Haematological and physiological characteristics of diploid and triploid sea bass, Dicentrarchus labrax L.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether diploid and triploid sea bass differed in terms of main haematological and physiological characteristics. Diploid and triploid fish were produced by sub-optimal pressure treatments and held in communal environments under standard rearing conditions. Total red blood cell count (RBCC), haemoglobin concentration (Hb), hematocrit (Hct), mean cell volume (MCV), mean cellular haemoglobin content (MCH), mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), plasma metabolites, osmotic pressure, gill Na+/K+-ATPase activity, electrolytes, cortisol, and 3,5,3′-triiodo-l-thyronine (T3), were measured and compared. Triploidisation in sea bass led to an increase in erythrocyte size (32% in cytoplasm surface area, and 50% in nucleus) and a decrease in erythrocyte number (∼34%). Haemoglobin and basal plasma cortisol levels were significantly lower in triploid sea bass than in diploids. There were also differences between ploidies in the plasma concentrations of some electrolytes, with triploids showing lower concentrations of K, Fe, Zn, S, and Cu than their diploid counterparts.