucose levels and the liver and muscle glycogen content were determined during the initial handling and subsequent recovery of the fish in the autumn and spring.
The blood lactate content did not increase to the critical level. Usually the values were distinctly less than 100 mg %, but the blood glucose content increased throughout the whole experiment (24 h) until it reached 250 mg %. The glycogen content in liver and muscle decreased. The liver glycogen of female C. albula was below 0·3 % in autumn, while the values for males were 3–5 %. In spring, the corresponding values were about 0·5 % in both sexes. During handling, the critical period was when the glycogen reserves in the liver became negligible, and female C. albula in autumn had the greatest risk of dying because of their low liver glycogen content.
Spring seemed to be a better season for marking than the autumn. A steady increase in blood glucose indicated there was also stress in spring and the marking time in both seasons should be less than two hours.     

Seasonal variation of energy metabolism in ghost crab Ocypode quadrata at Siriú Beach (Brazil)

The aim of this study was to analyze the seasonal variations of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism of the ghost crab Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius, 1787) on a sandy beach in the southern region of Brazil. Crabs and hemolymph samples were collected monthly in the field. Hepatopancreas, gills, gonads and claw muscles were used for glycogen determination. In males, blood glucose levels increased in the summer and in the winter. The glycogen values increased significantly in the hepatopancreas in the winter, but remained constant in the muscle, gonads and gills. In females, hemolymph glucose levels, glycogen values in the hepatopancreas and in the gills remained constant throughout the year; however, muscular glycogen increased in the spring and gonad glycogen decreased in the summer. Hemolymph triglyceride levels of males and females and total cholesterol of males decreased significantly in the spring. In females, a significant increase of total cholesterol levels was found in the winter. The findings suggest that in O. quadrata lipids seem to be an important reserve of energy used during reproduction, both in males and females, while glycogen may be used during periods of intense activity or fasting.     

Seasonal variation of energy metabolism in ghost crab Ocypode quadrata at Siriú Beach (Brazil)

The aim of this study was to analyze the seasonal variations of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism of the ghost crab Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius, 1787) on a sandy beach in the southern region of Brazil. Crabs and hemolymph samples were collected monthly in the field. Hepatopancreas, gills, gonads and claw muscles were used for glycogen determination. In males, blood glucose levels increased in the summer and in the winter. The glycogen values increased significantly in the hepatopancreas in the winter, but remained constant in the muscle, gonads and gills. In females, hemolymph glucose levels, glycogen values in the hepatopancreas and in the gills remained constant throughout the year; however, muscular glycogen increased in the spring and gonad glycogen decreased in the summer. Hemolymph triglyceride levels of males and females and total cholesterol of males decreased significantly in the spring. In females, a significant increase of total cholesterol levels was found in the winter. The findings suggest that in O. quadrata lipids seem to be an important reserve of energy used during reproduction, both in males and females, while glycogen may be used during periods of intense activity or fasting.     

Prolonged melatonin administration in 6-month-old Sprague-Dawley rats: metabolic alterations

The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of prolonged melatonin administration on chosen metabolic and hormonal variables in male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. Melatonin was administered in tap water (4 microg/ml) daily from the 6th month of age. Rats were fed a standard type of diet ad libitum and were kept in a light regimen L:D--12:12h. The experiment was terminated after 12 weeks of melatonin administration. Melatonin decreased body mass during the whole experiment in females and from the 42nd day of the experiment in males. Relative heart muscle weight in females and absolute/relative thymus weight in males were increased after melatonin administration. Melatonin decreased glycaemia, heart muscle glycogen concentration in females and liver glycogen concentration in both sexes. Serum insulin concentration in males was decreased; serum corticosterone concentration was increased in both males and females. Serum triacylglycerol and heart muscle cholesterol concentration in females were decreased, however in males serum and heart muscle cholesterol concentration was increased. Liver phospholipid concentration in females was decreased and heart muscle phospholipid concentration in males was increased. Melatonin increased malondialdehyde concentration in heart muscle in males and in liver in both sexes. Melatonin induced prominent sex-dependent changes in both carbohydrate and lipid metabolism.     

