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The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of...
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The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms

A special issue of Fishes (ISSN 2410-3888). This special issue belongs to the section "Environment and Climate Change".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2023) | Viewed by 21995

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Jack Falcón

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratoire de Biologie des Organismes et des Ecosystèmes Aquatiques (BOREA), Equipe EVOREG, MNHN, CNRS 8067, Sorbonne Université, IRD 207, UCN, UA, CEDEX 05, 75231 Paris, France
Interests: fish; pineal gland; retina; photoreceptors; photoperiod; temperature; thermo-receptors; biological rhythms; neuroendocrine regulations; melatonin; artificial-light-at-night (ALAN); global warming
Dr. Arianna Servili

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Unit of Functional Physiology of Marine Organisms, Ifremer, LEMAR, Technopole Iroise, ZI de la Pointe du Diable, 29280 Plouzané, France
Interests: fish physiology; ecotoxicology; neuroendocrine and endocrine regulation; reproduction; stress; development; environmental factors; global change; chemical pollution

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

For millions of years, fishes, like all living organisms, have adapted to their environment, which, globally speaking, has remained rather stable, at least since the last mass extinction 66 million years ago. However, in less than a century, human pressures have modified this environment so dramatically that living organisms have not had enough time to adapt to the new imposed conditions, and the occurrence of a sixth mass extinction has been predicted. Indeed, the increasing human populatuion has induced a growing need for food and an increasing reorganization of spaces, whatever the medium concerned, be it aquatic or terrestrial. The results of this include a dramactic ongoing reduction in and fragmentation of wild spaces, together with an increase in physical barriers and physical and chemical pollutants (light-at-night, noise, nanoparticles, heavy metals, electromagnetic fields, hydrocarbons, endocrine disruptors (PCBs, herbicides, pesticides, synthetic steroids) and more). Moreover, these same human activities are inducing dramatic climatic changes, with all of the associated threats. Thus, aquatic organisms are also facing increases in temperature (dramatic in freshwater environments) and the increased acidification and salinity of oceans, together with changes in sea currents, oxygen concentrations, eutrophication and blooms of algae and microorganisms, as well as the invasion of migratory species (which adds to those already introduced by human activities). This conjunction of threats places organisms, communities and ecosystems in danger. The current Special Topic aims at collecting original and review papers which investigate how one or more of these threats are affecting, individually or collectively, the metabolism and physiology of marine and freshwater species.

Dr. Jack Falcón
Dr. Arianna Servili
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. Fishes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2600 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

