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Lawrence MJ, Raby GD, Teffer AK, Jeffries KM, Danylchuk AJ, Eliason EJ, Hasler CT, Clark TD, Cooke SJ. Best practices for non-lethal blood sampling of fish via the caudal vasculature. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2020; 97:4-15. [PMID: 32243570 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2020] [Revised: 03/27/2020] [Accepted: 04/01/2020] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Blood sampling through the caudal vasculature is a widely used technique in fish biology for investigating organismal health and physiology. In live fishes, it can provide a quick, easy and relatively non-invasive method for obtaining a blood sample (cf. cannulation and cardiac puncture). Here, a general set of recommendations are provided for optimizing the blood sampling protocol that reflects best practices in animal welfare and sample integrity. This includes selecting appropriate use of anaesthetics for blood sampling as well as restraint techniques for situations where sedation is not used. In addition, ideal sampling environments where the fish can freely ventilate and strategies for minimizing handling time are discussed. This study summarizes the techniques used for extracting blood from the caudal vasculature in live fishes, highlighting the phlebotomy itself, the timing of sampling events and acceptable blood sample volumes. This study further discuss considerations for selecting appropriate physiological metrics when sampling in the caudal region and the potential benefits that this technique provides with respect to long-term biological assessments. Although general guidelines for blood sampling are provided here, it should be recognized that contextual considerations (e.g., taxonomic diversity, legal matters, environmental constraints) may influence the approach to blood sampling. Overall, it can be concluded that when done properly, blood sampling live fishes through the caudal vasculature is quick, efficient and minimally invasive, thus promoting conditions where live release of focal animals is possible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Lawrence
- Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology and Institute of Environmental and Interdisciplinary Sciences, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Graham D Raby
- Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Science, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
| | - Amy K Teffer
- Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Ken M Jeffries
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Andy J Danylchuk
- Department of Environmental Conservation, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Erika J Eliason
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
| | - Caleb T Hasler
- Department of Biology, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Timothy D Clark
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
| | - Steven J Cooke
- Fish Ecology and Conservation Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biology and Institute of Environmental and Interdisciplinary Sciences, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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Vinterstare J, Hulthén K, Nilsson PA, Nilsson Sköld H, Brönmark C. Experimental manipulation of perceived predation risk and cortisol generates contrasting trait trajectories in plastic crucian carp. J Exp Biol 2020; 223:jeb213611. [PMID: 31974218 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.213611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Most animals constitute potential prey and must respond appropriately to predator-mediated stress in order to survive. Numerous prey also adaptively tailor their response to the prevailing level of risk and stress imposed by their natural enemies, i.e. they adopt an inducible defence strategy. Predator exposure may activate the stress axis, and drive the expression of anti-predator traits that facilitate survival in a high-risk environment (the predation-stress hypothesis). Here, we quantified two key morphological anti-predator traits, body morphology and coloration, in crucian carp reared in the presence or absence of a predator (pike) in addition to experimental manipulation of physiological stress via implants containing either cortisol or a cortisol inhibitor. We found that predator-exposed fish expressed a deeper-bodied phenotype and darker body coloration as compared with non-exposed individuals. Skin analyses revealed that an increase in the amount of melanophores caused the dramatic colour change in predator-exposed fish. Increased melanization is costly, and the darker body coloration may act as an inducible defence against predation, via a conspicuous signal of the morphological defence or by crypsis towards dark environments and a nocturnal lifestyle. By contrast, the phenotype of individuals carrying cortisol implants did not mirror the phenotype of predator-exposed fish but instead exhibited opposite trajectories of trait change: a shallow-bodied morphology with a lighter body coloration as compared with sham-treated fish. The cortisol inhibitor did not influence the phenotype of fish i.e. neither body depth nor body coloration differed between this group and predator-exposed fish with a sham implant. However, our results illuminate a potential link between stress physiology and morphological defence expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerker Vinterstare
- Department of Biology, Aquatic Ecology Unit, Ecology Building, Lund University, 223 62 Lund, Sweden
| | - Kaj Hulthén
- Department of Biology, Aquatic Ecology Unit, Ecology Building, Lund University, 223 62 Lund, Sweden
| | - P Anders Nilsson
- Department of Biology, Aquatic Ecology Unit, Ecology Building, Lund University, 223 62 Lund, Sweden