Seasonal changes in hepatocyte ultrastructure correlated with the cyclic synthesis of secretory proteins in the winter flounder (Pleuronectes americanus)

Liver tissue was sampled from flounder (Pleuronectes americanus) throughout the year with the intention of documenting changes in the ultrastructure coincident with the production and secretion of antifreeze proteins. In the winter, hepatocytes are dedicated to the production of these proteins and, in the female, also reproductive proteins. In both sexes, liver cells in the summer contain abundant lipid and glycogen stores. In the female, there is a conspicuous hepatocyte transformation from a fat-filled cell in the summer to one with well-developed rough endoplasmic reticulum in the winter. Large amounts of rough endoplasmic reticulum (11.2 mg/gm) were recovered after subcellular fractionation of female wintertime liver. The increased appearance of secretory organelles and the high number of nucleolar profiles observed in winter animals is consistent with the elevated demand for protein secretion and synthesis in both sexes. The fractional volumes occupied by lipid droplets and mitochondria were different when comparisons were made between sex and season. Females contained a greater volume of lipid than did males, and summer animals contained more lipid than those in winter.     

Effect of sex and season on the production and deposition of lipid and glycid reserves in the intermittently starving golden hamster.

In golden hamster adapted to intermittent starvation (with access to food for 3 days a week only), the glycogen and lipid content of the liver, total body fat and RQ values measured in vivo were investigated. These parameters were studied in dependence on the duration of the adaptation period (6 weeks versus 20 weeks), season of the year (winter versus summer) and sex. The liver glycogen content in intermittently starved males and females increases after 6 weeks of adaptation during winter. In summer an increase was found after long-term adaptation, but only in males. Male hamsters also exhibited a higher ability to accumulate liver lipids during both seasons. In spite of their lower weight intermittently starving males have a higher percentage of body fat in comparison with females, a stimulating effect being observed in winter. Increased lipogenesis in golden hamsters adapted to intermittent starvation may be concluded from the increased RQ values when compared with relative data gained in controls fed daily ad libitum. Significant differences between RQ measurements according to season and sex were not found.     

Annual variation in energy reserves in male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatm L. (Pisces, Gasterosteidae)

Wet and dry weights of tissue were measured and concentrations of glycogen, lipid and protein were estimated for the liver, gonad and carcass of male sticklebacks from an annual population collected each month over one complete year. In young-of-the-year there is one period of rapid weight gain, in all three body regions (liver, carcass and gonads) but particularly of the carcass, in the autumn and a second in spring and early summer. This is accompanied by an increase in the water content of all three body regions. The gonadosomatic index also increases sharply in spring and early summer. Young sticklebacks accumulate lipid and glycogen slowly during the autumn and winter of their first year of life and more rapidly from late winter to early summer. Thus, the period of most rapid accumulation of these reserves coincides with the time when body weight and gonad maturation are also increasing sharply. Lipid and glycogen levels fall during the reproductive season in those males that breed, so that by July they are reduced to 43% and 37% (respectively) of their peak values in May. Levels of protein increase throughout the year as the fish grow, but in breeding males by July the concentration of protein in the carcass falls to 70% of pre-breeding levels. Breeding males therefore reach the end of the reproductive season with their total energy reserves severely reduced, and consequently they suffer a very high mortality. In contrast, adult males that fail to reproduce survive beyond the breeding season. They continue to gain weight and to accumulate lipid and glycogen from August to September, but these energy reserves fall (to levels comparable to those of post-breeding fish) in December, when these fish probably die. These results demonstrate that in male sticklebacks, growth and gonad maturation can be sustained in parallel with the accumulation of energy reserves, which are subsequently extensively depleted as a result of reproductive activities.     

