Fish hydrolysate supplemented diet improved feed efficiency and growth of coral trout (Plectropomus leopardus)

Fish hydrolysate contains hydrolyzed protein which comprised of peptides and free amino acids that are easily digested and absorbed by fish. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of fish hydrolysate in improving feed efficiency and growth of coral trout. Five experimental diets were formulated to contain 47% protein and 12% lipid with different sources and levels of fish hydrolysate. Diet-1 and diet-2 were added with crustacean hydrolysate at 2% and 4% levels, respectively. Whereas diet-3 and diet-4 were supplemented with 2% and 4% of tuna hydrolysate. Diet-5 was formulated without fish hydrolysate supplementation (control). The diets were prepared as dry pellet with 3 mm diameter. Coral trout juveniles were produced in the hatchery of Institute for Mariculture Research and Fisheries Extension (IMRAFE), Gondol-Bali with the average body weight of 7.6 ± 0.9 g. The juveniles were maintained in 15 fiber tanks, 400L in volume, with a density of 40 fish/tank. The experiment was designed with a completely randomized design (CRD) with 5 treatments (different diets) and 3 replications for each treatment. The fish were fed the experimantal diets three times every day at satiation level for 84 days of feeding experiment. Results of the experiment showed that increased supplementation of fish hydrolysate from 2% to 4% in diet tended to improve fish growth performance. However, the best growth performance, in term of weight gain (WG) and specific growth rate (SGR), was obtained in fish fed diet supplemented with 4% crustacean hydrolysate. This growth performance was significantly higher than of the other treatments (P<0.05). The best feed efficiency (FE) and protein efficiency ratio (PER) were also obtained in fish fed diet supplemented with 4% crustacean hydrolysate. The results of the present study showed that supplementation of 4% crustacean hydrolysate in diet effectively improved the growth and feed efficiency of coral trout.

Inclusions of probiotics and prebiotics in diet for coral trout, Plectropomus leopardus nursery

Coral trout is one of marine fishery commodities with high economic value. This grouper fish has limited ability in the utilization of artificial feed. The aim of this study was to obtain information on the effectiveness of probiotics and prebiotics inclusions in diet to increase growth of coral trout. Fish was reared in fiber tanks 300-L with a density of 30 fish/tank. Fish weight and length were 3.7±0.1 g and 6.3±0.1 cm, respectively. Each tank was equipped with a flowing water system and aeration as a source of oxygen supply. The feed was formulated with 48% protein and 9% lipid. Treatments were inclusion of probiotics in diet (diet A), inclusion of mannan oligosaccharide/MOS (diet B), inclusion of probiotic + mannan oligosaccharide/MOS (diet C), and diet D as control. The study was conducted in a complete randomized design (CRD) with 4 treatments and 4 replications. Fish fed trial diets with a frequency of 3 times a day at satiation. The parameters observed were growth, feed efficiency, feed digestibility, bacteria density and immunity. The data obtained were analysed with anova followed by LSD. The results showed that diet with the probiotic content promoted better growth and feed efficiency of coral trout compared to the other treatments. The highest growth of coral trout fingerlings was obtained by fish fed diet A (added with probiotics) with a weight gain of 794.86%. While fish fed diet containing probiotics and prebiotic (diet C) showed a lower growth response (weight gain 641.26%) than those fed diet with probiotics and prebiotics (MOS) separately. Survival during the study for all treatments ranged from 90.00% to 93.33%.