- Department of Environmental and Life Sciences, Karlstad University, 651 88 Karlstad, Sweden
| | | | - Christer Brönmark
- Department of Biology, Aquatic Ecology Unit, Ecology Building, Lund University, 223 62 Lund, Sweden
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Fulton J, LeMoine CMR, Bucking C, Brix KV, Walsh PJ, McDonald MD. A waterborne chemical cue from Gulf toadfish, Opsanus beta, prompts pulsatile urea excretion in conspecifics. Physiol Behav 2017; 171:92-99. [PMID: 28040487 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2016.12.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2016] [Revised: 12/23/2016] [Accepted: 12/27/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The Gulf toadfish (Opsanus beta) has a fully functional ornithine urea cycle (O-UC) that allows it to excrete nitrogenous waste in the form of urea. Interestingly, urea is excreted in a pulse across the gill that lasts 1-3h and occurs once or twice a day. Both the stress hormone, cortisol, and the neurotransmitter, serotonin (5-HT) are involved in the control of pulsatile urea excretion. This and other evidence suggests that urea pulsing may be linked to toadfish social behavior. The hypothesis of the present study was that toadfish urea pulses can be triggered by waterborne chemical cues from conspecifics. Our findings indicate that exposure to seawater that held a donor conspecific for up to 48h (pre-conditioned seawater; PC-SW) induced a urea pulse within 7h in naïve conspecifics compared to a pulse latency of 20h when exposed to seawater alone. Factors such as PC-SW intensity and donor body mass influenced the pulse latency response of naïve conspecifics. Fractionation and heat treatment of PC-SW to narrow possible signal candidates revealed that the active chemical was both water-soluble and heat-stable. Fish exposed to urea, cortisol or 5-HT in seawater did not have a pulse latency that was significantly different than seawater alone; however, ammonia, perhaps in the form of NH4Cl, was found to be a factor in the pulse latency response of toadfish to PC-SW and could be one component of a multi-component cue used for chemical communication in toadfish. Further studies are needed to fully identify the chemical cue as well as determine its adaptive significance in this marine teleost fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Fulton
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
| | - Christophe M R LeMoine
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada; Department of Biology, Brandon University, Brandon, MB R7A 6A9, Canada
| | - Carol Bucking
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada; Department of Biology, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
| | - Kevin V Brix
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Patrick J Walsh
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada; Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - M Danielle McDonald
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA.
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Kumai Y, Harris J, Al-Rewashdy H, Kwong RWM, Perry SF. Nitrogenous Waste Handling by Larval Zebrafish Danio rerio in Alkaline Water. Physiol Biochem Zool 2015; 88:137-45. [DOI: 10.1086/679628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Lutterschmidt DI, Maine AR. Sex or candy? Neuroendocrine regulation of the seasonal transition from courtship to feeding behavior in male red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis). Horm Behav 2014; 66:120-34. [PMID: 24508620 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2014.01.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2013] [Revised: 01/04/2014] [Accepted: 01/29/2014] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
This article is part of a Special Issue "Energy Balance". Seasonal modulation of glucocorticoids plays an important role in supporting critical life-history events, and probably facilitates transitions between different life-history stages. In a well-studied population of red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis), glucocorticoids are elevated during the mating season, but males dispersing to summer feeding grounds have significantly lower baseline glucocorticoids than courting males at the den. We tested the hypothesis that decreased plasma glucocorticoids mediate the behavioral switch between reproduction and foraging in this species. Using a two-choice Y-maze paradigm, we demonstrate that males treated with the glucocorticoid synthesis inhibitor metyrapone (1 and 3mg implants) prefer feeding cues (worm trail) over reproductive cues (female pheromone trail) significantly earlier than control-treated snakes. The metyrapone-induced changes in appetitive feeding behavior were independent of changes in plasma androgens and body mass loss. Metyrapone-treated males continued to court females at levels similar to those of control-treated snakes, suggesting that appetitive reproductive and ingestive behaviors are not mutually exclusive during this life-history transition. Consistent with this hypothesis, metyrapone treatment did not alter the number of arginine vasotocin-immunoreactive cells in any brain region, while it significantly increased neuropeptide Y-immunoreactive cell number in both the cortex and nucleus sphericus (homologues of the mammalian hippocampus and amygdala, respectively). Our results suggest that male red-sided garter snakes have the potential to maximize reproductive opportunities by continuing to court females they encounter even as they disperse from the den in search of food. Taken together, these data have important implications for understanding the neuroecology of seasonal life-history transitions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deborah I Lutterschmidt
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, 1719 SW 10th Ave., Portland, OR 97201, USA.