  • global changes
  • freshwater
  • seawater
  • metabolism
  • physiology

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 2722 KiB  
Article
Effects of Seasonal Photoperiod on Growth, Lipid Metabolism, and Antioxidant Response in the Huanghe Carp (Cyprinus carpio haematopterus)
by Wenqian Wang, Shengyan Su, Ping Dong, Wenrong Feng, Jianlin Li, Chengfeng Zhang and Yongkai Tang
Fishes 2023, 8(12), 595; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8120595 - 1 Dec 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2358
Abstract
Photoperiod is one of the most important environmental cues for organisms, and it plays a crucial role in regulating feeding, behavior, growth, and metabolism. However, seasonal photoperiods are often overlooked in carp culture or experiments, with a poorly understood effect on lipid metabolism [...] Read more.
Photoperiod is one of the most important environmental cues for organisms, and it plays a crucial role in regulating feeding, behavior, growth, and metabolism. However, seasonal photoperiods are often overlooked in carp culture or experiments, with a poorly understood effect on lipid metabolism and oxidative stress in fish. To explore the effects of seasonal photoperiods, we exposed Huanghe carp (Cyprinus carpio haematopterus) to summer photoperiod (14 h light:10 h dark) and winter photoperiod (10 h light:14 h dark) daylight conditions in an eight-week experiment. Our results suggested that the winter photoperiod significantly increased the liver TG level as well as the transcript levels of genes related to lipid synthesis, indicating that the lipid metabolism in Huanghe carp liver was enhanced compared to summer photoperiod conditions, and that lipid deposition may be responsible for the increase in body weight level and hepatosomatic index. Additionally, MDA, GSH, GSH-PX, and T-AOC levels were significantly elevated in the liver of fish under the winter photoperiod, suggesting that Huanghe carp responded to winter photoperiod exposure-induced oxidative stress in the liver by enhancing the antioxidant response. Based on transcriptome analysis, the winter photoperiod activated hepatic autophagy response and the FOXO signaling pathway in Huanghe carp. Combined with the correlation analysis, the Huanghe carp maintains the physiological health of the liver by activating the FOXO signaling pathway-mediated cell cycle regulation and autophagy response in response to oxidative stress during winter photoperiod exposure. Our study provides the first evidence for the physiological regulation of the liver in Huanghe carp under seasonal photoperiod stimulation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms)
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23 pages, 3559 KiB  
Article
Impacts of Long-Term Exposure to Ocean Acidification and Warming on Three-Spined Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) Growth and Reproduction
by Jimmy Devergne, Véronique Loizeau, Christophe Lebigre, Anne Bado-Nilles, Sophie Collet, Olivier Mouchel, Ugo Iaria, Marie-Madeleine Le Gall, Lauriane Madec, Cyril Turiès and Arianna Servili
Fishes 2023, 8(10), 523; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8100523 - 21 Oct 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3168
Abstract
The warming and acidification of surface waters as predicted by the IPCC leads aquatic species to face major multifaceted changes in their environment. Although teleosts have efficient regulatory systems to cope with these changes, such changes clearly have the potential to impact their [...] Read more.
The warming and acidification of surface waters as predicted by the IPCC leads aquatic species to face major multifaceted changes in their environment. Although teleosts have efficient regulatory systems to cope with these changes, such changes clearly have the potential to impact their physiological functions. Hence, it is crucial to estimate the ability of teleost fishes to cope with multi-stresses to predict how they will deal with future environments. In this context, we investigated the joint effect of warming and acidification on three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) from the juvenile stage to adulthood, focusing on parameters linked to growth, sexual maturation, and reproduction. Juvenile sticklebacks were split in 2 climate scenarios: a “Current” scenario corresponding to the current seasonal physico-chemical parameters of the water of the “Rade de Brest” in France, and a “RCP8.5” scenario with a warming of 3 °C and an acidification of 0.4 pH units. After 7 months, fish in the RCP8.5 scenario reached the same size and mass as those in the Current scenario, but they needed greater amounts of food to reach satiety. Furthermore, the mortality rate over the experiment was higher in the RCP8.5 scenario. Muscle lipid content, an indicator of energy reserves, was lower in females in the RCP8.5 scenario, suggesting an increased need for energy to maintain homeostasis and other physiological functions or a divergence in energy allocation strategy. Moreover, females exhibited lower sexual maturation and egg quality under the RCP8.5 scenario, which could have contributed to the lower fertilisation rate observed. Males were more resilient to the RCP8.5 scenario, exhibiting only a trend for lower kidney somatic index scores. Altogether, these results suggest a delay and/or an inhibition of gametogenesis and maturation in fish in warmed and acidified waters. The analysis of blood sex steroid concentrations, brain gene expression profiles, and physiological indexes did not allow us to discriminate between a delay and an inhibition of maturation in the RCP8.5 scenario. Overall, these findings clearly indicate that there is a long-term global impact of combined acidification and warming on the mortality and reproductive performance of three-spined stickleback. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms)
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12 pages, 3079 KiB  
Article
Variation in the Physiological Condition of Common Coral Trout (Plectropomus leopardus) Unrelated to Coral Cover on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia
by Morgan S. Pratchett, Ciemon F. Caballes, Jean-Paul A. Hobbs, Joseph D. DiBattista, Brock Bergseth, Peter Waldie, Curtis Champion, Samuel P. Mc Cormack and Andrew S. Hoey
Fishes 2023, 8(10), 497; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8100497 - 5 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2548
Abstract
There are a wide variety of fishes that occur exclusively on coral reefs, though it is unclear to what extent these species (especially larger-bodied fisheries target species) are reliant on the specific reef habitat provided by corals. This study explored variation in the [...] Read more.
There are a wide variety of fishes that occur exclusively on coral reefs, though it is unclear to what extent these species (especially larger-bodied fisheries target species) are reliant on the specific reef habitat provided by corals. This study explored variation in the physiological condition of common coral trout (Plecropomus leopardus) on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, explicitly testing whether fish condition varied with local coral cover in the aftermath of severe mass bleaching and coral loss. Both the physiological condition (specifically, the length–weight relationships, hepatocyte vacuolation, and electrical phase angle) of P. leopardus and the live cover of habitat-forming corals varied greatly among the sites considered in this study, but there was little correspondence between these factors. Fish condition was largely influenced by fish size and varied with latitude. While there was no apparent effect of recent coral bleaching and coral loss on the physiological condition of P. leopardus, this does not mean that these key fisheries species will be unaffected by further changes to the environmental conditions and reef habitat. It is important, therefore, that fisheries managers remain vigilant to apparent effects of climate change and other anthropogenic pressures on fisheries stocks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms)
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21 pages, 4105 KiB  
Article
Growth Performance, Physiological Responses, and Histoarchitectural Changes in Juvenile Pangasianodon hypophthalmus under Different Environmental Salinities
by Hany M. R. Abdel-Latif, Hamada A. Ahmed, Mustafa Shukry, Asmaa F. Khafaga, Bassem Khalil Elkhayat, Mohsen Abdel-Tawwab and Rehab A. Abd-elaziz
Fishes 2023, 8(6), 282; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8060282 - 25 May 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2701
Abstract
Environmental salinity is an important abiotic factor that directly affects the growth, metabolism, osmoregulatory processes, and physiological performance of fish. Herein, the effects of long-term salinity stress on juvenile Pangasianodon hypophthalmus have been evaluated. Fish were allotted in five triplicate groups and exposed [...] Read more.
Environmental salinity is an important abiotic factor that directly affects the growth, metabolism, osmoregulatory processes, and physiological performance of fish. Herein, the effects of long-term salinity stress on juvenile Pangasianodon hypophthalmus have been evaluated. Fish were allotted in five triplicate groups and exposed to five different salinities (0.0, 4.0, 8.0, 12.0, and 16.0‰) for 56 days. After exposure, the final weight, weight gain percent, and specific growth rate were significantly decreased in groups reared in 8‰, 12‰, and 16‰ salinities. The feed intake was also significantly reduced in groups raised in water salinities of 12‰ and 16‰ compared with other groups. Conversely, the feed conversion ratio values were significantly increased in groups reared in water salinities between 8‰ and 16‰ compared with other groups. The lowest survival rates were observed in groups reared at salinities of 12‰ and 16‰ (91.1% and 77.8%, respectively). Body moisture (%) was significantly decreased, while crude protein and crude lipids (%) were significantly increased in groups exposed to salinities ranging from 8.0‰ to 16.0‰. Stress biomarkers (such as blood glucose, lactate, and cortisol levels) and oxidative stress indicators (such as carbonyl proteins, malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPX)) were significantly increased in groups exposed to different salinities compared with the control group, and their highest levels were in the group exposed to 16‰ salinity. The histoarchitectural changes were different among groups in relation to the salinity level. Moreover, the scored histopathological lesions showed a significant increase in groups exposed to different salinities compared with the control, and the highest scores were reported in groups exposed to the highest salinities (12‰ and 16‰). Based on the fitting curves, the present study suggests that P. hypophthalmus could tolerate salinities up to 8.0‰ with no mortalities; however, 4‰ salinity was more suitable with no adverse effects on the growth and little impact on histology and physiological responses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms)
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20 pages, 6207 KiB  
Article
Common Sea Star (Asterias rubens) Coelomic Fluid Changes in Response to Short-Term Exposure to Environmental Stressors
by Sarah J. Wahltinez, Kevin J. Kroll, Donald C. Behringer, Jill E. Arnold, Brent Whitaker, Alisa L. Newton, Kristina Edmiston, Ian Hewson and Nicole I. Stacy
Fishes 2023, 8(1), 51; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8010051 - 12 Jan 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5068
Abstract
Common sea stars (Asterias rubens) are at risk of physiological stress and decline with projected shifts in oceanic conditions. This study assessed changes in coelomic fluid (CF) blood gases, electrolytes, osmolality, and coelomocyte counts in adult common sea stars after exposure [...] Read more.