Carbohydrate energy reserves and effects of food deprivation in male and female rainbow trout

We investigated the effects of nutritional state on carbohydrate, lipid, and protein stores in the heart, liver, and white skeletal muscle of male and female rainbow trout. For fed animals we also partitioned glycogen into fractions based on acid solubility. Fish (10-14 months-old, ~400-500 g) were held at 14 °C and either fed (1% of body weight, every other day) or deprived of food for 14 days. Under fed conditions, glycogen was increased 54% in ventricles from males compared with females, and elevated in the liver (87%) and white muscle (70%) in sexually-maturing versus immature males. Acid soluble glycogen predominated over the acid insoluble fraction in all tissues and was similar between sexes. Food deprivation 1) selectively reduced glycogen and free glucose in male ventricles by ~30%, and 2) did not change glycogen in the liver or white muscle, or triglyceride, protein or water levels in any tissues for both sexes. These data highlight sex differences in teleost cardiac stores and the metabolism of carbohydrates, and contrast with mammals where cardiac glycogen increases during fasting and acid insoluble glycogen is a significant fraction. Increased glycogen in the hearts of male rainbow trout appears to pre-empt sex-specific cardiac growth while storage of acid soluble glycogen may reflect a novel strategy for efficient synthesis and mobilization of glycogen in fishes.     

Seasonal variations in the biochemical composition and lipoperoxidation of Hyalella curvispina (Crustacea, Amphipoda)

We assessed the effect of seasonal variations on the biochemical composition and lipoperoxidation of an amphipod crustacean, Hyalella curvispina, which inhabits the coastal plain of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, and correlated this with information on the biology of the species. The animals were collected monthly from September 2003 to August 2005, in Gentil Lagoon, Tramandaí, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Glycogen levels, total proteins, total lipids, triglycerides, and lipoperoxidation were measured for each sex separately. The results suggest that these animals have seasonal storage and degradation of the energy substrates investigated. During summer, glycogen, total lipids, and triglycerides were stored, and were utilized especially during autumn and winter. Proteins were utilized differently in males and females. Females stored proteins especially in spring and used them in summer; whereas males stored proteins especially in spring and used them in winter. The levels of lipoperoxidation during the year differed between females and males. These variations may be related to biotic factors (e.g., reproduction period and others) and to abiotic factors (e.g., water temperature, salinity and others).     

Sex differences in habitat distribution of a planktonic copepod, Eudiaptomus gracilis

The spatial distribution of adult males and females in a population of the copepod Eudiaptomus grachs ; was studied throughout one year The sexes were markedly segregated in spring and under ice in late winter This skewed distribution was mainly due to a strong concentration of females in deep water in the lake centre Males were more evenly distributed but dominated in relative terms strongly over females near the surface and the littoral zone Among females, those carrying eggs were most concentrated in deep regions Also during summer, females in the lake centre showed a marked abundance peak in deep water but the distribution of egg-carrying females did not differ from other females During autumn and early winter, differences in the distribution of the sexes were minor The distribution of the sexes is discussed in relation to predators, temperature, food, and mates Female copepods are susceptible to fish predation when carrying eggs Fish may contribute to the over-representation of females in deep regions by eating or scaring away this category of vulnerable prey from littoral areas and from the surface waters The fish predation hypothesis does not accurately predict the seasonal occurrence of the skewed distribution, however Feeding rate of fish is most likely low under ice Reproductive advantages in the warmer deep water may have contributed to female choice of habitat in late winter In spring and late winter proportionally fewer females near the surface and shore carried eggs, but they earned more spermatophores This indicates that these females were more receptive to matings Phytoplankton biomass was higher near the surface Thus, males may have gamed mating advantages and more food by avoiding deep water in the centre of the lake     

Lipid dynamics in the common torpedo, Torpedo torpedo, from the south eastern Mediterranean

Liver stores the major part of lipids in both mature and immature Torpedo torpedo of both sexes. Fluctuations in the lipid contents of liver, muscles and gonads of immature fish followed the relative change in food intake throughout the year. Hepatic and muscular lipids in mature females diminished before ovulation and were intensively consumed in the last stages of gestation (in pregnant females). After parturition, the recovery of the lipid stores was very rapid due to intensive food uptake. Storing of hepatic lipids in mature males started a little before gonadal maturation and reached a maximum in January and February while gonadal lipids decreased in the same period. Gonadal lipid for both sexes fluctuated in parallel to fluctuations in the GSI. Water content showed significant inverse correlation with lipid content in both liver and gonad tissues, but no significant correlation was recorded in the muscle tissues.     