| | - Ashley R Maine
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, 1719 SW 10th Ave., Portland, OR 97201, USA
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Bucking C, Edwards SL, Tickle P, Smith CP, McDonald MD, Walsh PJ. Immunohistochemical localization of urea and ammonia transporters in two confamilial fish species, the ureotelic gulf toadfish (Opsanus beta) and the ammoniotelic plainfin midshipman (Porichthys notatus). Cell Tissue Res 2013; 352:623-37. [PMID: 23512140 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-013-1591-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2012] [Accepted: 02/14/2013] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
This study aims to illustrate potential transport mechanisms behind the divergent approaches to nitrogen excretion seen in the ureotelic toadfish (Opsanus beta) and the ammoniotelic plainfin midshipman (Porichthys notatus). Specifically, we wish to confirm the expression of a urea transporter (UT), which is found in the gill of the toadfish and which is responsible for the unique "pulsing" nature of urea excretion and to localize the transporter within specific gill cells and at specific cellular locations. Additionally, the localization of ammonia transporters (Rhesus glycoproteins; Rhs) within the gill of both the toadfish and midshipman was explored. Toadfish UT (tUT) was found within Na(+)-K(+)-ATPase (NKA)-enriched cells, i.e., ionocytes (probably mitochondria-rich cells), especially along the basolateral membrane and potentially on the apical membrane. In contrast, midshipman UT (pnUT) immunoreactivity did not colocalize with NKA immunoreactivity and was not found along the filaments but instead within the lamellae. The cellular location of Rh proteins was also dissimilar between the two fish species. In toadfish gills, the Rh isoform Rhcg1 was expressed in both NKA-reactive cells and non-reactive cells, whereas Rhbg and Rhcg2 were only expressed in the latter. In contrast, Rhbg, Rhcg1 and Rhcg2 were expressed in both NKA-reactive and non-reactive cells of midshipman gills. In an additional transport epithelium, namely the intestine, the expression of both UTs and Rhs was similar between the two species, with only subtle differences being observed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carol Bucking
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
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Kumai Y, Nesan D, Vijayan MM, Perry SF. Cortisol regulates Na+ uptake in zebrafish, Danio rerio, larvae via the glucocorticoid receptor. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2012; 364:113-25. [PMID: 22963886 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2012.08.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2012] [Revised: 08/26/2012] [Accepted: 08/27/2012] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Unlike other freshwater fish previously examined, zebrafish are capable of increasing their rate of Na(+) uptake during chronic exposure to acidic water (pH 4). In the present study, the potential role of cortisol in the induction of Na(+) uptake during acid-exposure was investigated. When zebrafish larvae (4 days post-fertilization) were treated with waterborne cortisol, the rate of Na(+) uptake was significantly increased; this effect was blocked by co-incubating larvae with RU-486, an antagonist selective for the glucocorticoid receptor (GR). A similar induction in Na(+) uptake, which was also blocked by RU-486, was observed when larvae were treated with dexamethasone, a selective GR agonist. Conversely, treating larvae with aldosterone, a selective agonist for the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) had no effect on Na(+) uptake. Acid-exposure increased whole body cortisol levels and translational knockdown of GR using antisense morpholinos prevented the full induction of Na(+) uptake during exposure to acidic water, further confirming the role of cortisol and GR in Na(+) uptake stimulation. Using immunohistochemistry, GR was localized to ionocytes known to be responsible for Na(+) uptake (HR-cells). Knockdown of Rhcg1, an apical membrane ammonia channel or Na(+)/H(+) exchanger 3b (NHE3b), proteins known to play an important role in facilitating Na(+) uptake in acidic water, prevented the stimulatory effects of cortisol treatment on Na(+) uptake, suggesting that cortisol regulates Na(+) uptake by stimulating an Rhcg1-NHE3b "functional metabolon".
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Affiliation(s)
- Yusuke Kumai
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada
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McDonald MD, Gilmour KM, Walsh PJ. New insights into the mechanisms controlling urea excretion in fish gills. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2012; 184:241-8. [PMID: 22684040 DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2012.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2012] [Revised: 05/31/2012] [Accepted: 06/01/2012] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Not long ago, urea was believed to freely diffuse across plasma membranes. The discovery of specialized proteins to facilitate the movement of urea across the fish gill, similar to those found in mammalian kidney, was exciting, and at the same time, perplexing; especially considering the fact that, aside from elasmobranchs, most fish do not produce urea as their primary nitrogenous waste. Increasingly, it has become apparent that many fish do indeed produce at least a small amount of urea through various processes and continued work on branchial urea transporters in teleost and elasmobranch fishes has led to recent advances in the regulation of these mechanisms. The following review outlines the substantial progress that has been made towards understanding environmental and developmental impacts on fish gill urea transport. This review also outlines the work that has been done regarding endocrine and neural control of urea excretion, most of which has been collected from only a handful of teleost fish. It is evident that more research is needed to establish the endocrine and neural control of urea excretion in fish, including fish representative of more ancient lineages (hagfish and lamprey), and elasmobranch fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Danielle McDonald
- Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA.
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