Showing papers by "Johan A.J. Verreth published in 2007"

Effects of lead nitrate on the activity of metabolic enzymes during early developmental stages of the African catfish, Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822)

Abstract: Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and pyruvate kinase (PK) are key metabolic enzymes. G6PDH has been used as a biomarker of pollution-induced carcinogenesis in fish. LDH has been used as marker of lesions in toxicology and clinical chemistry, and PK catalyses the conversion of phosphoenol pyruvate to pyruvate, with regeneration of ATP. The effect of different concentrations of lead nitrate on the activity of these enzymes in two different early ontogenetic stages (embryonic and free embryonic stage) of the African catfish Clarias gariepinus was investigated. Embryo homogenates were used for measurements of G6PDH, LDH and PK activity spectrophotometrically at 340 nm and 25°C. The ontogenetic variations of the three enzymes during early ontogeny, from the 30 h to the 168 h post-fertilisation stage (PFS) (beginning of exogenous feeding), were studied. There was a significant decrease in activities of all three enzymes from 30 h-PFS to 96 h-PFS, followed by a significant increase in G6PDH and LDH. PK showed insignificant fluctuations in activity. Different patterns of enzyme activities were recorded due to exposure to different lead nitrate concentrations (100 μg/l, 300 μg/l and 500 μg/l). In the pre-hatching stage (30 h-PFS) the activity of the three enzymes increased at exposure to 100 μg/l lead nitrate and then decreased with increasing dose. In the post-hatching stages (48 h-PFS–168 h-PFS) G6PDH activity increased and LDH activity decreased with increasing lead concentrations. Unlike G6PDH and LDH, the PK enzyme fluctuated during the post-hatching stages and did not reveal a specific trend of response (increase or decrease) with increasing lead concentrations. Therefore, the measurement of G6PDH and LDH activities, but not PK activity, could be useful biomarkers of intoxication to reveal the embryotoxic potential of lead nitrate in fish embryos. The post-hatching stages of the African catfish are more sensitive than the pre-hatching stage (30 h-PFS) is, probably due to the protective capacity provided by the hardened chorion. The interaction and the main effects of age and lead doses were found to be highly significant, referring to the great impact of lead on these enzyme systems with increasing early development.

Effects of common carp Cyprinus carpio (L.) and feed addition in rohu Labeo rohita (Hamilton) ponds on nutrient partitioning among fish, plankton and benthos

Abstract: The effects of introducing common carp (CC) and of adding artificial feed to fertilized rohu ponds on water quality and nutrient accumulation efficiency were studied. All ponds were stocked with 15 000 rohu ha?1. Treatments included ponds with rohu alone, rohu plus 5000 common carp ha?1 and rohu plus 10 000 CC ha?1. A comparison was also made between supplementally fed and non-fed ponds. The overall highest nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations were observed in ponds with 5000 CC ha?1, followed by ponds with 10 000 and 0 CC ha?1. The largest fractions of N and P inputs accumulating in fish, phytoplankton and zooplankton were observed in ponds with 5000 CC ha?1, followed by ponds with 10 000 CC ha?1 and subsequently ponds without CC. Relatively more nutrients accumulated in benthic organisms in ponds without than in ponds with CC. A smaller fraction of the nutrient input was retained in fish, plankton and benthic organisms in ponds without CC compared with ponds with CC. Compared with 5000 CC ha?1, stocking 10 000 CC ha?1 can be considered as overstocking, because this leads to lower fish production and relatively less nutrients retained in plankton and benthic organisms.

Effects of stocking density on production and economics of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) polyculture in periphyton-based systems

Abstract: The present research investigated the effect of stocking density on pond (75 m2, depth 1.2 m) production of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) stocked at a fixed 3:1 tilapia:prawn ratio. Three stocking densities were tried in triplicate: 20 000 ha?1 (treatment TP-20), 30 000 ha?1 (TP-30) and 40 000 ha?1 (TP-40). The ponds were provided with bamboo as substrate for periphyton development. Bamboo poles (mean diameter 5.5 cm and 5.0 poles m?2) were posted vertically into pond bottoms, resulting in 60% additional substrate area in each pond. On average, 43 genera of algae and 17 genera of zooplankton were identified from pond water, whereas 42 genera of algae and six genera of microfauna were attached to bamboo substrates. No differences were observed between treatments in the ash-free dry matter (AFDM), chlorophyll a and phaeophytin a content of periphyton (P>0.05). Survival of tilapia and prawn and individual weight gain of tilapia were lower (P