Common sea stars (Asterias rubens) are at risk of physiological stress and decline with projected shifts in oceanic conditions. This study assessed changes in coelomic fluid (CF) blood gases, electrolytes, osmolality, and coelomocyte counts in adult common sea stars after exposure to stressors mimicking effects from climate change for 14 days, including decreased pH (−0.4 units, mean: 7.37), hypoxia (target dissolved oxygen ~1.75 mg O2/L, mean: 1.80 mg O2/L), or increased temperature (+10 °C, mean: 17.2 °C) and compared sea star CF electrolytes and osmolality to tank water. Changes in CF blood gases, electrolytes, and/or coelomocyte counts occurred in all treatment groups after stressor exposures, indicating adverse systemic effects with evidence of increased energy expenditure, respiratory or metabolic derangements, and immunosuppression or inflammation. At baseline, CF potassium and osmolality of all groups combined were significantly higher than tank water, and, after exposures, CF potassium was significantly higher in the hypoxia group as compared to tank water. These findings indicate physiological challenges for A. rubens after stressor exposures and, given increased observations of sea star wasting events globally, this provides evidence that sea stars as a broad group are particularly vulnerable to changing oceans. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms)
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17 pages, 3496 KiB  
Article
The Responses of the Ovary and Eyestalk in Exopalaemon carinicauda under Low Salinity Stress
by Xiuhong Zhang, Jiajia Wang, Chengwei Wang, Wenyang Li, Qianqian Ge, Zhen Qin, Jian Li and Jitao Li
Fishes 2022, 7(6), 365; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes7060365 - 30 Nov 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2463
Abstract
As a euryhaline shrimp, the ridgetail white prawn Exopalaemon carinicauda is strongly adaptable to salinity. Exploring the effect of long-term low salinity stress on ovarian development in E. carinicauda is essential to promote its culture in a non-marine environment. In this study, we [...] Read more.
As a euryhaline shrimp, the ridgetail white prawn Exopalaemon carinicauda is strongly adaptable to salinity. Exploring the effect of long-term low salinity stress on ovarian development in E. carinicauda is essential to promote its culture in a non-marine environment. In this study, we performed biochemical assays and ovary histology analysis, finding that the E. carinicauda can adapt to low salinity stress through osmotic adjustment, and there was no substantial damage to the ovary of E. carinicauda under low salinity stress. Then, the ovarian development of E. carinicauda under low salt stress was further explored by RNA sequencing of eyestalk and ovarian tissues. A total of 389 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in ovary tissue were identified under low salinity stress, and the 16 important DEGs were associated with ovarian development. The majority of the DEGs were enriched in ECM-receptor interaction, folate biosynthesis, arginine biosynthesis, insect hormone biosynthesis and lysosome which were involved in the ovarian development of E. carinicauda. A total of 1223 DEGs were identified in eyestalk tissue under low salinity stress, and the 18 important DEGs were associated with ovarian development. KEGG enrichment analysis found that ECM-receptor interaction, folate biosynthesis, lysosome, arginine biosynthesis and retinol metabolism may be involved in the ovarian development under low salinity stress. Our results provided new insights and revealed new genes and pathways involved in ovarian development of E. carinicauda under long-term low salinity stress. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms)
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10 pages, 2110 KiB  
Article
Effects of Short-Term Salinity Stress on Ions, Free Amino Acids, Na+/K+-ATPase Activity, and Gill Histology in the Threatened Freshwater Shellfish Solenaia oleivora
by Ting Zhang, Jingting Yao, Dongpo Xu, Guohua Lv and Haibo Wen
Fishes 2022, 7(6), 346; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes7060346 - 25 Nov 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2685
Abstract
Salinity is an important ecological factor affecting the osmolality of aquatic animals. Solenaia oleivora is an endemic and economically important freshwater shellfish in China. However, its osmotic response and osmoregulatory mechanisms under high salinity stress are still unclear. In this study, S. oleivora [...] Read more.
Salinity is an important ecological factor affecting the osmolality of aquatic animals. Solenaia oleivora is an endemic and economically important freshwater shellfish in China. However, its osmotic response and osmoregulatory mechanisms under high salinity stress are still unclear. In this study, S. oleivora was exposed to saline water (salinity: 2.2‰) for 3 h, 6 h, 12 h, 24 h, and 48 h, and then the changes in osmolality, ion concentrations, free amino acid (FAA) content, Na+/K+-ATPase (NKA) activity, and gill histology were analyzed. The hemolymph osmolality increased from 3 h after salinity stress and stabilized between 24–48 h. Na+ in the hemolymph increased from 24 h after salinity stress, and Cl− increased from 3 h. The content of total FAAs in the hemolymph increased after salinity stress. The content of alanine, glycine, glutamine, proline, and other FAAs increased after salinity stress. NKA activity in the gill, hepatopancreases, adductor muscle, and axe foot decreased during 3–48 h of salinity stress. The gill filament space increased and the number of gill cilia decreased after salinity stress. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that the first two principal components (PC1 and PC2) cumulatively explained 77.6% of the total variation. The NKA activity was positively associated with PC1, while the ion concentration and most FAAs were negatively associated with PC1. Thus, these results indicated that S. oleivora is an osmoconformer, and inorganic ions, FAA, NKA, and gill structure changes play an important role in its osmoregulation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Impact of the Changing Environment on the Physiology of Aquatic Organisms)
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