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Animals
Special Issues
Ecology of Aquatic Crustaceans: Crabs, Shrimps and Lobsters
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Ecology of Aquatic Crustaceans: Crabs, Shrimps and Lobsters

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Aquatic Animals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 1004

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Hui Guo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Fisheries, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang 524025, China
Interests: healthy aquaculture; aquatic crustaceans; eco-physiology; environmental stress
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Yafei Duan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Guangzhou 510300, China
Interests: environmental stress; aquatic physiology; intestine microbiota; nutritional immunity; healthy aquaculture
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aquatic crustaceans, including crabs, shrimps, and lobsters, play pivotal roles in maintaining the balance of marine and freshwater ecosystems. They serve as keystone species in nutrient cycling, sediment dynamics, and food webs while supporting global fisheries and aquaculture industries. However, rapid environmental changes—such as pollution, climate change, anthropogenic disturbances, etc.—are increasingly threatening their survival, ecological functions, and the sustainability of associated fisheries. Understanding the interplay between environmental factors and the ecology of these crustaceans is critical for developing effective conservation strategies and ensuring ecosystem resilience.

This Special Issue warmly welcomes original research and review articles that explore the environmental ecology of aquatic crustaceans, with a focus on their responses to ecological stressors, adaptive mechanisms, and broader implications for ecosystem health. We welcome interdisciplinary studies integrating field observations, experimental approaches, and advanced technologies to address pressing ecological challenges.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Hui Guo
Dr. Yafei Duan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • crustaceans
  • environmental stress
  • eco-physiology
  • biochemistry
  • pollutants
  • healthy aquaculture
  • adaptive mechanisms

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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20 pages, 7380 KiB  
Article
Copper Pyrithione Induces Hepatopancreatic Apoptosis and Metabolic Disruption in Litopenaeus vannamei: Integrated Transcriptomic, Metabolomic, and Histopathological Analysis
by Jieyu Guo, Yang Yang, Siying Yu, Cairui Jiang, Xianbin Su, Yongfeng Zou and Hui Guo
Animals 2025, 15(14), 2134; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani15142134 - 18 Jul 2025
Viewed by 144
Abstract
Copper pyrithione (CuPT), an emerging biocide used in ship antifouling coatings, may accumulate in marine sediments and pose risks to non-target organisms. However, current research on CuPT toxicity remains limited. Litopenaeus vannamei, one of the world’s most important aquaculture shrimp species, relies [...] Read more.
Copper pyrithione (CuPT), an emerging biocide used in ship antifouling coatings, may accumulate in marine sediments and pose risks to non-target organisms. However, current research on CuPT toxicity remains limited. Litopenaeus vannamei, one of the world’s most important aquaculture shrimp species, relies heavily on its hepatopancreas for energy metabolism, detoxification, and immune responses. Due to their benthic habitat, these shrimps are highly vulnerable to contamination in sediment environments. This study investigated the toxicological response in the hepatopancreas of L. vannamei exposed to CuPT (128 μg/L) for 3 and 48 h. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP Nick-End Labeling (TUNEL) fluorescence staining revealed increased apoptosis, deformation of hepatic tubule lumens, and the loss of stellate structures in the hepatopancreas after CuPT 48 h exposure. A large number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by transcriptomics analysis at 3 and 48 h, respectively. Most of these DEGs were related to detoxification, glucose transport, and immunity. Metabolomic analysis identified numerous significantly different metabolites (SDMs) at both 3 and 48 h post-exposure, with most SDMs associated with energy metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, and related pathways. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis of metabolomics and transcriptome revealed that both DEGs and SDMs were enriched in arachidonic acid metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, and glycolysis/gluconeogenesis pathways at 3 h, while at 48 h they were enriched in the starch and sucrose metabolism, amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism, and galactose metabolism pathways. These results suggested that CuPT disrupts the energy and lipid homeostasis of L. vannamei. This disruption compelled L. vannamei to allocate additional energy toward sustaining basal physiological functions and consequently caused the accumulation of large amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the body, leading to apoptosis and subsequent tissue damage, and ultimately suppressed the immune system and impaired the health of L. vannamei. Our study elucidates the molecular mechanisms of CuPT-induced metabolic disruption and immunotoxicity in L. vannamei through integrated multi-omics analyses, providing new insights for ecological risk assessment of this emerging antifoulant. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecology of Aquatic Crustaceans: Crabs, Shrimps and Lobsters)
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21 pages, 2449 KiB  
Article
Toxic Effects of Acute Water Selenium Exposure on Litopenaeus vannamei: Survival, Physiological Responses, Transcriptome, and Intestinal Microbiota
by Xinghui Luo, Jian Chen, Asare Derrick, Gongyu Li, Hongming Wang, Zhihao Xue, Lili Shi and Shuang Zhang
Animals 2025, 15(12), 1792; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani15121792 - 18 Jun 2025
Viewed by 545
Abstract
Excess selenium (Se) can cause a variety of toxic effects in aquatic animals. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive studies about the toxicity effects of Se in culture water on shrimp. Based on the 96 h acute toxicity test, which confirmed [...] Read more.
Excess selenium (Se) can cause a variety of toxic effects in aquatic animals. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive studies about the toxicity effects of Se in culture water on shrimp. Based on the 96 h acute toxicity test, which confirmed the 96 h LC50 of Se (Na2SeO3) for Litopenaeus vannamei as 2.69 mg/L, L. vannamei (7.25 ± 0.05 g) were divided into three groups (named CON, S1 and S2) and exposed to Se at concentrations of 0, 0.0269 (0.01 × 96 h LC50), and 0.269 (0.1 × 96 h LC50) mg/L in the water for 72 h, respectively. The toxic effects of Se exposure on L. vannamei were evaluated based on histopathology, oxidative stress, immunity, apoptosis, transcriptional responses, and intestinal microbiota. Results demonstrated that Se exposure induced structural damage to the hepatopancreas of L. vannamei, including hepatocyte vacuolation and necrosis. Compared to the CON group, serum Caspase-3 activity significantly increased, while Bcl-2 activity markedly decreased in the S1 and S2 groups (p < 0.05). No significant differences in Bax activity were observed among groups (p > 0.05). ROS content, as well as activities of SOD, PO, GSH-PX, LYS, AKP, and ACP, exhibited an upward trend under Se exposure (p < 0.05). However, MDA levels showed no significant intergroup differences (p > 0.05). Hemocyte transcriptomic analysis revealed 2103 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) (1294 upregulated, 809 downregulated) in the S2 group compared to CON. GO enrichment indicated significant enrichment of DEGs in cellular processes, binding, and cell components. KEGG pathway analysis highlighted prominent enrichment in ribosome biogenesis in eukaryotes, lysosome, cell cycle, and pancreatic secretion pathways. Intestinal microbiota analysis showed that the Shannon, Simpson, and Pielou indices in the S2 group were significantly lower than those in the CON group (p < 0.05). The relative abundance of Vibrio and Acinetobacter increased significantly in the S2 group, while Enterococcus and Pseudomonas decreased markedly (p < 0.05). In conclusion, Se exposure triggered elevated immune enzyme activities, induced oxidative damage and apoptosis, transcriptional level metabolic disorders, and disrupted intestinal microbiota structure in L. vannamei. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecology of Aquatic Crustaceans: Crabs, Shrimps and Lobsters)
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