16.P15. Branchial osmoregulatory response to salinity challenge in the Lusitanian toadfish

Halobatrachus didactylus, a marine teleost found in coastal lagoons and river estuaries is often exposed to important salinity changes. Despite its aglomerular kidney, it is able to survive in hypo-osmotic environments, likely via compensatory actions from gills and intestine. We aimed at evaluating...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Guerreiro, P.M., Laiz-Carrión, Raúl, Haond, Christophe, Modesto, Teresa, Fuentes, J., Mancera, Juan Miguel, Canario, A.V.M.
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2007
País:España
Institución:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/326203
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/326203
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Pesquerías
Centro Oceanográfico de Málaga
Descripción
Sumario:Halobatrachus didactylus, a marine teleost found in coastal lagoons and river estuaries is often exposed to important salinity changes. Despite its aglomerular kidney, it is able to survive in hypo-osmotic environments, likely via compensatory actions from gills and intestine. We aimed at evaluating the response of the branchial tissue of H. didactylus to salinity changes. Fish allocated into 15 groups were exposed to different salinities (0, 5, 12, 36 and 55 ppt) for 4, 24 and 96 h. At each time point, blood samples were taken and osmolality, glucose and ion concentration determined. Fish were sacrificed and gill samples collected for measurement of Na+/K+-ATPase activity and fixed for histology and immunohistochemistry. Mortality occurred only in the 0 ppt group, in which all fish died within 48 to 96 h. Blood osmolality was significantly conditioned by environmental salinity, increasing at 55 ppt and dropping at 5 and 0 ppt. At 4 h, glucose levels were higher in fish in altered salinity than in those in the 100% seawater group, possibly an indication of the adaptive effort required. Adjustments in Na+/K+-ATPase activity were seen at 24 and 96 h after transfer, in a characteristic u-shape, peaking at extreme low and high salinities. Contrary to most teleosts, the chloride cells in H. didactylus are located in the secondary lamellae and not in the primary filament. Salinity acclimation did not change cell distribution. H. didactylus are capable of swift and significant branchial adjustments to ambient salinity and further studies are needed to evaluate the role of kidney and intestine in the osmoregulatory response.