A Comparison of Microplastic in Fish From Australia and Fiji

Awareness surrounding plastic pollution has increased significantly in the past decade, leading to concerns on potential adverse effects on biota, including the consumption of microplastic by fish. Globally, plastic has been found in many species of fish, but little research has been undertaken in the southern hemisphere. We assessed the abundance and type of plastic in fish captured and sold for human consumption in Australia and Fiji. Fish (goatfish, sea mullet, paddletail, and common coral trout) had their gastrointestinal tracts dissected and microplastic quantified under a microscope. Plastic polymer types were confirmed using μ-FTIR. In Australia, plastic was found in 61.6% of fish gastrointestinal tracts, while in Fiji, 35.3% of fish had plastic. Fish from Australia had almost double the amount of plastic on average than fish caught in Fiji, with 1.58 (± 0.23) pieces per fish in Australia compared to 0.86 (± 0.14) in fish caught in Fiji. The types of plastic differed between countries, with fibers comprising 83.6% of microplastic pieces in fish from Australia whereas 50% of microplastic found in fish from Fiji was film. Polyolefin was the most abundant polymer type in both fibers from Australia and film from Fiji. We hypothesize variations in abundance and plastic type are a reflection of the population density and coastal geomorphology, but may also be a result of legislation and waste management strategies in the two countries. This work adds evidence to the pervasive presence of plastic in fish gastrointestinal tracts, reinforcing the urgent need for efficient plastic waste management, but also a better understanding of the impacts of microplastic on marine biota.

Dietary Trivalent Chromium Exposure Up-Regulates Lipid Metabolism in Coral Trout: The Evidence From Transcriptome Analysis

Diet quality greatly affects an animal’s performance and metabolism. Despite the fact that trivalent chromium [Cr(III)] is considered an essential element and is widely used in nutritional supplements for animals and humans, the potential toxicity of Cr(III) is unclear. Here, liver transcriptome sequencing was performed on coral trout (Plectropomus leopardus) exposed to 200 mg kg–1 of dietary organic Cr(III) [as chromium picolinate (CrPic)] for 8 weeks. One-hundred-and thirteen differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in response to Cr(III) stress, in comparison to the control, including 31 up-regulated and 82 down-regulated DEGs. Clusters of Orthologous Groups of proteins (COG) classifies DEGs into 15 functional categories, with the predominant category being related to lipid transport and metabolism (9.73%). The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) assigned DEGs to six major categories with robust DEGs as part of the lipid metabolism pathway (18.58%). Moreover, KEGG functional enrichment analysis showed that these DEGs are primarily related to steroid biosynthesis, terpenoid backbone biosynthesis, and steroid hormone biosynthesis pathways, of which steroid biosynthesis was the most significant pathway, and 12 key up-regulated DEGs (dhcr7, dhcr24, ebp, lss, msmo1, sqle, cyp51, tm7sf2, sc5dl, fdft1, nsdhl, and hsd17b7) were found for steroid biosynthesis pathways. To validate the RNA sequencing data using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), qRT-PCR results indicate that the expression of genes encoding HMGCR, TM7SF2, TRYP2, CTRL, EBP, LSS, and CYP51 were induced, while those encoding THRSP, LCE, and MCM5 were reduced, consistent with RNA-seq results. This findings provides the first evidence that a long-term high dose of Cr(III) intake causes lipid metabolism disorder and potential toxicity in fish. Cautious health risk assessment of dietary Cr(III) intake is therefore highly recommended for the commercial and/or natural diets of aquatic animals, which has previously largely been ignored.

OPTIMUM DENSITY OF Nannochloropsis sp. FOR MASS SCALE CORAL TROUT, Plectropomus leopardus (Lacepède, 1802)