Postexercise muscle and liver glycogen metabolism in male and female rats

Male and female Wistar rats were run for 5 min at 1.7 mph at a 17% grade to determine whether a sex difference exists in the rate of glycogen resynthesis during recovery in fast-twitch red muscle, fast-twitch white muscle, and liver. Rats were killed at one of three time points: immediately after the exercise bout, and at 1 or 4 h later. Males had significantly higher resting muscle glycogen levels (P less than 0.05). Exercise resulted in significant glycogen depletion in both sexes (P less than 0.01). Males utilized approximately 50% more glycogen during the exercise bout than females (P less than 0.05). During the food-restricted 4-h recovery period, muscle glycogen was repleted significantly during the 1st h (P less than 0.05). Liver glycogen was not depleted as a result of the exercise bout, but fell during the first h of recovery (P less than 0.05) and remained low during the subsequent 3 h. The greater glycogen utilization in red and white fast-twitch muscle during exercise by males could represent a true sex difference but could also be attributable in part to the males having performed more work as a result of 20% greater body mass. We conclude that no sex difference was observed in the rates of muscle glycogen repletion after exercise or in liver glycogen metabolism during and after exercise, and rapid postexercise muscle glycogen repletion occurred at a time of accelerated liver glycogen depletion.     

Seasonal variations in fat content and fatty acid composition of male and female coregonid' bondella' from Lake Maggiore and landlocked shad from Lake Como (Northern Italy)

The Lake Maggiore bondella Coregonus macrophthalmus use perivisceral adipose tissue for gonadal development (with particular evidence in females), and muscle fat as an energy source. Females use mainly saturated fatty acids (SFA) for energy purposes, while males use monounsaturates (MUFA) also. During vitellogenesis, females can also mobilize fatty acid precursors of gonadal highly unsaturated fatty acids of the ω3 family from muscle tissue, but in both sexes specific retention of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA=22: 6ω3) in muscle is evident. Landlocked shad, unlike several freshwater fishes, can utilize the liver as well as body cavity and muscle as a fat reserve depot. The perivisceral fat stored during the feeding period appears to be utilized mainly for winter energy maintenance requirements. Lipid reserves from liver and muscle are also mobilized to meet the requirements resulting from gonadal development. In particular, females seem to use liver reserves, especially 18: 1ω9, more than males, to meet the demands of ovogenesis. In the muscle, SFA are used mainly for energy purposes. During gonadal development, specific muscular and hepatic ω3 highly unsaturated fatty acids (ω3 HUFA=20: 5 + 22: 5 + 22: 6) and ω6 HUFA (20: 4+22: 4+22: 5) retention is evident in both sexes, while fatty acid precursors of ω3 and ω6 HUFA are mobilized, especially from muscle tissue.     

Temporal shifts in the pair-bond dynamics of New Zealand robins (

Winter is a challenging time for temperate insectivorous songbirds, due to colder temperatures, reduced prey activity and shorter diurnal foraging times. For species that are non-migratory, territorial and monogamous, winter conditions may result in within-pair competition. However, little is known about how monogamous pairs coexist on their winter territories. We investigated temporal patterns in male?female interactions of the New Zealand robin (Petroica australis to better understand mechanisms of coexistence during winter. Previous work has shown that male robins are physically dominant over females and maintain priority access to food year-round. We quantified female behaviour throughout the 2008 non-breeding season to better understand how females coexist with physically dominant males on winter territories. Results showed that pairs rarely forage in close proximity in autumn and winter, suggesting females avoid males at this time of year. Males and females begin to spend more time foraging together as winter turns to spring. During this winter?spring transitional period, females steal large amounts of food hoarded by males. These results indicate that male and female New Zealand robins use different behavioural mechanisms to coexist on their winter territories. While males are dominant physically, females show a seasonally variable strategy where they avoid males in autumn and winter, and then steal male-made caches from early spring until the onset of inter-pair cooperation and the breeding season.     

