Fisheries Science

This experiment was carried out to determine the proximate composition of the mid-gut gland (MGG) of the Japanese scallop Patinopecten yessoensis to evaluate the characteristics of divalent minerals and water-soluble protein at various pHs, and to examine Cd-binding protein at different molecular weights. MGG of scallop contained protein, fat and ash of 28.9 g/100 g dry matter, 44.6 g/100 g dry matter and 6.78 g/100 dry matter, respectively. MGG also contained the macrominerals sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium, and the trace minerals iron, zinc, cadmium and copper. The solubility of divalent minerals and water-soluble protein was high in both acidic and alkaline conditions, except that magnesium was not affected by acidity. The solubility of copper and iron had a positive correlation with water-soluble protein at all pH values, whereas cadmium had a strong correlation at alkaline pH. Low-molecular-weight water-soluble protein (fraction III, 437.5 < MW < 1,355) bound cadmium strongly in acidic, neutral and alkaline conditions. However, in acidic conditions cadmium had the strongest binding to protein.

In the original publication.

Pepsinogens are precursors of pepsins, which are gastric digestive proteinases that degrade food proteins into peptides. In the study reported here, the cDNA and its corresponding genomic DNA of the golden mandarin fish (Siniperca scherzeri, Perciformes) pepsinogen C (PGC) were cloned and sequenced. The golden mandarin fish PGC gene was deduced to have nine exons and eight introns, a structure similar to the PGCs of other vertebrates. The full-length cDNA was found to contain a 37-bp 5′-untranslated region, a 1,164-bp open reading frame, and a 304-bp 3′-untranslated region and the PGC protein to consist of a signal peptide, an activation segment, and a pepsin moiety. A sequence analysis revealed that pairwise sequence similarities of PGC proteins are around 70% between golden mandarin fish and other vertebrate groups, and around 90% within the fish group. A comparison of vertebrate PGC protein sequences revealed two motifs. One was in the activation segment that occurred only in the mammal and avian PGCs, suggesting that PGCs active in homeotherms (mammal and avian) have different activation mechanisms than those in poikilotherms (amphibian and fish). The second was in the pepsin moiety that occurred only in fish, suggesting the primitive position of fish among vertebrates. PGC mRNA is mainly expressed in the stomach and esophagus and at much lower levels in the skin and muscle. Taken together with results reported from other studies, the results reported here will lead to a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of fish digestive physiology and the evolution of fish pepsinogen genes.

Abilities of detection and preference of food by a Japanese whelk, Buccinum isaotakii, were investigated under laboratory conditions. Consumption per food item and the corresponding assimilation efficiency were also de termined. Whelks were more sensitive to fresh foods than boiled foods, detecting them in a short period of time varying between 3.8 (±0.8) and 23.1 (±3.1) minutes. B. isaotakii preferred fish, polychate and bivalves and the time spent on these foods was more than 10 min as compared with those of shrimp (2.0 min) and squid (1.0 min). The highest daily consumption rate was observed on sardine, followed by scallop, polychaete and oyster. The relationship between shell length and consumption of different food items was positive. The coefficients of determination were relatively high for sardine, scallop, polychaete and oyster (r 2, between 0.46 and 0.51) but not for clam, mussel shrimp and squid (r 2, between 0.003 and 0.176), suggesting that the former could be predators of consumption for B. isaotakii. Observed were relatively high assimilation efficiencies on sardine, scallop, polychaete, and oyster, ranging from 30 to 70%. The present results are the intial information pertaining to the feeding biology of this whelk, thus, in-depth studies like an energy budget are recommended to deepen the understanding about seed production and resource management.

Two distinct insulin-like growth factor 1 receptors of the mandarin fish Siniperca chuatsi (scIGF1R1 and scIGF1R2) were cloned and characterized in this study. The complementary DNA of scIGF1R1 [4254 base pairs (bp)] and scIGF1R2 (4248 bp) encoded 1418 and 1416 amino acids, respectively. Both receptors contained a single short transmembrane domain, two receptor L domains and a furin-like cysteine-rich domain. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that scIGF1R1 and scIGF1R2 were clustered in two different branches. Both receptors were expressed in all tissues tested, and the expression levels were relatively high in the gonad, liver and brain. During the first week of starvation, the expression levels of both receptors were increased in the muscle and liver, whereas hepatic scIGF1 expression was decreased. After re-feeding, the expression levels of both receptors were gradually restored to the pre-starvation levels in the liver and muscle. The concentration of serum scIGF1 did not exhibit regular changes compared with the control group during fasting and re-feeding. The varying expression profiles of the scIGF1Rs among tissues indicated that these receptors have distinct, tissue-specific roles. Furthermore, the changes in expression levels of scIGF1, scIGF1R1s during fasting and re-feeding provided evidence to support the link between nutritional status and gene expression related to growth and development.

Molecular and otolith analyses were conducted for 173 settlement-stage larvae of emperor fishes (family Lethrinidae) collected by light traps at Ishigaki Island, southern Japan, in July and August (summer season), to (1) present diagnostic DNA markers for identification of lethrinid species and (2) compare the size and age at settlement of each species. PCR–RFLP and direct nucleotide sequencing analyses identified 8 species. Size (standard length, SL) at settlement differed significantly between species; Lethrinus ornatus (mean SL ± SD, 12.8 ± 1.5 mm), L. obsoletus (14.2 ± 0.8 mm) and L. harak (15.8 ± 1.6 mm) settled at a smaller size than L. atkinsoni (17.0 ± 1.3 mm), L. genivittatus (17.3 ± 1.0 mm), L. olivaceus (18.1 ± 0.6 mm), L. nebulosus (18.6 ± 4.2 mm), and L. sp.2 reported by Lo Galbo et al. (J Mol Evol 54:754–762, 2002) (21.7 ± 1.4 mm). Age at settlement tends to increase with settlement size; L. obsoletus (mean age ± SD, 25.6 ± 1.2 days), L. atkinsoni (26.1 ± 2.1 days) and L. ornatus (26.3 ± 2.9 days) were younger at settlement than L. nebulosus (28.4 ± 2.1 days), L. harak (29.2 ± 1.7 days), L. olivaceus (29.5 ± 1.0 days), L. genivittatus (30.5 ± 1.7 days) and L. sp.2 (31.0 ± 2.0 days). Although our study showed interspecific variation in body size and age at settlement among 8 lethrinid species, further seasonal replication is necessary to clarify the general patterns.