Coral trout, Plectropomus leopardus (Lacepède, 1802)is a visual feeder. Turbidity caused by phytoplankton or clay particle in the water will affect the visual foraging of coral trout larvae. Addition of Nannochloropsis sp. has been included in standard operational procedure for marine fish larval rearing as green water. However, the density of Nannochlorposis sp. in coral trout larval rearing system has not been evaluated. This study aimed to evaluate the optimal of Nannochloropsis sp. required for rearing of coral trout larvae. Nannochloropsis sp. was given to two days old larvae (D-2), with the densities of 2 x 105, 4 x 105, and 6 x 105cell/mL. After 50 days rearing period (D-50), evaluation on the average size and total harvest were recorded. The results showed that the density of 2 x 105 cell/mL Nannochloropsis sp. was the best in survival rate (2.35 ± 1.05%) than other densities, but they were not significantly different (P>0.05) than those of 4 x 105 cell/mL (1.67 ± 0.70%) and 6 x 105 cell/mL (1.26 ± 1.05%). The lower densities, 2 x 105 and 4 x 105cell/mL, were dominated by more than 50% of > 2.7 cm sized juvenile. Histological analysis of fish eyes supported that the two lower densities produced dominant cone shape as the receptor cells in the retina observed. From an economical aspect, addition of 2 x 105 cells/mL resulted on the higher profit, hence optimum density of Nannochloropsis sp. added in coral trout larval rearing on a mass scale was 2 x 105 cells/mL.

Dependency of Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef’s tropical fisheries on reef-associated fish

Coral reefs have been subject to mass coral bleaching, potentially causing rapid and widespread degradation of ecosystem services that depend on live coral cover, such as fisheries catch. Fisheries species in tropical waters associate with a wide range of habitats, so assessing the dependency of fisheries on coral reefs is important for guiding fishery responses to coral reef degradation. This study aimed to determine how fisheries catches associate with coral reefs in Queensland, Australia. Queensland’s largest fisheries did not target fish associated with reefs, but specific sectors, particularly aquarium fisheries and commercial fisheries in the mid to northern region had a high dependence on species that use coral reefs. Regions that had a greater relative area of coral reefs had higher catches of species that depend on live coral, suggesting that coral area could be used to predict the sensitivity of a jurisdiction’s fisheries to bleaching. Dynamic analysis of stock trends found that coral trout and red throat emperor, the two largest species by catch for the reef line fishery, were at risk of overfishing if habitat loss caused declines in stock productivity. Management of fisheries that are highly dependent on reefs may need to adapt to declining productivity, but further research to support ongoing reforms in Queensland’s fisheries is needed to quantitatively link reef degradation to stock production parameters is needed.

Culture Technique of Sunu Grouper (Plectropomus Leopardus) Broodstock in a concrete pond in Gondol, Bali Marine Research and Development Center

(Plectropomus leopardus) or grouper coral trout is one kind of commodities that have high economic value. As marine fisheries commodities are much in demand for large-scale farmers or household level will require broodstock who have qualified to produce quality eggs and a good seed. qualified to produce quality eggs and a good seed. The purpose of research is to gain knowledge in maintenance activities of the broodstock grouper coral trout on a concrete tank by comparing theory and application in the field. Maintenance engineering of coral trout grouper broodstock includes the preparation of concrete tanks, broodstock selection, water quality management, feeding, spawning and harvesting of eggs, and disease. Research in Balai Besar Penelitian dan Pengembangan Budidaya Laut (BBPPBL) Gondol. Penyabangan Village, Subdistrict Gerokgak, Buleleng, Bali. On 18th January – 18th February 2016. Methods of work used in this research is descriptive data retrieval methods include primary data and secondary data. Data retrieval is done by means of active participation, observation, interviews and literature study. Results of Field Work Practice is the broodstock of grouper coral trout are maintained as much 217 with an average weight of 512.9 kg and an average length of 56.1 cm. Maintenance of broodstock grouper coral trout performed in container maintenance the round-shaped sized 100 m3 with a depth of 3 m with inlet and outlet Water management is performed by using a system is running water that flowing water as much as 300% -400%, the quality of sea water showing the value of 34.9 ppt salinity, DO 6.0 ppm, pH 8, and the temperature of 29 ˚C. Feed given in the form trash fish as much as 7-10 kg a day. Grouper coral trout spawning is done naturally by the male and female parent ratio of 1: 2, which produce eggs an average 2,252,292 items. During maintenance activities parasites invade have been found. Parasites invade the broodstock of grouper coral trout is Benedenia sp., Cryptocaryon sp., And viral infections Viral Nervous Necrosis (VNN)