Elsevier

Aquaculture

Volume 218, Issues 1–4, 27 March 2003, Pages 457-469
Aquaculture

Effect of dietary supplementation with shrimp on skin pigmentation and lipid composition of red porgy (Pagrus pagrus) alevins

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0044-8486(02)00226-0Get rights and content

Abstract

A feeding experiment was conducted on red porgy alevins to investigate the influence of dietary supplementation with shrimp on pigmentation and lipid composition of carcass (muscle and skin) and eyes. To this purpose, red porgy alevins with an initial mean weight of 2.8±1.3 g were divided into six groups. Three groups were fed gilthead seabream commercial pellet (P, 100% pellet), whereas the other three were fed with the commercial pellet and shrimp Pleisonika sp. (PS, 88% pellet:12% shrimp) to provide the diet with a source of carotenoids. After 4 months of feeding, the results showed that PS-fish groups displayed a pink-coloured skin similar to that of the wild fish, whereas P-fish groups showed a dark-grey-coloured skin. Furthermore, a higher total content of carotenoids was found in carcass and eyes from PS-fish groups with respect to P-fish groups. No significant differences in growth, survival or other gross external signs were found between treatments. Total lipid (TL), triacylglycerol (TG), phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) of red porgy carcass exhibited a specific fatty acid profile. However, the general patterns of the fatty acid distribution in lipids of carcass and eyes from both groups of fish (P and PS) were similar, and only slight differences were found mainly in carcass for some of the fatty acids. We conclude that the natural carotenoids supplied by the shrimp were effectively assimilated by the red porgy and allowed the cultured fish to acquire a skin coloration similar to that of wild fish.

Introduction

The production of new cultured species is considered one of the main strategies for the future development of commercial aquaculture, and therefore, the number of studies related to species diversification has increased in recent years. In the Mediterranean region, research has been concentrated primarily on species similar to those currently produced, mainly the Sparid family (Basurco and Abellán, 1999).

The red porgy is a protogynous hermaphrodite sparid of high price and increasing interest, widely distributed in the temperate zone of both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea (Manooch, 1975). Studies carried out show that red porgy has a good adaptability and a high growth rate under captivity (Cejas et al., 1999) Data on reproductive biology and larval rearing are already available, however, some problems related to the intensive culture have also been reported, including the discoloration of the body during the ongrowing phase (TECAM, 1999). The natural pink colour of red porgy cannot yet be obtained under culture conditions, and fish acquire a dark grey colour when using commercial available pellets developed for other carnivorous species like gilthead seabream. This problem has been reported by several authors Kentouri et al., 1995, Stephanou et al., 1995, TECAM, 1999 and our results in previous studies are in agreement with these observations Cejas et al., 1999, Almansa et al., 2001.

The coloration of the fish skin is dependent on absorption and deposition of carotenoid pigments from the diet, since fish, like other vertebrates, are unable to synthesize carotenoids de novo (Goodwin, 1984). Taking into account that red porgy's natural diet is based on carotenoid rich crustacean (Labropoulou et al., 1999), the discoloration of the red porgy obtained under captivity conditions could be related to the deficiency of these pigments in commercial diet.

The role of carotenoids has been associated not only with pigmentation but also with other physiological functions like an elevated antioxidant role, preventing the harmful effects of lipid peroxidation (Liebler, 1993). Among dietary lipids of marine fish, considerable attention has been focused on the highly unsaturated fatty acid (HUFA), particularly docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3) and arachidonic acid (ARA, 20:4n-6) Castell et al., 1994, Reitan et al., 1994, Zheng et al., 1996, Sargent et al., 1997. These fatty acids play important physiological roles in fish as components of membrane phospholipids and as precursors of biologically active eicosanoids (Bell et al., 1995). However, due to their high unsaturation level, these fatty acids are highly sensitive to oxidation, which are continuously generated in the cell physiological process (Biesalski, 1992). Recent studies performed in the African catfish (Baker and Davies, 1996) and in Atlantic salmon (Bell et al., 2000) have shown changes in tissue HUFA composition when a state of antioxidant deficiency was established. An alteration in membrane phospholipid fatty acid composition together with an oxidative products deposition in the cell could give rise to degenerative pathological processes (Halliwell and Gutteridge, 1989), and consequently, an increase in mortality rates. Several studies performed in larvae and juveniles of Atlantic salmon Christiansen et al., 1995, Christiansen and Torrissen, 1996 have shown that astaxanthin deficiency may cause delayed growth and high mortality.

The aim of the present study was to investigate whether a dietary supplementation with shrimp affects the skin pigmentation, total carotenoids content and lipid composition of the red porgy alevins.

Section snippets

Material and methods

Red porgy (Pagrus pagrus) produced under captivity, with an average weight of 2.8 g, were randomly divided into six groups of 600 fish each (two treatments, three replicates). Each group was stocked in a 3-m3 tank with a seawater input of 30 l/min. Aeration was supplied to maintain oxygen level close to saturation. Water temperature ranged between 22.5 and 23.4 °C throughout the experiment.

During 4 months, fish were fed daily an amount of feed corresponding to 2% of their body weight. Three

Results

Total contents of carotenoids, lipid classes and fatty acid composition of the commercial pellet and shrimp are shown in Table 1, Table 2. The carotenoid content in the commercial pellet and in the shrimp samples were 17.8±0.5 and 260.4±49 μg/g (DWB), respectively. The polar lipid content of shrimp was also significantly higher than that of commercial pellet (Table 1). The fatty acid composition of total lipids (TL) from the commercial pellet was mainly characterized by a higher proportion of

Discussion

Red porgy fed pellets and shrimp (PS-fish) were able to efficiently utilize carotenoids from ingested shrimp and this carotenoid was responsible for the pink colour acquired by the fish.

In the present study, the pigmented fish were fed 12% shrimp and 88% commercial pellet, which means that the fish were given 31.3 mg total carotenoids/kg DWB of diet. The results suggest that a dietary level of about 30 mg/kg of natural carotenoids might be necessary to allow red porgy alevins of 50 g weight to

Acknowledgements

We are indebted to Neil Abrey for the correction of the English spelling and grammar of the manuscript.

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