Seasonal variation in fatty acid composition of silver pomfrets,Pampus argenteus (Euphrasen), in Kuwait waters

Proximate and fatty acid composition of wild silver pomfrets, Pampus argenteus, were studied in Kuwait waters for a period of 1 year (November 2007–October 2008) to see whether there were any seasonal compositional differences between males and females. Ten adults (five males, five females) were sampled each month during (i) Pre‐spawning (March–May), (ii) Spawning (June–August), (iii) Post‐spawning (September–November), and (iv) Winter (December–February). Both sexes had significantly (P < 0.05) higher whole body moisture and lower crude protein and lipid contents in winter compared to the respective males and females sampled in other seasons. However, females had significantly higher (9.1%) lipid content during the pre‐spawning season than females in other seasons (7.0–8.2%). The most abundant fatty acid in whole body lipid in both sexes was C16 followed by C18:1n‐9, which accounted for about 31–35% and 22–24% of total lipids, respectively. Males in the pre‐spawning and spawning seasons had significantly higher total monosaturated fatty acids (MUFA) than males and females in post‐spawning and winter. Males had significantly higher total polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) during post‐spawning seasons than females in pre‐spawning and winter seasons. However, there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in total saturated fatty acids (SFA), PUFA, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) or n‐3/n‐6 ratios between respective males and females in different seasons. Livers in males had significantly (P < 0.05) higher MUFA, SFA, PUFA, EPA and DHA than respective females in all months during the spawning season. Female gonads had significantly (P < 0.05) higher MUFA and PUFA but lower SFA content than males in different months during the spawning season. In contrast to the liver, the gonad DHA content and n‐3/n‐6 ratios in females were significantly higher than in males. The gonads from both sexes contained more than double the amount of EPA present in liver; in the case of DHA this was more than three‐fold higher in female gonads, but not in males. Thus, the presence of higher proportions of PUFA, EPA and DHA in gonads, particularly in eggs of silver pomfret, indicates their need for these fatty acids, which may be used as a guideline for dietary essential n‐3 fatty acid requirements for feed formulation of this species. A higher content of DHA in eggs also indicates the higher requirement for DHA in the broodstock diet of silver pomfret.     

Influence of dietary composition on growth and energy reserves in tench (Tinca tinca)

The effects of different protein, lipid and carbohydrate diets on growth and energy storage in tench, Tinca tinca L., were studied. Over a 2-month period fish were fed four different diets: control, protein-enriched, carbohydrate-enriched and lipid-enriched. The best growth rates were obtained with the control and protein-enriched diets; the carbohydrate diet produced the worst results (lowest specific growth rate, weight gain, nutritional index and hepatosomatic index). These results suggest that it is not advisable to reduce dietary fish protein below 35%, and that it is not possible to obtain a protein-sparing effect of either lipids or carbohydrates, at least in our experimental conditions. The high-protein diet resulted in the storage of energy excess as muscle proteins and hepatic glycogen. Tench fed the high-carbohydrate diet stored carbohydrates as muscle glycogen and reduced plasma triglycerides. Finally, both liver and muscle lipid content were in positive correlation to dietary lipid.     

Biochemical composition,condition index,and energy value of Ostrea peulchana (D'Orbigny): relationships with the reproductive cycle

Seasonal changes in body weight, biochemical composition, energy value, and condition index of Ostrea puelchana (D'Orbigny, 1846) from Laguna Punta Cero (Chubut, Argentina), were studied between February 1983 and April 1984. These values were determined for the soft tissues of the whole animal and, separately, from the adductor muscle, digestive gland-gonad complex, and a fraction containing all remaining organs. The main muscle components were proteins whereas glycogen and lipids were stored in the digestive gland-gonad complex. Weight and energy reserves decreased in winter during the beginning of the reproductive cycle and starvation period. In spring, there was a rapid growth of the gonad coincident with an increase in glycogen, lipid, and protein contents. In summer the glycogen content decreased with spawning, and proteins showed the highest values. The glycogen index appears to be suitable as an indicator of the physiological state. During the post-spawning period, in the autumn, the animals attained their best condition in quantity of flesh with a shigh energy value.     

Feeding dynamics of Palaemon peringueyi (Decapoda,Caridea) in the temporarily open/closed Kasouga Estuary,South Africa

The feeding ecology of the caridean shrimp Palaemon peringueyi in the temporarily open/closed Kasouga Estuary, Eastern Cape, was examined during summer and winter employing stomach fullness index (SFI) analysis. Mean SFI values for male and female shrimp during summer ranged from 0.85% to 2.36% and from 0.56% and 2.61% body dry weight, respectively. During winter, SFI values for males and females were lower, and varied between 0.23% and 1.56% and 0.36% and 1.84% body dry weight, respectively. There were no significant differences in the SFI values between males and females during the two seasons. A peak in the feeding activity for both sexes was observed during the daytime during both summer and winter. For both males and females, non-linear regression analysis best explained the change in SFI over time. The gut evacuation rate constants (k) of males and females during summer were estimated at 0.43 h^?1 and 0.30 h^?1, respectively. These values correspond to a daily food intake equivalent to 16.2% body dwt for males and 11.1% body dwt for females. During winter, the gut evacuation rates of the shrimp were estimated at 0.35 h^?1 for males and 0.28 h^?1 for females. The daily ration for adult male and female shrimp during winter was estimated at 6.1% and 6.8% body dwt, respectively. The lower estimates obtained during winter appear largely to reflect the influence of the reduced water temperatures on the metabolic activities of the shrimp.     

中华蟾蜍糖原含量的季节变化

于2005年11月至2006年10月,用硫酸-蒽酮比色法和比重法测定了中华蟾蜍各月份的肝糖原和肌糖原含量及肝比重。结果显示:冬眠期间(11月至次年的2月),糖原含量逐月下降;2月份时出现临时回升,然后继续下降;4月份时肝糖原含量最低;5月份起,肝糖原含量逐渐上升;5月份时肌糖原含量为最低;6月份起,肌糖原含量逐渐上升。虽然在7-8月间出现过下降,两种糖原的含量在10月份时达到一年中的最高值。这些结果表明,蟾蜍糖原含量在一年中呈现显著的季节性波动。越冬前所储备糖原的一部分可能用于越冬期间维持高水平的血糖,一部分用于基础代谢。2月份时糖原含量的临时上升,可能是血液中作为防冻保护剂的葡萄糖运回肝脏和肌肉中再合成糖原的结果。7-8月间糖原含量降低可能与蟾蜍夏蛰有关。雌性5月至10月期间的肝糖原总体水平显著低于雄性,可能与依赖可得到葡萄糖的卵母细胞中的糖原合成有关。糖原含量的季节变化与蟾蜍的生活状态(越冬、繁殖等)有关,并与血糖含量有联动关系。     

Reproductive biology of Psammobatis extenta

Psammobatis extenta collected from the commercial bottom trawl fishery operating in Puerto Quequén, Argentina, between 2000 and 2001, had a sex ratio of 1:1 (535 specimens). Both the largest male and female measured 313 mm total length ( L _T). The relationship between total body mass and L _T was significantly different between sexes; mature females weighed more than mature males for a given L _T. The size at which 50% of males were sexually mature was 262 mm L _T (83·6% of the maximum size), whereas 50% of females were mature at 249 mm L _T (80·0% of the maximum size). The gonadosomatic index in mature males and females was slightly higher during summer, but did not show significant variation over the sampling period. The hepatosomatic index of males and females was higher during the autumn and winter and followed a distinct seasonal pattern. Evidence suggested a continuous reproductive cycle during the year, with a maximum number of females carrying egg-cases in summer.